Mike Kirk has been paroled to Idaho

Jeremy Ranch Road with Bob. Hot. Steady run.

Sugarhouse park.

One loop of Liberty Park. 7:34

12 seconds faster than 2004 at the same comfort level. I was relaxed enough for my mind to drift some during the effort. Now hydration and nutrition are more important than runs.

Sugarhouse with Tom. Easy. I feel relaxed.

Sugarhouse park, easy.

Uggggh! I ran a great first half but my plantar fascia hobbled me on the fastest part of the course. I ran 1:13:18 for the first half. In 2004 I ran 1:09:12 for the second half and I am fitter now so even if I ran the same time for the second half I would PR. With luck I would qualify and maybe finish second. There were 6 people in front of me but they were strung out so it looked like a ladder. I can hold sub 5's down Snow Canyon so it should have been easy. My left shoe started to get sloppy so I was banging my toes going downhill. I curled my toes to keep from banging them which bothered my plantar fascia. Game over. I went from a 5:11 mile to 9 minute miles. Joe Wilson and I jogged in to the finish. If I can recover my plantar fast enough I will try Houston in January.

After the moment when I realized my day was over I become determined to cheer people on. It was great to see so many people have great races and get to cheer for them. I loved watching Jed go by and Bill chasing hard at 22. Neil and Randy looked great. Jerry recovered from a hamstring injury to race well. It is hard to be down about a bad race when so many people had a great day.

Next time you pass a guy holding a stick with vaseline ask him what flavor it is.

23.6 mile bike ride with Tom. 1:32 1900 ft. 16.4 mph average.

I rode way too hard but I won't be running until I see the doctor this week. My legs feel great except for my left calf. I tip toed on it for 12 miles during the race so I'm not too surprised that it is sore. I pedaled hard and Tom was hardly breathing. It is amazing how sport specific my fitness is.

Pipeline. I couldn't wait to run again. After yesterday's ride my butt hurt too bad to sit on the bike saddle again so I ran very easy on trail. I feel better now than before I ran.

Pipeline, Burch to Rattle. Very easy with Tom. My foot is still sore but I can manage 6:30-7:00 pace without changing my form. I go to see the doctor tomorrow.

Footbridge. Very easy. It felt good. The pea sized hail convinced me to run an easy five instead of longer.

Olympus trailhead. My foot feels better every day. I haven't tried running hard on it but I am in a recovery/buildup period anyway.

State cross country course + tanners park with Bob. I hope my time beats the 1A Girls' time.

I went to PT after my run. I like what he had to say. He looked at me from my head down on a treadmill to look for weaknesses. There is nothing like being on a treadmill in a room full of people wearing only your running shorts. I will see him again Tuesday.

Dog Park, easy. My left foot is slightly sore.

Treadmill. Progressive but still easy. Alternated 0% (+0.2 mph increase) 1% (no increase) 1% (+0.1 mph increase). Ran 54 minutes after a very slow warm up. My foot felt better than yesterday which is unusual since I ran on the treadmill. I changed shoes which could have something to do with it.

Burch to Point, easy with Bob.

To the mouth of Big Cottonwood Canyon. Easy. I ran up the hill as fast as I ran down it. 60+ for the first week back. The pace is slow but that keeps my heel from flairing up.

Burch to Point. Easy. Overdressed so I was hot from the beginning. My foot felt okay except at the beginning and the end.

Parley's loop. Easy. The early downhills hurt my foot but after the second footbridge I felt good. The climb back up to the house was okay, not as painful as it could have been.

Went to PT. Had orthotics cast for a short term solution. I also did a few other tests to see what the source of my problem is. I don't have any scarring on either calf so it probably is not a calf or achilles problem. I go again Thursday.

Burch to Rattle in the snow, 7.5 miles, AM. I ran easy in the snow. It stopped after 20 minutes.

Treadmill, 7 miles, PM. It took several miles to warm up. Managed to increase pace down to 5:35 at 1% for the last mile. I wasn't totally smooth but pain free.

Parley's. The first two miles were very icy. I skated downhill to Wasatch then tiptoed across the footbridges. The roads got better after that.

PT after the run. The swelling in my fascia is going down. Good sign.

Old Mill GC. Easy. My left calf is sore from doing single leg calf raises in PT. We were trying to find the right resistance and I did 100+ SLCRs.

Footbridges, 5 miles, AM. Very easy.

Parley's, 8 miles, PM.

Trout Lane with Bob. This was my first long run since St. George. We ran at a comfortable pace until the turn around, about a mile above Ruth's in Em canyon. We picked it up until we were past the golf course. I struggled to keep Bob. He is very strong. My foot felt okay but I was not smooth.

Burch to Point. Trail was muddy. I felt okay but tired from yesterday's run. My foot was sore but no more than usual.

Old Mill, 10 miles. I ran earlier than usual this morning. I felt okay but still tired from the increase in miles.

PT started 25 minutes after my run so I didn't have time to refuel. I did 5 45 second strides at marathon to 10 k pace on the treadmill while wearing a harness that suspends you. It takes 30 pounds of weight off so my leg and foot action are the same but without the stress on my foot. I put in 2.5 more miles in on the treadmill.