Goals for 2008

My 2007 recap covered a bunch of odds-and-ends, but it didn't really discuss how I did with respect to my goals for last year. Briefly, I wanted to:

• Run 50+ marathons and ultras. Done. The secret stretch-goal version of this was actually 60. Done!
• Complete the quadzilla upright and happy. Done.
• Set a marathon PR. Done.
• Run a 3:30 marathon. Not done. Sigh. I tried at Kona, though in fairness I picked a really hot-n-humid race for that. I set aside revisiting this one later in the year so I could target a Feb 2008 race. More on that below. Ultimately, I'm ok with not hitting this goal. These goals are in order, and it was my lowest priority. I did all the others, including achieving the secret stretch goal.

My training for 2007 was organized around those goals too... I chunked the year by season:

• Winter (Jan-Mar) was base-building. I needed to get back into every-weekend running shape after my layoff.
• Spring (Mar-June) involved a lot more speedwork so that I could try to Go Fast at Kona. It helped me PR in May and again at the beginning of June, but I spontaneously combusted in my goal race. I did not try again because it was time for the summer workouts.
• Summer (June-Sept) was monster base building so that I could happily survive quadzilla. Lots and lots of miles. In retrospect, I should have kept some speedwork, but I did not. The week of quadzilla, I ran 130 miles. Lots of time and shoes went in to getting me ready for this.
  
• October was specified as "recovery" month because I had run 11 marathons in September. I ran six marathons during recovery month, including one of my sub-3:40s. Er... yes, that's recovery. Right?
  
• The rest of fall (Nov-Dec) was the introduction of speedwork again to get me ready for the February goal race: The National Marathon to Fight Breast Cancer.

So, what about 2008? Well, I've vowed not to travel nearly as much this year. And I won't be targeting "x" marathons and ultras. Let's go with a few time-specific goals and one that is not. As always, these are prioritized... the first ones are more important to me than the last ones.

• Run a 1:30 half.
• Run a 3:30 full. If I can achieve the previous goal, then theoretically a bit more training would get me to a 3:05-3:10 marathon. I'd be pleased as punch to beat 3:30.
• Run 3:45 or better in the Kona Marathon. Not my 3:30 target this year... but my best previous time here is 3:52.
• Run a sub-20 5k. I haven't done that in years.
• Finish the states. I have run a marathon in 47 different states. I still need Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Illinois. The problem is that these states don't have many choices, and it looks like all of them are in the fall. I may or may not get to them this year, but I'd like to finish.

Goal races:

• Assuming the weather is good, I'll try for 3:30 at The National Marathon to Fight Breast Cancer on 2/17. Second chance will be Eugene on 5/4.
• Kona and 3:45 on 6/29.
• Skagit Flats is a full and a half in mid-September. I don't know yet whether I will try for the 3:30 full or the 1:30 half there.
  
• I need to find another couple halves in the fall.
  

Like Kona, there are a couple other races where I've attached a goal time. Unlike Kona, these aren't quite as important to me... but they'd still be nice to achieve: Lake Youngs Ultra in June ("beat 5") and Haulin Aspen in August (4:15).