| Location: Orem,UT,United States Member Since: Jan 27, 1986 Gender: Male Goal Type: Olympic Trials Qualifier Running Accomplishments: Best marathon: 2:23:57 (2007, St. George). Won the Top of Utah Marathon twice (2003,2004). Won the USATF LDR circuit in Utah in 2006.
Draper Days 5 K 15:37 (2004)
Did not know this until June 2012, but it turned out that I've been running with spina bifida occulta in L-4 vertebra my entire life, which explains the odd looking form, struggles with the top end speed, and the poor running economy (cannot break 16:00 in 5 K without pushing the VO2 max past 75).
Short-Term Running Goals: Qualify for the US Olympic Trials. With the standard of 2:19 on courses with the elevation drop not exceeding 450 feet this is impossible unless I find an uncanny way to compensate for the L-4 defect with my muscles. But I believe in miracles. Long-Term Running Goals: 2:08 in the marathon. Become a world-class marathoner. This is impossible unless I find a way to fill the hole in L-4 and make it act healthy either by growing the bone or by inserting something artificial that is as good as the bone without breaking anything important around it. Science does not know how to do that yet, so it will take a miracle. But I believe in miracles. Personal: I was born in 1973. Grew up in Moscow, Russia. Started running in 1984 and so far have never missed more than 3 consecutive days. Joined the LDS Church in 1992, and came to Provo, Utah in 1993 to attend BYU. Served an LDS mission from 1994-96 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Got married soon after I got back. My wife Sarah and I are parents of eleven children: Benjamin, Jenny, Julia, Joseph, Jacob, William, Stephen, Matthew, Mary, Bella. and Leigha. We home school our children.
I am a software engineer/computer programmer/hacker whatever you want to call it, and I am currently working for RedX. Aside from the Fast Running Blog, I have another project to create a device that is a good friend for a fast runner. I called it Fast Running Friend.
Favorite Quote:
...if we are to have faith like Enoch and Elijah we must believe what they believed, know what they knew, and live as they lived.
Elder Bruce R. McConkie
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 236.81 | 18.50 | 37.24 | 22.45 | 315.00 |
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| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 | |
| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 9.75 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 3.25 | 13.00 |
| Provo River Trail: 12x400/200 avg. 69.7 (out/back alternating) |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 13.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 13.00 |
| easy |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 3.50 | 7.50 | 2.50 | 0.00 | 13.50 |
| Provo River Trail: 10 miles flat in 57:09, last 2.5 in 13:44. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 13.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 13.00 |
| easy |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 8.00 | 0.00 | 6.00 | 0.00 | 14.00 |
| Provo Canyon: 2x3 down 15:52.5, up 17:09.5 |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 15.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 15.00 |
| easy, in the afternoon to BYU and back for "always on the run" |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 9.75 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 3.25 | 13.00 |
| Provo Canyon, 12x400 down, tailwind, 67.0 avg. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 13.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 13.00 |
| easy |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 6.75 | 0.00 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 8.00 |
| 0.75 in 3:56, 2x400 at tempo pace |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 7.30 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 6.70 | 14.00 |
| SLC Track Club 10 K, 33:40, 2nd place |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 7.78 | 0.00 | 4.22 | 0.00 | 12.00 |
| Slate Canyon Loop twice (4.22) in 23:23.9 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 13.50 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 13.50 |
| Frisco,TX: easy |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 7.75 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 3.25 | 11.00 |
| Frisco,TX: track workout, 4x100, 8x400 avg. 70.0, wind |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 13.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 13.00 |
| Easy run with George - 10 miles. It was very slippery. Additionally, some "always on the run" miles, and a run with Benjamin and Jenny. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 12.00 | 0.00 | 1.50 | 0.00 | 13.50 |
| Easy run on the Slate Canyon loop with tempo pace accelerations. Ran 0.5 in 2:41 flat from my house. Tried to relax and focus on using the hamstrings and the gluts as much as possible especially when going uphill. Total time for the 10 mile run was 1:07:58. Additionally did my "always on the the run" miles, and ran with Benjamin during his birthday race. Today is Benjamin's birthday. He turned 7. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 7.50 | 7.50 | 2.50 | 0.00 | 17.50 |
| 10 mile tempo run on the Provo River Trail by Geneva Road. Mostly flat course - slightly almost invisibly rolling, but I can never run as fast there as I do on a true flat course. Ran 2.5 out, then back, then repeat. First 2.5 in 14:23. Back in 14:29, next 2.5 in 14:26. Feeling OK, just regular 5:45 - 5:50 pace, nothing special. Then the last 2.5 really hard in 13:37 at a steady pace. That is quite a bit faster than I expected for the total time of 56:55. A couple of weeks ago I ran it in 13:44, and that surprised me. It felt different than two weeks ago - more aerobic. What is interesting is that at the end I had virtually no kick, but I was able to hit the last 0.5 in 2:40 at a steady pace. Additionally, did the "always on the run miles" during the day, and ran with Benjamin and Jenny on my cooldown. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 8.28 | 0.00 | 6.72 | 0.00 | 15.00 |
| Sarah dropped me off at the start of the Provo River 10 miler in the South Fork of the Provo Canyon. She and the kids when sledding. I warmed up 2 miles, and then started the tempo workout. First, 3.22 miles down from the 10 miler starting line to the Vivian park. Cold, headwind, hard to get going - 17:40. The road was good as always - they plow it very well. Then a bit over 2 miles treading through the snow to Nunns Park, and another 3 mile tempo to the mouth of the Provo Canyon. Snow in the first half-mile, then mostly dry. Hard to get going with cold feet. Started out at 6:00 pace - all I could do on that snow. Finally was able to shift gears and get going. Last mile in 5:20 for the total of 16:32 for 3 miles. Quads were cramping up a bit while I was trying to shift gears. Now cooldown to Borders at Riverwoods where Sarah was going to pick me up. But I wanted to see how fast I could go with warm feet, and decided to run a half-mile at a tempo pace. Now feeling much better - 2:37. Additionally did the "always on the run miles", and ran with Benjamin and Jennifer. |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 12.50 | 0.00 | 0.50 | 0.00 | 13.00 |
| Easy run in the morning with Eric and George. Eric just returned from Italy where he saw the Olypimpics and visited the people he taught there 25 years ago while serving a mission. He found them still very active in the Church and working hard to build the Lord's kingdom. Then we dropped Eric off and it was time for George's tempo run. We did the Slate Canyon Loop (2.11 miles) in 15:29. This was a little bit slower than a week ago, but it was colder today. Total of 10 miles in the morning. Throughout the day I did my "always on the run" miles, and ran with Benjamin and Jenny. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 9.75 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 3.25 | 13.00 |
| Speedwork day. 12x400 with 200 jog recovery in the Provo Canyon downhill. Fairly strong headwind. Averaged 69.4. When the wind was strong, some were as slow as 70.7. When it weakened, started breaking 69. On the last one hit the first 200 in 35 with headwind, then it weakened, and I started moving my legs as fast as I could visualizing the end of a race and an imaginary competitor I was trying to outkick. To my surprise, 67.3 with 32 seconds for the second half. Two weeks ago I averaged 67.0, but that was with tailwind. Additionally, my regular "always on the run" miles, and a run with Benjamin and Jennifer to reach the daily goal of 13 miles. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 11.75 | 1.25 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 13.00 |
| Easy run with Eric and George. Motivated by his latest trip, Eric is brushing up his Italian. He served a mission in Italy a while ago and spoke it well then, but it's been 25 years. We did some 400 m accelerations in the middle - 1:27, 1:24, 1:21 (downhill), 1:18 (downhill), and 1:21. Eric did the first two and then we dropped him off, George did all. I am curious to see what will give George a breakthrough. The total length of the morning run was 10 miles. As usual, I added on some "always on the run" running, and ran with Benjamin and Jenny. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 7.50 | 0.00 | 0.50 | 0.00 | 8.00 |
| Tomorrow is a race. 15 K in the Salt Lake Track Club Winter Series. So today is my taper day. Ran easy 6 miles with George in the morning, with the exception of a tune-up 0.5 mile (flat) at what I perceived to be a 15 K pace effort. Hit it in 2:40. Later during the day, ran with Benjamin and Jenny + "always on the run", which makes the total for the day 8 miles. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 5.70 | 0.00 | 9.30 | 0.00 | 15.00 |
| Salt Lake Track Club 15 K. 51:13, 3rd place. Steve Ashbaker and I had a plan to go out at 5:30 pace and alternate leads every 2 minutes until the 10 K mark, then get into a race. We made it through the first 1 K in 3:19, then 5:23 for the mile, 6:40 at the 2 K, 10:04 at 3 K. It was my turn to lead. By that time only Alexander Thomas was ahead of us, and he was close enough to make it tempting to catch him. I picked it up a bit, and pulled up hoping that both of us could draft for while instead of trading leads. I also had secret hopes to sustain 5:20 pace for the whole race. Unfortunately Steve was not feeling that great, and the little surge dropped him. I tried to follow Alexander, but he picked up the pace shortly after I caught him and lost me for good. Additionally, it seems like my cardiovascular system was working better than my legs - a pick up to sub 5:20 pace even for a short while caused a cramp in the quads. This has happened before. Well, I'll have to figure out how to fix this. 2 miles in 10:44, 4 K in 13:23, 3 miles 16:19, 5 K 16:56. Shortly before mile 4 I hear "good job, guys" from an aid station. That means there is somebody else catching me. I've heard this before, too, and at a very bad place - 0.75 miles away from the finish of the Ogden Marathon last year. Paul Peterson was the $250 that ran past me to take third. That was alright though and I suppose I deserved it - I've done nasty things to him before. I have been the $250 that went past him at mile 22, $1000 that ran away from the start after staying the night at his house, and $1000 that took off at the half-marathon mark. Paul is a great guy and we are good friends. Has Steve regrouped after the surge? No it is Mike Kirk, and he is having a very good day. I try to go with him, and for a while it looks like I can handle it. 4 miles in 21:48, turnaround in 25:30, supposedly 5 miles in 27:09, supposedly 6 miles in 33:02, 10 K in 34:05. Mike has dropped me shortly after 5 miles, and is gradually pulling away. I try to hold my ground, but he is doing better. If only I could relax my quads a bit... 12 K in 40:59. I am trying to stay as close as possible to the 5:30 pace. 13 K in 44:24. Now try to get close to 5:20 for the last mile. 14 K in 47:52. I shift gears after mile 9 for the kick, and manage 3:21 for the last 1 K to finish in 51:13. 50:40 for Mike, 49:27 for Alexander Thomas. Steve finishes a disappointing 7th in 52:38. But I am sure he will soon have a much better race. This one was a fluke for him. With the warm up, cooldown, and the "always on the run" miles, and the kids runs, total mileage for the day is 15. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 9.00 | 1.00 | 3.00 | 2.00 | 15.00 |
| Tempo run with Steve Ashbaker today in the Provo Canyon. We did 2 repetions of 3 miles downhill starting at Nunns park and finishing at the mouth of the Provo Canyon. Steve had already run 5 miles in the morning and was feeling tired. We decided to do the first one at 5:30 pace trading leads every minute. 5:21 for the first mile. Steve asked me if I minded if we slowed down. I agreed. Our next mile was 5:16. So much for slowing down. On the last one we picked it up to 5:08 to hit 15:45 for the total. Not bad especially with the head wind. Then we jogged back to the start again. Turned out Steve did not realize we were doing another repetition. Since he was already feeling out of gas, we decided to go easy on the second one, and we sure did. 5:42 for the first mile. It felt so good. When Steve heard the split, he picked it up a bit during his turns, and I responded with the same on mine. Second mile in 5:24. The pace kept slighly creeping up. This makes me think of a passage in the Book of Mormon: " And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell." (2 Nephi 28:21). I had only hoped for a sub 5:20 last mile. However with a quarter to go I realized that if we did it in 74, our average for both tempo runs would be 5:20 per mile. It was my turn to lead. We ran it in 73 to give us 5:08 for the last mile, and 16:14 for the total. Then Sarah came with the kids to the park and brought us some fruit. I ran another mile with Benjamin and Jennifer. Afterwards, Steve came to our house, had dinner with us, and we set up his blog. With the "always on the run" miles, the total mileage for the day was 15. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 11.75 | 1.25 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 13.00 |
| Easy run with Eric and George this morning. Did 5x400 at about 5:40 pace on average. Eric did 2, then we dropped him off, and George did the rest. Had a nice conversation about benefits of healthy eating and proper money management. The total length of the morning run was 10 miles. Sarah had an ultra-sound today. We found out it is going to be a boy, and she is due on July 16. While we were waiting, Benjamin and I went for a 1 mile run. Later in the day, took Jennifer and Julia for a mile. Julia ran 1000 m, then we put her in a stroller. Then Jennifer picked up the pace and set a record for 400 m - 2:00. I jogged another mile later in the evening to make the total 13 miles for the day. |
| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 236.81 | 18.50 | 37.24 | 22.45 | 315.00 |
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| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 | |
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