...did I forget to do something?

So... the last few weeks I've been taking it easy.  I have a slight strain in my left groin and I'm doing my best to just rest and let everything heal.

Two weekends ago I took my niece Samantha on a run out on the San Joaquin River Trail, and we were able to cover just over 18 miles.  The very next weekend my friend Dion asked me if I wanted to
hit the trail with him and do a 20ish mile run.  My groin wasn't feeling bad so I happily took him up on his offer.

So, last Sunday Dion picked me up at around 6:00 a.m. at my house.  We decided it would be better to carpool up to the trail since we only live a couple miles away from each other.  We were on the trail by 6:30 a.m. and everything was going good.  The weather was AWESOME and the air was feeling fresh and clean thanks to the rain we've had here over the last few days.

Dion took me on a section of the trail that I had not been on yet, and it was nice to discover new sections of trail to explore.

Everything was going great.  I was having a good time running with one of my buddies.  We were having fun joking around, telling stories, and just being outside enjoying the trail.

We got 11 miles out and then we decided to turn around and head back to the car.  Somewhere around mile 14 a thought popped into my head, "did I park my car in the driveway right behind my wife's car, or did I pull up all the way right along side of her car?"

Here's the problem with my driveway.  When you first pull up onto it, there's plenty of room for one car, but not quite enough room for 2 cars.  As you pull forward the driveway opens up and you can easily fit 2 cars.  I have a bad habit of parking directly behind my wife's car, because I usually have to leave for work before she does in the morning.  I'm also lazy and I just don't take the extra effort to drive 10 more feet up the driveway.

When I came home late from work on Saturday night I had it set in my head that I was going to get up before her and leave the house to hit the trail... so I guess it made since to park directly behind her car.  For some reason the fact that Dion was going to pick me up didn't factor into my reasoning at all.  So, early Sunday morning I left my house with Dion... leaving my car blocking the entire exit of our driveway.

Around mile 16 I told Dion, "I think I'm going to be in a little bit of trouble when I get home.  I'm pretty sure I blocked the driveway and I wife isn't going to be able to move her car?"

My wife had to be at work at 9:00 a.m., and we got back to Dion's car around noon.  As soon as we get into the car I check my cell phone.  It has two missed text messages... from my wife.  The first message at 8:43 a.m. "You left your car park right behind me in the driveway!!!"  The next message at 8:54 a.m. "I finally found your spare key! But now I'm late for work."

I had a feeling that my wife wasn't going to be happy with me when she saw me, so I did the one thing that made since... I bought her some roses and an 80 pack of her favorite coffee for her Keurig coffee maker... and I did the one thing I hate doing... I shaved.

Then I waited for her to come home... and hopefully not be too mad at me.


Thank god my wife puts up with me.  When she came home she saw the flowers and the coffee and asked me, "Am I getting my Valentine's Day gift early?"  She gave me a hug and I told her, "no, it's for making you late for work."  Luckily my wife has a good sense of humor and wasn't too mad about the entire thing.  I think she was more upset about how long it took her to eventually find the extra key so she could move my car.


So, this weekend I learned a lesson... I need to do a better job of parking my car and not blocking the driveway.


until next time...

KEEP RUNNING!!!!

My Wife...

My wife and I went on our first date on January 4th 2011.  We went to a restaurant and got a very late dinner.  During our dinner we talked about the usually stuff that people talk about when they first meet.  I talked a little about my running hobby and jiu jitsu.  She talked about fashion merchandising and the volunteering she use to do at the Ronald McDonald House.

On this date she joked that she had no interest in running but admired my passion for my hobby.  About 6 weeks into our relationship she was already crewing for me at the Rocky Road 100 miler.

The evening went well and about a year and a half later we were married.


On the very first Thanksgiving we spent together she woke up early and went to Woodward Park with my family and I to watch us run our local Turkey Trot 5k.  She told me that she wasn't use to getting up early on Thanksgiving.  Her family slept in and watched the Thanksgiving Parade, and that there was no way you could ever get her up early on Thanksgiving to run a race.


I guess my running life style has finally rubbed off on my wife.  This last Thanksgiving my wife Lori found herself at the starting line of the Turkey Trot.  This was something that was not suppose to happen, she constantly said that she wasn't a runner and that I could never get her to run... and I was fine with that.  I have to admit, I was pretty excited when she decided on her own to sign up.

My little Niece Samantha has recently taken up running and in November of this year she will run her first full marathon here in Fresno.  Samantha and I talked about her making the Fresno marathon her very first marathon because this year the event will be held on her 18th birthday.  Samantha has ran the half marathon in Fresno the last 2 years with her Aunt Kathy (my sister who got me to start running) while I led a pace group at the full marathon.  Since Fresno offers a half marathon or full marathon option Samantha's mother, Christine, (my other sister who runs from time to time) decided that maybe she should run her first half marathon while Samantha runs her very first full marathon.

Christine and Lori started talking about running the half marathon in November together while Samantha, Kathy, and I run the full marathon.

I was pretty excited to hear that Christine and Lori were both deciding to run the half marathon.  Then Lori asked me if there was a half marathon coming up sooner because she figured she might as well start training now instead of later.

I told her that the California Classic Half Marathon was going to be held in down town Fresno this coming March, but she would have to start training right away.

So, my non running wife is now currently training for her very first half marathon.  It's fun seeing her get excited about training.  We sat down and made her a training plan and she's been sticking to it.  She's going back to her Cross-Fit classes and working out at home.  I'm excited to see how she's going to do.  This weekend Lori ran/walked her furthest distance of 8 miles, and plans on doing 10 miles this coming weekend.

Right now she's running for 1 min and walking for 30 seconds.  As the weeks go by she will slowly increase her run time.  Her goal is basically to have a good time at her first half marathon and not worry about time.

I really like using Strava to log all my running adventures and I convinced Lori to do the same.  If you want to follow Lori's progress on Strava you can at http://www.strava.com/athletes/3479633.

...and you can always add me at http://www.strava.com/athletes/2154416


until next time...

KEEP RUNNING!!!!

I'm Taking An Unexpected Break From Running

This year I decided to take the first couple weeks of the year easy.  I started lifting weights again, doing Jiu Jitsu a couple times a week, and I was taking it easy with my running. 

The other day I was exercising at my house on a rowing machine that one of my friends is letting me borrow.  I really wanted to make sure I was getting a full body workout, so I made sure that I was using my upper body to pull back on the rowing machine, and I was using my legs  to bring myself forward on the machine.  I did the rowing maching for about 15 minutes and become a little bored... and my butt was getting tired from all the sitting.  I soon stopped with the rowing workout and went for a short run before I had to go to work.

My plan was to do an easy 4 mile run.  Right away my legs felt heavy.  I was planning on running the 4 miles at a 7 min per mile pace, but I was struggling to maintain an 8 min per mile pace.

After my run was finished I got cleaned up and headed to work.

That evening while at work, I was doing a lot of work on the computer.  After sitting on my ass for a couple hours I decided I should get up and get a soda.  That's when I noticed a huge discomfort in my left groin.  I'm not sure what I did, but I seem to have somehow managed to aggravate it.

A few days have gone by and the slight discomfort is still there.  I'm trying to be smart and avoid running as much as I can.  Aside from the training group I'm currently assisting for the California Classic Half Marathon, I'm doing no running at all until my leg feels 100% better.

For now I'm just lifting light weights and doing whatever I can to stay fit.

Hopefully in a few weeks I'll be back on the road hammering out a few miles.

Until next time...

KEEP RUNNING!!!!

...unless you're injured.

Woodside

My all time favorite 50k course is the Woodside 50k course.  I set my 50k PR at Woodside, and back in February 2010 it was my very first ultramarathon.  I've honestly lost track of how many times I've ran the Woodside 50k.

The course is very beautiful, it's full of giant trees and it's very green.  Most of the times that I've ran the Woodside race it's rained, and it's a really fun course to run when it's a little muddy and rainy.

A couple days ago Pacific Coast Trail Runs put on the Woodside 50k.  I had the day off from work, but didn't put aside enough money for the end of the year to cover the entry for the race.  I also am not currently in the shape I would want to be in to run this race.  This is one of those events that I want to be in good shape to run because it's a fun course to run fast.  After all the running I did in November, I knew that there was no way I was recovered enough to run a fast race in December.

Since I wasn't in shape to run the race, and I was also lacking the funds to pay for the entry, I decided to do the next best thing... I helped out at the race.

I ended up being asked to sweep a 17k part of the course.  This was awesome, because it gave me a chance to run part of the course, and give back a little to the trail running community.

Sweeping the course basically involves picking up all the trail markers that were used for the race, along with any trash or anything else that might have been dropped on the trail.  The trail basically needed to be in the condition that it was in before the race took place.

I took my Nathan pack and a bottle of water and set out on the trail.  It was nice being out on the trail.  It was quiet and peaceful.  Since I started my sweeping long after the race had started I had most of the trail to myself, with the exception of the random hikers that I would run into.

I didn't take any video of my run, but I did pull out my cellphone a few times and took a few pictures.

Most of the pictures turned out a little blurry.  I totally should have took a real camera with me and not my cellphone.  Even with the pictures I took being substandard, you can still see how beautiful this course is.

It's one of the few ultras that I will keep running time and time again.  I never get tired of running this course.


Until next time...

KEEP RUNNING!!!!

Another Training Group

Today is the start of the training group that I will help out with for the upcoming 2014 California Classic Half Marathon that will take place in downtown Fresno this March. 

I work a couple days a week at the locally owned and operated specialty running store in Fresno that puts on the training group.  Even before I worked at Sierra Running Company I helped out with their half marathon training groups.  When my friend Kyle asked me a couple years ago if I would want to help out with a training group I totally jumped at the opportunity. 

I've always looked at helping with the training group as an awesome way to give back to my local running community.  We always have a good mix of people in every group.  We have people who have literally never ran before in their life, people who have ran for awhile and now want to tackle a new distance, and some runners who are just looking to improve their finishing times.

I remember when I ran my first half marathon.  My training wasn't very good at all.  I was new to running and didn't have a clue about what I was doing and  I honestly didn't know how to train for a 13.1 mile race.  My training was horrible and that caused me to have a horrible experience when I ran my first half marathon.

When I finished my first half marathon I told myself, "you're going to do this again, but you're going to learn how to prepare a lot better."

I've learned a lot since that first half marathon.  I've read books, magazines, talked to everyone I know that runs about workouts that they do, and just tried to absorb all the knowledge that I can.

I love talking to the "first timers" in the groups.  It's cool to hear the stories that people tell you during training.  Most people are very open when you run with them and share very intimate parts of their life with you.  Some of them are out there to just get onto shape, some are getting ready to run the race in memory of a loved one that passed away, or they're out there because life is crazy and running 13.1 miles makes life a little less crazy... there are millions of different reasons why people run.

It always starts with a simple question... "what made you decide to start training for a half marathon?"  Sometimes the answer is simple, but sometimes it's complicated, and sometimes you don't even really know the answer. 

My reason for running my first half marathon was simple, my sister Kathy made me do it... my reason for continuing and getting into 100 mile events, that's complicated.

Until next time...

KEEP RUNNING!!!!

The Turkey Trot... running with my family

Me and my sister Kathy

 Back in 2005 I ran my very first race.  It was the Turkey Trot 5k in my home town of Fresno, Ca.  Since that day in 2005 I've ran this race every year.  My sister Kathy was the reason I ran this race.  She was "the runner" in the family, not me.  I trained jiu-jitsu a lot and ran a couple miles from time to time so I could make weight for tournaments, but I was never really into running.  The Turkey Trot back in 2005 changed all that.  This was my intro into running a huge race and having fun running with a group of people in a racing environment.

Samantha and I

Kathy and I made the Turkey Trot a regular Thanksgiving tradition.  Soon my other sister Christine and her two daughters (my nieces) Samantha and Nicole joined us.  Sam never really seemed to enjoy herself out there, until recently.  Sam has really taken an interest in running in the last couple of years.  She has helped crew for me at a few of my ultras, and the day after her 16th birthday she ran her first half marathon.  She is now 17 and has ran 3 half marathons and wants to run a 50 miler soon.  Samantha plans on making the 2015 American River 50 miler her first 50 mile event.

Me and my wife Lori

When I first met my wife she understood that I was really into running and less than 2 months after we started dating she was already helping crew for me at 100 mile races.  When I met my wife Lori back in January of 2011 she told me she wasn't a runner, and had no plans on taking up running, and that was just fine with me.  At this time of my life I was running ultras like crazy, and dating someone who wasn't a runner was perfect.


When Lori and I spent our first Thanksgiving together, we were planning out how to spend our day, and I told her that my family would be at Woodward Park running the Turkey Trot early in the morning.  Lori though this was crazy, but she showed up and cheered everyone on.


When it came time to signup for the 2013 Turkey Trot I was a little surprised when Lori told me she wanted to do the race.  It was cool having her out there running.

I had an awesome time running the Turkey Trot once again.  It was honestly just hoping to finish the race in one piece.  November was a very heavy month for me.  November 3rd was the Fresno Marathon, the 9th-10th was the Rio del Lago 100 miler, the 16th-17th was my 130 mile run from Bakersfield to Fresno that benefited the Ronald McDonald House, the 23rd-24th was the run d'Amore 100 miler, and then finally the Turkey Trot 5k on the 27th.


I was very happy that I was able to finish a crazy month of running, and that my wife joined in on our family tradition of running a 5k on Thanksgiving morning.


So... what's next for me... and Lori... I'll update you all in just a couple days.  I will say this, March of 2014 will be pretty exciting.



Until next time...

KEEP RUNNING!!!!

My last long run of 2013... 55ish miles

Tomorrow I will set out on my last long run of 2013…

My old running friend Sarah called me up a couple weeks ago and asked me about a 130 mile charity run I had just done from Bakersfield to Fresno for the Ronald McDonald House.  We talked a little bit about the route I took, rest breaks, crewing, and the overall logistics of planning the run.

Sarah informed me that she was planning a similar type of event and she wanted to know if I could run with her.  The run she is planning is for the Toys for Tots charity and The United Way, and would be around 55 miles.

Sarah encouraged me to run my first marathon back in 2009.  When she asked me to run with her there was no way I could turn her down.  We use to train all the time together, but as time has passed we have seen less and less of each other. 

This weekend is the Toys for Tots Marathon fundraising weekend and the weekend of our run.  We will start our run in the town of Visalia at 6:00am at the Marine Corps Toys for Tots drop off location.  Sarah and I will then make our 55ish mile journey back home to Fresno and finish at the Marine Corps Toys for Tots drop off location at the River Park shopping center

We are planning on taking it easy on the run and shooting for an 11 hour finishing time.  We have been looking at the weather reports for this weekend… and I really hope they’re wrong.  It looks like we will start at 6:00am in Visalia with temperatures as low as 27 degrees and a high in Fresno of 47 degrees.  There’s also a good chance of rain in Visalia and Fresno.  The weather conditions will definitely make this an interesting run.

After this weekend I plan on taking the next couple weeks easy, catching up on editing my running videos, updating my blog, and resting.

Until next time…

KEEP RUNNING!!!!