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!

SUCCESS: UCSB Triathlon Race Report (UPDATED)

So here I am, 30 years of age today.  And here I am, a triathlete!

Yesterday my mom, wife and I made the drive up to my hometown of Santa Barbara.  After feeding at my local favorite "The Natural Cafe" we headed back to my mom's house (and my childhood house!) to wind down and celebrate "Earth Hour."  I must admit I used the laptop on battery power during this time!  I took a shower and shaved them legs!  (This time with a razor instead of the electric.)  Might as well have the full experience of triathlon.  :)  I was off to bed by 10pm and ready to close off the decade that was my 20s.

5:45 AM.  I awoke with delight.  Had a little coffee, ate some flaxseed almond bars from TJs and got ready to go.  Short drive to UCSB, I maxed out the tire pressure, hopped on the bike and rode to the transition area.  We were there by about 6:30.  The transition area was nearly full!  Luckily I found an open spot and set up.  A quick trip to the bathroom and very light jog later and it was already time to get into my wetsuit.

The prologue.  We hiked down to campus point, where the race would begin.  The rocky path killed my feet!  But upon arriving to the sand I had one of those moments.  Bliss.  I feel well trained and totally ready to go.  But I'm also HELLA nervous!  I decided to get into the water to try and acclimate.  After dunking and swimming just a bit I realized I was getting the dreaded "ice cream headache," despite my neoprene cap (and swim cap over it!)  My mom, Julia (and Henry) reassured me that all would be well.  I hoped they'd be right, as swimming with your head out of water for 1.5k is NOT fun.  The college folks headed out at 8:00 - we'd have a half hour to wait until 8:30.

The swim.  Time flew by and before you knew it we were off!  I decided I'd try and swim somewhat aggressively.  I've had some friends suggest I lay back on the swim to avoid getting kicked in the face, etc.  But I wanted the full experience!  I didn't want to go all out, but I'm a fairly strong swimmer and knew I could at least be mid-pack.  Getting into the water is a bit of an art - and I was, ahem, not too graceful!  As I was starting out a huge wave crested and blew back a dozen off us - pretty epic!  The ocean was not at all calm.  Not quite the roughest I've swam in, but very, very close.  The addition of all of the people around you makes for quite the experience.  It was very hard to find a lane and very difficult to get into any sort of groove.  And very EASY to get off course - as I did half a dozen times.  There were four buoys to go around and on each approach we would all uncomfortably bunch up like crazy.  I felt arms, etc on my feet several times, almost ripped a guys goggles off with my hand (sorry!) and even got a few feet to my hands a couple times.  Talk about the full experience.  The course took us quite far out and through several kelp beds!  I got wrapped up a ton, which was no big deal but funny.  It was a little tough spotting the buoys with the swells - often times they were hidden by the breaks.  I probably ended up swimming closer to 2k with all of the drifting and swimming off track!  I finally approached the beach and swam nearly all the way in. 

T1.  I hopped onto the beach and quickly realized I had absolutely no feeling in my feet.  It was as if I had local anesthetic!  Eerily, it reminded me of how they felt on top of the mountain when my cousin and I got stranded.  I ran up the beach, up the 3 flights of stairs to the transition area.  It was bizarre - the path was rocky and I knew I should be experiencing pain in my feet, but I felt nothing.  I got to my bike, put my socks and shoes on (still feeling nothing) grabbed my helmet and glasses and before I knew it I was off on the bike.  Clipping in was a huge challenge as I couldn't feel my feet!

The bike.  I was really trying to push it on the bike portion.  It's where I've put most of my training since it's so new to me - it's also the longest portion timewise (hopefully!) so it makes sense to go for it.  The course took us along the bike path in my favorite town - it's just gorgeous.  I tried to go into "aero position" as much as possible but am still not completely comfortable on them during turns, etc.  I was trying to push my tempo the whole way - I ended up passing a lot more than being passed - that felt a little bizarre since I'm not so used to that - especially on the bike!  I got to Cathedral Oaks road, a road I'm pretty familiar with and put it into a high gear.  I must have been cruising around 21 mph or so for a few miles straight - but I had no idea what was in store for me next.  We took a right up Fairview Ave and there was a nicely sized hill in front of me.  No biggy.  Let's just chug away!  Probably 8-9mph, maybe 10 - and still passing people!  After about 5 minutes of climbing (seemed longer!) we hit a nice downhill, in which I hauled ass.  Then we took a sharp left and would go up 

"Holiday Hill," a very steep - but fairly short - hill.  I approached with optimism, but not more than 20 seconds in my chain derailed while shifting to the lower gear.  I tried to force it back in by shifting up (sometimes works) but I was about to fall!  I clipped out, yelled "sh*t" and put it on the gear with my hand.  Now the hard part - clipping back in on a very steep grade!  It took me a good 30 seconds to get back in, meanwhile all the riders that I had passed were now passing me!  Dow!  I was angry and killed that hill, hopping out of my seat and absolutely attacking!  I crested and proceed to fly down the downhill.  I was happy with my turns, going way wide then cutting in.  Next we'd nearly pass by my mom's house, descend into a little valley, and climb out.  I was starting to feel it (especially in my back!)  But I knew I only had 5-6 miles to go.  I kept my bike computer on speed and time, as to motivate me to try to get back to transition sub 1:20.  I charged as fast as I could those last miles, by my favorite place (Ellwood) and through UCSB.  The wind really picked up towards the end - and for the last 2-3 miles it was definitely working against me.  What to do though?  I still wanted to try and make my split goal!  I had seen Julia and my mom out of the water and was hoping to get a little cheering at T2, but I couldn't find them amongst the crowd as I approached.  The time on my bike computer upon getting back into T2 and racking my bike?  1:20:XX.  Wow - that's accurate training, eh?

T2. Racked the bike.  Sat on the ground to take off my bike shoes, slipped on my Asics - and oh yeah, remembered to take off my helmet and replace it with my hat!  Took a last swig of Cytomax and I was off.

The run.  Legs are always ridiculously wobbly at the start of a run after bike.  No new news there.  I was shocked my Garmin had me running at 7:5x pace though!  That seemed a little quicker than I felt.  About a half mile in we hit a steep dirt path - maybe 50 feet long, but there was no way anybody could run it - it was literally a quick hike and had an angle of at least 50 degrees.  Then was a nice flat section of trail before we hit the second aide station where I inhaled more water and looked ahead to see a few flights of steps!  Ugh.  I made it up...and still felt marginally ok.  About a half mile later I completely and utterly bonked.  I had pretty much nothing left to give this race.  What to do?  Walk?  Go slower?  Forgo my time goal and just try to enjoy the course (slowly?)  I just walked a few steps, inhaled my new favorite nutrition (Honeystinger Gel) and started to run again.  I was at a pretty slow 10 minute pace for a bit.  I was nearly to the end of the first loop.  As I ran (or "jogged") by the finish area, lamenting that I wasn't there already, I saw the read out on the clock - 2:50ish.  But that clock was 30 minutes ahead of me, since the age groupers took off at 8:30, not 8:00 as the collegiates did!  I had this in the bag as long as I didn't collapse!  5k in in 40ish minutes?  I wasn't THAT gone!  Just goes to show you the mind/body correlation.  I was definitely still hurting, so I didn't push it too hard too early, but I knew I could pretty "easily" work my way to the finish line time goal in hand.  It was just a matter of how hard to push.  The loop seemed to drag on, I remember at one time hearing the clock tower ring on the hour and I knew it was just 11am - I had plenty of time to make it across the line.  A mile to go I passed an aide station dying of thirst.  It was getting hot out there!  I had zipped down my stylish tri top!  There was no water (and no volunteer!) to be had!   Oh well.  I cruised on, ignoring the hot, lightheaded feeling knowing that I'd soon be at the end of the race.  About a quarter mile out there's a pretty decent hill.  I gave it all I had.  There was my smiley mom snapping pictures!  She ran with me a bit before I "dropped" her.  I was hoping she'd keep up!  I rounded the corner and saw the line.  Smiles all the way - even more when I saw my babe for a wife Julia standing there her camera.  I crossed the finish line screaming bloody joy, I collapsed (gracefully and willingly) onto the grass and enjoyed the fact that I was 30 years old.  I had finished my first (and not last!) triathlon. 

  

The Splits.

Swim: 32:15 (includes the run out of the water, jaunt up the stairs and run into transition)

T1: 2:36

Bike: 1:20:07

T2: 1:25

Run: 55:05 (5k split, 27:21)

Total: 2:51:25

The feeling.  I braved the waves, the cold, the hills, the wind, the heat.  Multisport is truly unique and I've learned so much the last few months.  I pretty stoked how it all came out.  I nailed my splits just as planned - despite bonking.  My final time: 2:51:28.  I'm 30 today with shaved legs, a smiley face and the satisfaction of making it through my very first tri.  Now it's time to eat and drink like there's no tomorrow!  Thanks for reading.  :)

   

I'm Ready!

Less than 36 hours to go before my big day - turning 30 and ringing it in with my first tri - the UCSB Triathlon!  Thought I'd take a moment to jot down my goals for the big day...

• First and foremost = have fun and finish

• The time goals:

Swim = roughly 30 minutes...I can do 1.5k in less in ideal conditions, but this is freezing open water with tons of swimmers around me for the first time

T1 = swim->bike...shouldn't take too long, right?  I'm hoping for under 4 minutes, depending on how far I have to run to get to my bike...let's say 5 to be safe...

Bike = 40k...I'm hoping ideally I can go sub 1:20.  This requires around an 18.5 mph average...I think I'm capable of that - but this is the biggest question mark for me.  I'm pretty sure I can finish in under 1:30, so that's my "B" goal...

T2 = bike->run....again shouldn't be a big deal, let's say 3 minutes!

Run = 10k...on a good running day I might be able to break 50 minutes (around 8 min/mile pace,) but after the run I'm thinking around 54 minutes...let's say 55.

That brings me in at 2:55.  Breaking 3 hours (which I'm told is a respectable time) would definitely be huge in my book.  I'd really love to give it a go.  I'm feeling pretty darn confident in my training - I've worked hard...especially on the bike which is newest to me.  My friend Billy says he's never heard me so confident going into a race.  I sure hope so.  I know I can finish.  It'd be rocking to go for a killer time on my first, but if I don't make it in the twos I'll have many, many more chances!  Can't wait for Sunday!  (and the party after!)  :)

To Shave or not to Shave

So I'm about a week out from my first triathlon.  Most triathletes shave their legs... There's not a huge reason to do this, it seems like more of a rite of passage... There's no benefit to the swim - I'm wearing a wetsuit!  And the bike, the aerodynamics are so negligible.  It can definitely help in a fall - it makes cleaning up the wound much easier.  So I'm still undecided, but am leaning towards doing it...it will make the experience a little more unique!

This week I had a great brick workout...26 mile ride in about 1:25 and a 4 mile run in about 34 minutes!  That puts me right on pace for the 3 hour finish I'd like!  There, I said it.  I'd love to finish, but also to come in breaking 3...

So I took a quick break in training for another home improvement project: demoing and installing a retaining wall weds-thur (tough back breaking work!)  That counts for a core workout, right?

But I did put in a slow 16 miler this yesterday afternoon.  Legs were very heavy, but I've gotta keep up some distance for Big Sur!  

More soon... And stay posted for news on the legs... :)