Alta Peruvian Downhill Dash 8 K, 22:35, 2nd place. Started the day with a 1 mile jog. Then after breakfast went to the Regional Priesthood Leadership Training in the Marriot Center. There was a lot of traffic - here in the Utah County the LDS population is large, and even if you only gather men in leadership positoins from all the congregations, there was enough to fill up the Marriott Center (22,700 capacity) almost to the limit. Park at the law building to avoid traffic problems and ran 0.5 miles to the Marriott Center. After the meeting ran back. Came home, ate lunch, and then went to the race with Sarah and the kids. A short warm-up, jogged to the start, hit the porta-potty enough times to avoid trouble in the race, and then they fired the gun. The race goes downhill at a fairly steady 7% grade, and produces fantastic times if your legs have been trained for this type of running. The course record is 21:04 set by Larry Smithee, which also happens to be world-best for an aided course. My PR on the course is 21:58. John Kariuki, a 2:12 marathoner, ran it once in 21:38. Downhill running is a different type of animal. I looked at my competition, and saw trouble. Corbin Talley, Steve Ashbaker, Nate Hornok, and Tim Stringfellow. Stiff headwind from the start. Steve took off hoping to lose us, but we all tucked behind him. First mile in 4:37. Then Tim took the lead. I really liked it - he is tall and has wide shoulders. Two miles in 9:05 (4:28), the wind is still there but subsiding. The pack still has 5 people. Not good, prize money is only three deep. I figured the legs of the competion must have been softened by all the pounding at this point, and decided to take some initiative. I did not think I'd be able to break away, but I hoped to cut the pack down to three. It worked - only Corbin stayed with me. 3 miles in 13:22 (4:17), I think it was possibly a bit short. I sensed that Corbin was strong, and eased off a little to encourage him to take the lead. He did. Our next mile was 4:32. Then I saw the sign that said 9% grade ahead. I figured if I had a chance of winning, it would be right here. So I took the lead and pushed as hard as I could. Corbin responded - this is trouble. And then there was more trouble - Nate Hornok caught us. Both Corbin and I were extremely concerned. He has a relentless long kick that will crush almost anybody who happens to be around him. So Corbin puts on a strong surge. I try to hang on but hitting my speed limit. I let him go for a few moments, but then by some miracle manage to cover it. About 0.5 to go. Corbin and I are looking at our watches, and probably thinking the same thing - when will the race be over. I make another attempt to lose him, but it does not work. Finally, with about 200 meters to go he shifts into the Corbin kick gear. I am already in the Sasha kick gear, so I cannot match it. 22:32 for Corbin, 22:35 for me, 22:45 for Nate, 23:01 for Tim, and 23:15 for Steve. $100 prize + very good circuit points, which makes it very likely for me to reach my goal of winning the circuit this year. Steve, Nate, and I ran back up to the lodge at what I calculated to be about 9:30 pace average. Ran with the kids when we got home, and did bench press, narrow grip, 5-4-3, 105 pounds. | 