Nate's Blog

afternoon run, went to running center but no one from the club showed up. warmed up 1 mile, then 4 miles at about 6:50 pace, then cool down of .5 miles.

I ordered a Garmin and it should be here by the weekend and every run since I ordered it I so wish it was already here! It will be a very nice training partner to have on days like today. I felt like I was pushing a 6:30 pace but never quite got down there.

Going to Mesa this weekend to visit family. 5K saturday morning that I am thinking about running. I am very interested to see how fast I can run a 5K. The last one I remember doing was the Run4kids in April last year right when I started running again after my 4 year hiatus... Ran it in 20:00 about...

Felt ok for the circumstances. Just drove from St. George to Phoenix on Friday and didn't get a run in. Been sick all week and could not really sleep last night due to sleeping on an air mattress and having a cough.

5:57

6:30

6:04

:33

I still have not been back running long enough to know exactly how hard I can push myself and keep the pace. I know I could have dropped my overally pace to about 5:45. I did not feel spent immediately after the race. Recovery time was about :30... after that did not even feel weak in my legs anymore...

Painters in two weeks, should be able to feel it after a half marathon! Going for a 6:30 pace, Break 1:25 and I'll be happy.

Ran with the Garmin for the first time!!! It is definitely nice to have. I usually run this course at about a 7 min mile and ran today at 6:45 pace... My markers were almost on but it is nice having gps to tell me exactly where I am.

warmed up one mile, and boy did I need to warm up! it was snowing (about as snowy as it gets in St. Goerge, anyway) and was about 28'. Ran 4 miles about 6:45 pace then cooled down for about 1.3 miles.

Green Springs loop then up escatera for cool down.

Easy run in the evening, 4 miles. Played basketball after for my sprint workout... thats all the speed training I can handle.

Ran a mile warmup then 5 miles at about 7:00 pace (6:46, 7:13, 6:49, 7:08, 7:07) then .7 cooldown. ran with tights to see if they would bug and they didn't. Want to be ready for any weather painter's might throw at me. I now know I can run in snow and rain and extreme cold (for a St. George boy), so I should be able to do well at Painter's.

Last night I was playing with my new friend "Garmin" and I accidentally set it to beep if I went under 7:00 pace. so the thing beeped every 30 seconds or so. helped me keep pushing, especially on the uphill parts. I would drop to 7:20 and so I would pick a point and say to myself, "gotta make it beep by the time I get to that point." Kinda fun...

Ran down frontage road past Firehouse and then down washington main street. Went east before telegraph to wash elem. then down past telegraph to 400 s then stepped it back up to telegraph to break up the hill. ran back past walmart then under freeway then back into middleton.

ran an easy 9:00 pace this morning. Just wasn't feeling it. I will try and run another 3-4 this afternoon if I get time.

28' outside. wore the tights again. Definitely keeps the legs and knees warmer and I do not notice them. sun was out so it did not feel as cold. but all the frost all over the ground is not what I signed up for living in St. George! I decided the last few days that the best strategy for avoiding a run is to not look outside before you go. A home-grown STG boy like me gets scared when he sees frost on the the ground!

Afternoon run of 3 miles:

did 4x200m repeats. And let me just say again, this Garmin is awesome! I pre-programmed it to warm up .5 mile, then sprint .13, then jog .25, repeated 4 times, then cool down .5 miles. then I added another .5 myself at the end. I did not have to go to the track, I just ran up an down middleton drive about 3 timesand was done!

45' outside and it felt great... wore the saucony fast twitch for this workout..

easy run today. avg 8:30 per mile. Didn't get out this morning so i ran at about 3:30. temp around 50' and it was great. ran up turkey farm road to big water tank then headed east down the dirt trail. headed south on another trail into middleton. No traffic, no people, nothing but me and a few jack rabbits. It was a great, quiet run. enjoyed myself thoroughly...

Ran the painters course with Dave, James and Austin, and Clyde and Logan following on the bikes. Good run, about 30' to start at 7 am. ran with tights. ate a GU at mile 6. felt pretty good for most of it. Ankle started hurting a bit around mile 7-11, then we picked up the pace a bit and it went away. Right Quad that has been giving me some slight discomfort last week did not hurt at all. Got a good massage from the wife after my run yesterday so that probably helped...

Ran about 7:30 pace with the last 2 in 7:00

.5 warmup then 4 miles at about 6:30 - 6:45 pace, one at 6:20 pace, but mostly downhill.

Ran at 6:30 and it was a little chilly. No tights, but two long sleeve shirts. Felt really good during run and after. last half mile cool down started feeling it in my right quad again, but it seems to be more of a strengthening soreness than an injury. I will monitor it and adjust accordingly.

I am doubtful if I can hold a 6:30 pace for Painters this weekend. I have run 13 miles at about 6:50 pace a couple of weeks ago with Steve and Bill, and ran at 7:20 pace last saturday, felt pretty relaxed on that run. Never really felt like I was pushing real hard, so that is good. In between I ran a 5K at about 6:10 pace and did not feel tired afterward so that is good I guess...

Warmed up 1/2 mile then ran up the mountain and over into green springs. first two miles about 8:00 pace up the mountain and through the trails. Then next 4 at two 6:50 and then two 6:20 miles. then cooled down 1/2 mile. Felt great and ran with a better stride, pushing more behind than reaching out in front. Much more relaxed and easier on the knees.

Ran with Clyde up around Green Springs and then onto the power line trail. No tortises or snakes, but we heard a coyote. Good run. Felt sluggish on the hilll starting out the trail. haven't run much in the softer trail sand and it was nice to push through it on the hill. Felt great after that. Good to run with Clyde. I think I slow him up a bit so he doesn't overdo it and he pushes me a bit, especially in the sand and on the hills.

Good club run tonight. Most stories were appropriate, which isn't common with Clyde along...

Felt pretty good most of the time. My quads seemed to get a pretty good workout as they were more sore after the run than usual. Calves too. I think running 8 yesterday and then again today may have something to do with it. I have been doing 5 or 6 pretty consistently during the week for a few weeks and this was an unexpected and unplanned jump for two days straight. I think I may take tomorrow off to let the muscles and such have a little extra break. Next week I plan to raise the mileage to about 50...

Race felt great today. First 10 miles were all right on to break 1:25. Last 3 I fell of to 6:40-6:45 pace. Couldn't make it up at the end. But I was very pleased with the race overall and feel very good about my time. Really wish I would have pushed a little harder to break 1:26 but oh well... This is my 2nd 1/2. First one was at Bryce last summer and I got 1:32 so very much improved...

Got in a nice run this morning around the church and back. Didn't want to overdo it. Felt good to stretch the legs out today. Right leg, calf and hammy mostly, felt a little tight yesterday and on the run this morning so it was good to loosen them up a bit. This week will be my first 50 mile week. no races for a bit, just build the mileage...

Ran down middleton drive, through the light, onto frontage road then past firehouse. Kept going until I reached the dirt trail along the freeway up to Washington Parkway exit. Then went in to the hills to the top of buena vista and back down. Good run. Averaged about 7:30 pace with all miles between 7:13 and 7:40.

No aches or pains today, I ran with good form throughout the run which felt pretty good. Didn't feel like 8.5 miles when done...

ran over to t-bone trail then to turkey farm rd then down through industrial and back. good run with some good hills. run it backwards and there would be some great sandy hills to run up! 8:00 easy pace.

Club run up into hills above middleton. Good run with the group.

Easy 4 miles today. Figured I should go easy today as I will be doing 12-13 tomorrow and I stepped up the miles this week. I have done about 40 two weeks in a row and wanted to hit about 45 or so this week....

Good club run today with a decent turnout. Weather looked horrible but was actually nice enough for just a short sleeve shirt. Ran Washington Fields loop clockwise. Felt sluggish to start but got going around mile 3 or so. We ran a good 7:10 pace and felt great till the end coming up from the river to the store. Too much uphill! But it was good for me so I will deal with it. Didn't hit quite as many miles this week as I wanted to, but within a couple so not bad either. I can be patient! This week I recovered very quickly and had had much less soreness on my daily runs. I think the past few weeks of mileage increase wore on my body but my body finally decided that it's not so bad. Shooting for just over 50 miles next week...

I think I will try to throw in a couple of two-a-days next week, so that I can keep the weekday runs to 7 or 8 with a few 3-5 milers thrown in on the two run days. Any comments or suggestions?

Wasn't feeling it at all today. Ran out to powerlines and just could not stay focused. Too many things on my mind. When I got to the power lines I just sat there for about 15 minutes to think. Then I started running back. Started going about 6:00 pace then down to 5:50, then hovered between 5:40 and 6:00. Last half mile was on the road and I was going about 5:20. Felt good to run out some aggression. I feel a lot better. Didn't get the miles in I was supposed to though...

Warmed up half mile then ran 5.5 at a good sub 6:30 pace then cooled down 1 mile. Total time for 7 46:47, 6:41 pace overall. Good run.

Ran the loop around on red cliffs drive counterclockwise.

good run today. ran to powerlines and over to green spring then down GS drive to red hills pkwy then home.

First 3 miles uphill through trails at about 8:00 pace, last 5 mostly all downhill at sub 7:00. Total time 58:38, 7:19 total avg pace.

Club run this afternoon. Felt really good, running about 7:30 pace, until about mile 6 when we stopped for a second to let Logan stretch. When we started running again there was a slight pain in the outside of my left calf. The pain grew but was not unbearable. It is really hurting now tonight and I am a little worried... See how it feels tomorrow.

Definitely no running today. The calf is really sore. If it is not feeling better by tomorrow I may go get it checked out. It is a different pain than I have experienced...

Ran over to Clyde's this morning to see how the calf felt. The plan was a 20 miler but I was pretty sure I wasn't going to be able to make it that far. The calf felt okay running the .4 to Clyde's and actually kinda loosened up a bit. We started running and just over a mile into it I could feel my calf tightening up. Not in the same place as the pain on thursday, a little more in the middle of my calf. I am still worried about it so I decided it was not worth it and turned back. I walk/jogged back to my house and the calf only tightened up even more on the way back. We'll see what it feels like on Monday I guess!

Easy run today, calf still pretty tight, but no pain like last week. See how it feels tomorrow.

5 easy miles and the calf was just a little tight but felt pretty good. Excited to get out for maybe 7 or 8 tomorrow.

ran church loop. Started out faster than normal. Wasn't really sure what to expect. got 4 hours sleep last night, worked all day, then went to my wife's ultrasound (we are having our 4th boy we found out, due july) then went to 4 hours of school. So I didn't get on my run till about 10pm. Anyway, started out faster than normal but it felt right so I kept it. ran the first 1.5 at marathon pace, about 7:00. then I really got at it and did some low 6:00 and even sub 6:00 for another 3 miles. started my cool down back down to marathon pace which felt great and then when i finished the loop felt like adding more so I ran around the neighborhood for anther .9 for a real cool down. I decided after today to kind of change my time measurement of how I log my miles -Really just define it a bit more. I have been doing it kind of by time but also by feel. So here it is... over 7:15 is easy miles. 6:40-7:00 are marathon. 6:20-6:40 are threshold. sub 6:20 are VO2 Max. I just ran painters half at 1:26, about a 6:30 pace. So if anyone thinks I should log differently let me know.

Ran to store and tried out some shoes. Really liked these mizuno waverider so I "surfed" home on them. Feel pretty good. I also liked the asics nimbus. Probably go get those next week and start rotating. My wife still doesn't understand it so I couldn't convince her to let me buy 2 pairs of running shoes in one day. By next week I can soften her up enough...

Club run this morn. The plan was to go 20 but I only wanted to go 12-15. Wanted to make sure and not overdo it on the calves. We "ran" up to the top of broken Mesa in the hills above green springs. If you are ever driving up green springs dr look at the black mountain directly in front of you and you will see a trail cutting diagonally up the mountain. That is the one we ran. Almost 1200 feet in 2.5 miles. good workout. I could feel the legs burning. Came home down green springs drive at an easy 7:00-7:30 pace. Feel pretty good and the new shoes worked out great today.

4 easy miles. Okay, easy pace, but not easy. Felt very heavy and slow. Legs really tired still from saturday. Outside of my lower legs especially sore right around the ankles. Probably from all the rocks I was trying to dodge.

Went out with the plan to run 7:30-8:00 miles but ended up averaging about 7:15 for the whole 8. Ran the middle 7 miles at low 7:00 pace.

Felt very good today. My first good road run in the mizunos. Felt very good. I felt like I was running much straighter as I got tired. With my asics I tend to feel like I am running to the outside of my foot as I got tired. Mizunos also tend to keep my up on my toes a little more and I think that is why I was running faster than I expected too.

Had a great run with Clyde today. Went over to Green springs then to powerline rd and over to the pink tank by turkey farm rd. Came down through industrial park. Had some good hills with last 4 miles or so good downhill. didn't push it too hard. Shoes felt great. Legs felt great. Hit a slight wall about mile 9.5 but nothing too serious. That was just the first part that I began to feel tired. Tried some barefoot at the park but too many twigs from the trees they just chopped down...

Drove out to sand hollow to run around the lake. Doing dam 2 dam on saturday and wanted to see the terrain. The whole course is a graded road, not too bad for running. It was pretty cold this morning even at 9:30 when I got out there. Started to sprinkle on me about mile 1 but ended soon after and I warmed up for the rest of the run. Started sprinkling again last half mile but nothing serious. Then I drove the back way home on washington dam road. Might run that road home after race to get some miles in. About 11 miles.

Very easy pace today. Increasing mileage this week and trying to listen to my body and it said take it easy today.

Great day for a race. about 40 degrees to start, a little windy, but it's Hurricane so what do you expect?

Jose went out pretty fast and me and a large group were behind him at about a 6:15 pace. I was shooting for holding that pace and was happy to have a group to run it with. By mile 1 most of them had dropped off however and it was Jose, then a guy named Jeff from spanish fork, then me. I was going about 6:10 pace and felt great so I started picking it up to about 6:05. By mile 2 I caught Jose and held the lead the rest of the race. Jeff caught Jose shortly after me and stayed steady behind me about 30 seconds or so.

I was so excited to get first and when I got to the finish line my three boys (4-1/2, 3, and 18 mos.) were all yelling "Go Daddy, Go Daddy!" and then the spectators joined in yelling "Go Daddy!" as well. It was great.

I represented the Blog and SGRC well as I had one of the singlets on for the race. It was funny cause everyone else had sweats, tights, long sleeves, beanies, gloves, etc. because the weather said it was going to rain, maybe snow. Everyone at the starting line was saying "look at that guy, he must be freezing!"

PM: I am not going to count the home show homes I walked through, but "Daddy" had to carry a heavy little 3 year old through 6 or 7 houses today. That should count for something if you ask me!!!

Afterwards I took the car over to Fabulous Freddy's for a detail and ran to the running store and back while I was waiting. The store was already closed though...  Good little 5 mile jog on red cliffs right during the crazy valentines day dinner rush though. Pretty busy out there but I made it through without a scratch!

Easy run out to powerline trail then over to millcreek and up to mustang pass. Ran mustang pass back down to powerline and then down to green springs dr and home on middleton dr. I was planning on running powerline to millcreek then down to washington main st and home by firehouse on north side of freeway but decided to try mustang pass out instead. It was a great run up through the trails and other than wondering if coyotes were going to come eat me I had a great time.

Thought running home on the road through green springs would be a good idea but I wont do that again. The trails are so much easier on the legs...

Had a good run tonight. Planned on going a little slower but was feeling great. Never felt like I was pushing it and held about 7:00 pace for most of the run. Ran over to the airport and back soI got some good hills in as well.

Ran with the new Nimbus 10's today. A little inside ankle pain near the end though. Worried they may not have as much inside arch support as I need. Monitor and see...

Easy run up to powerline trail then over to green springs and down. Added a little extra trying to exlpore some new trails but didn't find much this time. Ankle was a little painful around mile 5 but stopped hurting again about mile 6. Focused on my form and the pain quickly went away. Try the Numbus again tomorrow to see how they treat me.

Club run tonight. Missed a few guys tonight, but a few others showed up to take your place and we didn't miss you at all...

Took it easy the first 4 then Steve wanted to go so James and I followed. Ran down red cliffs past the mall then down river road to the trail at Virgin river. Came back along the trail and then up 2450. Those last 3 or so up the hill at a good 6:30 pace.

Wore the Nimbus again tonight and had no pain at all. I wonder if the pain Tuesday was due to fatigue from the increase in miles on Monday...

3x1600m at the track. Felt pretty good and I know I could go faster if I really had the motivation. Hit about 5:40 on the first, 5:50 on the second and third. Did 400m jog in between. I'll have to check the Garmin for exact splits but didn't have time yet... Probably do 5 or so easy this afternoon.

Great run this morning with Dave, James, and Steve. They ran mustang pass from Dave's house twice. It's about 11 miles each lap. I ran the first and then went halfway on the second. Didn't want to overdo it and I know I could "handle" it but didn't think it was worth it. I am not sure how much my body would benefit from those last few miles, if at all. But I hit 60 this week. That is what I was shooting for. Been around 40-50 the last month or so and wanted to increase this week. Hope to maintain 60-70 for the next few months and then do a spring marathon. Maybe SLC or Utah Valley?

AM -Got up a little early to get 5 miles in before work. 5 miles turned into 3.75 as soon as I realized that my body was still recovering from the 18 on Saturday. The good news is I had no aches or pains, just felt tight and the body wanted to go slow. Felt pretty good by the end of the run and will get out this afternoon for another 8 or so.

PM -Beautiful run this afternoon in the trails above pioneer park (the big "DIXIE" on the red hill). It was partly sunny, a little warm starting out, but was absolutely beautiful. That area has a LOT of loose sand and I thought with the rain it would be a little more firm and a bit better for running. It was barely better than being dry but still had a great time. Felt great this afternoon. No more tightness. About mile 7 after I hit the road downhill from the DIXIE to 1000 E my knees began to hurt a bit but were okay after I slowed it down a bit.

Some easy miles this morning over to green springs and then up to powerline and down into Middleton. The fog covering the valley coming in to Middleton was amazing. The only house you could see was the Stouts up on top of the black ridge northwest of middleton. It felt like I was out in the middle of nowhere. I wish I had a camera...

Felt pretty good today but had a little pain at the back of my right knee which spread into my lower leg and foot. wasn't too bad and it went away after a bit. It feels kind of like I over extened my leg and stressed the muscles or ligaments running from my hamstring to my calf. Might not run this afternoon. Maybe 4 or 5 to try and loosen it up...

Got up early again for a run but still felt tight in the back of my leg. Not bad but didn't want to risk it so I opted to not run. Took my running gear to work with me in case I got time and was feeling better. After work the car wouldn't start so I put on my running gear and ran home. The leg felt great after about 4 miles so I decided to try some tempo to see how it felt. Got about .3 miles and could just barely notice it so I backed off and took it easy the last bit. I think I just overextended my knee at some point during my run the other day and it wont bother me too much I hope. Gotta stay healthy this spring and try to get a marathon in to see where I'm at...

Crazy day with work today. Barely got 5.7 in but had to go faster than I wanted because of time restraints...

Ran with James, Dave, Bill, Logan, and Steve out on the Bearclaw loop in bloomington. Good run. Felt a little sluggish first 3 or 4 then loosened up and felt good till the last two when I was gettting a bit tired. We were pushing 7:00 miles coming in the last few miles and it felt good. Haven't checked the garmin yet to see how many miles at Marathon pace so I am putting them all in at easy miles for now...

Was actually shooting for another 60 mile week but didn't happen due to work changes late in the week but I am thinking it was good to let the miles sink in from last week and let my body recover. Had some issues with the right leg early in the week and I think it was due to some fatigue. Felt great today so I think taking it easy the last 3 days helped. Next week will be interesting as we are doing the Lake to Lake relay and I will probably taper a bit late in the week to be ready.

very slow and very short run today. Gorged myself at Logans house after the landscaping and was just glad to get any kind of run in. Happy Bday Logan!

started off the frist 1.5 at 8 min pace. Then dropped to 7 for 1.5 then 6:40 for 1.5 then 6:00 for .5 and was feeling so good that I dropped to 5:20 for .75. then I was close to home and thought I should cool down so slowed back to 8 for the last bit. Did foremaster loop.

Ran to airport to pick up my car that I left there earlier. Was feeling great and ran it in 49:51 so 6:56 miles. Did not intend on going that fast but couldn't help myself.

mile 1 7:03 riverside to Maverick

2 6:26 around formaster on riverside to river road

3 6:21 along riverside trail towards convention center dr

4 6:27 riverside to bluff

5 6:41 up bluff from riverside (startinf the climb)

6 7:23 starting to wear out on bluff uphill climb

7 8:05 up airport hill, the real climb (it's a half mile long)

.2 at 7:10 pace to cool down a bit

8 with the running club. Ran down to trail and on to riverside then to red cliffs and back to store.

Did not wear my garmin so I am not sure how fast we went but Bill and I got kind of carried away at the end and started going pretty good down red cliffs. Such a wild guy that Bill is...

What a great day for a race and what a great race. We ahd Bill, me, Dustin, James, and Hayden, and ran in that order, 5 miles each leg, two legs each. Bill ran the first leg and was in 3rd when he handed it off to me. We were just a few minutes behind and I started off at about 5:50 pace. I ran Dam to Dam 5 miler in Hurricane a few weeks ago at about 6:07 pace and so when I looked at the Garmin and saw sub 6 I decided to just see how it went. My splits were:

5:48, pretty level, slight uphill at the start

6:11, good uphill climb, saw 2nd place guy cresting the top as I came around the bend

5:39, slight downhill, wind at my back, felt great

5:39, same as mile 3

5:55, pretty good steady hill but I had passed #2 guy and had #1 guy in my sights at this point

.4 at 5:11 pace trying to catch #1 but he got there just ahead of me, maybe 10-15 seconds

Overall about 5:48 pace I think, which is awesome considering Dam to Dam at 6:07!

Now what about 2nd leg?

Dustin held our place against a strong 3rd leg runner for the High school team (+ Ross Decker, fast, but his son was on the team and is a Sr. in H.S.) While we waited for Dustin I ran a cool down with James who was warming up for the handoff with Dustin. As we finished our cooldown we saw the 1st place team coming in and then Dustin coming too. James didn't even have his bib number on so we lost 20-30 seconds waiting while Dustin gave the shirt off his back to James. Pretty tense for a minute but it turned out okay. James gained a bit on Ross and handed off to Hayden about 1 minute back. He smoked his leg at 5:13 pace and came in 1:30 ahead of 2nd place and handed off to Bill again. Bill's leg was all uphill along the river and the high school team's runner passed him right at the end of his leg. Their next runner sprinted out and Bill handed off to me just behind. I caught their runner less than a mile into it and never looked back. Splits:

5:52 feeling okay but could tell early that I did not have the energy to hold it

6:00 trying my best to keep it under 6, but I knew the 2nd place guy was struggling

6:12 really hard to focus, I knew 6:30 pace would keep me at least a minute ahead of 2nd place by the end but didn't want to settle for slower pace

6:08 ran past my house and my wife and kids were outside to cheer me on. dropped to 5:30 for .25 then the last hill from riverside to 3050 (costco rd) took it out of me

.4 at 6:30 figured there was no point, I knew I was done...

Overall 6:05 pace, pretty good considering I had run 5 miles at 5:48 and, once again, beat my Dam to Dam pace!

 We had a couple minutes on them by the time I handed off to Dustin again. Dustin did well on his leg and increased the lead even more even with a huge hill at the end on Washington Dam road. He handed off to James who had a straight climb that may have been close to .75 miles. Ross gained on James a bit and we had about a 3 minute lead when he gave it to Hayden. Once again, Hayden smoked it in, this time avg about 5:24 and we won by about 6 mins.

The day was awesome, had some great people to spend the 5 hours with, and we took first place, what more could we ask for? Maybe the course record? well we got that too! (first year race...)

Easy run today. Felt pretty good. Ankles a little ginger at start but warmed up quick.

felt a twinge in the hammy during the first 2 miles and it got worse as i ran. ran faster and it seemed to go away... we will see how it treats me tomorrow.

Hammy still sore and not sure I should run on it. Had a similar feeling with the calf a month ago and pushed through it and ended up having to take it easy for a week...

Easy pre raceday jog... hammy felt great so that is good news for tomorrow!

What a great race today... Sunny, nice temps, and great company.

Got to bed a little later than I wanted to last night but woke up feeling great. Got to the race to check in and get on the bus. Started to realize that I was a little dehydrated but no way to hydrate after getting on the bus. Did a few miles warm up with James, Dustin, Bill, and Ruth (Ruthio). But after having to "go" a couple times before the race thought maybe it was not dehydration, just dry mouth and lips.

Race started about 10-15 mins late, very unusual for St George City race, but had good company at starting line, even with the rogue runners...

Race started and a couple guys really took off. Ryan Newman and Dustin went off after them and James and I kind of held back just a bit. First mile in 5:12 but downhill quite a bit.. By the park exit it was just Dustin with a guy from up north I think, and then Ryan then me. Shortly after I passed Ryan thinking, "he is just gonna let me go by for now but I better watch my back..." About mile 4 I passed the second place guy and could tell he was starting to labor a bit. So it was Dustin leading by about 20-30 seconds, then me, fighting the urge to look back and see where Ryan and James were. As we rounded Snow Canyon Parkway headed to the church I glanced back and saw Ryan and James not too far behind. Ryan freaks me out cause he just doesn't look like he is really struggling ever and at any moment he could just drop a couple sub 5:00 miles...

Going up the hill from the church got me wondering if I started too fast on that downhill but after chasing that thought out of my head I told myself, "just over a mile to go and if I was going to catch Dustin I would have to go now." I gained on him a bit but by the time we finished the hill I needed a few seconds to ward off fatigue. By the time we hit the roundabout with .2 to go I realized I had lost focus and relaxed a bit too much and Ryan was right on my heels. Without thinking I just decided to pick it up until I couldn't sprint any faster.

I put a little distance between me and Ryan and realized I had gained quite a bit on Dustin so decided to keep it going and see if I could catch him. Soon realized I coundn't and started to back off a bit then I saw the clock....

34:50!!!

I was shooting for somewhere in the 36:00-37:00 range! But at this point I was not going to go over 35:00 and gave it one last push. Ended up finishing at 34:59!! My last 10k was almost 41 mins at summer games in June '08 and so this was a great surprise. I let Dustin beat me by 3 or 4 seconds so it is hard to be 100% excited but I really could not be happier with the time.

Splits:

5:12 -like I mentioned, quite a bit of downhill

5:43 -settling into a comfortable pace with a few hills in the park

5:30 -feeling good, more downhill

5:47 -hitting some more uphill through the houses

5:52 -everyone just kind of holding their place and waiting to make a move

5:53 -deceivingly slow as we had the uphill from the church, but this is where I was trying to make my move on Dustin

.21 in 1:02 -4:49 pace, but garmin says I got down to 4:06 pace at one point. I wish I could hold that pace for a mile!

Congrats Dustin and everyone else!

got up early to get some miles in with the intention of doing some more in the PM but never got back out... have to make a point of getting up early or I end up missing my runs altogether!

Ran washington feilds loop. started out faster than I wanted too then couldn't hold it back. Ended up doing about 6:30-6:40 pace until the last mile when I decided to slow myself down and relaxed at a 7:10 pace. I just felt so good today!

AM -5.55 Good slow run this morn. Felt a little slow after the long run at tempo pace yesterday. Try to do 4-5 more this afternoon to get the miles in but wanted to split it up to let myself recover.

PM 4.55 in the afternoon sun! Such nice weather out until you start to run! I guess I shouldn't complain as it is only going to get hotter!

Slow run today. Couldn't get going. But at least I got out. Tried to get out again in the afternoon with the club but wasn't able to make it.

Good long run today. Longest I've done since St. George Marathon. Feel pretty good after. didn't really get tired but the last mile I could start to feel my body telling me it was done.

I ran from my house down riverside then under the freew way at convention center and to my little bro David's house (new blogger, bundydavid.fastrunningblog.com) and did about 6 with him then ran home.

Kept a good 8 min pace pretty much the whole way. Picked it up to 7:00 at mile 19-20 just to see how I felt and felt pretty good. I am getting way excited for my next marathon to see how the whole 26.2 goes...

Not a lot of time for a run today so I jsut did the Foremaster loop. Good run but very windy!!!

Ran the fields loop. Ran it probably too fast but I had some aggression to get out of my system. Ran the first 8 at about 6:30 pace then backed off the last 2 and did them about 7:30. Felt pretty good the whole time until I backed it off!

Easy miles today. had to keep reminding myself to relax and loosen up. once I did, I felt pretty good.

Club run tonight. Was going to run the 4 miles from work to the store then run with the club but got out of the office a bit late and by the time I started running only got about a quarter mile before realizing I would not make it in time and ended up turning around to take the car instead. So ran about 9.4 with the club...

K, it is late, and I'm tired, so I will spell and grammar check later...

Quick version: It was snowy, windy, and cold. But I am pleased with my time and feel pretty good post-race.

Long Version:

Well, the race actually got canceled at the start due to a blizzard in Moab last night. Woke up this morning and found a few inches on the ground... And it was cold!!! Got to the bus and Curt, the RD said that maybe we should start an hour later to see if the storm would pass but most people said lets just go! I was just excited to run and was gunning to win it so I didn't care either way.

The 26 mile bus ride ended up taking over an hour because of the snow so we didn't even get to the starting line till an hour after the scheduled start time any way. When we got there, Curt said he needed to call the race due to conditions... On top of the platuea the snow was really coming down and the roads were packed 1-2 inches with some drifts even deeper! A few guys, lead by Bill Mandler, said they wanted to do it anyway so we were told the race was canceled and to take our bib #'s off and if we choose to get off then so be it.

So 10 of us jumped out just as the snow let up and started out kinda slow, mayybe 9 min pace or so, haven't checked the garmin yet... then Bill and some other guy start to pull out and I said what the heck and went with them. The frist three miles were very slow as we had a really good headwind and little hail peices hitting us in the face as we went. At mile three the road turned and we had a nice little tail wind. I had put a few feet on Bill but stopped to take releive myself and he passed me. At that point I had thrown all time goals and other aspirations of winning the race out the window so I wasn't concerned.

So i start out again and before I know it I am doing about 6:15 pace. I am not really gaining on Bill though for the first 1/4 mile and decicded it was just too fast for conditions. Bill must have thought the same thing cause he seemed to slow too. Then before I know it I am gaining on him a bit and I check the pace and I am at 6:15 again! I decided that the snow was dry enough that the traction actually isn't too bad so I thought to myself, "maybe sub 3:00 is still doable!" And i decided 1st place would be nice too. So I passed Bill and never looked back... okay, started to look back near the end as I died, but still beat him!

Anyway, about mile 10 the ice is melting and becoming slushy in spots where cars had driven but shoes were still pretty dry. Then these idiots come whizzing by in a couple cars and jsut soak me! the first guy does it pretty good and I hear the second guy coming so I turn around to wave at him to slow down and he just stares straight ahead and sprays me like I wasn't there! I coulda banged out a few windows if I found him later but no luck!

So by this time my wife is stopping every 3 miles to give me water since they canceled the race and at mile 16 she asks if I want my other shoes so I decided why not, this is not a real race anyway right? I switch shoes and the dry shoes feel great but after running 16 in the other these feel horrible! But they were lighter and dry and my wife already took off so I just kept going. After about 3 miles my feet got used to them and they were good after...

My only dissapointment is the last 5 miles. I really died. I was on track for about 2:55 at mile 18, then we hit a nice uphill and some mud for 3 miles and after that I just could not go. I really trailed off and this is where I kept watching for Bill to creep up on me. I did see him about mile 19-20 during the mud but it must have got him too cause he didn't get any closer.

All in all a fun race though and I am happy with the 3:06. Now I will have to do UV or something else in the next 2 months though before STG!

Woke up and did 3 on the new treadmill (well new to me, but pretty old). I got it from my brother. Sunday I drove down to Phoenix and helped him move Monday and Tuesday (yeah, after running a marathon).He did not want it anymore soI brought it home.

Pleased that I was not really sore at all Monday and pretty much gone by Tuesday but I made up my mind before the marathon to take Monday and Tuesday off. Planned on running Wednesday but ended up working too late!

Club run of 8.2 in the afternoon with the guys. Good run and easy pace. Felt good but had a little cramping in my right calf as we came down green springs a little faster. Went away by the time we got the stop lights though and feels fine now. Probably just post marathon aches...

Easy run at about 8:30 pace this morning. Nice and cool and missed the rain for the most part. Calves started cramping a bit in the first two miles and then loosened up a bit. Must still be some of the marathon in there...

Planning on getting back into it full on next week. James and I are gonna run a few mornings together so we can get some doubles in. Trying for at least 60 per week until June. Then I think I will do the UV Marathon and win $1000! Okay, I will be going for a 2:50 and if I get even a handshake at the end it will be more than Moab!

Ran this morning with James. Good run at a decent but easy pace. Met at Washington park and ran around foremaster and up the hill by the hospital. Good to know I got a run in so I don't have to stress this afternoon... Might try for a few more tonight on the treadmill if time permits...

Green Springs with James. My left knee gave me some pain when bending after the run yesterday and was slightly sore this morning but warmed up after a couple of miles. Need to watch it I guess... A bit warm out this morning though!

No run today. Resting the knee...

AM -Very tired this morning but managed to get out of bed. Got a late start and ended up going about a 9 min pace so only had time for 4.25.

Knee felt great though and felt a twinge only a couple times but normally would probably not have noticed if I wasn't paranoid because of the pain the last few days...

PM -3.75 on the treadmill. Listened to a few conference talks on the ipod while running but the buds kept falling out and it was late so I decided a round 8 for the day was good. Knee felt good...

3 miles not easy tonight. Couldnt get it going. planned on going farther but just didn't feel like it was worth it. It was late, about 11pm, so that could be part of it...

Ran home from Kite Festival. Kinda hot and a bit windy, but the wind was welcomed as it cooled me down a bit. Helped a buddy move this morning so didn't get a long one in this morning...

Ran through middleton with James this morning. Perfect temps around 55'.

Ran over to the new trail that goes down south of the Parkway where the cotton days 10k is supposed to be run. Nice quiet trail along the virgin river to start, then a gruesome hill to finish the 10k that goes out to the fairgrounds and back. Glad I am not running that one! DHHS has a fundraiser 5k the same morning on the 9th of may (cotton days is at 6pm!) and my neice goes there so I am supporting that instead. If you want to run it let me know and I can get you signed up!

Ran into washington fields with James this morning. Hard to keep the pace, which overall we did about 7:45, just couldn't get the legs to feel smooth for some reason. Probably due to the inconsistency in my running the last few weeks. I am really going to try to hit 65-75 each week until UV Marathon in June. Should give me a lot better chance to go under 2:50...

Did some solo tempo this morning. Felt a lot better without having to drag James butt around! Felt pretty good most of the time and got down to some 6 min miles last 3 miles.

Did red cliffs to middleton loop (plus a little extra at the start running towards James house to see if he was gonna get his lazy bum out of bed).

Green springs with james. Ran .5 after barefoot and it felt great! During the run I really focused on striking more on my toes and stay off my heels and those nagging calf pains were gone! Thanks for the barefoot article Ryan!

Great run this morning. Woke up a litle later than I wanted but still got 17 in before it started to warm up... and then it got cold as the wind came in but luckily I was all done running by that point!

Run felt easy for the most part as I am really concentrating on landing more on my forefeet. The pace drops to 7 quickly and I had to keep backing off. Finished the run at 7:35 pace overall. My calves feel great after and no pain there or anywhere else during. Get ready Hurricane Half!

Next week plan on getting into the 70's and not planning on tapering too much. Probably get more miles in per day since the half will prob only give me 16 or so total with warmup and cool down...

Ran over to the trail south of the parkway and down to washington dam road and then back up to the park. Legs a little tired this morning but I made it through. .5 barefoot on the grass after.

Club run with Jeff, Dustin, and Kyle Decker. Good run and legs felt really fresh after taking two days off (not on purpose). I guess I tapered for Hurricane after all! Going for sub 1:20 now!

Well, my medal says 2nd overall thanks to David (didn't catch last name) and Mile Schramm. They came in 2nd and 3rd and I was 4th. So either they cheated or they put them 1 and 2 in masters. And I followed them and if they cheated then so did I so they must have put them in masters =).

Race started and I felt great. I was in 8th after mile 1. Decided to try and run at 6:05 pace to break 1:20.

Mile 1. 6:05. right on pace, feeling great.

2. 5:59. got a little carried away but it seemed to be a little downhill so felt good about the time. Passed Dan here I think.

3. 6:03. Still feeling good. leaders starting to pull away a little but I decided to run my race.

4. 6:21. some uphill here and though it did flatten out, the uphill part killed the lap time.

5. 6:28. Slow mile but not too worried yet. I knew that the downhill could still save me at this point. I think this is where I passed Josh Decker and TylerS, Tyler seemed to be having some stomach cramps but would end up staying right on my heels from here on in.

6. 6:37. Even more uphill. Didn't realize these miles were so bad. After this mile I decided 1:20 was a little out of reach.

7. 6:47. Ok, after this mile I was ready for that big downhill. I am feeling kinda upset about the time here but looking back on the elevation I guess it is not so bad. Noticed that the leaders were getting closer.

8. 6:11. Hallelujiah! Is that how you spell it? Hit the downhill and really starting to get closer to leaders. Didn't think I would catch 1-3, but thought 4th was possible at this point.

9. 5:43. Looking back wonder if this was actually a litle slow. Although I did keep the leaders the same distance ahead at this point.

10. 5:51. Really starting to feel good at this point and gained a little more on Mike and the others. Couldn't shake Tyler though, I thought that cramp would have put him out...

11. 6:18. Some more uphill here and didn't gainmuch distance on leaders here.

12. 6:46. end of the hills... geting within reach of Mike and Dustin if I can have a good last mile. Then out of the blue Dustin stops at the aid station and is having some problems and I passed him here.

13. The course was short according to my garmin and a few others I talked to. It ended up being 12.9. so my time here was 5:37, which is 6:07 pace. The mile felt great and I really had Mike in my sights, prob 10 seconds behind him. I was planning on seeing what the old man had left in the legs for a sprint for the last .2 but then as we came around the corner to the track there was the finish! I was expecting to run around the track antoher .2! I talked to Mike afterward and he said he would have enjoyed the race at the end but I guess it will have to wait for another race!

First time on this course and I learned some good lessons I guess. Now onto the DHHS 5k next week to see how much I can improve that PR!

Did about .75 of my 1.75 cooldown barefoot and it felt pretty good. I really did not feel spent after this race and regret not pushing a bit harder but just could not get in the zone. A few earlier races this year I have really surprised myself timewise by going out with the leaders and trying to keep up with them. This race I stuck to my pace that I thought I should have run and I wonder if it hurt me a little. Live and learn!

Didn't have much time to run so decided to take the kids in the stroller. Ran down to the river and let them get out and wade for a bit.

Nice hard tempo run through the fields. Averaged about 6:30 pace for 9 miles with a 1 mile cool down. hit a couple low 6 min miles that felt pretty good.

Evening run over to Middleton then down to tabernacle and back on 700 S. Felt pretty good considering the hard tempo run yesterday. Stopped at Dixie track just long enough to watch Dixie kill PV and SC in the girls 4x400. I think it was the region track meet.

Fun race out at Desert Hills HS today. Put in some harder miles on Wednesday followed by a longer than normal back to back run on Thursday. Calves were pretty tight Friday so I decided not to run. Felt a little tight this morning and after 2 miles warmup felt just ok. I was originally going to try for sub 17 but knew my legs didn't have it after how I felt Friday. Beakdown of race:

Mile 1: 5:32- went out at about 5:20 pace and after .25 knew it was just me and Sean. Can't remember his last name but he ran on deckers 50 mile relay team so I knew he was fast. He drafted me for about .5 before pulling away. Beat me to mile 1 by 10 seconds or so.

2: 5:58- Pretty good steady uphill on this mile. Sean pulled away from me even more here and 3rd place was pretty far back.

3: 5:54- started to feel pretty good halfway into this mile but not enough to go faster.  Had a good kick at the end on the track... and yes, we ran around the track 3/4 and then finished...

.1: 19 seconds. Sean beat me by about 40 seconds with a 17:06. I didn't give him enough of a race cause he looked pretty solid the whole time and could have gone faster if I would have been close...

Ran a mile race with my son Mason after and realized I need to teach him how to pace... He would sprint, then get tired and walk, then sprint, then walk, etc... He is only 5 so I guess there is still time!

Ran home about 7.5 miles after. Felt pretty good and calves feel good...

PM- Felt great after a nap this afternoon so went on another run this evening. Felt pretty good considering! 11.3 in 1:28, about 7:50 pace.

Felt pretty ginger this morning and couldn't really get it going. Add another 8 or so tonight.

PM- 7 miles, 3 at 6-6:15 pace. Felt great tonight! Sharp contrast from this morning.

12 at an easy pace. Ate too much too close to the run so miles 3-5 were a bit rough with some stomach issues but after that felt great.

Did 20 this morning with Clyde. Fathers and Sons tonight with my 3 boys so had to do the long run today. Started at convention center and went up sunland dr to river rd then up into bloomington hills. Ran around the golf course a bit then over to the trail and down to man o war bridge. Did the loop around bloomington then back to convention center. It was only 18 so we continued up to riverside then over to the trail and back down to make it an even 20. Felt really good the whole way with spring in my step all the way to about 19 so I am glad I only went 20 and that they were quality miles. Averaged about 7:21 pace.

Easy 3 miles easy pace through some neighborhoods below the mall. Hit Mall Dr and picked up the pace to about 7 min/mile. Then couldnt resist and hit a couple of 6:00 miles at the end. Felt slow warming up but was able to overcome to end strong.

AM -6.75

PM -6.25

Nice hard run through the feilds. Felt great, got a little tired near the end but pushed through it.

Battery on laptop dying, but not as bad as I did in this race. I was not feeling good the last few days to say the least and could not hold anything down. Needless to say my energy was very low entering the race but I actually felt "not sick" this morning. I went out at the 6:30 pace I had planned on and held it probably 9 or so miles (Garmin dead too). Then Maryann flew by me and it hit me that I was apperently struggling. I tried staying with her but only kept her in sight for another couple of miles before falling off and would eventually start hitting 9-10:00 minute miles. Hit 13.1 in 1:26 but only because I had some low 6 minute miles on the downhill in the canyon. It was all I could do to finish after 17 or so miles but finish I did! I may give a more detailed report later, but no promises.

Up on Cedar Mountain (Kolob) for Scout Camp for the next few days. Got out and did 3+ before the sun came up so I could go fishing before activities started. Caught a couple, one about 2 feet long! Didn't keep either though.

They had a mini triathalon this afternoon that I didn't know about but decided to jump in on (about 300m swim, 4 mile bike 1-1.5 mile run). Got 2nd to Ross Decker by a few minutes. I was pretty dizzy getting out of the water and Ross didn't seemed dazed at all! Then I get on one of the scouts bikes and my knees are in my chest as I ride. I moved the seat up as far as it would go and had it fall off a couple times. My quads were burning like crazy after! When I got off the bike it took me a quarter mile before I could run without looking like I was constipated but I did end up passing a bunch of the "team" relay runners. They are just scouts but it still feels good to pass the teams who had someone different run each leg!

Got out with James, Dave, and Bill this morning. It was a great run and I felt great. Good to get the miles in. Ran by Quail and the hills throughout didn't bother me at all. In my head it feels like I have been out of it for a while but looking back I have been running, just not quite as many miles and not with the club. Hope to get back into it hard this summer.

Well #4 came today. 7 lbs, 5 oz. 18.5 inches. Came pretty easy and mom and baby doing great! No name yet so suggestions would be appreciated!

Ran Foremaster loop tonight. It was 9:30 when I started but still feakin' hot! I am really motivated to put the miles in right now. I am even hoping to get some doubles in this week and next.

Got a name for the little one: Tai Nathan. It is pronounced "tie."

In Chinese, Tai has a few meanings, two of those being "greatest" and "servant." The Chinese have at least one thing figured out!

Ran over by past dog pound then up to telegraph and down 2450 to my house. Nice little morning run but boy was it hot!

Ran up to the store this afternoon to meet up with the club. It was overcast and somewhat cool all day until I got out to run and then the sun came right out. We had at least 10 to 12 guys as some of the high schoolers were out with us. Ran the parkway loop about 8.15 miles then back home. Good run with some good company. Felt good to be out with the guys again.

Ran foremaster again today. Couldn't help but push it the last 3. legs kinda tired from yesterday to start but warmed up and felt great.

Ran out to new airport through the fields and back through little valley and river road. No noticable progress last few months. About 8 min pace. Good run and plenty of energy. Saw Steve on the trail by the river at the end of my run.

Nice faster run this morning past dogpund and up to telegraph then down 2450. Legs felt good. Planning on club run this evening.

Great Day for a marathon. I haven't posted for a while but Dave told me I had to and Clyde posts comments to my blog from my last post in July so I decided I had better post my races at least...

I have been running pretty good for the last month. The baby being born in July has taken its toll. He is sleeping much better now though so I have been able to get up in the mornings.

I have run the UV Marathon and Park City Marathon since I last posted. Ran 3:29 at both of them. UV I had the stomach flu and PC I was taking it easy so I wouldn't mess up my training.

For TOU Marathon I wasn't sure how hard I wanted to push it for fear of not being able to run the following week due to soreness and mess up my training for SG in two weeks. I decided to just run how I felt. I have been taking a supplement that has really reduced swelling and soreness and post-race and especially post-marathon recovery has been phenominal. I used to have my wife rubbing me down each day for a week after a marathon and had to take a week off from running. This was the case with UV and Moab earlier this year. But PC recovery was great and I rode my bike the monday after and was running with no soreness at all Tuesday.

As for TOU we will see. Today, the day after, I have minimal soreness and have tried a light jog from the house to the car and felt pretty good. I will run maybe 2 or 3 tomorrow morning and see how I feel.

Well, I sat down here to report the race... Kinda got side tracked... So, here it is:

Like I mentioned, it was a great day for a marathon. Nice and cool at the start and just light enough that you could see. I was maybe 5 or 6 rows back standing in the "2:45-3:00" section looking around at a bunch of people talking about how they were hoping to break 4:00. We started out and I was feeling great. I look at my watch and see that we are doing about 5:30 pace but couldn't do much about it as I was boxed in. Soon I was dodging the people that had surrounded me at the start as they fell back to their true pace. I was finally able to slow and settled in at about a 6:40 pace. I knew it was faster than my overall pace would be but the downhill was just enough that it felt right. The first 13 or 14 miles was coming down the canyon and I was enjoying the changing leaves and the scenery and watching MayAnn nervously look over her shoulder on each turn. She wasn't nervous about the other runners though. At the start the Highway Patrol announced that we were to run on the right side of the road as they would not be shutting the canyon down. We had all been told they would and knew they had measured using both lanes. None of us wanted to stay right on those left curves. A few turns into the race MaryAnn was cutting the corner on the left side and a bike cop yelled at her to get on the right and the next time she would be disqualified.

By the end of the canyon I knew I didn't want to keep up the 6:40 pace on the flat. I decided that a 3:05 should be good so that I could at least qualify for Boston and hopefully not damage my body too much. I didn't realize how much slight uphill I would encounter over the last 10 miles and it almost wore me out at times. The thing I am proud of is that I mentally held strong and was able to keep a decent pace through it all. By the end of the canyon I was also worried about my calves a bit but a few miles into the flat and I felt good again.

The main difference between TOU and the other marathons I have done this year is the last 5 miles. I have really died in those miles, walking at UV (I did have the stomach flu and was not able to keep anything down for 2 days leading up to the race), and falling to about a 8:30 and 9:00 min pace at PC, even on the downhill... But at TOU I was able to hold a 7:30 on the flat, 8:00 on the uphill and pushed a few times on the downhill to 6:45. I was mostly tesiting out my energy level and how my quads and hamstrings wold hold up. I had some serious cramping at PC at miles 22-25. I fared much better at TOU with no cramping at all...

The last couple miles through town there were quite a few supporters but many of them were just talking amongst themselves. As I ran the last few miles I could see that I was getting close to the 3:10 mark and was determined to qualify. Coming into the second to last turn at the end I could see people running down the next block in front of me headed right and I was turning left. I realized I had much farther than I had originally thought and was very dissapointed that I would not make the time. But after turning another corner and seeing the finish line I realized that what I was actually seeing was where I had just run a mile or so back. Then as I saw the clock at just under 3:10 I was very releived to see that I would make it. A girl passed me in that last block and I think I had enough in me to outkick her but was not even thinking about that as I was so happy to have just qualified, and with 18 seconds to spare!

No run today. Didn't want to overwork the legs after TOU saturday. I will tell you though... That supplement I have been taking REALLY reduces the soreness post-marathon. Here it is, only Monday and I have only mild pain in my calves. I jogged a bit as I went through the day and no tightness or pain. Only when I put pressure directly on the muscle such as massaging with my fingers is there any sign of soreness!

Past Marathons I have had my wife rubbing my entire leg for at least a week and was not able to run for at least a week and two weeks with no pain!

Flu yesterday and today with fever... No run. But as of today no soreness at all... quite amazing considering my personal history with the marathon...

Okay... first test of recovery. 8 miles. Ran from my house to formaster, the first 1.5 were at about 6:30 pace as I woke up a few minutes late and missed my running partner but saw him ahead of me a quarter mile. So I ran a little faster to catch up. We then ran up foremaster and all the way to the top at the north end, a good, steady, uphill climb for about 1.5 miles. Then down to Sunrise tire, left onto river road and down to hospital to run up and over foremaster again and then back to my house.

Happy to report no stiffness, soreness, or any other pain including joints and such. A good test of recovery. I am getting excited for December when I can hopefully pick up my mileage to 50-60 MPW and see what the day to day recovery is like. Early this year I was not that consistent but had many good weeks and I was sore every day and never really could fully recover...

Fun 5K this morning. It was my speed workout for the week...

Ross Decker and his sons were there and so I was really hoping to beat them. I haven't raced many 5K's on fresh legs so I was excited to see what I could do.

Race started and I went out about 5:30 pace. There was a group of 5 or so of us with  me at the lead. The race started out in a neighborhood and made a few turns with some downhill spurts. I decided to try to put some distance on the downhill between me and the others. After a mile I did have a few feet on them. Then we hit about a mile and a quarter stretch of pretty level distance on riverside dr before the end which was mostly slight uphill. I didn't want it to turn into a race at the end so I tried to put a little more distance here which I did. Passed my house with my wife and kids cheering me on as the only spectators along the course other than the aid station. pushed hard up the little hills and got back to the finish area with quite a bit of a lead and was releived enough to let myself slow up a bit...

It's always a pleasure to run a well organized race in good weather. I look back and can't help but think how much I enjoyed the entire experience. From the volunteers at the aid stations to the crowds of supporters in town, this was by far my best marathon experience. It makes missing my goal to run under 3 hours not even disappointing.

I forgot my Garmin and I am so happy I did... I just ran how I felt and didn't get discouraged by constantly checking my watch and seeing my pace. I know I ran the first half in 1:29:30 so the second half was 1:34:11. I would have liked to run negative splits but but just couldn't get the leg turnover going down the hills. My biggest victory was the last 5 miles where I feel I did a great job of overcoming the mental breakdown I have experienced in past marathons.

I really can't wait to get started training for the next marathon and break 3 hours. It is so doable after running this one on less than adequate training. Thanks to Ben, my training partner, who ran 3:02 who helped me more than he knows in training, in the race, and in life...