Garden of the Gods

5 Miles
3:15 pm)cool upper 60's
Ran with Kim. Kim is from Wisconsin and here for work
a few days. So I figured this would be a nice place to
take her. She really enjoyed the run. I think the
altitude affected her but she did very good.

Manitou Incline & Barr Trail - Colorado Running CO.

4.87 Miles 36:51 7:34 average per mile
6:00 pm) 70's Nice!
Ran with the Colorado Running Company group. Felt good!
Ran easy the first 2 miles then picked up the pace. Ran
with a new guy Paul. He's in the Army nice guy.

b/a10/25

4 Miles 51:24
9:15 am) 70's Warm!
27:19 second fastest time on the incline. It was hot already.
The weather has been very warm here. We have been running way
above normal for some time now. Plus it's dry here. In the last
35 days we have had only 9/100 Th's of an inch. I like the dry
sunny weather so I'm not complaining but it's high fire danger
around here. The weekend looks cooler with chances of some rain.
I hope Sunday is cooler. I have my 50k race up in Lakewood.

Section 16 & Palmer Trail

6.25 Miles 1:01:03
9:00 am) 60's Sunny!
This is a tough run. The first 1.75 miles is climbing. Then
it's a flat to downhill run. It loops back to my car. This
is close to where I live it's only 3.5 miles each way. I will
do this one more.
Finally got internet! I have been using other sources. This
will be much better.

Manitou Incline & Barr Trail

9 Miles? 2:45 Hiked with Lori
9:30 am) 70's Sunny Warm!
Hiked with Lori. I met Lori last week Monday at Waldo Canyon.
We started out going up the Incline then we continued up Barr
Trail for a few more miles then we went back down Barr Trail.
Had a good hike and got to know Lori better. We will probably
do some more hikes in the near future. Nice to have some
company.

Pikes Peak Greenway

9/25/10
10 Miles 1:07:38 6:46 average per mile
5:15 pm) 80 degrees sunny!
Felt good first mile then I felt kind of weak after that.
Mile 5 started to feel real good and let it roll. I was
moving pretty good and felt good. Last mile was hard but
it's hilly the last mile. Did flea market earlier in the
day so surprised to run this well.
42.25 miles for the week. Okay week. I race next Sunday
so no need to do lots of miles.

b/a/20

Uintah

9/23/10
4 Miles 26:48 6:42 average per mile
6:30 pm)
b/a/10

Manitou Incline & Barr Trail

4.25 Miles
10:00 am) Sunny 60's Breezy
1 Mile Incline 28:18. Not very good today. I pushed hard just
didn't have it today. Forgot my music. I think that really
helps me on the incline. Ran down Barr trail didn't feel very
fast either. I think I ran too hard Wednesday night. Still a
great workout no matter the time. I'm thinking I should
probably do the incline 2 times a week. I will wait though till
after my 2 upcoming races.

Colorado Springs Streets

Wednesday 9/23/2010
5 Miles 34:10 6:50 average per mile
5:00 pm) Cloudy, drizzle
Ran some hilly streets near my apartment. Felt good for
the most part. The hills would get me winded but I would
recover quickly on the flats and downs. Finally got a
small amount of rain we sure need it here.

Jack Quinn's Running Group

6 Miles 42:11 7:02 average per mile
5:45 pm) upper 70's
Ran with the Jack Quinn group. Still have not met anyone in this
group. The problem is the group is too large. Felt okay not great.
My breathing was more labored than it should be. I never feel good
on these Tuesday runs for some reason.
b/a10/6

Uinitah & Mesa

6 Miles 40:06 6:41 average per mile
5:10 pm) low 80's cloudy
Wore my new Brooks Launch shoes. I liked them they feel
light and cushioned. I will wear these probably at the
Denver marathon. So my run went very good. I have run
this before but not near this fast. My last 3 miles
were all under 6:20 pace.

B/L/6

Waldo Canyon

7 Miles not sure on the time.
9:45 am) sunny warm 70's
I didn't feel as strong as last weeks run here however I was
running about the same time as last week. I did walk more
but when running I was a bit faster. I was at mile 4.3 when
I saw a lady on the trail and she was waving at me. At first
I thought she was just saying hi. Then I heard her say stop.
I stopped and she explained to me that there was the guy
hiding in the bushes wearing camouflage and that he creeped
her out. She did not feel comfortable getting back to her
car and asked if I would walk with her. I was happy to do
it. I'm more concerned with someones safety than having to
end my run.

Garden of the Gods

9 Miles 1:19:00 8:46 average per mile
8:30 am) 70's Sunny!
Once again I found some new trails today. I'm still finding new
ones here. I have not figured out a route to run yet. I just
jump from one trail to another. I get a little lost sometimes
but I always find my way back.
My pace was not fast today but I find these trails are hard to
run fast. Sometimes I get lost because I can't tell which way
the trail goes. I don't think they are marked that well at times.
Will be working at the flea market again this weekend so don't
look to do many miles.

Bear Creek Lake Park, Lakewood, Colorado

14 Miles 1:54:03 8:09 average per mile
10:15 am) Sunny warm!
Drove 73 miles each way today to get my long run in on a course
I will be racing October 3. Well lets just say it didn't go as
planned. I was looking to do at least 20 miles and up to 25.
Well I had a few problems. First off I lost my map I was carrying
so I never really new if I was actually running any of the race
course. The course has 3 river crossings and I never crossed any
of them. I saw a few areas that might have been the crossing but
decided not to. I figured I would keep my shoes dry.
Second I started too late. I was sweating pretty good at mile 3
already. I knew I was in trouble. I was running in some open
sections and I could feel the sun just draining me.
Third I was dehydrated! I didn't realize how bad I was till mile
12 I had to stop and refill my bottle and I couldn't drink it
fast enough. You wouldn't think in only 12 miles it would be a
factor. Like I said though the sun was draining me and I should
have drank more.
Overall I'm still glad I drove up there. At least I know how to
get there on race morning and I'm pretty sure I ran some of the
course. My biggest mistake was just starting too late. If I
would have started at 8:00 I'm sure it would have been a whole
different run.

Manitou Incline & Barr Trail

5 Miles 58:41
10:00 am) upper 60's Sunny!
I felt better this time doing the incline. I went out a bit
easier for the first part and that seemed to help me get
into a better rhythm. I ended up with my fastest time 26:48
versus 27:32 2 weeks ago. I then ran down Barr Trail. I don't
want to go down all those steps. The trail is much more fun!
Tomorrow I plan on doing my last long run before tapering a
bit for my 50k October 3. I'm going to run it at Bear Creek
Lake Park, Lakewood. This is where the race is so I want to
get familiar with the course.

Red Rock Canyon & Jack Quinn Group Run

5.5 Miles 52:19 9:30 average per mile
Red Rock Canyon
10:00 am)
Ran on some new trails today and actually I started out on
what I thought was a trail but was just a dried up creek bed
I realized this when it came to a sudden stop. I eventually
found some trails and had a fun run. My hip was bothering me
a bit so didn't push pace.

5.60 Miles 38:49 6:56 average per mile
Jack Quinn Group
5:15 pm)
Felt good pushed the pace a bit.

Waldo Canyon

7 Miles 59:05 8:26 average per mile
10:20 am cloudy Nice Day!
Took of this weekend. No running! Saturday was planned and
Sunday I just didn't have the energy. Plus I think I needed
the time off.
Today's run was at Waldo Canyon. I had not run here in two weeks.
So I was looking forward to the run. I had a new strategy today
on the hills and that was small steps and high breathing cadence.
This worked well. Before I would try to take big steps and would
wear out quickly. This way I'm in low gear and can keep going
longer. I still walked briefly a few times but nothing like before.
Here is a comparison just to show my improvements since my first
run here
August 11, 1:08:15
August 28, 1:04:25
August 30, 1:04:39, 1:07:40
September 13, 59:05

Pikes Peak Greenway (South)

17 Miles 2:00:23 7:05 average per mile
8:00 am) 60's sunny
Started at Monument Valley Park and headed south. I felt really
good after the first mile. I always struggle the first mile till
I get into my rhythm. I went out 8.5 miles and headed back. I
felt great until the turnaround. After that every mile just got
slower and slower. Also at mile 10 my hip stated to bug me. It
kind of went away and I forgot about it. The last mile it hurt
again and was much worse. I could hardly run the last half mile.
When I got home I took a couple Aleve. My hip feels much better.
I think it's okay. I'm wondering if it's the shoes. They have
high mileage on them that could be part of the reason. Also I
think my body needs a day off. So tomorrow I will take off.
Here is my splits just to show how bad it was in the second
half of the run versus the first. Not sure why I feel apart so
bad. I didn't feel like I was pushing to hard the first half.

1- 7:10 9- 7:12
2- 6:46 10- 7:04
3- 6:41 11- 7:13
4- 6:47 12- 7:13
5- 6:48 13- 7:12
6- 6:52 14- 7:14
7- 6:56 15- 7:16
8- 7:00 16- 7:25
17- 7:32

Manitou Incline & Barr Trail

4.5 Miles 1:00:13
1 Miles Incline 28:38
9:30 am) mid 60's Sunny!
I didn't feel great today for some reason. I was out of breath
the whole time going up the incline. I was 1:06 slower than last
weeks attempt. Not bad I guess considering how I felt. Plus I
forgot my mp3 player and that probably would have helped.
Then I went down Barr trail and I still felt flat. Oh well not
every run is going to go the way you want.

Colorado Running CO.

4.75 Miles 40:11 8:27 average per mile.
6:00 pm)
Rich and Dale did not show up so I ran with GW. The pace was
slower than I'm used to but sometimes it's good to have a
easy run. GW is a older guy but does some serious amount of
racing. He recently did the double! Pikes Peak Ascent and
the Pikes Peak Marathon. One of the guys that works at the
store was the winner at the American Discovery Trail Marathon
on Monday. He ran an amazing 2:30:32.

Garden of the Gods

7 Miles 1:04:45 9:14 average per mile
10:45 am) 70's Sunny
I ran on some new trails today. I have run here once before.
Great place to run with awesome views. I stopped several
times to look around and take pictures. I still feel like
a tourist. I can't believe I live here!

5.38 Miles 36:47 6:50 average per mile
5:45 pm)
Ran with the Jack Quinn group. Pushed the pace a bit.

Ute Pass Trail

7 Miles 1:11:00
9:30 am) Sunny & Windy
Was going to run at Waldo but the parking lot was full. I decided
to run at Ute Pass trail. Good decision I had the trail all to
myself. First time running this trail and it was difficult. It
starts out with a good amount of climbing. I went out and back
it was easier coming back for sure. My pace was very slow today.
I walked, hiked more than I would have like to.

Pikes Peak Greenway (South)

15 Miles 1:45:24 7:01 average per mile
7:30 am) Sunny! Nice!
Wanted to run longer and flat so no better place than the
Pikes Peak Greenway. I parked at the Monument Valley Park.
This is very close to my apartment less than 2 miles.
I carried 2 water bottles so I would stay hydrated but had
no gels only a fun size fast break that I ate at the half
way point. I felt good for the most part. My legs felt a
bit heavy from the higher mileage this week. Even so I ran
very consistent. My slowest mile was mile one at 7:17 and
my fastest was 6:54 which I hit a few times. I'm very happy
with this run. This is not much slower than I would have
run in Wisconsin. The only thing in Wisconsin 7:01 average
would have felt easier.
65 Miles on the week! This is by far the most I have run
in Colorado.
Picture above are from my balcony at my apartment. The other
picture is from the entrance to my apartments. These deer are
very tame. They have apple trees here and they are eating
them quite often.

Palmer Park

5 Miles 48:18 9:39 average per mile
8:45 am) 70's Sunny!
Plan was to run with the Boulder Running Company group.
I had seen they had Saturday morning runs at 8:00. I
got there early and waited around no one showed up. So
not sure if they still meet there or not. So I decided
I would finally try running at Palmer Park. It took
me a little time to find the park but I found it. It's
actually not far from my apartment maybe 6 miles.
The park has tons of trails. I didn't know where to go
and was afraid of getting lost so kind of stuck around
the area where I parked. I got on some easy trails GREEN
and 1 BLACK trail advanced. They also have BLUE trails
intermediate. I would like to go back and do more
exploring.
So my problem so far is actually to many trails to
explore. I'm used to having like 2 to pick from and that
made it easy. Now I don't no which ones to do. Good
problem to have though. This is such a great place for
running!!!

Gold Camp Road

9 Miles 1:06:42 7:24 average per mile
11:30 am) Sunny! Nice!
So I did some research and found this road. It's a old mining
road that used to be used in the Gold mining days. It was how
people got from Colorado Springs to Cripple Creek. It's now
closed but open to hikers and mountain bikes. The road has a
3-4 % grade not bad at all. I started at around 7500 ft. and
when I turned around at 4.5 miles I was at 8375 ft. Going
back was nice with the slight downhill. I actually ran some
fast miles! My last mile was my fastest and fastest since I
have been here 6:08.
The road has several tunnels. The first tunnel you in counter
is just over a mile from the trail head. The tunnel is gated
so you can't go through. I found the trail just to the left
and went up the trail and over and then back down to the
road and continued on. I was hoping to see tunnel #2 but
after 4.5 miles decided I better turn around. I will try to
go farther next time and hope to see it. I guess tunnel #3
is in bad shape it had a collapse a few years back and is not
safe. This is a great run when you don't feel like doing
lost of technical running and the surface is soft and forgiving.

Manitou Incline & Barr Trail

4 Miles 50:46
10:20 am) 60's Sunny & Windy
1 Mile Incline 27:32 took another 2 minutes off my best!
3 Mile descent Barr Trail 23:14 7:43 average per mile.
So on the incline I pushed hard and never looked at my
watch until I was done. I wanted to go by effort and
not worry about the time. I was pleasantly surprised
by my time. I guess I'm getting in shape.

6 Miles 1:05:46
5:30 pm) sunny cool
Section 16 & Palmer Trail
First time on these trails and they were tough! Especially
the first 2 miles on Section 16. Lots of rocks and steep
climbs. I hiked all of this. Not really my kind of running.
I like to actually run. Once I got past the first 2 miles
there was some awesome single track.

Colorado Running CO.

6 Miles 45:15 7:32 average per mile
6:00 pm) 70's Sunny!
Ran with Dale tonight. Smaller group this week. I would say
about 15. Starting to wonder if I will ever run as fast as
I did in Wisconsin. I have heard from others that you can
expect to run 30 seconds a mile slower here than at sea level
I was talking to a new employee at the Colorado Running Co.
He moved here from Chicago a couple of months ago and he
said he is running about a minute per mile slower than he
did in Chicago. So maybe I'm not doing that bad. I just need
to be patient and I will get there.

Jack Quinn Running Club

Tuesday 8/31/10
5:00 pm) 70's
6 Miles 43:14 7:12 average per mile
2 Loops
22:07
21:07
Felt pretty good but still feeling the effects from Mondays
run. Signed up for a 50k race. It's October 3 in Lakewood
Colorado. It has a few creek/river crossings like 3 per loop.
I have never run thru water so not sure how that will be.
I will do a drop bad with extra shoes. I think I will run
in my light weight New Balance 100 Trail shoes those should
dry quickly.