Dare to be great!

Wanted to run the last few miles of the marathon.  Didn't go all the way to the end but parked a little past BYU then headed up the canyon 6.5 then headed back.  Should be a good race, kept it pretty comfortable going up and coming down.  Maybe I picked it up a little too much on the way back, but still felt really comfortable, mostly averaged in the 7:30s on the way down, did the last mile in 7:02 to see how it felt.  AP for the run 7:50

Done with the physical preparation for the marathon, now I got to build on my confidence.  I need get myself mentally and spiritually prepared for the race. 

Couple afternoon laps around Liberty Park in the wood chips. Nice afternoon out, did miles 4-6 @ goal marathon pace. GPS was cutting in and out so just tried to keep the pace consistant.

Easy miles at the track behind the middle school with the family.

Last run before the marathon on Saturday.  Had a good time reviewing all the good runs building up for this race, and all the personal growth I have gained.  We all have our reasons for running and they seem to change for me with time, but in times of grief and joy, I always feel comforted when I run.  Must have been the great sunset, but it was a great night to be out.

Still trying to process the race this morning.  Stayed with my in-laws in Orem the night previous.  Very little sleep as we had a tiny bed and it was burning hot.  Up at 2:30, ate some breakfast used the potty and had my wife drop me off at the bus drop off.  I was having my usual pre-race tummy issues but was there with enough time I thought it was all over by the time the race started. 

Felt really good the first few miles, smooth and relaxed.  Miles 1-7, 7:04.6:58,7:01,7:03,7:06,7:07,7:08, I could tell in here my stomach was not doing well, I kept looking for the bathrooms which were supposed to be every 2 miles but did not see one.  I didn't want to go, and kept hoping it would go away but it was hard to keep a good rhythm.  Hit the hills at 8-9 7:33-7:39, just kept it pretty smooth and didn't try to push it too hard up the hills.

Miles 11-13 - 7:07,7:26,7:13, I wanted to go out more aggressive to at least give myself a chance to qualify for boston it things worked out.  I asked Sasha what I would need at the half to give myself the chance and he said 1:34 should cut it.

I was right there, BUT, my stomach had other plans finally found a bathroom before the start of the half and watched my average pace just plunge.  I crossed the half after the long potty break around 1:35:30 ish and knew I would have to push it the second half. 

Miles 14-7:50 potty break, 15 7:24, I knew I was in trouble here, stomach kept having issues and there was no port-a potties to be seen.  Tried to stop as I had thankfully packed some TP in my pocked (first time ever, what a blessing)  no where to go and had to keep plugging along mile 16 - 7:44 Mile 17 8:47, saw some bushes on the side of the road and there was no going any further, went into the bushes and my music cut off, my ipod got caught on some branches and flew off into the trees, lost  a lot of time briefly looking for it and doing my business.  Saw my mileage on the GPS and decided just to come back later and look for it.  Made a little flag with some TP to mark the spot where it flew off.

I knew at this point my chances of breaking 3:10 were pretty much gone and I was pretty mad about the no potties and losing my I-pod, tried to use some anger and maybe run faster, miles 18-19 7:22-7:15,

I was in trouble here and decided to just use it as a learning experience and enjoy the scenery.  Not getting any speed out of the legs and decided to save them and just call it a training run for the rest of the way in.

Miles 20-26 7:31,7:33,7:44,7:42,8:05,7:42,7:22, had a good finish but did not turn off my watch.

Met up with my wife at the finish and had a memorable time with her.  So proud of her.  Saw a few people from the blog at the finish.  Legs are a bit sore but should not be very bad this time as I took it easy the last few miles.

On a positive note, I beat my spring marathon time from last year, I have not been able to do any speed, real tempo runs due to injury and realistically expected to be around 3:20, and drove back on the course to mile 16.51 and found my I-POD hidden in the leaves.

Time to hit the trails....

Must have lied about my legs not being very sore, pretty hobbled up over the weekend, starting to loosen up today.  Mowed the lawn and tried to walk around as much as possible.  Probably a few more days before I try to run again.  I will get out the bike and cruise around on it.

I have been letting my legs recover from the marathon last week, still feeling some residual soreness so I have just been going on hikes this week.

It is our annual ward 5K and I wanted to run it with my kids today.  Brought the dog along with me, TJ (6) rode his bike, my wife Laurel ran it, and I ran with Spencer (10) and Trenton (8).  Took off and Trenton and Spencer were in the lead pack, a high school kid took off and we didn't see him until the finish.  I wanted to see what my kids could do so I told them to run it as hard as they could, but be smart with the course as it is Harvest Hills and the course was pretty much hills the whole way. 

1st Mile7:58, my boys were pretty much running side by side and looking good,  Mile 2 - 8:12, still holding strong I kept trying to motivate them and keep them running strong.  I was impressed with Trenton as he was staying with us and looked good.  Mile 3 - 8:13, lots of uphill this mile and my kids were battling with a few other grownups from the neighborhood.  I told them to push it up the hills and then the finish was all downhill the last .25.  I was so proud of the way they pushed, now there was only one guy in front of them.  I was cheering them on and having the time of my life (well pretty much.)

Last downhill push to the finish Trenton said he just could not go any faster and I urged him to push.  He broke the mental barrier and pushed it in and caught the guy in front of us.  Spencer had took off and was just in front of us as we finished 2nd, 3rd, and 4th overall.  I was so proud of them and believe Trenton could have some incredible races if he trains and focuses on running.

AP for the run 8:05, as a bonus my legs held up fine and will start to run again next week.

So glad I got up and got this run in this morning. Very nice trail run with company this morning in the hills above Draper. Found out I got on a Ragnar team from the neighborhood after one of my friends hurt his knee, so I had to make sure the legs could still run.

Legs felt ok, and should be fine for this weekend.  So nice to get out in the hills again.  The miles just clicked away and it was a great way to start the day. 

Leg 11 of the Ragnar Wasatch Back.  Got invited about a week ago to the neighborhood/ward team as one of the team members tweaked his knee.  I wasn't sure how my legs would respond coming off less than 2 weeks from the marathon, but I was fine.  Could feel some residual fatigued but not bad.  It was a non-competitive team and we just went out and had a great time.  My first leg was the climb up to Snow Basin.  Ran fairly strong, but still was aware I had 2 more legs to go so kept a lot in the tank.  Pretty run 1830ft of elevation gain 7.28 miles total.  AP 8:53

My 2nd and 3rd legs of the Wasatch Ragnar,

Leg 23, started about 2am, I really enjoyed myself on this run, no music, didn't check my Garmin, just delighted in the ability I have to run under a big moon in the middle of the night under the stars.  Started out fairly easy and progressed from there, ended up with a 7:16 AP with 429ft of elevation gain in the 5.5 miles.

My last leg (35) is the drop down from the top of Guardsman's Pass down into Park City, legs responded ok but once again just tried to enjoy the run and not kill the legs too much, averaged 7:03 for the run but was in the low 6's for much of the first few miles, due to he 2791' of elevation loss. 

Overall I had fun and got to get to know some of my neighbors better and made some great friends.  I never go into these with a competitive team and just have fun and eat some delicious junk food.  Now a day later my calves are a bit tight but did some jogging and walking with the family and I hopefully will be good to go again this week after a few days of taking it easy.  Go team Wasatch Your Back...

Whew, it is a hot one out there. Got done at 3:30 and the sun was very hot in the dirt trails. I was wishing I had a hat during the run. Glad I was solo as I would have blinded anyone around as I went shirtless and used my shirt as a bandana half way through the run.

Needed to break up the monotony of the day at the office so I did a solo trail run up Corner Canyon in Draper.  Did the same route we did with Neasts and the gang a few months ago.

Just trying to get the last bit of soreness out of the legs from Ragnar, mowed the lawn yesterday and felt today was the day to get back to it.  Just wanted to keep running the whole time today, mission accomplished, didn't walk once, just kept it consistant.  Took 32:15 to get to the gate at the top, and 1:05:15 total.  Just wanted to keep track for future runs. 1200 vertical feet

It was really nice to get out and hit the trails.  A smoothie sounds about perfect right now.

Wednesday Wire with some of the Wasatch Wranglers.  First time running up Wire.  It was a lot more power hiking on the way up than I imagined.  There were a total of 5 of us, who met up at 5:30PM which meant for some hot running as it was in the mid 90s.  If nothing else I can say I won a race as I was the first one to the top in 39:35.  I was sweating up a storm and got seriously humbled on the way down as the other guys tore down the mountain with what appeared reckless abandon.  I thought I was moving ok but they just ripped right by me. 

I did pick up some pointers for downhill running watching and talking with them.  Maybe some day... I do not know the total mileage I heard somewhere between 5.5-7, so I will put 6, but it felt like 20.  Total time with stops at the top and everything 1:27:47