Sunday, May 24, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Ogden Marathon Again
Another marathon under my feet! This one was the most enjoyable by far. The day started with little sleep and too much liquid... The bus I was on left right at 5:00am and made it to the start line by 5:46 where a frosted pasture filled with port-a-potties and fire barrels awaited.
The goals that I had going into this one were:
1) Enjoy this marathon
2) Finish under 4 hours
3) Run a negative split (last half faster than the first half)
4) Beat last year's time
5) Finish under 3 and a half hours
#5 was maybe a bit of a stretch, as I only ran 285 miles in the last 4 months (last year I ran 450 miles in the 4 months before the race) but it doesn't hurt to dream big. Well, at 3:39:31.3 (1:56:48.6 at the half-way point and 1:42:42.7 for the second half), that was the only one I didn't meet.
The sun came up about 15 minutes before the start, but the cool temperatures prevailed for nearly 15 miles (that's where the top of the only major hill was). I started out really slow - 9:41 for the first mile, 9:17 second and 9:08 for the third. After that, the only miles that were over 9:00 were the 4th (I walked for 1 minute to keep me from going too fast), the 6th (potty break), the 11th (another potty break), the 14th (did I mention that I started the day with too much liquid?), and the 15th (where I kept myself from powering up the hill by applying chapstick with sunblock to my lips, ears, nose, cheeks, and forehead).
They say that your not supposed to try anything new in a race (26.2 miles is a long way to have to deal with the dire consequences) but the "chocolate outrage" GU at mile 9 seemed so appealing that I just had to try it! It was so delicious that at mile 13.1 I tried another flavor, and at mile 15 I took 2 more to try a little later. The only negative consequence that I can think of is the expectation that my body may have for delicious energy the next time I do another long run (Bear Lake Marathon on June 13th). I doubt that I'll buy any, it's over $1 per pouch!
The first 15 miles, my average mile time was 8:58. The next 11 miles it was 7:36. My family was waiting near the end, so the last 0.2 miles, my pace was 6:40! It is awesome to have a family that is so supportive!
On to the next one!
The goals that I had going into this one were:
1) Enjoy this marathon
2) Finish under 4 hours
3) Run a negative split (last half faster than the first half)
4) Beat last year's time
5) Finish under 3 and a half hours
#5 was maybe a bit of a stretch, as I only ran 285 miles in the last 4 months (last year I ran 450 miles in the 4 months before the race) but it doesn't hurt to dream big. Well, at 3:39:31.3 (1:56:48.6 at the half-way point and 1:42:42.7 for the second half), that was the only one I didn't meet.
The sun came up about 15 minutes before the start, but the cool temperatures prevailed for nearly 15 miles (that's where the top of the only major hill was). I started out really slow - 9:41 for the first mile, 9:17 second and 9:08 for the third. After that, the only miles that were over 9:00 were the 4th (I walked for 1 minute to keep me from going too fast), the 6th (potty break), the 11th (another potty break), the 14th (did I mention that I started the day with too much liquid?), and the 15th (where I kept myself from powering up the hill by applying chapstick with sunblock to my lips, ears, nose, cheeks, and forehead).
They say that your not supposed to try anything new in a race (26.2 miles is a long way to have to deal with the dire consequences) but the "chocolate outrage" GU at mile 9 seemed so appealing that I just had to try it! It was so delicious that at mile 13.1 I tried another flavor, and at mile 15 I took 2 more to try a little later. The only negative consequence that I can think of is the expectation that my body may have for delicious energy the next time I do another long run (Bear Lake Marathon on June 13th). I doubt that I'll buy any, it's over $1 per pouch!
The first 15 miles, my average mile time was 8:58. The next 11 miles it was 7:36. My family was waiting near the end, so the last 0.2 miles, my pace was 6:40! It is awesome to have a family that is so supportive!
On to the next one!
Monday, March 9, 2009
Training Again
Well, I guess that it is time to start training again. Other than the marathon, in January and February, I ran a total of 52 miles - 2.8 less than the last week of October. I think that I may have learned something the very first day back, something that I would think I should have learned a long time ago: running in the morning is hard on my knees.
I've had bad knees since the 8th grade but they seemed to have gotten better through marathon training. The last week of October did them in, though. I backed off on the miles but it still seemed like almost every time I ran my knees paid the price. Since April or May 2008, most of my running has been outside, in the morning. Prior to that, nearly 100% was on a treadmill in the evening. Last Monday, I ran 4 miles in the morning and by 4:00 pm my knees were sore. Tuesday evening, I played basketball - no problems, which has been the case since about three months after I began training for my first marathon. Wednesday evening - four miles, Thursday evening - 4.5 miles, and Saturday - six miles, all without soreness.
So, until my knees are 100% - no morning runs!
I've had bad knees since the 8th grade but they seemed to have gotten better through marathon training. The last week of October did them in, though. I backed off on the miles but it still seemed like almost every time I ran my knees paid the price. Since April or May 2008, most of my running has been outside, in the morning. Prior to that, nearly 100% was on a treadmill in the evening. Last Monday, I ran 4 miles in the morning and by 4:00 pm my knees were sore. Tuesday evening, I played basketball - no problems, which has been the case since about three months after I began training for my first marathon. Wednesday evening - four miles, Thursday evening - 4.5 miles, and Saturday - six miles, all without soreness.
So, until my knees are 100% - no morning runs!
Monday, January 5, 2009
Running From an Angel
This race was meant to keep me running through the holidays. I guess that it worked, at least a little. After running 54.8 miles the last week of October (causing knee pain) followed by pleurisy in November (1 week off and pain that finally went away in mid-December) with weak training in November (9 runs for 75.4 miles) and December (11 runs for 60.5 miles), having gained over 10 pounds, I hoped that I could meet my original goal of averaging 10-minute miles.
I had run 10-minute miles in my final weeks of training so I could figure out what my heart would be doing for 10 minute miles (without elevation change). My heart rate monitor was a bit wacky the first two miles (showing max HR as 220 and average HR as 180) but seemed pretty reliable after that. By the time it was all over, my average HR was 167 and the max that I saw was 186. My split time was 2:10:45 and the second half time was 2:05:05 - my first negative split! My official time was 4:15:49.94, 33rd overall out of 80, 4th or 5th in my division (it depends on whether the top runners overall stay in the division...) and I feel pretty good about the whole thing.I normally use Jeri Dawn's iPod, since it's smaller than mine, and I normally listen to my "Odio" playlist, or my "Exercise" playlist. I had debated whether or not to listen to my "Christmas" playlist, but didn't take the time to put it on her iPod. It turns out that she deleted whatever playlist I had added, so I ran to her "Mix" playlist. It was actually quite enjoyable to listen to a fresh lineup of music. Some songs I had never heard, during some songs I caught myself moving to the music (something that's actually quite difficult for someone with no rhythm) and often times I caught myself singing outloud (wasting precious energy - so I started lip syncing instead), but I enjoyed listening to my wife's music. This is the first time that I've ever run for more than four hours. I used to wonder what marathoners thought about while running for so long. Now that I've trained for and run three marathons, I still wonder what they think about... If it weren't for the music, I don't know what I'd do.
My brother Travis was supposed to run too, but apparently a torn meniscus causes the strongest man alive to succumb to his wife's desires and he hasn't run for a while. So I went down with my mom! We had a great time chatting, fretting (Darrin texted everyone saying he had syphilis - we didn't know the truth for a few hours) eating at Wolfgang Puck's at the Venetian again and staying at Nanna Emerson's (my mom's friend's mom.)
In spite of the crazy wind, the ups and downs, and the few specatators (my mom was the greatest) it was a great experience. Calico Racing puts on a great event, the aid stations were great, the food wonderful and the run was challenging. It is one I may go back to!
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Solar Air Heater Results
Here are the promised results - kind of. For a few hours in the middle of the day, the thermocouple measuring the temperature of the air coming in the house didn't return a reading. I suspect that this is due to the fact that I never soldered them, so as it got warmer and warmer, the two wires separated. I'm going to solder the thermocouple today and take some more readings. I assumed that temperature stayed at least as high as right before it quit reading. I think it's a fairly safe assumption since when it did start reading again it was within a degree or two of when it stopped.I also think that the temperature is way too high. I'm sure that I am losing heat to the environment so I plan on installing another snap disc sensor to control three more fans. I'll have these fans turn on when the air entering the house exceeds 110°F and turn off when it drops below 90°F, just like the fans in the heaters. I'll install these at the air intake in the house, hoping that the additional air flow will keep the temperature of the heaters and duct work lower, but increase the overall temperature in the house. I also plan on monitoring the temperature in the room where all the air blows.
My wife turned the heater off yesterday at 10:40am and back on after 4:00pm. That's one fifth of the day. I hope that correlates with at least one fifth of my gas bill. We'll see...
Monday, December 1, 2008
Solar Air Heater - Project Complete
They're done! They're installed! They're running right now! What else is there to say?The scaffolding lifts them off the ground six feet. This should get me about two hours more of run time per day. I wanted to use one more set of scaffolding to get them up higher but I'm not sure it's worth the risk. If we have wind like we did November 20th, I doubt these will survive being as high as they are. This picture was taken before I finished ducting them to the house - minor detail that DIYers will notice, so I thought I'd mention it...
Tomorrow I'll post the heating results from today - temperature in versus temperature out. In a month or so, I'll post the $aving$ realized for November/December - with one unit installed temporarily for half the time and three units installed for the other half of the time.
The actual costs (not including taxes) for building each unit are posted below.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Project: Tagged
This is supposed to be a project site - dedicated to whatever my whims may be. At this moment, I've been tasked with a project that, though I didn't come up with it on my own, I feel a little compelled to complete it in the spirit of Blogdom. JEN (THIS IS HER PAGE) has tagged me and now I have abide by the following...
Here are the rules:
1. link to the person who tagged you.
2. post the rules on your blog.
3. write six random things about yourself.
4. tag six people at the end of your post and link to them.
5. let each person know they’ve been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.
6. let the tagger know when your entry is up.
Random things about me:
1. I love Nike - something that started probably in Jr. High or High School, but became a little more overwhelming while I was in Argentina. It has nothing to do with their apparel, spokespeople, or anything like that, I just love "Just Do It." Sure, there have been times in my life when I've come up with "reasons" for not doing something, but winning (Victory - Nike Athena, Goddess of) doesn't come from excuses, it comes from doing. Whether it be in peaceful competition (life) or war (death), I vow to be a doer (even if on the inside I think I'm a thinker...)
2. I hate speaking in any organized fashion. It makes me sick to my stomach for weeks at a time. It was hardly tolerable on my mission and hasn't gotten any better. The year before I left for Argentina, I bore my testimony in Church every month, hoping that I would get over the 'dread' of speaking - it didn't work. The last time I was asked to give a talk in Church, it went well, until the following week when the ulcer pains moved from the upper left quadrant of my stomach to the lower right quadrant of my belly and I had to have my appendix removed. It's strange though, if I don't have to talk, I'll talk 'til long after you've quit listening - as long as nothing was assigned.
3. I look up to each of my brothers. I don't know specifically what it is about each one, but I admire them deeply and am inspired by them.
4. Deep down, even though I know it doesn't make any sense, I think I'm invincible. I'm not talking about being able to do stupid things and get away with it. I've always been a little more timid about going out on a limb risking physical harm - I've always wanted a family to take care of and you can't do that with a broken back. And I know that after thinking through something logically and deciding that it can be done, I can do it. But that's not what I'm talking about either. I'm talking about a burning spirit, a yearning inside to keep going, a driving force that cannot be stopped by whatever may come in life.
5. Christmastime is my favorite 3 months of the year!
6. There are things in life that I once found enjoyable that I gave up so I could have something that means so much to me. I like video games as much as the next person. I like watching basketball, football, Law and Order, CSI, etc. We don't have any TV reception right now and haven't for years. I enjoy golfing, but haven't been for years. My wife wasn't into those things when we got married and my three girls aren't into any of those things yet. So, life passes me by, people talk about sports, television shows, whatever. I just listen and think of the time I've spent with my family and know that someday I'll still have them.
7. 6 isn't enough and I could go on (remember #2 - randomness isn't really like an assigned topic...)
Now, to make this easier on myself, I've noticed that most blogs include husband/wife combos, so I'm tagging
1. David McKellar
2. Brian Tingey
3. BJ McKellar
4. Darwin Parker
5. Travis McKellar
6. Darrin McKellar - even though he doesn't have one - maybe mom can help
Here are the rules:
1. link to the person who tagged you.
2. post the rules on your blog.
3. write six random things about yourself.
4. tag six people at the end of your post and link to them.
5. let each person know they’ve been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.
6. let the tagger know when your entry is up.
Random things about me:
1. I love Nike - something that started probably in Jr. High or High School, but became a little more overwhelming while I was in Argentina. It has nothing to do with their apparel, spokespeople, or anything like that, I just love "Just Do It." Sure, there have been times in my life when I've come up with "reasons" for not doing something, but winning (Victory - Nike Athena, Goddess of) doesn't come from excuses, it comes from doing. Whether it be in peaceful competition (life) or war (death), I vow to be a doer (even if on the inside I think I'm a thinker...)
2. I hate speaking in any organized fashion. It makes me sick to my stomach for weeks at a time. It was hardly tolerable on my mission and hasn't gotten any better. The year before I left for Argentina, I bore my testimony in Church every month, hoping that I would get over the 'dread' of speaking - it didn't work. The last time I was asked to give a talk in Church, it went well, until the following week when the ulcer pains moved from the upper left quadrant of my stomach to the lower right quadrant of my belly and I had to have my appendix removed. It's strange though, if I don't have to talk, I'll talk 'til long after you've quit listening - as long as nothing was assigned.
3. I look up to each of my brothers. I don't know specifically what it is about each one, but I admire them deeply and am inspired by them.
4. Deep down, even though I know it doesn't make any sense, I think I'm invincible. I'm not talking about being able to do stupid things and get away with it. I've always been a little more timid about going out on a limb risking physical harm - I've always wanted a family to take care of and you can't do that with a broken back. And I know that after thinking through something logically and deciding that it can be done, I can do it. But that's not what I'm talking about either. I'm talking about a burning spirit, a yearning inside to keep going, a driving force that cannot be stopped by whatever may come in life.
5. Christmastime is my favorite 3 months of the year!
6. There are things in life that I once found enjoyable that I gave up so I could have something that means so much to me. I like video games as much as the next person. I like watching basketball, football, Law and Order, CSI, etc. We don't have any TV reception right now and haven't for years. I enjoy golfing, but haven't been for years. My wife wasn't into those things when we got married and my three girls aren't into any of those things yet. So, life passes me by, people talk about sports, television shows, whatever. I just listen and think of the time I've spent with my family and know that someday I'll still have them.
7. 6 isn't enough and I could go on (remember #2 - randomness isn't really like an assigned topic...)
Now, to make this easier on myself, I've noticed that most blogs include husband/wife combos, so I'm tagging
1. David McKellar
2. Brian Tingey
3. BJ McKellar
4. Darwin Parker
5. Travis McKellar
6. Darrin McKellar - even though he doesn't have one - maybe mom can help
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