SB: Fire, Screen and Run

It's been a very interesting 3 days...I got up to Santa Barbara on Wednesday night as the Jesusita Fire flared up..I took my time getting up North to take some photos.  Here's a little video of the smoke over the ocean.  This was shot from sea cliff, about 10 miles out of SB.

It felt strange to carry on with our film screening despite all the craziness with the fire, but the showing was sponsored by my friends at Destination Races, so the decision was made to go through with it.  Before the screening we had a booth at the mini expo - my roommate was none other the famed Bart Yasso!  Pretty cool.

We screened "Running for my Father" to an audience of 40-50 people, mostly locals (some of who had to leave right after the film, getting calls to evacuate!)  It was a bittersweet night as I think most of out minds were on the flames.  I probably did my crappiest Q&A yet (!)  On our way back home we realized the flames had really erupted.  Scary times.  One of our friends house had already burned, several more in danger.  Luckily my mom's house was pretty far from this:

Friday morning we went up to the expo in Buellton, which is about 25 miles North from Santa Barbara - far from the flames.  I was pleased (and shocked) that the air quality in the Santa Ynez Valley was pristine.  No ash to be seen.  It looked like the race might actually NOT be cancelled!  Picked up the packet and headed back to SB where I met Billy (larunner - duh!) his girl Sara and my girl Julia who drove up with them.

We took a walk at my favorite place in SB, Ellwood and then headed out to dinner at the famous E-Bar.  Soon we were all packed up and ready to go to bed.

And FINALLY...race day.  5:30 AM wakeup call.  We were out the door by 6.  I didn't know what to expect.  The fire was going better, but if there was ash in the air my plan was to DNF.  No sense in ruining my lungs.  I was hoping to stick to my plan as much as I could: 8:40 miles 1-7, take it slow up the climb near mile 7, then book it in.  Definitely wanted to break 2, hoping for a sub 1:55 and a sub 1:50 would be A+ for me.

After the walk to the start we were off.

First off, Billy is freaking FAST.  Don't let him tell you otherwise.  He's got serious skillz.  I remember hearing him say "I'll take the first mile as a warm up."  He was out of sight by the 100 meter mark...Sheesh.

The first miles were really beautiful.  I was trying to find my groove and remember settling in somewhere around mile 2.  By mile 5 I remember thinking...hmmm...8:30-40 for another 8 miles?  I don't think so.  I tried to convince myself the race would be over by the big climb near mile 7.  That kept me going.  

The air quality seemed great, and it definitely wasn't as hot as I anticipated.  (Yes, this is my debut in a sleeveless, or don't we call them "singlets?"  We headed through the town of Los Olivos at around mile 5 and it was probably my favorite part - tons of crowd support there.  :)

Just around the corner was the biggest hill in the race.  I remember last year when I paced Julia through her half we totally walked it.  I was pretty hell bent on running.  Man it went on awhile!  But after the crest there was a great downhill - which, btw, normally I hate, but I had to make up the time.  Miles 8-10 were a gradual downhill so I tried to pick it up as planned.  By the 11 marker I knew I was in position to possibly break 1:50 if I could hold onto my faster kick.

I love the feeling when you're close - you can taste it.  BUT...it's tough when a hill gets in the way.  I'm not scared of hills after Big Sur...but I still loose time!  And the horribly placed hill just before mile 12 was definitely NOT helping my cause.  I somehow made it up - checking my watch at the mile marker - it read something like 1:41:0x.  9:00ish to do 1.1 should be ok, right?

I knew I still had a shot so I gave it all I possibly could.  Finally to the 13 mile marker in the town of Solvang I went into an all out sprint.  I knew it'd be close.  I rounded the corner thinking the finish line would be right there.  (?!)  Uh...this was seeming a bit more like ".2"  WTF?!  I held on to my ridiculous sprint and made it across the line.  The time on my Garmin, and my eventual chip time: 1:50:00.8

Damn.  8/10 of a second!  Still a huge PR of almost 13 minutes, but those numbers hurt a bit.  It's all good though.  This race was nearly cancelled!  And it's not like I "lost" the race by a fraction of a second - my goal was definitely reached in a big way.  Billy, despite what he'll say in his blog is a total badass.  1:40:xx.  I can't even fathom that!  :)

 

(Julia and Henry in the car at the start of the race - she was there for the finish!)

Mile Splits:

m1 - 8:35 / HR 164

m2 - 8:39 / HR 168

m3 - 8:29 / HR 170

m4 - 8:35 / HR 174

m5 - 8:29 / HR 174

m6- 8:52 / HR 175

m7 - 9:13 / HR 178

m8 - 8:03 / HR 177

m9 - 7:44 / HR 177

m10 - 7:55 / HR 182

m11 - 7:53 / HR 187

m12 - 8:24 / HR 188

m13 - 7:40 / HR 193

.1 (should be .1 but Garmin says .23 and 6:11 pace?!) 1:24 / HR 200 (!)

Overall: 1:50:00 ; 8:19/mile ; HR=177

Age Group 41/110 Overall 271/1956

Legs on Strike

Had a great 5 mile recovery run with Billy Monday...took yesterday of and decided to go for a medium (albeit slow) run this AM.  It's somewhat warm so I wore my singlet...and by mile 1 I could tell this was not going to be my day.  My Garmin battery died, I had some stomach issues and by the SM Airport (about 2.5 miles from my house) my legs were totally done.  So I'm guessing about 5 miles on the day - with a lot of it walking.  WTF?!

I'm gonna shrug it off and still shoot for an 8:20 pace to start the SB Wine Country Half on Saturday.  Not sure if I can hold on to that ambitious a pace the whole 13, but we'll see!

Arg...I hate crappy run days!

Santa Monica Classic 10k

After last week's race in Big Sur I had a case of PMLDS (Post Marathon Let Down Syndrome).  We've all been there, and especially considering I didn't "race" it, I felt like I wanted to push myself a bit this weekend.  I didn't run much this last week - the knees are still week from Big Sur!  I did a short recovery jog, played some ice hockey Weds and went out for a 40 mile ride on Friday.  But today was the Santa Monica Classic 10k.  I've never done this distance, outside of my triathlon at least!  And for a good cause:  Heal the Bay

My plan was to go out at an 8:00 pace and try and pick it up after mile 2 if possible.  There was a climb before mile 4 and I knew I'd slow a bit there, but then it was all downhill - I wanted to punch it towards the end.

Wake up call: 6:15 AM.  I drove down to Santa Monica and jogged towards the start line about a mile away (it's a point to point, so I parked near the finish.)  I ran into my bro Eric from the LA Tri Club - we visited for a bit while the DJ at the start was trying WAY too hard...poor guy.

At 8 AM sharp we were off.  I tried to position myself towards the front - this is new for me!  I settled into a nice 8 minute pace, sometimes going into the high 7s a bit.  The first mile was through Main Street SM - nice.  At around 1 mile I saw my pal Billy running with his cousin.  He had mentioned he might come by and I was thrilled to see a friendly face (two if you count his cuz!)  We exchanged pleasantries and I carried on down to Ocean Ave.  Definitely a false flat between miles 1.5-3...but I chugged on!  I had my Garmin set to Time, Pace and Average Pace.  I wanted to keep the overall average pace below 8 to reach my goal of breaking 50 minutes.  In the back of my mind I would have loved to break 48...but this being my first 10k just wanted to try hard.

Between miles 3-4 we climbed about 100 vertical feet on San Vicente.  It sounds like nada, but this was a little rough for me trying to keep pace.  I slowed just a tad and was definitely feeling it at the turnaround.  I flew down that hill though!  I also ran into my buddy Bill Lockton who was watching the race in front of his house.

The final 2 miles was a gentle downhill and at the 5 mile mark there was Billy and his cuz again!  I was definitely struggling to hang on at this point, but Billy decided to run with me!  Pretty cool!  I was definitely kicking it as hard as I could - it was downhill after all.  Billy peeled off at the 6 mile mark and that last .2 felt like FOREVER!  But I made it - Garmin time = 48:11.  

What a great experience.  Love the shorter distance - it definitely breaks you in a different way!  Next week I'm in SB for screenings of my film and then running the SB Wine Country Half Marathon.  I was originally hoping for the low 1:50s (which would be a big PR) but seeing the LA Marathon is 3 weeks away I'm thinking of going a little easier - perhaps sub 2:00 (still a PR)

Here are my splits for today's race...

Mile 1: 8:00, 166 HR

Mile 2: 7:48, 177 HR

Mile 3: 8:00, 181 HR

Mile 4: 8:03, 185 HR

Mile 5: 7:26, 185 HR

Mile 6: 6:34 (!) 189 HR

Last .2 (on the Garmin it's .34...) 2:16, 192 HR

Chip Time: 48:11.7

Age Group: 40/167

Overall: 270/1663

Pics courtesy of Billy Burger:

About a mile in...

Mile 5 - not smiling!

Home stretch!  The hardest .2 ever...

Big Sur Marathon Report & Houston Worldfest

It's been a crazy busy few days.  I awoke early Wednesday morning in LA to catch a flight back to Houston, TX.  After some great Tex Mex and Pecan Pie at the Goode Company we headed over to my cousin's place (The Wizigs) and hung out for the night.  The next day we showed my film at an incredible AMC Theatre to an audience of 50 or more.  It was the most exhilarating screening yet.  It was on a huge screen and for the first time I actually felt like a member of the audience watching the story unfold.  At mile 20 during what I call the "The Struggle Segment" I found myself asking "why in hell am I doing this?!"  Then came the triumphant finish.  The audience erupted in applause!  I got butterflies --- it was incredible!  "I can't wait for Sunday!"  What a turn around in a few mere minutes.  Great audience response and comments - thanks ya'll for coming out!

The next morning we (my mama made the trip with me) we awoke at 5am Houston time (3am LA time!!!) and got back into LA by 9am.  I kicked back for a few hours before jumping in the car and heading North to Big Sur.  I stopped in Ventura to rendezvous with my friend Richard (LA Tri) who would be carpooling with me.  We set up camp at the Big Sur Campgrounds and Cabins, made dinner and went off to bed by 9pm.

On Saturday we essentially toured the course by heading North into Monterey for the expo.  Wow.  This course is HILLY.  Holy crap...how in hell...???  I'm staying true to my goal:  A Zen Enjoyment of the Experience.  (AZEE - I just made that up....kinda sounds like "easy" with an undefined accent...)  I left the Garmin at home...this will be interesting!

5:00 AM Wakeup call.  The cool part about camping for a race is that it's easy to go to bed early.  Richard and I headed into our respective tents by about 9pm, I read for a bit and was probably dreaming by 10pm.  Some idiot's car alarm went off at 4:30...that got me up early, but I dozed a bit before getting dressed, prepped and ready to head up the hill for the shuttle pickup.  Once we arrived at the start there was already an electric vibe going.  It quickly became apparent that this is a very well orchestrated event - coffee and bagels, etc.  It was FREEZING, but we were all in sweats and would throw our sweats into a truck (via a labeled bag).

We lined up on the closed highway 1, shivered a bit and at 6:45 we were off!  I went out easy, as planned, and as suggested by all of the veterans I talked to.  Miles 1-5 were definitely a breeze and quite fun.  We were in the comfort and cover of the Redwoods.  Somewhere in there I passed by our campsite - and I barely thought about crawling back to bed!  The crowd support was sparse, but enthusiastic.  There was plenty of music along the way - such as the harpist at mile 3.

By mile 6 we were out on the open road.  I was feeling great when the wind picked up tremendously.  Par for the course so I hear.  I'd guess it was 10-15mph sustained in our face wind.  This made our first climb (a longer roller) a bit difficult.  I was careful to not put too much into it and to focus on the gorgeous scenery surrounding me.  Every so often I had to pinch myself and realize I was running on a closed Highway in one of the more gorgeous parts of North America.  Insane.

I don't remember too much about miles 7-10...I was very absorbed in the scenary without regard for pace, technique etc.  This race was definitely about chugging along for me.  Of course the volunteers were shouting out times at the mile markers, so I had some idea - I was going about 11 minute pace.  As I was just looking for an enjoyable run this was perfect....in the back of my mind I definitely wanted to crack 5 hours...and hoped for possibly a sub 4:45.

At mile 10 the long 2 mile climb that is Hurricane Point begins.  This is what everybody talks about.  It's about 500-600 feet of vertical gain over that mileage.  Doesn't sound like much....but there's a decent before and after the climb...it'd be important to watch my speed on both so I didn't kill my quads and knees on the downhill.

Right at the start of the decent there was a group of Taiko Drummers.  It was exhilarating!   I had the camera in video mode and I was shooting them as I ran by.  I was totally involved in what they were doing...so involved that I neglected to notice the cone that was directly in front of me...before I new it I took a dive.  It happened so quickly I didn't really know what hit me.  Several people came to my aid, but within seconds I knew I was fine --- with the exception of some VERY bloody elbows.  Some how my knees made it out of the mess with some non-bleeding blood blisters.  Yuck.  Serves me right I suppose.  I walked up to the next aide station where I got some band-aides.  I wondered if this was the beginning of the end for me.  

My knees were throbbing from the impact and the elbows were of course burning like hell.  About 100 yards of walking later I decided this was a turning point for better or worse.  I decided to go for it - to run up the main climb of the race.  I didn't want an excuse to come back!  I made it up in great time...I think the trail runner's club has really helped my hills.  Thanks Stan and Ernie!

The wind was HOWLING at the crest.  Not quite enough to knock you over...but definitely very strong.  I tried to take the decent pretty easy - my knees were already a wreck.  At the halfway point I headed over the famous Bixby Bridge.  On the far side was the famous piano player.  They haul a Yamaha Baby Grand out to the road every year!  I decided to stop for the photo op.  I asked if I could sit with him as he played - he nodded.  He was playing a Beatles tune I knew, so I dared to play the melody in the high octave.  I think this threw him and the others around him....but I played it correctly until I forgot what key he was in...opps.  I think I got in a phrase or two.  Why the hell not?!

I carried on and chugged up and down the many many rollers --- trying to save it for the last stretch.  I would say I lasted until about mile 18 when it got pretty darn tough.  I was walking minimally through the aide stations and made numerous pit stops at the porta potties as I was probably over-hydrating for such a cool (and windy) day.

The scenery was absolutely breathtaking...it definitely kept me going in a big way.  By mile 21 I was sniffing the finish line.  I was on pace for a 4:48 finish according to the volunteers at the mile markers.  At this point I decided I wanted to see how well I could do.  I will say I suffered through miles 21 and 22, but there were fresh strawberries somewhere in there - just the kick I needed!  At mile 23 I started to pick it up a bit more, passing a fair share of people.  The scenery was gone, but the spectators made up for it.  There was one last very significant hill just before the end.  I chugged up knowing there was less than a mile to go.  Finish line in sight I went as fast as I could without ruining the group's finish in front of me.  

My time when all was said and done was 4:41:30.  I'm really pleased with this - especially seeing I wasn't really "racing."  I'm very curious where I'd be had I been and not made all the pit stops.  What I can say is that Big Sur is an extremely demanding course.  That said, not pushing myself to the max in this case made for a very rewarding experience - not in the form of a PR, but in pure enjoyment.  The PR is for LA on May 25th.  Before that I've got the SB Wine Country to worry about.  Give Big Sur a shot - it's definitely worth the pain getting up there, riding the buses, etc!  You surely won't forget your experience there.

Oh...and here's the video I took that caused the great fall!  :)

Running with LA Runner

Um...yeah...what Billy said minus 5 miles.  :)

The beach was my favorite part.

Next on the schedule for me:

4/26 Big Sur Marathon - Goal: To Enjoy It and Finish (No time goal, not wearing watch)

5/9 SB Wine Country - Goal: A) Sub 1:55

5/25 LA Marathon - Goal: PR... depending on weather (and ME!) would love to go 4:20

June/July will be more Oly Tris

August will be the SB Long Course (1m swim, 35m bike, 10m run)

Fun stuff!

Sandy, Windy, FAILED Long Run

So I've got a few weeks before the Big Sur Marathon (which I'm not running with any goal in mind...) so I need to get my long run on!  I set out on an 18 miler today to Will Rodgers Beach and back.  It was HELLA windy.  And my stomach was being a little testy, just tight, but highly uncomfortable.  I was trying to stay below 10 minute pace for the duration, and despite running directly into the crazy wind on my way towards the beach I did pretty well and felt good.

I got to the bike path and headed North towards Will Rodgers Beach (about 4m.)  The sand was crazy!  I was getting my newly shaven legs sandblasted!  Before I knew it there were spoonfuls of sand in my shoes...but I carried on.  For whatever reason I was determined not to walk.  I wanted to see how far I could go!  The best I've done in that department is a half marathon.  I turned around when I reached Temescal (at WR Beach) and had a glorious tail wind.  I definitely felt like I was gliding, but my knees had had it.  

I made it about a mile or so up Ocean Park (hilly) when I felt myself falling apart.  I made it up a few hills, but on the way down felt as though my knees (both!) were about to give out.  I decided to pull the plug once I stopped running - I could barely walk to the market across the street!  Luckily my wife was more than willing to pick me up...3.5 miles shy of my 18 miles...DAMN!  FAIL!

On the upside, I don't think I injured myself besides overdoing it...and I know I can run 14.5 miles continuously keeping a pace of around 9:40 with my HR at about 160 bpm average.  But I'll be putting in 3.5 miles early tomorrow morning...as if that'll make the difference.  :)

My Run with Dean

So I wrote the music for UltraMarathon Man, the Dean Karnazes documentary about a year a half ago. A few months prior, when I first discovered running this is the film that "cemented" the passion for me - Dean hooked me. We started corresponding as I was working on the project in the fall of 2007 and we've kept up ever since. I've seen Dean around at various functions but we've never really had a chance to hang (or run) one on one. I'm up in Sonoma for the film festival (we're showing my film here) and Dean and I decided to take a run near his house in Marin.

I met up with Dean at his place at around 10:30 and after checking exchanging hellos with his lovely wife Julie we were off towards the trail. I'm just a few weeks out from Big Sur and told him I could use some hills. Man did I ever eat my words. What the hell was I thinking? We ran at a nice clip to a lake where we then proceeded up a trail that's as beautiful as I've ever seen. Downright gorgeous! But STEEP! I kept up with Dean for about 10 minutes but was quickly (and quietly) loosing steam. These were grades I would almost surely be hiking under usual circumstances. He gave me some great advice, speed up my cadence and decrease the distance of each stride. But it was too late, I had tried too hard to keep up with him! He was quite polite, running his pace then circling back. I tried to run whenever I could - and I probably ended up succeeding about 2/3 of the time. We finally made it to the top 20 minutes later and enjoyed gorgeous views. On the way down he shared another tip with me: bend your legs, tighten your core and swing your arms. This definitely helped my knees right away. Although I had my road shoes on unfortunately so my traction was not good on the decent.

We chatted about running, life and everything in between. Dean's as great in person as you'd imagine. A truely nice guy with a lot of good uplifting thoughts to share. As far as the run, in all we covered almost 9 miles in about 1:45 or so. (Yes, he was going nice and slow for me!) As I got in my car he said something like "I'm going to continue on" and ran off into the distance. He could still be going now! Anyway, It was a truly wonderful experience and I feel lucky to call Dean a friend. Now back to the shameless schmoozing at the festival!