The Cactus race, you know, prickly and all. This race has been a pain in my butt for 7 years if I counted by bibs correctly. Not once have I broke 4 hours which is a pretty typical benchmark for marathoners. Training, health and a million other things have kept me north of 4:00:00 and this year I went in with a new mindset and training. Rather than training to run mindless 9:05 miles for 26.2 miles and hope to not waste time at aid stations or a nasty Port-O-Let. This year I trained to run about 8:00 to 8:15 miles and maxed out at about 22 miles. The idea was to bank enough time where the last few miles could be 10:00/miles and I would still squeak it out.

I tried to warm up or really just stay warm prior to the race. It gets damn cold in the desert at 5am! After the madhouse of the corrals and people who clearly were 6 hour runners hugging the start line with the Kenyans, we were off! The first few miles always suck. You feel tight, you doubt yourself and it feels like that first mile takes 20 minutes. I went with pacing myself versus the pace group and made it about 7 miles before I had to lighten the load. I think being paranoid with hydration I over consumed liquids this time!

I hit the half way point at around 1:50 and was pretty confident. I made my way through old Town and was making the way towards Tempe. At mile 24 I had Tribe waiting for me. I had all intentions of having some cold beer there but by the time I made eye contact with mile marker 24 I was hurting. Mentally and physically. The 4:00 pacer was right on my tail and I didn't have a spare 30 seconds for a beer. Hell, I didn't have time to smile for the camera!

So with just over 2 miles to go it was 10:00/miles and goal was to stay within a few strides of the 4:00 pacer. Those miles hurt, I knew I was screwed and would pay for them after the race. As I limped into Tempe Town Park, it was full speed ahead and trying to get the brain to shut up. I crossed the finish line, hit stop on the Garmin and sure shit, 3:59:41! Unreal, I mean I planned that race perfectly haha.

So there you have it. I have ran Rock N Roll AZ in sub 4:00 and plan on keeping Grandmas the race to PR at!

On a side note, 2018 might be a different kind of year for me. I really want to pick a few races, plan on "racing" some Olympic distance races and the A race will be Madison 70.3 probably. No 140.6 this year. Also want to focus on giving back. Via volunteering and fund raising for things I feel are important. For that aspect, stay tuned! O, and maybe a Kona trip for the 40th Annual IMWC 🤟🏼

#TribeRacing #wattieinkHITSQUAD #racewithbase

2018 is starting off just like the past seven or so years, with Rock n Roll Arizona marathon. This race has kicked my butt and then some in the past. Last years race left me in a medical tent and I have yet to break the 4 hour barrier on this course. In two short days, we’ll see what the 2018 edition of RnR brings! It’s pretty tough going from a treadmill or frozen outside runs to the warm 70 degree Phoenix ASPHALT. This will be marathon #17 🏃🏻

Training was a little different this time around with more focus on speed/pace than distance. Think I might have maxed out at 21 or 22 miles during training. The really strange part was I did something you can almost call tapering! The most alarming aspect is that I have religiously been on the foam roller twice a day for the last week. The legs feel pretty fresh and only time will tell if I am ready. Like most, I know it’s not all physical training that is needed. I hope I am mentally ready as well. If needed, I hope I can go into that dark place some runners can relate to and cross that finish line in sub 4. While I would be flippin’ excited about a sub 4 race, at this point, I need to beat the PR I had at Grandmas. Ultimate goal is 3:52. As I am typing this, my flight to Phoenix is delayed on this already stupidly short trip. Will maybe be in Scottsdale around 10PM, tonight and have Saturday to visit my peeps at Tribe and rest up. Race is bright and early Sunday at 7:50AM and my return flight is around 5PM. Won’t that be fun flying on a few hours of rest and noodle legs...

Random but a good time to reflect on 2017 regarding totals. The are below:
Running - 936 miles
Cycling - 1774 miles
​Swimming - 45 miles

#tribe #TribeRacing #RnRAZ #racewithbase #wattieinkhitsquad