Mike Kirk has been paroled to Idaho

Zoo loop with Tom. I felt good after yesterday's run. Tom made me back off several times which was good. Now it is a waiting game until Ogden.

Sugarhouse Park. I ran in racing flats as is my habit before a race. They felt good. I did 8 x 100 m strides on the East High track afterwards. What a great track. Too bad it doesn't have anyone to run on it since the U cancelled its Mens' program.

Zoo Loop. I ran as easy as I could. I am trying to hold back but it is hard.

Sugarhouse Park, outside loop. I ran fairly easy to the park and then uptempo but relaxed for an outer loop on the grass. Without much strain I ran 10:49 for 1.85 miles on grass. I felt like I was at the high end of conversational pace. Earlier in the year the same time took a lot more mental effort.

Pipeline. Very easy with some strides. 20 hours to go.

Ogden Marathon. 2:29:29.

First, I have to admit I have read Sasha's entry before typing mine. If you haven't read his please do so first.

Like Sasha, I believed there would be a pack of five runners up front. Sasha and Joe had warned me about how deceptive this course can be. On paper it looks like you could fly here and maybe on a perfect day you could. But, if your race goes bad in Ogden Canyon you could end up DNFing.

Early on Steve got a little lead and Sasha caught him. I though Joe would not cover the move and Nate stuck with Joe. I didn't mean to catch Steve and Sasha but I found myself inbetween two groups so I figured it is better to go forward than backwards. We traded 1 minute intervals for the next five or six miles until Joe and Nate caught us. I have watched a ton of bike racing in the last few years and one of two things happen when a group is caught. Either there is a counter attack or no one wants to work. We even spread out across the road like a pelaton that has lost its steam. Sasha kept trying to get us to take turns leading but Joe and Nate mostly sat on while Sasha and Steve kept the pace honest. I noticed that Nate wasn't talking while the rest of us looked comfortable. I have never raced him so I did not know what to expect. It turns out that he had a cold and was hurting more than he should have been. He will be a good marathoner in a few years. Thank God I will be a masters runner soon. As the course got hillier I knew the race would soon grow serious. We all looked comfortable climbing to the dam but Sasha took off after the hill at 14. I did not want to be the workhorse for the other three so I sat on and didn't chase. I was still very worried about Joe and Nate. I have never beaten Joe but I know he has better 5 k speed than me. He is also usually pretty strong so I didn't know if I could drop him in the canyon. I had to hope for the best. At 15 Steve abruptly fell off the pace. He had looked so good all day that I was very surprised to see him fall off that fast. For the next mile Joe force Nate into the lead. The mile ends at the start of the dam. By that time Sasha had 37 seconds on us. We ran a 5:55 mile. Nate dropped off. Now there was three runners clear. One of us would win. Joe and I made steady progress on Sasha for the next few miles. I kept pushing and Joe kept saying that we would catch Sasha. At 19 Joe started to have trouble. We worked togther for the next mile but then I had to try to catch Sasha. I knew I had to make the catch while on the downhill. I started clicking off 5:20's (5:23 catch, 5:27, 5:26). I felt very comfortable except for a little sloppiness in my shoe. I ended up with a blister under my left big toe. I caught Sasha at 21 and we worked together until the dinosaur park. I know he was strong so I accelerated on the bike path to get a cushion in case I fell apart. The first mile of the path felt good but the turns, small hills, and change of terrain started to beat up my legs. Both Sasha and I slowed to 6 minute miles for the last two. I used the bike cop to keep track of Sasha. Finally at 23rd Street I felt safe. The family was at 24th Street, one block from the finish. Mason was too young to remember St. George in 2004 so it was great to see him screaming for his daddy. Bob was there with Amy and my other two kids, Graf and Adrienne. Bob was pumped. Normally I would be scared of a 6'5" man screaming at me but this was a validation of the work we have put together over the last few years. At the finish line a tape was stretched out and all I had to do was get around two ladies finishing the half marathon. When they saw the tape they sprinted. I slowed to let them cross and the organizers set up the line again for me to cross. Twenty six miles of good racing and I got outsprinted by two ladies running a two hour half marathon. My legs felt good afterward. Sasha finished 30 seconds back. I think we were both very happy with the day. Joe had a rough last few miles and finished in 2:38. Nate and Steve dropped out.

My big goal before the race was to run as easy as possible and not get hurt. Mission accomplished. I will celebrate for a day but I didn't qualify so there is work to be done.

Burch to Elbow on Pipeline with Bob. I felt good but slightly sore. This is the first time that I could run the day after a marathon. We kept it easy. The run starts with a 600 foot climb in 1/2 of a mile so it was a good test of my soreness. I'll try to run easy this week to make sure I'm truely recovered before I start training hard again. There is no point in forcing it this week just to break down in three weeks.

I called my parents yesterday. My mom always has the best reactions to my calls after races. After St. George she told me I was too old to win races. Yesterday she said it had been a long spell since I won a marathon.

Memory Grove with Tom. I felt okay but it took a long time to warm up. We ran it at the same speed as we usually do. That is a good sign that I will recover quickly.

One loop of Sugarhouse. I ran at my normal recovery day pace (~12:00 for a loop). My quads are good and my calves are almost there. 8 x 100 m strides on grass afterwards.

Sugarhouse Park, different route. Legs are feeling good. I will stay backed off this week and part of next week. I am trying to run on grass and trails.

My legs feel recovered but now is the time to relax for a couple of weeks.

Burch to Rattlesnake on Pipeline. I ran very easy but I still ran faster than last fall when I was recovering from plantar fasciitis.

Recovery day.

Recovery day.

Memory Grove with Tom. We ran our usual pace. His left leg is starting to hurt.

I saw my first rattlesnake of the year. It is not spring in Utah until you have had the pee scared out of you by a snake.

Zoo Loop. I was disappointed that I did not see another snake today.

Sugarhouse. Very easy.

Pipeline Church Fork to Elbow, return on road. Moderate. I will leave for Yellowstone with my boys around noon. This will be the end of my two week easy running break after Ogden. I am ready to pick it up again.

Yellowstone

Yellowstone

Zoo Loop.

SLC 1/2 marathon course (first 10). It felt good to run at pace again. My left foot is ever so slightly sore but it I need to watch it. I may be on the sidelines for Magna if it doesn't get better.

Church, Elbow, Firs, back down the road in Millcreek. I backed off the pace slightly because of yesterday. I saw a small rattlesnake inbetween Church and Burch.

2 x sugarhouse easy

Dog Park. I ran easy but it was windy.

Magna 5 K. 16:32 9th? I never felt comfortable, not even in the downhill first mile. I had hoped to run better but I am keeping my eyes on the prize. Qualify.

Washington Park. 33 F and snowing sideways at the park. I ran within myself until the summit. I only saw 5 cars in the first 35 minutes. I ran very controlled down the canyon. I started to bonk a little by Ruth's dinner because I did not eat anything between Mass and running. Luckily, I was able to keep it together across Wasatch to the footbridges. My legs were a little heavy from the race yesterday but I still ran faster than I did earlier in the year.

Trail with Bob. Bob won the first xterra scramble yesterday. We ran Burch to Elbow then up to Alexander Basin. We decided to keep climbing and ended up at Big Water. Over 1500 feet of climbing. Bob looked fresh and I was beat. He is strong. We finished by running all the way back down the road.

Zoo Loop. I put the HR monitor on and tried to keep my HR low. I need to recover from the 2500+ feet of climbing in the last two days.

SLC 1/2 marathon course (1st 10 miles). It took a long time to warm up. I ran smooth and relaxed from the 4 mile mark to around 8. The course looks fast.