Summit junkie!

Stayed in Idaho Falls and had a really fun run after everyone was in bed. Ran from the hotel down to the falls and around the town and back. I had to drive the route to get the milage. I also spent the day in Jackson Hole and got a good look at the Grand Teton and it really got be excited for my climb on August 29th.

Had a nice run after I put the kids to bed. I am scheduled to run the Provo River half this Saturday (my first race) so I need to have a good workout today and tomorrow and then I'll take it easy the rest of the week. I also signed up for the Provo full marathon on September 12th. I know I am not ready for it yet, but I know I can do it. I'm not expecting to break any time records... just finish.

No run today. Saving my legs for the Wasatch Crest tomorrow. Went to the gym and lifted for 40 minutes (upper body/core) I had a great workout.

Ran the Wasatch Crest trail with Jun before work. The sunrise from on top of Scott Hill (aka Puke Hill) was fantastic. I started to get a stitch in my side that bothered me on all of the uphill climbing and then for a few miles on the flat trail, but by time we started heading for the lake it was gone.  Jun was much faster than I was and waited for me until we hit Desolation Lake and then he took off fast for the trailhead. It was a perfect morning.

Finished in 1:52

Took the dog out for a walk, but got tired of wrestling her so I only got a mile in.

Morning hike/run before work with my friend Matt. We were supposed to climb in LCC, but about halfway up the canyon we could see lightning strikes, so we decided to try BCC because it looked a lot clearer over there. We had to settle for something small in case we needed to bail because of the weather. Matt wanted to try a new route, so we started on the Butler Fk trail and after a few minutes took a trail on the left side that heads straight up the south face. The trail is steep and after about a half mile peters out and it is all bush from there. We decide it is a great route if you are in search of cannabis, make-out lairs, aspen sap or thick bush, but not the best for hiking. Made the summit and had a quick decent on the standard route back to Butler and made it to work on time.  

Provo River Half- My first race in almost 20 years and had an amazing experience. Had to wait for an hour in the cold before the start and the lines for the port-o-potties were sooo looooong. Good thing there was some good thick bush cover. The start of the race was truly an unforgettable experience and it was incredible to be there at that moment. I had a huge adrenaline rush that carried me for the first 4-5 miles. I started out about mid pack and quickly passed several people in the first few miles, although he super fast goats passed me. After a few miles everyone kind of spread out and I found a nice comfortable pace. I'm not sure what my splits were, but I thought I was making good time and feeling great.

The path ran right under Bridal Vail Falls and that was just awesome! I really enjoyed the course and the scenery was fantastic. I only stopped once for about 30 seconds to use the bathroom and other than that I didn't stop the rest of the way.

I hit a little wall between miles 10-11. I still felt pretty good, but my legs were tired and no matter how hard i tried I couldn't make myself go faster. every time I would get passed by someone I would try and keep up with them, but my body said no. Around mile 12 I heard someone call my name and it was a friend from my neighborhood that was cheering everyone on. When I noticed all of the people watching I got another nice rush of adrenaline and the thought of finishing really made me forget my legs and I think my fastest mile was the last one.

Crossing the finish line (1:49) felt so good and I actually felt better than I thought I would. My legs were sore, but overall I was feeling great and not even close to as bad as I have felt on some of my longer hikes over peaks. It was an incredible experience and I am looking forward to my first marathon on 9/12, even though I know that one is going to kill me.

My feet (below the ankels) are still sore, so I can't get any miles today, so I lifted for an hour (upper body). I hope my feet feel better by the end of the week because I am climbing a remote desert peak with over 5k in elevation gain.

My ankles are still sore from the race on Saturday, but I can't stand not getting any cardio, so I did 30 minutes on the elliptical and I also did 30 minutes of weights (core, lats and shoulders). I also got a little cramp in my calf last night and I'm a little worried about it because I am climbing a peak in a few days with almost 6K elevation gain in 7 miles. I need to drink more water. I have noticed that I have not been drinking enough water when I get them.

I'm trying to take it easy this week, so I did 3 after everyone was in bed. My legs feel pretty good but I don't want to push it. I really need to get out next week for a long run and see how I do.

I had a very busy day today and just had time to sneak in 3 miles before bed. My ankles are feeling much better.

What a day! Climbed Ibapah Peak with my friend Greg. Ibapah is about 50 miles south of Wendover and is the highest peak in Juab county at over 12,000 feet. It took us over 4 hours to get to the trailhead and we started hiking just after 9:00 AM. Greg has not been on a peak in almost 18 years. He has been on a diet for the last two weeks and lost over 15 lbs and says he needs to lose about 30 more. He hasn't been exercising at all, so hauling him up this beast would certainly be a challenge.

The peak climbs about 6k in elevation and there are very few switch backs. We had to go pretty slow and take a lot of breaks, but it was fun and we had a great time. About 400 verticle feet and a 1/4 mile from the top Greg hit the wall and could not get his heart rate down. He was having some minor chest pains and said he couldn't go anymore, so after a rest break he was feeling a little better and he wanted me to go on without him, so  I quickly climbed the remaining 400 to tag the summit. The view was AMAZING and I made a quick descent back to the saddle where Greg was waiting for me.

He was feeling much better and the hike back to the trailhead took us 3.5 hours, while the hike to the summit took around 7. I was proud of Greg for pushing as hard as he did and he couldn't stop talking about how much he loved the experience, so it was a successful day for sure. We didn't see another soul all day and the remote solitude was incredible.

I wasn't all that sore after the hike yesterday, so I decided to run 5 after everyone was in bed. I had a very good workout and wasn't sore at all when I finished.

I usually lift weights every Monday and I also weigh myslef at the gym. I have lost a total of 8 lbs in the last 6 months and I don't think I'm losing fat. I have noticed some of my shirts fitting a lot more loose these days and I am wondreing if I need to eat more. I don't mind losing the fat, but I think I'm burning muscle.

I had a nice upper body and core workout for 45 minutes. I thought about running after, but decided to give my legs a rest. I am going to get out for a long run at some point this week. I just don't know what and when yet.

Did 18 holes at thanksgiving Pt. with a customer and I think I walked/ran at least 2 miles chasing my balls. The weather was perfect and we had a great time. I did get 4 miles in on the elliptical (40 minutes, machine said 7.5 miles) before bed while watching 'High Stakes Poker'. I had the max setting on for the last 25 minutes and it was a great workout.

Took the dog out for a run tonight. I was planning on going 5-6 miles, but running wih my dog is hard work and by mile 3 my hip was sore because I had to constantly try and keep her from knocking me over and I was running and looking down a lot. It was horrible, so I decided to stop at 3 miles. My time was 22:30, but I have no idea what the splits were.

I had a very interesting run last night and thought for sure I was going to have to dust off my karate skills that I put on the shelf circa 1989. Haha. First of all about a mile into my run I had two big dogs run out at me in the dark and I thought for sure they were going to bite me, but they ended up being rather friendly and then followed me for the next mile. I was laughing because I had left my dog home and one of these dogs kept running into my legs and almost knocking me over. It was rather annoying and I was thinking “Who just lets their dogs roam around unleashed?” come on people. After about a mile one of the dogs stopped to sniff something and I thought this is my chance, so I picked up the speed and made a turn down a busy street in Highland. I was about 100 yards ahead now and I saw both of them running to catch up. I thought about hiding, but then thought it might be funny to see how long they would follow me. Once they turned the corner there is a huge horse property and they quickly became more interested in the horses and let me go.

After I left the dogs my left arch started hurting, so I knew I wouldn’t be able to run very far. About a mile from home I had two jerks on a motorcycle flipping me off and yelling obscenities at me for no reason. I started to mentally brush up on round house… well, okay I also thought to myself I could easily outrun these fatties and they drove off anyway.

Speaking of fatties, I decided to post a picture of myself before I started running in January 2009. I know I am no Mr. Universe, but I think I did have some muscle tone at the time and now it is slowly disappearing, but I digress.

Did 4 while the kids watched a movie. I'm not going to run tomorrow because Sunday night I'm heading to the Uintas to climb Kings Peak (highest peak in Utah 13,528 ft), South Kings and possibly one other 13,000 foot peak if we can beat the weather. Our plan is to leave around midnight and hopefully reach the summit by 6:00 AM, and then head over to South Kings Peak, the second highest peak in Utah. If the weather looks ok we will also try and bag another 13er in the area if we feel up to it. We will do at least 27.6 miles, but might end up doing 30+ depending on where we go.

I was going to do a long run today and then cancelled it because of my plans to do Kings Peak on Monday. Well, it looks like Kings is out because of bad weather, so I'm mad I didn't go for a long run this morning. I went to the gym and lifted for 45 minutes and then took the kids to the pool. Fun day.

Our hike to Kings was on again, off again all day and we finally decided to cancel it because of the weather. We will try again next Monday. I got in 4 miles after I got the kids to bed. That seems to be the routine lately, and it wasn't the way I wanted to start the week.

Had a very nice run tonight. The weather was perfect and I really enjoyed it. My right ankle and my left arch started to get a little sore on the 5th mile, but I don't think it is anything serious. I ran a 3 mile loop in my neighborhood twice and I think the first loop was a lot faster. My total time was 45 minutes, but I have no idea what my splits were.

Such a busy day. worked late, and had 3 soccer games, including one I coached to attend. I didn't even have a chance to run until after 10:00. I hate running that late, so I did 40 minutes on the elliptical just to blow off some steam. Terrible week so far.

Went to bed at 1:00 am and was up at 5:30 so I could hit the gym because I'm taking my wife out for her birthday tonight, and I wanted to get in a workout. I lifted for 45 minutes (upper body/core). I didn't want to run too much because I am doing a long run down Little Cottonwood tomorrow, so I ran one mile at a fast pace and I felt like crap. I never feel good running after I lift and I felt nauseated for the next few hours. I'm tired, but I think a 32 ounce Diet Coke should take it all away.

Mile time: 6:37

Ran down Little Cottonwood Canyon this morning. It was sooo much fun! The weather was perfect and it was very enjoyable. When we got to the bottom we did 5 more miles. It was a great way to finish off an average week.

My ITB was getting a little sore at the end and I am a little worried about it on the full marathon in two weeks. Cardio wise I felt great the whole day and could have done a lot more.

Total time: 2:03

My calves and quads were sore all day from my run on Saturday, so I stretched multiple times, and took the stairs instead of the elevator at work... PAIN! I haven't been this sore in a while, but I don't hurt as much as I did after the Provo River half. I can tolerate being sore.

I knew I wanted to stretch my legs so I took the dog out again. Mistake! I had to fight her the whole time, and I am seriously considering obedience training. After the first mile I decided I had enough, so I took her home and ran on the elliptical for 40 minutes. My legs actually felt better after my workout.