The horns: grabbing life by

I have never really enjoyed running for the sake all that much over the years. And I have run extremely little the last 3 months. I've gotten relatively not light. I feel portly. And I'm pretty sure the mirror whispered 'portly' yesterday. But of the 10 or so times I have been out there over the last few weeks, I experienced for the first time a feeling of loving the actual act of running; of pushing my daughter in the jogger; of getting outsprinted by my wife, although this would happen if I was in top shape anyway; of having cold air nail you in the face. And I get the feeling I want to run. A lot. Again.

I told myself I was done running competitively 3 months ago. But maybe I was just done with the way I had approached it. Where I had to answer to other people and sometimes the passive aggressiveness that came along with that. I want to experiment with different training styles. I want to race on the trails. And in marathons in obscure towns that do not have a human gunning to win 20$grand. I don't want to run twice a day. But I might anyway. I want to get up early, rush to get ready. Drop DMG off at the new babysitter's place. Work all day. Maybe run again with my wife. Maybe not. I definitely don't want to feel the way I have felt the past month. I don't want to lose the one thing that I know better than anything. 

One of the things I do miss most about stepping away is the coach-athlete interaction with ol' Sparky Barker. I think one of the biggest reasons I was able to run some decent races over the years was because he let me be me. He laid out the plan, and then the rest was up to myself. This doesn't work for everybody, but for me it was paramount to my success. I had to figure a lot of it out on my own.  The majority of the time I did not and fell flat on my face. But there were a few times that I did and the feeling(s) you experience following a successful footrace is/are nearly indescribable. It's almost like that feeling you get when you are a little kid, and you get the present you wanted from Santa Claus more than any present you've ever wanted (eg. Tecmo Bowl). What happens after that is you just sit back and give a very quiet 'yes' with a little fistpump right at shoulder height. That's what it's like when you cross that finish line and know you had a good one. 

I'll pass all these lessons on. And I'm going to manifest new lessons I think. I hope. I may not run faster than 2:13, but I believe I will try it out. See what happens. Maybe I will enjoy the different approach. A little less portliness will help also.

Moving on is nostalgic. @jongugala communicates my fitting end to it all. http://t.co/QhFb63S2 @The_Trailer THANK YOU.

July thee 23, Twenty-twelve

Change is the only constant....


My next major target is to run 2:12.36 at this year's Twin Cities Marathon.  I am not sure if that will win the footrace or not, but that is what I really want my result to read as I cross the finish line.  I will be more regular with the training updates; maybe once or twice per week.  


I made it through the spring and early summer racing season, and now am in the beginning stages of preparing for this monumental task.  I am going into this segment of training thinking that this goal will happen without a doubt, but my contingency plan if it does not is to accept the result like a man.  I will prepare diligently and intelligently.  I will not take any shortcuts.  I will race with fire in my belly.  


Here are brief recaps of the 6 competitive efforts I put forth after the Olympic Trials Marathon from the end of April through July 4th.  Some were fine, some less than stellar.  It is weird to me in that some years I have trained so hard and ran a ton of miles and did killer sessions, but the results never matched up.  And then this spring, I really cut back on all of that, and the results were beyond what the training would indicate.  It is such a fickle sport.  That is the beauty of it though and why I feel there isn't anything that can compare to the loneliness of the long distance runner!


Race #1 Get in Gear 10k Minneapolis April 28, 2012
Defended my title from 2011 in 30:01.  This sucked because there was a $200 premium for breaking 30 minutes.  I guess I shouldn't have waved at my wife and newborn daughter coming down the straight.  But I was so surprised with how easy the race felt and how simple it was to break the young Kenyan named Festus Kigen that I just eased it in.  Really pleased with where I could be heading this spring.


Race #2 Newport 10k Newport, NJ May 12, 2012
Finished 7th in 29:55.  Felt off from the gun.  I had hammered a long run the previous Saturday averaging 5:15 for 13 miles of it so that probably contributed to the dead legs.  Almost caught the pack chasing the leader, but didn't have enough to go by.  Slightly disappointed.


Race #3 Brian Kraft 5k Minneapolis May 28, 2012
Champ in course record 14:20.  Faster than last year by 4 seconds, but that was after my wedding weekend and some good old-fashion fun. Rated as a good day.  Ran splits of 4:32, 4:37, 4:37.  Pleasantly surprised I was able to able to knock of sub 4:40s as I had done barely any running that fast.  I think it goes to show how far high-end aerobic preparation can take you.  But I guess 14:20 in the grand scheme of my racing life is not that fast.  I was pretty much alone from the gun and it was a picture perfect day with clear, blue skies as crisp as my daughter Mae's eyes.  Warm but manageable.


Race #4 Dam to Dam 20k Des Moines June 2, 2012
5th place, 1:01.46.   Over 2 minutes faster than last year, but not nearly as hot or sticky.  Ran a lot of this solo figuring more guys would come back to me.  If I were to do it again I would put more into it beween miles 3-7 because I basically lost a minute during those miles.  Really believed I could win, but alas not meant to be. This may have been my last competitive Dam to Dam. 


Race #5 USATF Half Marathon Championships at Grandma's Duluth MN, June 16, 2012
11th, 1:04:42. I felt so good between the start and mile 5.  I split 23:45 for 5 miles and 29:40 for 10k so I was bound to run a PR and finish high.  Yet, I developed a bit of a stitch just before 6 miles and slowed down and started running over 5 min miles.until about mile 11 where I rallied somewhat. I may have run faster for the last 6 miles of Grandma's Marathon in 2011 than I did for this half-marathon on the same exact course!  Nice one.  I also finished behind some people that I really think I have no business finishing behind, but that is another thing that makes the sport so great.  You never know who is going to show up and take scalps.  These people up in Duluth provide, without a doubt, the most hospitable experience imagineable.  Thank you Grandma's Marathon.


Race #6 5th Seasons 8k Cedar Rapids, IA 4th of July 2012
9th place, 24:30.  Nearly a complete and utter disaster here, but I then remembered that it was 85 degrees with the dew point at 72 which is amazon jungle like humidity.  Unfortunately, I suck in these conditions, but I was proud that I never gave in.  The winner of this race was convicted performance enhancing drug abuser Alene Reta who I absolutely despise.  Luckily he will not be invited back after I made the race director aware of this.  Major props to Hassan Mead who finished 2nd.  Quite possibly my last competitive outing on the 4th in Cedar Rapids.


Never say never.

It's been 13 weeks since Julie and I left for Houston, TX, and the 2012 Olympic Marathon Trials.  The race result was a complete and utter disaster.  From the gun, I felt off; tired, worn-out, flat.  At mile 17ish I stepped on some kind of hole in the road and tweaked my achilles.  That was the last straw, and I pulled the plug at 18.  Not the way I wanted to have my day play out, but that is the hand I was dealt and I have to deal with it.

It's disappointing not being able to finish such a prestigious race, but I am ok with deciding to stop.  Sometime it is just not meant to be your day.  I want to thank my wife, family, teammates, and all those who supported the Trials attempt.  I learned many valuable lessons from the build-up in regard to preparation.  I will gladly share the wisdom with anyone who cares to listen.  Maybe someone can heed the advice, apply it to their training, and crush a marathon.  That would be my hope anyway.

Regardless, I was easily in the best shape of my life, but perhaps it (the prime fitness) happened a little too early.  I had a fantastic race at the Manchester Road Race over Thanksgiving, did a hard 24 mile run the following Saturday, ran some really solid 2 mile repeats on the roads that following Monday finishing off the last couple in the 9:20 range, and then raced a half-marathon that Saturday or Sunday (I cannot remember which day exactly).  I even went through 10 miles in a PR (48:10) before the wheels came off.  So I was fit, but it might have just been a matter of timing it a little better.  Who knows?

Aside from that, our little bundle of joy Doris Mae Gabrielson was born on Feb. 23.  She is such a little peanut and I love her so much.  Julie is a great mom and wife, and after a period of adjusting to the new lifestyle I am back to almost full training mode.  Workouts are going well and I can feel the fitness being built.  I have adjusted some of the ways I have approached training in the past and feel pretty good about things at the moment.  We also have a BOB baby stroller so I look very, very forward to taking her on all my runs once June rolls around and she will be able to handle the jostling.

I plan on running the Get in Gear 10k in Minneapolis on April 28, and then a few other races before the US Half Marathon Championships hosted by Grandma's Marathon in Duluth in June.  I love Duluth and cannot wait to spend another weekend up there.  They host a fantastic event and it is definitely something special to be a part of it.

Finally, the fam will take a trip out to Rapid City in June to visit Julie's folks and the rest of her family.  This happens to coincide with my good pal Kurt Decker's race at the Black Hills 100 miler.  That's right, people actually race 100 miles.  At one time.  I am planning to crew for Kurt and get him through a couple 10 mile stretches or so.  I am looking forward to it as I look to run more trail races myself in the near future a la good old Max King.

Fresh in the mind's eye

I have met a lot of fantastic people over the years, and I am thankful for that.  Please read this blog by one of the most humble friends I have.  My eyes were slightly misty anyway.

Olympic Trials Marathon 2012

Check out the preview for our documentary detailing the months leading up to the Olympic Trials Marathon.  Two weeks until race day.  I cannot wait to race this sucker.

training with a little over two weeks to go

Today was a gut buster.  We threw down some pretty solid times on K repeats out on the Minneapolis side of the River Rd. right near the St. Paul border.  The wind helped to make reps 1,3 &5 ridiculously faster than reps 2 and 4.  In fact, I remember thinking I might not be able to finish the thing after the first one as it was a screamer.  AC got it started off on solid footing.

Yesterday, Lehm and I met up with a 5 or 6 young lads (mostly Edina alum) for a nice 10+ miler out at Hyland.  We are going there again tomorrow as being able to run on the dirt trails here in Minnesota right before the start of the new year is damn near impossible.  Just a reminder that anything within reason is possible.  I will be using that mantra coming up shortly.

One last hard workout before the Trials will be a marathon pacing session on Friday totaling 10-11 miles with an easy jogging break at the halfway point.  I am guessing it will be a reasonable session as I have dropped my miles a bit this week plus the tubes will be blown out as a result those fast Ks.  

I have always done well off of a significant reduction in volume before a big race.  Some call it the 'taper.'  I do not as I think that word is really stupid.  Let's just call this part of the cylcle the leg/mind freshening period.  Anyway, some folks do not prescribe to this practice and that is totally fine because everyone is different.  I just know that for me, I need to drop the miles a bit in order to get the most out of myself on raceday.

Thanks to my sponsor Saucony, I have in my possession 4 new pairs of the Fasttwitch racing flat without the stability post.  These suckers are awesome and I will be racing in them on January thee 14th.  The Fasttwitch have a perfect amount of cushioning for 5 minute miling over 26.2 miles and they are the ideal weight.  I have run the longer workouts in them as well as a few longish runs of 20 miles or so....couldn't be more delighted to be wearing them.

Finally, I have hopped on the Timberwolves bandwagon and am hoping I remain on board through the shortened 66 game NBA season.  Ricky Rubio can pass that rock.  Even LeBron tweeted that last night. I have a hunch he will get carried away some nights, but for the most part he will be exciting to watch.  My prediction for the season: 33-33.

i don't need no beast of burden

It looks like some of the major players for the Trials have been doing some really lovely training. I pay attention to this, but I never really 'pay attention' meaning I don't give a flying f what these boys' workout times are or how much they are loving training or how excited they are to be competing in Houston.

I learned my lesson a long time ago that it rarely matters what the others are hashing out. What matters is that I experience that 'feeling' in workouts and training where you know you are in the best shape of your life. I can think back to about 4 different periods of my career where I knew I was gonna pop something special and low and behold it popped. At the same time, there have been many times where I have faked workouts and appeared to be in good shape, but I knew deep down that things didn't feel just right, and my races showed it.

At this very moment I am so happy with where I am at in the cycle and I am very prepared for this marathon in 3 weeks. I have done every single workout with one of the top marathoners in the country (minus one mile of a 5 mile quick finish longer run where I just stopped early for some reason). I have never really felt like I was truly skulling it. I have felt very rythmic and strong in the faster sessions, much like a horse might feel when galloping across open fields. Or something.

Merry Christmas to every single person who happens to view this rant.  I absolutely love the feeling that the holidays bring to me and am very excited for the day and happy to spend Christmas in SLP with my wife. Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

 Christmas tuneage that you could listen to over and over and over and not be annoyed:

probably took it a little too far trying to sweat it out

There is currently no snow on the ground in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. No snow. On the ground. In fact, Lehm and I were able to pound out a steady 12 down at Hyland today, December 20th, 2011. Ree-gosh-darn-diculous.

Before we started this whole training cycle, we were trying to come up with some sort of contingency plan in case we needed to escape for awhile in December to put the finishing touches on the training cycle. This was when the plan would call for the long, marathon-paced, grind it out kind of running. The stuff that really puts the tiger in the cat. Like the 15 mile pace run with surges we ended up doing in Minnesota this past Sunday.

We most definitely did not want to have to do it on the treadmill. One of the options was to drive to Duluth and fly to Phoenix for $44 one way on Allegiant. For what we have needed to accomplish, and for whatever reason the weather, and more importantly the footing has been about as ideal as we could have ever hoped for at this point in the year in this state. And specifically on Sunday we needed it to be exactly how it was outside so I thank the Good Lord for that.

So we ran 12 miles at a very good pace. And then threw in another 30 minutes of surging. I can best describe my reaction to the workout as feeling the way it should feel in a marathon build-up at this point - fairly difficult, but easily able to maintain the agreed upon speed limit. I left the workout believing that if I was able to run a marathon, on fresh legs, 4 weeks from that day that I would be confident trying to maintain the pace. Not sure if that will happen or not, but the confidence to do so is there and that's very important to me. Also, it wasn't easy to the point where I felt completely sharpened which I don't think you would want 4 weeks out anyway. A couple more workouts at this type of intensity, and then a good 2 weeks of freshening the legs and we will be good to go.

We have a doctor's appointment on Friday to check in on little Doris Mae. She loves hearing Ryan Adams played when we make up in the morning. I tune it in on Julie's iphone and place the speaker on her belly, and the little gal just goes bonkers in the womb. Pretty cool stuff if you ask me. I think she already has fantastic taste in music.

Three more days until Festivus. Tis' the season.

Here are our splits from Sunday's run for the first hour of running. There will be documentary-style footage coming up of a lot of the training we did over this Olympic Trials cycle. Stay tuned.

4:54, 4:59, 5:00, 5:00, 4:57, 5:00, 4:57, 4:56, 4:55, 4:57, 4:58, 4:56... 59:33 at 12 miles then 30 minutes of top-secret style surging. I will not divulge the recipe....a definite game-changer though.

ahem, is it me or is it hot in here?

So the other night AC and I ran at Lifetime inside on the treadmills. I wore long tights and a long sleeve. AC wore long tights, winter hat, tshirt, and sweatshirt. SWEAT. ING.

Tonight I one-uped old AC. Tights, Goretex pants, Carharrt overalls, two pairs of wool socks, four long sleeves, a Goretex jacket, Carhartt jacket, and sweatshirt, two hats, and my winter boots. Oh, and a neck gaiter. And a balaclava. I did 20 miles at a relaxed 5:16 per mile pace. God, it was so hot. I forgot three pairs of gloves, including one Gortex.

So I made this up, but we are trying to make sure that we ignite the sweating mechanism and run in a little bit of a mini-sauna in case Houston gets a tad warm on the 14th of January. The record high is 80. So we are trying our best to "heat train" as Sparky calls it using layers upon layers and hopefully we can be as prepared as possible coming from the Northland.

In closing, my brother and his wife Megan are running the 5k the day after the Trials in Houston. They started running to get fit before their wedding this past October and are still at it - I am thinking they caught the bug. This makes me extremely happy and I am very excited that a large majority of the fam will be making the trek.

Ryan Hall says it will take under 2:10 to make the team. Guys like Reid Coolsaet (Canada take off eh), Scott Overall (UK), and Brett Gotcher (USA) have PRs near that, and so knowing that I have come fairly close in some, not all, races to those boys over the course of my career gives me some hope. I am not saying I am going to run 2:10 easy, no problem, just line up and it's guaranteed. But I will go down fighting and if I can run the pace that day I will, and if I can't well then I'll take what I'm given on that occasion and be happy with knowing I put it all down.

Every mile is two in winter.
-George Herbert

I find this quote true to the fullest extent. Two days ago was the first time since last February or March where I stepped out the door and felt like I just got blasted hard in the face by what is Minnesota. And I was layered up hardcore - long sleeve, short sleeve, water/windproof jacket, tights, pants, two socks, hat, gloves. I was way overdressed. Way overdressed. It took awhile to warm up the muscles to move the way I intended them to. And with all those variables, it seemed as if I was working way, way, way harder trying to get in a simple 11 mile run than I would in the summer. I want to call this poor man's altitude (minus the blood chemistry changes) where the body is working way harder to run slower.

Yesterday, the four of us hammered out a 24-25 miler from the SLP LTF. For me, it was exactly like a marathon in terms of going in and out of the feeling good-feeling worse state. But at the end of the thing I honestly had that special feeling where the body and mind tell you that it is time to bust a really good marathon. There are five weeks until we will find that out and until then I will just keep plugging away at it. There is some difficult training over the coming 3 weeks, but if the storm can be weathered, sickness can be avoided, and injury dodged then chaos might just ensue down in Houston.

vegas, baby. vegas.

Sunday evening I ran a 1:04.19 half marathon. This was done the hard way by myself meaning I was skulling it out the last few miles as the legs were shot. The race was run under the lights, along Las Vegas Boulevard (aka The Strip). I was very pleased with the competitive fire I showed in the last couple miles as I gutted it out trying to stay with Mr. Quigley. Hartmann, Lehmkuhle, and Carney were staging a battle about 150m ahead while Houseworth had cleared out the field around 7 miles. That kid looked really, really smooth and efficient. At one point I felt as if Quigley and I were gaining on the three others, but alas we were not and had to fight off some young lad named Tapia the last half mile. That was not an easy course as there are plenty of turns and the last half had a slight incline with a wind in the face.

The part that sticks out the most from this particular footrace was not the gleaming lights of the MGM Grand or the Ballagio, but at mile three when Jason L. cocked his head to the side at an extremely weird angle, pursed his lips, and scratched the side of his head basically telling himself enough was enough; time to string out this field of pretenders.

So he went and naturally I went and the 4:33 mile strung the pack down to who I thought would be there in the first place (+ the winner Houseworth). So now it was 6 of us through 10k in 29:20. It was the same pack for another half mile or so. I felt extremely good just before 10k and threw in my own surge, but by miles 7-8 things were broken up and it wasn't me who caused it. It was the young gun. I ran with Jason Hartmann and Sean Quigley for a small while as James and Jason L. had given chase to the youngster Sean Houseworth. Hartmann and his mentronome running style just weathered the storm and ended up realing them in and going on to claim runner-up status. I can see why that guy is such a fantastic marathoner as his cadence, breathing, rhythm, and intent focus never changed; from my vantage point anyway.

The last 5-6 miles the legs were tight and heavy...definitely could tell the marathon miles were there. The wind was cold. The slight uphill seemed like I was climbing Everest. But I competed and was reminded that the Marathon will be a long process in January and that I need to keep my composure early on and stick to my own race plan. Letting other people dictate what you do in a marathon race sometimes can be a small recipe for disaster. In contrast, in a half-marathon I feel like a few more risks can be taken for greater reward although going out so fast and ending up having to skull it out the last few miles down the Vegas strip may prove otherwise. But I wouldn't want to have run that race any other way and was happy I threw punches as long as I could at those boys.

After a complete day off from running today I am looking forward to really hammering out the next month or so before it will be time to spend a couple weeks freshening up the legs. I am pretty sure I will just do all my training here in Minnesota and I don't really have a problem with that. I will be able to really grow out the beard hardcore and let the red shine through.

set out runnin' but I take my time, a friend of the devil is a friend of mine

There's something about going out for a jog on a clear, cold, Minnesota night that makes you really feel like you're training. Like you could just blast by anybody in a footrace. It's a feeling of invincibility and I loved that feeling last night. I hope it's there on the Vegas Strip on Sunday evening.

Another week down in the cycle. 6 weeks from Saturday...day of destiny - do or die.

I had a lovely time this past Wed, Thurs, and Fri in Manchester, CT. I once again was fortunate enough to have the Kilpatrick family as my hosts for the Manchester Road Race. This was Thanksgiving number 2 with them and it was a nice celebration. I was sad to not be with Julie, though. We made the jaunt to Dubuque County Friday, straight from the airport. That was a long travel day.

The race experience this time around in Manchester was different than the last here as I was extremely pleased with my race overall rather than dejected. I remember running about 50 seconds slower back in either '07 or '09 and getting beat by some fat guy wearing a letsrun.com singlet who I had never heard of. 2009 at Manchester was just demoralizing all around.

The 2011 version was different. I was competitive the entire way and felt like my old self out on the road which has not happened too many times out recently. I wished I had dug a little deeper the last 300 or so, but alas the legs were truly marathon legs at that point in the race. I've put in 120-130 mile weeks the previous month so I made myself let the buzz happen after finishing 4th here and running 4:34 per mile for 4.748 miles. 21:42 on that course is very solid and in previous years would have pushed for the win. Major, major props to Father Olinger who ran one of the fastest times on the course in its 75 year history. And to the young Landon Peacock: you have many great years ahead of you. Stay the course...you have one of the best coaches out there in Peter Rea. AC ran tough as always, and earned the 3rd spot. Deservedly so.

Today was 4 x a deuce over on a different Edgecumbe course in St. Paul. I think I went something like 9:37, 9:35, 9:30, 9:21. This was a bit of a struggle as I ran 24 miles on Saturday and the legs felt it. I felt fantastic on that Saturday run though out in the rain on the Heritage Trail in Dubuque County, just dreaming and hoping out there on the crushed limestone. Thank God I put band-aids on the nipples that day - 0 chafage.

And so we will have one more test this coming Saturday evening with the Rock and Roll Half Marathon in Vegas. The cool thing is the course is entirely on the Strip. There are some gents in the race who I would love to beat and I will dig as deep as I have to. It's a red-eye outta there on Sunday at 1am and then time to put the hard hat on and grab the lunch pail.

Just a little something to get the morning started off the way it should...

Taking down the last post

I took down the large majority of my last post because I thought it sounded like I was being a little whiny, spoiled, American. Please click on the link to Toni's blog though as it is a fantastic read.

MG

I read this piece by Tony Reavis and it really struck a lot of chords.

Monday, 9 weeks to go

I'm guessing that we will soon be blasted with pre-race coverage of the Olympic Trials Marathon(s). This is a good thing. It is also a bad thing. Obviously, any excitement that stems from promoting the greatest sport on the planet is a good thing. But for the love of God, if I see any more running coverage that is extremely below average I am going to, well, I don't know but take Benjamin Franklin's advice..."Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.” I will now get off my soap box.

Last week was relatively high in terms of miles. Obviously, nothing compared to the marathon vet Jason Robert Lehmkuhle who threw in 140 plus. But I was up there and had some good workouts including a 28 miler where sub 6 minute miles near the 3 hour mark didn't seem like sub 6 minute miles. In a good way. But I very much wanted that sucker to be done when mile 23 rolled around. We averaged some good splits last Monday over 40 minutes of "threshold" running. What exactly is threshold I will never be able to say, but our last mile was 4:33 and I was pleased.

It appears we have some k repeats scheduled for Wednesday of this week. I need to wrap my head around the fact that it is November and the weather hasn't kicked us in the nuts yet. I see some 30s as high temps in the near future, but it's nearly Thanksgiving and we have gotten in some good work on iceless trails and for that I am thankful.

The minute it gets too bad to run fast outside, I am hightailing it to Phoenix. The wife has given me permission after "making sure" a million times that this is an ok thing to do. Unfortunately, our gas bill will skyrocket over this 3 week stretch as I am sure the furnace will be jacked up to 75+ during my 3 week hiatus. Oh, the sacrifices.

Looking forward to racing the Manchester Road Race for my 3rd and final time in Manchester, CT, on Thanksgiving Day. This is a great race on a fairly, but not too fairly, difficult course. I have been disappointed in my previous two results there so hopefully the third time will be the charm.

the year of years

I will describe 2011 as easily the greatest year of my life. So far anyway. Not even close.

1. Married to the most fantastic woman on planet Earth
2. Baby girl Doris Mae Gabrielson on the way this Feb 17th
3. As a rookie coach led Edina girls to first MN State CC Meet in 12 years and finished in top half of the standings in 8th.
4. Ran huge PR in marathon at 2:13 which is the 6th fastest time in USA this year; currently seeded 11th for Olympic Trials Marathon in Houston January 14th.
5. Brother Mike married

So I am just really blessed. But I also believe that a human being goes out and makes things happen and that if one does things the way they were intended to be done then things totally will fall into place - or at least things will happen the way they do. There is always something to be learned whether it be a hard, tough lesson, or one that is easily digested. Whatever the case, I'm motivated and at 33 years old feel like I've accomplished a lot and really want to pass on those lessons learned to anyone willing to listen.

Today was a banner day out on the Luce. If I were to compile a list of my favorite training partners of all time Lehm and AC would be interchangeable at 1 and 2. It was the three of us skulling it out over the infamous Fifteententenfive today. It felt good to just push, and feel like we were really training our balls off. It was a fantastic feeling not letting myself give in and to have those guys there to drag me along was really awesome. It felt good to be in control and to really feel that progress is being made in fitness as Jan 14 looms just less than 10 short weeks away. So 8 miles averaging just at 4:50 pace or so is a huge boost to not only fitness but probably more importantly confidence.

I will add that the last five miles of Jason and my Friday 21 miler was right at 24:44. I did have to dig deep for that one, but the two days after of slogging actually did not feel that bad and that's a good sign also.

Finally, God bless whoever came up with Spotify. I am not sure how long this thing has been popular but for all the love it is an awesome, awesome concept. I have had to turn off the feature that lets others see what I am currently listening to. I don't need anyone learning about my affinity for Pitbull or Lawrence Welk. Wait...

one step closer to the edge

Today was the Wednesday Hyland run with Schen-dell, Lehm, and the rook Jonny Grey. It's easy to overdo this thing because of the hills. But I will be out there each Wednesday until the snow starts letting loose. The loop has been logged as anywhere from 9.7-12 miles depending on who you are. Zac had a Garmin on one arm and the Nike Sportwatch on the other and pathetically they were .3 of a mile different. He does hold his right arm in a jacked position so i am attributing the differences to that. We ran this loop a couple minutes faster than last week with the same effort so I am guessing the more consistent training the last couple weeks is coming together.

24x200 tomorrow and 3x2.5 miles Sunday. 120 miles for the week with 12 weeks to go from this Saturday until the (semi) big day. The actual big day will be around Feb. 17 when Doris Mae Gabrielson is due.

Section Cross Country Wednesday for the Edina Girls. I would give anything if the girls can grab one of the coveted two spots to the State Meet from Section 6AA. We'll race to get one that is for sure. Go Hornets!

Seventeenth of October Twenty Eleven

There are just certain people that bring out the best in me. I will not name those who bring out the worst, even though I desperately want to. But I am extremely blessed to have my wife Julie by my side as she really brings the positive energy. And in running I am fortunate to train with a great group of boys. Especially AC and Lehm. I just feel confidence after a good morning of training with these guys.

We've started preparing for the Olympic Trials Marathon in Houston on January thee 14th. I would guess that each of us feels like we are in a good spot at the moment with the fitness, yet top level shape feels like it's light years away (even though it is extremely close. Like probably 12 hours for Jason). And although the first couple workouts and long runs of this 3 month stretch are challenging enough to elicit the same response each time, "Ugh," we can handle them and be excited for whatever is next thrown at us. I would say this is a fair assessment.

I also think it will be extremely important over the next 13 weeks to spend a couple Saturday nights hanging out at the Park Tav, enjoying Surly's Furious, and listening to somewhat surprisingly above average karaoke. Thank you AC, wife, Joey, and Hannah for the laugh attack(s) Saturday night.

13 weeks to go, plenty of 130ish weeks, lots of dreaming big, and a ton of memories. I'll keep you posted.