The Workshop
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Personal Briefing

🌅Personal Briefing - Monday, May 4, 2026

Good morning. Here's your personal read.

🏃Training

🏃Today's Plan

📅 Recovery - 5K was 2 day(s) ago Races: 10K (06-20) - 47d · Half Marathon (10-11) - 160d · Half Marathon (11-14) - 194d

🏃 Today (Monday): 12-min easy run · 10-min abs · 5-min stretch Target pace: 9:30–10:00/mi (Z2, conversational) Recovery week - keep it very easy. Minimal hard efforts this week.

Best window: Lunch - 78°F, sunny, wind 7 mph

📊This Week

Tue: 12-min easy run · skip · 5-min stretch · pace 9:30–10:00/mi - recovery week - very easy · London (no abs equipment - running + stretching only) Wed: 12-min easy run · skip · 5-min stretch · pace 9:30–10:00/mi - recovery week - very easy · London (no abs equipment - running + stretching only)

This week: 0 runs · 0.0 mi · 0 min Zone check: insufficient data this week (0 runs, 0 min) - keep building consistency before zone targets become meaningful.

Recent runs:

  • Mon 04-27 · 0.8 mi · 6 min · 7:22/mi (Z4)
  • Tue 04-28 · 1.2 mi · 10 min · 8:20/mi (Z3)
  • Wed 04-29 · 2.6 mi · 23 min · 8:49/mi (easy)
  • Thu 04-30 · 1.2 mi · 11 min · 9:02/mi (easy)
  • Sat 05-02 · 3.1 mi · 24 min · 7:36/mi (Z4)

👟 Shoes: Brooks Ghost 17 - 151.6 mi (80 runs since 2025-10-18). At current pace, replacement around 2027-05-27.

✓ Nice walk yesterday (23 min). 2 family walks this week - lifestyle win, not a run substitute.

☘️Notre Dame Sports

🏈Football

No news to report! Here's recent information in case you missed a previous newsletter:

Friday's double recruiting win is still the headline of the spring. 2027 four-star QB Wonderful "Champ" Monds IV picked Notre Dame on the Pat McAfee Show (over Ohio State and Florida State), and 2027 four-star EDGE Aidan O'Neil (Don Bosco Prep, Ramsey, NJ) committed earlier the same day - pushing the 2027 class to 12 commits with the No. 1 QB in the reclassified class and a top-100 pass rusher landing in the same calendar day. Beyond recruiting, Marcus Freeman has fully turned the page to fall - replacing the Love/Price RB room (both first-round NFL picks) and rebuilding depth around CJ Carr at QB. Official visits and camps now drive the May calendar.

Upcoming:

  • Sun Sep 6 - vs. Wisconsin, Shamrock Series at Lambeau Field (season opener)

Last Result: Blue-Gold Game - Blue 41, Gold 40 (Sat Apr 25)

🏀Women's Basketball

No news to report! Here's recent information in case you missed a previous newsletter:

The 2026-27 roster is essentially set following last week's portal moves: Anaya Hardy (Louisville) and Madison "Nat" St. Rose (Princeton, two-time All-Ivy) anchor the portal additions, joining the No. 1-ranked HS class headlined by McDonald's All-Americans Jacy Abii and Jenica Lewis. ND replaces four of five starters from 2025-26 after Cassandre Prosper went to the WNBA and Vanessa De Jesus, Iyana Moore, and Malaya Cowles all moved on; KK Bransford's transfer to UCLA closed out the departures. Niele Ivey is also coaching Team USA's U18 squad at the FIBA AmeriCup June 8-14. Hannah Hidalgo's NCAA single-season steals record from this past March remains the single biggest individual storyline of the offseason.

Upcoming: Summer workouts begin in late May.

🥍Lacrosse

Both brackets are set. Notre Dame men drew the No. 2 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament - they'll host Sunday, May 10 at noon ET on ESPNU, facing the winner of Wednesday's opening-round game between Jacksonville and Robert Morris. Princeton got the No. 1 line, with defending champion Cornell and ascending Richmond also in the top eight. The Irish (10-2) - coming off the 15-10 ACC semifinal loss to Virginia - get a manageable opener at home with seeding still in their favor for a deep run; quarterfinals are May 16-17, semis May 23 on ESPN2, championship Monday, May 25 at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville.

Women's lacrosse drew James Madison in the first round Friday at 3:00 p.m. CT (2:00 p.m. MT) on ESPN+, opening on the road in Evanston as part of Northwestern's regional. JMU (13-6) is fresh off another American Conference title - making its 11th straight NCAA appearance - and a 2018 national champion. ND (12-5) needs to get past the Dukes to get the projected second-round date with No. 1 overall seed Northwestern on Sunday. Tough draw, but a winnable opener if the defense holds up against JMU's transition pace. The men's championship final is May 25; the women's is May 24 at Northwestern's Martin Stadium.

Virginia, meanwhile, won the ACC Men's Championship over North Carolina yesterday in Charlotte - the Cavaliers' second straight win over ND in eight days, but with both teams now in the NCAA bracket the rematch math gets interesting if seeds hold.

Upcoming:

  • Wed May 6 - Men's NCAA opening round (Jacksonville/Robert Morris play-in)
  • Fri May 8 - Women's NCAA First Round vs. James Madison, 3:00 p.m. CT, Evanston (ESPN+)
  • Sun May 10 - Men's NCAA First Round vs. Jacksonville/Robert Morris winner, noon ET (ESPNU), home

Last Result:

  • Men: Lost to Virginia 15-10 in ACC Semifinal (Fri May 1)
  • Women: Lost to Clemson 12-9 in ACC Quarterfinals (Thu Apr 23)

📋Around the Program

  • Baseball completed the sweep. Notre Dame closed the Stanford series with an 18-13 slugfest yesterday at Frank Eck, exploding for eight runs in the sixth (two HRs from Jayce Lee including a three-run shot, plus an Andrew Graham homer in the same frame). Stanford got home runs from Teddy Tokheim (two) and a three-run Rintaro Sasaki shot in the ninth that wasn't enough. Notre Dame moves to 24-20 (11-16 ACC) with the regular-season finishing kick still ahead.
  • Women's tennis advances. Reminder from Saturday's NCAA First Round - the Irish beat the Wildcats 4-3 in Champaign, while the men exited 4-1 to Vanderbilt the day before to finish 21-8 in their first NCAA appearance since 2022.
  • Softball heads to ACC Tournament May 6-9 at Virginia (25-27, 11-13 ACC).

🔴Utah Utes

🏈Football

No news to report! Here's recent information in case you missed a previous newsletter:

Spring practice is winding down without a spring game (Morgan Scalley's call). Devon Dampier's command of new OC Kevin McGiven's offense remains the most-watched offseason variable; the rebuilt offensive line under first-year coach Jordan Gross is the ceiling-defining unknown for 2026. Recent transfer-portal pieces to flag: kicker Tanner Cragun (UTEP), Will Monney (Oklahoma State), Noah Bennee (Weber State), and Braeden Pegan (Utah State, 60-926-5 in the Mountain West last year - already running McGiven's scheme). Scalley said this spring of Pegan: "That's one of those dudes that you wish you had 20 of them. He's such a good kid, smart football player, athletic, can jump out of the gym." Cornerback help arrived too in Elijah Reed (Akron - two INTs, allowed just one TD in 2025). Sept. 26 at Iowa State is still the Big 12 tone-setter.

Upcoming:

  • Sept. 3 - vs. Idaho (season opener, Rice-Eccles)

🤸Gymnastics

The 2026 retrospective is sharpening - Carly Dockendorf got a contract extension through 2031 and the program hired USA National Team coach Steve Arkell as the new bars coach. Dockendorf on the season that ended one-eighth of a point shy of a 50th straight National Championship: "No one is ever going to take away 49 years of going to a national championship. That record will never be broken." Junior Ella Zirbes read the room differently: "This team next year is going be very dangerous because I feel like we know what it's like now to just go all-out." Sophomore Avery Neff: "I truly believe you have to break something down in order to build it back up stronger, and there was a lot of breaking down this year."

The 2027 reset rests on three returning All-Americans (Makenna Smith, Neff, Zirbes) plus regular-season All-American Camie Winger, with five-star Bailey Stroud headlining the four-freshman incoming class plus a fresh international pipeline - five-star Gabrielle Black (Canada) and four-star Ayla Miller (Minnesota) joining for 2027. Olympic silver medalist Grace McCallum is now on the staff as Student Assistant Coach.

Upcoming: 2027 season begins in January.

📋Around the Program

  • 🥎 Softball took the series from No. 19 Arizona to close the regular season. Yesterday's finale was a 10-2 Senior Day rout at Dumke Family Stadium - Kennedy Proctor went deep twice (a two-run shot in the first, a solo in the third), Shonty Passi added a two-run blast in the third, and Utah scored the first seven runs of the game. The series win (after Saturday's 5-1 and dropping Friday) gets the Utes into the Big 12 Tournament May 7-9 at OGE Energy Field at Devon Park in Oklahoma City - Arizona slid to the No. 3 seed and will play Arizona State.
  • ⚾ Baseball. After taking the rivalry series in Provo last weekend, Utah hosts UVU at America First Ballpark Tuesday at 4 p.m. MT (ESPN+) before traveling to TCU on Sunday May 10 (noon MT, ESPN+).
  • Men's basketball roster nearly set. Craig Smith's offseason rebuild now has three perimeter transfers (Jackson Holcombe / Utah Valley, Taison Chatman / Ohio State, TJ Burch / Wright State), one of the top European prospects in Noam Yaacov at the point, four other internationals, plus 2026 signees Styles Clemmons, Simeon Suguturaga, and David Katoa - joining lone returning guard Lucas Langarita. Still hunting a true center.

🌰Ohio State Buckeyes

🏈Football

No news to report! Here's recent information in case you missed a previous newsletter:

The recruiting weekend that just passed went the wrong way for the Buckeyes - Champ Monds IV picked Notre Dame on Friday and four-star OL Jackson Roper picked UCLA on Saturday, two top-end targets in 24 hours. Quieter offsetting good news: Jimmy Kalis and Davis Seaman (both four-star OL) had committed in recent weeks. Behind the scenes, assistant director of recruiting strategy Nick Murphy is moving on after joining the staff in 2022 - Day and Mark Pantoni now have to backfill a key role with official visits and camps stacking through May and June.

The transfer-portal centerpiece remains Alabama IDL James Smith (No. 1 IDL in the portal, No. 8 overall transfer per 247Sports). The recent post-spring portal additions worth tracking: former LSU WR Kyle Parker (following ex-LSU WR coach Cortez Hankton), former Houston Christian punter Brady Young, Georgia transfer CB Dominick Kelly, Northwestern TE Hunter Welcing (28-296-2) replacing NFL-bound Max Klare, plus veteran RB Ja'Kobi Jackson out of Florida.

The bigger context: 11 Buckeyes drafted in 2026, all four top OSU prospects gone in Round 1 (Carnell Tate to the Titans at No. 4, Arvell Reese to the Giants at No. 5, Sonny Styles at No. 7, Caleb Downs at No. 11). DC Matt Patricia has eight starters to replace on defense for the second straight year. The offense returns Sayin and Smith and four of five OL starters. CBS Sports has OSU at No. 2 nationally post-spring.

Upcoming:

  • Aug 30 - season opener (Week 1)

📋Around the Program

  • Softball took the series from No. 25 Washington on Senior Day. Yesterday Ohio State won 3-2 on a walk-off single from Abbie Wilhelm to take the series 2-1 - Jenna Molk got the win, Lorin Boutte started, Sophia Ramuno took the loss for Washington. The Buckeyes now wait for their Big Ten Tournament matchup at Maryland starting May 6.
  • Big Ten Men's Lacrosse. OSU did not advance to Saturday's Big Ten title game at Rutgers.
  • Baseball hosts Purdue Saturday May 9 at 3:00 p.m. ET in Columbus.

🏔️Treasure Valley

🍽️Food & Drink

The longer-term pipeline keeps building, with Anesso - a new sandwich shop from the Black Moon / Broadcast crew - slated to open this month. The other near-term closure remains Eastside Tavern at 1228 S. Oakland Ave., closing May 16 after 15 years (Whiskey Bar already wrapped its 12-year run on Saturday with the Derby party). Spring 2026 pipeline carryover:

  • The Boise Post rooftop atop the AC/Element on Grove tracking for spring.
  • Boise Thai Noodle House at 908 W. Main targeting spring.
  • Hemlock steakhouse moving into the old Richard's space.
  • Coa Cantina in Barber Valley, Cán Coctelería speakeasy above Amano, Bobby's Cafe in the old Original Sunrise space, and Idaho Burrito all opening this spring.
  • Schnitzel Fritz bringing schnitzel sandwiches, pastries, salads, and beer/wine to downtown.
  • Handel's Ice Cream first Idaho location, late spring/early summer at 1581 E. State Street, Eagle.
  • Village at Meridian expansion - Apple, Pottery Barn, Tecovas, Tempur-Pedic, Gorjana, Culinary Dropout, The Capital Grille, Paris Baguette, and Flower Child all in the pipeline.

Green Acres Food Truck Park is open for its sixth season behind Payette Brewing - bigger space, more options, no alcohol yet while the team works through new Garden City regs.

🎉Events & Things to Do

  • Today (Mon May 4): Idaho Gives 2026 kicks off - Idaho's largest collective giving campaign runs May 4-7, with $33M+ raised since 2013. Pick a couple of nonprofits and queue up your gifts now while it's fresh.
  • Tue May 5 - Cinco de Mayo. Indian Creek Plaza Cinco de Mayo runs 5-9 p.m. in Caldwell. Farm to Fork Market every Tuesday evening downtown - 30+ vendors, fresh produce, handmade gifts, Tuesdays on the Creek live music nearby.
  • Wed May 6: Quiet midweek; nurses wash free at Metro Express 7 a.m.-8 p.m. (Tuesday is the same offer for teachers).
  • Thu May 7 - First Thursday on the Plaza moves to Cherie Buckner-Webb Park (1100 W. Bannock). First in the "First Thursday Under the Tree" America 250 series - themed program, music, food, runs first Thursday of each month May through September. Also: Mersiv at Knitting Factory, 8 p.m.
  • Sat May 9: Capital City Public Market downtown, 9:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. Boise Farmers Market 9 a.m.–1 p.m. Eagle Saturday Market, Meridian Main Street Market, Nampa Farmers Market all running.
  • Sun May 10 - Mother's Day. Zoo Boise Mother's Day buffet breakfast (zookeeper talk, special gift, zoo admission, mimosas/Bloody Marys for purchase). Peaceful Belly Farm brunch.

Forecast for today: sunny, high near 83°F, light/variable wind becoming NW 6-11 mph in the afternoon (gusts to 21). Clear day either side of the London flight.

📰Local Headlines

  • "Dan the Man" pizza driver retires after $170K viral kindness fund. Dan Simpson - the Treasure Valley delivery driver who was caught on a Ring camera buying a customer a Diet Coke out of his own pocket - is stepping away after the GoFundMe response cleared $170K, looking for a "simpler, fulfilling" life. Quintessential Boise local story.
  • Public memorial events for former Gov. Dirk Kempthorne approaching. Kempthorne (who died April 24 at 74) lies in state in the Idaho State Capitol at 10 a.m. Friday May 15, with full services in Boise across May 15-16.
  • USTA National Indoor Tennis Championships running this week in Boise - 50s and 60s competitive divisions, low-key but visible if you're near a tennis facility.
  • Western Idaho Fair concert series - first artist announced. Brantley Gilbert is the first of five 2026 acts.
  • Carryover reminders: Boise Cascade $6.38M Lacey Act fine still in the news cycle. New Expo Idaho park (wetlands, skate features, Greenbelt connection) still in design. ITD director Scott Stokes retiring June 30. HP confirmed exit from its Boise site in 2027 - long-term redevelopment story to watch.

🔗Worth Reading

Generated on Monday, May 4, 2026

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