Rob Murphy

SLTC Winter 5k

Recent EntriesHomeJoin Fast Running Blog Community!PredictorHealthy RecipesRob Murphy's RacesFind BlogsMileage BoardTop Ten Excuses for Missing a RunTop Ten Training MistakesDiscussion ForumRace Reports Send A Private MessageWeek ViewMonth ViewYear View
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024
15% off for Fast Running Blog members at St. George Running Center!

Location:

Salt Lake City,

Member Since:

Feb 11, 2010

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Other

Running Accomplishments:

I had some success in high school and college. Winner 1985 Rod Dixon Run 

Had a fair amount of success as a Masters runner for most of my 40s. 

Short-Term Running Goals:

Have fun with running, explore more trails, stay healthy.

Long-Term Running Goals:

Keep running and racing consistently for as long as I can. Find what is sustainable for me over the long run.

Personal:

I teach AP European History and other courses at Alta High School. I coached the track and cross country teams at Alta for 16 years.

Married, two kids - Abby and Andy

My Twitter  @murphy_rob

Click to donate
to Ukraine's Armed Forces
Miles:This week: 11.50 Month: 121.75 Year: 375.97
Race: SLTC Winter 5k (3.11 Miles) 00:19:06, Place overall: 17, Place in age division: 2
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
3.500.003.110.006.61

I ran the SLTC Winter 5k for the 12th time I think. Racing this year really put me in a reflective mood this morning as I'm at a crossroads in my running and this race has been such a constant for me over the years. I love everything about the winter series races and I'm certain that if I ever retire from hard training and racing, I'll still do these races. I love seeing the hard core runners who stick with it year after year like Fritz, Sasha, Michelle Simonaitis, Michael Laputka, and Bill Cobler. These people remind me so much of myself not just in the way they approach the sport, but also because I sense that it means the same thing to them as it does to me. Kindred spirits I guess.

I love the starting time - 10 am. Gives me time to sleep in a little bit on a Saturday morning, have my normal coffee and breakfast, and still make it out to the Great Salt Lake without any problem. I love the drive out there as well. Heading west on I-80 brings out that roaming urge that is so strong in me that I would indulge more if I didn't have responsibilities.  Usually I listen to Social Distortion's Live at the Roxy on the way out because it gets me pumped. Today I went with Ryan Bingham's Mescalito which may explain my slow time. I love the coffee, the Great Harvest bread and honey, the atmosphere at Saltair, and the conversation.

I didn't have to right to expect much out of this race with my scant mileage this month and bum knee and I was able to deliver on those low expectations. I ran 19:06 with splits of 6:14, 6:12, 5:58, 42. I felt pretty good aerobically but my legs didn't have a whole lot of pop or turnover. Not surprising. I did race fairly hard though and enjoyed the competition. A few years ago I thought that I would lose my enthusiasm for racing once my times began to slow due to age but I'm finding that isn't the case. I believe that's the bad kind of pride and I'm thrilled to find out I don't suffer from it. 

The true runner is a very fortunate person. He has found something in him that is just perfect - George Sheehan

That's about it. I'll miss the 10k in a couple weeks because I'll be running the 12 hour version of Jared Campbell's Running Up For Air on Grandeur Peak that day. THAT will be a challenge!

 

Night Sleep Time: 0.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 0.00Weight: 0.00Calories: 0.00
Comments
From allie on Sat, Jan 28, 2017 at 15:26:30 from 71.56.28.146

nice -- i'm glad you could get out there to race today. i agree, the winter series is always a winner, for all the reasons you stated (in particular the GH bread and the fun eeriness of saltair). i was actually thinking about it on my run today, reminiscing about all of the fun years there, and in disbelief that this is our third year away from utah. also, that's where james and i first met, so i'll always have a soft spot for that smelly salty marshy road along the receding lake line.

i'm not familiar with either of your musical choices -- i'll have to check them out. happy weekend. :)

From Rob Murphy on Sat, Jan 28, 2017 at 16:32:53 from 24.10.247.181

I didn't know that you guys met there. This year was the 40th annual I think so it dates back to the 1st running boom of the 70s. Great tradition.

From allie on Sat, Jan 28, 2017 at 17:00:43 from 71.56.28.146

yep. we met at the '09 10k, via FRB!

From Fritz on Sat, Jan 28, 2017 at 17:30:37 from 24.2.77.1

Rob, good to see out there today. I can't wait to hear how your 12 hours of Grandeur goes. Maybe I will drop by after the 10K to view the carnage. As for the series, I keep wondering, where are the up and coming 20 to 30 year olds? We must be an intimidating crowd.

Allie, I could be wrong but I think my mom drove me and James to the race that day, or maybe it was another one around that time. Because of this I think my mom deserves .0001% of the credit for the two of you getting together :) Nice long run today!

Just realized I used the word "carnage". Too much news and Trump lately.

From Bret on Sat, Jan 28, 2017 at 20:32:38 from 99.1.220.106

Nice racing Rob. Stalwarts like you and those you identified are the backbone of the sport and local races. I can remember my father and his peers at the local 5ks year-in and year-out.

Good luck to you in the 12 hour race. I guess that explains what you were doing over the last few weeks of training runs up that mountain!

From RileyCook on Sun, Jan 29, 2017 at 08:35:19 from 73.3.122.191

Nice race Rob, it's good to see you still getting out there and mixing it up in races.

From jtshad on Sun, Jan 29, 2017 at 15:49:54 from 173.198.176.201

Nice race, Rob. Holding a good pace for us other old guys to look at and use as motivation.

From Jon on Sun, Jan 29, 2017 at 19:17:03 from 96.33.87.148

+1

From fiddy on Tue, Jan 31, 2017 at 09:01:34 from 170.140.243.140

Fritz, that was 2010.

Add Your Comment.
  • Keep it family-safe. No vulgar or profane language. To discourage anonymous comments of cowardly nature, your IP address will be logged and posted next to your comment.
  • Do not respond to another person's comment out of context. If he made the original comment on another page/blog entry, go to that entry and respond there.
  • If all you want to do is contact the blogger and your comment is not connected with this entry and has no relevance to others, send a private message instead.
Only registered users with public blogs are allowed to post comments. Log in with your username and password or create an account and set up a blog.
Debt Reduction Calculator
Featured Announcements
Lone Faithfuls
(need a comment):
Recent Comments: