80 Days of Summer - Day 6

I drove home from Scout Camp this morning - stopped in Blanding for Biscuits and Gravy at a new restaurant there called Fat Boyz. Delicious. A guy from New York sat in the booth across from me - he was probably my age - late 30s. I was reading the morning papers on my phone and eating. He asked the waitress a bunch of questions about the size of the town and things, but she didn't have all the answers, and he was frustrated. He then wanted to look up a business, so he asked for a phone book. (I didn't know people still used phone books.) Because he didn't have his reading glasses, he asked the waitress to read it to him. By this time, she seemed frustrated with him. I wanted to walk over to him, show him my iPhone and say, "This is a representation of the 21st Century. Everything you just asked the waitress could have been discovered by using this device."

 I arrived home at noon. The girls headed to the pool with friends, and the boys asked to go to McDonalds (blech). Matthew likes to put a little of every soda in the fountain into his cup.

Stopped at our local bookstore - Back of Beyond Books to use a gift card. I finally bought the book Freakonomics, which I've been wanting to read for years. So far, so interesting! There was an icee shop next door, so the boys bought bubblegum icees. 

 Spent the afternoon at the pool. Matthew loves the outdoor kiddy pool with rock slides and fountains. I sat in the shade and read my new book while the boys played with friends for several hours.

 Sad because the pool closed at 5:00.

Took Annie to her youth activity at the church where the girls were learning to set up tents getting ready for girls' camp. Emmy then had an 8:00 pm softball game that went two hours. Home by ten. I filmed her at-bat where she faced the league's biggest, fastest pitcher and took one right on the hip bone. You can hear the thud in the video. Third time in my life I've seen her cry. But the video wouldn't load into the blog. The picture above is her walking to the plate. They lost in extra innings by one run. Got home and was so tired, I only watched the 4th quarter of the recorded Thunder/Spurs game. Great series. We're off to Mesa Verde after work today to camp for three days and explore Indian ruins. Won't post again until Sunday probably.

80 Days of Summer - Day 5

Monday night, I took one of the varsity scouts from my church and went up to a Boy Scout Mountain Man Rendezvous on Elk Ridge - about 45 minutes west of Blanding, Utah on the way to Lake Powell. I was up there Monday night through Wednesday morning. The camp went on another day and night, but I had to get back. It was a camp for 13-14 year old scouts. Unlike most Boy Scout camps, it wasn't about merit badges. They had mountain-man type classes throughout each day with a lot of free time in the evenings. It was up on a vast pine covered ridge in red rock country (this is actually one of the coveted elk draws in the whole state - somewhere I might use my 9 year's worth of points to try and draw out in the future). It's very remote and very pretty up there. 

 Each group makes their own meals. We were teamed up with some other boys from our stake (local congregations from Church). The first morning, we made eggs and bacon for breakfast and bartered for some pancakes - traded 9 pieces of bacon for about 9 pancakes.

 Beautiful high mesas with rolling forests of pine trees interspersed with lush grass meadows, sage flats, creeks, and ponds. 

 It was open camping in the National Forest, so we pulled into a grove of trees and set up camp.

 I jumped in with the boys and made this glass bead necklace at one of the mountain man classes. He gave a history of the glass beads and how they were made. I didn't know that most originated in Europe.

 I made this knife at another class - this year they gave us pre-crafted blades to save some time. We glued them into wood pieces, inserted shanks, and sanded them down.

 Me and Andrew.

 The high elevation ridge and it's famous "Bears Ears" formation.

 My tent and set-up. I love this Big Agnes tent - cozy and well-ventilated. Several scouts just slept out on the ground or on cots. It was a bit chilly for that. The second night, a mouse kept crawling under my tent and scratching around. Drove me nuts. The day I left for this camp, my new backpacking cot came in the mail. You can see it in this picture and the one below.

The cot is a LuxuryLite Ultralite cot that weights only 2 lbs 12 ounces. My brother-in-law, Boone, has one and loves it. I can never sleep on ground pads because I'm a side sleeper. Problem solved with this! It's like sleeping on a bed. It's made of tent poles and tarp fabric, sets up and comes down fast, and is light to carry. It bundles up into a really small package no bigger than a ground pad roll. I used a pad with it just for extra comfort. The only problem: it cost $200. Worth it! I bought it for backpacking but gave it a test run on this trip.

 Our supply wagon and "cook tent."

 My tent.

About to drop off of Elk Ridge down into the desert again.

80 Days of Summer - Day 4

I'm late posting this because in the afternoon of Day 4, I left for a scout camp (see Day 5 post), and didn't get home until 2 days later.I went for an early morning (6:00 am) 8 mile trail run on the Bar M Trail. This is my favorite training trail as it is only 9 miles from town, has gorgeous views of Arches National Park and the La Sals, and it's relatively even rolling terrain. Dad went with me and ventured off on a hike while I ran. After the run, we drove up into the mountains to Mill Creek Canyon with the kids.

Trail runner.

 After the run, Dad and I took Emmy, Matthew, and James to upper Mill Creek just below the La Sal Loop road. There's a network of trails down into the creek and along it made by rock climbers. Several groups of climbers were down there today. A climber told me about the oasis several years ago. He said it was a lush, riparian canyon filled with pools, falls, and greenery with great cliff walls and boulder formations. "And there are butterflies everywhere," he said. It was very pretty down there. We took a lunch and explored the upper portion.

Several "trails" descend into the canyon. Some require rappelling, and others allow you to "walk" down rope lines. James and Matthew decided to go shirtless today. James paid for it later when he wandered into a patch of stinging nettle. 

 Joe and James. (As an aside, I retired my Chacos, which I always hated, for a pair of Keen sandals. I would wear these everyday if circumstances allowed. They are the most comfortable all around sandal/shoe I've ever had. I made Brandi buy some the other day against her will.)

 Dad and his ever-present camera (http://heywoodfineart.com/).

 Emmy, James, and Matthew in the creek. My dad is above them and to the right on the rock taking photos.

 James and Matthew descending a "trail."

 Emmy and Grandpa eating lunch on a log bridge.

 Matthew exploring the creek - cold mountain water with fish! Taking our poles next time.

 Matt exploring.

Contemplative Grandpa.

80 Days of Summer - Day 3

Kind of a slow Sunday. Went to church and had a leisurely day around the house. Not much adventure on Day3 of our 80 Days of Summer.

 Matthew asked to use my iPhone to snap some photos around the house. He walked around Moab with my dad last week and took over 350 photos with his iPhone. He set up his stuffed animals and took a group photo here.

Capped off the evening watching the Miami vs Celtics game with Dad and Brandi. Brandi is just as into these playoffs as I have been. Thrilling conference finals on both sides. My favorite players to watch this year are Kevin Durant and Rajon Rondo. 

80 Days of Summer - Day 2

We were going to hike Mt. Peale (12,721) today, but woke up to thunder and lightning warnings. So, we did yard work instead and had a fun evening. Mt. Peale on Monday!

 My dad and I spent several hours digging out and putting in this planter. Moved pampas grass plants from the back yard to the front and put in the railroad ties. Next step, sod for the front yard. The front yard was torn up when they built the addition this winter.

 Evening swim down the street at our indoor pool. Love diving off the high dive.

Dad went for a walk in downtown Moab and bought himself some schwag.

Took the kiddos to see Avengers. Emmy had seen it before and told us there were TWO extra scenes. The first is two alien "badguys" talking about earth after the first set of credits (not too long after the end of the movie). The second scene is after ALL the credits have rolled - takes awhile. This is a picture from that second scene. You have to remember Iron Man's "shawarma" reference after he falls back to Earth.

80 Days of Summer - Day 1

So, our summer vacation started yesterday - I don't have every day off, but I have a bunch as a Director of a small charter school in Moab, Utah. I decided to chronicle our 80 Days of Summer via our blog. Expect a post every day. Some will be more exciting than others. My dad is hanging out in Moab this week while my mom is in Washington, D.C. with our daughter, Annie, and her middle school Quiz Bowl team. Friday, June 1, being the first of the 80 Days of Summer, we decided to take our canoe and kayak and float the flatwater section of the Colorado River from the Moab bridge to Gold Bar - about a 4 hour float. The bridge is 1 mile from our house at the north end of Moab. Brandi was at work, so the 4 Hour Tour included shipmates, Jim (my dad), Joe (me), Emmy, James, and Matthew. 

Entering summer feet first.

 Putting in at the boat launch north of the Moab bridge. 

 Emmy manned the kayak most of the time - I took turns when her arms got tired. The boys manned the canoe with me and Grandpa.

 We threw a cooler in the canoe with Ding Dongs, granola bars, Gatorade, Strawberry sodas, a sub sandwich, chips, and grapes for a sandbar lunch stop. Emmy chilling on her kayak.

 James throwing down a Strawberry brewski.

 River guide dining.

 Entering the portal.

 There's a weird axle mechanism along the river edge here. Rock climbers use the cliffs in the background - a bunch were out today on what they call "Wall Street." We took the kids climbing there a couple summers ago with some friends. 

 Emmy cruising along.

 Emmy.

Paddling along.

We stopped to swim and play whenever we couldn't take the canoe seats any longer.

 Lunch and cooling off.

Finished the day on a date with Brandi to Grand Junction, CO. Outback Steakhouse, Cabela's, and Ross. 

2012 Ogden Marathon

Well, it's done. I was so close to my goal. I ran my 8:50 or so pace through about Mile 23 then went into full leg cramps and averaged about 12:00 the last 3 miles. I hit Mile 23 at about 3:30 and on pace to beat 4 hours. I finished in 4:08. But I wasn't bummed out. In 2010, when I trained up to 23 miles on trails (a first for that high of a training mileage and doing it on trails), I felt strong all the way through to the finish. I averaged 8:58 that year and cruised strong. This year (2012), I did a lot of trail running, but never went past 20 miles. I felt my legs starting to give out around Mile 20 this year, and at Mile 23 hit the wall. From this point on, I'm going to train up to 23-24 miles on trails and have total leg strength to finish. I'm also going to spend the next 12 months working myself toward an 8:00 per mile pace. I'd like to finish in the 3:30s at next year's Ogden Marathon. 

It was funny, but at the 23 Mile marker, the 4:00 pace guide with her sign and balloons and small group of 15 or so runners slipped by me. I tucked in behind them and thought, "I'll just feed off their energy and gut through to the finish." That lasted about 2 minutes and then I faded slowly back. I had been ahead of them for 23 miles, only to get passed at the end. It was a good race.  

I ran with my brother, Dave, for the fourth time. We ran together until Mile 11 when he walked a little longer at the aid station, and I took off. I figured he was gone, especially when I ran all the way up the only real hill around Mile 14 without stopping. But, just past the top of the hill, I hear, "So, how's it going?" And there was Dave. He said he charged like a crazy man up the hill. My first thought was, "He's going to pay for that and crash soon." Which he did. He slowed down around Mile 16, and I never saw him again. Although, for the last ten miles of the race, every time someone came up next to me, I turned to look hoping it was Dave leading some crazy charge to catch up. 

For the first time in seven marathons, I didn't have to stop to go to the bathroom. I tried to eat fairly light the day previous, and I only had a Carnation breakfast drink and half a bagel at 4:30am for breakfast on race day. 

Dave and I were hanging out around the campfires in the cow pasture at the starting line from 5:30-7:00. I was in the porta-potty a little long, and we were almost late getting to the starting line. They announced, "2 minutes to start" just as we stepped to the back of the pack on the road. We quickly ran up along the crowd in the deep, wet grass just off the road toward the front of the pack and hopped in at the 4:00 Hour pace marker. It was so cold, though, that our wet shoes made our toes go numb. It hurt pretty bad running with numb, tingling toes for at least the first mile or two of the race. Idiots. 

Waiting in the long line at the porta potties, a bunch of guys were just walking over to the pasture fence about 30 feet away and peeing. A small group of 4 women hopped the fence and held a blanket up while they took turns peeing. All of a sudden, one of them just turned, pulled down her pants, exposing her butt to all of us, and squatted for at least a full minute peeing. Her friends were all laughing and taking pictures.

Dave started dry-heaving around Mile 16, and I said, "Go over there and puke." And that's when I left him. It made me a little queasy hearing him dry-heave. Then, about a mile later, another guy started to puke next to me, and I almost got sick just hearing that, too. 

Many thanks to Brandi for the pre- and post-race massages, Erin for taking care of us, and Dad and Mom for watching the kids. Dad brought the kids to the Finish Line and watched them for a few hours after. I love Marathon Weekend.

I put this graph together comparing my 3:57 time in 2010 with this year's 4:08 time. So close...

Ogden Marathon
Ogden	2010	2012
Mile #	Mile AVG	Mile AVG
1	08:43.8	08:47.6
2	08:50.4	08:47.9
3	08:46.4	08:42.0
4	08:49.2	08:44.5
5	08:48.5	08:47.1
6	08:52.5	08:49.7
7	08:44.6	08:54.1
8	08:50.8	08:52.2
9	09:00.0	09:00.2
10	08:54.4	08:53.4
11	09:05.4	09:09.6
12	09:28.6	08:56.0
13	09:04.3	08:55.7
14	08:57.3	09:14.2
15	09:17.6	09:17.9
16	10:22.7	09:09.7
17	08:51.9	09:06.6
18	08:40.1	09:00.6
19	08:59.6	09:27.5
20	08:49.1	09:54.7
21	08:55.8	09:22.5
22	08:54.6	09:47.4
23	07:24.5	09:21.5
24	08:52.9	10:42.6
25	09:26.5	11:48.5
26	09:27.2	11:59.8
27	05:07.1	04:57.8
AVG	8:58	9:24
Finish	3:57	4:08

My marathons so far...

2012- Ogden Marathon - 4:08 - Longest training run was 20 miles

2011- Morgan Marathon - 4:38 - Longest training run was 11 miles (4 months after getting out of leg cast)

2011- Ogden Marathon - 5:03 - Longest training run was 13 miles (2 months after getting out of leg cast)

2010- Ogden Marathon - 3:57 - Longest training run was 23 miles on trails

2009- Ogden Marathon - 4:23 - Longest training run was 19 miles (heat this year made me really sick at Mile 18 and struggled to finish)

2008- Ogden Marathon - 4:11 - Longest training run was 19 miles

2007- Ogden Marathon - 4:03 - Longest training run was 13 miles (I don't know how I finished so fast this year - lots of "First Timer" energy I guess)

That's my career as an amateur runner. I will be 40 next April 25 before the Ogden Marathon in May, so I'd like to break 3:40 to celebrate 40!