run, run, run

Boise, ID 6:15 am

Pace: 7:12

Weather was kind of gross this morning. 71 and muggy. Like running in a laundromat. Turned out to be a good morning run though. Increased the pace each mile to finish below marathon goal pace. I thought about going 3 more this morning, but decided to not. Going long tomorrow.

Boise, ID 5:15 am

Pace: 7:30

I got up really early for Pocatello Marathon long run #2. Another 25-miler. I think going the extra 5 miles is really going to help. If I has stopped at 20 miles I would have said I felt pretty good, and you aren't supposed to feel pretty good after a long run. I didn't fade like I did last time though. I've said it before that the last 5 miles are the only ones that matter in a long run. I improved quite a bit from last time:

21     8:23     21     7:20
22     8:19     22     7:50
23     7:49     23     7:38
24     8:17     24     7:34
25     9:06     25     7:28

 My goal was to finish with an average pace of 7:30 and I was at that when I made my last water stop at mile 22. I told my wife that I didn't think I had it in me to hold that pace for 3 more miles. I guess I did.

I almost impaled myself near mile 5. There was a construction sign tipped over at the side of the road and, in the dark, I couldn't see it. I grabbed hold of the base of the sign just in time. If it weren't for a car's headlights behind me I probably would have been gored.

Kauai, HI 6:00 am

Pace: 7:40

An ok run for my first day on Kauai. Not familiar with the roads, so I kept it simple. Ran through town mostly. I did have one adventure. Near the airport I saw a side road that was gated and I decided to run down it. It was nice, running through cane fields but I soon started having thoughts of wild pigs and got a little nervous. The road looped back to the highway, but crossed several hundred feet underneath. There was a cement embankment going down, so I climbed up it and continued on down the highway.

Kauai, HI 6:00 am

Pace: 7:58

Pouring rain, steep hills and miles of pure Hawaiian awesomeness. From the hotel I took a road up near the mountains. When I went by the Menehune fish pond, I stopped, read the plaque and continued on quietly. If there's one thing I know about Menehunes, is that you don't want to piss them off.

The road winded up through jungle and grassy areas up to the highway and back down to the hotel. Good hill work, but my feet are suffering. Running in the rain gave me a blister on the back of my foot and I ripped off part of my toenail boogie boarding yesterday. I think I'll call it a week and take Saturday and Sunday off. Maybe my feet will heal up a bit. 

Kauai, HI 6:00 am

Pace: 7:33

I planned on taking a road behind the airport over to a pier and back. I got turned around and ended up going in front of the airport, but I found the pier. It was just a pier. On the way back I found the road I wanted to go down, but it stunk like a landfill, so I went back the same way I came.

This vacation has been hard on my body. I've had two toenails bleed, a blister on my right ankle, I scraped my chin on the bottom of the pool and, worst of all: baggy shorts + Hawaii humidity = a wicked case of crotch rot. I found a sample pack of Body Glide in my bag today, so I'll give it a try tomorrow. If it works, I'll do my full run. If not, I'll probably pack it in and call it a vacation. 

Boise, ID 6:30 am

Pace: 7:01

Still recovering from the travel day, but I needed to run hard to prove to myself that the vacation didn't set me back too far. Started out at a 7:33 pace and sped up each mile with the last mile at 6:42. Weather was perfect, legs felt strong. Bumps and scrapes from the vacation are healing.

Boise, ID 6:15 am

Pace: 7:19

I started out strong for the first 3 miles but then started to fade a bit. Held a 7:15 to 7:20 pace for the rest of the way. Got back to the house at 9.2 miles and didn't have the motivation to run around the neighborhood for another .8. I'll go longer tomorrow.

Tried out a new pair of Ghost 3s. Felt good. Good thing since I bought two pair.

Boise, ID 9:30 am

Pace: 7:33

I slept in this morning and knew I would pay for it as the temperature warmed up, but I needed it. A pretty good run, feeling fatigued, but hung in there. It did get warm in the second half, but it could have been worse.

I ran into Neal finishing his last long run before Pocatello. I was jealous, since I still have one more planned on Tuesday. On my way down Ustick, I high-fived a guy in a skunk suit in front of the Stinker Station.

Boise, ID 6:15 am

Pace: 7:31

Slow and easy this morning. We ran like a couple of girls. Yacking the whole way, we even stopped and talked for a few minutes after the run was over.

Boise, ID 5:15 am

Pace: 7:25

Last long run for Pokey. I think doing 25-milers is going to pay off. I've never run more than 20 miles without feeling like I was going to die. This time I finished strong. My two fastest were miles 21 and 25.

Didn't feel horrible afterward either. Soaked in the pool for a little while and I still feel tired and a little sore, but not nearly as bad as I have in the past. Hopefully this bodes well for Pocatello.

Boise, ID 6:15 am

Pace: 7:44

Slow and easy recovery this morning. Picked up the pace to 7:15 for the last mile.

Boise, ID 6:30 am

Pace: 7:27

I started out kind of slow (8:01 the first mile) but ended up having a nice progression. I sped up gradually each mile until mile 9 was 6:54 and for some reason I got a hankerin to start hoofing it on the last half mile and brought it in at a 6:15 pace.

I added about a half mile to my run because Edna Street was a cloud of dust because of street sweepers, so I went up another block.

Boise, ID 7am

Pace: 7:31

Not a bad run. Still feel kind of tired. Probably will tomorrow too. I need Sunday to come for a day of rest. Had a good progression going. first mile was 7:51 and sped up each mile until I was at 7:07 for the last.

Boise, ID 7:45 am

Pace: 7:19

I wasn't sure how far I wanted to run this morning, so I looked at my calendar and saw that I had run 52 miles so far this week. So I ran 8.

Grand Junction, CO 7:30 pm

Pace: 7:48

I was stressing about work, so I got up early and did prep work instead of running. Then it was 95 degrees when I got off, so I ate dinner and waited till 7:30. I drove to the trailhead on Monument Road and, instead of trail running, I continued up the road and into the Colorado National Monument. Very cool rocks.

I started out sluggish but as it cooled down a little and I got used to the altitude and running uphill I felt better. I went steady uphill for 3.5 miles and then ran back faster.

Grand Junction, CO 6:40

Pace: 7:40

Much cooler this morning, but still kind of tired from last night's run. I did an out-and-back up 7th street, mostly uphill on the out, mostly downhill on the back.

Grand Junction, CO 6:30 am

Pace: 7:38

Ran through town this morning. A lot of starts and stops. Not really feeling it. I need to dial up the nutrition while I dial down the running for the next week and a half.

Grand Junction, CO 6:30 am

Pace: 7:29

Not a bad run. Crossed the river over one bridge, back over the other and along a river trail. I forgot to turn on my Garmin for almost a mile. I hate it when I do that.

Grand Junction, CO 6:30 am

Pace: ?

Forgot to charge my Garmin yesterday, so I just ran. Went up to the trailhead on Monument Drive and turned back.

Boise, ID 9:30 am

Pace: 6:44

Been feeling slow and fat this week, so I wanted to get out and run hard for a few miles. Kept a good pace, felt really good.

Grand Junction, CO 7:00 am

Pace: 6:57

I entered a new age group today. Ran 5 miles but wore the wrong socks. Got a little blister on the back of my left foot. Maybe I'll take tomorrow off.

Going hard-core on the diet for the next few days. I want to purge the junk from my body before the race. So I had oatmeal for breakfast.

Grand Junction, CO 6:30 am

Pace: 7:43

Just took a short run up to Monument Road. Felt the leftovers of the blister on the back of my foot, so I didn't run too far or fast (probably a good thing this week). It'll be fine on Saturday.

Now, nothing left to do but go to Pocatello and run the race.