2nd Annual Goody 10K and Y Hike

Tuesday was our 2nd annual Goody 10K.  This years route was changed from last years.  Last year, we took off from the house, ran a route down to Provo Canyon and back for the 10K.  This year it was suggested that the racers be dropped off up the canyon and run down for the 6.2 miles.  I figured out a route that would work, everyone that wanted to go was on board and up we went.

This year we had three runners and three walkers.  Sarah, Rachel and Malinda were our three runners.  My wife, Alison and I were the walkers.  It was a beautiful morning and the canyon is in shade most of the day so it was fun.  We had a good time talking as we tried to make it down as quick as we could.  We got a slight start on the runners and it wasn't long before they came running past us.  We were pushing one of the grandsons in a stroller but his Mom grabbed the stroller and off the runners went.  The came close to their finishing goal and were well under an hour.  The walkers finished up a little over an hour and a half.  It was fun to cheer each other on and I hope this can continue on as a regular tradition.

We finished the day's fun by going to a local pool.  I was enjoying hanging in the shade and trying to get a nap until my oldest grandson came up to me with a big smile on his face asking if I would go down the tallest slide with him.  It was hard to turn him down and I found myself at the top of the slide surrounded by lots of kids who were all at least a foot shorter than me.  The things we do for our kids/grandkids. I am just glad I can still do it.  My grandson went down before me and when I hit the pool at the bottom of the slide, water went all over and my grandson was stifling a laugh.

I wrote a while back about hiking to the 'Y' above Brigham Young University.  There have been plans to hike it every year but something has always taken precedence and the hike never has happened until this year.  Friday night, one of my daughters texted everyone else and said they were going to do it on Saturday morning and wanted to know who else was in.  My wife and I were in for sure and there were 10 of us then ended up hiking the 1.2 miles up to the top of the Y.  It is steep and gets the heart pounding, but the view is nice and the strain is worth it.

Start of the hike at the trailhead

Starts out steep and doesn't let up!

I caught up with the some of the hikers that got a head start.  Here I am
telling a granddaughter about an old man who started after the rest and beat
the grandkids to the top.  She didn't stop after that!

Off she goes, never to be seen again with the lead hikers.

At the top of the Y.

Joined by the rest!

Enjoying the view!

Hope you are staying active and having fun this summer!  Hang in there and I will too!

Amethyst Lake

Some of my out of town kids and their families arrived this week.  July will prove to be a fun and busy month. One of our annual traditions has been to do a hike in the Uintah mountains.  This mountain range is unique in many ways, but the most interesting thing about them is that they are the only mountain range in the United States that run east to west.  I've written about several of my hikes in the Uintahs in the past.
I took Thursday off to go hiking with one of my daughters, Rachel, and her husband Troy.  Much to my surprise, my wife joined in on the hike as well.

We hiked to a beautiful lake called Amethyst.  The hike wasn't excessively hard, but it was over six miles one way and it had a good climb for almost half a mile.  It was worth it though as we hiked through pines and meadows to reach the lake.  Even the steep section was worth it due to the waterfalls that were right along the trail.

We got up to the lake around noon.  As the sun climbed in the sky, we were all getting warmer, but not long after we approached the lake it rained pretty good and cooled things way down.  We even had a bit of hail that caused us to find brief shelter underneath some trees.

My son-in-law packed his fly rod and had a great day of fishing.  Amethyst Lake itself didn't yield him any fish, but the water was choppy.  On the way back, my wife and I decided to stick to the trail and my daughter and son-in-law did a bit of lake hopping to try fishing at other lakes.  They were glad they did as the fishing picked up.   We were glad that we stuck to the trail when they told us of the steep boulder hopping they had to do to get from lake to lake.

We ended up hiking close to 13 miles for the day.  It made for a long day, but we were all glad we went.

Last week I told you about another son-in-law who ran the Freedom Festival 10K with my daughter and I without training and beat us both.  Rumor has it he was so sore the next day that he said never again!  My daughter and I already have talked about future races coming up!  :)

I logged 7 days out of 7 this week.  It is probably one of my best weight management tools.  I need to do this for 2 months.  So far so good.

Tuesday is the second BGoody 10K race with the family.  I think there will be five or six of us running this year.  More to come.

Hang in there and I will too.

Finding the Other Side of Someday

For several years now, when our adult children come into town for a reunion, each of us puts together a playlist of songs based on the theme for that year.  I was listening to a song off of one of the playlist that Rachel put together called Gonna Get Over You by Sara Bareilles.  I like the song because it's great to work out to.  It has a good back beat and drive to it that I like.  The last time I listened to it, this piece of the lyrics caught my attention.

I'll be alright,
Once I find the other side of someday.

If you want to watch a goofy video and listen to a great song, here you go.



It got me thinking that I have been trying to get to the other side of someday for the past several months.  I have done well in my training.  I can't remember a training run that I didn't get in and I completed the Ogden Marathon and just on Wednesday ran my third Freedom Festival 10K.  But my weight and other aspects of my health suffered.  I have made several attempts to get back on track, but none of them sustained for very long as I tried to get to "the other side of someday."  I've had too may Monday's come and go without making needed changes.  While my running continues to be important and I would still like to complete my 7 peaks challenge, I would be better served by getting back on track on my overall weight and health.  The marathon training definitely stressed me out both physically and mentally to the point that my body was reacting negatively to the stress.  I need to turn this around.  This needs to be my focus for a while.
I've taken some steps in the right direction.  Today I started logging my food intake.  This always helps.  A work health challenge is to log your food intake for two months.  I can do this and I will be better off if I do.  I also started Bob Harper's latest book, The Skinny Rules.  I need to finish what I started there and follow through with his suggestions.
Also my Friday run, I really watched my heart rate.  I ran as long as I stayed in "Zone 3" and walked it down if it got too high.  I felt great after the run and felt a lot less stress.  I am going to back things off a bit on the running and get a good base built back up with heart zone training.  If I will do these three things I will be well on my way to the other side of someday.

Freedom Festival 10K Quick Report
I was going to run this race regardless of the circumstances, but my daughter Malinda asked me to run it with her since it was her first 10K.  She trained will for the race and her training paid off.  She made her goal with a few minutes to spare.  My approach to the race was not to push too hard and to finish at about 1h 20 minutes.  My slowest time yet, but it seemed like a good pace.  My training paid off as well and finished at about 1:18.  Malinda's husband entered in on race day, with no training, and beat both of our times!  He came in just under an hour.  Pretty impressive with no training.   Haven't heard how he felt the next day.  Maybe he paid the price then.   It's hard not to be like a bitter Mr. Miyagi after Daniel catches the flies with his chop sticks and say, "You beginner luck!"



Hang in there and I will too!

Have I Got a Deal For You!

The young men and women at our church with a lot of help from the youth leaders put on a yard sale to help raise funds for our various camps. Even though our scout camp is over, we will benefit from this as well so the parents don't have to pay so much for their share of the expenses. I was overwhelmed by the support we got from our church members in donations for the sale. The lawn was covered with more items than I had ever seen at a yard sale. We helped out Friday night by collecting the larger donations and transporting them to the yard sale and then came back early on Saturday to lend a hand for a few hours. It was a success. Hats off to the young women leaders who went the extra mile in organization and mean negotiating skills.


As you may have heard in the news, the west is experiencing a lot of wildfires due to hot and dry conditions. Utah is no exception. I am glad that we went to Scout Camp the week before because this last week at the same camp, they evacuated the scouts as a safety precaution due to a fire in the area that as of last week had burned 70 square miles and was still going strong. Even though we live several miles from most of the fires, the skies have been smoke filled for almost two weeks now. We could use some cool and wet weather. 


I got in my miles this week. I continue to be more tired than usual. Hopefully I will bounce back here soon. 


My daughter Malinda and I went and picked up our packets for the Freedom Festival 10k that is this Wednesday on the 4th. This is her first race. We drove the route and talked a little strategy to make the race a good one for her. This will be a slow race for me, but I am not ready to push in a race right now. I just need to enjoy the race. It is a bit challenging with the hills, but it is a fun atmosphere as you run along the parade route. We will probably head over to the parade after since my son is going to sleep out on the parade route and save us some seats. 


Have a great 4th! Hang in there and I will too!