Tom, You can't call yourself an old man anymore....when you do that it makes me an old woman and I'm not ready for that!

Glad some of the Novell guys were able to join you today, I know you enjoy your runs with them.

Hey, grey beard, old guy. Thanks for the "Rock". For a few moments I was Jack Black and the lead singer for ACDC. I agree on the cold and old, be careful, Sylvie tweeked a hammy on saturday running in the cold. Some days, just tough to get properly warmed up.

Hey, you and Kim come on out and do the SLC Track Club 10K if you can fit it into your schedule. It is a low key race, runners are nice, good course.

B of BS Rocks out

Good strong run Tom, impressive steady splits and a good sign that this felt relatively comfortable and you could have churned out more. You're visibly improving.

Tom, impressive, not even race conditions! Your right, just tired legs, took a mental break today, but still ran. Keep up the great work.

B of BS Rools out

I'm a little nerveous that your faster than me now days. Let me know if you are going to do any of the strider series especially the 1/2 marathon. Maybe I'll bum a ride with you.

Terry I think Kim and I are doing the Striders 1/2, although we haven't thought much about it yet with Painters coming up. Not sure if we'll stay overnight or just drive up early in the morning. If we drive up the morning of we'd be happy to give you a lift. It will be interesting to see how we both do in that one.

Not sure about the other Strider races. I am thinking about doing the SLC Track Club 10K on Feb. 9 if you're interested.

Great job today Tom & Kim are so committed and dedicated, you guys keep me going!!!

I see you have a new picture on the blog. It reminds me of the Civil War soldiers who put their name on the back of their uniform before battle. I hope you don't plan on running so hard you pass out and need that for identification.

Yah Kim!!

John the picture is from the morning getting ready for the Boston Marathon. Kim helped decorate me up a shirt so I could feel like a superstar for a day with all the BM spectators/fans cheering me by name throughout the race. It was pretty awesome actually! If you ever run Boston I highly recommended it!

OK, Tommy, that is a little silly if you are icing the wrong leg! I'm so glad it is feeling better! Glad Darin could join you today! He was probably happy you encouraged him to get off the treadmill and hit the road! Someday I'm going to ride a bike with you and watch you running at that pace! You are doing dang good! Keep it up!

Nice running today. Does that pace come pretty easily for you now?

Cal I don't know that I'd say the pace comes easily, but certainly it's easier than it used to be. And there are sometimes when it does feel pretty easy and natural for a while. Today was harder than it should have been but hopefully come race time it'll be easy enough I can hold it for 13.1 miles :)

Hey, treadmills are boring, the only good thing, they help make you mentally tough. Thanks for the comments. I hope we both have a very good year.

Owen Wilson is a goof ball, not my favorite movie.

Stay Cool, B of BS Rools out

What is your run on Saturday?

John I'm not 100% sure but I think we'll be joining the regular SF running gang in the morning at 6am at the Stake Center (same one where you met that one Monday for speed work). With my faster tempo run today I'll be taking it pretty easy, probably in the 8-10 min/mi. range. Speaking of "8-10" that's also probably the distance in miles I'm planning on doing as well.

I'll follow up later tonight if the plans change. It might be that I do a short run in the morning then another run in the afternoon with Kim, OR just do an afternoon run with Kim.

Tom, good run, hey, bring Kim with you to run the 10K with Syvlie. We can do lunch after.

Keep up the hard work. Also, big commando poinsts and brownie points supporting the other half, 25 commando points.

Stay Cool, B of BS Rools out

Great job today Tom. Did you guys happen to see the Elk this morning? They were out again and there is a couple of big bulls

in the herd. I took a break and watched them for a few minutes, it was cool...

Clay I didn't see the elk, forgot to look for them. Plus I only ran a little bit past GU corner this morning before turning around so I didn't really make it to the prime viewing location. Darn maybe next time I'll remember. Good job on your run.

way to go "Tom from Utah"! That "Gold" goal of yours keeps moving up, (or should I say, down?). I can't wait to see what you end up with!

I'm having a hard time predicting your time. You've gotten so much faster over the last year. If you get a PR on a flat course then you accomplished a lot. Good Luck!

You are due for a great race. Don't get too nervous, but what you and Kim have been doing in the last 6 months is impressive. It is finally time to have that training translate to two PR's.

Tom, blister the course, no fear, just crank it up. No doubt, without Gwen, you will run great. I think you may be closer to the gold if the weather is in the 60s. It seems running in shorts can make a big difference, also, you may have some runners to pace with.

Stay Cool, B of BS Rools out

Thanks for the encouragement everyone. Hey Brent who the heck is Gwen?

Tom, Tom, I guess that I not an old geezer after all. Gwen will remain a mystery until one of the bloggers reveals the pun.

Glad to spark some doubt, no doubt.

Stay Cool, B of BS Rools out

Tom, the jig is up. Look at Bethany's blog, she has the answer. Funny thing, I have used the Gwen thing a dozen times and you were the first to ask. Either everyone else got it or not.

I am with you on the weather. I wish we were goint to St. George. Have fun and a great race.

Stay Cool, B of BS Rools out

Brent that's funny, I think I'm just really dense sometimes (Kim can back me up on that I'm sure). What proves the point is that in my curiosity I did a google search on "GWEN running doubt" and all I got were a bunch of links to Gwen Stefani stuff!!! Gee maybe that should have given me a clue perhaps? I'm not all that up on today's pop music but I actually did know that Gwen Stefani was the No Doubt chick.

Dang now I've got that annoying song of hers in my head now... the one with all the "Woo hoo....Yee hooo..." in it. Maybe I'll be thinking about that all week and during the race.

Thanks Tom, it's nice to know that you experienced runners undertand the wierdness this creates and so with that I'm done worrying about it and we'll know soon enough how it all turns out!!! :)

Good luck on the half on saturday, I'm sure you are going to rock.

You will do great Tom. Just remember the fitness is there and you have put in the hard work, the race is the reward, kick some butt!!!

That's exactly right, Tom! You are going to ROCK and KICK BUTT! I just wish I could be there at the finish line to watch you come in! Unfortunately I will still have at least 30 minutes of running time left. Oh well, at least I get to have you at the finish line for me!

Tom, no doubt, where is Gwen?, you will do great. You have done the hard work, this is icing on the cake.

I know what you mean with tapers, weird little pains, feel like your gaining weight, can't sleep right, yada yada yada. It's funny, you soon forget all that race day.

Stay Cool, B of BS Rools out

Tom, tapers are a miserable time, I usually get imaginary cold symptoms. You've put some solid training in for this one, you'll have a good race. Thanks for the Kuhni Road explanation, with my nose I would have been unconscious if I'd have ran along there. Now if you can just tell me why it's called Painters!

Thank's for the encouragement everyone.

Ian that's funny you mention the imaginary cold symptoms, that's exactly what I've been feeling the last few days.

It's called Painters after a car dealership of the same name who I suppose is a major sponsor of the race.

Good luck Saturday Tom, I think you will do great... You and Kim are both ready, I will be looking for a full report on Saturday, PR baby!!!

Great job Tom... I knew you were going to kick some butt today, I just had a feeling!!!

Congrats man, you deserve it big time!!!

Congrats on the huge PR! Keep it up.

Tom, 100 commando points well earned. I am very happy for you, awesome, awesome, awesome. Your race splits are amazing. I guess that I will be carrying your gym bag at the next race.

By the way, what did you get for 1st in your division?

Stay Fast, B of BS Rools out

Wow, Tom! You just blow me away. Your training has paid off in a big way and gives some of the rest of us an incentive to get our butts in gear. Congratulations!

Congrats!!! Great race and PR!!! Wish I had a chance to say hello to you & Kim- next time!

Wow...I didn't realize you crushed your old PR! Great time and great race. Fun to see you and Kim. Hopefully next time you can make it to the party where things aren't quite as crazy!

Wow wow wow!!! Faster than ever Tom--by what--5 min.? Sounds like you were in major runner's high the whole race. How did you DO that? Congratulations on the break through. Things are looking really good for you this year. Looking at getting that 2:50 this year, eh?

PS Tell Kim to post asap. We're dying here!

Wow! Nice PR Tom! That must feel great! I am impressed

Great job!

I don't think you ran the 1st to slow when you ended up setting a huge PR. Great job.

Nice breakthru Tom! Big Congrats on a fine race!

Tom, That is absolutely outstanding. We all knew you were duo for a breakout race. I can't believe the splits you were cranking out.

There is an old saying in track and field, "sprinters are born and distance runners are made". Today, your standing as a distance runner just created a significant mark. You are one of the biggies.

Congratulations.

Tom, I am so proud of you! I knew you had this great race in you! (Note to everyone else...when Tom realized I would be running alone he was willing to give up his race to run with me. Even right before the race he was still willing to run my race instead of his.)

It was great to have the high five and the help and encouragement at the end! Congratulations, my awesome running husband! Love ya! :D

Sounds like the stars lined up just right for both of you today, way to hit a new PR! Can't wait to see what the rest of the year has in store for you, sounds like this is only the beginning for both of you!!

Wow, what a great race you had! congrats on the new PR. Your splits are Awesome, you really managed your race very well.

Well you finally beat me in a race...and in impressive fashion! Of course, it was no surprise. I'm a believer in the law of the harvest, that we reap what we sow, and you earned this, every euphoric step. Congratulations!

Congratulations on a huge PR and 1st in age cat. You got your gold by a long mark. Well done!

What an incredible race and time! That's awesome that you felt great the whole time. This year is going to be awesome for you!

Great race, you were looking so strong when you came zooming by me and it sounds like it stayed that way! It was fun to meet you and way to run such an amazing PR!

It was great to see you kick some butt on saturday. You are going to do great this year, keep up the hard work.

Great run! You are looking good for a great year of running.

What an incredible run for you! You did so awesome. It was nice to meet you for a split second as you zoomed by. Good luck this year although you dont need it, you are going to have some great races!

You guys are cracking me up w/ the pics! Love it!

Amazing!

I was hoping you'd have a great race. Way to crush the last few miles.

Thanks for the nice comments everyone, it was nice to meet you all and see such great performances.

Brent - for 1st place in my age division I got the big blue diamond thingy that you see me presenting to Kim in my lastest blog picture. Logan says his glows in the dark but I haven't had any such luck with mine.

Lybi - the non-stop running high thing was pretty weird, I don't if I've ever quite had it like that before for an entire race. Kind of like the running was on auto-pilot, someone else flying the plane, while I just happened to be along for the euphoric ride. Next time it happens hopefully I'll be smart enough to take full advantage and push the pace earlier in the race.

Terry - wish you could have been there. I look forward to seeing how long I can hang with you in a mid/long distance race. I think you'll find pretty soon the high mileage you've been putting in will finally start to kick in. I better race with you before that happens or I won't have a prayer.

Congratualtions on the well run race and great PR! You ran smart, even if you think you went out too slow. More good things to come in 2008.

Great race, Tom!!! I read Kim's race report too. Your pictures are so awesome! What a great race for you, but how much more wonderful that it was a great race for both of you!!! I'm so happy and impressed for both of you!!!!

Its nice to hear that you are recovering so good that is always a good sign that your fitness is right on track!!! That is a cool picture too, you guys look like Newlyweds...

Keep up the good work.

One of my most motivating times is after a race. I like the feeling of satisfaction of accomplishing something. How long do you have to recover after a 1/2?

What is your next race?

John the real nice thing about 1/2 marathons as compared to a full is that recovery is quite a bit quicker. I'm usually good after a few days to a week. Some people say 2 weeks is best before doing any hard runs but I think a week is fine for most people who are in decent shape.

Next race is the SLC Track Club 10K on 2/9. I would like to take a shot at sub-39. Then after that Kim and I are planning on doing the Stider's 1/2 marathon in April. I'll probably look for another 5K or 10K in March and stick with the 1 race a month plan.

Hey babe, Sorry I made you answer your cell phone on one of those uphills. I guess it's payback for when I answered a call from you at mile 10 the other day when you were finished and breathing easy! I'm not sure I'm going to get a run in today,(I forgot about the kid's Tuesday schedule. A little weekend away and I forget what goes on in real life), so don't let me get ornery tonight.

Thinking of getting out myself today was not making me very excited about the whole run thing. Thanks for calling and working out a run date. It made it much easier to lace up the shoes!

Nice picture. I'm assuming it's during the Painters half.

Terry you are correct. Doesn't that sun look inviting? Hard not to run your best in those kind of conditions.

Tom, thanks for the comment. Are you running Ogden? You really ran well at Painters! I think a sub 2:50 is right up your ally for STG! Good miles today, with the fog & the dark, sounds like a run straight out of Pirates of the Carribean!

Mike I'm doubtful I'll run Ogden as I'm pretty sure I have a conflict that day, although it is tempting to go try for a sub-3. Of course I would be absolutely elated and amazed if I could pull a sub-2:50 at STG.

Way to get out today Tom, it was foggy out there for me too. Hey I have a charlie horse in my right calf. Any suggestions on how to work it out? Is ice better or heat? Any suggestion you could give would be great...

Sounds like a run in a Tim Burton movie set. Good pic, the scenery looks great.

Clay I think maybe doing both ice and heat with some mild stretching (after the heat not the ice) might be the thing. You might also want to ask Josse she is pretty wise on these matters.

Thanks Tom...

Sasha's race predictor is putting you close to 2:50 at St. George. Not out of the question. I could pace you until my legs cramp up at about mile 18-20.

Terry I've been thinking about that possibility for STG. Of course there is a whole lot of time before then so who knows what might happen before then.

I think if you put in the miles then your days of leg cramping could be over. I would love for both of us to run it this year in peak condition and get huge PRs.

Thanks for getting me out this morning!

I hope to be able to capture that true spirit of the marathon. I hope my back is going to cooperate to let me do at least one in my lifetime. Hopefully SG 2008!

I agree with my buddy Kevin who compared the movie to a good PBS documentary. I enjoyed it but I left a little disappointed.

There were various moments in the movie that resonated with the marathon spirit within me, but if I hadn't already had similar experiences I don't think they would have moved me in the same way. I think I agree with Kim that you have to do it (earn it) to feel the true marathon spirit. Those first two marathons I ran back in 1982 truly changed me and my life forever, in a very positive and powerful way.

It looks like you are having a blast running that race. I can see a smirk of satisfaction on your face.

Wow. I actually ran more miles than you in a week. Probably the 1st time in a long time that has happened.

Tom, thanks for the comment. I hear you about the non-kids trip. We love our kids, but it is nice to get away once in a while and feel like we're adults.

Thanks Tom. I'm glad you enjoyed your SLC trip. 5 kids at home! I'm sure the weekend was a good break. I look forward to seeing your progress. You'll be under 3:00 before you know it.

This crappy weather seems to be getting the better of everyone one way or another. Hope the hamstring issue doesn't flare up to bad...keep it easy.

Tom, still a very nice run! Take it nice and easy. That 6:15 pace sounds sooooo fast, you are an animal! Do you feel the circuit weight helps? I started doing it daily about 3 weeks ago and have noticed some big differences. First, my lower back use to get sore after 10 miles, thats gone. I also feel holding my posture longer in runs is getting easier. I do my circuit, then I do an Ab workout before I run every morning.

Tom, exercise ball, hamstring exercises. I have had not problems since doing these 3 times a week. http://www.onlinefit.com/getfit

Many othr web sites with these ball excercises. It has really helped me.

B of BS Rools out.

Thanks for the comments and advice guys. I've dealt with the annoying hamsting issues for a couple years now ever since I did a dumb thing and ran back-to-back marathons much too close together.

I've been able to have it not bother me much through a combination of religious stretching after most every run to improve hamstring flexibility and occasionally ice treatment (I find sitting on bags of frozen peas works best)when it flares up.

Brent I'll have to take a look at the exercise ball stuff and maybe add that to the regimen if the other stuff isn't cutting it.

Mike I do find the circuit training does help, mostly in exactly the ways you mentioned, i.e. less back issues, better form and so better performance late in long races and training runs. (1/2 marathon or longer). Plus since running tends to make us pretty wimpy in the upper body it's just nice to at least have a little (in my case quite little) bit of muscle still in the shoulders/arms.

Hang in there Tom with the hamstring, and those are all good tips above... Do you run in a neutral shoe Tom? I am trying to transition from a stability shoe to a neutral shoe, and I was wondering about the time frame for the transition. I am running in the neutral shoe about twice a week. Is this not a wise idea? I don't know. Just trying to pick your brain a bit.

Clyde has giving me some good advice that I could be a more efficient runner in the neutral shoe so I am slowly transitioning into it

I've been really impressed that you've been able to keep up your training with all the snow we've had this winter. It's hard to cut back when you've established that discipline, but you certainly don't want to re-aggravate any of those old injuries.

Tom, hey, no question, Kim will set many PRs this year with the low body fat and her dedication to running.

Impressive.

Stay Cool, B of BS Rools out

Nice stats Kim!

It's been a long month, I hate to wish time away but I echo you - roll on February!

Hey Tom,

Getting out this morning was a great way to bid farewell to a less than greatest January! It was quite enjoyable in the still, crisp morning. Stars and moon are fun SOMETIMES! (Maybe they will be fun ALL the time come hot summertime temps!)

I saw we all gave January a big kick in the pants..we ran through it...you and Kim are awesome.

This month has been the longest in the history of my life. Welcome Feb!!

Which 10k are you running? Great job on the workout, you kicked some butt on that darn dreadmill!!!

Clay it's the SLC Track Club 10K on the 9th. Hope Mother Nature is kind for that one.

Amen to that!

I know what you're saying about the mental fortitude. If nothing else its a sign of your dedication to spend that much time on the treadmill. Nice work!

Way to get-r-done today! I know you weren't looking forward to today's workout. I'm glad you got it in, then I don't feel guilty to have you run at the back of the SF pack with me tomorrow morning.

Tom, Kim has been so cute, funny, positive and leading the sunshine band, keep a half step behind her the whole run, she has earned the front runner spot this week.

Stay Cool, Rock the 10K next week, B of BS Rools out

Tom, great mileage! Awesome way to start the week! What 10k time are you gunning for?

Mike for the 10K I would really like to see something under 39:00. I figure I'll go out at 6:15 pace and just see what happens.

Tom, your miles are looking awesome this week, Good job!!

Tom, thanks for the comments, my mileage will soon drop some. As I have several hard workout type winter races coming up, concerntrate more on hard speed. I missed by tempo run this week, need to never miss that run. Your improvement seems to have a direct correlation to the hard tempos you have been doing over the last few months. Mike also seems to be improving greatly with these runs. There is a lesson here for the blogger trying to improve. Sasha science could really help here in the explanation. Hope you meet your goals saturday, no goals for me, just run hard.

Stay Cool, B of BS Rools out

Nice job Tom. You are really coming along, I really look up to you fast guys its what gets me up and out in the cold every morning. Keep up the good work.

Hey Tom,

Sorry today's run wasn't what you wanted. But I say, have the bad things now and let the race day magic come again for Saturday! I know you've got it in you to have a great race on Saturday. Don't stress on it. I do enough stressing for our family's limit of stressing.

It didn't sound like that bad of a run... I'm sure you've had much worse! (how's that for a positive spin?)

Anyway, the good thing is that you know you're capable of a great race! (based on great training & your recent 1/2M performance).

What will your mini-taper consist o?

Tom,

Your legs will remember. And I predict that you will PR, you have put in the training and you will not be denied... My legs were gone today too but that is the chance we take as runners, not every run is going to be your best because every day is different.

Believe!!!

Cal I think I'll go around 5-6 tomorrow and 2-3 on Friday.

I routinely have a bad workout prior to a race....the 1/2 marathon I ran on Sunday was preceded by not one but two attempts to execute a Steady State run, both of which failed (one miserably, one just badly). You're legs will remember when the time comes....you've just saved your bad workouts for training, which is when they should come!

Good luck Saturday!

Thanks for the comments, I think it is positive that you could crank out a couple of good miles with the road conditions. Mini-taper? easy miles with a few less on friday. Hey, I hope the road is clear on saturday, if so, gives us a chance for a good race.

Stay cool, B of BS Rools out

I was so glad when I came home from work that I didn't have to go out alone and get my run in. Thank you so much for being a morning guy that can help me get out at that time sometimes.

I think it is so cool when you can have your goals all within a minute of each other. It kind of makes me laugh at my goals I had for Painter's. Five minutes between each goal! ha ha! Oh well, I guess as I learn more about my body and my abilities I will be able to focus my goals a little better. I can't wait to cheer you and the other bloggers on tomorrow! I'm looking forward to lunch today too! See you then!

Kim I just hope I'm not setting myself up for a NO-medal day. The way I've felt the last couple of times I've run at 10K pace I couldn't even have come close to the bronze. But that's one of those things about racing, you never know what surprises race day might bring. At any rate it will be great to see the other bloggers and have you cheering for me at the end regardless of what happens (you will still cheer me even if I bomb-out, right?).

Kim with a little more experience you'll get a better feel for goal setting. It will be interesting to see what you can do in a "shorter" race (5K - 10K). Just remember the primary goal with running is to keep it FUN!

Tom,

I'm looking forward to tomorrows 10K. I think the first 5K will be fun running with you but the last 5K I'm not looking forward to.

Good luck at the race tomorrow...go for the gold!

Kim - Why aren't you running the race instead of spectating?

Tom & Terry - Good luck, get some good sleep, and we'll see you tomorrow!

Cal,

I have a baby shower to go to for my brother's wife. I wasn't sure if I would have a way to get cleaned up for that on time. I am excited to be a spectator though! Good luck to everyone! If I get a chance I am going to make an FRB poster and have it out somewhere so we can all gather for a minute. I would like to be able to see who is coming in when so I can be ready to cheer them on!

Good luck tomorrow. Don't worry about how you have been feeling during your training runs. Once the gun goes off, everything is different.

Just knowing that you're giving it your best tomorrow is all you need to worry about. Good luck, Tom! I'll be anxious to hear how you and the other bloggers did.

Thanks for the encouragement everyone.

Kerry - I don't think I've seen any blogs from you this week. Is everything OK? Is that PF still giving you grief?

Good luck tomorrow Tom, I have a feeling you are going to kick some BUTT!!!!

Is this one of the Strider's races? I can't remember which one that you said it was, I'm loosing my mind I think...

Knock-em dead...

Thanks, Tom. Yest, the PF is doing better, I've just been sick this week. I'm hoping that I can get a few miles in tomorrow.

Tom, Tom, Pom pomps, wow wow, what a cheering crowd. Run Run, hard hard, make us proud proud.

Stay Cool, Run Hard, B of BS Rools out

Tom, Good luck tomorrow! It's time to let the Big Dog Eat!! Can't wait for your race report.

Good Luck Tomorrow!!

Great race today! I never got to talk to you but I did talk to your lovely wife, and she said you were pretty happy. You should be with a big PR!

Great job today!! It was nice to meet you today!! Way to get a great PR!

Awesome race Tom! It was fun to be at the finish line for you! When I saw Terry coming in and you weren't with him I got a bit nervous. But then I looked at the clock and realized you were still on for your PR, he had just added some juice on his part! Glad you had a great race! You just keep doing these great races! Your hard work is definitly paying off! I also thing your pre race 24 hour rituals are doing their part too! :)

Tom, very impressed with your improvement over the last year. 100 commando points for the 10K PR, 50 Commando points for the 5K PR and 50 commando points for second in Masters and 100 commando points for winning your division. The Conundrum: how many commando points did you use today? Net gain or loss, such a great time is not possible without cashing in some of those hard earned points. What a great problem for you to solve. Consistent effort really pays off. It was so much fun, fun, (without the T-Bird) today at the races.

Stay Cool, Train Hard, B of BS Rools out

Thanks everyone for the comments! Also for those who read my blog earlier, we wanted to note that we just added pictures to my race report!

Love seeing the pictures and great job on the race report.

FRB bloggers representing it seems. Can't wait to get my hands on one of those snazzy singlets to spread the word out here on the east coast.

Nice job today Tom. I love the pic's. You are really becoming a steller runner. That's awesome.

I knew you were going to have a great day Tom, I just had a good feeling, and I am so happy for you... You are an inspiration to me, keep up the good work!!! Great pictures too, I love the one with Sasha "wincing"!!! I think that is how you spell it, oh well.

Tom, without you speeding up this last year I doubt I'd have pushed myself as much as I did over the last few months. Big thanks to you for putting the fear in your old buddy and making me a better runner.

Great race Tom, congratulations on a big pr. Very even splits and a good strong finish. The pic's are great, the background scenery inspiring.

Great job you are running so strong. It will be fun to see what you do in the Marathon this year. Great Pictures.

Tom, what can I say? Very impressive PR!!!!. That is an incredible time! I love how your last mile was your fastest!! You are a complete Animal, AWESOME, AWESOME, job!!!

Great race, Tom and congrats on the PR and 1st place AG! Man, you are running very well right now...we expect more PR's this year!

Excellent running Tom. You were consistently strong throughout and a great finish!

Great job Tom! Congratulations on the PR! So awesome that you and Terry dominated the Masters div.

Let me add my belated congratulations! You just keep raising the bar for hard work and accomplishment. I really enjoyed your race report and Kim's pictures. Just stay healthy!

Let me add my even "belateder" congratulations! It's great to see you reaping the benefits of your hard work and dedication. It is truly inspiring!

Tom - nice to see you beat a doubled-up possibly short course 5 K PR that you thought was a big deal at the time. The ice is starting to move.

The chicks were Suzanna Thomas and Carre Joyce. They were both racing. Suzanna ran 2:39 marathon in Houson about a month ago and made the Olympic standard. She will run in Beijing if Slovakia decides to send her. Carre Joyce qualified for the Trials last year in St. George with a 2:44. While Suzanna might still be recovering from the marathon and may have been holding back, I think Carre ran an all-out race. The fact that she could only gap you by 10 seconds in a 10 K shows that you are in about 2:45 St. George shape. Carre ran steeplechase in college, and marathons are a fairly new territory for her. I see no reason why you would not have at least her level of ability to sustain the 10 K speed in the marathon.

Gee whiz, Tom! You let an Olympic caliber female runner running an all-out race beat you by 10 whole seconds? Come on, old man. Is that the best you can do? :)

Pretty good photos Tom. It was a pleasure to meet you and Michelle.

Thanks Steve. But I'm thinking you mean me and Kim.

OK- I'm a little slow, just checked out the pics! Kim got some good ones- how FUN!! Great job Tom and all you FRB who once again stole the show!

Tom, That was an amazing race. Those splits are exactly the way you want to see them. However, I have to deny that the picture of me is actually me... I guess you could say I was pushing it. It was nice to meet you and I hope to get a chance to talk in the future. See you in less than two weeks at the 15K.

My pleasure! What goes around, comes around!

12 miles for recovery. Wow.

You are insane Kiddo... I have to say WOW too!

I earned $21.49

We were planning on Mr. Sunshine today, weren't we? Well, since the weather is never quite as good as the weather people tell us, then maybe it won't be quite as bad as they are telling us either.

Hope things are going well at work! See you in a few hours! :D

It's not easy staying near the miles you put in weekly. Good job.

It was beautiful sunny skies at noon in South Jordan...

Tom, no Casey or sunshine, and I had no plain bread with that Jelly. Hey, you are cranking out those 10 + runs like nothing now. I am with you on the tempo runs, they pay big dividends on race day.

Stay Cool, B of BS Rools out

I'm glad the wind didn't attack you! Sorry you get disappointed on some of these training runs you do. They are still pretty dang awesome to a lot of us on the blog!

Tom, Kim: you both win, Kool and the Gang. I'm going to steal that one for a closer. 7.2 miles, well, I am a little beat up right now going into a strength, hill racing 3 weeks before Moab. Expect no great times from the next few weeks, including Moab, just want great workouts, very little taper.

Kim, remember when 3 or 4 miles was tough, as you increase miles it is all relative. 3 or 4 is likely nothing for you now.

Stay Kool, without the Gang, Lame and now Tame - B of BS Rools out. (Love it, why did I not think of it)

Tom - it is ok to give blood, without sweat and tears.

Stay Kool, Cherry Baby, B of BS Rools out.

Nice one Brent on the BS&T.

Stay Kool, without the Aid.

I think you're tough to try to run 5 miles at near 10K pace. I can sometimes hit 3 miles at 10K pace but 5 miles near 10K pace is tough without tapering.

Yeah Terry I think 10K pace is too fast for me to start out on these tempo runs. I do better starting at 1/2 marathon pace then maybe if I'm feeling good finish off with a mile or 2 closer to 10K pace. I think I've learned my lesson after 3 weeks of crummy tempo runs and I'll be going out slower in coming weeks.

I missed the run this morning, but the shoveling was kind of fun in it's own way. Thank you so much for the really fun and very sentimental Valentine's gift you left for me! Big time brownie points for you! :)

Kim I'm thinking brownie points are even better than commando points. Am I right?

Thanks to you as well babe for the great gift you stashed for me! Woof!

Well at last you have to join the ranks of the snow shovel people. Now I might be able to get into your driveway. I wont miss the snow shovel workouts as spring hits.

Tom, I'll bet the Landreth 4's work for you if the stupid seam under the ankle doesn't bother you like it does me. I called a couple of running stores and they don't carry the 3 anymore so I got on-line a bought a couple of pairs of the 3's.

Terry,

Where online did you make your purchase? I'm trying to locate some previous versions of my favorite shoe.

Cal I'm not sure where Terry got them but it looks like you can get some still at www.roadrunnersports.com for $75.

Nice job running today Tom and kudos to Kim too. I wish I could get my wife to run but she is more in to kickboxing, usually she practices on me...

You are so cute with frosted eyelashes! Kind of crazy that these temps aren't seeming so cold to us anymore! We are going to be burning up in 40 degrees! Great progression run today! Maybe someday I'll be able to stick with you on that one clear up to mile 3 or 4! Sure were a lot of different runners out this morning!

Nice run Tom. I've caught a cold so I had to for go today's run and stay in bed. I'm glad you were able to see the elk they will be gone before to long.

Hopefully next Saturday we can hook up and run a few miles.

My hat's off to you and Kim -- or on second thought maybe I'll keep it on until it warms up a bit -- for putting in the miles and the effort on a very cold morning. It's going to take me a while before I don't the single digits :)

Tom, very solid week! Also, I too have to give kudos for the cold running you do. Really, I am not tuff enough to snow plow the miles the way you do, good work!

I hope you enjoyed the Crater. I just watched recently the part of "Dante's Peak" where two skinny dippers get boiled alive in a volcanic hot spring. I hope you had a better experience.

Tom, thanks for your support. It sounds like you had a fun day. Hot springs are great. Your comment made sense about not overdoing it. Easy to get caught up in the race hipe. Your comment brings back a memory of a runner friend who has now passed, he ran many races good, but always ran two or three great races each year.

Stay Kool, without the duke, B of BS Rools out

Paul, Brent - We had a good time at the Crater, no boiling alive this time, although we thought we might freeze solid walking from the dressing room area down the cave corridor to the water. Hopefully it was all therapeutic.

I'm looking forward to all of us having at least 2 or 3 great races this year.

It was actually an awesome slide, Tom! I'm just glad you are still feeling ok from it! I feel bad that it was me distracting you that caused you to slip! The moon was so cool! Thanks for helping me get up and out in the early hours once in a while!

I hope your spill doesn't hinder you Tom, sometimes this aches don't come until later it has a lot to do with our age!!!

I'm glad you weren't injured by the fall. I guess the opposite of "the bigger they are the harder they fall" is also true. Me falling would be like you falling carrying two 10 pound bags of sugar. Of course, I have a little more padding, so maybe it balances out.

It's cool you're able to log so many miles with Kim. The only down side for me is that since you're logging so many of your non-tempo miles with her (as you should be), and your tempo miles are way too fast for me (for now), I've missed getting to run with you much lately. I guess that will give me some incentive to get faster. The problem is that I don't lack incentive, I lack a young healthy "quick to heal" body.

The next time you are planning to run some slower miles at noon let me know. I'll see if I can keep up.

Tom, can't keep a good man down? It sounds like it was a bad moon rising, without CCR. It must have been that moon shadow following you that caused the biff.

Thanks for the PR props. It is difficult mentally to know that they may never be broken again. I am going to give the 1/2 marathon under 50 PR a try at Provo River and Hobble creek. I think that the 1/2 marathon has the best chance of falling.

Stay Kool, B of BS Rools out

Hope you're feeling ok today Tom, I tend to feel knocks after the excitement of the run. Got to make sure my wife doesn't read your blog entry or she'll be shouting to me unexpectedly anytime we're near ice.

Hang in there Tom. Those tempo splits are still pretty good. Whenever I start feeling the legs crashing on me I try to beef up the protein and (in my case) take a couple days off to let my body recover. I almost always seem to come back from these rests running stronger.

BTW -- Thanks for the support.

Tom you have splits that I would kill for. Well maybe not kill for but I could rest a lot easier at night knowing that on my worst day I was going to average those kind of splits!

Your still the "Bomb"...

Thanks guys for the encouragement and advice. Sometimes I need to go back a year or 6 mos and compare my tempo runs then to now and be happy with the improvements. I suppose I've been spoiled a little, this last year has been the longest stretch I've had where I haven't had any major injuries, illness, etc. but have been lucky to see big gains in my overall fitness and speed. I get thinking I should just be able to improve indefinitely but reality is at some point I will level off and reach some point near my potential. Of course the other factor is that father time is always lurking around the corner trying to force those darn aging effects on me.

Tom, every time you mention the Kunhi road, sounds like Hawaii. Your taking my place as the running animal this month, without the zoooo.

Stay Kool, sunshine, B of BS Rools out

Brent - I've never been to Hawaii, but I have run on Kuhni road, and I don't think it is anything like Hawaii. Most people here associate Kuhni road with the horrendous odors that used to emanate from Kuhni's animal rendering plant where they recycled animal carcasses. When all the businesses moved into the East Bay area in recent years and started complaining about the smell, it wasn't long before Kuhni's was forced to relocate. Their abandoned plant remains, but the smell is gone. The road that still bears their name is just a long, straight, flat rural road near Novell that is good for tempo runs...but you can still associate Kuhni road with lush greenery and grass skirts if you want. Maybe I'll try to imagine Hawaii the next time I run there.

Paul I think you described the actual Kuhni road pretty well. I do like the idea of maybe closing my eyes next time I run there and picturing Hawaii.

I do feel bad everytime we dis Kuhnis, Kevin Kuhni who is one of the owners is a great runner from SF who I run with occasionally. After talking to him I see that the Kuhni bros got pretty shafted by the city of Provo with the forced relocation. I think now they are somewhere on the (far) outskirts of Mona or Nephi. Talk about banishment!

I must confess though I do not miss the smell of Kuhnis on a hot summer day. Kind of like KFC but in a bad way.

Tom if you want to see some big Bull Elk as your heading to Salem just past the Harry Krishna temple as your coming down the hill out to the west there are like 6 to 8 bull Elk just bedding down out in those fields, they are huge.

Just a thought if you want to see some wild life...

I'm glad you got to have a good run with Paul. We ought to try out Clay's route sometime and check out those bull elk. If we do, remind me to take the camera, Shane would love a picture like that!

Kim I actually don't run in that area I just seem them everyday when I go to work and then on my way home, its pretty cool.

Thanks Clay. Tom and I will have to take the kids out for a drive and see them.

The other day I had to drive from Duchesne, (I would love to hear if someone from outside Utah sees this and tries to pronounce "Duchesne"), to Heber. I counted over 30 deer, 18 elk and, get this, one BEAR. But the sad thing was is they were all dead....hit by cars! They are all trying so hard to find food they are getting into danger. Very sad. Luckily we also saw some live elk, deer and even one moose! Quite an exciting little drive.

All I can say to that is WOW! It has truly been a tough winter, not only on us but the wildlife too...

Tom, your getting good, Clinton and Nixon come to mind. Nice Body Be Good Miles for you today. Always good to have an easy run with friends or spouse. It kind of puts running in perspective.

Stay Kool, without the bull, B of BS Rools out

You had a satisfactory run today. (Sorry, I wanted to use a superlative in place of "satisfactory", but I've used so many superlatives to describe your running over the last many months that I've run completely out. I'll have to restock.) Maybe I can take a Mad-Lib approach: You had a run today.

It was great to meet you guys Tom. Basketball is over now and maybe next week we can run some miles together on Saturday's. Great job on the workout too...

Thanks again.

Tom, is this the most consistent and highest mileage, you have maintained through a winter? You really seem to be running well. I have been very impressed with your race times so early in the year! Keep it rolling Bro! I am thinking, St. George could really be something off the charts for you this year. I can't wait to see!

Mike - This is the first winter where I've maintained high mileage and also been more focused with the tempo runs. Actually the last 6 mos is the first time I've ever run mileage outside the 25-50 MPW range, trying to average around 60 miles most weeks. It most certainly does make a difference if you can find a way to make the time commitment and deal with lousy winter weather. It also helps immensely if your spouse is on the bandwagon.

I guess I could ask you the same question and make the same comments you've made to me. You have certainly been tearing it up as of late and will surely set many PRs in the coming year.

Tom, thanks for the props and commando points. Your progression workout is real interesting. It seems running faster when you are getting tired, great mental workout also?

Stay Kool, seen Clay without the Aching, B of BS Rools out

Clay without the Aching :) Brent that might be your best one yet!

Whoops! That was me that made the last comment, NOT Brent.

Tom, glad to hear the injuries seem to be clearing up.

On your progression runs (like the one you did on Saturday) do you end up having to make pace adjustments for changes in terrain? That seems like such a good workout, but I'm trying to think how that would work in my neighborhood with all the ups and downs. Do you have that workout programmed on your Garmin and if so, do you have a formula that you use?

Kerry - with the progression runs there is the issue of handling pace up/down the hills. So far I've been able to work it so that I run the more hilly portions early when I'm still running easy enough pace I can hold pretty steady pace even on the hills.

I've been purposely working it so the last 4 miles or so when the pace gets tougher I'm on flat or slightly downhill roads.

I don't have anything programmed in the Garmin, I've been getting the workout ideas from a book I recently purchased titled "Brain Training for Runners". The last 1/2 of the book has a whole variety of training schedules for 5K, 10K, 1/2 marathon, and marathon races. I'm currently following the 1/2 marathon schedule leading up to the Strider's 1/2 marathon in early April. After that I'm planning on taking it easy for a couple weeks then starting up on the marathon training schedule targeting SGM as the big race.

I'm not following the book's schedules religiously at the moment. They call for 3 harder workouts a week spaced every couple of days (Tue/Thu/Sat) including a speed session (i.e intervals or fartlek), medium paced tempo run of 4-8 miles and a long run that typically includes some miles at marathon pace. I haven't been doing the speed work during the winter as my body tells me it doesn't want to do another hard workout in the cold. I think when I start up the marathon training in April I'll add the 3rd workout.

This is probably more info than you were looking for but as I've had a couple of people ask about this I thought I'd post some details.

Thanks, Tom. That's some great information.

Tom,

Very glad to see the legs are coming around. Its interesting that these progression runs are not killing the legs as much as your other runs seem to be. I think there is VERY much to be said about the machine warming up. Today I thought I was a goner when I started my run out. I thought I would end up just doing 3 or 4 at a very slow pace. But I postponed my decision and stuck to the workout planned. By the time I got to the bottom of Summit Hill I felt ready. I think I may try one of these progressions sometime. A few weeks ago I finished a 20 miler with a 6:45 run, but had no idea I was running that fast, yet sometimes I struggle to bang out a 6:45 after just 1 mile.

yeah baby! Great day all around! It's amazing how sunshine can make us feel! Thanks for sharing your workout with me. It is even kind of fun to watch you as you leave me in the dust!

Body Be Great Miles for you, without the escape. Sweet, sweet, workout, your the candy man, without sammy.

Keeping it Real, very good after the progression run yesterday. It seems you are getting more and more comfortable at those paces.

Stay Kool, Run Hard, B of BS Rools out

Good tempo workout Tom, a bit of sunshine really does work wonders, happy mind, happy body.

I'm glad you didn't give me any idea that you were ready to roll over and go back to sleep or I might have went right along with it! I feel really good about the run this morning and all this week. Thanks for working with me so much to help me improve! And yes, "Three cheers to the open doors of local churches in the morning!"

I'll leave the church thing alone! But great job both of you for getting out. Sounds like a fun run!

I know that story all to well Tom, it has been well documented on my blog on several occasions...

Nice job of getting out this morning sometimes its tough...

I think I know just the church . . .

Tom - Mind and Body Be Good - Runs for you today, what running is all about.

Hey, you have been doing the easter thing too, pretty darn energized.

Stay Kool, and out of the pew, B of BS Rools out

Tom,

That was a beautiful tribute to our dad! I love him as if he were my own! I am so grateful to be one of only two very lucky girls in this world that are able to have him as a father-in-law!

It was always fun as a early teenager to ride my bike with my friends 7 miles to Ephraim just to buy a bag of candy corns from Mr. Lee and then ride 7 miles back home! I actually fell in love with Mr. Lee before falling in love with the young Mr. Lee! What a wonderful example he has been to us and everyone who has ever known him! Thank you Tom, for sharing your cute dad with me! I love you!

Best wishes, Tom, to you and your family. Your father sounds like a wonderful man. Even when it's expected, it's not easy losing your dad, but just knowing that there's a happy reunion taking place makes it a little more bearable for those of us that are still on this side of the veil. Please let me know if there's anything I do for you or your family (watch kids, run them around or whatever).

Tom and Kim,

I'd like to send my condolences and best wishes to you and your family. It sounds like your father was a great man!

I never met your father, but I know he must have been a great man, from your touching tribute, and because I know you, and the fruit doesn't fall far from the tree. Your real tribute to your father is you.

We can't take the pain out of death without taking the love out of living, but we can, as you seem to be experiencing, feel peace through faith in Jesus Christ and his conquering of death. May his Spirit of peace continue with you and yours during this difficult time.

All the best and thanks for the tribute to you father.

That was beautiful Tom, thank you for sharing with us and I hope you and your family continue to find solace in your loving memories.

Bonnie

Tom and Kim, your Dad sounds like an awesome man. Hope you guys feel our love and prayers for you as you recall the eternal memories that you have of your father. Hope you have a great weekend.

A wonderful tribute from an obviously loving and caring son. You've done your father proud!

Tom so sorry to hear about your Dad... And I agree with PT the fruit doesn't fall far from the tree in regards to you Tom! I have only known you briefly but you are an inspiration to me for your hard work and dedication and now I know where you get it, from your dear old Dad...

God speed to you and your family and you are in our prayers...

See ya soon.

Thanks so much for your kind words and support everyone. We had a busy day beginning all the funeral preparations and other busywork, but we are doing well.

BTW I just posted a picture of my Dad from one of his favorite moments. This is from a few years ago when he reeled in the "catch-of-the-week", a 167 lb. halibut while on a fishing excursion at Doc Warners Camp in Alaska.

God bless your dad, from your sharing, your dad gave to many others with is kindness and sense of humor. May there always be 500 lb fish for him in heaven.

Tare Care, pray, B of BS Rools out

What a wonderful tribute to your father. I am so sorry for your loss, but as you said, what a joyous reunion is taking place. What a blessing the gospel is in our lives. Enjoy the time with your family. It is such a special time to be that close to the comforter.

Mr. Lee, your father, was a great man. I always enjoyed talking to him from the first time I met him as a teenager to the last time I saw him helping as a Lions Club volunteer after the 5K race a couple of years ago. If we could have more Mr. Lee's this world would be a better place.

Tom & Kim, I loved reading the tribute to your father. It's always tough to loose someone, who had such a big impact on your lives. The health of my father has decreased alot the last few years, I know how that makes you feel. Your Dad was a very lucky man to have a son like you and a daughter in-law like Kim. We all know life is only beginning for you Dad, how happy he must be now with the type of life he lived! I wish you guys the best, I know your Dad has a grin from ear to ear watching you from above, take care.

Good job getting out today Tom. I was wondering if you ran into my Brother Curtis he got a late start this morning as well, but I think he was mainly down in the riverbottoms.

You are almost right on the Brrrr! Except it needs to be BRRRRR! I am finally warming up! Dang that SF canyon "breeze"! Hopefully you will have your lunch run in the sunshine!

Tom it was cold this morning, I was having a hard time getting going but I finally did.

What percentage to you take off on your reduced mileage weeks? Just curious. I have decided to do the same thing every 3 to 4 weeks just to give my legs a break:)

Keep up the good work!

Clay - on the reduced mileage weeks it depends somewhat on how I feel but I usually reduce by 20-30 percent. So where I've been in the 60-70 mile range the last 3 weeks I'll probably be in the 40-50 mile range this week. I still typically don't decrease the intensity/speed of the workouts (unless my body tells me to), just less miles. I like to also schedule races at the end of a reduced mileage week just to take advantage of the mini-taper effect.

Tom, I like your reduced miles take, I am going to try it this week, 50 miles max, including the race. I have not backed off, 4 months of 65 to 70 per week. By the way, I really like you and Kim's down to earth attitude about running and life.

Take Care, Stay Kool, Keep it Real, B of BS Rools out

Brent -- are you hitting on Tom or did you mean to say ... "I really like your and Kim's ..."?

:-)

Its all good. I really like Tom too ... but not like that, er ... what I mean to say is you Rool ... Just listen to what I mean, not what I say.

BTW Tom, Sorry to hear about your Dad's passing. It appears to me that he was a great man.

I'd like to run some splits like that. Nice job.

Tom, thanks for the kudos, your splits on tempos are really consistent. When is your next race? your ready

B of BS Rools out

Thanks for the kudos guys.

Brent - Kim and I were going to do a 5K this weekend but with the funeral doings it looks like the next race will be the Striders 1/2. We were thinking of doing our own "uneventful" 5K on Friday just for fun but with Kim's IT band acting up I don't think that will be a wise thing for her to do. If I feel OK I may see if I can break that 19 minute barrier, going to be tough to do with no other runners around me.

Nice splits. Are you sure they are not 5K or 10K tempo? You're getting to fast and I'm slowing down. Not fair.

Nice run, you gotta love those sun rays! You need to come run with us, we have plenty of rays.

Mike I can't wait until Kim and I can retire and spend the cold winter months training with all you great runners down in SG. Unfortunately unless we win the lottery or my companies stock magically increases in value by 1000% it will be a good long time before we start thinking retirement.

I'll be working till I'm dead!!! No retirement for this cowboy... Nice job on the noon run today Tom, keep working hard.

Be safe out there...

You gotta love those short easy recovery runs. I always feel so much better the next day.

Tom, who is going to pace you on the 5K run? You may need Seabiscut, Bullet Bob Hayes, 3 Kenyans to each take a mile, or a speeding jet.

You are running great,

Stay Kool, self-motivated, B of BS Rools out

Way to go Tom! I guess you can cross off another one of your short-term goals.

So looking back at last year on March 10th, you ran a 7:10 pace in a 5K. If you were to summarize what has made this big of a difference in a year, what would you say?

What no wrong turns?

I wish I could have joined you today. Congratulations on a good run.

You're the man, Tom! Congratulations!

You da Man! Wow!

Thanks guys.

Cal - In order of importance I would say the following factors made the difference, in order of importance: 1)Months of consistent high mileage weeks (50-70 mpw), 2)Medium-long distance tempo runs, mostly in the 1/2 marathon to marathon pace range, 3)Some degree of luck in not getting injured over a 6 mo period of time.

Of course being on the blog and getting all of the support, encouragement, and maybe occasional chastisement has helped immensely.

Tom, you continue to amaze!

Didn't you also run more 5 and 10K's than you did in the past? It seems like that was one of your goals at the beginning of 2007. I've thought of doing more of the shorter races just because my best 5k pace and best half marathon pace are just 8 seconds apart.

That's a great time especially considering it was run in a non-competitive environment. Your improvement over the past few months has been amazing.

Wow!! That is a great run. I haven't followed your progress over the past several months so I will take everyones word that there has been a huge improvement. But it really doesn't matter sub 19 for a 5K is huge. I enjoyed the report and everyones comments. Congratulations!

Without competition! That's amazing Tom. This is the year of Tom! Can't wait to see how the rest of your season goes...

great job Tom! It's a great feeling isn't it? Now no more 19's! think sub 18, sub 18, sub 18..

Kerry - you're right, I did do a few more shorter races, usually about 1 a month. Pretty much higher mileage and lots of 3-10 mile tempo runs.

Thanks for the kudos and encouragement everyone.

Tom, great job on the run. To be honest, watching those splits you've been banging out lately, I was surprised that this time was a PR for you. I guess I didn't pay attention to your list of PRs. I have a feeling you'll bust this time open again.

In terms of the beard that you and Kim asked about ... its my Boston Qualifier beard. I started growing it when I started training for the St Louis Marathon. I keep everything trimmed except the chin. I said that I wouldn't touch the chin again until I qualified. Its now about 3 inches long, but its tough to tell from the pic. You've got to love that Salt and Peppa action though at 38, eh?

Tom, mental toughness to set a PR on your own, 100 commando points. Ditto on the rest of the comments, pretty darn impressive.

Stay Kool, faster and faster, B of BS Rools out

My thoughts are with your family on this funeral day. I always appreciate your & Kim's positive attitude- you are both rays of sunshine!

Tom, You did such a great job with your talk and family prayer today! It has been a very joyous celebration today!

Thanks for your nice words for me also.

(((Hugs to you and Kim.))) You guys really are special people. I'm sure your Dad is proud of you.

Those are the only funerals that make living happy and inspire you to be better - I'm so glad the day turned out to be a "Day of Joy and Gladness" - to borrow from the hymn.

Sounds like you and Kim are having sad family situations with struggling health and loss. I hope your family will continue to be blessed because of your faith and the service of your missionary. My mom always said the family had amazing blessings while her missionaries were out.

Thanks ladies for all the supportive words. The last year or 2 or so has been a crazy, whirlwind of many ups and downs so we hope perhaps things might calm down now for a while. But even with the struggles we have been enormously blessed by having our oldest in the mission field.

Nice picture Tom. Where is that at?

Enjoy your time in SF, it is a great city (and a good run to run in too!).

Clay - Kim took this picture at the end of the 5K pseudo-race I ran last Friday. She was trying out her new camera. We noticed the date/time is messed up. The picture was taken just in front of Canyon Elementary.

jtshad - I should clarify....the 'SF' in this case is simply my not-so-exciting hometown of Spanish Fork, UT.

Kim IS in California (Redlands) but I'm still here at home. I would imagine the Spanish Fork "Scenic Drive" is no match for the many scenic venues in San Francisco. But wherever you are I still say Every run is a GREAT run!

Tom, just curious what is your current definition of "1/2 marathon pace"?

Nice job today Tom. I wish I had the time to run twice a day, I think it would be easier on me...

Cal - I give myself plenty of leeway on HM pace so depending on how I feel I can adjust accordingly and not feel too bad about the run if I end up alot slower than the fast end of the pace range.

Lately I've been treating anything between 6:15 and 6:40 as HMP.

Clay - It is nice to have the option to do the 2-a-day runs. I find it is easier on the body and allows me to sneak in an extra mile or 2 without the strain I would experience if I did the miles all at once. Even better I also noticed Paul P has posted some info on the discussion forum showing recent studies that say there are perfomance-enhancing benefits to running the "doubles".

Great job on the workout your are headed for a great Marathon, which one are you planning on running?

I'm only looking at St. George at the moment. I've occasionally been tempted to run a spring marathon while things are going well, since I'm paranoid something bad might happen (injury, etc.) before October. But looking at the schedule right now it's looking like SGM will be the next one. Any thing under 3 hours will be nice, but lately I'm thinking sub 2:50 sounds alot better.

Tom I would kill for those splits! That was still a good workout, nice job...

I find even if I *feel* recovered I'm usually not until a few days after a race. Nonetheless, those are some very respectable splits for a 6 mile tempo run. Having support definitely helps, I think, but you got it done and it's in the bank. Good work.

My bad.....didn't mean to short you a mile of your tempo. A SEVEN mile tempo! Nice!

Nice job today Tom. That was still a very respectable workout.

You always have awesome workouts! You are just too hard on yourself! Give yourself a big pat on the back! I'll give you a big pat on the back on Thursday! :)

Tom, I wonder about days where the pace on a tempo might be slower than wanted? Is not the body getting the same workout or better if the effort is there? It is an interesting question as runners try to recover for the next race or tougher workout. We have all likely had a similar experience.

By the way, for what it is worth, many runners get injured before St.George regardless of being cautious. All eggs in one basket thing? Ogden is a gentle marathon without the steep downhills of St.George and would likely give you a positive PR.

Sasha Science would be interesting here.

Stay Kool, thanks for the support, B of BS Rools out

I second what Brent said. You should give the Ogden Marathon some consideration.

Great tempo run, by the way!

Nice tempo run, It looks from the splits that you may have actually listened to your body the last few miles telling you that you were pushing it to hard for a 7 mile tempo run for the day. Maybe another day and your body will tell you to push it harder the last 3 miles.

I'll agree with some of the others in saying if a marathon is one of your goals for the year then you should plan on doing 2 marathons. Too many times you'll have a bad day or bad weather that throws any PR hopes out the window. If the 1st marathon you try goes perfect then you can bag the 2nd.

Terry I think I am finally learning to not try and force things on these tempo runs, but rather just take what my body gives me and be happy to finish out the workout. Much better than like there for a few weeks I was having to quit early all the time.

You guys are really trying to tempt me with the spring marathon idea. Hmmmmm. For now I think I'll just focus on the Striders half.

Tom, I would love to see you run Ogden! I have 2 marathons in mind this year also, STG and Ogden. My thinking was to get my BQ out of the way at Ogden and then just try to tear STG up! Because of my knee issues, I have considered skipping Ogden. I just have not been able to train consistent. So my thought was, do I stand a better chance putting my eggs in 2 baskets and run both. Or take it easy on my body and just hope and pray it all works out at STG. I don't know what to do. But in your case, just my 2 cents but you are flat tearing it up this year! Why not increase your chances at marathon glory?

Souns like a good run, "smart miles". Great job getting out not so bright and early. How's the early morning temps right now?

Mike it's started warming up a bit lately to where some mornings (like this morning) it's above freezing. Not so bad except for in Spanish Fork often the canyon winds make it feel 20 degrees colder.

I've had fun on my solo runs and so have you, but I'm looking forward to running with you again! See you soon!

Tom I had a chance to check out your blog a bit. looking at your race times you have some great times. It looks like a year ago you were about where I am now. That improvment is huge. I would be thrilled with half that. How did you do it!! I noticed that you are also over 40 like me. Were you improving a lot before you got on the blog? Were you working at it hard back then? How'd ya do it?

Excellent, Mr Dedication! It's a lonely life on some of those early am runs. Have you given anymore thought to running Ogden? Peer pressure, it always works!

Mike - I'm still mulling....need to think a bit about the Ogden thing. My current thinking is that I won't be doing it. I'm pretty sure our ward father/son campout is that same day as well as a few other factors working against running it.

But thanks for the peer pressure just the same :)

With all the runners down your way I didn't think it was possible to go out for a run without seeing someone else :) Sometimes I really enjoy the time alone, but there are many other times when it would be nice to have some company. We'll have to get together for an early morning run again one of these Saturdays.

Kerry it would be great to do a Saturday Provo river trail run again. I think Nathan will soon be scheduling the WBR team runs on some upcoming Saturdays.

Great run Tom. Some excellent splits.

Nice quality run Tom. I'm impressed with your consist pace thru the middle miles.

Man Tom all I can say is WOW! Impressive run today.

Very nice run.

Excellent run. That is amazing to have that small of time spread in 10 different miles. That must be some kind of talent. Now if you had a pull boay, you could have run faster.

John I find on alot of these long tempo runs sometimes I just get really locked onto a particular pace and don't have to really think about it much. Kuhni road lends itself to this type of running also because it's very flat the entire way.

Very impressive Tom! You are having alot of great workouts. Considering you did not even feel like running, what an animal! When I grow up, I want to be like you.

Good workout Tom, very consistant and a good last mile. Do you have any problems with taking gels?

Ian - The only only gels that have given me trouble are the caffeinated ones. I've had good luck with non-caffeinated eGels, AccelGels, and CarbBoom gels. Just need to make sure I wash them down with a good does of water (not gatorade). Also at 20+ miles into a marathon they all taste terrible and usually make me want to hurl.

It is always good to sleep in once in a while. I would do it more often if I could.

Nice week of running. I still think that all of your old marathon troubles came when you were running less miles and you weren't in as good of shape. I still think you should run more than one marathon this year or I'm secretly trying to get you injured cause I'm jealous your running like a mad dog.

Are you racing this next weekend?

John - no race this weekend. Next one is the Striders 1/2 marathon on Apr 5.

Good job, Tom! Some day I want to be able to run that fast with you, even if it were just for a half a block!

Kim actually you seem to be a better sprinter/kicker than me so you probably can already whoop me good on a 1/2 block race!

Nice job again! I'm continually impressed with your abilities to whip out those great times.

Man, that's the advantage of being able to average a 6:26 pace -- you can get in a long run and still have time for some circuit weights. That's something I need to start working on. My lower back muscles need to be a lot stronger.

Tom, just read an article about tempo runs, 15 to 20 seconds per mile faster than marathon pace, close to the pace you could hold for a half marathon. It seems you are right on track to break 3 hrs. I don't know how you stay so darn consisent on these runs?

Stay Kool, Great Workout, B of BS Rools out

You're a running machine! Nice strong finish with a 6:16, WOW!

6:16 to wrap up the workout. Excellent!!!

Great job Tom you are primed for a great racing season, I'm kind of excited to see how you do this year...

That is very good. What used to be your 5 K pace is now a long tempo. Note that this would be slower than your true race pace in the half-marathon. It is virtually impossible to run 8 miles alone after a 5 mile warm-up on a regular training day at your true half-marathon race pace.

So Sasha, what do you think I should shoot for at Striders 1/2 and how should I approach the race? I really have nothing to prove and I don't mind taking some risks and going out aggressive early even if that means I bomb the race at the end.

BTW I should mention I actually ran about 2.5 mile warmup miles, then did the 8 mile tempo then 2.5 more cooldown miles.

It was good to get the run out of the way this morning. I'm glad there were no prehistoric monster sightings. I hope they are fewer and farther between all the time. Don't share too much of your brain today...save a bit for yourself.

Tom, good workout! I have never been to a brain conference. Is a brain required to attend one? Maybe thats why, I have not been!

Your training has been great. I don't think that there is anyway that I will be able to keep up with you at Striders. Are you running any spring marathons?

Andy - no plans for the spring marathon despite alot of peer pressure as of late to do it. In between Striders and Ogden Marathon we'll be doing a family vacation and a few other things where I don't want to be worrying about 20+ milers. I was actually looking forward to a bit of a break from intense training after Striders and just work on base for a few weeks before gearing up for heavy duty St. George training and a possible sub-2:50

Lucky! I'm a big fan of Collective Soul.

It felt very Spring-like out there today, didn't it?

Cal I've been trying to dig up a few more free tickets to the concert tonight from some of my work buddies who aren't using all of their "allotment" (5 tickets per employee) but so far to no avail.

If by chance I find a few more I'd be happy to give you 1 or 2. Not sure what your schedule is like but if I can find any I'll post again later and let you know. The concert goes from 8 to 10 at the ES Arena.

Thanks Tom, I appreciate your efforts. I don't think I could make it fly though. We already have some neighbors coming over for a 'Survivor' party at the house.

Nice run Tom. Sometimes its hard to get out of bed and get-r-done, but like you say "every run is a good run"...

Tom, too funny about the dream. Maybe you are going bonkers. I will be going bonkers if I cannot run at least everyother day next week. Nice marathon pace run for you today, sweet.

Stay Kool, carry lots of money when you run marathons for those sour cream and chives GUs, B of BS Rools out

I about ran over you today on my motorcycle, I yelled Tom and was thinking of stopping but I didn't want to bother you, It looked like you were clipping along at a pretty good pace. I passed you just as you were about to turn the corner to head to the river bottoms just past the Golf Course...

Freaky dream too, kinda scary!!!

Keep working hard, you are an inspiration!

Tom, you've got to be kidding about not having any raw speed. Look at your tempo run pace. You're continuously banging out miles in the 6:30 range and getting close to 70 mpw in. I bet you've got more speed than you think. However, on the off chance that you don't ... I've got a tip for you. I don't know the science behind it, but I'm beginning to swear by it. HILL REPEATS. I'm finding amazing results from them. Anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 mile repeats up a grade as little as slight to moderate. Keep the pace so that it feels "hard", like a normal repeat would. Use a jogging rest interval to get back to the bottom and repeat. I usually do about 2 to 2.5 miles of repeats at least every other week. If you don't believe me try throwing it into your workout by doing a 10 miler that has a moderate number of hills in it. Run it at LSD pace, except hit every hill 'hard', recovering back to LSD pace as quickly as you can, but without stressing yourself too terribly much. 4-5 days later head out for a Threshhold run. Get a good 3-4 mile warm up in and then let the dogs loose. Don't keep track of the splits. Just keep track of the 6-8 mile running time, and maybe that last mile (hit that one hard).

I was on my cool down too when you passed me.

Awsome run. You can just crank out all the sub 7 min miles.

That is a great dream. I will have to try to sell you some GU.

Great run. I think that you had that dream because your training has been so outstanding that you know the only things that will prevent you from reaching your goals are things that are out of your control. Remember, GU is free on the race course and you will be far ahead of the Gallow Walkers walking 6 wide.

Thanks guys for all the comments and support.

Jeff - thanks for the suggestions. I've been planning to add some form of speed work besides just the long tempos in my training a couple of weeks after the Striders 1/2 marathon in April. I think the schedule I'm looking at does start with some hill repeats similar to what you mention. I haven't really done hardly any type of short interval work over the winter so I'm assuming that's why my 5K pace and 1/2 marathon pace are only 15-25 seconds different.

YES! I love being able to say I ran 14 miles and enjoyed the whole thing! Thank you so much for helping me with all this running stuff and everything else! It's great to have a guy who can be my husband/coach/therapist/etc...all wrapped up in one!

Oh man i did that to myself last year. Took all summer for the lower abs to get back to normal for me. I think i was doing squats which caused it. It was a little un-nerving I mean i went to the Dr's and got checked out. He told me don't worry but I went in for an mri against his advice. Which he was right.

Wow i forgot all about that till just reading this.. Eventually it went away after almost a year..

Tom I had a lighter week this past week and my miles were about 15% less than the previous weeks.

Should I do a similar week this week or ramp it back up for a week and then do a mini taper for the race? Any advise you could give me would be greatly appreciated...

Sounds like a busy week for you, good luck...

Clay - I think if your body/legs feel good then you should be fine running full mileage for this week and then the mini-taper next week. My mileage for this week will probably be a bit less than last week (which was an all-time high for me), with my tempo runs still being run at a similar pace as last week but a bit shorter in distance.

Of course everyone is different and I think it's always important to listen to your body and find what works best for you.

Tom, I've run into the same problem with doing core workouts and running....I've been doing them on my Easy days (3 x week) but every once in a while would wind up pushing things a bit much and wound up sore down in some of the deep ab muscles. I think that's affected a few of my hard workouts which generally come the next day.

I tried moving the core work to my hard days, thinking I'd give myself a couple of days before the next hard effort to recuperate, but I could tell that was disasterous after the first try....too spent to do core work and nearly strained my right hamstring again in the process.

So I don't have the perfect solution but I plan to revert to the 3 x week on the Easy day model and just take it easy as needed, skipping the exercises that feel like they are too much. I'd like to know how the elites get away with doing this stuff 6 times/week.

Sorry I don't have the solution but at least you know others are in the same boat you are!

Thanks for the comments on the abs issue guys. Dale I know just what you mean about trying to figure out when to do the core work. I feel like if do it the day before a hard workout then I can't do the hard workout fully, but if I do it right after that's worse. For now I'm back to the day before and being kind of half-hearted with the core work so I'm not too sore the next day.

There are so many nice things about running in Spanish Fork, that if it wasn't for the stiff morning winds everybody would move down there and then the open fields would turn into subdivisions :) We get some pretty good morning winds coming out of American Fork Canyon, but by ordinance they're not allowed south of 105th North.

Be sure to wish Paul a happy birthday today!

Kerry since we don't seem to have hardly any open fields anymore I think everyone moved here already!

Thanks for the reminder on Paul.

Kerry,

They needed to pass that ordinance here! We should have read the fine print a bit better. Oh well, we do love it here! And it helps if we call it a "breeze".

That wind must miss Cedar Hills and head down my way, because I was standing still on 100 East in AF the other day! The wind makes you tough unless you have lost a bunch of fitness like me; Although, I hate running into it!

Tom- that is nice that you and Kim can have a nice spouse run once in a while.

Nice sun this afternoon, nice moons in the morning. I ran in that yucky wind. Had to be a spoiler in the group.

Nice run Tom. Those are some great splits, atleast from were I'm standing they are anyway... Keep up the good work and you will be kicking some butt in a couple of weeks!

Be safe out there...

Tom, nice running. I wonder how you would do if you were feeling great. At the rate your going you might end up closer to 2:50 than 3 hours at St. George.

Thanks guys. I'm kind of hoping 2:50 is closer to reality for St. George this year but I'll take the sub-3 if that doesn't work out.

Tom, nice consistent workouts. Striders half will be an interesting for you, given how well your training has gone.

Stay Kool, B of BS Rools out

Wow, nice splits on your Tempo. It looks like you're in sub-3 shape now so I don't see why you shouldn't be ready for a sub-2:50 in the fall. Keep it up!

Heck of a run. End with a 6:16 niccce!

Nice finish with a 6:16. I'm betting that you can run a 6:30 pace HM without to much problem but a 6:15 pace HM is a lot faster, but if you had a perfect day who knows?

You're really getting some great mileage in and staying healthy as well. You seem to have found a good balance between hard effort and recovery runs.

Great run this morning Tom! I need to trust your sense of temps though....remind me next time that if it's in the 40s I'm going to want shorts!

I think I need to take a bit of credit in helping you with your recovery runs and keeping them at a slow pace, I'm glad our runs together don't slow you down in the long run!

Tom, another good week for you! Very glad, you are doing so well. I heard you guys were coming to Sunny St. George on the 12th. Man I wish I was able to run, it would be a blast to put some miles in with you. Keep up the good work, STGM will be here before you know it!

It is a good week for you, nice mix and good consistent running. Your tempo run on Tue was solid, I liked the push on the last mile.

August Rush is a good movie especially for a musically inclined guy like you.

Thanks for the comments guys.

Mike - we will in SG on the 12th so hopefully we can hook up with some of the great running crowd down there that morning. I'm bummed out that you have to be out of commission here for a while, it would be great to run some miles. Hope things work out well for you and look forward to a great STGM for all of us!

Hang in there baby! The workday/week is almost over! Championship church ballgame waiting for us tonight! Great run as always! BTW: I love your form no matter which mile you are on, (or even if you're not running at all!) :0)

Great run, Tom! I kind of miss that old Kuhni road although I don't imagine it still has the same familiar fragrance. I've noticed the exact same thing about form. Right now it doesn't kick in until I'm about done for the day, but when I'm in shape it just seems to kick in after about two miles...as you say, it's like your body suddenly remembers how it's supposed to move.

Sometimes I feel like my legs are going in two different directions!

Is that what were talking about here? Sometimes I feel very smooth but for the most part I feel like on ostrich out there, legs and wings going all over the place:)

P.S. I'm sick of work too!

My form is absolutely awful and I notice it more on tempo runs than any other type of run. I really have to focus on keeping the pace smooth and not allow my feet to slap too much when I am running at tempo pace.

You had a great run today. I was hoping to run with you at the half marathon next week but don't think that I will be able to keep up.

Andy and Clay - you're descriptions of form problems is exactly what I'm talking about. I guess it's just normal to have to work hard and get warmed up properly to get the brain and legs in sync for running efficiently.

Andy I think it might be me having trouble keeping up as looking at your PRs it seems I'm typically a step or to behind you. Of course you never know come race day what kind of surprises might happen. Maybe we can start out together and depending on how we are each feeling make the call after a bit on what pace to run. If we're in sync great but if not then we can both run our best and see what kind of race the heavens have planned for us.

Form -- I'm big on this one. Its the easiest way to improve time. Starting with arms, slow runs are the best time to practice this. Especially for you Tom, given the opportunities you have with Kim to practice.

Arms: coming through between the hip and the chin. They don't have to come all the way from point to point, but they can't go past the points. You should also work very hard at keeping them from swinging into your body. Think of it as a pendulum from the shoulder that barely skims outside of touching your hips and keep that line up through the swing. Really work on paying attention to this during the slow runs and it will begin, over time, to occur naturally.

Legs: Slow runs are a place to work on this as well, but you can also set aside a hill to do them on. So many possibilities here. High skips (bounds), accentuating the driving motion of the arm and opposing knee, quick stepping high knees (great one with a slower partner) two legged hops, knee high leg extensions, the list goes on and on, just check out stuff on the net about running economy and form. Most of the stuff listed you can actually do during a slow run. If you use the slow run to really focus on it it will begin to occur naturally at other paces. The key is to accentuate the action occurring during slow runs, but during other runs, keep your movement minimalized. I think on one of the message boards there is a link to an Arthur Lydiard lecture in Japan that has a lot of this info on it. Hmm. http://www.lydiardfoundation.org/pdfs/OSAKALECTURE.pdf check that out.

Good luck getting everything squared away down there Tom & Kim, Be safe:)

Tom, no guts, no glory. (I hope the weather is not freezing that morning. You never know up there. We had pelting hail one year in the marathon with cold rain). Lets hope the weather is not the joker.

Stay Kool, B of BS rools out

I believe only risk takers get ambitious goals. I think you have to go out that fast and take advatange of the downhill start. Good luck you will do great.

Tom. After marathon training I believe that a 1/2 marathon is an insignificant distance. By that I mean that I see no reason not to do a 3 mile warm up before hand. Get a nice and easy 2-3 just before the race (ending less than 10 minutes prior to the start -- if it were me I'd go for 2.5) and then I don't believe that such a fast start is that risky. Good luck!

Hit those down hill miles at 6:00-6:05 running smooth and easy so you can move to 6:25's on the level. I'll be cheering for you unfortunatley I'll be doing it from my home.

Sounds an exciting course Tom. I think your strategy makes perfect sense, you've got to use that downhill advantage. Enjoy your week and turn up fit and sharp on race day.

If you don't try you will never know. I say go for it. Best of luck to you in your race, I look forward to the race report.

I have ran the course 2 out of the last 3 saturdays and 1st one had 4 inches of snow at the start and 16 degrees and this last Saturday started warm (44) but dropped quick with a very stiff headwind and horizontally blowing snow kernals... with that being said it was a great run, i figure it can only get better for Saturday, Good Luck!

Not sure I want to know the weather conditions for the route! I might chicken out! 44 degrees would be fabulous! But please no 4 inches of snow, dropped temps, very stiff headwinds or horizontally blowing snow kernels!!!!

I think the sky is the limit for this weekend Tom, I can't wait to see how you do:) I will see you there and I hope to learn a lot from you elite's its fun to watch you guys run...

After the first mile I say, cut it loose. You have been training great so you deserve to run a great race.

It looks like you've got a good week planned out. Hopefully it'll get back to Spring before too long. I can only take a few miles on the treadmill before going bonkers.

Amen Tom!!! It was one cold bugger out there this morning. I can't wait for the 100 degree weather you won't hear me complain:)

Tom, teaser weather, a good day here or there, who wants to drift back into the mental WOW mode! 100 degrees sounds great.

Good Luck Saturday, both you and Clay.

Stay Kool, not frozen and without the Gang, B of BS Rools out

Good luck on Saturday! I can't wait to read your race report.

Congats on getting in. It is crazy this 6-10 month preregistration. I am amazed at how many no shows we get in tris. The organizers just pocket the money. You would think with the technology these days, they could hand pull outs and replacements. I guess road races don't fill up that much since you don't have to worry about swim starts and transition areas. Just a pet peeve. Some computer programer could find a fix for that.

Tom, congrads on the St. George entry. We will see you down there and at striders. Good luck on saturday, your ready.

Stay Kool, B of BS rools out

Don't worry Tom, I'm use to your running doofiness! Maybe I'm even catching some of it myself! Looking forward to a great race for both of us!

Good luck at Striders, go and have some fun!

Don't worry, the anxiety will come but it will also be gone once you hear the horn go off to start the race!

Tom, doofy is ok, fits right in with beached whales and ducky paddlers. Go get em at striders.

Stay Kool, without goofy, B of BS Rools out

Best of luck on your race tomorrow! Sounds like you're well rested and ready for great things.

Good luck tomorrow. Sounds like you're really ready to unleash in your race. Will be looking forward to the race report!

Good signs this week, you sound hungry for the race. I wish you and Kim a good happy race tomorrow.

Run well and have fun tomorrow! I'd be more worried about the wind than the sun. Hopefully its not in your face the whole way!

Good luck tomorrow Tom. Get a good warm up in and let the dogs out in progressive fashion.

Nice job today! That race has had a headwind several times. Last year at Prove half they added almost one minute onto my time.

It sounds like the "crash and burn" had more to do with the course (late hills) and conditions (headwind) than your performance. I think finishing 1st (or even 3rd) in your age division in a tough field better reflects what your performance was. We can't expect a "runner's high" experience every race. Sometimes our mettle gets tested. That's what makes each race an adventure. Great race!

You ran well today, Tom. You really pulled me through the first half and kept me going through the second half. Congrats on the AD win.

Great job Tom! I think that it is awesome that your "bad" race is still worthy of winning! Thanks for all your encouragement for me! I am so glad you were there with the sweat shirt and congratulatory hug for me at the end!

Man for the course and the wind I think you did great. But I know that feeling of wanting and knowing you can do better

Tom, good race to give it a shot on a non-PR course, no guts no glory. You still ran a very tough and fast race. Given the cold and head wind the last few miles, they were faster than the clock showed.

Stay Kool, Great Race, B of BS Rools out

Good job Tom. That was a beast out there today. Glad to meet you and your wife yesterday. We enjoyed dinner with everyone. Keep up the good work and those Masters prizes will come.

Great race today Tom! I would hardly call the effort a crash and burn, more like a live and learn. Still a spectacular time considering the conditions and if you remember, painters was around .15 short.

You ran brave today, Tom. It takes courage to take a risk by pushing at the start. Sorry about the headwind! I can definitely relate about the stinking wind. What the heck? As if running a hard half wasn't work enough. Keep up the great training and we'll all be reading about your really amazing PR in St. George this year. Can't wait!

Doesn't sound like a crash and burn to me, just a tough day for a race. You did great! But more importantly, your training is going great, so you're sure to do even better at your next attempt!

Very gutsy performance. Your plan would've been great on any other day. As it was, you salvaged a great race and still ran a good time. We need to figure out the women's tricks to glide through the wind. Kim showed us all up.

Thanks for the compliment Cody, but I wouldn't quite call it gliding through the wind!

Great race Tom and I agree with everyone else it was tough out there today, Brutally tough!!! But we run these races because we know we can always do better, and there is the desire to never quit!

I will see on the roads:-)

Great race and congrats on the AD award. You ran hard and can use the experience to crush the next race!

You've ran a good race in tough conditions Tom, your placing is great, well done!

Nice job to pull in some hardware.

As for the Crash and burn, I think you should plan on do the aggressive running the second half of the race. I know you wanted to be aggresive the whole race, but remember the science behind O2 debt. If you keep a fast, but not too fast start, keeping stable as far as lactate threash hold, then you can hit that second half much more aggresive.

Especially as a runner, you have a harder time staying fast when things go South. So don't put yourself in the position to be "South".

Keep up the great work, you are an inspiration.

It was great to meet you today, and you ran a great race. Conditions stunk, but you hung tough. You'll have to make sure to pass BC next time just to get even!

Tom, great race expecially considering conditions.Sounded like a number of others that were hoping to pr. came up just as short. Maybe next race you'll have a tailwind.

Way to hang tough. Gutsy call on race strategy...you never know when that fantastic breakthrough will come if you're not willing to hang it all out. Good time under tough conditions and I'd expect that breakthrough to be coming soon. Keep it up.

Sounds like to me that since you could tell a PR is out of the question due to weather and terrain you lost your mental toughness. Your only goal must have been the PR. Next time I want one of the goals to be mental toughness or push to potential, even if it doesn't land you a PR.

Glad to see the race calculator still lands you well under Sub 3 for St. George. I'm pretty sure you'll make the Sub 3 goal. So be happy and keep running.

Way to hang in there with some tough conditions. You're stronger anytime you come away from an experience having learned something and are hungry for more.

Thanks so much everyone for the comments and encouragement.

JohnA - My favorite PR races have been run like you said, where I save the best for the last half. On the other hand I know runners who promote the "out-like-a-lion-then-hold-on-for-dear-life" approach so I wanted to give it a shot. I think for me I like the aggresive approach for 5K/10K races but seem to do better with more conservative approach for the longer races.

Terry - You are correct about the mental toughness. Next race I'll make sure I have that backup goal. Of course it's easy to make the goal but actually calling up the mental toughness when you really need it is another story.

Overall I'm feeling better about the race with some hindsight. In particular after checking the official results I was pleased I was able come in just ahead of Carre Joyce who beat me by 10s at the SLCTC 10K. Officialy my chick count was 1. Also I notice Bill C who was just ahead of me ran a 2:41:37 at SGM last year and Carre ran just under 2:45. This makes he hopeful I can pull off a similar performance come October.

Sorry I'm so late chiming in, but I wanted to tell you 'good run'! You went for it and had some great splits for the first half. Under better conditions you would have knocked out another PR, but it sounds like you still did well vs. the competition. This will keep you hungry and keep the improvements coming!

Duh... that last comment was from me.

Thanks for pulling me out of bed this morning. I'm glad I have my miles in for the day.

I just looked out the window at the wind and snow so I can see why you're glad!

Unfortunately for me I DON'T yet have my miles in for the day. The dreadmills may be calling my name.

I'm glad my miles are done for the day, too.

I wanted to stop by Sasha's for a few minutes last night, but it wasn't to be. Did the topic of the UVM come up? Was Hyrum there by chance? I'm still a little concerned about how many (or few) people are signed up, and whether the marathon Saturday will even happen.

Paul - Hyrum wasn't there and I don't remember the topic of UVM coming up. Actually Josse may have mentioned it briefly but there was no speculation whether it will happen or not. Hopefully it goes off without those in charge having to lose their shirt. Our family will be on the way to So Cal otherwise we would probably be involved somehow.

Thanks again for getting me up on the right side of the bed, (actually it was the left side of the bed). But at least started the day on the right foot, (maybe it was the left foot.) But whatever...it was the correct way to start the day! (Even with that lovely wind we just can't live without!)

There are certainly some days when I'm not even conscious as I get dressed, stop for a bathroom break and head out the door. It gets to be such a familiar routine that I think I could do it with my eyes closed (it might actually be interesting to try that sometime :) With both of you working together, only one of you has to be awake.

Tom, I saw you had a few questions about the Run for Kids Race. I've done the 10K twice and it is a pretty good race. The first 4 miles are pretty fast and mostly flat or downhill. The last two miles are quite a bit more challenging. Especially mile 5 which is pretty much all uphill. I don't remember for sure how the awards worked out, but I'm thinking that St. George Running Center was involved last year and I know they try to have quite a few door prizes to give away. Overall a good race, I'm still deciding on what to do, I've been injured and don't know if I'll be able to run the race this year. Good luck to you

Thanks for the info Dustin. I believe we're going to plan on doing it, should be fun. Perhaps we'll see you there if it works out for you.

Tom, Hey, HotStuffPizza, and I will be running the run4kids this saturday. She will be doing the 5k and I will be doing the 10k. We have never run it before, but it is my last qualifying run for the SGM Runner Series. Good luck if you run it and we will look for you and Kim there. (Hope to see any of the other fastrunning bloggers too!)

Well we're officially signed up...Kim for the 5K and me for the 10K. We look forward to seeing you Big Dog and HotStuffPizza and any other Dixie bloggers who are there.

Since I won't be running at noon today, or the rest of the week, I'll probably not see you before you take off. I hope you have a great trip. I hope Kim's feeling better before you go.

Have fun at the Run 4 Kids race. I'm pretty sure Wayne's going down to run that race to finish up the Runner's Series. Larry was talking about maybe joining him, but that's not as certain. Maybe you'll see each other. The weather should be nice I think.

Thanks Paul! I hope things go great for you as well on Saturday. I know you're not planning on killing yourself but I think you'll have surprisingly good race. Looking forward to your race report.

Looking forward to seeing you at Run4kids that will be a fun race. I posted some pictures of you and Kim from Saturdays race on my blog today.

Tom, smart running this week. Hey, make sure Clyde shows you the course and neither of you make any wrong turns.

Sounds fun, St.George, dixie bloggers, a blast.

Stay Kool, B of BS Rools out

I think your ready for a good 10K.

Tom I'm not sure what your plans are for the race Saturday but our plan as of now is to meet at the start early and run the course as a warm-up and then run the race as a tempo run and then run the course again for a cool-down. I'm not sure what kind of mileage your looking for but we should end up with around 20 when it's all said and done. The race will be the only part that is fast... everything else will be very laid back.

Thanks Clyde. I don't think I'll be doing 20 but I may join you guys part of the way.

Hey Tom, I notice you called it a wise choice for me to not go out the past few days. However, I KNOW FOR A FACT that if it were you feeling like I am, you would have gone out anyway! So which is it? Is it wiser to run through a sickness or give yourself the rest? I do know that it really brings me down to not go out. But I also think my cough and sore throat would get worse out in the yucky conditions.

Kim the answer is YES.

You guys have a fun safe trip down South, I am envious!!! I want to go and sit on the beach and just soak in the sun, I miss it so:-(

Way to get out and get it done this morning.

Good luck for your race tomorrow, sounds an enjoyable fun event.

Kim - if you do not have a fever you should be able to handle 2 miles at 12:00 pace with no negative impact on your health or recovery.

Sasha-I probably fell more to the caution side this time because I was hoping to be able to recover enough to visit my sister in law, (undergoing chemo), this weekend. However, it didn't work. I don't think I'll be able to see her. So I should have gone out. I felt like the cold, wind and snow would have aggravated my throat and cough more and hoped that staying nice and dry and warm inside would help. It's hard to know, but I did what I felt best in the situation. Next time I'll run through it!

Hey, Tom, Kim, expect a great race report, have fun, fun, fun, at so cal. without the T-bird.

Stay Kool, B of BS Rools out

Kim - the day is not over yet.

Sasha, 2 on the hotel treadmill, because you care! Thanks!

Good race today Tom. That is a for sure PR effort on a different course. This course is tough and to be only 2 seconds off a PR ...That is a great effort. Have fun on the vacation.

Nice job today Tom!Glad you could enjoy some awesome weather too. HAve a great time in california!

Nice job on running stong on a hard course. California or Bust!

Tom, great race! Your training is really paying off. I have not been blogging, but still keeping an eye on everyones training. You have a great time in Cali!

Nice to meet you and your wife today. Like Clyde said PR effort for sure, this is a difficult course, especially that 5th mile. I helped pace the wildbull up the hill, then I had to stop and ask myself why did I just do that? Hope you guys can have a nice little vacation.

Virtually the same time on a harder course is definitely an improvement. All those miles are really paying off.

Tom, you are so darn consistent, great race, racing two weeks in a row with a almost PR on a tough course.

Have fun in So Cal, Stay Kool, B of BS Rools out

Congratulation, Tom! Great race!

Dang! I can't believe I only missed a PR by 23 minutes in the marathon today. I wish I could run as consistently as you do. Keep up the great training. You're my inspiration.

Enjoy your trip.

Tom - I was hoping to talk to you after the race but didn't end up seeing you. Great job on almost beating your PR by 2 sec. - You would have for sure beat it on a "normal" course. That 2 miles of hills at the end is not very forgiving. Keep it up! Next time you are down here, come into the store and chat.

Well done Tom, great race. Close to a PR on a tough course is relected in your placing. Congratulations on the age division win.

good job tom, way to come back with that last mile.

I haven't even given you a congrats on the blog for this race yet! What a slacker wife! You did awesome! It was so fun to do the 5K so I could be done and at the finish line to cheer you in! As Ian would say, "Now let's just go enjoy our holiday!" :oD

Tom- nice job on the 10K! I guess you & I should definately keep a closer eye on the garmins so we aren't outdone by 2 seconds (or 6 seconds in my case) Ah well. Sorry I didn't stick around to meet you- next time! Had fun chatting w/ Kim, she rocks. Have a blast in CA!

Nice job on the almost PR. I was wondering who was up ahead of me in the running center shirt. I really wanted to catch you and shirtless man but your right, that last hill section was a monster. Goob job.

You just continue to amaze. Running so close to your PR after a race last weekend is very impressive. Enjoy your vacation!

Tom, Nice race. Don't kid yourself on hilly courses...they're harder/slower than equivalent flat courses (as lesson I learned yet again this weekend). Your time is really quite excellent given the course. Congrats. Now enjoy the R&R time.

I just read about your race. That's a bummer that you just missed out on a PR, but it sounds like a great effort and you still had a great time. Have a fun trip!

Tom, you are in la, la land, soaring across mountains, dancing with mini, and running with goofy. On the partly real side, Disney is fun, me and Sylvie have went twice to Disney World by ourselves running thru the magic kingdom. I am the biggest Goofy.

Stay Kool, with Tigre, B of BS Rools out

Great miles for a vacation week Tom! Thanks for helping me get some good miles in also! It's been a very nice morning

Great miles for a vacation week Tom! Thanks for helping me get some good miles in also! It's been a very nice morning! :)

Its good to have you guys back safe and sound, see you out on the roads:-)

Wow - looks like a very admirable running schedule - shows alot of good dedication. Sounds like you have had some tough races with great effort and near PRs. Maybe you should run in that annual Disneyland Marathon since you enjoyed your running there. Do your 5 kids run?

Looks like a good plan there Tom. Wish I was out there to train with you. Your times are nearly identical to mine, except your 1/2 and M-pace is a bit faster than mine. Good luck.

Michael - Actually while we were in Disneyland Kim and I talked about possibly making a trip to Disneyworld without the kids which would include running the 1/2 marathon. Definitely on the todo list. We've had trouble motivating our kids to do much in the way of 'formal' running. They'll occasionally come out for a 1 mile or 5K fun run and our oldest son ran with us for a while, but hopefully through our example they'll be inspired to be more active that way at some point in their lives. I've actually offered a challenge to any of my kids where if they can beat me in any race of 1 mile or longer they'll get some big $$$$.

Jeff - You know there are a whole lot of homes for sale out this way right now if you were looking for a major relocation and life change :) Actually I'm thinking you have a bit more natural speed than I do, so I would bet that if you were able to simply string together a few months of consistent 50-70 miles per week of mostly easy miles you're 1/2 and M pace would drop to be more inline with the shorter distances.

Tom, I'm going to work on a 5-6 week plan here where I focus primarily on running my miles between 7:25-7:35 in hopes of lowering my aerobic threshhold. I'm hoping that this in turn will allow me to run my M-pace faster than I did at St Louis, but allow me to keep below the LT zone longer so that I don't drop off pace in the finish. I'm shooting for a 7:00/mile pace for a fall marathon (either Chicago or Grand Rapids).

Its good to hear that your legs are coming around:-)

Nice job on the miles today too, you guys that run double digit miles each day are my inspiration!!!

Keep it up:-)

Am I confused on Heartbreak Hill? I always thought that was the other one. Are they heartbreak #1 and heartbreak #2? They could both qualify for the name in their own right. At any rate, we ran up heartbreak hill and at the top was slapped in the face by Face Slap Wind. Can't get much better than that to start a morning!

I hear them both get referred to as Heartbreak hill. I guess if you think of the higher east bench area being the same hill then the 2 roads are just different ways of climbing up the same heartbreak hill?

Aren't most hills "Heartbreak" hills? If not, how do I tell the difference :)

In any event, tackling them early and often will help when it counts. Same with running into the winds.

You keep racking up good miles. It is nice to see. If you can keep it up your St. G. time will be fun to see. Maybe I should come pace you through the 1st 18 miles until my legs cramp up.

Yes, the storm brought back some fond memories :) It's great to have some stories to tell the kids and grandkids. I just wish I'd taken a picture of you coming across Boston Commons with the poncho and the plastic bags covering your shoes and taped to your knees. That was a happy time.

Nice job getting out this morning Tom I opted for the afternoon run and it was quite nice:-)

Keep up the good work you are awesome!

I love our running dates! Thanks for the help and encouragement you give me! Way to go on the distance!

Good running Tom. When is your next race?

Kim, I think you're right that 'WOW does pay off!' It's sure nice to have some warmer & lighter mornings though!

Kim - Thanks! I enjoy our running dates as well!

Cal - No big races for a while, just a few 5K/10K races here and there until the Wasatch Back Relay. Next Saturday I'm going to pace Kim on a 5K at Canyon Elementary and then a few weeks after that we'll be doing the Scandinavian Days 5K down in Ephraim with Terry. Then perhaps the Nestle 5K in early June.

Tom, the Nestle 5K gives more prizes away than any other race, we have done it several times. 100 commando points for your continuing support of Kim.

Stay Kool, B of BS Rools out

Brent thanks for the commando points. The Nestle is one of my favorites. Not only for the prizes (bikes, stereos, TVs, DVDs, etc) but I've also run a few PRs there as well. Even though on paper it doesn't look like a PR type course it seems like most folks get pretty good times on the course.

Well I am back at the blog. It has been a crazy time with Hawaii and work. I got a cold at Hawaii and decided to just rest it off.

Hey I got a new to us piano, and it needs a tuning. Could I swap you for some sprinkler work for a tune up?

You are not going to go after the Canyon fun run? Will Steve be there?

John - Welcome back! I gotta tell ya it's been a few years since I've tuned a piano and I'm pretty rusty, so you may want to reconsider letting me near it! What I should do is practice on mine first (which needs a tuning pretty bad since I haven't tuned if forever) then attempt yours. I'm sure Kim could find a project or 2 around our house that I've been putting off that I could swap you for.

I'm afraid I can't be persuaded on the Canyon fun run. I'll just have to wait and beat you later in the year :-) I'm not sure if Steve will be there or not but I'll bet either he or Carl Hansen will be there.

Your still lookin very strong. Just checking in, waiting for time to pass. Keep it going!

Thanks Mike. Hey good to hear from you, hope the waiting game isn't driving you too bonkers and hope everything is going well for you!

Tom, I need a legend, you are Kim may be the answer? Hey, different kind of legend, looking at your workout plans for the week, what does IMP, BP, RP, etc. mean? I may try and mix in some spinning drills and such to simulate the workouts.

Stay Kool, Likewise - Keep bloggin and having fun, B of BS Rools out

Brent - I went a bit overboard with all the abbreviations this week with out explaining what they mean...so here ya go.

1MP = 1 mile pace

3KP = 3 kilometer pace

5KP = 5K pace

10KP = 10K pace

HMP = 1/2 marathon pace

MP = marathon pace

BP = Base pace - this is the pace you usually run when you're building up base and not all hammered from a hard workout the day before. Usually considered an easy pace but the fast end of the pace range gets a little tougher and closer to a marathon type pace.

RP = Recovery pace - the pace you do the day after hard workouts or the day of hard workouts as warmup/cooldown miles, OR the pace when you run with your wonderful wife :)

Nice workout, you are brave coaching your wife :-)

I am brave being coached by my husband! :)

Actually, it seems to be going quite well. We'll find out more this weekend when he paces me for a 5K. We'll see if we are both tough enough for this coach/student, husband/wife thing! I think we are! He has a lot of knowledge and experience and I'm willing to learn, so I think we have a good thing going! If we decide it's not a good thing, I'll drop him as a coach, but keep him around as a husband. How's that?

If we decide it IS a good thing (the coaching that is), will you still please keep me around as a husband?

I'll try not to mess up anymore as your coach like I did today (I'll also try not mess up as your husband :))

You don't have a choice as a husband! That one sticks whether the coaching does or not! Thanks for trying not to mess up in either of the areas! I'll try to be a good little wife/student too!

I think it's great you both can work together like that. I know that I'm a terrible teacher when it comes to 'splaining things to my wife, but she still amazingly puts up with me. Go figure.

Good to listen to the body. I want no injuries out of you. I want to see a few more good races from you this year.

Ditto, on Terry's comments, no macho man without the Navy.

Stay Kool, B of BS Rools out

Thanks Coach Tom! It actually felt good to keep it easier this morning! So glad we weren't running in snow as we were expecting!

Don't you just love the Spring? :) I'm glad you had some quality time together this morning.