Every Race is an Adventure!

AM. I was going to give my ankle a rest this morning. After sleeping in until about 8:00am I decided I'd at least go put in a few easy miles and see how the ankle felt. I looped up around the elementary school and as I was coming down 1600 N I saw Kevin headed up the other way. I had only "run" about a mile, at 10:00 pace, but I felt just good enough that I decided to join him. He was headed up to the mouth of the canyon. His daughter was running down the canyon with the soccer team.

We got to the mouth of the canyon just as they were finishing. Kevin asked her if she wanted to run the 3 miles back home with us, but she said she was good. They all looked pretty fit but also looked like they had put in a good run and were pretty tired.

We headed back home. Twice Kevin asked what our pace was. That always makes me nervous because it seems that whenever the pace is mentioned Kevin gets faster. The last two miles were 7:53 and 7:22, with 6:40 for the last 0.2 miles. Average pace for the 7.2 miles was 8:28/mi.

I'm icing my ankle now, but it doesn't feel any worse than it did before the run. I'd describe it as a dull ache, not a sharp pain. Ankle pains are fairly common for me, so I'm not overly concerned. I'll just continue to keep an eye on it and try to listen when it warns me to back off.

PM. Our family gathering today included an extended game of Ultimate Frisbee. I think it was 8 on 8 most of the time (men, women, and older children) but our team had 3 "fast guys" versus their 4 "fast guys", so it seemed I was always chasing somebody. It was a good workout, and lots of fun. We played for a long time, so I'm adding a few miles to my mileage.

I ran six easy miles with Larry and Wayne starting up 1600 N then looping into Lindon. I wore long sleeves and gloves for the first time in a long time, but I enjoyed the brisk fall air. Early on my legs were still feeling the effects of Ultimate Frisbee yesterday, but they loosened up.

AM. I ran the water tank hills with Wayne and Larry. I really enjoyed the cool weather this morning. It seemed to help me run better.

It was dark again as we headed up the hills, but I had my headlamp this time. I ran the 5 hills (climbs from 4900 ft to 5600 ft in 1.4 miles) in 14:55 and felt...powerful. I think this is easily my fastest time up the hills. I thought last week's time of 16:15 was close to a PR. I ran the last "fast mile" in 6:09. The rest of the run was at an easy pace. The run is normally six miles, but I got in an extra 0.75 miles when I pushed hard up the hills and on the "fast mile" and then looped back. It was a good morning.

PM. I ran the 10K Lake View route solo at noon. I thought about doing some tempo miles, but when I first started out I felt some pain in my right hip and my legs felt sluggish. I ran the first mile in 9:41. Once I got warmed up, and off the trail and onto the road, I started moving a little faster. I ran the next two miles in 8:16 and 8:13. Since I didn't feel like running faster, but knew that I probably could, I decided it was a good opportunity for some mental training. I decided to run the next two miles as "focused" miles, or "Hal's pulling away and Josse is gaining on me hang in there and don't let them beat me" miles. I focused on keeping my feet turning over (about 180 steps/min), maintaining form, and keeping my momentum moving forward. Since I was focusing on effort and form, not pace, I didn't look at my watch until I was done. I was pleased to see that the splits for those two miles were 7:06 and 7:06. I quickened my pace by over a minute per mile and kept it steady for two miles by simply mentally focusing my efforts. Knowing I can do that gives me confidence when things start to get hard in a race. I cooled down the last mile in 8:15 and averaged 8:06/mi overall for the 10K (50:13).

If I run the Spanish Fork half this Saturday I'll probably have plenty of opportunity to mentally focus. It's a tough course and I think it's pretty likely that both Hal and Josse will be running it. Hal beat me soundly at Hobble Creek and Josse was right on my heels. I don't know if I'm up for the mental challenge of facing them both again so soon. (JK - it's just friendly competition, right?) BTW, I last ran the SF half back in 2005. I finished 4th in my AD, 23 secs behind the guy who finished 3rd...Hal Amos...who I didn't even know at the time.

As of today I'm planning to run it, shoot for sub-1:32 (I ran 1:37 in 2005), and see if I can hold off either Hal or Josse. At any rate, it should be a good barometer of what I can expect at St. George.

I guess I missed a memo. I was the only one out (again) at 5:30am for the Thursday 10 miler to Provo Canyon. I only averaged 8:45/mi for the 10.1 miles, with the first two miles at around 9:40/mi. With the SF half on Saturday, I didn't want to press too hard, but I did manage a 7:07 mile near the end.I feel okay about the run, especially with the hills and the strong headwind.

Overall this year, my race times have been pretty good, slightly faster than last year. That surprises me since my training hasn't been all that impressive. I got pretty good mileage in, but not much quality speed work, except for the races. Monday morning while running with Kevin he said that over the years he's been able to beat me regularly in training runs, but during races I seem to have a 5th and 6th gear. I think there is some truth to that. Maybe it's because when I'm trying to go all out during a training run is usually when I end up injured, so I've conditioned myself to always hold back a little during training. On race day, I forget all that and thrill at the adventure of pushing my body to its limits.

Another factor might be that my first priority is to enjoy the running lifestyle with my buddies. If that means a shorter run or a slower pace, so be it. When I feel up to it I try to slip in some speed work here and there. I realize I could probably train better and run faster with a more rigid and challenging training program, and this may be runner blasphemy, but running faster PRs is a secondary goal for me.

Oh, I ran in my new Ragnar Relay Warriors Club jacket this morning for the first time. The Ragnar Relay organizers sent it to me free for running in the Wasatch Back Relay the past 5 years. What a great gift. It's now my #1 running jacket. It's lightweight, fits well, and worked great in the cold headwind this morning.

I had thought about getting in a few easy miles today, but then decided that resting my ankles and getting a little extra sleep might do me just as much good. However, when Nathan pinged me about maybe doing 5 easy miles at noon, I took a look out my window at the beautiful day and couldn't say no.

It was a very enjoyable run, except for a little problem in the middle...my middle...my stomach to be exact. A few miles into the run my stomach warned me there was a good chance I wouldn't make it back without a bathroom stop. That's when I remembered that I had decided to have a glass of milk with breakfast this morning, something I've learned not to do on days when I'm running at noon. It always seems to hit me about 4 miles into the run. I found a bathroom at a care center at 3.97 miles, just in time. Nathan got in over a mile running around waiting for me.

I averaged 7:47/mi for the 5.2 miles (not counting the pit stop). Even with the gastric discomfort, I'm still glad I chose to run. Every race is an adventure, and training runs can often be quite adventurous, too.

What a beautiful day to run!

I wasn't sure what to expect today, but my legs had felt good this week so I was hopeful I could get under 1:32, maybe even close to 1:30 if things went really well. My plan was to take a mental break during the hills, basically at mile 4, the hills in the middle, and again at mile 9.

The traditional matchup with Hal and Josse didn't happen today. They were both running on high mileage with some soreness in their feet or legs. I ran most of the race alone, at least mentally. Cal was near me during most of the race, and we talked a little in the middle of the race, but we were both working too hard to talk much.

I was a little surprised at how well taking the mental breaks on the uphills worked. When it was time to focus again, I almost felt refreshed and ready to get back to work. That said, I didn't really slow down all that much during the mental breaks. It's hard to tell because they were uphill miles where I naturally slow down anyway.

Cal pulled even (he had been just behind me for a while) as we started the middle hills. We talked a bit, but when he noticed how much we had slowed he went on ahead up the hill. I let him go, because I was on my mental break, but on the downhills I gained back ground. I pulled back even with him on the last downhill just as we merged back with the runners still coming the other way.

I took my last mental break during mile 9. Cal was still with me as we passed the mile 10 marked, but then the break was over. I pushed the last 3.1 miles hard and pulled away. I could see Tom up ahead, as I could most of the race, but I never caught him. I think I drew energy from all the 5K runners I was passing at the end. A couple of high schoolers (I think) passed me in the last mile or so, but I was running sub-6:30 at the time and that was the best I could do.

1 - 6:55
2 - 6:52
3 - 7:03
4 - 6:59
5 - 6:50
6 - 7:14
7 - 7:15
8 - 6:37
9 - 6:53
10 - 6:52
11 - 6:49
12 - 6:35
13 - 6:27

13.1 1:29:57 (avg 6:52/mi)  [16 of 311 overall]

It felt good to finally have some juice left at the end of the race. That, and finishing in 1:30, gives me renewed hope to be near 3:00 at St. George.