Clydesdale runner

Ran 5 miles to the lab at 5 am, did some work, back at 10. Felt good, but not used to ran with a backpack. Last km slightly downhill near maximum speed.

Planned to ski 1.5 hours at Millcreek Canyon. Nice weather and snow, but my binding broke after 40 mins. Back home we put our little daughter in the Chariot and ran 6 miles. Going uphill pushing 50 pounds of additional weight is a good workout ;)

8 k home from work at threshold or slightly above. 30 min.

direct commute run. start feeling comfortable while running.

Started easy, then got faster and played a bit with the pace. Some accelerations / sprints during the last mile. avg 7:20/mile

1:10 h easy running before breakfast with family. 

Trail run on Shoreline Trail from Hogle Zoo to U of U including some detours with a lot of elevation gain. Was already too hot and it's not even April!

1.5 h bike

Warmed up running to the McCarthy Family Track and Field. Used spikes for the first time and did 10x400m in 1:08 each. Was fun, but my Achilles Tendons will hurt tomorrow ;)

Cycled for 2 hours. A bit tired.

Woke up with a cold this morning, so took a day off.

Jogged to work very easily. A bit tired, but ok.

8k to the lab early in the morning, 9k back. Still have a cold and feel a bit weak.

Planned for a duathlon today, but felt so tired and unmotivated that I decided not to start.

Ran 10 miles very easy instead and felt horrible. So it was a good decision... 

50 km bike

trail run to work and back

1:15 h bike

trail run to work and back

This was my first "downhill" race with an elevation drop of nearly 1000 feet. ~ 2/3 of the drop occur during the first half. I averaged 3:30 per km (5:36 per mile) during the first half of the race. However, it seems like my legs are not used to downhill running and I got tired. I managed to keep at 6:00 - 6:10 per mile in the second part, finishing at position 9 in the overall ranking. 1:16 h is a new personal best and I am happy with the result although I think it was not my best half marathon.

I was stunned when the first woman passed me. There was no way keeping up with her. Kodi Kleven finished at 1:12:55, only 2:30 after the first male runner!

It's a nice race and - compared to other "down the canyon" race - has not too much elevation drop. It is well organised wiht bus shuttles from going from Provo City to the start. However, the second half of the race can become a bit boring as you run southwards all the time on a large street without any turns.

Event website: http://www.run13.com/races/provo-city

Joined Adam for the Memory Grove commute run-in. I enjoyed the course and the company.

 PM: Ran directly home, quite fast as I was a bit in a hurry.

commute run: Hogle Zoo, Shoreline Trail. Felt tired. HF avg 152, 49:00 min 

PM: Shoreline Trail / cut-off, 35 min

 went on the scale this morning: Have lost 2 pounds! Still 4 or 5 to go and I can change my blog title ;)

 5 miles to the gym, 45 mins at the Fieldhouse doing random exercises, 3 miles back;

2 hrs of Mountain Biking on the Shoreline Trails.

Ran with Susanne on the Trails around Red Butte Garden for an hours this morning before breakfast with Karla and my parents. Nice to have some time together.

The most adventurous part of the day should still follow: We  went to the Sansbury mountains to go on a horse ride with some friends. Sitting on a horse for the first time, it was a bit scaring to bushwhack through Juniper trees for more than an hour without any sort of trail. However, we survived it and it was a great experience.

25k roller skiing Sugar House park

10 miles, half of it on trails

Shoreline Trail to the institute, 25 mins on double poling ergometer, directly back home.

cycling up emigration canyon and back together with Susanne

to the gym and back

After a friend had recommended to do this race, I found myself at Timpanagos Park at 8:00 to do my first trail race at Utah. The weather didn't look very pleasent, but it seemed to clear up and everybody was hoping that no more rain would come.

I saw some guys I had seen before at trail races belonging to the Cascadia Trail Series when I was cheering my wife. However, altogether it didn't seem to be too competetive.

The first 1 or 2 miles we ran uphill on a dirt road before a left turn leading on a mountain trail. At position 3 - 4 I felt quite comfortable. However, after another 1 -2 miles we reached a very muddy road and I could feel my shoes picking up the dirt with every step. I had some trouble sinking into the mud a bit more than light runners. I was a bit disappointed at this point because we weren't on a mountain trail any more and it was quite flat. However, after having reached the first aid station after 6 miles it became interesting. We headed up dry canyon which was so steep that I sometimes had to walk. Being at position 3 with no one in sight in front of or behind me, I could stop to enjoy the view on the Utah Valley and on the Provo canyon at the highest point of the race (1980 m). Then, it started it rain and to hail turning the trail into a creek. I could run downhill very controlled because I didn't have to worry about my position. After 1:46 h I finished third. Total elevation gain was approx. 700m.

It's a great race and I think I will do it again next year with hopefully less mud. 

Explored part of the Wahsatch Steeplechase course this morning with Barry. Unexpectedly, I didn't feel any soreness from yesterday. Was fun.

1 hour of roller skiing at sugarhouse park. Feels good to use muscles other than those needed for running.

6 miles to the institute over hogle zoo and shoreline trail. 25 min of double poling on our new toy (Concept SkiErg). ran directly home, 3 miles.

Some speed work at Highland High track with Barry. Used my spikes. After a good warm-up we did 3x 400m and 3x800m with breaks of 1:30 min in between. 400m in 1:11 - 1:15, 800m in 2:35-2:40. Not too bad that early in the morning ;)

1:15 h road bike

10 miles mostly on trails; 450 m elevation gain; uphill with poles; watched a beautiful sunrise over emigration canyon

2 h mountain bike

13 k trail run

1:15 h roller skiing at sugarhouse park

Track workout this morning at Highland Highschool: after a good warm-up I ran a pyramide: 100-200-400-800-1600-800-400-200-100 with 1:30 min intervals in between. After that I was really awake!

Ran to the gym with Susanne where we did 40mins of strength training, then ran back.

Alone with my daughter Karla. After bringing her to childcare I ran to work over Hogle Zoo and Shoreline Trail.

To visit Zion NP, we will stay at Hurricane for 2 nights. Ran for about an hour this evening. It was so hot, my heart rate went up to 160 after 10 min and would not go down again.

Same run as yesterday, but later, so the heat was endurable. Felt tired from our hike in the narrows. Will take a day off tomorrow.

Rode my bike to work and ran back on the Red Butte trail and shoreline trail.

Broke my roller skis at Sugarhouse Park this morning. Luckily, I could avoid to crash. After breakfast, I ran directly to work.

4 k to the Gym with Susanne, 45 min strength training, 4k back.

Did a 12-mile run-in this morning over Memory Grove and ran directly home after work.

Track workout at Highland High. After a total of 4 miles as warm-up, I decided to stick at shorter distances today because my throat is a bit sore:

4x100 in 14s, 4x200 in 30s, 4x400 in 1:14 min with intervals of easy running / walking the same distances in between.

Rode up Emigration Canyon with Susanne and Karla in the Chariot. The last 1 or 2 miles became a race when a couple passed us and we tried to keep up with them. Susanne edged them out at the top of Little Mountain summit, while I was dropped on the last hundred meters. To my excuse, Karla and the Chariot weigh at least 25-30 kg ;)

We spent the evening doing a picnic at Millcreek with Adam and his family. It's a pity they will move away soon.

As I needed a specific workout for the Steeplechase next Saturday, I decided to do a decent trail "run" up to Grandeur Peak. Warmed up the 3.5 miles to the trailhead, then I soon had to realize that only great trail runners are capable of running inclinations > 30%, but not a clydesdale like me ;) So I did the vertical kilometer hiking 95% of the course. My legs were burning, but it was an incredible view from the top. Downhill was not much easier, my legs felt like rubber when I reached the trailhead again. Not surprising that I couldn't really enjoy the 3.5 flat miles back home.

Altogether 12 miles in 2.5 hours and 1300 m of elevation gain (approx. 4200 feet).