Just can't sit still

Even though my legs are super stiff and I'm tired, I can't just let a good Saturday evening go wasted. I went on a ride starting at 6:30. I should have left earlier, but I was lazy and it affected the mileage I wanted to do. But it wasn't bad:

28.6 miles
1:26
19.7 mph average

Pretty good headwind going south, but coming back north it was great.

"Run the Gap" - 2008 Pocatello Marathon 3:45:49

Today was my 11th marathon. It was in Pocatello. I ran this marathon a few years ago and did terrible. So I wondered how this one would go. I ate a buzz bite from mile 17 to 20 and that helped me get over that hump. When I would hit a certain mile marker I would look at my watch and think, "I could make Boston if I hurry."

When I turned the last corner I saw what I thought was the finish line. I found out when I got there that it was just an advertisement for the marathon and not the finish line. Just around a bend I could see about 1/4 mile further was the real finish line. I started walking for about one second, and then thought to myself, I can do this, I'm going to finish strong so I immediately started to run again. About 200 yards before the finish Gordon saw me and ran towards me and ran with me through to the finish.

I qualified for Boston! I never thought I would do it. My time was 3:45:49. I was very happy! We checked the computer display at the end that showed the results and I took 2nd in my division (F 35-39). We went back to Grandma and Grandpa's to shower and get Jonas. Then came back for the awards ceremony. Here is some video and a picture:

Here is a link to the official results.

New PR in the 5K - 22:59

Today I did the Pocatello 5K. Cathi did the Marathon. We spent the night last night at Grandma and Grandpa Richins. We went up to Becky and Kyle's where they had a nice pasta dinner prepared for us. It was so good. I was so full I bet I weighted nearly 200 when I went to bed. Last night at 10:30pm Cathi said, "Gordon! I forgot to bring a sports bra!" So we went out to Fred Meyer and picked one up, just before they closed. That would be like leaving my shoes at home.

We woke up at 5am and I drove Cathi over to the Bus stop where they drove her up the canyon in Inkom. I went back home got another hour or so of sleep, had some breakfast and then drove over to Ross park. Then took a bus to the 5K starting line.

When I started, I put a buzz bite in my mouth and it lasted through the whole race. At the end I had to spit out what was left cause my mouth was so dry and I was getting sick of the taste of it.

I started near the front and stayed near the front the whole time. I ran the whole time. Didn't walk, even to drink. I gulped the water as I jogged. I got gatorade all over me. There was a pretty good tailwind so that was helping me too.

I took the GPS, but never really referred to it. So next time I'm not taking it. I referred to my watch instead at the mile markers. The finish was the same finish as the 10K, the Half Marathon, and the Marathon. I finished with a time of 22:59. That is almost a whole minute faster than my previous time.

I took 4th in the 35-59 M category which really surprised me. I took 14th out of 65. I'm really stoked that I did so well. There was a guy who was ahead of me who would run/walk. He would run about 100 yards ahead of me and then walk until I got about 10 yards up to him and then he'd run again. When we got within 300 yards of the finish line. His run had progressively gotten slower to the point where I caught him on the last 200 yards of his run and was able to increase the distance between me and him. I sprinted the last 100 yards to the end. It felt so good to finish really strong like that.

Here is a link to the official results.

First time biking with no tunes

I packed my MP3 and put it in my back pocket of my jersey but forgot to put the ear pieces in. Thing is, I didn't even miss it. I was able to concentrate on my breathing as I exhaled in cadence with my pedaling. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing.

I also couldn't find my GPS so I have no idea what my max speed is. But I did time the overall trip which I know is 30.5 miles. Stats:

Distance: 30.5 miles
Time: 1:40
Average Speed: 18.3 mph

Rowing 5000 M

At lunch I went downstairs again and rowed 5000 M. With this only being my second try, I was able to easily beat my PR of 5000M in 20:51. I got 20:09.

Had to get a drink about 4 times during that 20:09 so I had to push it so I wouldn't mess up my time. That's where one of those hats that has the drink on top with the straw coming down would come in handy. As long as it had cool water, and not beer of course. Then I did 10 minutes of abs.

Nice workout. I should check my heart rate, I'm sure its high.

Saturday evening ride

Left at 5:30 to go to SDRC to swim. I left later than I wanted to. When I arrived there was a sign on the door saying the pool would close at 6:45. I got there at 6:25pm. I wasn't about to use up a punch pass for 15 minutes. I was very upset. I was looking forward to a good swim before heading back. My GPS also ran out of batteries so I had to stop at a gas station and pay the crazy prices for some good AA batteries.

I called Eric to see if he wanted to go on a ride. He said yes, so I went further south west to his house. When I got there I was impressed with his bike. Very nice. We biked back north. This is the first time I've ridden with anyone since getting into it. I was surprised at how much a difference drafting makes. When he passed me up for taking the lead, he sure takes it fast.

The rest of the ride home went well. Not a bad workout:

Distance: 46.1 miles
Time: 2:27
Average Speed: 18.8 mph
Max Speed: 28.8 mph

Biking to Surf N' Swim then to work

Woke up at 5:45 and biked over to Layton Surf N' Swim and swam 2 miles, then rode on to work. Last night I had some serious stomach cramping, and said a prayer that I'd be better in the morning enough to ride in to work. Well it was only a .5 on the pain scale. Barely even noticeable so that was great!

Here are the stats:
Distance: 31.4 miles
Moving Time: 1:46
Average Speed: 17.7 mph
Max Speed: 28.9 mph

Felt a little fatigued so I took a buzz bite in Farmington to give me some energy for the rest of the ride which helped. This morning I noticed that my quads sure look bad. They aren't very well defined, or flappy, just blah. Need to work on those.

Good ride although not very fast.
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At lunch I ran to the bank (1.20 miles) then when I got back I peeked in the Treadmill Room in the basement. I noticed they have a rowing machine!!! I got on and rowed for 20:51 for 5000 M. Man was I sweating. Great workout.
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The ride home was much tougher and slower. I had a headwind to deal with for the first portion. Biking home with the laptop on my bike sure is a pain. Not a fun ride but no stomach cramps, so that's good. Here are the lame stats:

Distance: 29.8 miles
Moving Time: 1:55
Average Speed: 15.6 mph
Max Speed: 27.5 mph

Voodoo or Some micro-organism?

The last couple days I've had some pretty intense stomach cramps. Yesterday I went to be at 8:30pm. I was so tired, I just fell asleep on the bed without really getting ready for bed. That isn't like me.

This morning I got up and started riding to work. I had a pretty good pace. My average was at 19.9 mph when I hit 10 mile mark down in Farmington. Then I started getting some intense stomach cramps. I was thinking why I was having troubles. I remember drinking probably one cup of Deer Creek Water at last Saturday's Race. Could I have picked up a micro-organism, or is somebody poking their mini-Gords voodoo doll?

I turned around at the Davis County Jail and started heading home, thinking I would take a PTO day today, and go see the doctor. The pain was pretty intense.

Then I stopped and called Cathi. The conversation pretty much went like this. So I decided to just take the FrontRunner from Farmington in to work an just deal with it at work.

Thing that bugs me is the cramps went nearly completely away and I started feeling better. I only biked:

15.0 miles total
51:26
17.5 mph average (I had 19.9 mph average when I started getting the cramps)

I don't know which is worse, the pain in my gut, or the guilt from feeling like such a pussy! Hopefully I'm feeling better this evening and I can bike home fully.

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The bike ride home went so well! Except for the fact that I fell when at an intersection in Farmington. I tried shifting down last minute and then unclipped, but leaned to the wrong side, and down I went. Kind of embarrassing. No damage to body or bike. No major stomach cramps, although still minor tension:

Distance: 31.7 miles
Moving Time: 1:41
Average Speed: 18.7 mph
Max Speed: 30.4 mph

Excellent ride!

Man I'm weak!

Did some bench:

Flat Bench: 6 x 12 @ 135
Decline Bench: 6 x 12 @ 135
Incline DB Press: 6 x 12 @ 30

Had some pain in my right shoulder. Did some sets fast, some pretty slow. Disappointed with how tough it was. 135 used to be so easy it was funny. Not so anymore. I've leaned up quite a bit, but lost alot of muscle too. Sad thing is, I still need 15 more pounds before I'll be happy.

Legacy Highway Trail

This afternoon I rode down to the Davis County Jail in Farmington and noticed the bike trail was open, but only after going 100 yards I saw that it was still not open. It was dirt road for about 200 yards, and then pavement. So I kept going. I ended up going all the way to North Salt Lake on the path. Then took Redwood from 215 down to Mom and Dad's house. I got some cool water refills and then took off south
again to North Temple and then out to 2200 West and back North on 2200 W.

Got back on to the bike trail which went back to packed dirt trail for like 3 miles! Went clear up to 500 S in Bountiful on dirt! It was bad. When I got to Mom and Dad's house my average was like 20 something, but then it went way down on that dirt trail. My GPS also turned off on a big bump once on the ride. On the entire
ride I did about 3 miles on dirt. I'm excited for when that trail is open completely. It will be much better than needling through Davis County on piece of crap roads.

Here are the stats:

Distance: 60.0 Miles
Max Speed: 31.6 mph
Moving Time: 3:12
Average Speed: 18.6 mph

Great ride except for the dirt trail part.

Pictures from this years first Gridley 7 mile bike race

Mom just sent me the pictures from her camera. The race was clear back on May 31st.

Horse turds

Today there was more than the usual horse turd on the road in West Bountiful along 1100 W. Gotta love cowboys who leave there droppings everywhere. Get a bike man! No bike is gonna poo on the road.

Here are the stats for the morning's ride in to work. Negligible wind today:

Distance: 30.7 miles
Moving Time: 1:39
Max Speed: 29.1 mph
Moving Average: 18.4 mph

Good ride. Left at 6:30 am and got in at 08/08/08 at 08:08:08.

Need to leave early this afternoon to go on the Father and Son campout.

It's a long time coming

Finally I catch a break! This evening on the way home from Salt Lake, I had a tailwind of 10-15 mph coming from the south for most of the way. I didn't feel any wind at all and I was able to maintain a record breaking 21.0 mph the whole way.

The bummer about the ride is that my GPS is starting to act up. Whenever I hit a pretty good bump (trust me I avoid them when I can) or go over railroad tracks, it fizzles out and turns off. Then it takes another full minute or so to turn on and reconnect with the satellites. It happened three times on the ride and it's getting really annoying. I bought an extended warranty on it so I'm gonna look into getting it replaced if I can. But here are the stats:

Distance: 30.7 miles
Max Speed: 30.4 mph
Moving Time: 1:27
Average Speed: 21.05 mph

Best ride to/from work so far!

Racquetball in the butt

Last night I rode to Lagoon from work. The kids had fun and stayed together. Here are the stats of my ride:

Total distance: 16.8 miles
Moving Time: 55:25
Average Speed: 18.2 mph
Max Speed: 29.8 mph


This morning I snoozed past the alarm a little too much. Didn't get to SDRC till 6:20 and didn't play till 6:30. Eric and Dan were battling it out. Dad showed up and I played him three games. He won two and I won three. I spotted him 7-6-7. Looks like that is about the right range right now.

Then we played doubles. Dan and I against Eric and Dad. Dan and I won. Dad hit me pretty good right in the butt. One of these days I'm gonna have to spread my cheeks to get the ball out.

1:30 of play. Put the bike on the back of my car for riding home tonight.

Biking from Farmington

Today Austin, Jacob and Lucy are going to Lagoon and I'm picking them up late after work, so I drove to Farmington and parked my car near Lagoon and rode in to work from there on the bike:

Distance 16.8 Miles
Time: 57:00 minutes
Average speed: 17.68 mph

Nice ride in. No wind, but ever mindful of how poorly paved Woods Cross is. I'm so looking forward to when Legacy is done. I've noticed the bike path they have isn't very straight, but at least its smooth!

At lunch I ran to the bank (1.2 mile round trip) and then did Elliptical trainer for 20 minutes, and then did abs and biceps for 20 minutes.

Oh my back

My chest is a little sore from yesterday's workout. Today I stepped up the sets just a bit and did back:

Deadlifts: 15 x 135, 7 x 185 (Was going for eight, but got a sharp pain in lower back and stopped at 7)
Crunches: 3 x 50
DB Rows: 3 x 12 @ 35
Seated Close Grip Cable Pulls: 3 x 12 @ 100
superset with: Seated Cable Goodmornings: 3 x 8 @ 100

Didn't break a sweat, just trying to make the body remember that I'm not a total wuss and turned into an aerobic ken doll.

Remember me?

Man! It has been a long time since I've stepped into the weight room. Today I thought I would remind my muscles (at least my upper body) that they still have a purpose.

Flat Bench: 3 x 25 @ 135
Incline DB Press: 3 x 15 @ 35
Decline DB Press: 3 x 15 @ 50

Only spent 25 minutes in the weight room, but should be enough to wake those pecs up. Remember me?

Packing the laptop in

Since I had the laptop at home this weekend I had to pack it in this morning along with some other junk and man! 20 pounds on your back sure makes a difference! I was much slower today:

31.7 Miles
Moving Time: 1:50
Average Speed: 17.3 mph
Max Speed: 25.9 mph

I rode to Mom's house and took my car from there. I did that to avoid the hills up on the east side again. A little longer, but worth it to avoid the hills and the crazy angled railroad tracks in Woods Cross.

Biking home from Rose Park

Austin wanted to spend Saturday night at Grandma and Grandpa's house and spend the entire weekend and all day Monday. I drove him down at 6:30 and then rode my bike back home. It was a fast paced ride. Much easier taking the west side rather than the east side up by the mountains and avoiding all the hills and crazy traffic.

Stats: 31.3 miles
Moving Time: 1:37
Average Speed: 19.3 mph
Max Speed: 30.7 mph

I really enjoyed that ride!

Worst headwind ever

This morning I woke up early and biked over to Layton Surf N' Swim and played racquetball for two hours. I won two cutthroat matches and lost a couple of doubles matches.

Then I biked to work. I was already tired and I had a vicious headwind starting at Centerville. I couldn't get out of the inside front gear. The wind must have been around 12 mph or so. It was bad. US Flags were fully extended my direction.

Then to top it off some trucker on 300 W was in the right lane at a red light. He wasn't signaled and I moved up along side him. The lights were all red in all directions and I was wondering what the matter was. Then he starts honking. I look over and he is hand motioning to me that he wants to turn. I couldn't believe he couldn't just wait a couple more seconds. I moved forward a little bit thinking the light was going to turn any second. It did, but I was annoyed that he couldn't have just been courteous and waited. If he had signaled that he was turning in the first place I wouldn't have moved up in front of him.

Worst ride ever!


30.3 miles, 1:58 total time, 15.3mph average