Sock tans

Holy. Smokes. It's so freaking hot. It's 90 degrees and super dry. Depressing thought of the day: It's gonna be hotter and dryer in Albuquerque. At least I'll only have to run for 2 miles right? We just did a run. Natalie, Tomy, Angie, and Jaden came today so our group was huge today! Okay not huge just bigger than normal. So the first 2 miles were great, we stayed together and everything. Then some of us crossed the road (we may have jaywalked a bit..) and Natalie and Angie I guess decided not to cross so they missed the light and got separated, then at the same time Garek and Tomy seemed to have sped up and gapped the rest of us (Bill was killing it up front with a huge lead), Jaden was just a little ahead of me. So I stuck with Jaden for a bit. We went to Sugarhouse and did a shorter version of the cemetery run. So I stuck with Jaden for about a mile until we turned onto the street after the bridge or maybe a titch farther, then Jaden fell off and I was tempted to slow down but... I figured it was gonna hurt the same amount anyway. So then I was completely alone, I was just close enough to have Bill turn around and motion for me to turn left. And I'm lucky cause I saw the second time they turned too. And then I was overheating and crashing and calves on fire and everything burning, but tried to push through. The last 3 miles were miserable. Mile splits were 7:24, 7:03, 7:35, 7:26, 8:14, 7:41, 8:18 plus .5 at a lovely 8:45 pace... ha. 

We did 34 laps and 36.something laps is 10 miles so I'm pretty sure we did 9.5. Anywho, 4 laps warmup and 4 laps speed changes (at the oval), then changed shoes and did another lap. Then we did 800, 400, 400, 800, 400, 400. 800s were at 2 mile pace (2:50), and 400s at mile pace (77-80). My times went 2:47, 76, 75, 2:45, 74, 73. Actually those last two 400s were on the verge of 75 and 74 respectively so idk. The purpose of this workout for me was to latch onto the group and then kick the last 100 and beat everyone. Excluding Garek of course... haha. But I had Bill, Angie, and Natalie to pace me. I latched on pretty good, the second 800 I fell back maybe 5 meters so had to make it up at the end, which I did! Towards the end of the workout my hip was doing something funky, kind of like what it did at Pine View. So the last 400s my first 100 meters were slow and I fell behind because I was having a hard time driving my knee forward and as I warmed into it I picked it up so that by 200 I was with everyone again. Then just tried to stick with it and push a little harder the last 100.

Good workout, last speed for a while. Starting to get pumped for GSW! Also, stoked because I'm almost done with high school, I got 45 minutes of class time then I'm DONE FOREVER. (We have a weird schedule tomorrow so I'm only going to 1 class and classes were shortened and the rest of my teachers might "forget" to take role). I'm so ready to be done.

Laps around Liberty so that we could stay flat. My hip took a while to warm up but eventually it did. It should be fine, I wonder what I did to aggravate it? It was hot but not nearly as bad as monday. Good news-  it's actually not going to be as hot as expected this weekend! Also no more school, just yearbook signing and graduation!

Ran to Sugarhouse, started at the fountain on the far side an easy fartlek (30 sec on 1 minute off) just as some pickups. Felt pretty good. My hip pain slid down to my knee by the end of my run so tight IT band it is. Bill massaged out afterward, it hurt so good.

Can you give shout outs to yourself? If so, shout out to me cause I graduate high school later tonight. Hahaha I'm so stoked.

Will update later to include distance. 

I have mixed feelings about the race, it was soooo windy (Bill estimates 40+ MPH winds) so that really affected the race. Well I was just gonna stick behind someone and draft, thought maybe I could draft off of Julie Sumsion because she was seeded only a second faster than me. I knew the girl that won was gonna kill it, she was seeded with 10:30 and ran 10:59. I contemplated going out with her, but thought I better not basing it off of how I felt. I felt like I was working hard but I have a hard time feeling good about my time. I got out good right behind Julie, then she slowed obviously not wanting to take the lead and going with the pack, then the girl that won from Arizona jetted out after 100 meters and Julie surged to go with, and so did I and another girl from New Mexico. Then we settled and Arizona girl gapped us, I chilled behind Julie for a while then somehow passed her ? Not sure how that happened maybe I felt she was going too slow or something but somehow ended up in front of her and she drafted off of me for most of the race. The wind was absolutely brutal, on the backstretch we were running straight into it. I began to struggle with 3 laps left, I felt like I had pushed hard the first mile and wasn't too relaxed which worried me cause I knew after the announcer said that the Arizona girl ran 5:23 first mile we were going a lot slower than I had hoped. But it felt like I was running just as fast as I was at some of my better races. Anyway then Julie and New Mexico girl surged and I didn't stick with like I should have, it was right before the backstretch so perfect timing cause just as I tried to respond we were going into the wind and they were too far ahead for me to draft. I wish I would have stuck with. I began to fade a little, 500 left another pack had caught up to me and 400 left I tried to pick it up, 300 it was me and 5? other girls I think all right there and 200 left was really the first time all season I have actually kicked. I decided right then I didn't want to be beat. I got moving good, unfortunately the two I passed at 200 to go got me right at the end. Ehhh. 

Time was 11:50 so way slow. Wind obviously was a factor and elevation maybe a little. I know this race really doesn't matter and I know State was the race I needed to have a great performance in, which I did, but I still wanted to get a decent time. It wasn't a bad race but it wasn't spectacular either. Julie ran 11:41 so if I had stuck with her I could've been 10 seconds faster... Just a thought. But really that's the only thing I could've changed cause that's just how the race played out.

Cool experience, okay race, good trip. I'm lucky to have been able to come and so for that I am grateful.