Keeping Stride

Sapper Joe 15k, 30k, and 50K

bradphippen — Tue, 25 May 2010 15:48:45 +0000

For those of you looking for a new trail race to run this year, the Sapper Joe 15k, 30k, and 50k is the one to run. Held out at Camp Williams with the National Guard, this race is one not to miss. Only it’s 2nd year, Sapper Joe has become of the most unique trail races held here in Utah. The scenary is beautiful, the trail is tough and one of a kind, and you only get to run the trail once a year. With the trail being on the National Guard’s property, no civilians are allowed on the course other than race day. Making the race even more unique.

With Sapper Joe adding a 15k to the races this year, it only allows more runners to get out and enjoy this fabulous race and trail. So if you’ve been considering running a new trail race this year, or even your first ever trail race, start with Sapper Joe, you’ll love it!

Just another reason why trail running is so great! Happy Trails everyone and we’ll see you out there on Saturday morning bright and early, waiting the sound of the cannon!

Just Get Out of Bed

bradphippen — Tue, 11 May 2010 15:27:11 +0000

For those of us who only have the early morning hours to get our running in, we may at one point or another struggled with just simply getting out of bed. Simple as the concept may be, as we all know it’s much harder to accomplish. It seems as if the mornings come quicker than expected. That the sound of the alarm comes calling sooner than we’d like. Well if I had some special trick to get you and me out of bed in the morning, I’d be first in line. Sadly enough it boils down to a few things that we all can work on.

1) Routine - I’ve found that when my running was at it’s best I had a routine for it. I went to bed at a certain time, I woke up at a certain time, and things just seemed to click. Of course this was well before baby Jack had arrived. For all of is, is a routine likely to become a habit? Possibly, depends on how disciplined you are. I for one have not found as of late. With our little guy still trying to figure out the sleeping thing, we find ourselves up at odd hours of the night, and that alarm clock seems to come sooner than we’d like. Regardless of our routine, as nice as it would be to stay committed to one, there are two more driving factors for me.

2) Goals/Races - When our nights seem to get away from us, and we lay there in bed debating between getting out and running or snuggling even further into our beds. One driving force can be having a goal/race in mind. Signing up for races and knowing that, that day is on the horizon is a huge motivating factor for me. I know I need to put in the time and the miles out on the trails and roads to be able to compete and race when race day comes. Having that goal/race looming in the back of our minds, so as the head starts to drift back down towards the pillow, it quickly pops up being reminded of that inevitable race day or goal in mind.

3) Mental Toughness - Over the years I’ve realized that running is almost 80-90% mental toughness and 10-20% physical ability. Not to denote the importance of proper training, but if you are mentally tough you can accomplish almost anything. Getting and dragging and crawling you butt out of bed every morning is truly a mental toughness barrier. If you think about your morning runs you accomplish two workouts. Your very first workout that got you out of bed and onto the road was that workout of training your brain. It does get easier over time, but just like getting into shape, we can let our minds get out of shape very quickly as well. Say we sleep in a few mornings, or hit the snooze one to many times. Our mental toughness starts to weaken. Over come yourself and get out of bed.

So there you have it! If you got out of bed this morning, great job! If you didn’t I’m sure you are already regretting it. Remember these few things each and every morning to get yourself out of bed and onto achieving your goals and becoming the runner you want to be. Think about the last time you regretted getting out of bed to go running? I dare say the answer is never. You know you will enjoy it as soon as you get out there, so get out there! Happy Morning Running!

Life and Running

bradphippen — Thu, 06 May 2010 16:02:24 +0000

Well, folks it’s been a long long time since I’ve been on here and yes, I should have some explaining to do. Needless to say, Life has caught up to me and in the midst of life, family, work, running and more, I have neglected my blog and the people who frequent it or stumble upon it. Regardless, I’d like to return and continue my desire to reach out and inspire not only myself but those who read my blog. So here’s to a restart and getting back on track.

Over the past few months that I’ve been away and you haven’t heard from me, I’ve experienced some amazing things. The joy of parenthood is one of them, and blending that joy with my passion of running. As seen below I recently wrote an article about The BOB and what an amazing running stroller it is. Since the weather has warmed up here in Utah, I’ve been able take my little boy out on the road in the BOB. He loves it, I love it, and away we go. Just a few weeks ago, Madison and I went out for a 12 mile run with the BOB and our little boy. At the beginning of the run, we were a bit skeptical if our little guy would make it 12 miles strapped down in the stroller. I was also curious if I was going to be able to make it 12 miles pushing a stroller. To our delight, the 12 miles was simply amazing and we enjoy every minute, all of us. It’s such an awesome stroller and one that will truly go the distance.

In addition to some amazing road running, I’ve also done some great trail running in preparation for Squaw Peak again this year. Due to the prolonged cold weather and delayed spring, my brother and I have done some sloppy trail running to date. Hours upon hours of wet, cold and rainy/snowy trail running. All in all it’s completely worth it. As the weather starts to warm and the trails start to clean up, the desire to spend more time on the trails than the road is very great. If you haven’t discovered trail running, You should. I dare say you will become addicted.

Well, I’m back, I make no promises as to the consitancy of my future posts other than the fact that I will be writing. I hope you are enjoying your running and keeping stride in both life and running.

Behold….The iPhone!

bradphippen — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 17:09:38 +0000

Now I know today’s post has very little do with running but I wanted to share my overwhelming excitement for my new iPhone. Now if were to ask Madison, I’ve wanted an iPhone ever since they came out. Simply because you just gotta love the Macs, so reliable and very dependable. So finally a few days ago I splurged and purchased my iPhone. Now I must say that it is everything and more that you could ask for in a phone. I mean it’s everything, from my phone, to surfing the web, to updating my blog, to facebook, to twitter, text messages, my calendar, contacts, and endless number of really cool Aps’. It’s simply amazing and if you already have one, then you know what I mean, if you don’t I’d seriously consider getting one. All in all I just wanted to share my overwhelming satisfaction with my new toy and pass it along to you. Finally to tie the iPhone into my blog, there are all kinds of Running Log Books that you can download to your iPhone to track you mileage, record your days workout and keep track of your training! Simply put the iPhone is Amazing! Happy Running and Happy Trails!

The BOB

bradphippen — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 17:30:03 +0000

If you’ve been looking for a jogging stroller look no further than the BOB. With the recent addition of our little guy my wife has been ever so anxious to get out and return to her running. Since we both have worked in the running industry there was no question we’d be getting a BOB. Now I should have had Madison write this post, but I’ll do my best to pass along the overwhelming satisfaction with the product. I’ve only run with our little guy a few times and as the weather gets warmer, I hope to take him out even more. But Madison continues to take him out almost daily and I’ve heard nothing but good about this jogging stroller. We both knew they were great, due to reviews from family and friends who’ve purchased them, but there’s nothing like having one of your own. They are extremely light, easy to push and guide, and amazingly smooth on the road. In addition, they are very accommodating to the little riders as well. All in all it’s a win win for everybody! So if you’ve been contemplating a jogging stroller look no further than the BOB. Truly nothing compares!

The Happiness the BOB can bring!

CORE to Your Training

bradphippen — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:24:54 +0000

What do you think the “CORE” thing is to your training and making you a better runner? Is it more mileage? Is it the right diet? Is it the right shoes? Is it the right training plan? Well we could answer yes to all of these questions and it’s different for everyone. Recently I have found in addition to all the above mentioned ideas the “Core” thing to my training and that is “Core Exercises.” I’ve always been a big believe in running lots of miles, running in the right shoes and having the right training plan. But I think for some of us we neglect that center portion of our body. As runners we may find that we neglect it more than we think. We run enough that it really never gets out of control and we may not notice it. But I have found through personal experience and living up to a new years resolution, that as we take time to do our core exercises and workout those arms that our running becomes easier. Our form and stride is better! We feel strong for longer distances! It’s truly a win win situation. No don’t get me wrong, I’m not Gym nut, and probably never will be. I can’t see the purpose of owning a gym pass when the roads are free. But I’ve taken one day a week and do simple core exercises instead of running. ONE DAY! That’s it, now I know it’s not a lot but I have already seen the benefits from it. Spending that one day a week building and strengthening your core can go a long ways with your running. I’ve found that it’s so simple and easy and can be done from your front room. A few dumb bells, resistance band, and a medicine ball is all I have. Between those few things and the right kind of core exercises a 45 minute workout is a simple and effective way to build and strengthen your core. Try it and I think you’ll find as I have found that the benefits go a long ways. That sacrificing that 4-5 mile run for some core strengthening is going to make that 8-9 mile that much easier. Happy Running and Core Strengthening!

Here is a link to some key CORE workouts that are very beneficial and simple for runners! Click Here!

Clean out those Drawers…

bradphippen — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 17:11:39 +0000

Have you ever stepped back and looked at all your clothes? Really? About every 6 months Madison and I rummage through all of our olds clothes and get rid of ones we rarely use. We figure the clothing would be better off being used by someone who needs them, instead of sitting in the bottom of our drawers. As runners we gather, collect, and store race t-shirts from all the races we do year after year. I recently found a whole bin full of race t-shirts and decided to give them all away. Yes, there are memories from each race but those shirts could be better off used on the backs of people who don’t even have a shirt.

As we see the recent events unfold in Haiti, I consider donating used clothes as my way of helping out the relief efforts. There are children and adults that will definitely be in need of warm clothing and this is how we all can help. So as runners, let’s empty out those drawers, those old race t-shirts and donate them. Let’s band together to make a difference. Happy Running!

Finding Stride…

bradphippen — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 15:40:12 +0000

So here were are 12 days into the new year and are you finding your stride? How are your new years resolutions coming? This past week was some awesome running. If you happen to live in Utah you’ll know that we’ve been trapped in this smoggy air for weeks now and many are shying away from running outside. True the air is bad and very dirty, but my suggestion would be to take to the high ground. The trails are absolutely beautiful this time of year and just a few hundred feet above the smoggy air. Yes, the trails are a bit snowy but the weather is absolutely amazing. So if you happen to have a long run coming up this weekend and the air doesn’t look to great outside, take to the high ground and enjoy the trails. Happy running and keep on finding your stride in the new year!

Happy New Year…Happy Running!?!

bradphippen — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 16:30:43 +0000

I want to wish you all a Happy New Year and hope that 2010 has great running in store. I sat down last night and wrote up my training plan for my second Ultra Marathon this year and the excitement started build inside me. I’m looking forward to all of the training, the long hours on the trail and sore legs. Yes some people may call me crazy but running truly is addicting. So I hope all of you have taken that time to sign up for your 1st of many races this year and have sat down and made a game plan to accomplish your goal. Best of luck this year in all of your running endeavors. Happy New Year!

Stride for Something New!

bradphippen — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 17:19:51 +0000

The new year is upon us and it’s that time to sit down and reflect on the year gone by and look forward to the year ahead. Read today’s Daily Stride, make new goals, and reach for something higher in 2010. Your motivation awaits…read more!