Marathon Pace/Brewfest/Josh Turner

So this morning's workout called for 6 mile at MP. This is my 3rd MP workout since I started this training program, and the first 2 did not go well. I warmed up for a half mile or so, then let it rip for 6 miles @ 6:55 per. The run went really well this morning actually, and looking back, the fact that I had the flu really hampered my 2 previous MP runs. Todays was a great workout, and I actually was a little faster than I was supposed to be some of the time. I'm having trouble knowing my speed right not, but it started to come to me near the end of the run today, so hopefully it will continue on into next weeks workouts. Cutback long run this weekend of just 8 miles on Sunday. I wasn't feeling good about my training plan the first couple weeks, thinking maybe it wasn't going to push me enough to improve me, but I am really feeling better about it now. Next week starts to get a lot tougher.

Today and tommorow are the annual Brewfest weekend here in Old Town Fort Collins. God I love summers down here.

http://downtownfortcollins.com/festivals.php/brewfest

With all of our breweries here in town and the brew pubs, this is one of the more popular events each summer. Work will probably be pretty slow today though. People either come down to get their drink on, or they avoid Old Town all together. I usually do the latter after my day is done. I remember last year, Mica and I were going to come down after I got done with work and hang out downtown, thinking it would be a cool party night. We walked into one bar, turned around and left. It gets pretty messy when people spend all day drinking like that. We went bowling instead. Lol

After I get off tonight, I will run the 3 miles with Jaz that we are trying to do everynight but Fridays, then I'm off to Greeley to see the Josh Turner concert at the Greeley Stampede. I really wanted to see Tim McGraw who is playing tomorrow night, but ponying up 90 bucks to stand in a rodeo arena is a little more than I wanted to pay, and the tickets for tonight are free. :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eapjR5QfVB4 Soulmate
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLn6maxATvQ Your Man
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLn6maxATvQ Would You Go With Me
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPPXHiaiKqs Firecracker. Perfect for the 4th of July, lol.

Should be a good time anyways. Plus there's a Del Taco in Greeley...

Tempo, Tempo, Tempo

I'm trying to keep up with this folks, I really am. Life has been a little crazy lately with the new training starting and with me gettin sick a couple weeks ago. Work has been so busy lately too, I hardly find time to keep up with it all. Since getting over the flu, I have been a morning run person each day, and have started to pick up about 3 miles at night on top of any lifting or cross training. Those are mostly for the dog to get exercise since she sleeps most of the day. I figure bumper sessions in the morning, at lunch, then 3 miles at night is a good regiment for anyone.

Found myself about a minute short of my 10 minutes at 10k pace this morning on my run, hopefully attributed to the fact that I did 6 with my running group last night and really brought the speed the last two miles. Me and Paublo probably erased a 1/3 of a mile deficit to a couple pretty good runners in about a mile or so, then he faded on the last hill, and me and another guy finished neck and neck. Don't get me wrong, I'm not there to race, but after being sick last week and really not looking very fit in front of my new running friends, I wanted to show that I do have some skill. The key word being "some".

Off day tomorrow. Enjoy.

Fathers Day Weekend

I'm a little late writing all this, but Fathers Day Weekend is a neat one here in Old Town Fort Collins. It starts on the Saturday morning before with the Old Town Car Show, Sunday morning is the Fathers Day 5k, and all weekend long was the Taste of Ft. Collins. We had beautiful weather for the whole weekend.

A little back story on the place I work, it was owned by the same person for over 2 decades, then while I was out in Chicago last Oct on vacation, it was sold while I was gone. Our new owner is a good guy, an active Mormon in his church, and generally a nice boss. In years past we have always been business as usual on days that Old Town would be shut down for these kinds of things. The ex store manager, "The Old Man" made sure of it. But this year we embraced the atmoshpere, the new owner came down and greeted people, spent the day saying hi and petting Jaz. Some pics...

So I got up Sunday morning to run the Fathers Day 5k. I had dropped a hint a couple times to my new friend and running pal Doug that he should come out and run it. He also was looking for the magical sub 20, although he was one week out from the Mt. Evans ascent. He decided to and we ran the race together. A little backdrop on Doug. He and I have run 6 races together now, and in the first 4 I was anywhere from 2-9 minutes behind me, depending on the distance, but the last 2, Boulder and now this 5k, he has finished faster than me in both races. He's really getting quick and becoming a terrific runner. I woke up with my stomach not feeling right. I spent over 2 hours nursing it, trying to get it ready to race. When the gun went off, I felt ok. Doug and I ran the first half of the race together, but around then, I started to fall off a little. Around 2.5 I knew I wasn't going to get in under 20, but Doug was still going strong and was able to get in at 19:43. I came across 20:30. I didn't think much about it at the time and chalked it up to stomach problems, but by noon that day I had a 101 degree fever and my stomach was really hurting. Looks like I had the flu. My fever broke the next day, and this morning finally I ran without stomach issues again for the first time. I still feel weak, but at least I can really get going again.

Hey, the 4th is coming up. My favorite holiday...

6/11/08 5 Easy

Nothing really to report from this mornings run. 5 miles, about 7:50 per average. My legs were a little tired near the end, but didn't really wear me out too much. My change in the time I am getting to work this morning really worked to my advantage this morning. I ran, showered, went to the park, played with Jaz, stopped at the supermarket to buy food for work, and was still was far enough ahead in my day to stop by another park and play with the dog for another 15 minutes or so.

I look forward to tomorrows tempo run, as I am starting to grow fond of them. The Higdon training site says that at the end of them you should feel refreshed, not drained. And that's the way the couple I have done have worked out. I am a little nervous with the weekends workouts though. 5 miles at marathon pace on Saturday, followed by 10 on Sunday. Plus before the 10, I am racing a 5k here in old town hoping once again for the magical sub 20.

And it was Subway for dinner last night John, but I might try your suggestion tonight...

6/10/08 3xHills

I got up and out around 4:30 this morning. The weather was perfect for a morning run, and I am getting to the point where I actually look forward to rolling out of bed and going again. I'm sure it hast to do with the low miles that the workouts are right now, but whatever gets me up and out of bed.

I made my way to Hughes Stadium, parked in the lot and started down the trail. A little over a mile in, there is a hill that stretches about a 1/4 mile from the bottom to the top and back to the bottom again on the other side. The elevation gain is 356 feet in the 1/8th mile to the top and then the same back down the other 1/8th. So I did 12 repeats up and down with what is known as a 3/1 as well. Meaning every third time I went up, instead of jogging the downhill, I still ran as hard as I could on the way down. I got to just over 4 miles and turned home. 5 total for the day.

Breakfast consisted of a wheat mini bagel and a bowl of rice chex. Lunch will probably be soft shell tacos - cheese.

Not sure about dinner.

3 Easy Miles 06/09/08

I got up around 4:30 this morning and hit the trails next to the house with Jaz for my 3 mile scheduled workout. Today starts it all. Plus with Jaz not being able to go to work with me anymore, I am going to start biking the 5 or so miles to work everyday. I'll return home on my bike at night, then head for the gym, play with her, or whatever I do that evening. Since I moved in her, I pretty much haven't gone anywhere where she's not attached to my hip. It'll be quite the change.

As far as the run goes, not to much to report, my side did cramp a little, but I'm sure that's more dehydration than anything else. Really got to work on this bottle thing.

Sweet Home Chicago

So the 4th of June came and ended and they drew the lottery for the ING NYC Marathon that day. As many of you know, I got the big, bold NO next to my name in the accepted column. I really wanted to run this race this year, and that feeling of grew over the course of the day, after I found out my friend Chooch was accepted earlier in the day. To be able to run the same race as him and the world famous Squirrel would have been very cool. I am not in the same league as either of these guys as far as speed right now, although in my first two marathons, my performances haven't been that far away from what they did in their first two. So there's still hope for me I guess.

So I was really bummed for a couple days, but then I really got to thinking about this trip as a whole. First and formost, I really wanted to run with Squirrel, but in reality, I had my chance to do that in May in Cinci, and bypassed it to stay here and run the marathon in my hometown instead. So I can't feel bad about that. Chooch and I have never run the same race, but I know we'll get that chance soon. A trip to Chciago will cost me a fraction of what a trip to NY will, I think right now, RT airline tickets are right in the 160-175 range. And I'll stay a little different this year than I did last year. Probably closer to Midway, to downtown, and closer to the El, because cab fare just kills you. And really I am way more a Chicago guy than a New York guy anyways. I love the Cubs, although not a big fan of the rest of the sports teams. It really is my kind of city. I've traveled a lot the last year or so, and it's the one I enjoyed the most from a city standpoint. Chooch was a great Chicago host, while TJ was awesome in Phoenix when I was there, and I did love LA and all that went with it. The Blues Brothers is one of my favorite movies, and I've been called Clark Griswold a time or two while decorating the house for Christmas, lol. It's my kind of feel, my kind of town. Plus I really wanted to run the one there last year, so thank GOD I registered when I did. I can't seem to get my corral status fixed with them, but hopefully we'll work it out.

So my training program starts on Monday, so today I am sitting over a couple (the word couple used very loosly) beers, will probably head to the Trailhead for lunch or something, and enjoy my last day before I start a very serious training cycle. I will start updating in this blog pretty much every day the workouts that have been done, how I feel, and how I think things are coming along. It will really be a Daily paper at that time. Some updates may be short, but I'll try and check in every day.

The clock is ticking...