another hiking post

Ok, so I've been hiking more again these past couple of months-- more than I have in the past few years. I used to hike every weekend, but kinda fizzled out after a while. Since I'm not a strong uphill runner (yet), I draw on my hiking experience to help me get up the hill, stump, mountain, stairs, or whatever that makes that gravitational pull even stronger.I think I originally got into trail running when I saw people actually flying up and down the same trails I was slogging through with my heavy boots and 15 lb. pack. I thought...hmm...I can actually cover the same amount of miles on the same trails and see the same views and vistas and be back to my car way sooner than if I were hiking.

So anyway, I was supposed to go on the Mt. Baldy run organized by Jessica for OCTR on Saturday. Unfortunately due to a family issue, I couldn't join them, but I needed some high altitude training in preparation for my Mt. Whitney trip in less than a month. So on Sunday, I invited my brother, his wife, Karen, and their house guests from Germany, Ute (K's cousin) and John for a day up in the mountains. Here are several pictures of our hike up Mt. Baldy.

weekdays runs recaps (friends, hills, and beer)

Boy, I sure missed running with my OCTR buds. The last couple of weekends I couldn't join them on our Saturday long runs due to other plans-- (1) Cactus to Clouds hike the weekend of Mother's Day; and (2) the Joshua Tree Music Festival the following weekend.

This past Tuesday, Pete scheduled a run up Modjeska Grade Rd past Old Glory and going towards Old Camp then turning back at some point to be back at our cars by 8am. The run was scheduled for 5:30am (damn that's early). I got up at 4:30, and I was still 5 minutes late in getting there. This trail is pretty nice in that it is a nice steady uphill. I slowly jogged up with the group, and I was very pleasantly surprised that I didn't really walk while going uphill which has been my regular mode of ascent. Am I getting to be a stronger runner?

The following morning, I joined the group again for another run, this time at Black Star Canyon. Runners in attendance were James aka Vinnie, Pete, Gregorio, Skip, Wendy, Abbie, and Alexa. At one point in the run there was a hill that steadily went up for about a mile and three quarters (well, actually more than that but that's how far we went up it). Greg, Abbie and I jogged the hill together till we got to our turnaround point at about 4 miles. I was amazed again that I did not walk at all at any part of this hill.

Hills, specifically going up them, have been the bane of my fledgling trail running “career” (a little over 3 months at this point). When I see a hill coming up, my natural response has been to walk up it. To be able to jog at least part of it and still feel strong gives my running confidence a boost. There's pleasure in thinking that I may have reached a small milestone here.

Of course the funnest part of going uphill is turning around and zooming downhill. My legs felt great to stretch out and turn over as fast as they can after the initial grind. After a little over 8 miles we were back in our cars and a few of us celebrated with a carb-loaded cold one. Now that's what I'm talking about.


(Photos courtesy of Wendy)

cactus to clouds

Kiron, Pierre, Eric, Kirk, Verdi, Claire, Miki, Naro, Annie, Richard (photo courtesy of Verdi)

On the weekend of May 12, I didn't join the OCTR on our regular Saturday long run. Instead I was out in the desert hoofing it up a very tall and steep mountain with the Outdoors Club.

The hike is called to Cactus to Clouds. Cactus because you start on the desert floor in Palm Springs, and Clouds because you ascend all the way to the summit of San Jacinto Peak at 10,800 feet above sea level.

Backpacker Magazine rated it as the 5th toughest day hike in the continental U.S. According to BM, "Two fun ways to put your pain in perspective as you churn up the unmaintained trail: The trek to San Jacinto's 10,804-foot, boulder-strewn crown is only 800 vertical feet shorter than the climb from Everest basecamp to summit-and comparable to doing more than a thousand flights of stairs."

Our adventure began at the Palm Springs Museum at 4:15am. Everyone had their headlamps on and it's quite a sight to see little firefly-like lights heading up the switchbacks in single file. I was still feeling the effects of our previous night's bit of revelry and the approximately 2 hours of sleep (I'm being generous here) so I stayed in the back. The sun came up a couple of hours later and by 7am it was starting to get pretty warm, especially since most of the trail was exposed. Pretty soon, each hiker was going at their own pace and the group had opened up. I passed several people and was in the middle of the pack where I'll be through the end of the trek.

I was keeping an eye on my Garmin and it looked like we were going at about 2 miles an hour--decent for a trail this steep. We arrived at "Lunch Rock" which is at mile 8 after about 4 hours of hiking. Two more miles and we'll be at Long Valley. After that, the rest of the hike should be a "piece of cake." Well, that cake was not about to be easily had. I call this part of the hike, the 2-2-2. 2 miles with 2,000 feet of climbing which took me 2 hours to travel. No sh!t--2 hours to walk 2 miles!!! This was brutal. Everything seemed vertical. I was literally dragging my feet up the trail, that is if we could find it. I would take 3 or 4 steps up, pause, take a quick breather, then repeat. When I finally made it out of the trail up to Long Valley, I was so exhausted and just ready to call it the day. I stopped for lunch with Iyad, with whom I was walking the 2-2-2. We deserved one after slogging through 10 miles and climbing to 8,000 feet.

The next 6 miles to the peak was relatively "easy." The climb was gentle, the trails were well-maintained, and Juniper Trees provided plenty of shade from the sun. Still after the agonizing first 10 miles which sapped most of my legs' energy, I wouldn't quite call this section a "piece of cake." With just about 2 miles to go to the summit, I felt myself bonking. Eventually I made it to the top with Claire who caught up with me shortly before the last mile.

About 13 and a half hours after we left the cactii on the desert floor, we were off the peak and at the tram station at Long Valley sharing the day's adventures while enjoying well-deserved beers.

What a great feeling it was to have done this hike. It was challenging but definitely doable. I think that my legs were still tired from the speed runs I did 2 days prior. I could've sworn that I kept saying that I was not doing this hike EVER again. I am, however, now looking forward to the next time I trek from the Cactus to the Clouds.

Click here for more photos.

inaugural octr jr 1-mile trail race

The temps were in the 80s with some Santa Ana winds, but they did not deter the field of runners participating in the inaugural OC Trail Runners Kids 1 Mile Trail Race held in conjunction with the OCTR picnic today. The oldest participant was 13 y.o. Rio while the youngest must've been Gracie at 2 years old. Race director Jessica Deline gave final instructions before setting the fleet-footed off on the horse trail as
it climbs up, quickly gaining elevation. Out on the course, front-runner Rio was closely trailed by 10 y.o. Jake and 6 y.o. Tim. The runners quickly spread out, some running alone like Reina (11), Tiana (6) and Kayley (11) , while others like Joseph (6) were paced by OCTR members. In 3 y.o. Toby's case, he had none other than Grandpa. Austin and Elise showed great form, dusting me in their tracks.

The eventual top finishers were Rio, Jake, and Tim. Bringing in the love from the back was Team Vara with Gracie, Lorraine, and Pete. All finishers received a medal, and judging from their smiles, I'd say that the First Annual OCTR Kids 1-Mile Trail Race is a success.

why didn't they wait for us?

"YOU'RE GOING THE WRONG WAY!!" About a dozen people yelled those words at us, and I'm sure countless others thought them as we negotiated our way through the first mile of the race. We were running to the 2007 La Jolla Half Marathon starting line as 5,000 other runners were stampeding the opposite way.

For the record, we were NOT going the wrong way. We just happened to be running towards the starting line--on the race course, 12 minutes after the gun had gone off. Ok, if it still doesn't make sense, Skips' Chill Crib (CC) in Solana Beach was about 2 miles from the start so we decided to do a mini-mini-Karno and jog to the start line. Unfortunately, we had some oat meal issues that prevented us from leaving early enough to get there in time for the 7:30 am start.

It was really a strategic move on our part.
1. We didn't want to hassle with the long bathroom lines at the start.
2. Trying to negotiate through the large and densely packed group of runners through the first few miles would've unneccessarily expended our energy and broken our stride, and we wanted to avoid that.
3. We had to stay true to form as LFTB (Love from the Back).
4. There was less chance of anybody passing us (psychological tactic).

The La Jolla Half is a beautiful point-to-point course that starts at the Del Mar Fairgrounds as it makes its way south through a few rolling hilles along Old Hwy 101 with great ocean views. At about mile 5 you see where the course goes up on Torrey Pines Road climbing about 420 feet in just under a mile. It then levels off for about 2 miles before it starts to descend down to La Jolla Cove for a nice cushy and grassy finish. Temperatures were in the 50s and 60s making it perfect running weather.

When we finally made it to the starting line, we made a quick bathroom stop with no waiting in line at all (#1), took a quick picture of the dynamic duo (SM and LW), stepped on the mats with our Championchip-enhanced shoes, and officially started our race. For the first mile or so, we were the only runners on the course making for a nice, easy and stress-free start (#2). We were at the very back of the race with not a single runner behind us (#3). LW was off to a quick start leaving me and Skip in her dust. Bee who started just a tad before us was methodically passing the 7:30 am starters one by one.

Skip and I hung out for the most part through the first half of the course while we discussed important life issues like women, boot camp, bosu, the beauty and complexity of the previous night's Cabernet, my lobster dinner--how it could be delicate and robust at the same time. We got to mile 5 and a half and started climbing up Torrey Pines Road. I shuffled my way up as I maneuvered around most of the runners that were walking at this point. When I got to the top, I waited for Skip a bit. With his tall stature and yellow goalie jersey, it was easy to spot him emerge out of the throng of climbers who, unlike Skip, struggled through the dreaded hill.

At around mile 8, I saw that Skip and I were going at about a 10 min. mile pace. From this point on, with the exception of a short hill at the last mile, most of the course was on a downhill grade. I decided to stretch my legs out and see how much time I can shave off that pace. While people were putting on the brakes, I was testing my OCTR training and going down as fast as I can. This was probably the most fun part of the course for me. I imagined the runners I had to pass around as the line that one normally envisioned while descending down a single track. I cruised down to the finish, and Skip followed not too far behind me. We reunited with Bee and LW at the beer garden before catching the shuttle bus back to the start line. LW said that she must've passed everyone on the race course (#4). Our strategy worked to perfection.

From the Del Mar fairgrounds, we jogged back to the CC to complete our 17-mile day.

Because of Skip's hospitality and the OCTRunners in LJ, this was a fun and relaxing weekend with a great road half-marathon course to top it off.

SIDENOTE:
Before running this race I wasn't quite sure how my body would react to doing a half-marathon after not having run on pavement for a few months. I actually felt fine, and as a result of the OCTR runs, I felt strong on the hills (both up and down).

i f*&%!^g did it

I actually ran and finished my first ultra--the 2007 San Juan Trail 50K--on Saturday, April 7. I was so worried about the 8-hour cutoff time that I figure I'll just finish the race and take whatever time I do it in. I was also concerned about the weather, since the previous years have been hot, and I have a hard time in heat. The day before the race, I received this text, "35% DNF rate of 2006 SJT50K. Are you sure you want to run this 50K?" WTF, I thought. Geez, thanks for the encouragement. That increased my anxiety even more, but I've already registered and committed, so I figured it was better to DNF than to DNS.

Fortunately, things turned out for the good. The forecast earlier in the week called for highs of about 76 deg. F, but the day of the race, the fog took over and never left. It completely cooled the course, and if I had stopped long enough I would've felt the chill. I was having a hard time finding my rhythm in the beginning. I felt like I was going too fast at the start, and rolled each ankle. I had to stop and rest my bad ankle before I resumed running again. I caught up to a couple of runners who passed me earlier when I was resting, Tom Wilson and Dina Aman, who I ran with for a few miles. That really worked out for me. I had someone to talk to, and their pace was just right. My brother also came out to cheer and lend his support. Seeing him at the aid stations lifted my spirits more than the drinks and goodies did. He even came out with a "cheer poster" made by Karen.

The race had about 55 starters including a late starter--Jorge Pacheco--who eventually won the race. That guy passed me up and I just watched him fly up the hill. Wow!! I was too slow to get my camera out. Some OCTRunners were there too--Robo, Chaz, Rob100K, iMichelle, and Lori. iDad was also on hand marking out the last 12 miles, and Xena, the Trail Goddess came out to cheer, but this slow one missed her. I didn't see Maz man, but apparently he was there as well.

I finished the 31 miles in 7:12:50 and very pleased with it. I could've done better if I'd had at least another month or so to train on hills. I cruised out of the Blue Jay aid station (mile 19) at about 4:06 way ahead of my projected 4:45. The last 12 miles were a killer which featured about 3400' in elevation gain including Horsethief Trail which climbs about 1355' in 1.4 miles. Hill, hill, and more hill training--that is something to remember for next time.

But for now, I'm just savoring the sweet accomplishment.

Click here to see more photos.

ready or not...

... I'm doing the San Juan Trail 50K (SJT50K). This will be my first ultra event. I don't think I'm completely ready for this yet. I feel that I still needed at least another month or so to train. But here I am, just a couple of days before it, and I'm actually feeling pretty calm and confident about it. I wasn't so a few days ago. There's an 8-hour cutoff and I have some serious doubts about making it in. Apparently this is one tough course, and some top athletes have come in at about 6 and a half hours. However, I decided yesterday or the day before that I'm approaching this just as a loooong training run (with aid stations to help me along the way). It makes it easier to think of it that way. I'm determined to finish it. And if I cross the line after the 8-hour cutoff, I'll be ok with that too.