Author: Mark Allman

Race day. Whew. What a course. After a mile it’s a 3 mile climb up to about 7100 feet, then a creeping gradual rolling climb to a max altitude of 7600 feet. I tried to manage the effort with walking the really steep parts, but it didn’t help much. By mile 5 I was beat. OK, run what you can and mix in walking. Not sure how much of the impact was due to the altitude.

After about 1.5 miles the road turns to dirt/gravel. As the race progressed I accumulated lots of gravel in my shoes. Very painful. Lesson learned: do something, e.g., gauze, some product, etc., to try to keep gravel out of the shoes.

Today’s run was a 26.2. mile run/walk. “Pace,” if you could call it that, was an embarrassing 13:27 (reflects all the walking).

After driving around Rock Springs a bit yesterday, I found a street with a good climb. Not too long but with parts at an 8% grade. One more day of getting acclimated to the altitude.

Today’s run was a short 1.42 mile hills route. Pace was 10:46.

First day in Rock Springs. We’re at about 6200 feet in altitude but I don’t really notice it. The plan today is to put in a little work and see how it feels. Start to get acclimated to the altitude.

Today’s run was a flat 2.52 route. Pace was 9:29.

Last run at home before heading off to Wyoming. Don’t mind getting in some work on a mild, rainy morning before sitting on a plane for hours.

Today’s run was a 12.5 mile rolling hills route. Pace was 9:49.

A warm, very humid and sunny mid-morning for a run. Conditions that sap your energy completely. Good but brutal training weather.

Today’s run was an 8.05 mile rolling hills route. Pace was 9:55.

One more nice morning for a run. Temp around 66, somewhat humid, not a cloud in the sky. It rained, apparently, not long before I hit the road.

Today was to be an easy recovery run, but as usual I decided to push it a bit after I hit the pavement. One more day before backing off to taper before the race in a week or so. I feel like a slacker if I’m trying to “take it easy.”

Today’s run was a rather flat 4.22 mile route. Pace was 9:16. Weight was 146.2.

Nice, somewhat cool early morning for a run. Temperature around 64, no real wind, clear skies. This is the last longer-run day before the “Run With the Horses” marathon on August 19th. From now on it’s more of a focus on tapering, good diet, getting there (Rock Springs, WY), getting acclimated to the altitude (7000 feet), etc., etc.

Today’s run was a 14.74 mile rolling hills route. Pace was 9:33. Weight was 145.8.

Cool, humid morning. Temperature around 63 degrees and 85% humidity. Perfect for a shorter recovery-type run.

Today’s run was a 4.22 mile rather flat route. A few grades thrown in. Pace was 9:36. Weight was 146.0.

Waited until about 8:30 to get out on the road. Sun was well up and it was getting warmer. Better for training.

Felt very drained after yesterday’s climbing, so I scaled back to a more moderate distance. Training is an ongoing, long-term process. Listening to how you feel and adjusting accordingly is important. Not interested in more injuries.

Today’s run was a 9.67 mile rolling hills route. Pace was 9:46. Weight was 144.8.

Saturday: time for some climbing. It’s a good workout. A one mile warm-up and then hit the climb.

The weather was almost ideal for training. Temperature around 72, sunny, and probably 80+% humidity.

Today’s run was a 2.8 mile hills route. The 0.87 mile hill average grade is around 9%. Ran that twice. Pace was 11:02. Weight was 144.8.