Stefanie Talley - 2011 Racing Plans & Goals

Stefanie racing the 2010 Ibigawa Half in Japan

2010 was good to me, as far as running goes.  I've struggled a little bit with deciding what more I want to do for this next year.  I'm planning on starting off with the Striders Winter Series, including their half marathon in April. My Spring marathon will be Ogden again this year. I'm hoping to run a little faster than last year, like 2:50 or better.  After Ogden the racing frenzy begins. I'm planning on running Utah Valley Half, Hobbler half, and Top Of Utah Half with a bunch of 5k's & 10k's mixed in there as well. My goal for the half marathon is to get my time under 1:17. I'll be competing in the Utah Road Racing Circuit again this year and my goal is to be top 3 in that.  Then, in the Fall, if my training & racing are going well, I might go run Chicago Marathon and try for an Olympic qualifying time.  If things aren't going the way they need to then I'll probably stay around here and run either TOU or St George marathon.  We'll see!  Should be interesting, hard & fun.  That's why I love this sport.


I also wanted to share a few "training tricks" or habits I have that seem to help me.

1. Bananas and Tums.  I'm a firm believer in electrolyte balance and replenishment. Potassium & Calcium specifically seem to keep my muscles happy and functioning as well as helping them recover from hard workouts & races. I eat bananas (yes, multiple) and Tums antacids everyday and it really makes a difference in my performance & recovery.
2. Foam Rolling.  I got a foam roller for my birthday last summer and I've been addicted to it ever since. I use to have a lot of "nagging" pains & issues. But using the foam roller everyday seems to keep muscles and tendons and ligaments from complaining too loudly. It reduces soreness, relaxes tight spots and improves blood flow in general. I focus especially on my IT bands & lower back, which are my trouble spots.
3. Music. Another thing I'm addicted to is my Ipod. Mostly that is because I am always running solo. But I do know that certain music can really enhance my performance. I strategically place my favorite songs (ones with a good beat and/or inspirational message) at the end of hard workouts or the end of races where I know I will be struggling mentally & physically. Music gives me an extra burst of energy and lifts me mentally. When one of my favorite songs came on in the last 3 or 4 miles of the St George marathon last fall, it seriously gave me this "second wind" and kept me from letting my pace slow down.

Sharla Manuele - 2011 Plans and Goals

2010 was an interesting year for me. I tried a few races that were longer than I had ever raced, specifically two half marathons. My first one was the PINK half marathon which I placed first in. It was a nice course, and then I went to Mesquite where the weather wasn’t so nice. I placed third in this one. After my second one, I had to take a little while off because I got injured, but now I am back running again. I have built my mileage up slowly to 12 miles a day. I am now focusing on track season. My training has been going good. I do two days of speed work a week. I am training with SUU’s team and will be traveling with them to different meets. I will be running indoor track through February and then start outdoor track in March. The main events I will be focusing on this year are the 5000 Meter and 10000 Meter runs, but I will do a few mile races, too. I have never done a 10000 Meter on the track, so it should be interesting. These are some of the big meets I will be competing in:

• Husky Classic                        Seattle, WA
• UNM Classic                         Albuquerque, NM
• Stanford Invitational              Palo Alto, CA
• Pomona Pitzer Invitational    Pomona, CA
• Mt. SAC                                 Walnut, CA

I am hoping to get my 5000 Meter time down to 15:45 and my 10000 Meter to around 33:00. After track season, I will be doing some road races in the summer time, but I am not sure yet which ones I will be doing. I am looking forward to this upcoming year and hope others are chasing goals and dreams like me.

Fritz Van de Kamp - 2011 Plans and Goals

It would be difficult to call 2010 a complete success considering that I didn’t race at all between June 6^th and November 18^th due to an injury.  All was not lost however, because in the races I did run, i.e. SLC, Ogden, and Mesquite Marathons, and the Squaw Peak 50 I placed very well.  Building on those performances and the massive hours of cross training on my bike I put in during the summer, I think I am set up to run well in 2011 and hopefully set multiple PRs at all road distances.  Last year I contemplated giving the Wasatch 100 a go but have since come to my senses and will put that goal on hold for at least another year.  I just figure that now is my best chance to peak on the road so those ultra aspirations will have to wait.

Thus far in 2011, I have ramped up my training by putting in some relatively high mile weeks (possibly too many on the treadmill) and now I look forward to kicking off the race season next weekend when I run the St. George Painter’s Half Marathon.  It will be great to see if and by how much my training has paid off against lots of fast competition.  After Painter’s I plan to build for the SLC and Ogden Marathons by mixing in some shorter races and a half marathon.  Then I plan to spend the summer season doing some damage to the local track (I might have to jump the fence) with the hope of simply getting faster and setting 5k, 10k, and half marathon PRs.  I have never specifically trained for the shorter distances because I never raced in high school or college, but I suspect that by doing so I will see big improvements in my marathon.  The end goal of it all will be to set a big PR (sub 2:22) at Chicago in early October.  I admit, of course, that the OTC is my ultimate objective but that goal will have to be kept in my head for now.

Here’s to a healthy and fast 2011!  I look forward to seeing many of you at the races.

Current 2011 race schedule:

• Painter's Half (St. George)
• SLC Track Club Winter Series
• Strider's Half
• SLC Marathon
• Ogden Marathon
• Utah Valley Half
• Timpanogos Half (new 26.2 Running Co. event)
• Top of Utah Half
• Chicago Marathon 
• (additions TBD)  

Allie Scott - Goals and Racing Plans for 2011

2010 was a great year for me running-wise -- I was fortunate enough to have been healthy all year, which gave me the opportunity to participate in a number of races and learn more about what works for me and what doesn't when it comes to my training. I am looking forward to the new year ahead and the opportunity to set some new goals for 2011. 

One of my biggest goals for this year is to go after some PRs in distances other than the marathon. Specifically, I will be focusing on the half marathon for the first part of the year. I am planning on running the Salt Lake City Half Marathon in April and the UtahValley Half Marathon in June. I will start out the year by building a mileage base in January and February, and then begin more race-specific training in the early spring when the weather is a bit more manageable. I plan on running several 5K and 10K races during this time in order to build the speed that I will need to compete in the half. 

Following the Utah Valley Half Marathon in June, my focus will shift to the marathon for the remainder of the racing season. I am planning on running the Deseret News Marathon in July, where I hope to set a PR by running a 2:50 or better. Following that marathon, I will assess where I am at, and either go for an Olympic Trials qualifier at an out-of-state marathon, or run in one of the local fall marathons (Top of Utah or St. George). As far as mileage goes, I plan to stay at 50-60 miles per week, and increase that to 70-80 during my peak marathon training. I logged just over 2,650 miles in 2010, and I would like to get that number closer to 3,000 for 2011. More importantly, however, I want to stay injury free and be more consistent and smart about my training. 

I am very much looking forward to another year of running and racing. Best of luck to everyone chasing new goals for 2011. Happy New Year and Happy Running.