Run

20 E 5 mile loop and 1.5 with Megan. Just took it slow, but a few times I found myself creeping up on a faster pace than I wanted to go.  It was one of those mornings where you feel like crap and it takes all the will power you've got to get out the door, but by about 2 miles into it you're feeling like a million bucks.

Also registered Megan for the Desert Hills Cross Country youth running club.  They're charging $20 plus it's a 15 minute drive compared to Pine View's which is free and only 5 minutes away, but she said she'd rather go there since that'st he school she'll being going to.  The money's not a big deal, but getting her there and back will be a pain.  Who made up these school boundaries anyway?  Hopefully she'll have a good time.

Icehouse Trail from the top of Green Springs. The plan was to get 12 in by running up 6 and down 6. Of course the downhill return would be easier, but the uphill was killer--steeper than I thought it would be after the first major ascent. Had to walk quite a bit on the super steep uphill.

The mesa top just never seemed to level out.  Hit the junction with the Broken Mesa Trail at 3.25 miles in 39 minutes, or right at 12:00 min. pace.  Finally got some leveling off and even a few short down hill stretches across two dry washes.  Started to get into some juniper trees at this elevation, but it has been thinned out by recent fires.  I took a gel about 5 miles in and it really seemed to rejuvenate me.  

Right before I turned around there was a fiberglass water tank for horses or something.  It had a lid on it with a couple of cutouts for animals to stick their heads in and drink.  There was water in it, I'm not sure where it came from, but it looked pretty nasty.  Turned around at a 6 miles and 1:09, or 11:30 pace.  I hate turning around knowing that I'm pretty close (maybe a mile or so) to the end of the trail.  Measuring on Google Earth, I was only about a half mile from Broken Mesa trailhead...dangit!!

The last mile before I turned around I finally got the pace below 10:00, but the moving paces coming down were around 8:00 to 8:30.  The return time was about 53:30, or 8:55 pace. Saw and picked up a mylar birthday balloon.  The temp got pretty hot by the end and I drank all of the 1.5 liters of water that I took with me.

Garmin says elevation gain of 1,898 feet. I'm sure I'll be feeling it over the weekend.  Would I ever do it again?  I don't know right now.

6 miles at club run to Maverik and back. Only other guys were Tom and Pug. 7:49 avg. 1.6 with Megan.

Track workout with the running club: 0.5 mile warm up (cut short due to potty break); 0.75 mile strides; 400 at less than 5k pace (I settled in at 5:40 pace or better--1:25 per 400) immediately followed by 2 stairs and then a recovery, x 6 repeats; my 400 times were 1:20.7 (too fast), 1:24.8, 1:24.9, 1:23.9, 1:24.1, 1:23.2; 1.0 mile cool down. 

Not sure what to think of this workout.  I probably could have given it a little more. Next week should be a good test as we'll be doing Yasso 800s. 

Just a loop around the fields to Treasure Valley park for water, 3000 East, and through the old neighborhood. Near the end I worked a little on relaxed running and breathing at a quicker pace.  No run with Megan because she has an ear ache.

Stucki Farms; ran in the Kinvaras and my right metatarsal didn't bother me at all. But the front of my lower leg muscles were tight just like last Friday when I wore the Kinvaras.  I think it must be my legs adjusting to the lower drop.  By the end I had pretty much worked it out and felt pretty good, although I did have some momentary weird pain in my right hip. 7:24 average overall; 7:38 on the outbound and 7:10 on the inbound.

Ran out the Dam Rd, across the bridge and out to the dump. Then halfway up the super steep hill and out along a ridge on the hillside to a viewpoint above the river. Backtracked, finished the killer hill, then down the canyon to Hell Hole and up Hell Hole to Telegraph, Fields Road and home.  I couldn't be gone too long this morning because Kami went to hike Angel's Landing with some friends and I was a little worried about leaving Megan alone for too long with the kids. So I took a camelback to carry my phone and water, but the stupid pack was bugging me the whole time.  I could never get my arm swing in a comfortable grove and the water kept leaking.  Overall it was one of those runs where I was just happy to get it over with, but I was able to hit an avg pace of 8:13 which is about right for a long slow run. Next week I need to do a few less miles during the week and a few more on Saturday.

6.4 miles club run to Majestic View; good group out this morning and lots of runners on the road. Nice easy pace around 8 mpm. Steve corrected some false doctrines about inhaling only through the nose. 1.5 with Megan; Heidi was going to come along on her bike, but she had a flat tire despite us patching it on Saturday.

Track workout with the club: 1 mile warm up, 0.75 mile strides, 7 Yasso 800s (800 @ 3:00 with 3:00 jogging recovery), a 200 for good measure, and 0.50 mile cool down.  800 times were 2:59, 3:01, 2:59, 3:00, 3:00, 2:59, and 2:50 (thanks Steve for pacing that one). The original plan was to do just 6, so I had over 6:30 recovery for that last one.  After another 5:00 recovery I ran a 200 in 33.9 just to test my speed. And as suspected, I don't got any!

Also, last night I finally officially signed up for the running club and got another pair of Kinvara 2s. Still not even feeling the metatarsal when I wear them. 

Running Center loop: just like last time I ran this loop, I about got run down by an old man in a Camry right in front of the running center. It was seriously right at the same spot and the same old man. I remember what he looks like because he looks just like my dad's Uncle Bri. Ran down past Pine View and noticed a few people running on the track and the cheerleaders out practicing.  Ran down there and saw Jamie and Bree (from the Monday morning club runs) and some other ladies running.  Bree said something about there being a guy named Dennis from the Tri club who usually does a clinic every Wednesday, but he wasn't there today.  Anyway, I did a lap on the track. First time on it since 1994 (holy crap: 18 years!) and it's sure a lot nicer now than it was then when we ran on that crappy cinder ash and lane 1 was way worn down.  The track there is sure a lot nicer than the one at the college. Got home and Megan and Heidi were waiting so we did 1.6 with Heidi on her bike. Megan starts running club at Desert Hills tomorrow.

Fields 20 E 5 mile loop: I was pretty tired this morning and not in the mood when I got up and outside.  I couldn't decide if I wanted to take it easy or make a little tempo out of it.  Finally by the time I got to Staheli Farm (1.6 miles) I was fully awake and ramped up the pace to about 5k pace which I pretty much kept all the way around till the top of the hill.  Did 3 miles in 19:53, or 6:38 avg. Megan said she was still tired from the kids running club yesterday, so she didn't want to go today, but Heidi wanted a bike ride, so I followed along with her for 2 at 8:00 avg.

Mill Flat & Anderson Valley: Another one of my crazy trail runs. I went up to Mill Flat 3 times in high school and after my mission: first with Bryan Smith and we didn't even make it to the flat, probably about 4 miles up the canyon where we just camped by the creek, second with Mike Dunn and Robbie MacDonald and we camped in the meadow, and then right after my mission with one of the Syphus boys (bad that I can't remember his name--but he probably only went with me to sell me the pack at Outdoor Outlet) and we camped off the trail between Mill Flat and Water Canyon.

So I got this book about the trails on Pine Valley and it talks about a cabin up in Anderson Valley that I've always wanted to see.  Finally decided it wouldn't be that bad of a trail run, only 5 miles to Mill Flat and another 2 to Anderson Valley, 14 total round trip.  Woke up at 5 this morning and drove up to Grass Valley to the trailhead.  Started at 6:07.  The trail has some steep places, but they usually don't last too long.  At 3 miles in a guy and his kid were camping just on the side of the trail.  I just said good morning, but wish now that I would have stopped and talked for a minute.  At 3.67 miles I came across the old mill ruins--wonder how they ever got that stuff up there.  Got to Mill Flat at 4.9 miles in 63 minutes, slower than I anticipated, but the elevation gain was over 2,100 feet. 

Found the trail out of the meadow to Anderson Valley and found it little used and more strenuous than anticipated.  The trail is 2 miles and it took 32 minutes. Finally got down into Anderson Valley, but I wasn't sure where the cabin was. Luckily I followed the trail to the top of the valley and into the trees where I saw some horses and then the cabin behind.  Yelled out "good morning" to alert the campers.  They were surprised to see me and asked "Where'd you camp last night?' I had an immense feeling of accomplishment and replied "I didn't. Ran up Mill Canyon starting at 6:00 this morning!"  They said it took them 4 hours to come up from New Harmony on the horses. Nice group of guys: Bob Riding and his boys and grandsons including Brock who was in the old 2nd Ward back in 2004 before it was split.  Chatted for about 10 minutes and took some pictures, then took off. 

The return trip took about the same amount of time despite there being more downhill.  Got back to my car at 9:36 for a total time of 3:29, 14.4 miles, and total elevation gain and loss of about 3,300 feet each.  The mountain was really nice: just ran in a long sleeve shirt and shorts, but I wish I had some long socks to protect my shins from all the scrub. Had a stream all the way to Mill Flat, crossed one on the way over to Anderson Valley, and another one there.  Fortunately I didn't see any snakes or mountain lions (are there any on this mountain?), which was probably my biggest fear.

Riverside Dr and trail run with the club. Pace was a little slow at 7:57, but that's ok because I'm still feeling it a little from Saturday. Started off with Megan, but she had some weird pain so we walked about 3/4 mile.

Track workout: 1 mile warm up, .75 mile strides, 1600x2 (800 recovery), 800x2 (400 recovery), 400x2 (200 recovery), 200x2 (100 recovery), 6 stairs, .75 mile cool down. The 1600s were 6:04 & 6:06; the 800s were 2:56 & 3:01; the 400s were 1:21 & 1:19; the 200s were 38.5 & 37.0.  Looks about where I need to be except for the second 800. Overall, felt pretty good. The legendary Aaron Metler was there today; that guy was flying!

Pine Valley Canal Trail: Took the family camping to Pine Valley last night and ran out and back on the old canal trail from the top of the campground.  This has to be an almost perfect trail run because it is essentially flat with just a few rollers where the canal banks have caved in.  A lot of the trail is in the bottom of the canal about 5 to 6 feet deep with trees hanging overhead so it almost feels like you're in a tunnel.  Some nice views of the valley too when the trees open up; by the time I turned around, I was pretty high up on the hillside.  It looks like the trail goes about another 3 miles or so, if you're going all the way to Grass Valley and Water Canyon.

They've really done a lot of work up there in the campgrounds over the last few years.  This was our first family camping trip in about 6 years.  Everyone had a fun time so we'll try to do 1 or 2 more this year and go a few times each summer. 

Just rambling miles out in the fields this morning. 7:30 avg pace.

Marathon course from Dammeron Valley to church. Woke up at 4:30 to meet the club at 5:00. Drove up with Metler, Trevor and Cody in my car. Warmed up the first mile and or 2 and then after that most of my miles were under 7:00. Started running with Jake, Heath, another guy and Annie, but they slowed a bit at the first water drop at Diamond Valley and I left them. Ran the rest of the way by myself. The only guys in front of me were Hooper, Metler, Trevor, and Clyde.

Overall average was 6:59 (avg moving pace was 6:56 after stopping a bit for water 3 times). My pace calculator says my average pace over these miles should be 6:47, so I feel pretty good about the effort.  At 13.1 I was at 1:31:34 compared to my PR at Snow Canyon last November of 1:29:05.  The effort today was a 100 times easier though.  I really never felt like I was pushing it at all, just trying to keep it in cruise control and get a feel for the downhill running.

Took a Roctane before I started, but it kind of upset my stomach a little so I never took the powergel that I also had with me. Legs are a little sore but I'm not wiped out like when I ran the half marathon.  Now I just need to extend this to 16 and then 18 and then 20 and make sure I can keep the pace and get used to the pounding for 3 hours.  Probably need to hold back a little next week for some recovery. We'll be traveling to Idaho, so it comes at a good time.

Club run down Riverside to Maverik and back along the trail. I ended up running with Rodney for the second half and he was pushing the pace a bit around 7:20 when I would have preferred around 7:40 as I'm still recovering from Saturday.  I'm still a little sore in the calves but feel better after the run than before.  

Rodney's got some strong goals for Dixie State Cross Country and he's got a ton of talent.  Also met Richard Winn for the first time. Very warm out today, and humid too! Kami ran with Megan so I didn't pick up any extra mileage there, which is good for this week.

Speed workout at the track: 1 mile warm up, 0.75 mile strides, 12x400 with 200 recovery, 6 stairs, 1 mile cool down. The 400 times were

• 1:21.5
• 1:21.7 
• 1:23.9 
• 1:23.1 
• 1:24.0 
• 1:22.4 
• 1:22.4
• 1:23.5
• 1:22.3
• 1:23.2
• 1:21.5
• 1:22.5

Still a little sore from Saturday, especially in the right calf; quads feel great though. Almost threw up on the the last one, but overall pleased with the results. Was aiming for under 1:25, so I hit it pretty good. Crazy to think that in order to run a 5 min mile I'd need to do 4 of these in a row under 1:15!

Justin showed up today, so it was good to have him there.  Off to Salt Lake this afternoon and then to Idaho for the rest of the week. It should be fun to run in a different place. 

In Salt Lake on our way to Idaho. Ran 4 easy miles with Wade around their neighborhood in East Millcreek; avg pace around 9:15. He went home and I ran up to Barb's house, past our old place on Hartford Street, past Arn's duplex on Atkin Avenue and back to Jan & Wade's; avg pace around 7:45. Nice cool morning, at least to me.

In Pocatello for Kami's family reunion. Got up early and ran from the hotel past Kami's grandpa's old place to the west end of Quinn Road, north to Chubbuck Road, east to Kami's old house and back. The weather guy said the low was supposed to be 51 so I wore a long sleeve shirt and went outside with my gloves, but ended up not taking them and wished I'd wore a short sleeve shirt.  Pocatello drivers don't seem to know how to pull over for runners.  Only saw about 3 other runners on the road. 7:37 avg.

Ran south down Yellowstone Ave then turned west and northwest through an industrial park. Needed a bathroom, but couldn't find one for another mile or 2 when I finally found a park. Wandered through some neighborhoods and eventually back to the hotel. 7:42 avg but I seemed to have a lot of stops.

Running down Yellowstone I was on the asphalt most of the time. As some hick in a pick up passed me he turned on turned on his CB bull horn and yelled at me "get on the curb!" I looked back and was pretty sure he wasn't a cop so I gave him the bird.  Total jackass.