C Mantz Run

Just doing some easy miles this week to get back into it. Slept in, then 3 with Ruby up the canyon at 8:28 pace. The whole first mile my achilles was popping  (probably from not running and going downhill). Physically felt good, but a lot of little muscle pains. Foot wasn't too bad, so I'll just keep running on it. If it gets as bad as post 2 mile at byu, orem, region, or state again, then I'll get it checked out. Going past Mack Park, a squirrel crossed the road. It looked like it was playing red light green light which was pretty funny. Turned around and took a quick stop to stretch. Going back up the hill was tiring, so hopefully the big ugly goes well tomorrow. Finished before 7:45 and will show up to school when I feel like it.  Did an easy core workout that was hard because I haven't done legit core in a while.

Big Ugly today. It was way fun, but 4 hours of sleep isn't enough. Drove to nc with my little bro. The showup this year was pretty sad (only 4 new freshman), but those that did are awesome. Started with everybody. I did not want to go fast at all, but everybody was haulin. The hill when we started was painful. I tried to go with rachel, and nathan tried to keep with me. He got really tired, so he stopped for a sec and I tried to catch rachel. I had her in my line of sight the whole time. When we finally got to the start of the big ugly, I was feelin pretty good. Every year it gets easier, but I probably do it slower, lol. On the way up Storrs had written things like "pain is awesome" and "if you're having fun, you're not hurting enough." I was definitely having fun. When we were on the final part where it's not too steep but you're so legs are dead, Rachel bagan to slow down and I tried to catch her. On top of that Coach Womack was rigt behind me and I didn't wanna be passed. We took a long break. It took us about 23 minutes to get to the top. Rachel and I ran down together. It was slick, with all the rocks, so we went slow. It took 17 minutes to get down. The big ugly is always a party and everybody who did it today are the best.

Went on a really late hike last night, came home to get 2.5 hours of sleep, then met up with friends to hike at 3:30 am. We hiked up to the reflectors and watched the sunrise. It was totally worth it. Chilled on the mountain, ate breakfast, then hiked back down. The hike is 2 miles up, but it's super steep. Coming back down was sketch. It took me and Kels more time to get down than up, lol(1:30ish up and 1:45 down). We'll see if I go on a run later today, my body is sore.

After doing nothing productive except for sleeping and reading, I had a burst of energy, so I ran. It was about 80 degrees so I wore a tanktop and had my messy braids from yesterday in. Turned on my africa playlist which gave me even more energy (consisting of Alex Boye and the lion kind). 4 up the canyon and my quads were sore. My pace, though, was a 7:30 up to the third mile. With the uphill 9-minute laste mile, the average pace went up to 7:55. I was done with uphill after the last 36 hours. Picked up Ruby; we only lasted a half mile in 4:17. It was a really fun run today, even with the heat. It kinda hit me that this is my last year to run in hs, so I better make the best of it.

Babysat all morning, and my only chance to run was in the hot afternoon. I didn't eat much until right before which was smart, haha. The first 2 miles felt great. It was over 80 degrees, and my average pace was a 7:20. Just felt good. Then the third mile hit along with the heat. Jogged the shortest route home. I may have been a little dehydrated. Planned to run later when it was cool with Garrett, but we were both so tired. Ended up hiking sv hill and watched the sunset.

First, yet weird, day of summer xc. I just don't feel like a senior, and a bunch of people were gone. A ton of things have changed over the last few years, and I'm not crazy about change, but I'll get used to it. We had a good amount of lowerclassmen, though, which was awesome. Ethan chose the route, cedaridge. We all began walking in a pack towards the course, but nobody was running, lol. I started and everybody followed, haha. It was just different. When we started, I tried to catch the lead group of boys who had sprinted out, whom I could usually keep up with. They were going tempo pace, so I pulled back, letting Clara catch me and we ran together. It wasn't supposed to be hard, but idk if everybody knew that. Clara and I were still pushing the pace a bit which was nice. I was hoping to extend, but my stomach and foot were both hurting, so we just did the normal loop to 4. It may be a little long, but we ran for 33:30, so maybe a little under 8:30 minute miles. There was a mixup with where to finish, so a group of us had to run back to the stop sign. I then led core, which was so weird, but nobody else took over. It was pretty fun and I'm so pumped for this season. Hopefully practice will be the way it used to, because today was a weird day. If I can find time, I will run tonight.

After babysitting and dinner, I wasn't really in the mood to run, so I procrastinated by watching a movie with my little bro. Then it got dark, and I was up for a night run. Just 3 miles at 8:25 pace. I went on downstream upper canal which I hadn't been on in over a year. It's a short trail right below where I normally run, but there's no shade as you run through a field. There was half of a dead water snake which I stopped to look at, lol. The trail then goes behind people's houses and I feel creepy running in people's backyards at night. It was still a blast. Hopefully I can do more similar night runs this summer.

Felt sick early in the morning, but by 10, I was up for a run. I then got distracted by looking at family pics and I found some of Conner's "unseen" sub-4 downhill mile footage, haha. Finally got going before 11. 6 miles up the canyon. It got really hot towards the end. The last uphill mile was death, but I ran through a sprinkler which was great. 8:04 average pace. I was hoping for sub-8, but it seems to take more effort now that the season's over, and that last mile was an 8:50. I was hoping to get some tempo in, but Coach recommended not pushing anything until my foot is 100%. It did hurt a little, but I think it's improving. Really fun run, though.

Really fun day at practice. We went up the canyon which was way nice. Clara and I ran together the whole time. We both thought six was a good amount for today, and on the last mile, a group of guys caught us. On our way down we sped up a bit, but it was way nice to run with people. Our average pace was 7:54.

Another nice run up the canyon. I had to wait for my watch to charge for about 45 minutes, then it took 15 to link, haha. It was a really pretty morning. Went up to the 7 mile turn-around, then cut through birch. Slowed down my average pace, but the trail was worth it. Had to do some extra to round out the half-mileage. 8:06 average pace. I may or may not run tonight.

Yet another run up smithfield canyon. For practice we did sunnyside. Me and Clara stuck together the whole time. It was pretty fun. We started with the guys, but they sped up and I wasn't up for anything too fast. Coach Womack wanted us to go for atleast an hour. Only 4 of us ended up doing that, haha. We extended up the canyon and were both tired, so we didn't speed up much when we turned around. 8:15 average pace.

Wish I coulda gone to the CBC, but I had the act and needed sleep. I was dreading the fact that I'd have to run in the afternoon heat, but it was pouring rain and 65 degress! Today I was up for an adventure run, and it was. Went up Birch. The clay was pretty slick past the first gate, but running was possible. I was hoping to turn onto the trail right before the second gate, but couldn't find it, lol. I attempted to find it by crossing the river (soaking my shoes). Then I tried to just keep going up instead. Because of construction, the clay was too slick and my shoes gained some significant weight. Turned around. Found out the trail was a ways before the gate, I had missed it. Went up the trail which is so pretty, expecially in the rain. When I got to the fields, I followed to another trailhead I didn't know about. It was pretty overgrown, narrow, and slippery. I don't know where it goes to, but I'm down to try hiking it sometime (when it's not rainy and I'm not alone). Went back the way I came to get mileage. Coming down I sped up but soon became covered in mud. It was definitely a fun run. Continued on hillside when I got to the road to get in one more mile to round out to 40. My average pace on the trails was slow, but I was going 7:20 on the road, so it got down to a 9:23. One thing is my foot didn't hurt! Maybe I will be able to do tempo next week.

For xc we did golfcourse, which is probably my favorite. Clara and I pushed it up the hill, but dropped from the first group of guys when it got flat. My watch only lasted the first mile, which was an 8:15 (all uphill). The pack of sophmore boys caught us and we just stuck with them the rest of the time. We extended onto the trail, and Carson was ahead of me and the pack was behind. I was feeling up to going with him, but I didn't wanna drop Clara. When we got into Birch, the group caught up. Tucker cleared some crazy puddles. When we got into the canyon, Clara and I sped up. Jaxon hauled passed us, catching Carson. They finished about 20ish seconds ahead of us at 7:39 pace, so we were at about a 7:45. It was a fun day. I probably should have ran more.

Later, Sarah, Clara, and I went on Crimson trail to hike. It was a beautiful day, but as we were coming down the wind picked up. When we reached the trees towards the end, it began hailing/raining and there was some lightning. We ran the rest of the way, getting soaked and muddy. Sarah was hauling ahead; I just jogged. It was an adventure. I'll count another half mile.

I had no motivation to run until 2. It was about 75 degrees, which was hot enough. I felt amazing the first two miles up the canyon, considering to do 12, but then the heat hit me. I just went up another mile and turned around. My average pace up was a 7:45, which was decent for going up. Coming down it got down to 7:40. Took a break at Mack Park for some water. The last mile was terrible. I didn't eat much before, so I didn't have a ton of energy going up the hill. 7:56 average pace. Running through the park added a bit.

We did saddleback at practice. We haven't ran it in a year, so it was an adventure. We turned early, so we could cross main on the crosswalk which took forever. The whole team caught up by the time we crossed. Half of us forgot where the turn was, lol. Finally found the right road. Clara and I were feeling good at the start and we were in front. The lead pack of boys caught us and we went on the long, straight road to 3.5. The boys pushed the pace for us quite a bit. At 3.5, the lead guys stopped, then turned around. Clara and I felt great, so we waited for the next pack, the sophmore boys, who were up to do the full loop. I thought it was 8, but it turned out to be 8.5, whoops. We were ahead, but stopped quite a bit to make sure they knew where to go. After the final turn, we were on the road back. We slowed down a ton the last 3 miles, but all of us were pretty dead. Our average pace was 8:12. Made it back and everybody had finished core. Water tasted amazing after this run. Adventure runs are the best, and this one definitely felt that way.

This was a day where I had no motivation. Finally, around 10, I just did 4. One reason I may not have a ton of motivation is 'cause I'm not really doing any races this summer and I haven't been able to do anything hard.  Hopefully, next week, I will start doing some tempo. During my run, I did 2 200s on the road to get a feel for speed. My foot didn't hurt much, which was good. They were both around 45, but a little long. 7:45 average pace

For practice, we went up dry canyon. It was pretty fun. I ran with Ryan and Ethan (both sophmores) up the hill. JC and Austin were way ahead, and everybody else was at ragnar or on vacation. It felt way nice going up. We got to a gate, then turned around to pick people up. We went all the way to the bottom of the dirt road, then slowly made our way back up. It was really fun. Storrs showed us some trails I would love to try. Then, we ran down. Most people hauled. I just stuck with Annie and we chatted. We were still around 6:30 pace coming down, which wasn't hard at all. Don't know our average pace, but it was atleast an 8:15 or faster.

Really late in the night, I did 3 miles with Ruby. It was pitch black, but the full moon was out. My miles were 1) 7:52, 2) 7:44, 3) 7:58. Ruby pushed me quite a bit. It was perfect temperature outside, too.
 

Went up smithfield canyon with my dad. It was way fun. He said we were going to go slow, but we went the perfect pace for an easy run. We didn't talk much, but my mind was going 100 mph. We got a drink at mack park on our way back. We slowed way down on the golf course hill, but it was pretty hot. Our average pace was 8:08, and it was around 82 degrees. When we finished, we were at 8.17, so I just ran up the road a ways and back to atleast round out to the quarter. Super fun run.

Before the sun began to set, I started running. Man, the sunset was beautiful! My whole run was me looking at it. Going south, the dimension of the clouds could be seen with orange, pink, and purple. Going north, there was an orange feather-like cloud against navy blue with the light blue background. Halfway, the whole sky made everything a pink glow for a while, which was way pretty. I did 3 on hillside with Ruby, then one around the block. All of the miles were super consistent, averaging a 7:31 pace. Felt really good and beautiful run!

For xc, we did tree of life, then bumped up to cedaridge backwards. The coaches had us start girls and boys separate to find people to stay with. Cassidy and I stuck together and made our way up to the second pack. Her goal was to stay with me, and she stuck with us until the cemetery which was awesome. The lead ground didn't know where to go after the canal or cemetery, so we caught them twice. The pack was huge. We hauled down the hill. Ethan, Jaxon, and I caught the lead pack around cedaridge, but I dropped the last mile. Around a 7:35 average pace which was plenty faster than I had anticipated. It was a way fun practice.

Ran during the sunset again because it's a convenient time. Brought Ruby with me. She started to struggle when we got to the first mile, and she never got faster. Although she has more energy than her tiny body can handle, Ruby only runs when she wants to. Our miles were 7:44, 7:51,  8:42, and a 4:07 half mile. Going up the hill on the third mile, Ruby was walking and I didn't want to drag her or carry her, so I just slowed way down. The temperature was perfect, but the dog just wasn't feeling it. The sunset wasn't as nice as Saturday, but the clouds were still pink. Fun evening run.

I was really pumped to try tempo, but my foot was hurting. I decided to just go up the canyon and if it warms up, maybe I'll try some tempo. Before 2 miles, it didn't hurt, so my warm up was 2. When I started, I realized how it would all be uphill. My first mile was still decent for going up (6:43). I took a quick break to catch my breath, I hadn't gone fast in a while. Then, I started to go down. Within a minute, my achilles was popping. It hadn't happened since 8th grade, so I stopped. Stretched it, then tried again, but stopped again. It's painful, but when I stop it doesn't hurt. That half mile was still fast, excluding the breaks. Just jogged home the rest of the way. It didn't hurt/pop coming back up the golfcourse hill, but I didn't want to risk it. The only time it really did pop is when I would run down the canyon after all the uphill, so my next tempo will have more gradual hill changes. Still got in 6, and all of my miles were under 10 minutes, lol.

At 3:30, when it was super hot, I went 3 quick miles. I need a few heat runs before cross country, and I had not other time. Just did hillside. When I was next to the fields, I heard a rattle snake, but couldn't see it, so I just sped up. Coming back, I was on the other side of the road. I crossed after the spot where I'd heard the rattle. Then, I heard a bunch more (from a distance). I just ran faster, it wasn't super bad. It was either rattle snakes or sprinklers that didn't exist, lol. About a 7:18 average pace. Still way fun. Right after, hiked the wind caves and my legs were wrecked.

For practice, we ran up the canyon. I was with the girls for a bit, then the sophmores came past and I went with them. The lead pack of guys was way ahead, but I was so tired and my legs were sore. We were still going at a 7:25 pace until the second mile. It was me, tucker, and ryan. As we went up, isaac and swiggy fell off, and stuck with us. After 3 up, we turned around. Tucker and Ryan took off downhill, but my body wasn't up for it. It was way fun and chill. 7:45 average pace.

I was able to run with Amber which was way fun! We drove up birch to the third gate and started up the trail. We followed a single track that weaved in and out of the double which had easier crossings and some bridges across the river. It was a ton of fun chatting with her, and we were going up the trail super slow (14 minute miles). We got to where it is just the single track and went up for a ways. It was the furthest either of us had ever gone up, and the trail was super over grown. Coming down, our pace sped up to 10 minute miles. I fell into the river twice while we were crossing, but the cold water felt really refreshing as the temperature became warmer. It was way fun!

At practice we ran golf course. Rachel was there on time, so we stuck together. We pushed it up the hill, then relaxed on the way down. Our pace was around 8 until the last mile, where we were booking it, dropping our average pace to a 7:50. It was way fun.

Tempo today. It wasn't as good as anticipated, but good for the first time this summer. Warmed up 2 miles, the first and last mile of the tempo. Did hillside. I felt really good starting, and my first mile was right on, but the second and third were harder to keep pushing. Foot didn't hurt and achilles didn't pop, so that was great. I mostly didn't keep my form the last 2 miles. Miles were: 6:21, 6:44, 6:45 which was 19:51 total. It's crazy how last year, I just hoped for under 20, and hitting this time doesn't kill me anymore. Picked up Ruby and cooled down a mile. I should have ran last night, and tonight because I was on track for 50 miles. I just didn't have the motivation or energy. Next week, I will hit 50.

Storrs asked me what we should run today. I was down to switch it up, and chose golf course backwards. We've done it before, but the first 4 miles are uphill. Arianna stuck with me the whole time which was wonderful. Our first mile was a 7:23. Going up birch, she would speed up which pushed me. Coming off of the trail, she was struggling, so we just went nice and easy. When we got to the mile of downhill, we sped up quite a bit. Ethan caught us (they had extended) and we talked going down the hill. It ended up being a 6:33, so plenty faster than expected. It was just under an 8 minute mile average pace, and was way fun. Right when I got home, I brought Ruby 3 miles up birch. My body was tired, so we went 8:52 pace. I then actually got in a decently good core workout in after.

I went up Smithfield Canyon hoping to do tempo, but I was tired. I went up to the 8 mile turn around. I kept a decent pace going up until the last mile which brought it up to 8 minute pace. I was still feeling tired, so started down slowly. When I was almost a mile down, a white truck came swerving around the corner. It came closer to the edge. I was already in the weeds and tilted my head. If I hadn't tilted my head, the mirror would have hit me. The car wasn't too far from hitting me either. It scared me. Usually, I make eye contact with the driver, but they were flying. I wasn't super angry, just in shock. I slowed way down and felt sick to my stomach, so I cut up birch. My pace slowed way down to an 8:26. Hopefully, that doesn't happen again. I was wearing a gray shirt, so it may have been harder for them to see me, idk. Next time I run up there, I will wear a bright colored shirt, lol.

For practice, we did a nice speed workout. We jogged out to the west side of smithfield (consisting of fields, cows, and an occasional house). We got to a road and based our distance between the telephone poles. The first was a brisk pace, the second was faster, and the third was a sprint. Then, we would recover between one set. We started as a pack, so it was slower and harder to get through. The second and third sets were plenty harder. Arianna came with me, and kicked my butt majority of the sprints. The road went out for a mile. first half was asphalt; the second was dirt/gravel. Coming back, we struggled. It got plenty easier on the asphalt. Arianna struggled towards the end, but we just made our recoveries slower. There were too many sets to count, but it was way fun. We cooled down back to sv nice and easy which rounded to 4.5 miles. I was in charge of core, and made it harder than any of our previous core workouts, but it was fun!

It was almost 90 degrees, butnit was my only chance to run. I brought Ruby without much thought, she's always down to run. We went a mile at 8 minute pace, and she was panting a ton. We ran half a mile back, and I was more worried that she was okay than running more miles. The heat didn't affect me too much, it was nice.

I didn't run until after 12, but it was humid with some light sprinkling. I just wanted to go for an adventure run, so I did. I started up birch. My thighs were a bit sore, so I took it nice and easy. The dirt was perfect. Turned onto the trail that went back on the side of the canyon. I pushed the pace a bit, but didn't get any faster. I then tried to find a trail that went over to the next canyon. While I was looking, I heard a rustle in the tree. At first, I thought it was a hawk, but it was too big to be a hawk as it flew away. It was an owl. I looked up in the tree where it came from, and there was another owl! They were huge! It quickly took off, so I continued searching for the trail. Found it, but the trail was a road less traveled on. Continued up to cedar canyon. I'd only xc skied it, and there were some cool trails going straight up the mountain. Explored some more, then followed the trail back. When I got back to birch, I went up some more past the third gate. Coming back down, I sped up. Super fun run. My pace was around 9 minute miles. It got warmer towards the end, but never too hot.