Fox River Trail

12 Miles 1:30:38 7:33 average
142 average HR
7:00 a.m sunny and nice 50's
Was planning on running with the Saturday running
group but I only saw a few runners and did not
know them. I decided to run by myself. I went 3 miles
out and 3 miles back stopped at my car and took a
gel and some water then went out again and caught
up with a couple of my friends and ran with them
for a few miles then finished the last 2 miles on
my own. Good run today felt good. I ran first 7
miles in 48:08. This was faster than I wanted to
run but it didn't feel hard. Rest day tomorrow.

Fox River Trail

7 Miles 49:23 7:03 average
146 average HR
6:00 a.m.
Woke up at 5:45 am and noticed we are losing more
and more daylight savings. Kind of depressing.
Soon I will be running morning runs and evening
runs in the dark. Except for the weekends. I wish
summer lasted longer like all year.

Diet & Goals

I have decided it's time I finally start eating better.
I am going to start buying healthier foods and start
cooking more. I believe not only will this be healthier
for me but improve my running. I plan on starting after
the Labor Day holiday. I will have to go shopping this
weekend before I start because I don't have any healthy
foods on hand.
I have been very motivated lately to go out and run
but have held back and listened to body as it recovers
from the marathon. I am going to pick the miles back up
starting Monday and I can't wait. I also have set my goals
high. I want to work on building my mileage, adding speed
work, core strengthening exercises and of course the diet
thing. I'm going out on a limb and state I am going for a
2:40 marathon in the spring. I don't know if that is too
aggressive of a goal but I like to set my goals high.
Without goals I do not push myself to my full potential.
I am still trying to see what that is. I hope to keep
improving into my early 40's.

Fox River Trail

8 Miles 55:30 6:56 average
151 average HR
6:30 p.m. partly sunny 70's
I'm going to take tomorrow off. Still not
recovered from marathon. My legs still
have some soreness but getting better.
My blisters on my heels are healed and
not a issue anymore.

Fox River Trail & Grant St

10 miles total 2 runs

6:15 am) Fox River Trail
5 miles 33:08 6:37 average

6:30 pm) Grant Street
5 miles 32:17 6:27 average

Was going to run the second run easy but was feeling
good so I pushed it.

Fox River Trail

5 Miles 35:41 7:07 average
First run since last Sunday's marathon. First mile felt
rusty. Each mile felt better. Calves are still sore though.
I will run more this week but still keep the mileage down.
Then the following week I will get on a 14 week schedule
for Memphis Marathon. I will follow it some what I have
a few other races before Memphis so I will make some
adjustments to it. The plan calls for 6 runs a week and
building up to 74 miles a week. Should be good for me.
I have peaked at 63 miles before so this will be a bit
more. Plan calls for some track work as well which I have
not done before and I think will help with my speed.
Good Stuff!

Running Thoughts

I have been doing a lot of reflecting the last couple days on my
run at the Pikes Peak Marathon. I am happy with my race and loved
visiting Colorado. However I am never satisfied it seems. I want
to do better. I know I can. Therefore I think I have decided I will
do it again. I would like to be in better shape next year and run
most of the climb up the mountain and only walk occasionally. Unlike
this year walked most of the climb and ran occasionally. I need to
prevent getting blisters so I can fly on the downhill. If I can
do this I can run this Marathon in 4:30 or better.
I have not run since Sunday and plan on waiting till this Sunday
to give it a go. My blister on my heel is getting much better.
My calves are still sore but also much better. I plan on getting
back into running slowly and gradually building the mileage back.

Pikes Peak Marathon

Sunday August 17, 2008
Woke up at 4:30 a.m. I always like to get up early on race day.
I took a hot shower to wake up. I had a banana and half a bagel
with some peanut butter on it. Drank some Gatorade and water as
well. Gathered all my gear and headed out around 5:45. Drove to
the start line it was about 6/10's of a mile from my hotel.
I could have walked it but the finish line is an additional half
mile down the rode further. It would have been over a mile walk
back to motel after marathon and I figured I would be in no shape
to walk that far. I was right as I will get to later. I got lucky
found a good parking spot near the start. Sat in my car till 6:30.
As I was sitting there I realized I forgot my water bottle that
I was going to carry with me. Too late to go back for it. I got
out of the car and went over to the bag drop and left them my
gear so I would have some dry clothes afterwards. Then I realized
I forgot 2 of my gels in the car. I did not feel like going back to
the car so I did without those 2. I still had 4 with me. I took one
15 minutes before the start. I had 3 left for the run. Normally that
would be fine for me but this is not a 3 hour marathon for me so I
would like to have extra. Standing at the start line I was very
nervous. It was clear sky and you could see the top of Pikes Peak.
It was so far away and it was snow covered. Friday and Saturday it
snowed up on top 2-4 inches. Like this wasn't going to be hard
enough as it was. Not I get to run on snow and ice as well. The
temp. at the start was perfect 50 degrees but I knew that would
change as I climbed up the mountain. The gun went off at 7:00 a.m.
and we were on are way. The first mile is on the street's of Manitou
Springs until you get to Barr Trail. I ran the first mile a little
over 8 minutes. Then as you go to get on the trail it's very steep
and I had to walk up this section so did lots of others. Some would
run but it was using more energy than if you just hike up it. I found
this to be my best option for most of the run up the trail. It was
just to hard to run it in most sections. I was walking faster than
most of the runners that where running it and I wanted to save energy
for above treeline where it was snow covered and cold. Plus I
figured I could save some energy for the descent. Where I could run
the 13 miles down at a fast pace. As you are going up you would have
sections that would be easier than others so I would run when I felt
it was worth the effort and walked the other times. This was not my
strategy going into this race but sometimes you have to make
adjustments and not be stupid and have your ego get in the way. I
thought I would be able to run up the whole way but I didn't know
what thin air would do to me plus running on a treadmill at incline
is nothing like this trail it has rocks, boulders,tree roots, loose
rock and uneven surfaces. At times it was like running up stairs
instead the stairs were rocks. This was my 15Th marathon and I
never had to stop to use restroom but I could not hold it anymore.
I guess I was over hydrated. The weather was fine until I reached
A frame. This is just before you get above treeline. The temperature
then dropped into the low 30's and it started to snow. The last three
miles to the summit are the hardest not because it's the steepest but
because the trail is so rocky and slippery and dangerous. Oh yeah and
not much air either. Made it up to the Summit in 3:18. Not bad
considering I walked most of it. I was probably in around 50th
position out of 800 starters. So now it was time to go down the
mountain and the first 3 miles down was scary. I was slipping and
sliding all over the place and fell twice in those 3 miles. The first
time I slid into a boulder and got a nice bump on my chin. It hurt
but no time for pain I had a race to do. Then about a mile further
down I fell again this time doing the Superman slide face first into
some runners that were on there way up. Luckily no damage just my
pride was hurt this time. So I got up and continued. I was a bit
cautious after that one. I didn't want to go to the ER. Once I got
down below treeline then the rain began and it rained hard. I was
getting soaked and my shoes where getting wet as well. Then it
started thundering and hailing. What's next I thought to myself. I
think I have seen all 4 seasons in one day. I had to relieve myself
again twice in one marathon what's going on? I was running along
and all of a sudden my heel was hurting bad. I thought I had a rock in
my shoe. I continued on but then could not take it anymore. I stopped
took my shoe off and thought where is that rock. Put my shoe back on
and took a few steps and the pain was back again. I did not want to
stop again so I kept running. Now at this point my pace was
slowing every time I landed I was in pain. I dealt with the pain for
a while and stopped again took of the shoe and tried to get rock out
of shoe.Put shoe back on again same thing. I decided to just run and
try to forget about it. I didn't stop again but it was affecting my
running. Runners that I had passed earlier were now flying by me. I
pushed through the pain and finished. This was my goal all along to
finish time was not as important. I would like to have been able to
run the descent faster but what can I do. I did my best that's all that
matters. After crossing the finish line in 5:33:54 73 overall I grabbed
some drink and food. I got my gear and sat down and took off my sock so
I could see what was going on with my heel. Where is that rock I
thought. As it turned out it was not a rock poking me it was a bad
blister It was not pretty. I had a huge blister it covered most of my
heel. I went over to the medical tent to get some help. First time in
15 marathons I needed help afterwards. The guy looked at it and said
he needs to lance the blister. So he grabbed a pair of scissors and
cut it off and then bandaged it up. My other heel hurt as well but the
blister was smaller and not torn open so we left it alone. I guess my
socks got wet and the friction from running downhill caused the problem.
I put body glide on my toes so I would not have problems but didn't
think to put it on my heels. I have never had this happened before.
Lesson learned I guess for next time. I still had the half mile walk
back to my car so I walked on my toes the whole way back to the car.
It took forever to get there. This was a great experience for me and
I will never forget it. As of today I don't know if I will do this one
again. I would say probably not but you never know. I would recommend
this race to others just be prepared it's like nothing else you will
ever do. Today I am still very sore my calves are killing me. My quads
are not that bad though. Heel still sore to walk on. The pain is only
temporary but the memories are forever.

Wednesday - Saturday Colorado visit

I left Green Bay on Wednesday morning and arrived in Colorado
Springs around 1:30 p.m. mountain time. I picked up my rental
car and found a grocery store and picked up a few items for my
stay. My motel had a small fridge and microwave. I then drove
to Manitou Springs only a few miles west of Colorado Springs.
I then checked into my motel. Unpacked a few things and drove
downtown Manitou Springs. This is a very small and tourist town.
So I walked around town for a bit. Found a Mexican restaurant
called The Loop so I decided that would be good for dinner. It
was very good food. I went back to my motel room and relaxed and
watched some Olympics.
Day 2 Thursday August 14, 2008.
Woke up early grabbed some breakfast and headed out. Got on the
Pikes Peak Highway and drove the 19 miles to the summit. This was
quite the experience. I have never driven up a mountain before
and I was a little bit scared. It's not bad the first few miles
but it gets worse the higher you go up plus no guard rails except
in a few spots. I had to be focused on the road and not sight see
too much or I might drive right off. Plus the car a rented was a
economy car with no power. I had to keep shifting to the lower
gears on the steep sections. So after an hour or so I finally made
it to the top. I got out and the temp.was much colder than when I
left the motel. It was in the 40's and windy but nice and sunny
and you could see forever. I took some pictures checked out the gift
shop picked up a few souvenir's. Then I found the Barr Trail and
walked down a bit then back up. This is the trail you run up and
then down in the marathon. The trail head starts in Manitou Springs.
I was finding it hard to breathe on the way back up the trail. The
air is a lot thinner at 14,110'. I went to the car and put on my
Garmin 405 and decided I would time myself one mile down and one
mile back up. Wow that was hard. I could not even run the mile up.
It was steep with rocks and I was having hard time catching my
breath. After the two miles I was tired and breathing harder than
normal. I stuck around for a little longer and decided I would head
back. The drive down was not much easier on my nerves you had to
make sure you did not use the brakes too much or they could
overheat and fail to work. I used the lower gear to keep car from
going too fast and having to apply the brakes. I did a good job. I
stopped at a check point wherethey check the temperature of your
brake pads and mine was 165 degrees that's good. If it's over 300
they make you pullover and wait till they cool off.



I made it down okay and ate some lunch and then drove to the
Garden of the Gods. Below is some pictures. This is neat place
they even have a 10 mile race that runs through here every year.
Lots of trails for walking or hiking.



Afterwards went to Sonic and had dinner. Back to motel to
watch the Olympics and chill.
Day 3 Friday August 15, 2008
Got up drove to Cave of the Winds and did the tour.
Was about a 45 minute tour was good. Pictures below.


Drove to the park where the packet pickup was and got my bib #
and bought a few things at the expo. Then went to a place
called the Cliff Dwellings. This is where the Native Americans
used to live. Some pictures below. Self guided tour.
I drove around some in Colorado Springs then decided to go
back to Manitou Springs and run some on the Barr Trail.
I parked in the lot near the trail head and ran two miles
up then ran two miles down. It felt better than when I tried
running at the summit more oxygen always helps although this
was a very steep section of the trail and my legs felt it
on Saturday. I was a bit concerned if my legs are sore after
4 miles what will 26.2 miles do to them?



Dinner was pasta at the pasta dinner for runners.
Went back to motel and watched more Olympics.
Day 4 Saturday August 16, 2008
Slept in. Cold and raining 50's. Drove around some.
Mostly just hung around the motel. I went to the
pasta dinner again for second time. Talked to a
couple runners at dinner one from Colorado and
the other from Indiana. Both first timers as well.
Went to bed early. Alarm set for 4:30 a.m.

Fox River Trail

5 Miles 36:11 7:14 average
141 average HR
6:00 p.m. Cloudy & Humid
Mile/Pace/HR
1/7:01/136
2/7:17/142
3/7:23/141
4/7:15/144
5/7:11/146
Last run before heading to airport in the morning.
I arrive in Colorado Springs at 1:30 p.m. I will
then rent a car and drive to Manitou Springs. The
weather looks cold actually for the next few days
50's and 60's warming up into the 70's for the
marathon on Sunday. Low 50's at the start. I like
that. I don't care for the heat anyways as far as
running in it. I'm getting nervous but also very
excited about what lays ahead of me. I will not post
again till Tuesday. So to the 3 people that reads this
come back then I will post race recap and pictures.
Later.

Scray Hill

8 Miles 56:12 7:01 average
6:00 p.m. 70's sunny
155 average HR
Mile/Pace/HR
1/6:52/139
2/7:20/155
3/7:46/156
4/7:05/158
5/7:27/158
6/6:26/161
7/6:26/158
8/6:48/159
Did 4 hill repeats on Scray Hill. Felt good.

Fox River Trail

8 miles 56:32 7:04 average
11:00 a.m. sunny nice
150 average HR
Felt tired today. I raced hard yesterday and felt it
today. Less than a week till race day. Next Sunday
morning 7:00 a.m. I leave Wednesday morning. So I will
have a few days to sight see. I'm thinking of visiting
Garden of the Gods, Caves of the Winds, 7 Falls, Olympic
Training Center and of course summit of Pikes Peak. I will
take a bunch of pictures and post some on here.
33 miles for the week yes I'm tapering.

PFC. Ryan Jerabek USMC Memorial Challenge

4 Miles 23:46
3rd overall 1st in age bracket
9:00 a.m. Four Season's Park Hobart WI
Partly Sunny 70's
Mile/Pace/HR
1/5:39/156
2/5:53/165
3/6:11/169
4/5:50/171
This was the 3rd annual run. I have participated in all 3.
The run is a Memorial run for Pfc. Ryan Jerabek and all the
fallen heroes from Northeast Wisconsin. The run is a 4 mile
loop that Ryan would train on to get ready for boot camp.
The run is challenging as it has some good hills on it.
As for the race I was happy with my results. I ran it faster
than the previous 2 years. Mile 3 is the hardest mile you run
up a couple steep hills. Then the last mile is flat. I was
very tired by the finish I looked at my watch and my HR was 174.
That is very high for me. I have only hit 174 one other time.
I believe this is very close to my max HR. So it was a good day
and I saw many of my running buddies and even had some brats and
burgers afterwards.
+ 3 miles for warm up and cool down 7 miles total

West De Pere

8 Miles 53:59 6:45 average
6:00 a.m partly sunny nice
Mile/Pace/HR
1/7:10/129
2/7:05/143
3/7:01/144
4/6:47/147
5/6:44/147
6/6:29/148
7/6:24/152
8/6:16/156
Ran each mile faster as the run went on. Was not the plan
but after 5 miles I realized each mile was getting faster
so I decided to try keep running faster the last 3 miles.
I'm getting excited I leave in less than a week for Colorado.
Race day is less than 10 days away. It's almost here!

UWGB Trail

10 Miles
low 80's sunny
Loop 1 counter clockwise
Mile/Pace/HR
1/7:10/143
2/7:07/154
3/6:59/154
4/7:43/155
4.75/4:21(6:36)156
33:20 152 avg. HR
Loop 2 clockwise
1/6:48/156
2/6:14/165
3/6:44/165
4/6:01/165
4.75/4:44(5:54)168
30:31 163 avg. HR
1/2 mile cool down total of 10
First loop felt okay but not great. I wanted to push the
second loop tonight and see if I could run it faster
than previous times. My best second loop was 31:07.
Tonight was 30:31 36 seconds faster. I was happy with that.
I still think I can break 30:00 at some point. HR was high
on both loops tonight. Especially second loop I was pushing
about as hard as I could go. Good speed work.

Fox River Trail

6 Miles 42:41 7:06 average
146 average HR
83 sunny/windy 2:00 p.m.
Mile/Pace/HR
1/7:04/134
2/7:12/145
3/7:12/147
4/7:01/150
5/7:09/151
6/6:59/154
Good run. Legs felt a bit heavy after yesterday's run.
Was warm and windy.
50 miles for the week.

Pikes Peak ascent time test

13.32 miles 2:35:15
10:00 a.m.
Mile/Incline
0.3/3.2% HR 120
1.25/5.3% HR 137
1.65/16.5% (15%)HR 150
2.8/13.3% HR 153
3.02/12.1%
4.3/12.2% HR 153
5.3/12.0% (61:00 took first break)
5.9/2.5%
7.0/6.6% HR 140
7.6/10.9% HR 148
8.7/11.5% HR 149
9.4/13.3% HR 151
10.2/12.7% (1:55:35 took second break)HR 151
11.3/13.9% HR 147
11.9/15.7% (15%)HR 149
12.2/10.1% HR 150
13.02/10.6% HR 150
13.32/16.1% (15%)(2:35:15) HR 157
The GOOD: I ran slightly faster than 2 weeks ago when I did this.
Last long run on treadmill!!!

The BAD: HR was higher and felt much more tired. Had to walk some
at mile 11.3 to 11.9. I was only running 4.3 mph at the time and
decided to try to walk some so I lowered the speed to 3.8 and
walked for a bit. Kind of good to know that if I get tired on race
day I can walk fairly quick at steep inclines and not lose too much
time and get HR down in the process and recover some. Of course
this is with plenty of air who knows what will happen on the
mountain.Walking and running at altitude will be a whole different
ball game.

Glad this run is over and I am going to start taking it
easy the next 2 weeks. I will still do some higher intensity
workouts but at shorter distances and weekly mileage will decrease.
I am going to take 2 days off next week. I have a 4 mile race on
Saturday so that will be my speed work. Time to go lay down and rest.

Fox River Trail

6 Miles 42:35 7:06 average
6:00 a.m mid 60's and Humid 93%
Mile/Pace/HR
1/7:15/127
2/7:06/148 HR was not working properly
3/7:06/139
4/6:56/144
5/7:07/148
6/7:03/146
Good run even though I was not really awake. Did not
sleep good last night. The movie (ultra marathon man)
last night was very good. I thought they did a good
job with it. Dean is amazing!!!
July 235 miles