Same Old Place, Brand New Trail

I was out yesterday in Laguna Coast. Again. But, this time I tried a different trail – West Ridge. I had been avoiding this trail because it has these things that I detest:

It was an absolutely stunning day, and even though the onshore winds were stiff, their cooling effect was pleasing and appreciated!

The plan was five miles. The first two and a half were spectacular. The views were tremendous:

Okay. I know I’m old, but I’m not a fossil yet!

I got to the turnaround point surprisingly fresh. I enjoyed the view toward the ocean:

Then I turned around. Gulp!

It wasn’t until I got back, that I found out that I had essentially run downhill for 2 1/2 miles:

That meant I would be climbing back up toward those homes in the distance that you can’t see in this photo:

After some huffing and puffing (and some less than speedy foot shuffling) I crested (yet another) hill and was welcomed back to civilization:

It’s kind of scary that in less than a month I have a race that is going to essentially do this climb three times in a row. Yikes!

When Man Becomes Godzilla

I was out running on Bommer Ridge yesterday when I came upon a sight that left me a little sad. This little guy was probably scared shitless by something that resembled Godzilla to him….

Here’s my foot next to him for some scale. And yes, I have small feet.

I’m really recommitted to building a little aerobic conditioning before my race in a month. I’ll be out in Laguna Coast all week:

• Monday: Scheduled rest day.
• Tuesday: 3 miles. Bommer Ridge
• Wednesday: 5 miles. Bommer Ridge
• Thursday: 5 miles. Bommer Ridge to El Moro Ridge, then a mile or so on El Moro.
• Friday: Scheduled rest day.
• Saturday: 8 miles in the hills. Maybe Bommer Ridge to El Moro Ridge to BFI and back.
• Sunday: Scheduled rest. Maybe a short Deer Canyon jog.

I’m feeling a little resurge of energy and commitment now that I think I’ve uncovered the real issue behind my mental block. Thanks everyone for your kind words. I think it turns out that my issue wasn’t so much a dislike of running – it was where my mind was taking me once I fell into everything that comes automatically these days.

A final thing – remember my little vid at the Wedge last week?  Well – here’ the same place, same day about two hours later. Enjoy!

Should Have Been Running Take 2

There was a time where running was my therapy. I used my hour in the evening to decompress from my daily dose of work stress. It used to be fun and refreshing.

Lots of things have changed in the last year. The last six months seem to be about deviations from "the plan" every time I turn around. And I'm having a difficult time with that.

Late this week, i finally figured out why my alone time isn't fun anymore. I'm spending my hour dwelling on what is not right. How I've lost control of my life plan, and not about what I should be doing to get things back on track. It's turned running time from my therapy into my dungeon. I spend time fearing the monsters under my bed. About the evil monkey in the closet. It's not the way it used to be.

I spent a lot of time when my kids were growing up preaching to them about accountability and responsibility. About how a pronoun in a sentence can turn it into an excuse. About how you solve a problem by telling yourself what you are going to do to solve it. Not about what he or she did or didn't do to create the problem. It's time to take some responsibility and get life back on track. Time to spend an hour a day figuring out solutions and not dwelling on problems.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Should Have Been Running

That will be the topic of tomorrow’s blog. In the meantime, do you know what happens here in Southern California when there’s a big storm in the Southern Hemisphere? Well, a couple times a year, storms in *just* the right place in the South Pacific generate waves that travel across the Pacific Ocean that erupt on our South facing beaches. Yesterday we had some serious wave action thanks to a storm off of the Pitcairn Islands (remember “Mutiny on the Bounty?”) 4100 miles away:

I’m hoping to get my butt in gear today. But to be honest, I’m tired of lemonade…..

Ever Have "That Feeling" ?

This is a test. If you're really a runner, you are probably thinking this post is about poop, porta potties, or the mad dash through the woods. Or, you might think this post is about diarrhea (although there is not way that I could even approach the subject as well as lindsay did).

Well, sorry to disappoint you. "That Feeling" this week has been fatigue. I'm up over 20 miles a week at this point, and am really feeling the effect of three day in a row workout. My three mile recovery run on Wednesday was met with spiking heart rates whenever I got my feet moving faster than a slow jog, and my 4 miles in the hills yesterday was met with bed at 9:30. Either my fitness has really dropped back to rock bottom or I'm just becoming an old fart.

At least the views yesterday were tremendous:




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Has It Been a Week?

Jeesh! Life has been happening, and I spent a little time away from blog land last week. What meets me on the weekend? Something like 300 records in Google Reader. And nary a blog entry last week. Sigh. I feel like I’m missing something.

This week:

• Monday: Scheduled rest
• Tuesday: 4.5 miles
• Wednesday: 3 miles
• Thursday: 4.5 miles
• Friday: Rest
• Saturday: 7 miles
• Sunday: Erg 50 minutes

My next scheduled race is a month away. I am *no where near* being ready. This could get ugly….

It’s Springtime!

The weather has been absolutely stunning the past few days here in Southern California. Bright blue skies, temperatures in the upper 70’s and low 80’s, humidity in the single digits. Time to head out into the hills.

Looking north toward Irvine and down into the canyon we’ll be running in.

One third a mile into the run I see my first snake of the day. A rattler! Buzz!!!!!!

Right down the trail I see another. At least this gopher snake isn’t poisonous!

The view toward the ocean.

Heading down some single track. With all the snakes out, I better keep my eyes and ears open.

A wet winter means that the flowers are in full bloom.

Down at the bottom of Deer Canyon. Nice campsites here.

Time to climb out now. Crap.

That shouldn’t be my heart rate when walking!

Okay. It isn’t Garden of the Gods, the Grand Canyon, or the Sierra Nevada, but it’s four miles from where a million or so people live. I’m lucky to have it!