That's all folks!

Now, I want to properly wrap up the whole training experience. This blog has a record of every training run I've done for the last 5 months. That's a lot of running, but lets put it in perspective. From day 1 of training to the end of the marathon, I have logged the following stats:

• Total miles ran: 353.6
• Total calories burned: 39,780
• Total calories consumed at the buffet at dinner 7 hours after the marathon: 39,780 (approximately)
• # of times I ran in the rain: 4 (3 of those times were the 3 times I ran with Michael)
• # of times I ran while it was snowing: 3
• # of times I failed to do my scheduled run: 4
• # of bananas spotted on the road while I ran by: 3

Here are a few maps, showing the paths of all my runs:

 

And lets look in a little more detail:

Now focusing on the spot right outside my house:

Incredible, huh?

So that's it guys. All and all, I had a blast, but honestly I'm going to take a break and not go running for a while. So while this is the end of this blog, you can bet I'll be running again. Someday.

If you didn't get to read about the race, then make sure to check out the Marathon Post.
In the mean time, you can still see what I am up to at bryanbraun.com. Go check it out! I post something there every weekend... usually about cool things I'm learning at school or insights I've had during the week. So please take a look, and remember to click the "join this site" button in the sidebar. Ciao friends!

Day 51: Winding down

Date: May 12th 2011, 8:20am
Distance: 2 miles
Weather: I forgot what the weather was like.

  

THE LAST DAY OF THE COUNTDOWN!

This is exciting stuff... but honestly, it felt like just any other run. Today's trip was a quick little buzz down to T's diner and back. No big deal.

Ever since I started running down this way in January, I kept my eye on this house near T's diner that always had it's Christmas lights up. I kept watching to see when they would take them down. January went by, then February. Then March. Then April. In fact, to this day, they still remain hanging on the house. When will they come down? I guess the world will never know.

So that was the final run. It's always nice going on a run and being back in 20 minutes.

Of course, I'm going to be posting a full update after the big race, so stay tuned for that. In the mean time, if anybody needs me, I'll be chilling in Spokane.

Day 50: Running Behind

Date: May 10th 2011, 8:20am
Distance: 3. miles
Weather: Early

I had to get home, shower, walk to campus and be in my seat at 9:30 am. Needless to say, I was running pretty fast.

As I came back up the road behind the stadium, I saw a man with his dog on a leash, allowing it to perform a naughty deed on somebody's lawn.

Shame. Shame on you.

Because I was in such a hurry, I was really flying down the hill from the temple. I soon realized that running this fast was a little too much impact for me. My feet were really pounding the pavement. I didn't want to risk anything with the marathon coming up, so I slowed down a little. I was so short on time once I got home, that I ran most of the way to class in order to make it.

It was close.

Day 49: Skaters and Sprinklers

Date: May 8th 2011, 11:00pm
Distance: 7.8 miles
Weather: Dark and Warm

Holly spent the day in Salt Lake while I had Daddy duty, so I didn't get to leave for my run until she got back (at about 11pm). When I left it was strangely warm outside... almost muggy.

I made my way up University Parkway to Orem, again. I'm starting to get very familiar with this sidewalk. I've probably run this way 20 times. But I was caught off guard when passing under the overpass and running up the hill, I saw a low dark figure moving at me very quickly. There were no streetlights so I could barely see it, but I thought it was a dog heading toward me a full speed. I did a double-take and it whizzed past me, going faster then any dog I've ever seen. Only then did I realize that it was a guy, laying down on his longboard, doing the "luge," down the hill at top speed, in the middle of the night, in the dark. Had I been running on the other side of the sidewalk, I would have been street pizza. As I continued to run, I passed 4 more longboarders  who were coming down the hill, although these guys were standing up. I was pretty lucky none of them hit me. It's amazing how fast you can get going on a long board.

When I got to the top of the hill, I saw that sprinklers were going off and were watering the sidewalk. I wasn't feeling too warm (wearing just a t-shirt) so the sprinkler guy's miscalculation became my curse. By the way, these were those big sprinklers that rotate around and could get you soaked if you were in the wrong place at the wrong time. I was that guy.

Funny enough, I saw more sprinklers as I got on 800 S Orem and more as I started moving back towards Provo. At one point, as I ran by the intramural field, I got sprayed by one set of sprinklers and they turned off just as I got past them. Then, the next set (located right in front of me) turned on just in time to spray me as I went by. Why do all these sprinklers spray all over the sidewalk and not just the grass anyways? I'm pretty sure that the 180 degree sprinkler heads cost the same as the 360. C'mon people.

It's all good... I just need to rant about something. And the fact that the "something" is sprinklers shows that this run really wasn't that bad at all.

Day 48: Kiwanas

Date: May 5th 2011, 8:00am
Distance: 3.1 miles
Weather: Getting better every day!

I've gotta tell you, I'm loving having shorter runs now that my schedule is winding down as I get closer to the marathon. Now I can just buzz out there and be back in less than 30 mins. Nice.

Today I ran by Kiwanis Park, a Provo landmark. As I went by, I saw the ghosts of ultimate frisbee games past. Good, good, times.

The streetlights were a bit nicer to me today (unlike yesterday). I kept a good pace and before I knew it, I was running up the 63 step stairs by the bell tower. Most 5k's don't have these kind of obstacles along the way (but then again, the 8 mile run in Vegas surprised us too).

As I neared home, running through the parking lot of the Marriott Center, I was surprised to see about 6 or 7 people wandering aimlessly around the parking lot, carrying buckets. It looked like grounds crew people but they were going in random directions, moseying, and generally not doing anything. I wish I could say I was surprised.

Day 47: Early Morning Time Crunch

Date: May 3rd 2011, 7:30am
Distance: 4.7 miles
Weather: Nice and Cool

This morning I was getting ready for school when I looked at the clock and saw that I had an hour before I needed to leave. "If I run really fast," I thought, "then I will be able to get home in time to shower and not be late for school."  However, knowing that the traffic lights don't always work to my favor, it brought an element of gambling to the table. Either way, I knew I had to run fast.

Things went OK all the way down University Parkway, but once I turned back East (near Olive Garden) the traffic lights turned on me. I hit 3 or 4 bad red lights in a row... the kind where you missed your chance to walk across by like 5-10 seconds. I tried to compensate by speeding up between lights but I knew I was lagging behind schedule. Once I got free of the lights, I turned on the afterburners. Unfortunately by that time, I hit the big hills.

I will say that it is kind of fun running through residential areas on a weekday morning. It's like watching Provo wake up. I saw kids walking to school with their brothers and sisters, men walking dogs by the park, and of course the three ladies chatting on a street corner (one of them cheered as I ran by... "run faster!"). I even caught a young girl saying "bye Dad" as she walked out the door to leave for school.

I nearly ran myself into exhaustion  on my way home and I was surprised to find that I still had 25 minutes to spare before I had to leave. Not too shabby.

Day 46: Snow, man!

Date: April 30th 2011, 9:30am
Distance: 11.9 miles
Weather: 2 inches of Snow

The night dumped about 2 inches of snow on everything. I'd complain about "Utah weather," but it's starting to become so cliche that now I just choose to ignore it. It was cold outside but once I got moving everything warmed up except for my hands. They never really warmed up.

As I made my way up University Ave I saw that the "Cup Art" bridge had some nonsensical word on it. I couldn't remember it because it made no sense. I passed the time by listening to some podcasts. Consequently, I now know that the most expensive toilet in the world is made out of 24 caret solid gold and resides in Hong Kong. Now THAT'S a throne. I'm never sure when knowing something like that will come in handy but you never know! I have no regrets.

Otherwise the run was nice. I got to run right by the highway and get some second hand exhaust, so that's always fun. I also (miraculously) kept my shoes and socks mostly dry. I felt good. This is a good sign.