So much depends... on the run you do today!

am: usual 3

pm: went to SUU for a recruting trip and had a blast. ended up that i watched the team run instead of running with them and they had stuff planned the whole day so i didn't get a run in :(

afternoonish: so after the tour and recruiting trip ended at about 3 i decided to go out for a run to make up a bit for yesterday. so i went and ran a mile loop, then did 2x200's and finished the rest of the milage with SUU's girl team because they happened to be running at the time. that was pretty fun.

pm: did 5 more with the team that night with a couple fartlik's. felt pretty good.

so i got to the race about 8, and we did 4 laps around the course for 4 miles, a little longer warm up then we usually do. and i used the bathroom and got to the starting line. did a few striders and got ready.

the race started and i got out pretty good and felt confident. i was in the top 5 or so and just stayed with kramer for the first mile (5:10) it felt a little slow but i just stayed behind everyone..then it happened. i just stopped pushing and i fell very far behind. after that i just gave up and hated it. so i just ran. after the 2nd lap (10:41) jason quinn, the kid that get 2nd in our region, came up on my back and i just frowned, cause i haven't been beat by anyone from my region all year and when i saw he was right behind me i already said in my mind i was defeated. but for some reason he didn't pass me. he just stuck on my back till the last 100meters. i tried to hold him off and made a little gap, then decided i was too tired and let him pass me and lost.

So this was pretty sad. i just went into it not thinking how i usually have before races. i just haven't been believing that i could stay up with these guys that i've been with all season. i really need to get my act together or i'm not going to nationals!

goal: #1 if i give it my all in practice, it will be easier to give it my all at races. #2 get my mind set right and take care of my body better. #3 Beleive that i can.

am: 3

pm: 10. went around parkway. i tried to push harder parts of the run more. felt kind of tired today though.

am: 3, ate some moldy apple sauce yesterday (thats what i get for trying to eat healthy!) so i felt terrible this morning. i couldn't even sit up staight in the car cause my stomache hurt so bad.

pm: we had a huge workout today: 3x(1200, 1000, 800, 600) with ~3minutes rest in between. and with 2 warm and cool. so mentally i really tried to prepare strong. First set times: 3:57, 2:51, 2:29, 1:47 and i was happy with this set. i just tried to push hard and set good times to shoot for for the rest of the workout.

#2 3:59, 2:53, 2:28, 1:48 and i was alright with this, a little bit slower but still under all my goal times. I was starting to feel a bit stiff, but thats cause i haven't been streching that well.

#3 4:02, 2:51, 2:25, 1:43 first 1200 i just started out too slow but i gave a huge effort so i'm alright with it. rest felt good, i really felt like i was moving pretty smooth.

I'm glad i had a solid workout to put me back on track after last weeks sad performence. big milage day!

am: 3 tad tired. streched good.

pm: 5.5. went down to target. felt good but not amazing. afterward i took a good long ice bath which was cold but not bad. i'm really glad i took it. afterward took a hot shower but it took FOREVER to get warm again. i'm telling you, the worse part isn't getting in and through the time, its getting warm afterward! mia and stoner left as fast as they could afterward so they didn't have to help clean up..what the heck! i mean i put my arm around mia and tickled her shoulder and everything but she still ditched me...for stoner! jerk. krenshaw had fun afterward in the puddles and jessica was just laughing her head off at mean things she does. she was freezing though, we could not get her to stop shivering. anyway, it was a fun day!

also, as of now i'm in the top ten of the milage board! pretty good :)

am: 3. felt really good

pm: i had to pick up my sisters at home and they took forever doing stuff.. so i warmed up a mile around my house while i was waiting for them. then i drove to the school and got ready to race, did half mile more warm up and then raced...not much more to say except my running really has been struggling lately...:(

after the race we ran 4 miles easy then ended with 4x200's

am: 3

pm: 5.51 with striders

am: we met early at coach holts house and ran 10 miles on a trail. felt really good and went by fast cause we talked the whole time.

ran over 70 miles this week! now i need to prepare for NXN, main thing is i really need to confident.

am: 3 felt dandy.

pm: 7.5. warmed and cool 1.5...coach reminded me of his evil times...then we got back and did 5x1000's. he told us we would have 8 because he wanted us to not go so fast which i guess worked. i was supposed to hit 2:50, i got: 2:58, 2,:49, 2:51, 2:52, 2:53. so it was not right on, but i'm happy with it. i'm feeling a lot better so i'm very excited for this weekend. i'm going to make it!

am: 3

pm: 5 with striders

am: 3 felt good. COLD

pm: easy 5.5 with 4x200's. went by really fast and felt good. 200's were all between 27-29seconds.

am: 3

pm: 4 at about 7 pm. it was dark but felt very good!

am: 4. felt very good again. weird trial but i like running with the girls

pm: went and ran the course with the team then did some striders at the starting line. found out that our team did make it but only 3 of us did...kind of dumb they wouldn't let two more :/ i'm in a box with mock and quinn and byron warby.

first thing i'll say is that this is the best racing expeirence i've ever had. i truly gave it my all.

thoughout this week i was confident i would make it into top 5 so i would qualify for nationals. but as the race got closer my chances seemed to get slimer because i found out kramer, mock, heslington, and others would be coming, who had been beating me all year. especially after my perfermance at AF, it wasn't looking like i'd be in the mix. But dont think i gave up. i still put in my brain that i could beat them when it counted.

we got to the race at about 7 after a good nights sleep and a rough breakfeast. I felt excited but very nervous. i warmed up 3.5 miles cause i've always done the best when i warm up that distance. and i then mentally prepared.

when i got to the box, everyone seemed to have chosen their spot, and so kindly left me in the back. the officals only cared to let the 2 'elite' people, who i dont know how they chose it, in the front and the rest was first come. so i ended up in the third row.

The gun went off and my box got out fast so i ended up getting out fairly easy. i was in about 100th place and the first mile i just slowly moved my way up through the gaps and made my way to the front group behind cross and ben. first mile was 4:54 and i felt amazing.

through the next mile not much changed. some people dropped off but the front pack was still huge. it was anyones game. no one made any big moves out to the front and i felt i was in perfect position in case anyone did, to get with them. we made a tiny surge coming down the curve and came through at 9:48.

 this is where i started moving up and Jordon cross (2nd at state 3A) , ben saarel (#22 in nation and state champ 3A), bernie montoya (#3 in nation and winner of the dream mile 4:01), luis martinez (#9 in nation and last years winner of this race), I (3rd at state 3A)  picked it up more and i dont know why but i went with them. i just felt like i was flying. the pace was managible and i wasn't afraid of more. coming to the final 1K i was in a solid 3rd behind ben and bernie. i started to fall off pace a bit though but i was giving everything i had. (I think 3mile mark was around 14:45ish) i fell off ben and bernie and was running on my own till the final 600 meters. i could feel people closing on my back. all i could think of was to stay in the top 5, stay in the top 5. every ounce of me was resisting and i kept slowing down. then the group sucked me back and i just fell off. i really was giving everything i had though. the race seemed to play perfect for me, i just couldn't finish it off.

after that i thought i had lost it. 7 people had passed me in 400 meters. i tried hard the catch them in the last 10 meters but didn't and ended up 10th with a 15:10, huge PR. i couldnt think straight for another hour. i had left everything on the course and i have no regrets. i gave it my all and it just wasn't enough. I'm sad about it though cause i dont feel like 10th describes my race. i really felt my race was good enough to qualify for nationals. i mean, last year with this time i would have gotten 2nd overal. this years competion is just so much better. looking at the times i see that i was only 1.61 seconds away from nationals. but that is a long time in racing but it seems short just looking at it.

cooled down about 3 miles but only remember 1 of them. did most of it with Jessica Peterson. she was nice to keep me going in a straight line :)

now my final XC season will come to an end at footlocker. I'm glad i still have one more to shoot for.

am: 3, not way sore. i think i haven't been because i cooled down so much after arizona's race, so thats a plus (:

pm: 7.5 around rollercoaster. felt really good

am: 3. not cold enough for gloves but it's starting to get a bit more chilly (:

pm: well right before practice my mom called and said i had a dentist appointment...so i missed the thousands workout with the team and ended up doing it at 5, alone. i let casey use my watch to time himself and told him put it on something but BYRON took it home so i had to do the workout without a watch!

it wasn't bad. 2 mile warm up then i just ran it just by feel and i'm pretty sure all of them were between 2:50-2:55. We had 5x1000's and i did about 2:40 seconds rest in between. after 3 it started to get really dark and after the 4th one i decided i couldnt do the 5th one cause i didnt want to hurt myself in all the ditches. but then the someone turned on the baseball lights and i was able to see :) so i did the last on then cooled down 1.5 miles. felt super good today.

am: went to the school and did striders with able, byron, paul and coltong as they were finishing their run. then went out and did target. megan came with me and did her four. pretty good run, felt solid.

pm: went three with megan. nice pace. she's not to shabby (:

heading up to payson this week...should be a nice change in temperature!

am: finally got out about 10 so that it was warm. felt good enough for shorts everything so that was good. started at my grandma's house in Payson and made my way to Salam and ended up at Salam high school. turned around and somehow i went the wrong way so my there and back run turned into a lopsided loop which added .75 miles to my run. i felt really good and was at 7:30 pace average pace.

Pm: I snuck out after dinner and went out for a 3 mile jog with my cousin. my relitives acted like they had never seen legs before...:) good run, i'm glad i got myself out.

am: well this run is in the top 3 percents in the worst run catagory. I finally got out at about 11 with Megan. we ran a mile to payson high and did 4x200's on their track. it felt horrible. i wish i ran a bit more before i did those. 29, 30, 31, 29. i felt like doing some grass so i did a mile on their grass and stopped because it seemed like it was making my turnover really slow, so i finished the 4 miles on the track then a mile home...roughly. not sure if i'll do this afternoons run due to personal problems. we'll see how i feel.

felt much better today. i started at my gradma ridings house then ran to my grandpa finch's farm. threw in a 2 mile tempo at 5:49 pace. didn't feel very smooth on the run but it didn't feel terrible.

Good recovery week. I'm very excited for next weeks race. I'm going in confident that i can get in the top 10. the race in arizona was a completly flat course and very fast. in california it has switchbacks and rollercoasters all over. even though its at sea level, it taks about 1 minute longer to complete than nike's course. but this is definatly my favorite kind of course.

am: easy 3. went to article circle, nice run.

pm:  Timed mile today to kind of taper a bit. i was really excited cause this really helps us see where everyone is and what they can do for track this year.

race started and i was pretty pumped so i went out really fast and hit a 1:03. (first lap went by REALLY fast). next lap i tried to push a bit to hit a 2:08 but it ended up being a 2:10. (1:07)after this i knew i had to push hard cause third lap usually is harder and it ended at a sad 3:21 (1:11) and last lap i pushed hard and could hear coach counted the time closer and closer to 4:30, so i kicked it in to finish at 4:29.8 (:

so i was happy about this race. took the wind out of me for a while but that happens. this week is footlocker!

am: 3

pm: 4.5 with striders. i have a huge knot in each leg from yesterdays time trial. need to roll roll roll tonight.

am: 3. went pretty fast. knots still KILL

pm: we finally had our ice cream run for the year. we ran 4.5, but partly through it we stopped at artic circle and bought an ice cream cone. then slowly attempted to job back (: ... when we got back to the school we ended with 4x200's. splits 30, 30, 29, 29. and i felt terrible. mostly because of my knots from the mile time trial. but i'm trying to get rid of them.

I'm feeling really happy and confident for this weekends run. i've been watching some inspirational video's that make my stomach turn fast and i get really pumped up with confidence. I want to give it all again, like NXN regionals. i dont want to regret anything from this maybe last high school XC race. I beleive i can do it.

am: 3 left to cali

pm: 3 in cali

hardly ran any today which i'm pretty sad we didn't cause i really needed too. i feel i didnt run the milaget this week that i usually would and i think that effected a bit