Tucson 5000 Race Report

I wasn't very quick with this one but here is the Tucson 5000 race recap:
As Allison was coming back from injury and looking for some races she put this one on the schedule. It's a pretty flat course on a square course so it's fast and the competition is usually pretty good for a local 5k. We ran this race back in 2005 and had a good experience. The Tucson folks (Southern Arizona Roadrunners) put on a well organized race for a minimal cost. I was originally going to be on a break but I've been feeling good and have extended my cycle so I decided to join her for this one. Unfortunately Allison came up with an injury the week of the race so it turned out that it would just be me racing in Tucson.

Coming off of a PR at the Carlsbad 5000 and the Eugene Half Marathon I was feeling confident and running as well as I ever had. I was certain that I was ready for a PR (15:44) and I thought that under good conditions I had a 15:30 in me. 15:30 is a time that I always have looked up to and respected as a legit 5k time. I have always wanted to get there and I thought it was my time.  Since we are about 2 hours from Tucson we decided to drive down the morning of and make it a quick trip. My mom was awesome and showed up before 4 am to watch the kids. Allison and I had a nice peaceful drive down to Tucson and we made it to the race with about an hour to spare. There were a few people from Phoenix down for the race that we bumped into and then I ran the course for a warm up. I definitely noticed the headwind on the first mile and the slight downhill and tailwind during mile two. I ended up being a little rushed at the end but I felt warmed up and ready to go. I saw some guys that I knew were fast including Craig Curley who had just got sixth place at the US 25k Championships the day before. Surely he was tired from that race and traveling right? I just knew that I was going to compete and not worry about time. The time would come if I competed well. Or so I thought.

Curley and a couple others took it out and I was in the second group and somewhere in the top 10. I was trying to run behind people to block the wind when I could and yet run hard and run my own race. I hit the mile in 5:04 and I thought with the slight uphill and headwind that it was right where I wanted to be. Shortly after that it really started hurting and I focused on just staying as close as I could to the guys just ahead of me. I figured I was losing time to my goal but I wasn't sure. I hit a 5:09 for the second mile and I was really hurting by this point. I told myself that I could still run under 16 minutes and that would be good. The tailwind and slight downhill weren't helping my speed though as I was too fatigued. When we turned the corner at about 2.25 miles the final stretch seemed so long. Normally I have a decent kick but it just wasn't there for me this time. I hit the third mile in 5:15 and didn't have very much left for the last little kick. I crossed the line in 16:02 and I was disappointed. I had not been passed at all during the race which was surprising with my slowing down. I ended up in 6th place and a long way from the 15:30 I had hoped for. I thought that I competed well and gave an honest effort so in the end I can't ask much more of myself. I learned that PRs are hard to come by and cannot be taken for granted. Sometimes everything just has to line up for those specials performances. By the way Craig Curley ended up running a 14:40 which amazed me considering what he had done the day before. I did win a coffee mug for winning my age group which next to the beer mug I won at this race in 2005 was the best prize I've ever won.

Right at the start. Craig Curley is #2

Holding on at this point

After the race I cooled down on the course with my buddy Ricardo who was the top master (I think he always is) and then we headed back to Phoenix for a bunch of Mother's Day festivities. It was a good trip and I recommend this race if you are looking for a fast 5k in May. I have a feeling all of SAR's races are well organized. My next race will be the Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon on May 26 in Ventura, CA.

Race Results Here

Huge Euge Weekend!

We had an amazing weekend in Eugene at the Eugene Half Marathon! It lived up to all the #HugeEug hype.  Here's how it went:

We left early Friday morning and had a flight from Mesa straight to Eugene.  We like how the small and super convenient airport by our house flies to our random race destinations. We went right to the hotel to check in and then to the expo to pickup our race bibs.  We then decided to go check out some of the course and Hayward Field (track capital of the US).  Coming from Gilbert, AZ, where we have to drive to find hills, the course seemed a little hilly to us but nothing too bad. We loved all the green scenery and had fun picking out the spots we would be eating (and drinking). Steph Rothstein put out a great pre race blog on what to do in Eugene. We took many of her recommendations and loved every restaurant and brewery we went to. We were there for a race but it was tough not to enjoy some of the great places. Our favorite places were the Wandering Goat for coffee, the Pizza Research Institute, and the Oakshire Brewery Public House.  The running in Eugene was awesome as expected. Just steps from our hotel room was a great path along the river that connected to Pre's Trail and a bunch of other trails. We were able to get a nice run in on Pre's Trail. We felt like we were on the go a lot and got to experience a ton of stuff. We also met so many great people and got to talk with some of the stars of the running world.

Half Marathon course profile

We're in there somewhere!

Moment of silence for Boston

Allison's Race Report: 1:22:01 6th Place

We signed up for the race in early February when I was on my way back from injury. I think the next day after we bought the plane tickets I hurt my back and was out another 3 weeks. I have been very cautious with coming back this time and didn't think I would be anywhere near ready to run a half marathon. After the Carlsbad 5000 my coach said it would be okay to run the half marathon as a progression run. I was  happy with that and knew it would at least be a very good workout for me. Allison Krausen, one of my Oiselle teammates contacted me about running the race together and I knew that would at least make it a fun experience.  Race morning was perfect. 50 degrees and cloudy at the start. I met Allison for a short warm up and then we were off to the start. The plan was to run the first 8 miles fairly comfortably and then pick it up from there. The first 8 felt great and I was able to pick it up after that but not quite as much as I had hoped. Allison had to stop around mile 10 with a pain in her foot. It was great to have her to run with and I hope it's nothing serious and she can get back to training right away.  I finished in 1:22:01 and if you told me a few weeks ago I would run a pain free half in that time I would have taken it for sure. The course and crowd support were amazing. Everyone talks about how great these Eugene fans are and they did not disappoint. The best part was passing the Oiselle team at miles 9 and 13. They gave me the biggest boost! Best cheer squad ever! It was great to see Derek after and hear how well he did. We did a quick cool down and then went and met the Oiselle cheer squad to cheer on the marathoners at mile 26. There were some great performances all around.  Next up is the Tucson 5000 May 12th, then the Mountains 2 Beach half marathon May 26th, and then the US Half Marathon Champs June 22nd in Duluth, MN. I've got my work cut out for me if I'm going to be able to run as fast as last year in Duluth, but I'm ready for the challenge!

Flying old school style out of Williams Gateway Airport

The famous Hayward Field

Looking up at the stands of Hayward

Beautiful setting for a track. 

We hit up Pizza Research Institute twice.

The local beers were amazing!

Wandering Goat had the best coffee we'd ever had. 

We ran along this river a couple of times and the race crossed over here also.

The start of Pre's Trail

Race morning. The calm before the storm.

Oiselle Team ladies!

The finish line on the track. How cool is that?!

Oakshire Public House was a great place for a beer

Derek's favorite was the Espresso Stout.

Picky Bar party at Ninkasi Brewing Company. Yeah, that was fun!

Derek's Race Recap (Some things repeated sorry)
1:11:40 PR 13th Place, 2nd Age Group 
The Eugene Half Marathon was a great race. Eugene is an awesome place for running. The city is extremely knowledgeable about running and there are some great places to run. We got in Friday and tried to get to know our way around the best we could. Since the race started and ended at the famous Hayward Field at the University of Oregon we stopped in for some pictures. Allison had raced there in college every year and I had been once to watch her. On race morning we got to the race about an hour early and we had a nice designated area for the elites to warm up in and get ready. About 10 minutes before the start we all walked over to the start for the national anthem and the start. There was a nice moment of silence for Boston and then we were off. We started with the marathoners so it was hard for me to tell who was in what race but there were a lot of fast runners. I've been focusing lately on not using my watch as a guide in races and it's been working well. It feels so much better to just compete and that's what I did in this race. I wore my watch but I didn't check my pace other than mile splits and I made all of my decisions based upon how I was feeling and how I wanted to compete. The first couple of miles I was running with a bunch of people before it started to thin out. My first two miles were 5:25,5:26. At about two miles I had to make a decision to speed up to a group of 4 that had put about 15 meters on me. That was a good choice because when I tucked in behind them it felt really comfortable as we headed up the slight incline. My next three miles were 5:29,5:36,5:39 and included some hills. I was feeling very comfortable at this point so I picked it up led a couple of miles back down.  I felt strong and pushed the pace. I was pleasantly surprised when the next three miles beeped 5:20,5:24,5:21.  Our pack was sticking together and it was helping a lot. I was just trying to compete and use the pack to keep rolling. The highlight of the race for me was the ninth mile. It had the biggest hill of the course in it and our pack went up the hill in a single file line with huge crowds on each side. While we weren't the lead pack the crowd still gave us tons of encouragement and I definitely fed off of that. At the top of the hill I was feeling strong so I led back down the hill towards Hayward Field and the largest crowds. That was awesome and I moment I won't forget. Allison's Oiselle teammates were really loud and they helped a lot too. I'm no running rock star but I felt like it for about a minute. Shortly after that the course did a loop by the river which is where I started to struggle and our pack fell apart. Four of the guys from our pack sped up just a little while I fell off the pace just a little around 10 miles which created a gap that I couldn't make up. I was able to maintain the last few miles at that pace but the other guys had a little more than I did. The last few miles were a struggle but in a half marathon they should be and I was happy with the pace I was able to maintain coming in . Once we got off the river and I could sense the finish coming I knew I could hold it together and get a PR. The question was if I would break 1:12. When I entered Hayward Field I saw a 1:10 on the clock and I knew I had it. The last 200 was awesome finishing on the track knowing that I had accomplished my goal. The last five miles were 5:29, 5:30, 5:32, 5:31, 5:28, and 4:35 pace for the last .1. Going into the race I knew I was in close to 1:12 shape but it feels great to actually go out and do it. Two races in a row now I have focused more on competing and not letting the watch dictate my race. I'm convinced this is the way to get the most out of myself. 

Heading toward the finish at Hayward Field

Results from the race here

A Week of Boston

On Monday morning Allison and I woke up and were really excited. It was Boston Marathon day. Allison was home with the kids and I had my normal work day but she would be able watch it on TV and I could follow people on the Internet. Many of our Bandido teammates were running it and Johanna who we coach was also in it. Also, the elite races were of great interest to us and included our friend Ariana Hilborn who was running her first marathon under the Hanson's Brooks direction. A group of men from our group was entered in the master's team competition and had a good chance to win. These guys have been my training partners and friends over the last couple of years. It was going to be quite the exciting day.

Allison and I communicated a lot Monday morning discussing how people were doing and how we were both pumped up about running in general. The Bandidos were having great races and it was exciting. Johanna had executed her first half exactly as we discussed and the top American women were hanging in the race. We soon found out that the Bandido men had all negative split and run high 2:37 to low 2:38 and all finished 25 seconds within each other. We were excited and proud of them. I texted my friend Brett to congratulate him and he wrote back saying what a great experience it was. Shortly thereafter we saw the Johanna had run a good race coming in at 3:34.Things quickly changed after that.

Me, Brett, Ricardo, JT at the Lost Dutchman Half in February. The three of them along with Jeff Matsumoto won the team master's competition at Boston

Following Twitter for race updates we quickly found out about some sort of explosion at the finish line. I texted many of my friends and Johanna's boyfriend Octavio to make sure everyone was okay. The day turned from excitement to fear very quickly. Octavio didn't even know about the explosion. He heard it from me. At first we didn't know much about the explosion but it quickly became apparent that it was something more than just a random accident or something minor. My fear grew quickly. Thankfully, everyone I knew checked in pretty quickly and was safe. Throughout the day more and more horrific details came in. It was awful. Driving home that afternoon I had knots in my stomach. How could somebody do this? I had hoped to congratulate Johanna and all my teammates who had done so well but their race efforts seemed so insignificant as more and more tragic reports came in.

Like the rest of the country we have been keeping a close eye on the progress of the story this week. Last night we were glued to the TV as authorities move in on the second suspect and eventually captured him. What a relief. It was a crazy week full of emotions. We are very thankful that our friends made it home safely and our thoughts go out to those affected by the bombings. It's been an up and down week for sure and it's a relief to know that one chapter of the story is over now. For some reason I have never been too excited about running Boston but I'm pulled to it now and I feel a connection to the race. Maybe I'll join everybody else and do it next year!

Perfect Foods Bar!

Derek's Blog:
For a long time I've been enjoying Perfect Foods Bar since my friend Ariana Hilborn turned me on to them a while back. I am really excited to be part of the team myself now and represent such a great company and product! This should be a good partnership since I talk about how good they are all the time already. So what are Perfect Foods Bar and how do they fit into my training?

Perfect Foods Bars are made with all organic ingredients and REAL food. The best part is that they taste amazing though so I get all the nutrients I need while I feel like I'm eating desert. I usually eat them after hard workouts and long runs for my breakfast. They are loaded with protein and carbs which are great for my recovery.  They come in 5 delicious flavors and with the exception of the Almond Butter Bar they all have a peanut butter base. So if you like peanut butter this your bar. My favorite flavor is the peanut butter.

5 Awesome Flavors

My favorite flavor

10 Reasons to try Perfect Foods Bars: (From Website)

10. Simple Ingredients. Real Food. You can pronounce all of the ingredients without a chemistry degree.

9. Over 20 nutrient dense organic whole foods provide good vitamins and minerals on-the-go. Plus, with ingredients such as tomato, bell pepper, alfalfa and celery, you will finally be able to tell your mother that you're eating your vegetables!

8. No Refined Sugar. Since the only sweetener we use is organic honey, your body can digest it slower than it would refined sugar. This means you'll have long sustained energy without a crash.

7. Good source of fiber. Everyone knows fiber is important and aids in proper digestion. 

6. Soy free. Research suggests soy consumption might be linked to several health conditions including: bloating, hormonal imbalance, unusual weight gain, and allergies. (Hidden Dangers of Soy by Dianne Gregg.) The problem with soy is that most products you find at the grocery store have some form of this ingredient - you have to know what to look for because it’s hidden in so many ingredients.

5. Handmade. These bars are handmade by happy people in sunny San Diego. We create jobs and support our local community. Besides, robots are kind of scary.

4. High in Omega-3s. Anti-inflammatory omega-3s are an important addition to your daily diet. 

3. Gluten free. Whether you've been diagnosed with celiacs or have found that your body doesn't digest gluten very well, we are committed to being gluten-free. We encourage everyone to read more about the ill effects of gluten on your body's digestive system. 

2. Refrigerated. Because there are no artificial ingredients or chemical preservatives these bars are stored in the fridge. Yum! 

1. They taste amazing. PERIOD. Seriously, you really won't even remember the 9 other reasons once you try a bar. They taste like cookie dough, but are packed with the nutrients your body needs to stay active!

Peanut Butter Bar Nutrition

So now you are convinced to try Perfect Foods Bar but where you can get them? Try one of these stores or order online. Enjoy! Recovery never tasted so good!

Carlsbad 5000

We had a great trip to Carlsbad to celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary and run in the Carlsbad 5000 this last weekend.  The weekend was filled with enough to do but also aloud for plenty of time to relax.  We got in Friday night and hit up Pizza Port Brewing Company.  We heard it was a great place and it did not disappoint.   Saturday morning we got up and ran the course.  We ran this race last year but it was nice to see where all the ups, downs, and turns were again.  After running we picked up our packets and watched the kids race.  We really enjoyed watching the kids races and hope to bring our kids back another year to do the race.  The rest of the day was spent checking out Carlsbad and of course a pasta dinner.

View from our patio

All my Oiselle gear

Pizza Port

Where we started our run with the ocean in the background

Allison's Race Report
It was a little cold so I waited in the car until it was time for me to start warming up.  I finished my warm up just in time to see Derek finishing.  Seeing him finish strong and meet his goal really inspired me to go out there and have fun.  I knew I hadn't put in all the hard training he had but it still got me excited to go after it.  I finished my warm up and headed to the start line to do a few strides.  The start was a little strange for me because I am used to getting up front and running with the leaders but I knew I wasn't in shape to be running up front.  I tucked in behind the front row of runners.  Once the race started I felt really relaxed and just happy to be out there.  I got out quicker than I planned but it felt really good.  My first mile was 6:02.  Shortly after the first mile I saw my coach and it gave me a rush of adrenaline and I picked up the pace.  The second mile was 5:52, which is more of an uphill mile.  I started to hurt toward the end of this mile but I just tried to stay relax and try to pass the people in front of me.  I saw Derek with about a 1/4 mile to go and he told me to give it all I had for one more minute.  I thought in my head I could run a 1/4 in college that fast but not now.  I didn't have much of a kick to the finish.  My third mile was 5:55 and my finishing time was 18:26.  About a minute slower than last year but a lot better than I expected to run.  I am very happy with the starting place and know I can make big improvements in the next couple of months.

Derek's Race Report
15:44 was my official time and I was 11th place in my race. The races are all divided into age groups so I was running with only 30-39 year olds. This is our second year in a row doing this race and we love it. It's very well organized and the city is very into the race. It's also not a bad place to be hanging out by the ocean. My workouts have been going well lately and I knew I could run somewhere in the high 15s. It was just a matter of executing. I actually got really nervous this morning about being able to put it all together but everything worked out. I convinced myself I would not look at my watch and I would just compete. I've never been able to do that but it paid off. I set my watch to split at each kilometer but I only looked at the 4th one. There are a lot of fast people at this race and there was a group of about 15 that I was at the back of. I felt good and went with it just trying to hang on to the lead group. I had a feeling we were out quick and I hit the mile (clock on the course) in 4:54. Instead of telling myself I was too fast I told myself I was having a good day and kept getting after it. The second mile is the slowest mile on the course and I was able to pass a couple of guys there. I hit the two mile marker at 10:04 and I knew I would break 16. I have no idea what my third mile was but I first saw the clock when it said low 15s with a little more than 200 to go. I was able to have a strong kick and I was really happy with the result. My 1k splits on my watch were 3:05, 3:10, 3:09, 3:11, 3:07. This was an 11 second road PR and 19 seconds faster than last year. I will be back next year for this race. It's a good one! We stayed around and watched the elite race afterwards. Amazing how fast they were running. The Olympic silver medalist at 5000 meters (Gebremeskel) won in 13:21. They were so impressive. 

After the race we stuck around to watch the elite races.  They have a separate race for the elite men and women.  Each race was only about 10-12 runners.  It was amazing to see how effortlessly they look while running so fast.  Before the race we ran in the Stephanie Rothstein Bruce and she is always super nice to talk to.  I can't wait to see her tear it up at Boston.  After the race we ran into Desi Davila and she was also very nice.  I have now met Shalane, Kara, Desi, and Steph.  They were all equally friendly!

The elite men

The elite women

Awesome weekend! Can't wait to go back!

Results Here

Back Racing and off to Carlsbad

The last blog post I wrote I was excited to get back to a training schedule.  Shortly after that I hurt my lower back and had to take 3 more weeks off.  I am happy to say I have been back running for about a month now.  Derek and I had planned awhile back to run the Carlsbad 5000 this weekend.  At the time I thought I would be rounding into shape just in time.  Instead I have been slowly building my miles and have added in a few pickups to get me ready to start doing workouts.  I have decided to race this weekend because we are still planning on making the trip to Carlsbad.  It is also a fun trip for our 10 year anniversary.  I haven't done anything to challenge myself yet or determine where my fitness level is but I am just excited to get back to racing and put my Oiselle uniform back on.  Hopefully this will be the start of a great racing season!

Phoenix Marathon

Saturday was a big day. I ran in the Phoenix Half Marathon and was coaching a bunch of people in the half and full marathon and this was a big day for them. I sort of felt like my own half marathon was very insignificant. So many of them had worked hard for so long and this was their moment to show it. It was an early morning with the 6:30 start time. I was actually sleeping in a little until 3:15 and at 6:30 the weather was just perfect. My favorite time to run is dawn so I loved it. When I got off the freeway to get to the buses there was a huge delay. I moved about 1/4 mile in 20 minutes and I could tell I was going to be late for the bus so I pulled back on to the freeway and parked 2.5 miles from the start and just did my warm up and strides on my way to the start. That turned out to be a great decision. I found a port a potty on the way and had very little stress. I ended up at the start with about 10 minutes to go and I felt ready to go. The race was well organized and got started on time.The weather seemed perfect. I was determined to go off effort and not look at my watch at all until the mile splits. First two seemed conservative enough and were 5:41,5:44. A lead group of 4 had separated early and I was running with another guy for the first nine miles. We would trade surges and taking the lead but it was nice to have him there. Rest of the splits were 5:34,5:36,5:38,5:37,5:39, 5:39, 5:38,5:45,5:44,5:43,5:31, (4:59 pace for the last .16) for an official time of 1:14:21 and sixth place. The guy I was running with gapped me around 9 miles and I didn't respond well enough to stick to him. I was hurting so I tried of course but you always say "what if" when you look back. Anyway, I was a little disappointed with the time and miles 10,11,12 is where I lost the time that I was hoping for. The course was good, weather was perfect, and I gave it my all so I can't ask for much more. After the race I quickly met up with Allison and the kids and I cooled down a couple of miles. At this point if I don't cool down right away I'll end up in pretty bad shape the next day. The post race refueling stuff was awesome and I loaded up for the kids. It was definitely one of those "we don't care what they eat today" days. We had to keep them happy for a long time. After I had cooled down and we had gotten our Starbucks fix we went on the course to watch the marathoners coming in at around mile 25. We were able to see our friend Jake come by in the lead with another guy sitting right on him. It was exciting to see someone we knew battling for the win like that. About an hour later we found out he had won. We then waited for all of our athletes to come by which was totally nerve-wracking. Most people are struggling pretty bad at mile 25 so you really get to see just how tough the race is. We got to see Julie who qualified for Boston, Ashley, and my sister Dana all coming in which was great. It is such an accomplishment to run 26 miles so we were really proud of everybody. I thought the race was well organized and I thought they did a really good job for a first year marathon. I'm sure we'll be back next year. Now it's time for a quick turnaround and the Mountain to Fountain 15k this weekend!