El Burro Blanco

Nice and easy 4 miles with the cross country team.

Clyde and I did a 3 hour pace group for whoever wanted to join us today.  It was the first race of the year and since the hip has been an issue it was perfect for what we both wanted to do this year.  The weather was awesome and it was fun meeting people at the start who wanted to break 3 hours or at least get close.

We were planning on hitting the half at 1:28 or possibly faster to give everyone a little bit of room towards the end if they needed it.  We had about 10 guys with us through the half and then Paul Harmer was the only guy that stuck with us.  He stuck right behind Clyde and I for the rest of the race.  I am glad he did it.  At mile 19, he was not looking good.  Clyde and I both said we need to keep talking to him and giving him fluids and GU at every station.

Not a lot of time for great detail but as the race went on, Clyde and I kept talking with Paul to keep following us and not worry about anything.  Paul looked like he was going to pass out at anytime but it was his day and he had the "race day magic."  Paul was dragging the last couple miles so Clyde and I would pump up the crowd for him.  I kept slapping Paul's hand down because he looked at his watch probably 20 times in the last 2 miles.  Paul crossed the finish line with a huge smile knowing he broke 3 hours and then collapsed into the arms of the National Guard members.  He got a one-way ticket into the medical tent and deserved all the attention he was receiving.  His previous best was 3:40!  Are you kidding me?  A 40 minute PR! 

Clyde and I waited around to see how the rest of our group did.  Matt Rowley, Nate Bundy and a few others came in just over 3 hours.  They were a little disappointed they didn't get under 3 hours but were thrilled that they had huge PRs. 

It was a blast running today.  It reminded me a lot of when Paul Petersen and I paced Jon Allen at TOU in 2007.  Lots of memories were made today.

I went and ran with my varsity boys on the region course.  We did some mini sprints on part of the course to get the legs moving.  We then jogged the course nice and easy.  It was a good start to the week.

 No tightness really in the legs.

I ran nice and easy with the cross country team today and then I tacked on some more miles out towards the new airport.  I ran on River Road on the nice, new paved road.  It was nice and quiet with hardly any traffic so it was quite nice.  I was feeling a little frisky on the way back so I decided to hit the last couple miles right around 6:00 pace.  It felt pretty darn good.

1 mile running around the cross country meet.  I decided to give the legs a little rest today.

I took some of my cross country boys out towards the new airport.  We were nice and easy on the way out and then slowly picked up the pace for the last 3.5 miles.  The wind was blowing pretty good so it was good for them to have to push harder and really focus on their form.  They did awesome today.

4 easy miles with the cross country team today.  Nothing fancy today!

I walked with me Dad for a mile early this morning to mark out a walking path for some neighbors in his neighborhood who want to start exercising.

I then met up with Steve this afternoon for a good 3 hour trail run.  We started at the Jacob Hamblin home and then went out towards Bloomington Hills finishing on the Bear Claw Poppy Trial.  We then came back to the Jacob Hamblin home.  We ran with Mike and Dustin for the first couple miles which was a ton of fun.  The weather was crisp at the start but got really hot as we went on.  Tons of people were riding mountain bikes today.  It felt good to get the legs moving again today.  My running is more consistent and it is helping me get back in shape.  Just need to keep it up.

We had our region cross country meet today so I didn't get my run in until about 9pm this evening.  The girls' team made it to state but the boys' team didn't.  I am proud of the boys and all that they accomplished this year.

I came home and found a little mold next to the fridge due to a leak in the hose for the ice machine.  I was not happy so I decided to head out the door and see how I felt on the run.  I ran from my house over towards Sunbrook and then looped around back to Ivins on Snow Canyon Parkway.  I hit 13 miles for the run.  It was perfect temps this evening!

I helped Dave out with his region cross country meet today so I didn't get my run in until late again.  I was the "pace car" driving the four wheeler out front.

I ran from my house this evening and then did a loop over towards my parent's house for a total of 7 miles.  Another nice evening!

An easy 3.5 miles after work today.  Nothing extremely fancy to report!

I had an incredible run this morning.  Steve H., Bill, Scott, James, Clyde, and I drove up to Zion National Park and ran the West Rim Trail.  We started at just over 7500 feet elevation so it was a little chilly.  It was also quite dark. 

We ran nice and easy today and stopped quite a bit for pictures.  It is some of the most beautiful scenery and country around.  Clyde posted the pics on Facebook if anyone is interested.  It was a really enjoyable run except for the tragedy with the baby deer falling of the edge of the cliff.  We came on to it and were really quiet but it got scared and slipped off.  We all felt pretty guilty but I guess that is the circle of life.

6 miles in the morning.

8 miles in the afternoon with Clyde.

I didn't have work today so I went for a nice and easy 6 mile run around Ivins.  The temps were perfect.  It was nice to sleep in and then go for a short run.

I met up with Clyde this afternoon and we went on the Temple Quarry Trail which is by the airport.  It was a fun run but we ended up running on the airport and got yelled at.  Their were really beautiful scenery up high on the hill and it was a nice change of pace.

On a lighter note, I lost my lunch after we finished running.  Clyde had a fun time with it!

Nice easy 3 miles this evening in Salt Lake with the girls.  Nothing too fancy to report due to heading up to state cross country today.

Nice and easy 1 mile run after I got home really late from state cross country.  I am tired!

6 easy miles this afternoon around Ivins and then into Santa Clara.  

2 easy miles in Hanksville tonight to shake out the legs.  A few stray dogs were out and about looking for fresh, white meat.

Well, this is officially my 2nd race of the entire year.  I have wanted to do a 50k just to see how I like it.  I signed up initially planning on running with Steve H. and Kamm Davis.  Both of them got hurt so it was just my pregnant wife and me that made the trip up to Goblin Valley State Park.  (Don't worry.  She didn't run!)  

We ate at the pre-race dinner last night in Green River at the Senior Citizen's Center.  It was really low key and their were only about 15 people there.  I knew after seeing this that the race would be totally different than any marathon I have ever done.

The race is an out and back course that runs through Goblin Valley State Park.  It is flat, has rolling hills, and some decent climbs throughout the race. 

My goal was to finish and see how close I could get to some of the top guys.  Shaun Martin ran a sub-1:07 at Bryce Canyon 1/2 this year (he also won this race last year) and Nephi Gold who has done a bunch of other ultramarathons and done well were 2 guys I recognized at the start.  We started out nice and casual which was totally different than an all out pace right from the start during the marathon which is what I am used to.  I talked with some guys during the first part of the race just trying to relax and get into some sort of rhthym.  Shaun and Nephi took off about 6 miles into the race.  I just wanted to keep them in my sights.  I got to the turn around point, which came up on me pretty quick, and saw Shaun and Nephi barely leaving the aid station.  I was less than a minute behind these guys which was very suprising to me!  I was at the turn around at about 1 hr. 47 minutes.

I turned around and wanted to keep them in my sights and see how I felt as the race got closer to being finished to pick the pace up.  I was sitting in 3rd and was really happy.  I felt good about things but at about mile 21 my legs started to cramp up.  I refueled, stretched a little and then look off still sitting in 3rd place.  I was just before the last aid station when the 4th place guy went by me and told me to keep up the good work.  We chatted during the first part of the race.  He was a really nice guy from North Carolina running the race.  I made it to the last aid station and started downing pretzels and any other food I could put in my system.  I had just over 4 miles left and I was not feeling that great.  I drank a couple Cokes which suprisingly helped.

I cramped up really bad in my legs, especially my calves the last few miles.  I shuffled, walked, and ran my way to the finish line.  I was happy knowing I just finished my first 50k but slightly disappointed knowing I could have done much better.  I felt the same way after the first time I did St. George.  I didn't know what I was doing but I learned a lot and did much better.  The same will happen for ultras.

I learned a lot today about future ultra/bushwhacking races.  I need to get a better fueling system down which will help so I don't bonk again.  Also, I need to make sure I respect the distance.  This was the farthest I have ever ran at one time.

Reasons why I should do better my next 50k: 

-I only have about 800+ miles on my legs total this year.  The injury with the hip and hamstring is to blame.  I need to get back to running more consistently and I think I will be okay.  I just need more miles on the legs.

-I also need to get a fueling system down so I can not bonk next time.  I took GU's and fluids but I need probably drink more and earlier in the race.  I drank every 5 minutes with my handheld but I probably need to do more.  The temps were cool at the start but it got pretty hot towards the end of the race.  I should have started drinking more sooner.

I had a blast but I think Katey had way more fun.  She can't wait for the next one.  She gave me the okay to do another if I want to.  She loved the atmosphere of the race.  I have already signed up for the Moab 50k+ in February.  I have a solid 3 months to get some good running in so I can do much better.  Some of the top guys in the sport will be there.  It will be fun. 

This is my week to relax the body mentally and physically.  My right calf is still really tight so I want make sure it gets better.  Easy 4 miles.

Walked an easy mile today.  Nothing exciting.

2 easy miles over to my parent's house in Santa Clara.  The calf is slowly feeling better.

Walked another easy mile today.

Beautiful evening for a walk with my beautiful wife around Ivins.

I ran with Clyde, Paul, and Dave this morning on the Zen trail and then on the Green Valley race loop.  It was a perfect morning for a run.  The calf finally loosened up on the run.  Happy to have a relaxing week and am looking forward to getting back to business next week.  Consistency for the next 3 months is key.