Winter Running Series and a Warning!

Here we are with our Third and Second place age group ribbons.

As we move through the dog days of winter here in SLC, there is something Michelle and I always look forward to as a way of taking our minds off the yuckiness of it all...the annual Salt Lake City Track Club Winter Running Series.  The series consists of three races (5K, 10K, and 15K) spread over a 6 week period in late January and February.  We've done this series pretty consistently since we started running back in 2003.  We've not always been as competitive about the races as we are now, but we've really enjoyed them as a way to test ourselves and get an early season fitness check.  It's also kept us motivated to get out an run...even in the worst of elements.  In fact, we've done these races in all of the elements imaginable...beautiful sunshine, disgusting smog (this past Saturday for example), brutal winds, and even a blizzard a few years ago.  That's what we love the most about the races...regardless of the conditions, the race will go on.  One year we even witnessed cars/trucks/semi's sliding all over the freeway in a blizzard.  It's like that commercial you see with the song "slip-sliding away...slip sliding away'yay."  It made the race go by a way of entertainment.  No worries; no major accidents were witnessed.

Saltair on a sunny day...

The series is run along the frontage road out at the old Saltair by the Great Salt Lake.  Yes, it's not the prettiest of runs (and a bit smelly at times), but it's nice and flat and generally pretty fast.  It also brings out some of the faster runners in the valley to test their legs, so it's nice to test yourself against some good competition.

As I mentioned before we weren't always as competitive as we are at this time in our lives.  In fact, our first year we ran the 5K together, and came in with a smashing 38:36 time.  At the time, we were excited to have set such an aggressive PR for the race.  Of course, it happened to be our first 5K and we got lost on the way there. (Michelle wouldn't stop and ask for directions...typical female). We arrived at the start line 10 minutes AFTER the race started.   I can hear you all laughing, but yes, we did manage to got lost on the way to Saltair...we have skills.

 In past years we would just casually run the races together, chatting it up and going at a very leisurely pace.  Only in the last couple of years did we decide to actually try to get a little bit faster, and our race times have improved dramatically.  I've set a goal this year to set PR's for the 3 distances during the series.  I'm as fit as I've been in a long time (if not ever) so I figured it's now or never. 

The race this past Saturday went pretty well.  Other than the nasty inversion, the weather was great.  Cold, but calm...very little wind.  I had decided a few days before the race that I wanted to get a good endurance swim in early in the morning before the race.  I ended up getting in a solid 2 miles before we headed out.  After dropping the kiddos off at Brittany's house (thanks again by the way), we headed out to Saltair.  Not exactly sure why we left so early, but we got there an hour early and believe me, killing time at the Great Salt Lake is about as fun as cleaning frozen dog doo doo off lawn.  Fortunately, Michelle was listening to an intense Nora Roberts (or another similar author) book on tape that helped us pass the time....I know what you're thinking and yes, I'm handing in my "man card" tomorrow.

As we toed the line, it was nice to chat with some of the other racers, and we even saw the local Tri Star Leslie Howlett!  She ended up having a great race as usual.  Then we were off.  Let me tell you, I never remember how tough these 5K races can be.  I've done 13 marathons, but a 5K still seems to kick my butt!

I decided I wanted to try to go out fast and see how long I could hold it.  At the first mile I felt great and checked the watch as I passed the marker...5:30.  Sweet...things were looking good.  Mile 2 came and I was still hanging in there...had slowed slightly, but was still averaging about a 5:40 pace.  As I pushed up to mile 3 I just couldn't hold the pace and slowed slightly.  I felt a bit bummed as two people passed me just before the 3 mile mark, but I was glad I was able to hang with them for the last few hundred yards.  I ended up setting a PR by 40 seconds and crossed the line in 11th place overall at 18:19 (5:55/mile pace).  Yes, I got chicked this time BUT it was only by 5 seconds.

I still haven't figured out this negative split concept, and it continues to be something I want to focus on, but just can't seem to hold myself back in the beginning.  It's going to be something I continue to work on throughout the rest of the season.

Michelle had another stellar race, coming in with a blazing 22:05 (7:07/mile) 9th female overall.  She didn't set a PR this time, but came very close.  The sad thing is that she hasn't hardly been training this winter, choosing to focus on school and the kiddos while I spend all our free time training...and she still almost set a PR.  Unreal!

In closing, a bit of a warning.  I've received a little feedback about my beans post a few weeks back.  I have to come clean, the beans were not at all the cause of my "issues".  As much as it pains me to say, I found that the unbelievable protein bars Michelle had me addicted to were at fault!  As such, I've had to cut back my protein bar intake!  I still continue to consume tons of beans, and things have been going much better.  Abbi is ecstatic!

Until next time...Tri Hard!