Breaking the Wall

April 18, 2024

15% off for Fast Running Blog members at St. George Running Center!

Location:

Orem,UT,United States

Member Since:

Jan 27, 1986

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Olympic Trials Qualifier

Running Accomplishments:

Best marathon: 2:23:57 (2007, St. George). Won the Top of Utah Marathon twice (2003,2004). Won the USATF LDR circuit in Utah in 2006.

Draper Days 5 K 15:37 (2004)

Did not know this until June 2012, but it turned out that I've been running with spina bifida occulta in L-4 vertebra my entire life, which explains the odd looking form, struggles with the top end speed, and the poor running economy (cannot break 16:00 in 5 K without pushing the VO2 max past 75).

Short-Term Running Goals:

Qualify for the US Olympic Trials. With the standard of 2:19 on courses with the elevation drop not exceeding 450 feet this is impossible unless I find an uncanny way to compensate for the L-4 defect with my muscles. But I believe in miracles.

Long-Term Running Goals:

2:08 in the marathon. Become a world-class marathoner. This is impossible unless I find a way to fill the hole in L-4 and make it act healthy either by growing the bone or by inserting something artificial that is as good as the bone without breaking anything important around it. Science does not know how to do that yet, so it will take a miracle. But I believe in miracles.

Personal:

I was born in 1973. Grew up in Moscow, Russia. Started running in 1984 and so far have never missed more than 3 consecutive days. Joined the LDS Church in 1992, and came to Provo, Utah in 1993 to attend BYU. Served an LDS mission from 1994-96 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Got married soon after I got back. My wife Sarah and I are parents of eleven children: Benjamin, Jenny, Julia, Joseph, Jacob, William, Stephen, Matthew, Mary, Bella. and Leigha. We home school our children.

I am a software engineer/computer programmer/hacker whatever you want to call it, and I am currently working for RedX. Aside from the Fast Running Blog, I have another project to create a device that is a good friend for a fast runner. I called it Fast Running Friend.

Favorite Quote:

...if we are to have faith like Enoch and Elijah we must believe what they believed, know what they knew, and live as they lived.

Elder Bruce R. McConkie

Favorite Blogs:

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Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	0.00	Year:	870.94
Saucony Type A Lifetime Miles:						640.15
Bare Feet Lifetime Miles:						450.37
Nike Double Stroller Lifetime Miles:						124.59
Brown Crocs 4 Lifetime Miles:						1334.06
Amoji 1 Lifetime Miles:						732.60
Amoji 2 Lifetime Miles:						436.69
Amoji 3 Lifetime Miles:						380.67
Lopsie Sports Sandals Lifetime Miles:						818.02
Lopsie Sports Sandals 2 Lifetime Miles:						637.27
Iprome Garden Clogs Lifetime Miles:						346.18
Beslip Garden Clogs Lifetime Miles:						488.26
Joybees 1 Lifetime Miles:						1035.60
Madctoc Clogs Lifetime Miles:						698.29
Blue Crocs Lifetime Miles:						1164.32
Kimisant Black Clogs Lifetime Miles:						720.62
Black Crocs 2023 Lifetime Miles:						1312.70

Fri, Jun 11, 2010

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
5.75	0.50	0.00	0.00	6.25

A.M. Tapering. 2 miles with Benjamin in 15:30. 2 with Jenny and Julia in 17:13. One by myself in 1 in 6:46. Jenny wanted to do set a record in the quarter after her run. So we started out at a good pace and she hit 300 in 1:01 fairly evenly, but then she panicked because she thought she was going to throw up and just stopped. I explained to her that feeling like this was normal in an all-out quarter, she realized that all she had to do was coast in and she would have had the record, and now was determined to try again. I explained to her that she was not going to run as well due to fatigue, but given how much ahead of her record pace she was on her first try she should still be able to get it. On her second try she was able to hit the first 200 in 41, then faded to a 23 100, and then 24 finishing in 88, which is still a record by 3 seconds. But her first attempt shows she was capable of about 83 fresh.

0.5 with Joseph in 4:26. 0.25 with Jacob in 1:54. He set another record. Now I am starting to think that the story about Summer Harper's 3:58 half mile at the age of 3 could actually be true. I heard it from Hawk and used it to motivate Sarah to start running back in 1999 right after our first child (Benjamin) was born. She did a time trial to beat that time and nearly died running 3:57. The she decided to start training. But then after I became more familiar with what 3 year old kids are capable of I began to wonder if maybe something was exaggerated in that story. Now Jacob has shed a new insight for me on what a 3 year old kid can do.

Eva Clogs Pirate Miles: 6.25

Night Sleep Time: 8.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 8.00

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