Hunington Beach to Coronado

Ok it's been a while and while I am thinking about the next couple of weeks leading up to the Angeles Crest 100, my mind has been also wondering what will be next. I heard about a long relay race that will be in it's third year in So Cal. It is a 193 mile run from Hunington Beach to Coronado. I spoke to the race director about doing it solo and he is all for it. He said that he would give me a start time that would bring me in with the rest of the runners. They might even wave the registration fee! I am totally up for this being that it is right in my backyard. Registration is opening in a couple of weeks. I don't think I can walk away from this one!

Thanksgiving

Had a nice Thanksgiving yesterday. Started the day with a 17 mile training run. Ran like a snail but had fun nontheless. Went home ate and watched some football. Cleaned up and went to help my friend Julie, who was feeding the homeless in downtown San Diego. This really was a feel good thing and I am very happy that I was involved. Cant really see doing anything else now on these types of holidays. She will do it again on Christmas and so will I. The one thing I missed was the Kids. The Lord has been so good to me and the kids are amazing. I cant imagine what life would be like without them. I love them so much! I am honored to be their dad.

JJ 100 Recap

Ok, well here goes. This was a very fun trip. I got to take both kids along and I was stoked. We were off to Fountain Hills for 4 days so that I could run my second 100 miler. The trip in was great except for that small section in Gila Bend where I got pulled over by a 12 year old who said I was speeding. Oh well, I wasn't going to let him spoil my fun so off we went. We got to Javelina headquaters and set up our tent. Thanx goes out to Willam who had his drill handy. The ground was was like cement, and he learned from last year, so he drilled holes for our stakes. We got our camp site set up then went down the hill to feed the kids. Came back got checked in and received bib # and goodie bag. Got to sleep at around 8 but couldn't sleep a bit. It was in the low 40's and the ground was hard as a rock. As soon as I fell asleep, Joel had to pee so all in all I think I slept 2-3 hours. Got up at 4:30 when I heard the others around me waking up. 6 am race start, said goodbye to the kids and off I went. The first 30 miles I ran way to fast but I felt great. Syd did a great job of getting me what I needed and just seeing the kids every 15.4 miles gave me the boost of energy that I needed. Didn't hydrate and eat like I need to and it bit me in the butt at mile 40. I was starving and ate 2 peanut butter sandwiches which was soon to become part of trail that I was running about half hour later. Felt much better after throwing up but at mile 62 felt pretty bad. I don't know if I wanted to quit, but I knew that I wasn't going home with just a speeding ticket. Oh yeah, I almost forgot, Mary Ann an old friend from high school came to see me at the 62 mile mark and it was great to see her. She looked great and seeing her gave me an extra jolt of energy, that I really needed. 62 to 77 were some hard miles but after power walking alot of them I started to feel alot better. 77 to 92 were a little better and at 92 Syd got her running shoes on and said she would run with me the last 8 miles. I am so proud of her, it was cold, 4:00 in the morning and she had been up helping me for the past 20 hours. She really stepped up to the plate and proved to be the trooper I knew she was. That 8 miles with her I will never forget. What a blast to be out in the middle of the night running with my only daughter. Her spirit and laughter made it so much easier to run at that point. I kept joking with her about how they must have moved the aid station because it seemed like forever to reach that last aid station. We finally made it as the sun was coming up and from there we only had around 4 miles to go. This section was smooth and bit downhill so we managed to shuffle most of the way with a few walks in between. I have only done 2 100 milers but this much I know. When you are about a mile away from finishing, you can taste it. I mean it! You can finally see the madness behind all those early morning weekend solo runs and those 10 to 15 milers after working a 10 hour day. For just about 10 minutes it all becomes so clear as to why you are putting your body through this much stress, and for those brief moments there is no more pain. Thanx to Syd and Joel for being there for me, and I can't forget Stephanie because if I said that I didn't look foward to seeing her every 15.4 miles, even if she was with her boyfriend, I would be lying. Thanx for keeping an eye on the kids when you could. I am grateful. Now, what next?

Pre Race Butterflies

Well the second 100 miler is just days away and now the butterflies start. Questioning my training is all part of the process, I guess. Did I do enough, can I push through when I feel like quitting. All these qustions will be answered shortly and hopefully in the middle of the night. I am happy that the kids will be there. With them at the finish quitting is impossible. I could never let them down, but more importantly I can't let myself down. Too many early morning solo training runs have been put in to do anything but strive for a 22.5 hour finish. Thats 3 hours less than San Diego and will take patience from the start but if I stay on track and pace myself I believe it is doable. You gotta believe!

Last long run

Got in a my last long run before Javelina yesterday. 35 miles, just under 6.5 hours. The weather played a factor late in the run. Also , I didn't have the proper nutrition so towards the end I was toast. I'm glad the long runs are done for a while. This week 30-40 easy miles then a goods week rest before heading to Fountain Hills. I am looking to shave a few hours off my San Diego time so I really need to concentrate on my pace early on. Starting to get excited about a road trip!

Fun Day With Joel

Joel and I had a fun day today. We got up and went to church to start the day off. We came home had some lunch and then went to play our first set of tennis. He is really getting good and he took me in the the first matchup. Then we went for a bike ride and training run. I had taken two days off so it felt good to be back out there. We got in 10.5 miles at Lake Hodges, came home , had an early dinner and then headed back out for one more set. Again the little guy got a victory, which I heard about over and over again. Good day, I am grateful for the time we have together.

Motto

We can entertain compassion for a world in need of care
but the road of good intentions doesn't lead to anywhere
'cause love isn't love 'til you give it away, you gotta give it away.