Motivated

I was thinking of our top runner -- and the top runner in the state -- tonight as I ran 38 minutes up to the park and down the road past the airport and back. Sam broke a bone in his right foot and won't be able to run at the state cross country meet Saturday. It is extremely sad.

I am motivated and I felt it tonight, especially on the way back. I was running sub-9s as I returned to town. I want to have a great winter of running so I can hit the ground running come spring. I want to run the Drake Relays Ont he Roads 8K in April, then hit the track and get ready to run a mile on the track next summer. Then do my fall routine, do some good mileage and get ready to run a 21-minute 5K at the run for the schools next summer.

Monday night, when I got home from districts, I ran the 2.5-mile loop around the school.

Total miles on new shoes -- 255

Back after a week

I took a week off to heal some minor hurts, and ran yesterday. I had lost a little conditioning, but felt good in a 37-minute run. I'm committed to having a good winter of running.

4 miles.

Total on new shoes -- 249 miles.

Run for the Schools

I ran the Run for the Schools race in 23:17 -- not my goal, but hey, I'll take it.

I went out quite fast, staying with Will Harte for the first mile in 7:05 -- probably a little too fast, but hey, I wanted to see what I could do. I wouldn't have hit my goal if I didn't maintain that pace.

My second mile was 7:37 -- 14:42. Then my last 1.1 miles were in 8:35 (7:48 pace). Overall, my pace averaged 7:29.

You know what this is? A place to start, that's what it is. I was a little disappointed in my time, but it's OK. As long as I am running, I am doing great.

I have some nice plans for next year. First of all, I'm going to make the run for the schools 5K my championship race every year. Maybe I can train, do some speedwork, find a mile race and run as fast a mile as possible over the summer, then build back up with some mileage for a fast 5K in October. That can be my routine.

I had thought about taking another month to run a fast mile, but I don't think I will. Part of it is, I want to start over and do this right. I need to lose some weight. I'm at 175, and I need to probably cut 10 pounds. The other part is, I'm hurting a little. This hip-butt issue is painful -- I need to rest it and get it feeling better. Then I'm feeling a little tenderness to the sides of my Achilles -- not the Achilles themselves -- on both feet. So I need to back off, get some rest, gain some strength, lose some weight, do the right training.

Next year, I hit the 50 age group, and to safely run in the top 5 in Iowa City I need to hit 21 minutes. So that will be my goal. And if I do this right, I should be able to make that.

I was inspired yesterday by my middle school kids. They all did great, some had good meets, some off meets, but they learned a lot, ran with other kids, and I think had a good time. I hope I kept them inspired for cross country for a long time.

Miles on new shoes -- 245

Ready or not

Wednesday was my last run before Sunday's race. It is Friday now. I ran 29 minutes -- just out and back to Columbus City. I felt really stiff, especially in the hip-butt area, from Monday night's run.

Last night, Thursday, I played ultimate frisbee with the kids -- drizzly, cold night.

We'll see how far my training can take me. Now I have a cold, but hey, that's how it goes. I was going to run tonight, just a jog, but this cold and Brooklyn are here, so it's kind of hard.

I'll jog around the state middle-school course tomorrow and see how the kids do in that meet. I'm really looking forward to this. These students have been fun and they have worked hard. I couldn't have asked for a better group of kids as I started my Columbus career.

Miles on new shoes -- 241

Tough, hilly run

Tonight I ran 4.4 miles, very hilly, from the school to the golf course, two perimeter loops of the golf course, and back to the school. I ran it in 40:14, or about 9:08 a mile, which I didn't consider too shabby for this hilly of a run. That includes about 8:45 pace coming back -- which is the big hill on Spring street or whatever that road is.

Now I will kind of taper down for Sunday's Run for the Schools. My butt-hip is still sore -- but I do get loosened up. It hurts, but I am not damaging it further by running hard. I can tell that. I still think I can get close to 22:00 on Sunday. That would be 7:05 pace. Tough, but do-able.

Miles on new shoes -- 238.5

Columbus Day 5K

I ran the Columbus Day 5K today in Columbus Junction. Time: 23:18. I am pretty happy about that. I will be running the Run for the Schools in a week, and I think this was a good workout for that. I know I will run faster.

It started downtown, and we ran up the Second Street hill -- tough start. Then we ran past the school, to Orchard Lane, around that neighborhood, out Flatiron and back on Colton, then wind down to the park and a loop in the park, back out and take a right at Second Street and down the hill. I passed Taylor and Caitlyn about at the school.

It was cold -- 32 degrees -- and after the run it started snowing. But I felt OK, other than I had to go to the bathroom part of the way in. That may have slowed me a little. Left lower leg down by the Achilles was hurting just a little, right hip-butt area was hurting, but it was OK. I was going fast and feeling competitive.

Last night I ran 15 minutes on the treadmill.

Miles on new shoes -- 234

Tough workout

I started with a 1-plus mile run to the Chatauqua Park and back to the school. Then I played a little basketball with the middle-school kids.

Then I decided to do a speed workout, and i was a little unsure about what to do before I started. But I got to the track, did 4 x 300 with a 100 jog rest between 300s.

1:12
1:15
1:11
1:12

Then I decided to see how fast I could run a mile, trying to hit 7 minutes. I ran the 400s in 1:41, 1:46, 1:44, 1:45 for a 6:56 mile. It was very tough, leaving me to really wonder if I'm going to be able to break 22 minutes for 5K. But then, I had run a lot before, so I wasn't exactly rested.

229 miles on my new shoes.

Semi-hard 3-mile cross country

I ran the Cedarcrest cross country course before the Columbus Cross Country meet today in 24:33 -- about 8:31 a mile. I ran it semi-hard -- not all out or not a jog. It is very hilly and I try to push the hills fairly hard. It felt good. Then I picked out a 25-second incline -- 100 meters? -- and pushed it 5 times and joged back.

My weird pain on my right side is more of a hip-butt pain -- not a hamstring. When I push it, especially on hills, I feel it a little. I think for the next few weeks I just make sure I get rest, and it will be fine.

3.3 miles.

226 miles on my new shoes.

Easy run around MP trails

It was a nice, easy 38-minute run this morning around the trail around the high school, then around the trail in Eastlake Park and home. Probably a little over 4 miles. It felt nice on a 49-degree morning -- even though my right hamstring was a little tight. It loosened up as the run went on. I believe i'll be able to make it through the Run for the Schools 5K without hurting it badly.

4-ish miles.

for the week -- 18 miles

Miles on new shoes -- 222.5

Golf course runs

We went out to Cedarcrest again today and I ran an awesome set of intervals.

9:30 warmup (1 mile), followed by 4 x from clubhouse to corner green and back (not quite 800 meters?):

3:25
3:22
3:17
3:19

Followed by a 2-minute jog and rest between intervals. I am hoping it is 800, but I don't think it can be quite 800. It was a good strength-building run. Then a 6-minute jog cooldown.

Tuesday, I ran three times around the perimeter of Cedarcrest, about 3 miles, in 30 minutes.

Total miles for the week -- 13.6.

Total miles on new shoes -- 218.5