No, I can't change the color scheme or layout...

Pretty ugly 12 miles, but I made it. I even survived a surprise dog attack on the way back to Midway. I said a few choice words that I can't include in this nice family friendly blog. I hope the dog got my point though. Seems like some dogs only understand certain vocabulary words. Makes one wonder why, when learning a foreign language, the swear words are the easiest and first words one learns... Maybe we are distantly related to dogs?

not feeling well...

still not feeling well...

This week I didn't feel very well during my training runs, which was a bad omen for his race.  Tuesday I couldn't do more than 2 miles -- I just didn't have any energy.  Thursday I gutted out 4 miles, but the pace was slow and I just wasn't feeling it.  Typically when that happens, its a sign that I'm about to get sick.  Well, sure enough today I got the stomach flu. 

At the beginning I got stuck way in the back of the pack and couldn't break out for almost half a mile.  I was walking and just couldn't get out.  I finally broke out and some smart aleck yells, "yeah, go win it dude."  Idiot.  Then some girl tries to pass me saying, "Watch out, bud."  Too bad she couldn't hold that pace for more than 200 yards and I ended up blowing by her on the uphill stretch.  "Sorry bud."

From there it went from bad to worse.  My stomach started hurting and I could tell that Montezuma was going to have his way with me today.   I counted a grand total of 4 port-a-potties until mile 7 -- all of which were occupied.   By mile 7 I couldn't hold out any longer and lucked out when I ducked into a nice green 4 foot by 4 foot piece of heaven.  3 minutes later I was back on the road, but I my pace was still pretty slow.  My stomach started huring again at mile 10, but there were no more port-a-potties the rest of the way.  It was all I could do to "hold tight" and run as fast as I could.

I survived, but I barely made it home in time.  I have since received medallion status for all the frequent flyer trips I've made to the John.

I was going to try to go for a 7:30 pace and a PR, but Montezuma won today.  With my slow start back in the brat pack, my 3 minute port-a-pottie interlude, and my "proactive" running style, the best I could do today was 8:27.  But, on the bright side, at least I made it home without soiling my nice new Pearl Izumi running shorts...

Fun recovery run after the Montezuma's Revenge 1/2 Marathon last week.  Felt pretty good. A guy I run with in the Midway Running Club must be getting faster (or I must be getting slower).  I tried to push it but he kept up with me the entire time.  Good job. 

8:07 pace.  Fun course from the base of the Girls camp on the East side of Heber to Midway.  (Although I didn't particularly like crossing Main Street).  I haven't run much on the East side of town for a while so it was good to get out and run a new course.  (As a side note, I passed an incredible number of vacant - half finished real estate developments which doesn't bode well for the real estate market in Wasatch County).

However, I've about decided that I like running in Midway more than anywhere in Wasatch County.   On the East side of Heber there are long stretches of road, but the roads don't have wide shoulders and I'm always worried about being hit by some car as the sun comes up over the mountains blinding the drivers heading east.  The West side of Heber (okay - mainly Southfield Road) is a haven for contractors driving their big "ever so environmentally friendly"1-ton diesel trucks.  I'm not sure why, but the roads in Midway are pretty empty and there are more runners per capita in Midway than in Heber. 

I'm thinking my goal to run a 7:30 pace at Hobble Creek is a little too agressive.  I haven't done enough speed work this year and my 3 day a week running schedule hasn't prepared me quite enough.  I think I'm going to shoot for a 7:50 pace.  I won't be in the "Elite 100" but then again, based on my new perspective, anything faster than 8:30 without interference from Montezuma is a great race.

Looking forward to Hobble Creek 1/2 this weekend.  Unfortunately, yesterday I spent the entire day spreading topsoil at my parents house.  I over did it and was too tired to sleep last night.  Spreading topsoil doesn't use the same muscles as running.  :-)

Since my parents are facing a little dispute with Heber City over how long it has taken them to get their landscaping in (new home 1 1/2 years old) I took the day off work Thursday and spent 12 long grueling hours spreading 7 truck loads of topsoil at their house.  A friend of theirs (a nice 80 year old Japanese guy) came and helped move the topsoil around with a tractor, but didn't have the proper attachment to level it.  I.e., we ended up spreading it by hand because we were concerned that if we went and rented a tractor with a box scaper it might offend him.  (The fact my parents are on a shoestring budget to put the yard in was a factor too, but I would have paid for the tractor myself).  Twelve hours of raking and rolling take a toll on one's body.  I think I overexerted myself because Thursday night I couldn't sleep.  All I could do was lay there and think about how tired I was and how much it hurt to lay in any position.  I finally fell asleep about 5 a.m. and got a couple hours of restless sleep.

So, after that great preparation for the Hobble Creek Half, I was wondering what kind of an experience I would have today.  We left home at 4:00 a.m. for the nice drive to Mapleton and jumped on one of the first busses headed up the canyon.  Fortunately it wasn't very cold at the top.  Better yet, they started the race on time this year!

Unlike the Provo 1/2 I didn't come across any smart alecks or women trying to pass while calling me "bud".  There was no stomach flu, and I didn't need a port-a-potty along the route.  Things were pretty routine other than a couple of people we passed at mile 3 that were breathing way too hard (As we passed one guy trying to take in gulps of air like a sprinter that had just finished a 100 m dash, my friend turned to me and says, "I think that guy's in trouble").  We also met a nice guy from American Fork and chatted with him for a few miles.

I felt pretty good for the first 8 miles running around a 7:30 - 7:40 pace, but then the fatigue of this week set in and I had to slow things down.  The last mile was pretty miserable.  My legs were shouting "WALK! WALK! WALK!" but I kept going.  Some guy wanted to race me at the end so I tried to keep up with him down the last stretch.  We passed a couple of girls, but I never did catch him.

Even though I was tired I managed to eek out 1:41:49 completely running out of energy as I went under the clock.  It wasn't what I was shooting for, but I beat my time from last year by a little more than 10 minutes!  Unfortunately, I later learned that my cousin beat me by 2 minutes... Watch out next year buddy!

Onto other quests! Next Saturday is a great "people's race":  Midway Swiss Days.  There are no cash prizes, so not very many local elites show up.  There are only about 300 runners.   I want to try to break 7:30 pace and beat the guy who placed ahead of me last year.

This is a tough course, but it was a great race.  It was sponsored by the Midway Running Club, and since I'm a member I also liked the entry fee:  free! (Of course, I had to volunteer to do registration, which was fun anyway).   The race director, Mark Nelson, is a great guy.  I've run with him this summer and enjoyed getting to know him.

The first two miles were freezing cold (what happened to summer?), but I felt great.  I felt strong the entire race, even though the first three miles were all uphill.  My only mistake was starting to kick a little too far from the finish line.  A couple of people passed me in the last 50 feet.

Anyway, I have a new 10k PR!  I beat last year's time by about 2 minutes.