Running Goals 2009

1) Run at the 80% for my age in at least one race this year. In 2008 I received age grades of 79.9% in two races and 79.5 in one race. Close but like they say close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. Which until September means.
Distance........Time ..............Pace
5K................17:27 ..............5:37
5 Miles...........28:52 .............5:46
10 K..............36:19 ..............5:51
15 K..............55:15 ..............5:56
10 Miles.........59:31 ..............5:57
13.11 Miles...1:18:58 ..............6:01
(using http://www.compuscore.com/agegrade/calculator.php)

2) Win a road race. The last race I won was 9/11/04 which is too long ago (http://www.compuscore.com/cs2004/sept/ramsey1.htm). The funny thing was I was not even in very good shape back then I was just running about 15 or so miles a week plus some biking. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. However, I would like the race to at least have a 100+ people. Lately I seem to be very good at getting second or third place because instead of taking a risk and going for it and possibly 'blowing up' and getting 5th or 10th place for that matter, I just run a 'safe' nice and even pace race and collect my second or third place award. Like they say No Guts No Glory.

3) 2:55 marathon. Since breaking 3:00 I have felt less urgency towards the marathon. However, I would still like to improve my PR and 2:55 seems like the next logical step. A 2:54:48 is 6:40 pace which seems doable if I get the miles in.

4) Run 2700+ miles this year. I ran 2652 miles in 2007 which was my second highest ever. My PR is 3001, which was from about 20 years ago. I would like to increase my mileage more however; I need to mindful not to ignore my family and job commitments. Also run 75+ mpw for at least one week. My high week in 2008 was 70 miles, my all time PR is 91 miles, I would like to break that sometime, however I want to be smart about it and not get injured in the process. The purpose of increasing mileage is to improve race times, period.

5) Run different types of races. Yes this is an easy one, not even really a goal. However, I know I need to be mindful to not just run the same races as I did last year. I would like to do at least one XC or trail race, track race, hill or mountain race, maybe a stair climb. Also some different distances like 4 miles, 15K, 20K, 30K, etc. Furthermore I should extend this to workouts.

6) Finish higher in the USATF NJ point series. In 2008 I finished 153 place in the series. I must admit I have never been much for series since I feel that they do not prove much (just who collected the most points throughout the year).