Tuesday, April 5th 2011: 3 miles @ 10:38 minutes per mile pace. This was the most enjoyable run I've had in a long time. I went at about 10pm and the temperature was PERFECT. I didn't worry about my pace and just relaxed. I loved it.
Wednesday, April 6th 2011: Signed up for the Red Mountain 50k ultramarathon coming up in two weeks.
Thursday, April 7th 2011: Rest.
Friday, April 8th 2011: 10 miles @ 11:15 minutes per mile pace. I should have realized the bad omen when I woke up ready to run and saw this:
I live in southern Utah - a part of the state that does not believe in snow. As far as I'm concerned, snow should be illegal.
Later in the day it cleared up a little bit. I really want to do well at the Ogden Marathon next month and thought maybe it would be helpful to get some downhill training. Thankfully my wife has been cleared to drive only a few weeks after her "incident" and she was happy to drive me 16 miles up the road toward Zion National Park so I could run home.
The snow had turned to rain so I decided to learn my lesson from a few weeks ago and wear a garbage bag:
That got annoying after a few miles so I decided I was willing to get wet. It was around 38 degrees and even though I was wet, I actually didn't feel very cold. In this picture, the dense storm clouds are covering up some large red rock mountains in the background:
A few miles later I passed an ostrich farm. When you get up close to these beasts you can see that they are positively the UGLIEST creatures in the animal kingdom. Ostriches are proof that God has a sense of humor.
I started having technical difficulties after about 7 miles. My right knee went all haywire and my left foot felt like someone threw a trident at it. At 9 miles I surrendered. I didn't want to risk jeopardizing upcoming races to finish my 16 miler. So I gave in and called Mel to pick me up. I ran another mile before she arrived.
I was hurting and frustrated. This was the first time I have ever given in and quit mid-run. Part of me wished I had just kept going. Part of me knew that would be just plain dumb. Part of me was glad I had called it quits before hurting myself worse. Part of me felt like a big fat wussie.
Saturday, April 9th 2011: Ice & Ibuprofen. My knee and foot still have that distinct Just-Been-Stabbed-By-A-Trident feeling. I don't think it's anything major but I probably won't run much over the next few weeks so I will be ready for the ultramarathon. Bring. It. On.
"I don't think you can become an outstanding runner unless you get a certain amount of enjoyment out of the suffering. You have to enjoy absorbing it, controlling it and—ultimately—overcoming it."
~ Derek Clayton
The pics you post are always so beautiful. What amazing places to run. Sorry your run didn't go well, but you did the right thing.
ReplyDeleteyou win some, you loose some. better to listent oyour body than to risk injury. good choice to stop :)
ReplyDeleteyour ostrich story reminded me of then I coached distance runners at a local high school. We had this run that took us past a llama farm! They LOVED one of my runners- he had longer hair that kinda flowed when he ran- they always ran up to the fence and trotted by him when he ran by!
I had a run like yours, I took two weeks off and came back with a crazy kinda PR. No lie. True story. I found that the harder I ran and with more miles I put on I became really tired and after that I break I came back SUPER STRONG! Take a few days off....I bet it'll work!
ReplyDeletethat's the first word i think of when i say your name...umm, NOT!
ReplyDelete