Wage War On Slow Running

This is my first post on fast running blog. I'm here to log my miles as well as memories about my runs. Today was a speed workout. Our warm up was only .67, and then varsity boys did four 1200m runs at 5k pace with 800m jogs in between. I don't know my pace because I like to include the jogs in my workout, but I'm going to try to start pausing my watch so I know my pace in the hard runs. Ali and I were in the lead for the entire run until Joseph, who is an alumni, passed me on the last lap and stayed ahead for a while, but before the last turn I passed him and led the finish. I felt really good about the run but Ali didn't apparently. Mileage for the workout was 4.54 and our cooldown was 1.01. Our total mileage was 6.23.

Today our coach had us run to Macey's in Orem from the high school. It was a 55 minute run and I actually went out too far because I thought it wasn't time to turn around yet, but my teamate Ali let me know I had gone to far. My run was 8.02 and then we did four strides on the grass which added up to .55. Great run at a reasonably fast pace and 8.57 total.

Tyler told me that my first two FRB posts were too formal, so today I'm going to try to loosen up. 

Our speed workout today was dope. Hit a mile warm up as always and then three mile repeats. Even at the early hour it felt like an oven out on the grass. Happy with the workout, even though the last mile got a bit slower. Splits 5:33, 5:33, and 5:43, in that order, followed by mile cooldown. It was good to have Tyler and the dirty dawg back at practice today, after Tyler went on a wilderness excursion to escape the fame, and the dirty dawg went to high adventure.

PM- Went on a run in the evening with Tyler in the foothills. We started at Battle Creek and ran on the foothills. We got to see an amazing sunset from Molly's, a giant hill we like to run up. The red glow of the sun made it look like a volcano was erupting. It was a nice and cool run at an easy pace. Mileage 4.06.

Quick post today. Ran to Stewart falls, which happens to be one of my favorite ones we do. American Fork cross country was there too, which was fun. The first couple miles were uphill and tough, but I finished just behind Riley and Brady, who is an alumni. I ran up to the falls with Patrick Parker, Mckay Johns, and Carson Clinger, among others. The falls were great and we ran under a few times for some insta-worthy pics. You can see one of them on my account @jared_slyedog. The run down was hecka fast. Highlight was when Riley zoomed down a really steep patch and hung on a tree for survival. We then partook of some otter pops. Mileage 5.54.

Felt great on my sixty minute capillary run today. North on the Murdock canal. I did the first twenty minutes of the run with Justin, who just got back from his mission and is running with the team again, but he had to turn around because he had to be somewhere. We were booking and I went out a bit too fast, so I couldn't keep it on the way back. Because the way back was a bit slower it turned into a 61:17 cap run and I got 9.2 miles. 6:39 was my average pace. Like always on Saturdays, donuts and O.J. courtesy of coach.

This morning Tyler and I woke up at 5 AM to go to the Freedom 10K in Provo for the Fourth. Longest official race I've ever run and it was a success! During about the third mile or so Asa caught up to me and I was able to stay with him for the rest of the race. They played some great tunes that motivated me, including The Final Countdown and Can't Stop The Feeling. At the end of the race Asa and I tried to out kick each other but the 5K "runners" wouldn't get out of our way and we had to weave in and out of some old ladies. His chip time was 37:28.4 and mine was 37:28.5 so props to him for getting the win. It was great to get to talk to so many other runners and enjoy the race adrenaline in the middle of summer.

Practice wasn't good today. Had a late night and my alarm didn't go off so I showed up to practice a half hour late. The speed workout was 6 1000's with a 600 slow lap in between each one. The full workout with warm up and cool down was 7.4 but since I came late I only got 6 miles. I was still sore and pretty tired but tomorrow I'll be ready to go.

I physically could not get out of bed today. Finally did and made it to practice on time but legs were so tired and sore so could barely move them. We decided to run Molly's and ran up the reaper but then the rest of my team decided to run dry canyon instead. I went to Molly's anyway, and I went slow. Not sure the pace because watch is out of memory and won't sync with my computer so I need to get a new watch. Anyway, it was about 6 miles plus strides so like 6.5.

Practice was great today, even though I had another late night. It's "moratorium" week, so we're not supposed to run at the high school so we did our buddy 400's at Anderson Park. Varsity boys did 16, and I'm still without a functioning watch. Afterwards we cooled down and stretched, and the dirty dawg brought his dog Oakley along. Fun times were had by all. With warm up and cool down we hit 7 miles.

PM- I finally got a new running watch! I got a Garmin Forerunner 230 from Runner's Corner because I'd heard good things about it and the price was in the right range. I did a four mile recovery run in the evening to try it out and so far I like it.

I had another tough practice but it's my own fault because I go to sleep too late. We did Molly's and I went slow again. I'm going to start going to bed earlier so I can have better runs. Distance was 6.08.

MEGA UPDATE. I haven't updated my blog in forever so I'm going to be adding a lot to it this evening. On Saturday I went boating with my ward so Tyler and I met at the high school at 6:30 and did our capillary run. We went 9.09 miles at 6:44 and we went just over an hour, my time was 61:10. It was nice to run together and push each other. Tyler has improved as a runner a lot this summer.

On Monday we ran the reaper, and I got my first PR of the summer. I led for most of the road but Riley caught up to me just as we were getting to Battle Creek. I was almost able to catch him but not quite. Riley got a 9:20 and I got a 9:21, which is a PR! My last PR was a 9:27 at the end of last summer. I just gotta say, there's nothing like that run down the reaper after having PR'd. You feel great. With my warm up and cool down I got 6.12 miles total.

Pleasant Grove's Cross Country camp also started on Monday for me, because the captains (Riley, Wade, Nicole, Haley, and I) went up a day early to set things up at Timpanooke. We didn't do a run, but our coach did take us off roading to set the distance markers for the gut run.

Cross Country camp continued on Tuesday. We did a run in the mountains and althought our coach said there wouldn't be many hills, there were many hills. I stubbed my left big toe super hard and it bruised over pretty bad but it was a fine trail run at 7 miles. Later before bed we did a recovery run with the entire team of 1.91 miles so 8.91 in all. 

Before bed I gave a little devotional about overcoming discourgament. It was nothing special but a few things I suggested were:

-Remember why you love running.

-Work with people, not against them. 

-Make running a part of your identity.

-Take satisfaction in each run.

Two more runs on Wednesday for camp. First the GUT RUN, which starts next to the resevior and goes up the mountain. I didn't do as well as I would have hoped and a few of my teammates passed me but I ran 8.54 miles at 8:41 pace with a time of 74:09. We did another recovery at night for 1.64 miles, so 10.18 total. Tyler, Mat, Brian and I had some plans to do a night run but it was freezing outside and we all fell asleep before it went down.

Thursday was the last day of Cross Country camp, and we did our yearly RELAYS. I always look forward to these. This year I was on a team with Brian Schulz, Tyler Barry, Ben, Paige, and Michaela. We did a .76 warm up and then we each did four laps during the relay. They were supposed to be 800's, but they were a bit short so total distance for the four laps was 1.33. Our team fought bravely but we took second to Tyler's team, who also had Harambe on it. I did a .75 cool down and before I knew it camp was over. I don't know if anyone actually reads this but if you are and you went to camp this year, thanks! It was great. Tyler and I went to El Azteca with his dad because it's a three year tradition, and because it's pretty good.

PM- Not really about running at all but I hung out with some of the LP guys and Connor at Josh Ericksen's party. Birthday shout out to Jeriksen, hope 16 treats you well.

On Friday it was back to running in PG. We did a field trip to Huggard's farm and drank from the spring. I was tired and it was tough, but I hit 8.83 miles at 6:48 pace so I'm still happy with the run. The time was 60:05.

Today was the first double digit workout of the summer! We did a 70 minute cap run and I  ran most of the run with Riley and Reed. Riley and I ran ahead near the end and eventually Riley passed me (common theme on this blog) but I ran 10.51 at a 6:41 pace over the 70:17 time.

PM- I wanted to hit 50 miles this week and so I did a 3.25 mile recovery run to hit it. I ran through my neighborhood and down to the start of AF's grinder, then looped back to my house. With 13.76 total today I hit 50.64 for the week. 

PG is doing a program this summer called the ham challenge, and mine is going well. The requirements are a) attend 22 of the 24 practices held over four weeks of the summer b) run four reapers c) run four cap runs d) set a goal with coach and make progress on that goal. Today was my 18th day and it doesn't look like I'll miss any of my days, except for the day I did Freedom Run but there was no practice on that day and my coach counts it.

On Monday we ran the reaper, as always. I did a 2.13 warm-up, then ran the 1.3 miles up the hill. I ran a 9:30, so not a personal record but still a solid time. I finished first on the team, only behind Brady who is an alumni. My run down the reaper and cool down totaled 2.66.

My coach is running a small clinic for young runners and I helped out with it, getting in a slow 1.75 miles. My total for the day was 7.84.

Not the best run today. I think I ate too much junk food much yesterday and I didn't sleep enough. I ran 8.78 miles at a pace of 7:09, with time 62:48. We did strides and that added .51, so total mileage 9.29.

PM- We had our first afternoon practice at 5. We did a mile warmup, and did six exercises with five fast 400s in between, then a mile coo down. We also did an ice bath after. I afternoon workout mileage including the excercises (200m each) was 3.99.

Today we did a speed workout. Mile warmup and then 5 800s with 3-minute rests in between, followed by a 1200 jog, and then 5 more 800s with 3-minute rests in between. With my cool down it was 8.03.

I also helped with the clinic again, which was honestly tough because only 4 people came and it was very slow. It was suppose to be 3 miles but I stuck in the back and made it 1.87 before my coach picked us up.

PM- I saw Casey and Carson Clinger doing a recovery in the evening, and then I saw Tyler doing one as well, so, not to be outdone, I ran four miles to Manila pond and back. I listened to the album Wilder Mind by Mumford & Sons, which is an incredible album by the way.

This morning we did a 65 minute and we went to Molly's, but passed the hill instead of going up it. It was tough honestly but I got 8.53 in 70:30. My run was a bit longer because I got lost on the way back and the way back was pretty slow. Pace was only 8:16 per mile.

Our second practice today was buddy 400's. It was blazing hot as usual but we still got several people to come. Mile warmup and then we each did 8 400's. Reed was my partner and we finished about the same as Riley and Matt. My distance was 2.1 miles and my pace was 5:08. We did a mile cooldown so 4.1 for afternoon practice.

Great speed workout today. 1.09 warmup, then we did 5 minutes of our 5K pace, 5 minute jog, all the way down to 1 minute of our 5K pace and 1 minute jog. It was good but my stomach felt gross again so I need to try to eat an earlier dinner and healthier food. Some of the guys passed me at the end. My watch got a little messed up because I think I stopped it accidentally but Tyler thinks we went 4.75. We did a cool down back to the high school which was 2.51 so total distance was 8.35.

75-minute capillary run today, the longest of the summer so far. I started out with Reed but he eventually got ahead of me. I went a little longer than 37:30 out so I could hit 5.5 miles, and I was worried I went out too fast, but I decided I had it in me to speed up on the last 3 miles and my run lasted 75:13, so just a tad over. I ran at an average pace of 6:49 per mile and hit 11.04 miles.

Today was the last day of my ham challenge. I went to every day of practice but one for 24 days, because we had no practice on that day and I did the freedom run. I'm proud of that, and also that I've been pushing the pace. Can't wait to keep pushing for the rest of the summer and into the season!

PM- Did a recovery run because you have to when you do a hard run like I did in the morning. 4.01 miles.

Monday was the Temple to Temple run. I drove up with Tyler, Nicole, Riley, Ali, and Jackson, and we warmed up 1.56. The first mile is completely downhill, so we hauled down. I ran a 4:54 first mile. The second mile I ran a 5:39 and then for the last .93 I ran a 5:17, so the course was 2.93. It was a really fun race and after the first mile I didn't push super hard, but I did try to go fast. We mingled for a while with other runners then did a longer cooldown, 3.56. Afterwards Tyler and I hit up McDonald's for some post race fuel.

AM- We did a 60 minute run south on the canal. Tyler, Ali, and I went out fast and initially we said we were only doing 8 because we had afternoon practice, but I got ahead of them on the way back and decided to do the full workout. I hit 9.22 miles in exactly 60 minutes. We did strides after so another .51

PM- We did 400's, 200 jog then 200 fast. 1.1 miles warmup and the workout was probably about 2.1 but I messed it up on my watch. I was able to take 1st on the team. 1.04 cooldown.

Speed workout. 1.12 warmup, then 8 1200's with 3-minute rests in between. It was hard but good. The sprinklers were going off on the grass by the rec and so the grass was all wet. I slipped twice on it and Brady, who I tried to stay with but passed at the end, slipped once as well. I may have let out a sketchy word or two. But, 1st on the team to finish the 5.19 mile workout, and at an average pace of 5:36. 1.04 cooldown. 

Distance run! Our coach couldn't be at practice so captains ran it. It was 60 minutes and we did the dry canyon run. Tyler, Ali, Texas, Preston, Jesiah and I ran up the reaper but a lot of the boys drove up it because they couldn't take the heat. I'm pretty sure I didn't make it to Dry Canyon and I got lost on the way back and took the wrong trail, but I extended the run a little past the high school and hit 7.04 in 62:31. We also did strides so .52.

PM- It was scorching outside for two a days. Mile warm up and the workout coach gave us was 5 400's with 200 meter excercises in between. I ran with Tyler and Matt on the track and Tyler and I did 6 of them to make the workout 2 miles. I was way tired but they were decently  fast, and Tyler and I both hit a 65-second for the last one, which was sweet. Mile cool down and called it a day. 

Butterfly speed workout this morning. After a mile warm up we hit 1200, 1000, 800, 400, 800, 1000, and 1200 with 3-minute standing rests in between. It was tough but only Tyler was ahead of me from the team so props to him. Avg. pace of 5:27 and distance 3.95. Mile cooldown. 

Crazy day! Short version: we were supposed to run an aid station for the Timp half, but Tyler, Riley, and I did our 80-minute run early instead. We went 11 miles in the 75 minutes we ran, and then a short .28 cooldown back to our cars. Our coach wasn't happy we didn't help with the aid station, but hey, what are you gonna do?We then treated ourselves to some chocolate milk from wal-Matt and daylight donuts, got Tyler's car jumped after it died, and had a swim at our coach's house.

I broke 9 on the reaper today! Very happy to report an 8:59.58, as timed by my coach. After our warm up we were off and I started with Tyler, eventually moving up and catching Brady at the end. I know he wasn't going 100 percent but still happy about that. It was a great reaper and I'm really happy with my improvement. We then did our cooldown, stretched and did abs.

Great distance run today with my boys Tyler and Ali. The 60 minute run got off to a really fast start. We had a couple of guys who haven't been to practice a lot and we're trying to stay with us, and I guess we just wanted to get ahead of them. We ran to Lindon and down Geneva road towards Utah lake. We went out thirty and and the run ended up lasting 62:16, with a distance of 9.39, pace of 6:38 per mile.I finished with Ali and then we did strides. I did 5 so I could hit 10 miles, and my total distance for the day was 10.05.

Just want to give one more shoutout to Connor who leaves on his mission on Wednesday. I'll miss you dude!

Speed workout! Mile warm up and then a pretty complicated workout: 800 fast, 200 jog, 600 fast, 400 jog, 400 fast, then a mile rest followed by a two minute standing rest, then the same distances again with the same rest and the distances again. Then mile cooldown. It was hard but a great run and I was able to finish 1st on the team.

This morning we did a 60-minute distance run. We ran out to discovery and then farther out, turning around near AF hospital. We discussed on the run whether Marilyn Monroe is still alive or not. I asked Nicole as I passed by and she didn't know. I hit 9.04 on the run for a 6:38 avg. pace. We then did strides, another .52.

PM- Mile warm up and four buddy 800's. Brady was gonna be my buddy but he swapped me out for Aspen. Can't blame him. I ran with Matt and we had a bit of a competiton going with Ali and Tyler. I was able to catch Tyler on a couple laps but in the end he and Ali beat us. Props. Mile cooldown, and total mileage for the day was 13.69. 

On Friday we did a warm up run to discovery park, and then did mile repeats there. Boys and varsity girls did 3 and I believe job girls did 2. It wasn't my best workout and I felt kind of tired but my splits were 5:35, 5:34, and 5:27. We then cooled down back to the high school and our total distance was 8.13.

Today was an 85-minute capillary run. It was definitely tough, but the boys and I hit it head on. We went north on the canal and ran 42:30 out, turning around near Lone Peak. Ali, Tyler, and I essentially stayed together the entire length of the run. We got back early so we finished on he track, and I hit 12.68 at 85 minutes, with a 6:42 average pace. We strechted and had some donuts.

PM- Today I bought some new running shoes at Utah Run, the Saucony Kinvara 7's. I did a 4.09 recovery in the evening with them. I could really feel the extra padding, especially at the end of the run. Hopefully they'll be a good pair.

Reaper today. We did our regular warm-up and then started. I ran a 9:04 and was able to stay in front for most of the run. I finished first as well. A few seconds slower than last week but still very happy with my time. Regular cool down followed by stretching and abs.

Finally back on my running blog! I spent most of this past week at an art camp at BYU and was finally back at practice on Saturday morning. Saturday was a 90-minute capillary run, our longest cap run of the summer. I was worried I wouldn't be able to keep up as well as usual after missing but it was a solid run. I stayed with the guys in front for the entire way out, fell back a bit on the way back a few times, but was able to catch up. Riley, Brady, and I finished on the track together. I stopped at 90 minutes but then went a little bit further to hit 14 miles. The run was 14.01 in 1:30:21 with an average pace of 6:27.

Reaper today! It was pretty good but Brady is back at SUU and Tyler was late, so I didn't have much competiton to push me. I ran a 9:08, so not as good as the past two weeks but still solid. I finished first on the team. With warm-up and cool down mileage was 6.12. Stretched, abs, wall-sits, and shin splint excercises. We had a debate during wall sits whether we could hit faster reapers if we did less of a warm-up. We'll have to test that out one of these days.

Our new varsity uniforms came today and they are sick! After we got ours Tyler, Riley, Brian, and I delivered the other uniforms to our teammates.. It was super fun to deliver them all and it hyped me for racing season a ton!

Tuesday's run was a 60-minute distance run. We ran to discovery park and then made it all the way to AF. There were some arguments on the run but it happens. I back with Riley and eventually others caught up to us. We hit 9.62 and then we did four strideouts for another .52. Kneaders afterwards with Nicole, Mia, Melanie, Tyler, Matt, and Ali. We also saw Preston there. It was a good time.

PM- Speed workout at 5 was 8 buddy 400's. Tyler was my buddy and we were in close competition with Reed and Matt for the entire race. We all pushed each other and thanks to Tyler's hustle we pulled out the win. Regular warm up and cool down and afternoon total was 4.15. 

Wednesday was a speed workout. Mile warmup and then we ran 8 800 repeats. For the first 200 on each we ran a 3-mile pace then sped up to a 1-mile pace for the second, then back to 3-mile pace and then to 1-Mile pace. We had a 400 jog rest in between the all of the first four repeats, a 5-minute standing rest in between the fourth and fifth repeat, then the jog rest in between the last four with a mile cooldown. It was a great speed workout, and I spent most of it running with Tyler, Ali, and Reed. Riley wasn't there because his knee was hurting. I was able to finish first but lots of people on the team did well in the workout.

60-minute run Thursday. We didn't go as fast as usual because the time trial is coming up, but still a good run. We ran to Timpanogos High School and on the way back Riley's knee started to hurt. He told us to tell coach he would be back a little late and then we heard a cry of pain, but we still ran back. We finished the run, did strides, strechted, and we're getting ready to do weights when we realized Riley wasn't back yet. Tyler, Matt, Brian, and I hopped into Brian's Bronco and went to look for Riley. We found him on the east side of Valley View, living off of some grapes he found on Tanner's Trail. That was pretty funny. 

Tomorrow is the time trial, so we did an easy 40-minute run this morning. I ran with Tyler, Matt Morrison and Reed. We had some good discussions, some related to running and some not. We hit 5.29 then did three 200m strideouts where we got faster each one. Reed invited us over for waffles after, and they were delicious. We also watched a Harambe tribute video there that Ali and Brayjo found.

Saturday was our time trial. The varsity hopefuls all took it pretty seriously and we treated it like a real race day. We warmed up 1.6 reviewing the course at Manila pond, drained our legs, and then raced two miles. The girls went first, and then the guys. Tyler started out fast and I stayed with him for a while, but eventually Riley passed us both and I sped up to keep up with him. He got a bit ahead of me, but by the end of the race I was able to get super close and I ended up taking second by one second, as timed by my coach. He got a 10:32 and I got a 10:33. Tyler took third, Brian took fourth, and Ali took fifth. Tyler got 10:47 and Brian and Ali were super close, both with a 10:57. Looking over last years time trial we realized that eight guys on our team this year performed better than the top runner, Riley, did last year, which was encouraging. Very proud of all my boys and the girls did well also. Did a cooldown and then Brian, Riley, and I swam in Manila pond and Riley tried to catch ducks. Then we cooled down further to get back to coach's, ate breakfast, and swam in his pool. The time trial made me super pumped for XC season and I can't wait for Grass Relays. I'm ready. 

Well, summer is officially over and we had our first after school practice. It was 800m relays, with varsity boys doing 6. My team was Matt Morrison, Ali, Brayjo and I, and there were three varsity boys teams and three varsity girls teams. Coach had two girls teams and us run one direction on the grass 800 loop, and two boys teams run the other direction on the 800 loop. We waited until everyone had finished each time to start a new race, and switched direction each time. It was hard running with no guys to push me, but my AP for the six 800's was 5:14 per mile. After coach told us he did the speed workout that way because sometimes in races we may not know exactly where the people we need to beat are. We cooled down (with an unexpected trust catch or two), stretched and did abs.

AM- First morning run today! The first of many great morning runs I'm sure. We met at 6:30 and did about 3 slow miles. I think we did the loop.

PM- We ran 60 minutes. It was our first afternoon distance run and it was tough. I started fast with Riley but slowed up at the end. I got 8.75 in the 60. Stretched afterwards.

AM- Second great morning run. I think we did Apple Grove.

PM- Speed workout. Mile warm-up as usual. First we did 200m of each of our excercises (high knees, butt kickers, bounders, skips, and backwards high knees) and then we did 30 30's. It was hot but we got through it. I got 2.53 in the 16 minutes. Mile cooldown, stretched and did abs.

AM- Third inspirational morning run. We went south, but the run sure didn't.

PM- Ty and I decided to run with Lone Peak today after Steven Boggis invited Tyler to. Got to see some great friends like Zac, Josh, Seth, Craik and others. We ran to PG and passed my house and Tyler's, then went back. We got 8.9 miles in at a reasonably good pace of 7:11. We also got drinks at American Heritage which was kind of funny. Once in a while it's really fun to go on a run with another team.

AM- Morning run to Lindon Park.

PM- We had an easy afternoon workout because of our race the following day. We did 3.9 miles at a slow pace, then three 200's: slow, medium, and fast. 

Saturday was Grass Relays at Westlake high school. It was a great experience, a pretty good race for me, and a good confidence booster for my cross country season. We took the bus to Westlake, jogged the course, and then races began. I warmed up with Tyler about an hour before and then I had the opportunity to run the first leg of our five-man relay team. It was about 11 when boys varsity started. I ran a 10:36 as timed by my coach, finished my leg in 11th place and handed off to Tyler. We did the best we could and we finished twelth at the meet. Brian, Ali, and Riley raced next and we didn't all have the best races ever, but I'm still proud of all of the guys and it was a good day for PG. We definitely did a lot better than last year which is very encouraging. I was also glad I got to see Zac, Josh, and Seth from Lone Peak, Casey, Carson, Patch and Mckay from American Fork, as well as other friends there. Overall it was a good way to kick off the season.

AM- 3-mile morning run for recovery.

PM- Monday was the day before Pre-Region so we did an easier run. 3.8 miles at 7:46 pace. Then we did 3 200's for another .38.

AM- 3.04 morning run.

PM- Pre-Region race at Westlake high school. We got there and warmed up 1.44. We all raced together. It was late at night and I was a bit tired but I was hyped to race and determined to do well. It was a hard, tiring race but I was able to go pretty fast. My first mile was too fast with a 5:07, then I dropped down to a 5:31, and then I picked it up to a 5:21. I need to work on not going too fast that first mile and that will help me be better. Once we were on the track I started speeding up and got hyped enough to pass Tyler. He did a really good job and passed the finish line right after me. I got an official time of 16:02 and he got a 16:04. I was out of it after the race but the varsity was wall super happy and pumped about the race. My previous best 3-mile was a 17:06 at region last year so I PR'd by a ton and was super happy about that. It was a great race. We cooled 1.41 and the a few of the AF girls passed us so that was cool.

AM- 2.55 morning run.

PM- Mile warmup, then we did buddy 800's. It was hard because we had just had a race the day before, but we got through it. I was with Tyler and we came in second to Riley and Reed. I got 3.9 miles. Mile cooldown.

No Thursday morning run for me because I went to the Coldplay concert in Salt Lake Wednesday night, which was amazing. The afternoon workout was hard, because I was tired, and I went out to fast so I came back slow. I ran 8.58 miles and went over 60 minutes to 67:09. That's alright though, we all have a few off runs. I did four strides after. 

AM- 3.02 morning run.

PM- Chill run the day before a race. We ran with the girls to Macey's. Walked in without a shirt and nobody minded. 4.08 at 8:22 pace with three 200's on the track.

Today was race day at BYU! We got there and jogged the course. The weather was nice for a lot of the morning but there was a freak rainstorm and it rained super hard for a minute. We warmed up, drained our legs, and then the race began! I was nervous before because I felt tired and a little tight, but I was able to race pretty well. It was a harder course than Pre-Region and there were hills, which was tough but we made it through. Tyler started out fast and eventually I got a head. On my third lap I was running down the hill from the baseball diamond and I fell. I got back up as quick as I could and tried to stay at a good pace. While we were nearing the track Riley passed me and was able to beat me but I took 2nd for PG and 24th overall. I got a shirt which was sweet, and so did Riley and Tyler. PG Varsity boys took 6th overall so good day for the team. Next stop Soldier Hollow!

It was Labor Day on Monday so we had morning practice at 7:30 which was nice. We were supposed to go 30 minutes so we went towards Timp and went 4.23 miles at 6:45 pace. We went 28:31 for our time. We played ultimate frisbee after and my team got crushed but it was still a good time.

AM- 3-mile morning run.

PM- 60 minute run to Orem macey's. It was hot and it was a tough run, but I was still able to go pretty fast. 8.44 miles at 7:07 pace. 4 strides for another .56 after. 

AM- 2.9 morning run. We went south on the canal.

PM- Ed Eyestone speed workout. Mile warm-up, then race pace 1200, jog 1200, same for 1000, 800, 400. Mile cooldown. It was hard but we pushed through it. Varsity boys chatted after about racing and other stuff. 9.24 total for the day.

AM- 2.57 morning run.

PM- 5.01 miles. We ran towards Timp. 4 strides for another .5.

AM- 3.03 morning run.

PM- 3.15 run south on the canal. We ran in a big group which was fun. Slower pace because it was the day before a run. 3 200's after.

Race day at Soldier Hollow. It was a fun drive up and the scenery was incredible with fall colors. I love Soldier Hollow and it was a super fun environment. We did a mile warm-up. I wasn't sure what shoes to wear but I ended up going with a pair of Nike Rival XC's that were a bit small for me because I didn't want to ruin my Victory XC 3's. I didn't put spikes in them because of the pavement at the beginning. The race was tough because there were a ton of hills, but I did pretty well. At first Tyler was ahead on the team and after a while I passed him. Then Riley passed and towards the end of the race Tyler and I were neck and neck until he finally got ahead of me. I usually can surge at the end of a race pretty well but the end of the race was tough for me this time around, even with it being downhill. I got 22nd and barely missed getting a medal, but that's alright. I'm happy with the race and had a good time. Shoutout to Carson Clinger for getting 4th, and Mckay Johns for taking 1st. There are other friends who did really well but I'm not sure their placements. Next stop Viking Invite!

On Monday we did a 2.78 morning recovery run.

PM-5.02 miles. I decided to only go 5 miles because I was feeling sick to my stomach. Still an okay practice and had some good conversation afterwards.

Took a sick day on Tuesday and didn't go to morning or afternoon practice. On Wednesday morning we did a 2.58 morning run.

PM- For afternoon practice we ran out to the freeway entrance. It was a slower run to me and I got sick on the run. AF actually passed right after I got sick too so that was fun. 5.84 miles. 

AM-3.01 morning run.

PM- We did a speed workout in the afternoon, a butterfly. We did fast 1200, jog 1200, fast 1000, jog 1000, then the same with 800s, and back up to 1200s. It was reasonably fast for me but not the best because I was still in recovery. Still, felt good to have a pretty fast speed workout at some point in the week.

AM-2.76 Morning Run.

PM- Easier run because of the meet the following morning. I felt okay, but I was still recovering. 3.82 miles. We did 3 200's on the track, one slow, one medium, one sprint. 

Saturday was the Viking Invite! I got to the high school a little after 8. I shaved my legs the night before as a joke, and I got some pretty varied reactions. Mat and Tyler liked it, Ali and Riley didn't care for it as much, and there were a lot of suprised reactions. We warmed up, drained our legs, and got ready for the race. I hadn't had very good workouts in the week leading up to the race, and I was still fairly sick with a sore throat, but I still tried to approach the race with confidence. Unfortunatley, it wasn't the best race. I ran a 17:00 and got 36th place. I should have run a lot faster but after being sick I just had to accept how it went and move on. I still ran 41 seconds faster than last year's Viking Invite and 6 seconds faster than at Region last year, which was at Pleasant Grove as well, so that is something I can be happy about. Even though I didn't do as well in the race as I wanted, it was a fun day and I was able to see a lot of friends at the meet. Congrats to Casey for winning, and to Riley and Tyler for doing well for our team, and Zack and the rest of the Lone Peak guys for doing really well.

AM- Great morning run this morning. Had some frosted flakes after so that was nice.

PM- Had a solid afternoon workout. Ran a little farther than Oak Canyon Jr. and hit 6.03 miles at 6:30 average pace. At the end of the run I decided to speed up to catch up to Riley, and we made it back to the high school at the same time. He went farther though. Tyler, Brian, and I did strides on the track, then streched and did some weights in the weight room.

AM- Apple grove for the morning run. Maybe the most enjoyable morning run of he year so far. We played the alphabet game which is fun. 2.56.

PM- Speed workout was 8 800's. There was a freshman football game so we did the last two on the track because the crowds were getting kind of crazy. AP for the 800's was 5:17. We had 3 minutes standing rest in between. Also had a mile warm up and a little more than a mile cooldown. 

AM- Morning run south on the canal. It started as just Brian, Tyler and I but eventually more showed up. 2.94.

PM- Shorter run today but still went reasonably fast. We had 40 minutes and I got 5.58 miles in to discovery park and past. 7:12 Ap. 4 strides on the track after.

AM- Morning run, went north. It was raining so that was fun. 3 miles.

PM- 30 minutes run because of the race tomorrow. 3.84 at 7:49 pace. 3 200's after: slow, medium, fast. Tomorrow we race at Nebo! Excited for the race and hope that the team and myself can race to our highest potential.

AM- 2.43 morning recovery run. 

PM- Nebo Invite. The varsity boys team decided to wear white button down shirts, ties, and short shorts to school so that was really funny. In my first class I sat by Riley and Matt so at least I didn't have to wear that alone. It rained all day, and we left in the afternoon for Salem hills. It was cold and windy with on and off showers the entire time but it was a really fun time with the team. Finally we warmed up, drained our legs, and went to the start. We thought it was about to start so we took off our warmups but they didnt start it for a long time after we got down there.

It was a hard race to start because there were hundreds of runners and there was a massive clump. I wish I would have gone out faster and not gotten caught in the clump but that's just how it went and the first half mile or so was slower than I would have liked. A couple guys fell right in front of me but I was able to hop over them. I felt a lot better in this race than Viking Invite, but my throat was still a little sore and I know I can go a lot faster. I ran a 16:58 and measured it as 3.13. There was a lot of mud and some dips in the course but I actually enjoyed the course. I finished 3rd for PG, which I am happy about, but I know that at region I'm going to have to step it up and stay with my teammates Tyler and Riley. We had a fun cool down and stole a sign that says Sat. from 9:00-4:00 and Brian kept it. Later I got some Costa with some of my friends on the team so that was also a good time.

Saturday was a super fun practice. It was still super rainy and overcast, which I love. We gathered at coach's room and then we did a 3-mile slow recovery run to Kneaders. It was a super fun run and coach knows the owner of Kneaders so we all got french toast, which was awesome. I ate 5 slices. We had people get the vehicles and then we all got rides back because it was so cold. Even though it wasn't super challenging, one of my favorite practices in a while.

AM- 3.24 morning recovery run.

PM- Tyler and I both skipped fourth period and did our workout early because we were leaving early for the Mumford & Sons concert at Usana. We did a mile warmup, then we hit 8 400 meter hill repeats. One of Mr. Van Dijk's classes was wandering through the field and were watchin us, but we didn't care. I'm pretty happy with how fast they were, my splits for the eight were 1:21, 1:22, 1:28, 1:22, 1:27, 1:25, 1:31, 1:28. We jogged down the hill after each hill repeat as well. I finished a little farther to four miles and then we did a mile cooldown.

On a sidenote, the Mumford & Sons concert was awesome. Fun to be there with Tyler, Clain, Matt, Riley, Casey, Patch, and Mckay. I also heard Seth from LP was there so shoutout to him. They're one of the best bands out there my my opinion.

I didn't go to the morning run because I got back so late from the concert. Casey said he wasn't going to his, and if the national champion can skip one morning run, so can I.

PM- We had a 50 minute run but I only went 45:50. We ran past Lindon park out to home depot and it was a decent workout considering I didn't get enough sleep. 6:42 per mile for a 6.85 mile run. Strides after added another .5.

AM- 3 mile morning recovery run.

PM- Speed workout, 6 800's with a 200 meter kick. Mile warmup and cooldown. I forgot my watch so I didn't get any splits or pace information but they felt pretty fast and I was able to keep up with my teammates pretty well. 

Missed the morning run again because I needed more sleep. I need to work harder on my homework so I can go to bed earlier and be more commited to morning runs.

PM - 30 minute distance run because we ran the state course the next day. We ran to discovery park and as I was running down canyon road I was approaching an opening in a fence that was a driveway, and right as I crossed it a big white truck was driving out. I hadn't seen it and he hadn't seen me, and I almost got hit. It was a close call. Apparently Riley slammed into the side of his truck too. Anyway, no harm no foul. We stopped at discovery park and turned around and we ended up getting 4.42 miles at 6:47 pace. We did 3 200's after at slow, medium, and sprint pace, adding another .38.

AM- 3.04 morning recovery run, I believe to lindon park.

PM- After grabbing some Pizza with Ty and his dad we got on the bus and rode out to sugar house park to run the state course. We jogged it first, tried some strategies out to throw other runners off, threw some dingers, and then we put our spikes on and ran it. Our coach didn't want us to go full race pace, but he wanted us to hit about 6 minute miles. I didn't go all out and I was still going on less sleep than I needed, but I ran the 3.02 miles in 18:05, so 5:59 average pace per mile. It was a fun and challenging course to run. We went to chick-fil-a afterwards and then had a fun bus ride home with some good music provided by Matt and some others. Running the state course helped me get hyped, if I could get more hyped, to run super fast at region and place well. I know that I need to get more sleep this week so I'm going to make that a priority. 

Speed workout on a saturday. The sunrise was incredible this morning. We did a mile warmup, then did kick simulations. We did 9 400 meter runs that started off the track before the fence near the 300 meter mark and ended at the 200 meter mark on the track. In the first three we kicked 300 m, the second three we kicked 200 m, and in the third three we kicked 150 m. It was a good workout even though I kicked too early on one of them and when I realized it it messed me up a bit, and a few of us started early on one. It was really helpful to practice kicking because that's going to be a really important thing for region so I can place well. I think my distance for the workout was about 2.31 because I left my watch running to long and had to subtract the last section. We did a mile cooldown after and had some donuts.

AM- 2.3 morning run.

PM- 45 minute run towards Timapnogos. I ran out 22:30 and finished on the canal, then back and got 6.51 miles in. Average pace 6:55 per mile. Four strides on the track for another half mile.

AM- Morning run to Apple grove.

PM- Speed workout. Mile warmup, then four buddy 800's. Ty was my buddy. Wanted to hit half of a 5:15 each 800 and was able to. My laps got messed up but my ap was 5:05. Then we did some more sprint stuff on the track, which felt good. Mile cooldown. Also mildly weirded out that my total mileage for the day was 6.66.

3-Mile morning run. Afternoon workout was a 40 minute run and we ran to discovery park. I got 5.32 in at 7:31 pace. Stretched after.

AM- Went south on the canal for the morning run. 2.88 miles.

PM- 25 minute run because of our race tomorrow. I just ran 3.02 in 22:03. 3 200's after at slow, medium, then sprint pace.

Tomorrow's a big day. I'm proud of PG and can't wait to race. Let's kill it tomorrow!

AM- Morning run to Lindon park. 3.02 miles.

PM - Friday was Region Championships. The big day finally arrived. Our bus was late but we got to Westlake several hours before the boys varisty race. I talked to some friends from other teams, listened to music, and got ready. I was nervous but I think everyone was. Finally we warmed up, drained our legs, and headed over to the start line. I started the race really fast, I think because I was nervous. At first I was trying to stay close to Tyler because I know we're close pace wise. I was struggling a bit on the second mile but I was close behind Tyler and he told me to go so somewhere I found the energy to pick it up. I then focused on catching a Lone Peak runner (thought it was Craik but not sure) and I eventually passed him. I then found a pack of maroon Herriman runners to try and pick off and I gradually gained on them. By this point I was getting close to the track. By the time we made it to the track I was dying of exhaustion but I was very focused, and I was able to pass the pack of Herriman runners. I was still weary of them passing me back but my kick was strong enough that I kept the lead on them and finished at 16:19 and in 26th place. Cool down after.

I'm happy with my race. Part of me wished they had kept the same 2.92 course as Pre-Region so I could have gotten another PR but that's not a big deal. I wish I could have been faster but I honestly feel that I gave it everything I had and chose to go as fast as I could. My first mile was quite fast, and it could have been slower to conserve energy, but I was nervous and I didn't want to fall behind so it was faster than I planned. In the end, we didn't get to state like we wanted. I wish we would have passed a few more people and I think that the other boys varisty guys Riley, Tyler, Reed, Ali, Mat, and Brian worked incredibly hard and really deserved state, but in the end we took sixth in the region. It's a bummer. But I'm still happy because I know we gave it our best shot. We were commmited, we came to practice and did the workouts, we made it a big part of our lives, and we didn't just show up like some people have in the past. Now we'll always have this time on our lives to look back on. Riley made it to state as an individual, and our girls team took 3rd, making state for the first time in ten years so that was awesome for them.

Well, official Cross Country season racing for me is over. We still have Pre-Footlocker, Footlocker, and potentially the open race at Arizona NXR but those aren't really part of the season. It's unbeleiveable how fast it went by. It was stressful but it was worth every minute and it was a great senior season. My times were all a lot faster than last season as well. So, now I'm looking forward to the additional 3-mile races I have coming up with the team and doing the best I can in those.

Saturday was a quick recovery run from region. The entire team ran the Lindon loop together, 3.26 miles at a slow recovery pace. I doorbell ditched Brian's house and we had donuts after.

3.03 morning run at a faster pace than usual, 7:36. In the afternoon we had a speed workout, so we did a mile warm-up and then 8 hill repeats. Mile cooldown after. 

Faster 3.51 morning run because I went to ACT prep instead of practice. 7:24 pace.

Faster 3.11 morning run because of ACT prep again. 7:29 pace.

3.08 Morning Run. After school and ACT prep Tyler and I ran to Dry Canyon. I've been on this team for two and a half years and even though I'd done this run like ten times I'd never made it all the way to Dry Canyon so it was good to finally go the entire way. 9.01 miles at 7:57 pace, which, considering the hills, is pretty solid. On the trail we met a snake named Randy.

2.62 morning run to Apple Grove and it was freezing cold. Still had ACT prep so no practice but I ran in the evening. I left my running shoes at the school so I had to run in some Nike Flyknits I've had for about a year. I went four miles out from my house to Lone Peak and made it to the start of the trail north of the school. During the four miles back I listened to some songs from Bastille's album Wild World, which is killer. I went 8.02 at 6:55 pace.

2.75 morning run. Went to state to watch everyone race. It was a blast!

40-minute run. We went to Molly's, which was a good time. Most of the guys stopped at coach's room but I went a little further to hit 40 minutes and I got 6.43 miles. 6:14 average pace. Then we did four strides to add another .51.

On Friday our run was supposed to be 40 minutes but Matt and I were sick of doing forty minutes so we did a speed workout. We did a mile warmup then 8 buddy 400's on the track. I forgot my watch so I didn't know my pace, but it was a good workout. We did about a mile cooldown after, then we listened to Riley's truck stereo and chilled for a while.

Practice was at 8 today and it was rainy, which is my favorite weather. The workout was 40 minutes (what else is new) and I ran north on the canal with Reed and Ali. We went twenty minutes out but made it back in eighteen, so a 38-minute run. 5.95 at a 6:23 pace, and we did 4 strides after, for another .5.

AM - My watch didn't stop but it was 3 miles.

PM - 2.01 at 6:05 pace.

AM -2.84.

PM- Reaper. 2.21 warmup, 1.4, 2.59 cooldown. My watch said my reaper was a 9:11.

AM-3.17.

PM-5.33 slower run for me. .49 in strides.

PM- 1.09 warmup, 3.85 speed workout, 1.00 cooldown.

Helping out with the haunted half. 6.01 down Provo canyon at 6:09 pace.

AM- watch thought it was on saturday but I think it was the morning run on monday. 3.02.

PM-1.51 warmup, 1.3 reaper, 2.16 cooldown. I got an 8:57 which is a PR! Riley beat me but next monday will be different. 

AM- 3.00 miles.

PM- 7.92 at 6:19 pace. I think this was our run to Timp in the rain which was sick! Tanner's trail was so slick. .5 in strides.

AM-2.41.

PM- 1.00 mile warmup, 6 800's (3.01 distance), 1.00 mile cooldown.

AM- 2.9 miles.

PM- 5.04 at 6:55 pace. .52 in strides.

AM-3.03 miles.

PM- 3.01 at 7:18 pace. Three 200m strides in my neighborhood was .39 in distance.

Pre-Footlocker at AF High. I didn't do as well as I had hoped, but I think I need to be training harder because I stopped training as hard after region ended. I'm going to start preparing way harder for Arizona and Foot Locker. I don't know my time or my place yet, but Ali beat me and I was fourth man on the team so I know I wasn't as fast as I should have been. I ran a 1.01 warmup, my watch measured the race as 3.32 but it must have been off because I heard it was pretty close to 3.2. 2.04 cooldown. Got Mcdonald's with the team after so that was fun.

Slept through my morning run alarm somehow but after school I ran 9.01 at 6:47 pace with .54 in strides. 

2.88 morning run. Did a 1.67 warm up for the reaper, then hit it. It was super hard and I felt like I had no energy, and I think I was sore from my run Monday. I ran about a 9:28 so fifth after Ali, Tyler, Riley and Reed. 2.16 cooldown. Next time I'm going to do way better. 

2.58 morning run. We did a speed workout for afternoon and did a 1.18 warmup. Before we ran something funny happened. This special needs guy was walking around by the red center and Matt Eisley yelled "Payton Henry sucks!"at him. He turned toward us and cussed us out and then started running toward us, but he thought I said it so he started coming toward me and hit me, but I pointed at Matt and then he started chasing Maya. It was pretty hilarious.

The workout was 30 30's. Got 3.12, had no sleep because of election night the night before. 1.01 cooldown. 

3 mile morning run. For our afternoon run we decided to drive up to Kiwanis and do a trail run. We parked Riley'a truck and then this little gray car pulled up by us. This old dude, who was smoking and had two dogs in the car, rolled down his window and said "A truck full of half naked guys, you guys just made my week." We talked to him for a while and he said one of dogs he wanted to throw off the interstate, the other dog minded him better than he minded the lord. Some other funny stuff got said and he cussed a lot but he seemed like just a funny nice dude. Tyler asked his name and he said Adams but then he said "Saul T. Sinner" not sure if he mean that as a name of just that he's a salty sinner. Not making this stuff up. 

We ran to three story and back, 7.9 miles. Then .54 in strides. We also had the banquet tonight, which was great.

2.88 morning run. Afternoon was a speed workout, we did 4 1200 repeats with a mile warmup/cooldown. Hit exactly 8 miles for the day.

For Saturday morning we did a 30 minute run. I was pretty tired but my run was a 6:30 pace for 4.64 miles so decent pace. We played frisbee afterward (which I measured as well) and I did this sick thing where I kicked the frisbee as it was flying at me from behind, then it went up into the air and I caught it. It was the best moment of my life.

It's been a while, running blog. Morning run, afternoon run, strides on this day.

Afternoon run.

Morning run, speed workout in the afternoon.

First day of our stellar Arizona trip. About a 4-mile run in Kanab, which, in fact, not bacon spelled backwards. 

Second day of our Arizona trip. Did a morning run in Page, which was a great change of pace from PG. Ran the course in the afternoon.

I was sick for a week leading up to this race, and I knew that it would be tough. In spite of that, I kept a good attitude about the race. I ran about a minute slower than I should have, but it was a fun course and I'm not too broken up about it. Sat. night we had fight night (boxing) and did some freestyling which was a good time. 

Wrecked from NXR and wearing old, work shoes so only went 5.

Reaper! Still sick. 9:26, so decent. 

My parents bought me some Brooks Launch 3's down in St. George because we found a good deal and my Kinvara's were thrashed. Also Thanksgiving was excellent.

Ran about 7 miles at a slower pace when I got back from St. George, mainly to try out my new Brooks. Like 'em.