Deep (running) thoughts

Not a whole lot to report this week.

We're back from a short weekend in the mountains of northeastern Arizona (8,500' in elevation). I managed to stay healthy but lost some sleep due to the high elevation. The dryness and thinner air really felt weird. My breathing was labored and felt like someone was standing on my chest. By the 3rd day, I was feeling better but not after losing sleep and feeling completely wiped out.

Now that we're back, I'm gearing up for the Mesquite Canyon 50K at the White Tank Regional Park this Sunday.  Once again, I am not feeling great about the mileage I've put in for my long runs but I discovered a couple things yesterday that have given me a confidence boost and a bit more mojo to push me through the finish at this final race of the DRT Ultra Series.

For starters, I discovered that the issue I've been having with my right ankle is likely being caused by my shoes. They have well over 1,000 miles on them and upon closer inspection, have excessive wear on (only) the outer right edge of the right shoe. I can only surmise that the wear is causing a change in my gait and foot-striking position and causing strain on my ankle. Good thing I have a couple extra pair of my INOV-8's. I'm not sure whether I'll use a new pair this weekend or not.

The second thing I realized is that my standing in the DRT Ultra Series is well, I'm actually *in* the standings! I am 18th OA and 5th in my AG. The shear virtue of finishing 3 of the 5 races so far means that I've accumulated more points than at least 122 other runners participating in the series. It's conceivable that if the top 4 men in my age group don't run this weekend, I could end up in the top 3 for the 30-39 male AG. Now that's worth running for! Of course I'm not delusional and realize that these guys at the top are seasoned runners but even if there's a chance to improve my standings, you know I'm going to give it everything I've got this weekend.

My focus is staying healthy through the remainder of the week and avoiding any pre-race pitfalls. See you on the other side of the finish line!