13.1 myles - 1.27:47

Wildcat Mountain 1/2 marathon - 8:30 A.M.
20s, a little snow, muddy
mind/body - good
Hard effort

Whew! That was tough! It's been a long time since I've felt that searing of the lungs and I tell you what - I don't miss it!

My initial goal was 1.25 so I was close but not my best performance. I ended up 3rd overall and (hate to say it) I won the master's division. I ended up with a 6:42 pace on a trail course with 1800 ft. of elevation gain. Major props to the winner who clocked a time just under 1.22 (6:15 pace). I went through 5K in 18:27 and 10K in 39:55. I lost contact with the two in front of me right around the 5 mile mark when I realized I was beyond my red line. The hills are where I started to reel them in but just I was closing the hill became a DOWN hill and that's all she wrote with those guys have better leg speed. It's a good start to the speed work but I have a lot of work to do. Race results posted here soon.

Did I happen to mention I don't miss this short stuff? I'd rather drag the battle out over a 1/2 a day or so....

On another note, last night I did some training for our burrito competition that will be held next Saturday, November 21st. I ate 2 Qdoba veggie burritos in 8 minutes! I wasn't even trying! First one went down in 3 minutes, just my normal eating. Second one went down a little slower as I became somewhat full. 3 burritos is going to be challenge but I've gotta be considered the favorite at this point. If anyone wants to join us we will be at Chipotle in Castle Rock - 5642 Allen Way - 303-663-0552 @ 11 A.M. The challenge is to eat 3 Chipotle burritos - first one done wins cash and prizes and declared CRUD burrito champion of the world.

8 myles - 57:04

HR urban trails - 7:00 A.M.
strong North wind, dry, cloudy
mind/body - groggy to start
easy effort

Been busy the last couple of days preparing for an upcoming national meeting and painting my basement. Needless to say I've been squeezing runs in here and there. Today was nothing special with a 7:08 pace but it sure was nice to be out so early. I'm normally not a morning person but I've found when I get my butt outta bed and run early my day goes a ton better. Having said that, I actually accomplished quite a bit today. I won't bore you with the details but just know I'm smarter today than I was yesterday...

I'm planning on the Wildcat Mountain 1/2 marathon on Saturday. Supposed to be rainy and mucky... perfect! I'm hoping it will scare away those fast roadies so I don't have to kill myself to stay with them. The course is on my home route (the trail I ran today) and has about 1500 ft of elevation. I'm pretty confident I can pull off a 1.25 even in the worst of conditions. Should be fun but I have to say kinda weird doing a race so close to home.

8 myles - 52:26

Daniels Park - 10:00 A.M.
60s, clear, dry
mind/body - ready to go
Hard effort

Gotta admit the legs were a little stiff this morning after my hill workout yesterday on Mt. Sanitas. Where have those Hard Rock legs gone?

Today was my tempo/speed work day. And just for clarification, tempo to me means roughly a 10K pace, slightly slower than 5K and about 20 seconds slower than LT. I went out 4 myles at an easy 7:30 pace and came back at 5:50 pace (5:51, 5:52, 5:48, 5:49 - 23:22). My goal was to hit my 5:53 mark from last week - pretty close. The last mile I think I dipped into LT as the legs were starting to tie up a bit. Feel good all the way around.

~6 myles - 1.00:10

Mt. Sanitas - 2:00 P.M.
dry, clear, 60s
mind/body - good
easy effort

Now I know why those Boulder runners scream down the 'so called' technical stuff in races.... Mt. Sanitas is as technical as they get (next to Bear Mountain). This mountain range; Bear, Green, Mt. Sanitas and the Flat Irons, are relatively close to each other and to downtown Boulder, making for easy access to do frequent gnarly hill repeats. If I lived there I'd be up there everyday - tons of good stuff. I once heard Mackay did Bear up and down in just under an hour - not sure where he started but it doesn't matter cause that stuff is gnarly!

Anyway, today I went up Mt. Sanitas twice because the first time I came down some side canyon and had to go back up to see where I got lost. Made it up the Centennial side in just over 20 minutes - not to sure how that stacks up but I felt good. Boulder is now part of my new territory so hopefully I'll be a frequent visitor to this place and learn all the trails.

~15 myles - 2.09:43

Santa Fe/ Falcon trail - 7:00 A.M.
mid 40s, clear, dry
mind/body - eager/refreshed
easy effort

Any time you know you're gonna go on a run with JT - it's gotta be easy. Turns our JT was an hour late because he was the designated driver the night before till 4 A.M.... I'm still not sure how that works out because when he drinks till 4 he is usually on time to the runs ....excuses so early on for the South chapter of CRUD

The usual group was there: myself (leading the way of course), Paul, Rick, Larry, Max the dog, Harsha (fresh off his trip from Bangalore), and Harry (the quiet one - huh?). Our intentions early in the week were to get to show our mugs on the ESPN College game day as they were at the Air Force Academy yesterday. Turn our they were set up a little too far and would have been a 6 hour run.

On November 21st, CRUD will be hosting the 2nd annual burrito eating contest at Chipotle in Castle Rock @ 11 A.M. The challenge is to eat 3 of their burritos - first one done wins. That's roughly six pounds of Mexican! I look to be the odds on favorite. More details to follow.

8 myles - 57:04

Daniels Park - 8:00 A.M.
mid 50s, clear, almost dry
mind/body - good
easy effort

The weather had been extremely mild since our last snow dump, still some snow on the ground though. Just wanted to get out today to spin the legs before I headed down to the basement to paint - painting is much harder work. My average was 7:07 and feeling really good. The perceived effort at this pace is much better than a week ago.

Next Saturday I'm probably gonna run a 1/2 marathon put on by Highlands Ranch. It's basically run on my home course anyway so why not go out and push the pace a bit.