'09 Running Year in Review

Running was great to me in 2009. God has given me the ability and passion to run, and in 2009 he blessed me with good health and some great successes. Below is a recap of the year's running moments.

* In early February, I signed a "regional" sponsorship with Saucony. I received lots of free shoes, a racing uniform and some pretty cool gear.
*On February 28, I won my 3rd consecutive Cowtown Marathon (it was my best Cowtown time yet--2:25:13)
*In March, I accepted a position to coach at Leander ISD's newest high school, Vandegrift. This was a great opportunity for me and Stephanie. We moved to Cedar Park at the beginning of June.
*On July 19, I ran my first Ultramarathon--The El Scorcho 50K in Fort Worth. It was a great experience, but I'm not sure it is one I want to try again any time soon.
*In October, both my boys and girls cross country teams at Vandegrift won the District 8-3A Championship and earned a trip to the Regional Meet in Lubbock. This was a great accomplishment for a group of kids that are only Freshmen and Sophomores.
*The first weekend in November, I ran my first ever 10 mile race--The Run for the Water 10-Miler. This was a great cause benefiting the people of Burundi and their water situation. I won the race in a time of 51:34 beating former UT star Darren Brown (I will have to admit though that Darren was using the race as a workout).
*On Thanksgiving Day, I won the Thundercloud Subs Turkey Trot (5 miles) in a time of 24:55. For the win, I received a Turkey trophy and $50 worth of free subs.
*On December 13th, I completed my 9th marathon (Dallas White Rock). I finished 4th in a P.R. of 2:22:53 earning $500 in prize money.
*This past Tuesday, I agreed to run for an Austin-area Mizuno team. This will give me more free shoes and the opportunity to win some prize money incentives.

I am thankful to have been able to pursue my running passion in 2009, and I am excited about the new year ahead.

Run Tough,
Keith

What's Ahead

After a satisfying experience at White Rock, I am anxious to get back to training. I have had some time this week to really think about my races in 2010. As I continue my quest to achieve a qualifying mark for the 2012 Olympic Trials, I realize that my time is limited and I will need to improve significantly in the coming year. With that said, I have decided to run two local Austin races in the coming months. First, I will be racing the 3M Half Marathon in January with the goal of setting a PR in the half. This is a really fast race with lots of outstanding competition. Second, I will be running the Austin Marathon on Feb. 14. I will run this race with the intentions of winning and running in the low 2:20's. In preparation for the Austin Marathon, I hope to increase my weekly mileage to 120 or so. I will attempt this for about a month leading up to the race as an experiment to see if my body can handle the high mileage. I will probably rest up a bit and do some shorter races in the months of March, April and May. Well, that's the plan for now.

WHITE ROCK

5:04--that is what I ran for mile #25 at the 2009 White Rock Marathon. The 40th running of the Dallas event was my 9th time racing 26.2 miles. It was the best I have ever felt! At about mile 19, former A&M runner Logan Sherman pulled away from me. (We had run the first 19 miles together.) I was content to maintain my position in 6th place fearing that the "wall" was looming. The wall came, but then it left. For the first time in all of the marathons I've run, I was able to break through that point of fatigue. My last few miles were tough but I never once doubted that I could finish strong. I feel as though I can still run faster. I look forward to my next one--most likely Austin on Feb. 14.

White Rock splits:
1. 5:24
2. 5:36
3. 5:11
4. 5:14
5. 5:22
6. 5:28
7. 5:23
8. 5:14
9. 5:23
10. 5:20
11. 5:31
12. 5:08
13. 5:35
14. 5:32
15. 5:27
16. 5:34
17. 5:26
18. 5:34
19. 5:26
20. 5:50
21. 5:47
22. 5:25
23. 5:25
24. 5:33
25. 5:04
26. 5:32
.2 1:17
TOTAL -- 2:22:53