Final Numbers and Top Five Bests of 2011

2012-01-02T18:27:00.000-08:00

With 2011 coming to an end, I was thinking about this past year's numbers and experiences. I finished the year with a total of 4766 miles (91.6 per week) and a few minutes over 540 hours (6:48 per mile). During the summer before Chicago, I put together 13 consecutive 100+ mile weeks with 4 weeks at 485 miles and I had PR's in the 5k (15:08), 10k (30:33), and the marathon (2:22:05). This was by far my most successful year in terms of miles and PRs but most importantly, I think it was the best year of experiences. Here are what I consider to be the most memorable moments, in terms of running, of the year:

5. Classic 10k- 7th place, 30:51

This race always, for as long as I can remember, has had great depth in terms of competition. Finishing 7th and running under 31 minutes is a testament to that. My goal was to finish under 31 minutes and I ended up running 18 seconds faster than the previous year.

4. Pony Express 15+ mile- 1st 1:27:48

I didn't plan on running this race until a few days before and looking back on it now, maybe it wasn't the right thing to do before Chicago. The race has hosted some great runners in the past, though I don't think they had put the same effort into the race that I did. Either way, I broke the course record by almost six minutes and ran sub six minute miles on dirt at 9000ft.

3. Evergreen 10k- 4th place, 30:33

The race was the Colorado State Championships for the USATF Grand Prix this summer and it brought out some great competition. I was really excited to see how close I was to the 1st and 2nd place finishers; at the beginning of the year, I never thought I would be able to run this fast. It was, again, an 18 second PR and only a couple of weeks after running sub 31 at the Classic.

2. Eugene Marathon- 1st place, 2:22:05

While growing up, I always dreamed of running on Hayward Field's track. I never thought I would win a marathon while doing it. It was such a great feeling to run into the stadium and onto the track. Even though I really wanted to run sub 2:19, I was on pace until mile 22, it still didn't take anything away from winning a marathon in Tracktown USA. It was also great to be able to spend a week in Oregon and see all of the running history that Eugene had to offer. (We even got a tour around Eugene Running Company from owner Bob Coll. He had great pieces of running history.)

1. Watching My Kids Run

This summer, the kids joined the Mercury Track Club here in Pueblo. It was their first taste of competitive running and it was awesome to see how excited they were to compete. Kylah qualified for USATF Junior Olympic Nationals in both the 800m and 1500m. She finished 10th overall in the 1500m with a time of 6:20.14. While Malachi didn't qualify for Nationals, he was able to qualify for the Regional meet. He came up a little short but he ran a really tough race. A few weeks after Regionals he ran Run 4 Trails 5k in 22:26 and finished second overall. As a family, we finished 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 6th. The kids followed up track with a successful cross country season. Kylah, again, qualified for Nationals by finishing second at the regional meet. We opted out of taking her. Because the kids loved running, we were able to go on long family runs on the weekends that we will remember for ever.

I just hope 2012 brings some great new experiences!

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2011-12-31T11:17:00.000-08:00

After coming up short at Chicago this year, I planned on running CIM in December with hopes of running sub 2:19. After a few weeks, though, I realized that I needed to change my plans due to a lack of motivation. Even though I have enjoyed the past two years of training, I began to get bored with the same training schedule and the flat training surfaces on which I had been running. Shortly after bailing on CIM, I registered for the Bandera 100k and almost instantly I became excited about running and training again. I will have to admit that the first time I ran over three hours I had a rough time of it. I felt horrible the following day. Although, as the weeks progressed and I continued to increase my long run, I started to feel like I was just getting warmed up at three hours.

I have run a number of long runs since in the mountains. It has been a nice change to hit the trails again. My favorite training run for Bandera was two weeks ago. I met up with Peter Maksimow and the Incline Club and we ran the Longs Ranch loop. After that I continued through Manitou to Crystal Park; Peter drove because he didn’t want to run on the roads. We jumped onto the the Intemann Trail and then up over Section 16 where Peter turned around. I continued onto High Drive and then the 666 trail where I hit Captian Jacks and back down High Drive then the Intemann Trail. From there, I headed down Crystal Park Road where Peter and Nora cheered me on. I was able to get a few extra miles on the Manitou roads before calling it a day. The run totaled 34 miles in 5:15 with over 8,000ft of elevation gain. Due to some over indulgence the night before, I struggled with some stomach issues. I won’t let that happen in Texas. These types of runs have kept me motivated throughout the week because I am looking forward to the next long run.

My family will be joining me for the trip to Bandera; I hardly ever travel without them. Their ability to crew me during the race gives them a sense of involvement in my running. This time will be easier than ever because we just purchased a new truck camper for our Tacoma. It might be a little different sleeping at a rest stop along the way but we are all excited for the new experience. Fortunately, my brother Jordan and his wife Jessica will be traveling with us. They have more experience traveling than we do; they have been traveling the country in their modified Honda Element. Jordan will be running the race as well. He has been training for the 50k. He and I have been training together and it has been awesome to have a training partner. With the new treadmill, he and I are able to run together during some of our tougher runs.

As far as Bandera goes, the field is looking really strong. And, with a National Championship on the line, I am confident a few of the guys are going to leave everything out on the course. I am a little nervous with the distance. I have only run 50 miles twice before and I haven’t had a good race at that distance so the extra twelve miles seems a little mind boggling. The biggest issue has always been my stomach, but I think I have figured that out over the last two years. Hopefully my stomach will cooperate. I believe I am a totally different runner than I was two years ago. My last ultra race was in June of 2010 and I did absolutely no training for that one. I only decided to run Golden Gate 50k a few weeks before the race. Before Golden Gate, I ran the Moab 55k in 2009 so I have really only run one ultra in three years. Since then, I have improved my speed and endurance. Even with this change, I really only have one goal and that is to finish Bandera. I plan on going out easy and then depending on how I feel during the last 50k I may start to pick up the pace. With my focus in 2012 being ultras, I feel like I will be more prepared come early spring. Either way, I just want to have fun and gain a little more ultra experience.

Justin Ricks

Final Numbers and Top Five Bests of 2011

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