Afternoon – chilly – (sub 20): 11 miles, checking out eagles and geese. I got a nice phone call from Lucho and we chatted for 10 minutes. I need to see more of that guy. 
70.2 miles on the week, 645 minutes (a lot of time on that trail near Camp Hale) and 3655 feet.
December was 304.6 miles 42.7 hours and 11590 feet.
And then there is the year … For comparative purposes, here is what I posted last year for the year end wrap:
2016: 2892.7 miles, 400.49 hours, 143,120 feet.
67 run days off.
31 work travel nights (8% business travel), 14 non work travel nights, 19 camping nights
7.66 hours of running a week on average, 55.32 miles a week, average pace was 7.2+mph, 67.7 miles a week average if counting just the days run.
2015 for comparison was 3451.5 miles (averaging 66.19 miles a week), 236,905 vertical feet, 478.53.15 hours (averaging 9.18 hours a week), 40 days off and 65 travel nights for work (18%) and then 14 nights of camping.
2014 – 3436.9 miles, 172005 vert and 459.7 hours
2013 – 3493.6 miles, 272300 vert and 512.1 hours
2012 – 3367 miles, 236,110 vert and 529.92 hours
2011- 3629 miles, 264,848 vert and 543.37 hours
I know 2010 was 4100 miles …
This year ends up as:
3622.1 miles, 481.3 hours, 170,115 feet.
12 days off
74 travel nights, 10 camping nights, 5 non work travel nights
9.2 hours of running a week on average, with an average of 69.5 miles a week. Average pace was 7.5 mph, 71.5 miles per week average if counting just the days run.
A short view would be to note that my mileage, time and vertical is up over last year. 2016 however was a year where I dealt with several setbacks that kept me from running. Comparing this year to other years puts the overall volume at about par, but there is a lot less vertical in the picture. Given I only visited Green a couple times (way back in January), the lack of 2000 foot days adds up into a smaller vertical number.
Not having a race like Pikes or Leadville in my head for the last couple of years has been a contributor to me not heading to Boulder to get in bigger climbs. When I add that into that a run in Boulder put a 40 minute add to the time of the run, and I don’t want to deal with Chautauqua parking or 36 corridor traffic … well, I just don’t head there much.
Admittedly I had a bit of a goal to run 3650 miles, and hence average 10 miles a day. I was slightly ahead of this goal at mid year (1883.8) but the increased travel in the last half of the year (54 nights for work) impacted that to some degree.
Some other 2017 factors … this was big year in terms of really getting rolling with my own consulting business. In terms of measurement, that plays out in the travel nights, but it takes up a fair amount of mental energy that I think has impact on other aspects of performance. I am not sure if my desire to “train” versus “exercise” has waned because of age, but I suspect that my willingness to get after workouts takes a bit of a hit because of work energy spent. Or that might just be an excuse.
Side note is that Strava sez I put in 3742 miles on the year … which means that I somewhere got in another near 100 miles or so of walking (I think Strava shows some 66 walks on the year). Of course I got more than a 100 miles in walking but that is what I measured for walks.
I also spent more time with the local distance squad at the HS. That has an impact to my personal performance in that when you are focusing on getting others to perform, it takes at minimum some time away from self performance focus. But that is math that I am more than happy and willing to live with – the gains in other aspects of my life are well worth it and then some. There are few things that I enjoy in running now as much as a good practice, a cross country meet or a track meet. It is just awesome.
It is sort of ridiculous that I have logged nearly 28k miles in this decade and arguably I have been a bit of a miles chaser in that time period. I do think the daily run has been more of a time for me to invest in me on whole, rather than to train. There is some dissatisfaction in that, but also a content understanding that it has been an important investment in my mind, my health, my wellbeing. It is not perfect, or a prescription for anyone else in particular, but it has worked well for me.
This sort of looking back post also tends to generate the consideration of looking ahead – what do I want to accomplish in 2018. I am not a subscriber to January 1 resolutions, but I do think this period – with its short days, quietness on the business front, colder temps – tends to create a period of contemplation as to what one has done, where they are at, and where they want to go.
The other day when I ran with Tim we chatted on 2018 goals, and kicked around everything from the 5k to the 100 miler. Nothing is ruled out or in, but a few things seem a bit more attractive than others.
As much as I like Leadville (and have been there in 2015-17 in some regard), a 100 is not in the cards for me. I don’t see that I will make or have the time to prepare for that and I am pretty sure I am not really willing to deal with a challenging recovery.
Pikes is enticing but having been three years out, I’d either need to comp my way in or I need to come up with some qualifier. I will explore the options there. It is my favorite race of all time but I recognize the commitment it takes to get to a solid performance there (and it ain’t as cheap as it was when I was getting free entries).
The mile-5k-10k thing … this seems like something that would be a good fit given my time, work, and desire to race a bit more. The biggest challenge I would race is that I’d always fight comparing myself to my once self. This probably also forces a bit of a mind set of not chasing miles as much and focusing on key workouts more. This decade clearly shows this ain’t an easy thing for this guy.
Burro racing … as much as I have enjoyed success there, including nothing less than a 3rd place with Jack in 2017 (and a Leadville win), I have not found a huge itch to scratch there for this year, and am contemplating helping from the side lines.
In regards to other goals for 18, there are a few – but I have not been big on putting some specific number on them. Read more books, contribute to the team success at BHS in a more positive way, be more gracious with people, help folks start their businesses, do some peaks with TZ, grow my business from a job to a business, get in the weight room more and more effectively, run more with Bob, Shad, Neeraj and Lucho, race more blah blah blah. More to come in that space here … but as I am pretty habitual, don’t expect any surprises or doing something epic. It will more likely be doing something regular …
Oh my year of pix on Instagram (B&W) worked out well. I ended up with some 450ish BW shots that I took over the year, looking to post one a day for each day of the year. It was nothing other than just something I saw or enjoyed. I think I may have missed a day or two when I was off the grid entirely but made up for it when I returned with doubling up.
Some of my favorites .., well, my kids pointed out that it was usually something that I saw running locally, something from my travels with business (airports or something I saw running), the dogs, stuff in nature, lines and light … yup… about right. A few samples:
10 miles in Vadnais, MN. 
