Category Archives: Running
2013 6th Annual Bellevue–Offutt AFB Runway Run – Results
This morning was the annual installment of the Bellevue – Offutt AFB Runway Run! I think this is the 7th time they are run this event and each time it is great! Starting at the Lied Center at the corners of Ft. Crook and Highway 370 in Bellevue, this race takes you onto Offutt AFB, around the Martin Bomber Building, down the main runway (seriously, where all the planes land) across base, back by the O Club, in front of the new STATCOM building, through Generals Row and back out the Flag Gate to the Lied Center. 7 miles and worth it every time I run it!
189 people ran it. Should have been 500!
Full set of results can be found here: http://onlineraceresults.com/race/view_plain_text.php?race_id=24925
I ran the race in just over 56 minutes and was 5th out of 23 in my overall age group. Not bad for an old fat guy like me! I really enjoy this run each year.
Next up is the Memorial Day 5 mile run out at Boys Town. Registration is just $20 through May 15th. https://secure.getmeregistered.com/get_information.php?event_id=7673
2013 36th Annual Lincoln Half Marathon – Results
May 6th, 2013 – The big running event for me each spring has to be the Lincoln Marathon. I have run it 4 years in a row now and completed it 3 times at the full distance. With a 4:33 in 2010, 4:27 in 2011 and a PR of 4:08 in 2012, this year I opted to take it down to the half distance of 13.1 miles and enjoy some training time to myself this year. Still running 20 to 30 miles a week and getting 6 to 10 in on the weekends, I felt this would be a race I could walk into without a bunch of extra training. I was right!
Not only was the race weather perfect, but the race itself was fantastic. Not having to go on and do a full was great this year. A group of us started with the 1:55 pace group but I felt good enough to leave that group at the 2 mile point and try to hunt down the 1:50 pacers. Since it is a staggered start, I didn’t just have to overcome 5 minutes, but about 8 or 9 to catch that group. While I never caught them physically, I did complete th
e race in just over 1 hour and 50 minutes. Official time was 1:50:26. All in all a great day to not only running a half marathon, but running with 65+ other runners from Gallup. Amazing work by Ryan Wolf and Heidi Husk to put so many runners in this race. Congrats to Ryan as well for finishing with a great time in spite of having some very sore and hurting legs. Way to set the bar high for all of us Ryan!
Some thing discovered after the fact was that the printer put the wrong year on the bibs this go around. This was the 36th annual running and on the bibs it said 35th. Hard to believe no one caught this until long after the race. Maybe that will make the bibs a collectors item some day?
The race conditions were perfect. With a starting race temp of just over 40 degrees and cloud cover most of the morning, the course was easier than in years past. I was almost wishing that this had been a year for a full! It always heats up for the second half of the marathon and this year it stayed cool well into the race for those running 26.2 miles. They gave out reflective blankets at the end of the race for the first time since I have run it and those were handy. I was able to cheer a few halfers in and then go out and cheer some fullers in as well.
I was able to pick up Staci Bedel at mile 24 and run her in the rest of the way. It was nice to not be the one finishing the full this year and encouraging others! So many times I have been the one coming in dead and others have lifted me up at the finish! Congrats to all who competed both races!
As always, the race was run very well and the crowd support was fantastic. While this race is hard to get into (it sells out in hours now) and there are always way too many people on the road, this is still a favorite race. Every year I say this is my last, and every spring I come running back. See you in 2014 Lincoln. I am hooked on the half!
2013 31st Annual Novartis 10K Run – Results
The 31st running of the Novartis 10K Run as held April 20th out at Holmes Lake in Lincoln, NE. The race is hosted by the Lincoln Track Club and 
is a two week tune up for the Lincoln Marathon. Holmes Lake is also the site for the 20 mile point in Lincoln and has been a difficult place for me over the last three years doing the full. The run starts on the street north of the park, loops through the park once and then heads out of the park and down the hill via the marathon route. It was a very familiar location for me and a good way to run that route for confidence. So often I have been exhausted at that point in the race, I was just glad to be running 6.2 miles and not 26.2!
The race finishes by coming back up the hill that lead you into the park (again, part of the marathon route) and into the finish! I had a strong finish and was happy with the time. 318 people ran in the race. With a late start of 9am and chilly morning, I didn’t get back into Bellevue until just before noon. It made for a long morning. The race however, was very inexpensive. Like $16! I am trying to support smaller and cheaper races this year. This one fit for sure!
I met Mike, another runner about the same speed, size and pace and we ran from about the 2 mile mark to the finish. With it only being the seconded timed 10K of the year, I was happy with the time. Tuning up for the Lincoln half was the goal and that goal was accomplished!
2013 4th Annual Leprechaun Chase 10K–Results
This year’s Leprechaun Chase pitted 610 men again 1139 women (it’s a beer run, why so many women?) in this 4th Annual St. Patty’s Day themed race. Guys chase Girls for the chance to win FREE beer!
Last year I ran a 10 mile training loop before the race and came in at a slower 57 min total. This year I have been taking some down time to rest the legs and haven’t run much in February. Coming in at 53:59 felt good and was fast enough for how I have been training.
The after party was great and Ben always runs a great race!
Here is a link to all the race results: http://www.pigmantri.com/jmsracing/results13/leprechaun13.html#1
2013 7th Annual Trek up the Tower: 40 floors, 870 steps, and 633 feet into the sky
For the 5th year in a row now, I have made the journey over to the First National Tower in Omaha (the tallest building between Chicago and Denver) for the 7th running of Trek up the Tower.
With all the travel I did in early February, I had some very realistic expectations for time. Anything under 8 minutes would be great. Coming in with a 7:44 fit the bill. I had a good chat with Ivan Marsh after the race and the day was complete. In at 7:45am and out by 9:00. A quick coffee run at Starbucks on the way out and home by 10:00am. All in all a great race and run very well.
Almost 70 Gallup runners completed the race.
2012 1st Annual G.O.A.T.z Trail Run
On a chilly Sunday morning, late in October, the 1st annual GOATz 5/10.5/20/30 mile Trail run had it’s first edition. The race was well run and laid out very well.
The Race Matrix
| 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | |
| TLC Groundhog |  49:21 10K |
 50:39 10K |
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| Trek up the Tower |  7:44 |
 7:36.25 |
 7:14 |
7:25 | 8:24 |
| Frozen Burrito |  38:35 4.7M |
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| Leprechaun Chase |  53:59 10K |
 57:54 10K |
 48:26 10K |
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| Ni-Bthaska-Ke Trail |  1:32:45 12K |
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| State Farm |  1:33:21 10M |
 1:35:59 10M |
 1:24 10M |
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| Novartis Run |  52:20 10K |
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| Eagle |  50:28 10K |
 49:28 10K |
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| Lincoln |  H 1:50:26 |
 4:08:22 F |
 4:27:05 F |
 4:33 F |
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| Offutt Runway Run |  56:00 7M |
 53:13 7M |
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| Papillion Half |  1:47:10 H |
 1:53 H |
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| Boys Town |  60:00 |
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| Bennington Daze |  39:44 5M |
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| Dodge Daze |  23:50 5K |
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| Omaha Corporate Cup |  51:58 10K |
 51:58 10K |
 46:32 10K |
 51:34 10K |
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| Grand Island Half |  1:57:50 H |
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| Omaha Marathon / Half Marathon |  1:57:27 H |
 4:19:28 F |
 1:54:53 H |
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| Kansas City Marathon |  4:59 F |
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| Race for the Cure |  30:00 5K |
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| G.O.A.T.z Trail Run |
1:49:38 10.5M |
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| Beer and Bagel |  33:21 3.82M |
| Lincoln 2012 | Lincoln 2011 | Omaha 2010 | Lincoln 2010 | Kansas City 2009 | |
| Finish | 4:08 | 4:27 | 4:19 | 4:33 | 4:56 |
| 20 Mile | 2:59 | 3:07 | 3:10 | 3:13 | |
| 25K Split | 2:19 | 2:22 | |||
| Half Split | 1:57 | 1:59 | 2:03 | ||
| 15K Split | 1:23 | 1:24 | |||
| 10K Split | 56:35 | 56:14 | 58:27 | 58:00 | |
| 5K Split | 29:27 | 28:32 |
2012 Omaha Marathon / Half Marathon Results
September 23, 2012 – Just coming off the Corporate Cup last week and a quick decision to run Omaha Half this weekend made for a crazy week. I also spent a big chunk on the week traveling. Wednesday in Iowa City and Thursday and Friday in Madison, WI for some Gallup recruiting. Needless to say, the race came up fast!
On Thursday morning, I did get to spend some incredible time with a 6 mile lake run in Madison. The temp was cool, the air was clear, the wind was zero and the timing was right. Ran right from the hotel, picked up a well paved bike trail and follow it around until I thought it was time start heading back. RunKeeper kept me honest.
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This morning’s race started off with a 4:45 alarm and a 5:30 departure to Gallup. I planned to meet Dave Cihal there at 6:00am to gear up and walk over to the course. Gallup is just about a half mile from the start. The temps had dropped overnight and for the first time in quite a while, it was cold. I layered up and put on the gloves as was ready to go! We made the half mile trek to the start line and waited 15 minutes for the race to begin. They started promptly at 7:00am!
Dave has been training for the Market to Market 50K solo race and this was a training run for him. We had agreed to run with the 4 hour pacers and started with that group. By mile 4 or 5, the group was still big and inconsistent. Dave and I both moved to the front of the pack. It proved to be a good decision. Less speed changes and people swerving.
The first 10K of Omaha is fast and flat. They save all the hills for the second 10K. Dave and I run this part of the city at least once a week, so we are very familiar with it. It starts with the ConAgra campus, under the UP Bridge and up 6th Street to Bancroft Ave. Just when you think it’s over, you make the right on 10th street and there is one more hill in front of you. But from the top of 10th, it’s all down hill, into downtown and the finish line at TD Ameritrade Park parking lot. A finish on the field would be great, but they have not gotten that part figured out yet. Not a big deal, the Marines greet you at the finish and award you with a clear glass medallion that is hand made and unique. It’s a great experience.
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I left Dave somewhere before the 12 mile mark and headed for the finish. He did very well setting a new PR of 3:54, smashing his old time by almost 20 minutes. I was able to head back onto the course and finish the last 2 miles running with him. It was the best part of my race.
Sarah came out and was a huge part of the race for support. She was there at the halfway point was well as at the finish. She walked the first mile with me when I went back to catch Dave and was there again at the finish for Dave. Thanks for spending the morning with me Sarah! It was great.
Nothing planned for the future. Have a few options but will have to see what comes up. Been thinking about some trail running to change things up a bit. Might give that a try in the next couple months or before winter sets in.
2012 Omaha Corporate Cup Results
September 16, 2012 – This was the second year in a row that I have come off of the Lincoln Marathon with an awful summer of training. For the record, its been a long, hot summer and running was the last thing on my mind. I had good intentions for a 
summer of training, but when the best moment in the day was when I decided to not workout, there is a problem. June – Aug…not great. September…much better.
In a weird twist, my time for 2012 was the exact same time as 2011, 51:58. To the exact second. With the same kind of summer (minus the Omaha floods) training, I guess the same time is in order. The run felt good and recovery today was quick. That’s a what a good base can do for you.
At Gallup we put the Corporate Cup on our running calendar every year and we do it early. Even though my summer was rough, I knew this would be there to greet me. It was a warm welcome!
This morning, Gallup fielded a record number of runners (212 was the last count I knew of) and showed up in force. For me, the morning went by very quickly. 8:00am arrival, 8:30 team picture and a quick walk out to the seeded section. A group of about 10 of us gathered and chatted about the race ahead.
The weather was not great, but better than the rain in 2011. Since I had not been training regularly, I had no idea what my legs would bring me. Could go as fast as 48 or as slow as 55. Just no way to tell.
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I started the race with my running partner Dave Cihal (looking more and more like Steve Prefontaine everyday and pictured above) but lost track of him after the first mile and a half. I settled down and ran with a couple other Gallup folks from mile 2 – 6 and enjoyed the run. It went very fast.
For the first time, I ran this race with ear buds and music. In the last 4 years, I have gone without music and enjoyed the sound of the run. With some reflection this summer and the need to shake something up, I opted for my iPod shuffle and some tunes. It was nice to have the music for the run. Will have it running next week.
Speaking of next week, Omaha Half Marathon is up next. I signed up for it on Thursday after a really good training run with Dave. He is running the full. I will join him (if I can keep up) for the first 13. Actually looking forward to it. Anything under 2 hours would be great!
Gallup Corporate Cup 2012 from Brian Pope on Vimeo.
2012 Bennington Daze 5 Mile Run
June 16, 2012 A record number of runners (somewhere in the neighborhood of 150) turned out this morning for fairly flat and fast 5 mile fun run at Bennington Elementary School in Bennington, Nebraska. It was a fund raiser for the St. John’s Outreach there in town. Bennington is in the northwest corner of the Omaha metro and was very easy to get to from Bellevue. It was a nicely run event.
First off, I LOVE small town runs! Just cannot get enough of them. Would run them every weekend if I could. This race was $10 for the run, $20 if you wanted a shirt and $12 the day of race. Yes, $12! Unheard of in this day and age of $50 10Ks and $125 Marathons. With running’s growing popularity and high expectations by the attendees, fees have continued to go up. Scary trend.
Second, I committed to this race on Friday afternoon at 4pm. I was feeling like I needed to race this weekend and looked to the Omaha Running Club website calendar to see what was open. Had the choice of about 5 races close by and chose this one. It was the closest and cheapest. In the end, a great choice.
It’s been a rainy weekend the the sprinkles let up for most of the morning. With an 8am start and plenty of humid sunshine, the herd of 150 of us 5 milers and 2 milers blocked 1st street for about 5 minutes while we started the race. A few race instructions (which everyone talked over) were given by the director “Bob” and all too quickly the race was off!
The 5 mile course was an out and back that started at the Elementary School, ran past the High School, up and over the dam and part way around Bennington Lake. It was a very nice run and a very open and clear trail. They even had a water station at the mile 2/3 point. The best part was the last mile of downhill. I used some momentum to catch a few people and was able to finish in 39:44! Not a bad indicator of where I am 6 weeks post Lincoln Marathon. The goal was 8s, so I hit it.
I thought I had a good shot at an age group metal and I was right! A 2nd place finish in my age group of 40 – 49. I even was the first one picked to win a prize for the raffle! My lucky day!
All in all, a great test of how the legs are coming along this summer. This fall I have the Omaha Corporate Cup on my schedule as well as the Omaha Half Marathon in September. I would live to run a 45 minute 10K and 1:45 half this fall and will need to work on my speed in order to get there. There is still a lot of running to do.
