I registered for the St George marathon with hopes of qualifying for Boston. I had high hopes as my training continued through July. I spent many runs with my friend Wan in Herriman. The trails and canyon runs helped build the leg muscles and my endurance. I was also running with new running friends from Kaysville. These guys were fast and I was the young guy of the crowd. I did everything I could to keep up. These gentleman had all ran sub three marathons at St George. I was glad they let me join in on their training runs. Then everything feel apart through August. I only made it out to run six times. My longest run was on August first and I ran 17.5 miles.
Work was stressful and news came down that would alter my plans for the marathon. I would no longer be able to go down for as long as I wanted to. Also there was a good chance of working 50 hours the Monday through Thursday of marathon week.
I teetered with not running the marathon all together. I was stressed and every time I thought I found my mojo it only lasted a couple of days. My decision was not to run.
Then my wife started to tell me to run. She wanted to see me finish. Something that eluded me at the Ogden marathon. I also think she wanted to get away for a few days. Also the posts on Facebook started with excitement of those running the marathon. I was hooked and convinced to run.
The question remained on how to run the marathon. I knew a BQ was not possible. The plan was to run with the 3:10 pacer through 13 miles. I hoped to hang on through 18 miles with the pacer. Then it was to hold on with everything I had and finish in the 3:25 time frame. Plans and execution are often different.
When I arrived at packet pick up I found out there would be no pacer for 3:10. I was disappointed and changed the plan again. Packet pick up was great. This was the first expo I was able to enjoy. I walked around. Bumped into a few friends. Attended a few clinics. I could feel and sense the excitement. I was ready as I was going to be.
The girls and I stayed with my cousin and his family. The Nylands were great hosts and provided us with a place to stay and food in are bellys. My girls had a great time playing with cousins they do not see very often.
I was able to get to bed early as my wake up call was 3:30. I wanted to be one of the first ones on the bus at 4 am.
I woke up right on time. I quickly was ready and headed to my car. I was ready but my car was not, it was 3:40 in the morning and my car would not start. Panic set in, how was I going to get to the start line. I quickly went to Facebook to try and hope my fellow runner buddies would be on and could get me to the buses. My next thought was to find a taxi. Luckily this worked and soon I was in my first taxi ride. Best $18.00 I ever spent. The driver dropped me off 100 feet from the buses.
I immediately found many run4fun friends. I rode up with wan and Adrian. Riding a bus at 4 am in the dark you get a sense of how far 26.2 miles really is.
Once at the start line the nerves took over and feelings of excitement started. I was ready for the cold but not for the wind. The fires helped to keep us all warm. Several people decided to hang out in the porta potties to stay warm.
For some odd reason the race started late. This gave me more time to evaluate the upcoming run and how I wanted to execute the marathon. I decided to go by feel for the whole race. Still had hopes of finishing around 3:25. I would take what the course gave me and roll with it.
The race started and we were off. For the first several miles I paid no attention to my watch. I just let the miles slip by. I could tell I was cruising but did not want to be influenced by what the numbers said. I ran by several friends as I headed to the dreaded vejo hill. The hill was not as bad as I thought. I decided to walk a portion in an attempt to save some energy. The vejo hill was manageable. I was starting to understand why everyone said you had to run this race smart.
I came through the half marathon mark in about 1:48. I knew that was ok and I was conserving energy. This was the point in the race where I started the fight between the mental and physical aspects of the race. I was only half done and had still had a half marathon to go.
The first mile stone would be 17.5 miles as this was the longest training run I had for this marathon. Also around 16 was when exhaustion, dizziness came into play. I passed the 17 mile marker and all I could think of was the dreaded 18.5. The spot of my dnf at Ogden. It was out of sure will I made it to this point as now I was also battling the dry heaves. I nearly stopped in tears and emotion for being able to pass this point in the marathon.I wanted to make sure I made it past this point.
It was between 18 and 23 miles where I had the battle of the mind. I wanted nothing more than to start vomiting and be able to call it day. I did not vomit so I trudged on. I tried to run between aid stations but usually only made it about a mile. I also figured out if I stopped taking anything at the aid stations the need to dry heave went away.
I never have texted in the middle of a race, I decided to start texting Julie to get sympathy from her. Deep down I was hoping she would be worried and want me to quit. She instead had the guts to tell me to suck it up and carry on. Well now I did not even have my wife on board to quit, so how could I.
It was just before you enter town I found a new rhythm. If I ran everything did not hurt as much. It felt good to run and let lose. The hard part was exhaustion and the heat were doing a number on me. I wanted to find a chair and sit down. I knew if I sat down I would never get up again. So I put things into a second gear and flew through miles 23, 24, and 25. These miles were some of my fastest of the entire day. Partly this was because of the downhill and some because I wanted to be done. The main thing is all the pain disappeared the faster I ran.
I ran mile 24 in 7:06 my second fastest of the course and ran mile 25 in 7:56. Not sure where the speed came from. It does make me sad it took so long to overcome the mental aspect. I am just glad I did overcome the mental aspect. I am glad I did not cave and continued on to finish this race.
I did need to take a walking break between 25 and 26. This gave me the energy to throw down a quick .2 miles to finish strong and not look like death at the finish line photos.
My wife and girls were at the finish line. Unfortunately I was unaware of their signs,yelling, and screaming for me. I will trust them that they did such things.
I finished the marathon in 3:51. Not my fastest but not my slowest. I am happy with the day. Considering at mile 20 I swore off marathons all together. It was also at this point I remembered I had just registered for the Ogden marathon.
I found out I can over the mental side of the marathon. I found when things get tough I can still hunker down and get things done.
I had two goals for this marathon. Goal 1 was to finish. Goal 2 was to avoid the medical tent. Mission accomplished on both accounts.
I am not sure if my problems once again were from me being dehydrated or lingering effects from the stomach virus I had the Tuesday before. I do know I was covered in a thick layer of salt all over my body. I could see the layer of salt with my eyes. I was going to use salt tabs during the race but left them in my car.
I am already looking to register for the 2015 St George marathon. 2015 will be a year of redemption.
here are the stats of the marathon:
Time: 3:51:42
overall: 1899
Place in gender: 1243
5k split: 23:48
10k: 45:49
13.1- 1:48:02
30k- 2:36:48
Monday, October 6, 2014
Monday, June 23, 2014
American Fork Half Marathon
The American Fork half marathon is a gorgeous run down American Fork canyon. I helped pace this race. I was responsible for the 1:50 time slot.
My running since the Ogden marathon has been sporadic. I knew I would be able to hit the goal time. It was just a matter of how would the quads feel afterwards.
I always question my sanity when the alarms goes off at 2:45 am. With only about three hours if sleep I felt energized and ready. With little sleep the gut was not a happy camper and tried revolting. Luckily the gut cooperated by the time the fun went off.
I was out of sorts with my fueling. I had a crazy Friday at work were I went 13 hours without a break. I was able to snack a little. I decided after work to consume a pizza. Not a bad idea as this has helped in the past. The problem I did not give myself enough time to digest before I awoke to get ready. I did hydrate well throughout the day. My new hydration plan is working out well.
I enjoy arriving at a start line to see a line of porta potties and thousands of runners waiting in anticipation for the start of the race. There were about 3,000 runners for this race. As I was prepping for the race I had many runners come ask questions and I had several ready to follow and keep pace with me.
This was the first time I ran this race. I had a great time and the seven miles of canyon were worth the lack of sleep. My worries of hydration, fueling, and leg endurance were put to rest early on. I felt great and was ready for a great run.
The first three miles I hit my paces. I was coming through the mile markers a few seconds early. I anticipated this as I wanted to be able to walk the aid stations. I had several people following me and it was great to chat with them and encourage them. For the most part runners kept passing me eager for a pr.
It was around mile five or so I noticed a young man keeping pace with me. He would walk the aid station, speed up, and slow down with me. From then on my goal was to make sure he kept up with me. I was also on the look out for a couple of ladies that wanted to keep up with me. They must have felt good because I hardly saw them after we started.
As we came out of the canyon I had a lady keeping with me who six weeks ago decided to train and run. She wanted a 2:15. She was looking great and I admired her for attitude to go reach for a goal in a short time frame.
It was after we came out of the canyon there was not much shade on the trail system we were running on. My fueling plan would now be tested. I passed with flying colors. It was also at mile 7 I needed a potty break bad. I stopped and turned on the after burners to catch up to my little running group that had formed. It did not take long to catch back up. At the half way mark I was about 39 seconds ahead of 1:50. I was ok with this since I knew I needed a potty break and the coarse was a bit slower to the end.
Around mile 8 I started gathering up runners and encouraging them to follow me. I enjoy pacing for this reason. It pulls me out of my comfort zone and makes me be more extroverted.
The crowd was great. They encouraged all the runners and many kids were out giving high fives to the runners.
All was going great until about mile 10. It was at this point the race was dull to me. We ran on the shoulder of a road. It was also at this point I was trying to make sure I hit my paces. I knew my garmin was indicating miles about .10 early. I was making sure as I hit the mile markers my time was accurate. At mile 11 somehow I was behind schedule. So picked it up a bit and this was were I lost many runners. At mile 12 I was still behind. Good grief I thought. This was a solo venture in pacing and to this point I thought I was right on pace.
Coming near the end I was keeping an eye on the finish and my watch. I was now going to finish a minute early. I ended up finishing in 1:49:16. And my watch read 13.14. Somehow I was off more than .15 or more a mile at mile 12. Then I finish almost even with the coarse.
It was fun to meet a couple of runners I have followed through different groups on Facebook. It was also fun to hear of pr'a from other pacing buddies.
Lessons learned
1- stay near the finish and watch for those who were trying to come in with me. I never found out I those I chatted with on the coarse came in on time or how their race went.
2- stick around after to meet the run4fun group. Work can wait, I really need and want to meet other runners from this group.
Now to train in earnest for the St George marathon
My running since the Ogden marathon has been sporadic. I knew I would be able to hit the goal time. It was just a matter of how would the quads feel afterwards.
I always question my sanity when the alarms goes off at 2:45 am. With only about three hours if sleep I felt energized and ready. With little sleep the gut was not a happy camper and tried revolting. Luckily the gut cooperated by the time the fun went off.
I was out of sorts with my fueling. I had a crazy Friday at work were I went 13 hours without a break. I was able to snack a little. I decided after work to consume a pizza. Not a bad idea as this has helped in the past. The problem I did not give myself enough time to digest before I awoke to get ready. I did hydrate well throughout the day. My new hydration plan is working out well.
I enjoy arriving at a start line to see a line of porta potties and thousands of runners waiting in anticipation for the start of the race. There were about 3,000 runners for this race. As I was prepping for the race I had many runners come ask questions and I had several ready to follow and keep pace with me.
This was the first time I ran this race. I had a great time and the seven miles of canyon were worth the lack of sleep. My worries of hydration, fueling, and leg endurance were put to rest early on. I felt great and was ready for a great run.
The first three miles I hit my paces. I was coming through the mile markers a few seconds early. I anticipated this as I wanted to be able to walk the aid stations. I had several people following me and it was great to chat with them and encourage them. For the most part runners kept passing me eager for a pr.
It was around mile five or so I noticed a young man keeping pace with me. He would walk the aid station, speed up, and slow down with me. From then on my goal was to make sure he kept up with me. I was also on the look out for a couple of ladies that wanted to keep up with me. They must have felt good because I hardly saw them after we started.
As we came out of the canyon I had a lady keeping with me who six weeks ago decided to train and run. She wanted a 2:15. She was looking great and I admired her for attitude to go reach for a goal in a short time frame.
It was after we came out of the canyon there was not much shade on the trail system we were running on. My fueling plan would now be tested. I passed with flying colors. It was also at mile 7 I needed a potty break bad. I stopped and turned on the after burners to catch up to my little running group that had formed. It did not take long to catch back up. At the half way mark I was about 39 seconds ahead of 1:50. I was ok with this since I knew I needed a potty break and the coarse was a bit slower to the end.
Around mile 8 I started gathering up runners and encouraging them to follow me. I enjoy pacing for this reason. It pulls me out of my comfort zone and makes me be more extroverted.
The crowd was great. They encouraged all the runners and many kids were out giving high fives to the runners.
All was going great until about mile 10. It was at this point the race was dull to me. We ran on the shoulder of a road. It was also at this point I was trying to make sure I hit my paces. I knew my garmin was indicating miles about .10 early. I was making sure as I hit the mile markers my time was accurate. At mile 11 somehow I was behind schedule. So picked it up a bit and this was were I lost many runners. At mile 12 I was still behind. Good grief I thought. This was a solo venture in pacing and to this point I thought I was right on pace.
Coming near the end I was keeping an eye on the finish and my watch. I was now going to finish a minute early. I ended up finishing in 1:49:16. And my watch read 13.14. Somehow I was off more than .15 or more a mile at mile 12. Then I finish almost even with the coarse.
It was fun to meet a couple of runners I have followed through different groups on Facebook. It was also fun to hear of pr'a from other pacing buddies.
Lessons learned
1- stay near the finish and watch for those who were trying to come in with me. I never found out I those I chatted with on the coarse came in on time or how their race went.
2- stick around after to meet the run4fun group. Work can wait, I really need and want to meet other runners from this group.
Now to train in earnest for the St George marathon
Sunday, June 1, 2014
Chasing a cop car
Recently I had the opportunity to run a small local 5k. I was given the morning off from work so I joined my wife and girls to support the Malala fund. This was a 5k put on by a group of sixth graders from Sunset elementary. I was looking for redemption from my DNF at the Ogden marathon. I also wanted a check on my fitness to gauge goals for next marathon. I went in thinking maybe I could go sub 20 minutes.
I decided to run the one mile to the start line as a warm up. It was chilly at the start. Just the way I like it. I spent 30 minutes scanning the crowd looking to see which runners I could keep up with or those that would push me to a pr. Ok in reality I was checking to see any other runners would take first from me. I wanted to win. I figured with the majority walking my pace could win.
A police office was going to lead the whole race. If I was out in front I would be chasing the cop car. How cool would that be?
The race was about to start. As is the case about 10-15 young boys lined up right in front of the cop car. Not being very sportsmans like I thought to myself I am going to show these little punks up. Sometimes I do not have very nice thoughts when I run.
The signal was given and we were off. It only took 100 yards or so and I was the lead runner. At the .25 mark I was running a sub 6 minute mile. I tried to slow and new this would hurt me in the long run but the adrenaline was flowing and there was no holding back. It was cool running and chasing a cop car. Thee was no one around. The police officer was my own escort. I was flying and having a great time.
I has slept funny the night prior and was unable to turn my head to see who was behind me or how far behind me they were. Just after mile 1.5 I was able to take a turn and see a couple of runners about 50 yards behind. My pace had slowed significantly. But I was still hanging in the seven minute range. It was going to be close to have a pr. I knew a long gradual hill was coming and I was preparing for the hill. I conquered the hill and maintained my pace. This was good for me because I usually lose ground on the hills. Now came the fun part. What goes up must come down. After flying down the hill I made a right had turn and had about a .25 mile to go. I found another gear and pushed hard to the finish. I was wearing my orange compression sleeves and my bright Florissant sketchers shoes. I must admit I was feeling my inner Meb come out as I headed to the finish.
My time of 20:30 was not a pr, but that is ok. I felt good considering I raced hard for 18.5 miles the week before. I do wish someone was with me in the front to help push the pace a little faster. This was a fun race.
My girls were disappointed that all I won was a T- shirt for first. I was lucky to win this as this was a last minute decision. Back in February I took second overall at a valentines 5k. For that effort I won a teddy bear that was taller than my four year old. My girls were hoping for this to happen again. A great opportunity to talk to my girls about fundraising and why not all races have medals.
Coming in first has it perks. I was able to watch all the runners and walkers come through the finish. All those boys I passed and "showed" all recieved a high from me as they came through the finish. It was just as rewarding winning as it was watching everyone finish their race. I was had the joy of running my four year old into the finish.
Fun was had by all and that was the end goal of today's race
I decided to run the one mile to the start line as a warm up. It was chilly at the start. Just the way I like it. I spent 30 minutes scanning the crowd looking to see which runners I could keep up with or those that would push me to a pr. Ok in reality I was checking to see any other runners would take first from me. I wanted to win. I figured with the majority walking my pace could win.
A police office was going to lead the whole race. If I was out in front I would be chasing the cop car. How cool would that be?
The race was about to start. As is the case about 10-15 young boys lined up right in front of the cop car. Not being very sportsmans like I thought to myself I am going to show these little punks up. Sometimes I do not have very nice thoughts when I run.
The signal was given and we were off. It only took 100 yards or so and I was the lead runner. At the .25 mark I was running a sub 6 minute mile. I tried to slow and new this would hurt me in the long run but the adrenaline was flowing and there was no holding back. It was cool running and chasing a cop car. Thee was no one around. The police officer was my own escort. I was flying and having a great time.
I has slept funny the night prior and was unable to turn my head to see who was behind me or how far behind me they were. Just after mile 1.5 I was able to take a turn and see a couple of runners about 50 yards behind. My pace had slowed significantly. But I was still hanging in the seven minute range. It was going to be close to have a pr. I knew a long gradual hill was coming and I was preparing for the hill. I conquered the hill and maintained my pace. This was good for me because I usually lose ground on the hills. Now came the fun part. What goes up must come down. After flying down the hill I made a right had turn and had about a .25 mile to go. I found another gear and pushed hard to the finish. I was wearing my orange compression sleeves and my bright Florissant sketchers shoes. I must admit I was feeling my inner Meb come out as I headed to the finish.
My time of 20:30 was not a pr, but that is ok. I felt good considering I raced hard for 18.5 miles the week before. I do wish someone was with me in the front to help push the pace a little faster. This was a fun race.
My girls were disappointed that all I won was a T- shirt for first. I was lucky to win this as this was a last minute decision. Back in February I took second overall at a valentines 5k. For that effort I won a teddy bear that was taller than my four year old. My girls were hoping for this to happen again. A great opportunity to talk to my girls about fundraising and why not all races have medals.
Coming in first has it perks. I was able to watch all the runners and walkers come through the finish. All those boys I passed and "showed" all recieved a high from me as they came through the finish. It was just as rewarding winning as it was watching everyone finish their race. I was had the joy of running my four year old into the finish.
Fun was had by all and that was the end goal of today's race
Sunday, May 18, 2014
Ogden Marathon
DNF- this about sums up my experience running the Ogden Marathon. I had planned on running the 2014 version since I completed the 2013 running of the Ogden marathon. I had vein surgery in December to help with recovery after long runs. I had a two week building of mileage since I did not run for three weeks after surgery. I had formulated a training plan using an 18 week plan. My plan came from the book Advanced Marathoning. I was using the 55 miles a week plan. My training was good and I hit the majority of the training runs.
I feel I hydrated well and fuels correctly. For the first time I felt as though I had a plan and stuck to it. The thing with running though is even when all the ducks are in a row you never know what will come or happen on race day.
I awoke at 3:30 to get ready so I could catch the bus. The way I felt when I awoke I should have reevaluated my plan. I had stomach issues. I chalked up to being up earlier than I was used to. I was on the first bus to the start line. It was nice to see road base at the starting area. In years past it was a wet field and grocery sacks were necessary to keep feet dry. I was able to see some friends. Many friends From Facebook I saw from standing in the potty line. I wanted to go say hi and introduce myself but I was not about to lose my spot. I had already been in line for 15 minutes. I also was able to meet and talk to two older ladies who traveled to Utah from Hawaii. The only reason they were in Utah was to run this race. Just before the start the stomach issues went away. This was only to be temporary.
I found my way to the start. I was only there for 30 seconds before the count down. Odd thing no gun blast to start. It was 3,2,1 go. That was odd. I had trained to for a Boston qualifying time of 3:10. I was able to use a coarse specific pace band. The band came from racesmartpacebands.com. Great way to know exactly what pace to run per mile. The band has you go slightly faster going down hill and slightly slower going uphill. Check them out. They have many pace bands for full and half marathons throughout Utah.
The race starts and off I go. The first several miles were great. I feel into my paces. Everything seemed to be going great. My breathing was good, and no pains. The mile 7 aid station I stopped to use the port a potty. In an effort to keep pace I pushed it a little to hard. Over the next several miles things still were falling into place. I started feeling not well about mile 13. I walked through the half way mark. The clock read 1:37 something. I was two minutes off my goal pace. Things were still looking good. I thought I would take it easy over the next seven miles and use the canyon to push things on the way down. Then came the hill at mile 14. I made the decision to power walk this hill. Things were not well and my health was getting worse. I was able to maintain about a 12 minute mile up the hill. By mile 15.5 I was vomiting and dry heaving. Walk breaks came every aid station. The walk breaks were longer than I had ever taken. After vomiting I felt better. I thought I was still going to be able to finish. At mile 17 I took two cups of water. I knew I needed to hydrate. This made things worse again. I was once again dry heaving every 1/4 mile. I came to the canyon and welcomed the down hill. I was now getting dizzy and light headed. I was unable to take water and powerade as these only made my condition worse. I also noticed my heart rate was 168 and I was doing a 9:42 mile pace. Usually at this heart rate I am in the low 8 minute miles. This made me worry. I was not sure of my ability to finish. The aid station at mile 18.5 is where I called it quits. I was having a hard time lowering my heart rate. Ever time I tried to stand I got dizzy and felt like falling over.
This was one of the hardest decisions I have had to make. I spent a year waiting for this day I also had spent 20 weeks in the most intense training I had ever done. I was conflicted. I have a full summer of half marathons, 10k, and 5ks. I wanted to be able to recover. Training for the St George marathon starts in two weeks.
I spent the rest of the day in a dilemma. I felt like a failure. I spent much time and energy talking about my goals. I now had to tell everyone I failed. If I had not had already paid for races I would have given up running all together. This feeling has now changed.
I am now trying to put together a hydration plan for future races.
Things did not go as planned. I feel that is ok. I still made it to mile 18.5 at an average pace of 8:19. Life is good and now I know what to work on
I feel I hydrated well and fuels correctly. For the first time I felt as though I had a plan and stuck to it. The thing with running though is even when all the ducks are in a row you never know what will come or happen on race day.
I awoke at 3:30 to get ready so I could catch the bus. The way I felt when I awoke I should have reevaluated my plan. I had stomach issues. I chalked up to being up earlier than I was used to. I was on the first bus to the start line. It was nice to see road base at the starting area. In years past it was a wet field and grocery sacks were necessary to keep feet dry. I was able to see some friends. Many friends From Facebook I saw from standing in the potty line. I wanted to go say hi and introduce myself but I was not about to lose my spot. I had already been in line for 15 minutes. I also was able to meet and talk to two older ladies who traveled to Utah from Hawaii. The only reason they were in Utah was to run this race. Just before the start the stomach issues went away. This was only to be temporary.
I found my way to the start. I was only there for 30 seconds before the count down. Odd thing no gun blast to start. It was 3,2,1 go. That was odd. I had trained to for a Boston qualifying time of 3:10. I was able to use a coarse specific pace band. The band came from racesmartpacebands.com. Great way to know exactly what pace to run per mile. The band has you go slightly faster going down hill and slightly slower going uphill. Check them out. They have many pace bands for full and half marathons throughout Utah.
The race starts and off I go. The first several miles were great. I feel into my paces. Everything seemed to be going great. My breathing was good, and no pains. The mile 7 aid station I stopped to use the port a potty. In an effort to keep pace I pushed it a little to hard. Over the next several miles things still were falling into place. I started feeling not well about mile 13. I walked through the half way mark. The clock read 1:37 something. I was two minutes off my goal pace. Things were still looking good. I thought I would take it easy over the next seven miles and use the canyon to push things on the way down. Then came the hill at mile 14. I made the decision to power walk this hill. Things were not well and my health was getting worse. I was able to maintain about a 12 minute mile up the hill. By mile 15.5 I was vomiting and dry heaving. Walk breaks came every aid station. The walk breaks were longer than I had ever taken. After vomiting I felt better. I thought I was still going to be able to finish. At mile 17 I took two cups of water. I knew I needed to hydrate. This made things worse again. I was once again dry heaving every 1/4 mile. I came to the canyon and welcomed the down hill. I was now getting dizzy and light headed. I was unable to take water and powerade as these only made my condition worse. I also noticed my heart rate was 168 and I was doing a 9:42 mile pace. Usually at this heart rate I am in the low 8 minute miles. This made me worry. I was not sure of my ability to finish. The aid station at mile 18.5 is where I called it quits. I was having a hard time lowering my heart rate. Ever time I tried to stand I got dizzy and felt like falling over.
This was one of the hardest decisions I have had to make. I spent a year waiting for this day I also had spent 20 weeks in the most intense training I had ever done. I was conflicted. I have a full summer of half marathons, 10k, and 5ks. I wanted to be able to recover. Training for the St George marathon starts in two weeks.
I spent the rest of the day in a dilemma. I felt like a failure. I spent much time and energy talking about my goals. I now had to tell everyone I failed. If I had not had already paid for races I would have given up running all together. This feeling has now changed.
I am now trying to put together a hydration plan for future races.
Things did not go as planned. I feel that is ok. I still made it to mile 18.5 at an average pace of 8:19. Life is good and now I know what to work on
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Salt Lake City Marathon
On April 19, 2014 I ran my second marathon. This was suppose to be a training run in anticipation for a Boston qualifying time at the Ogden marathon. The goal was to run the first 16-20 miles at my marathon pace. This pace is a 7:15 pace. The rest of the race would be at a conservative pace and the goal was to finish in 3:30 to 3:45.
The fueling plan was to take a gel very three miles. I would also take water and powerade at aid stations. I cannot remember the meal the night before. I so know that I was good the two days before and carbo loaded fairly well. I woke up and immediately had a peanut butter and honey sandwich. I also had an emergen-c packet and my vitamin. As I walked out the door I also consumed a banana. I felt good with the fueling to this point. I was worried that I only had three gels. Studying the race guide and map I was unsure of where if any gel stops they would have. I finished off the pre race fueling with a 5 hour energy about 20 minutes before the start.
I carpooled to the start line with Dave Earnshaw and one of his friends. I was concerned trying to find parking close to the finish line and riding tracks to the start. This would also mean that we would have two cars in Salt Lake since Julie and the girls were coming to see me finish. By carpooling we were dropped off at the start line.
After being dropped off I headed to the potties and start the pre race ritual. After the potties it was off to get ready to race. I dropped off my bag and headed to the start. The good thing about this race was that they had flags telling the pace so you could line up accordingly. They started at 6.00 minutes and went every minute back. The start was wide and I had no problem working my way to the 7.00 mile area. Slowly the corals started filling up. 7:00 am came and went and we did not start. Tracks was dropping off several hundred people so we waited so all runners could be there for the start.
I was a little nervous but full of confidence. I was confident I could hit my pace and run a good race. I was using a pace band created for the elevation of this coarse. With the star spangled sung and excitement in the air we were off.
The start funneled and tightened quickly which was not much of a problem since I was near the front. The first five miles I knew the coarse as I had run portions in other half marathons. There were some up and downs in elevation. At mile 3 there was an odd loop through a parking lot heading down city creek canyon. I took my first gel and cruised through the aid station. At this point I was running with some junior high students. It was fun to keep pace with them and to watch them work together as a team. We would see-saw for about five miles. At the mile 6 station I stopped for a porta potty. I was not worried about the lose of time as I hit my paces good except for some sub 7 minute miles coming down into the canyon. I still felt good and strong.
The next three miles were rolling hills. I was surprised at how many people came out to watch. Not much else they could do since the entire road was closed and they were home bound until after the race. It was just after mile nine that the half marathon and the marathon coarse separated. It was an awesome feeling being one of only a handful of runners turning left while the masses headed straight for the half coarse. It was here I slowed a little as the hills started wearing on me. I still was keeping within my goals. My fueling plan around mile 13 went down hill and I never recovered. Running through sugar house park was bit fun or exciting as I hoped. The mental wall was hitting and my goals were slipping. When I hit mile 13 my watch read 1:34. I knew the first half was all at goal pace. This would also be one of my top 3 half marathon times. This excitement running would be ruined when results were posted. They had me at the half at 1:37. The coarse and my gps were not jiving together. My watched was about .25 mile early. This time would still be a top 5 half marathon time. The extra time banked early on helped when I slowed later on.
My legs at this point had a enough of the elevation. If I did not do something I would be in trouble. The goal now was to hit the next five miles at under a 8.00 minute pace. Goal was accomplished, just barely.
Something happened after mile 13 that has never happened before. My sports induced asthma kicked in. By mile 18 it was hot and I had bouts of dizziness and by mile 20 I had nausea. All these things were firsts. As I approached mile 20 I was done. I had hit my goals. I knew going forth was only going to hurt my efforts for Ogden. Only problem was I had no phone to call Julie. My pride was also not going to allow me to ask an aid station volunteer for a phone to call Julie. The only goal now was to finish.
New goals were now in place for the last 6 miles. I would walk at every mile marker and I would walk through all aid stations. With a new game plan I trudged on. Every hill was a killer. I was feeling worse as the race went on. The mental aspect was almost worse than the physical. With about three miles to go my watch was way off. It was now off by almost .45 a mile. Having your watch go off that early was defeating. At this point I wanted desperately wanted to be done and take a nap. As I came through the finish shoot I could hear Julie yelling and encouraging me. The numbers read 3:43. My goal was still meet in regards to finishing.
As I grabbed my medal I exited I found a patch of grass and feel in heap. I lay there for sometime until Julie and Carly found me. I still just wanted to sleep. After laying in a heap for sometime the medical team came over to check on me. I headed to the medical tent to be checked out. They wanted to make sure my vitals were ok. After warming up and having some powerade I was cleared. Everything checked out. Now to go home and take a nap.
The Salt Lake marathon was tough. There were lots of hills. I did not take into account the difficulty of the coarse when I laid out my plan for this race. I still was able to hit many goals. The biggest take away is I toughed it out and still finished. This May not have been the wisest thing to do.
Time: 3:43:17
Overall: 114
Age: 90
Division: 15
The fueling plan was to take a gel very three miles. I would also take water and powerade at aid stations. I cannot remember the meal the night before. I so know that I was good the two days before and carbo loaded fairly well. I woke up and immediately had a peanut butter and honey sandwich. I also had an emergen-c packet and my vitamin. As I walked out the door I also consumed a banana. I felt good with the fueling to this point. I was worried that I only had three gels. Studying the race guide and map I was unsure of where if any gel stops they would have. I finished off the pre race fueling with a 5 hour energy about 20 minutes before the start.
I carpooled to the start line with Dave Earnshaw and one of his friends. I was concerned trying to find parking close to the finish line and riding tracks to the start. This would also mean that we would have two cars in Salt Lake since Julie and the girls were coming to see me finish. By carpooling we were dropped off at the start line.
After being dropped off I headed to the potties and start the pre race ritual. After the potties it was off to get ready to race. I dropped off my bag and headed to the start. The good thing about this race was that they had flags telling the pace so you could line up accordingly. They started at 6.00 minutes and went every minute back. The start was wide and I had no problem working my way to the 7.00 mile area. Slowly the corals started filling up. 7:00 am came and went and we did not start. Tracks was dropping off several hundred people so we waited so all runners could be there for the start.
I was a little nervous but full of confidence. I was confident I could hit my pace and run a good race. I was using a pace band created for the elevation of this coarse. With the star spangled sung and excitement in the air we were off.
The start funneled and tightened quickly which was not much of a problem since I was near the front. The first five miles I knew the coarse as I had run portions in other half marathons. There were some up and downs in elevation. At mile 3 there was an odd loop through a parking lot heading down city creek canyon. I took my first gel and cruised through the aid station. At this point I was running with some junior high students. It was fun to keep pace with them and to watch them work together as a team. We would see-saw for about five miles. At the mile 6 station I stopped for a porta potty. I was not worried about the lose of time as I hit my paces good except for some sub 7 minute miles coming down into the canyon. I still felt good and strong.
The next three miles were rolling hills. I was surprised at how many people came out to watch. Not much else they could do since the entire road was closed and they were home bound until after the race. It was just after mile nine that the half marathon and the marathon coarse separated. It was an awesome feeling being one of only a handful of runners turning left while the masses headed straight for the half coarse. It was here I slowed a little as the hills started wearing on me. I still was keeping within my goals. My fueling plan around mile 13 went down hill and I never recovered. Running through sugar house park was bit fun or exciting as I hoped. The mental wall was hitting and my goals were slipping. When I hit mile 13 my watch read 1:34. I knew the first half was all at goal pace. This would also be one of my top 3 half marathon times. This excitement running would be ruined when results were posted. They had me at the half at 1:37. The coarse and my gps were not jiving together. My watched was about .25 mile early. This time would still be a top 5 half marathon time. The extra time banked early on helped when I slowed later on.
My legs at this point had a enough of the elevation. If I did not do something I would be in trouble. The goal now was to hit the next five miles at under a 8.00 minute pace. Goal was accomplished, just barely.
Something happened after mile 13 that has never happened before. My sports induced asthma kicked in. By mile 18 it was hot and I had bouts of dizziness and by mile 20 I had nausea. All these things were firsts. As I approached mile 20 I was done. I had hit my goals. I knew going forth was only going to hurt my efforts for Ogden. Only problem was I had no phone to call Julie. My pride was also not going to allow me to ask an aid station volunteer for a phone to call Julie. The only goal now was to finish.
New goals were now in place for the last 6 miles. I would walk at every mile marker and I would walk through all aid stations. With a new game plan I trudged on. Every hill was a killer. I was feeling worse as the race went on. The mental aspect was almost worse than the physical. With about three miles to go my watch was way off. It was now off by almost .45 a mile. Having your watch go off that early was defeating. At this point I wanted desperately wanted to be done and take a nap. As I came through the finish shoot I could hear Julie yelling and encouraging me. The numbers read 3:43. My goal was still meet in regards to finishing.
As I grabbed my medal I exited I found a patch of grass and feel in heap. I lay there for sometime until Julie and Carly found me. I still just wanted to sleep. After laying in a heap for sometime the medical team came over to check on me. I headed to the medical tent to be checked out. They wanted to make sure my vitals were ok. After warming up and having some powerade I was cleared. Everything checked out. Now to go home and take a nap.
The Salt Lake marathon was tough. There were lots of hills. I did not take into account the difficulty of the coarse when I laid out my plan for this race. I still was able to hit many goals. The biggest take away is I toughed it out and still finished. This May not have been the wisest thing to do.
Time: 3:43:17
Overall: 114
Age: 90
Division: 15
Sunday, June 2, 2013
St. George Half marathon
In January I headed down to St. George to complete my first marathon of the year. This would be the start to my training for the Ogden Marathon in May. I was going to go down without the family. Julie and the girls were unable to travel with me. I put out some feelers on Facebook to see if anyone wanted to carpool down with me. A fellow from Logan named Adrian Toledo wanted to join me. His friend Joe also came with us. Adrian is a pacer for the American race pacers. He is very knowledgeable in the field of running. I was able to get great advice as i set in motion to complete the Ogden marathon five months away.
I contacted my cousin Josh and his wife Cindy to inquire about spending the evening with their family. Josh and Cindy have a beautiful family and welcomed me and gave me the spare guest suite to stay in. I am very appreciative of them allowing to spend the evening with them.
The first thing we did as we entered St. George was to go to packet pick up and get our bibs for the race the next morning. I was able to meet more of the pacer team. After packet pick up we headed out for dinner where more of the pacer team welcomed me into the group and more advice was handed out.
The time arrived for the race. The start of the race was chilly at the 8 am start time. I was hoping for better temps but it still was warmer than it was up north as the week before i completed a 10k with temps around 6 degrees. So life was still good. I wanted to come in about 1 hour and 45 minutes to 1 hour and 50 minutes. I placed myself near the end of the line. i wanted to make sure that I did not start out to fast. I also did not want to fumble the phone and drop it at the start. The gun sounded and we were off. I felt really good and was passing people as I had not placed myself very well according to my goals.The uphills started about mile three and the next set of hills at mile 6 or so. The cold temps were beneficial as I did not need to stop at the aid stations. At mile seven was a long downhill. Prior to this I was slowing down and the mileage was getting to me. As I ran the downhill I found my second wind and at that point I was confident I would make my time goal and a new personal best.
At about the 9 mile mark i got up to the 1 hour and 40 minute pacers. I passed them and still felt great. I now was hoping to put several minutes between me and the pacers.
Around the 12 mile marker I started to slow a bit and runners were starting to pass me. I did everything I could to push on and finish. The goal was to not let the pacer group catch me. At mile 13 I saw the finish arch and made my sprint to the finish. The timer was reading 1:39:? what the crap I actually did it. I also new my time would be better as it took several minutes to reach the start line. I had done it, new personal best at 1:37:?
As I crossed the finish line there was an emptiness as no one was there to meet me. I knew no one and my new friends were minutes behind me. This feeling brought to mind the feeling I would have if I made it to heaven and my family was unable to be there with me. I now have a resolve to teach my girls and guide them on their path. I do not want that feeling ever again.
Running has brought joy and continues to teach me new life lessons
I contacted my cousin Josh and his wife Cindy to inquire about spending the evening with their family. Josh and Cindy have a beautiful family and welcomed me and gave me the spare guest suite to stay in. I am very appreciative of them allowing to spend the evening with them.
The first thing we did as we entered St. George was to go to packet pick up and get our bibs for the race the next morning. I was able to meet more of the pacer team. After packet pick up we headed out for dinner where more of the pacer team welcomed me into the group and more advice was handed out.
The time arrived for the race. The start of the race was chilly at the 8 am start time. I was hoping for better temps but it still was warmer than it was up north as the week before i completed a 10k with temps around 6 degrees. So life was still good. I wanted to come in about 1 hour and 45 minutes to 1 hour and 50 minutes. I placed myself near the end of the line. i wanted to make sure that I did not start out to fast. I also did not want to fumble the phone and drop it at the start. The gun sounded and we were off. I felt really good and was passing people as I had not placed myself very well according to my goals.The uphills started about mile three and the next set of hills at mile 6 or so. The cold temps were beneficial as I did not need to stop at the aid stations. At mile seven was a long downhill. Prior to this I was slowing down and the mileage was getting to me. As I ran the downhill I found my second wind and at that point I was confident I would make my time goal and a new personal best.
At about the 9 mile mark i got up to the 1 hour and 40 minute pacers. I passed them and still felt great. I now was hoping to put several minutes between me and the pacers.
Around the 12 mile marker I started to slow a bit and runners were starting to pass me. I did everything I could to push on and finish. The goal was to not let the pacer group catch me. At mile 13 I saw the finish arch and made my sprint to the finish. The timer was reading 1:39:? what the crap I actually did it. I also new my time would be better as it took several minutes to reach the start line. I had done it, new personal best at 1:37:?
As I crossed the finish line there was an emptiness as no one was there to meet me. I knew no one and my new friends were minutes behind me. This feeling brought to mind the feeling I would have if I made it to heaven and my family was unable to be there with me. I now have a resolve to teach my girls and guide them on their path. I do not want that feeling ever again.
Running has brought joy and continues to teach me new life lessons
2013 Running Goals
Following are the goals I set for myself for 2013 in regards to my running
1. Complete 12 half marathons
2. Complete 3 Ragnar relays
3. Complete 2 marathons
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