Blog

  Well, it’s been awhile since my last blog. I figured now was as good of time as any to update how the past few months have been going. Let’s see, the move to Flagstaff went well, as planned. I’m already 10 weeks into base training with the team! It’s going exactly how I had expected it to go and actually better. That doesn’t happen very often in a runner’s career so I’m very thankful that it has played out how it has. My first week in Flag I had prepared myself for a hard transition with the alti...

11/10/10 On Saturday I had one of the hardest decisions to make of my life – whether or not to toe the start line of the World Ironman Championships. In the end I didn’t race. But before I try and explain the decision that I made I want to start off with a huge congratulations to the amazing Mirinda Carfrae. Her performance on Saturday was nothing short of remarkable. She truly is a worthy World Champion. So many thoughts are going through my head at the moment, and it will take time to sift through them all. I’d like to quic...

It’s been a long, exciting road the last few months; lets me honest here.  I got back from Europe and took 10 days completely off. It was amazing! I not only physically benefited from it but mentally also.  The next 10 days I took and ran every other day while cross training on the opposite days.  My first week back was a 45 mile week. Which was easily entertained by visits to both Rogue Elite in Austin, Texas and Team USA Arizona in Flagstaff, Arizona. I was able to see each program from the inside out. I felt very fortun...

This last week I had a cool opportunity to visit the Monfort Family Human Performance Research Lab at Mesa State College so I thought it would be fun to write a little blog on it! My younger sister Kelsey competes on the Mesa State nordic, cross and track teams there and her coach, Gig Leadbetter, runs the lab with Bill Sands. They have a wide variety of metabolic and biomechanics testing equipment, including a VO2 max test and high-speed video for gait analysis which I was able to try out for the first time in my life (for complete running ge...

Timberman 70.3 is held on the shores of beautiful Lake Winnipesaukee, in New Hampshire. Despite having raced there in 2008 and 2009 I still a) cannot pronounce Winnipesaukee and b) have absolutely no clue as to how the Lake got its unpronounceable name. I therefore decided to undertake some research. A few googles later I was enlightened. The Legend of Lake Winny-pes-ow-key goes a little something like this….”Many moons ago on the northern shore lived a great chief, Wonaton, renowned for his courage, and for his beautiful daughter,...

Having taken more than a month off for injuries after the World Cross Country Championships, I am back in shape and hoping to get a few good track races in before the end of the season.  Last week I raced a 1500 in Amsterdam as a tune-up for the coming 5000 meter race in Dubnica nad Vahom, Slovakia.  While the injury and downtime did set me back, I've utilized the last 3 months as well I as I could, and I'm looking to set a big PR in Dubnica on August 22nd at the EAA Athletic Bridge meet.  It's going to be a loaded...

I left for Brussels, Belgium July 1st full of anticipation and unsure of what to expect. This is my first time traveling to Europe for competition and I’m excited for the opportunity to enter some fast races and learn about the whole process! The first hurdle to racing overseas was getting through the eight-hour flight from Atlanta, and minimizing jet lag. I knew it would be challenging but important to stay awake the first day to adjust to the new time zone. Thankfully, some friends had given me a few pointers that made escaping the jet ...

As a kid I grew up singing (off key) ‘Somewhere over the rainbow’, ‘We’re off to see the Wizard’ and most notably, ‘If only I had a Brain’ – in fact I recall one year when I was actually forced by my mother to dress up as a scarecrow for the local carnival. Needless to say i didn’t need much in the way of a costume. My hair was already enough to scare off any birds (or prospective boyfriends). Anyway, when I was invited to race the Kansas 70.3 I jumped at the chance to visit the state of th...

The World Cross Country Championships in Poland are over, and I am now focussing on the track season.  It was an incredibly tough course and an extremely competitive field, but it was another great experience.  I had a stress reaction going into the World Championships, so I was forced to take 10 days off after the race.  I am now training in Ifrane, Morocco.  After rooming with Mo Trafeh at the Gate River Run in Florida, my wife and I decided to come train in this beautiful city.  The elevation is 5,500 ...

It was Sunday 2 January. Despair at thought of another marathon turbo session. Decide to ride outside. Persuade three men to accompany me. Wear enough clothes to make an Eskimo feel naked. Embark on said ride. Enjoy the wintery wind in hair sensation and the wheels caressing the road/potholes. Soak up the Surrey scenery (decidedly better than sweat soaked wall in turbo dungeon). Two hours pass. Slight incline. Black ice. Front wheel slides – but not forwards. Reminiscent of Humpty Dumpty I am off. Rather than engage brain I engage hand/a...