Homestead Memorial 15K

Hello,
For those of you who read this page, you will notice that I am a new runner on the Sojourner's Racing team.  My name is Michael Felix, and I am from American Fork, where I ran at American Fork High School and later Utah Valley University in Orem.  I recently graduated in 2013, and I have been teaching and coaching at Provo High School, and more recently at Westlake High School in Saratoga Springs, UT, as a head Cross Country Coach.  I am currently training for the Utah Valley Marathon on June 14, and to prepare myself for the marathon distance which will be new for me, I ran the Homestead Memorial race on Saturday, May 31st in Midway, UT.

The Homestead Memorial 15K is an annual race that Runner's Corner has hosted for a couple of decades now, usually on the last weekend of May.  It is a very fun and enjoyable race due to its beautiful location and unique distance.

The 15K is 9.3 mile race, and I felt that it was a great race distance to prepare me for half marathon and marathon training.   I ran this race primarily for its distance and the fact that it gave me a great training opportunity just two weeks out of the Utah Valley Marathon, which was my goal race.  However, even though I ran the race for its distance, I loved the race for its beautiful environment.  The race is held in Midway, UT, just by Deer Creek Reservoir in Provo Canyon.  It is a beautiful mountain town, with a European Alps feel to it.  The 15K race course goes through the town, and really takes in the beauty the Wasatch Back.  Part of the course includes Memorial Hill (pictured below) in the middle of the town which is a spiral climb up a hill overlooking the city of Midway.  

The race started out as a three person race between me, and two fellow Sojourners Club Runners, Rory Linkletter, and Adam Jenkins.  At around mile four, when the course climbs Memorial Hill, I began to make my move to break away from the three person pack, and I put another move in at the bottom of the hill for good measure.  I was able to eventual continue a fast pace, and I won the race with a time of 50:34.  I felt really good that day, and I appreciate the Runner's Corner for hosting the race, and my Sojourners teammates who helped me pace it.

Saturday May 31, 2014
Homestead Resort, Midway, UT
15K Result: 50:34 (5:36 pace) 1st place