Woodside 50K, Dec 4th

This year I stayed away from long distance running to pursue other interests, among them CrossFit and Triathlon.  However, running is my first love and I fell in love with it all over again not long ago in one training run I had.   Jim and Oliver, a couple of people from the CrossFit gym I train with decided that they wanted to do this and of course they didn’t have to twist my arm much for me to sing up for it

Jim and Oliver picked me up sharply at 7:00 am to take the 10-15 minute ride to the starting line located in Huddard Park in Woodside.   I am familiar with this park as that is where I usually ride my bike or go for early morning runs.   It is a beautiful place and I feel blessed that I actually live nearby that allows me to enjoy it without having to drive hours and hours on end. 

We got to the park in with plenty of time and we were surprised that no one from the racing company was there.   They are usually early in the morning and for some reason they were late.  I found that a bit disappointing as this company is pretty close to my heart so I find it difficult when people “talk bad” about them even if justified.  

Runners gathering to collect bibs before the run

When they finally showed up,  we got our bib numbers,  mine was #66, went back to the car changed my shoes and got ready for a great run on the mountain.    We walked back to the “starting line” just in time for the “gun” to go off and just like that we were in our way.   I happened NOT to recognize many people, obviously a sign of not doing many of these events often enough.  However, I found Kim Evanson,  a fellow ultrarunner and a great friend.  Kim and I have shared the trails many times and it was great to have her there.   

Jim at the start

Here we go...  :)

Kim and I started together and ran pretty well until the first aid station located at the top of Huddard park,  just off King’s mountain road, a very popular biking road. I wasn’t feeling bad and didn’t have the need to stop for long.   Kim made a joke about the fact that it took me so little time to ingest some food and was ready to rock and roll almost immediately.  We continued running together through the “flat portion” of the run (about 5 miles) to the next aid station.  We left the aid station (perhaps a group of 10) and that is when I decided to push it a little bit.  Unfortunately and typical of me,  I missed a flag exactly at the same location I missed last year and ended up in somebody’s yard.   I knew we were lost and had to retrace our steps and got oriented once again.  We retraced our steps and added some distance to our 50K race.   I learned later that Jim got lost in the same area, but unlike Oliver and I he wasn’t able to find the right trai for a long time at which time he had lost considerable time and decided to call it quits.   It happens… 

After we found the “right” path and as I was feeling good, I pushed it a little bit.   And all of the sudden I was running by myself so I kept the pace.  I caught this lady right before the biggest climb of the race starts and we ran together for some time.   She was definitely good on the uphills and pushed me relentlessly until we reached the top and the aid station.  I knew then that the majority of the climbing was done and now I was going to run the “flat section” of the course before reaching the first aid station and from there I had about 4.2 miles of downhill to the finish line.     I ran pretty well this flat section, all by myself; I even stopped to take a couple of pictures and to “use the facilities”.  This place is so beautiful I am definitely going back more often to run there. 

The mountain is so beautiful and the soil so soft, was like running on pillows. 

I saw a family of dear here,  I went for my camera and when I was ready to shoot, whey were all gone.. :(

Awesome place to run!

The required self portrait...  

Six hours and a few minutes later I was crossing the finish line and I was feeling good, I was surprised as I didn’t train a lot for this race, in fact I had only two training runs and the longest was 10 miles.   When I reached the finish line I was surprised to see Jim there.   He told me of his DNF and well, it sucked.   He did great regardless and we are planning to do another race together shortly.  Kim and Oliver came not long after me, and after a few pictures went home.   It was definitely a great day. 

This is Kim finishing strong!!

The after picture... San Carlos CrossFit representing!!.

Oliver Finished strong...

Jim's battle wounds!!

What to do next?…    I am working on my race calendar for next year and can’t wait to have it finalized.  Here is a preview...   100 mile run, an ironman a series of ultra marathons and bike rides..  It is going to be epic..

Mount Diablo 50K

So last Friday I was making plans to have a mellow weekend.. I thought.. a nice easy ride on Saturday, probably a 12 mile run on Sunday but other than that it was going to be an easy mellow weekend… or so I thought..

I got a Facebook invitation from Janet to run Mount Diablo 50K with her and Abe.. Abe is Janet’s friend currently training for Western States 100. I saw the wall post and I had my mind made up…huh… thank you.. but no thank you.. I just have reconnected with some friends from elementary school and junior high. Some of them my age are already grandparents… I mentioned to this “friend” that was trying to get me to run Diablo with her. S he said…. "Well prove you are not a grampa… come run with us"… and that is all it took. All of the sudden I was frantically trying to sign up on line, I got a friendly reminder from Sara saying that registration had been closed, but I could still sign up on site.. I went home and found my running gear. All I needed now was a good night of sleep and some carbo-loading. Friday afternoon was beautiful so I thought.. I should go somewhere I can sit outside and enjoy the fine sunny afternoon. I joined Rujeko in Redwood City and we went to the only place that it had available outside sitting outside, Milagros a Mexican restaurant. Now… bear in mind, I was trying to carbo-load for a long run the following day… I ended up eating lots of avocado, chips and salsa, corn and beans and other Mexican delights.. NOT necessarily a good pre-race meal.

The day of the race I woke up early… the sun was already up and I couldn’t help but smile of the crazy thing I was about to do.. I dressed; put Vaseline in “certain” locations to make sure I was not going to chafe, and I even had enough time to put a load of laundry. For breakfast, a banana, a power bar and a glass of orange juice was on the menu, and I was on my way to pick up my running buddy.

We drove to Mount Diablo, it had been a while since we saw each other so we had time to chat about the new developments in our very sedentary lives. And then I could feel my stomach doing something that it shouldn’t be doing, not on race day anyway. Just before arriving to Mount Diablo Janet spotted a Peet’s caffee and I made a really fast turn to get in there… it was a relief to have found that place, not necessarily for the coffee or tea but for its “facilities” . Thank you Peet’s coffee.

The start, picture by Alan Geraldi

We arrived at the race start and it was great to see all of the ultra peeps. I met Janet’s friend, Abe. He is training for WS100. And of course it was great to see Sara from PCTR. Like always, in every ultra, everybody was smiling and feeling optimistic about the day which by the way it promised to deliver a nice warm weather for us. Mount Diablo did not disappoint. I haven’t run a single Mount Diablo when it isn’t hot. I mean, is that why they call it Mount Diablo, cuz it is always hot?

Janet and I just before the start of the race.

After listening to the instructions we were off. We knew it was going to be a long steady day so we stay at the very back of the pack… a Million people passed us and we were totally unconcerned about “racing”, we just were happy to be there and running that mountain. The morning was already hot and humid and I just coulnd’t imagine how much hotter it was going to get. I started taking in water pretty fast and took salt pills with earnest. I knew I was going to need them if I wanted to have a good day in the mountain. My tummy was making noises and I was afraid that eventually that Mexican food I had for dinner the day before was going to catch up with me… thankfully it didn’t at all.s the day went by I completely forgot about it.

Now going up in Mount Diablo is not easy, there are places where even footing is a challenge. Running is Not an option in many sections as it is very steep and very technical with many loose rocks and…. well… it is very steep.. I said that before right?. Abe caught up with us and we ran together until the first aid station. We stopped, we drank, and we ate, we chatted and continued our run toward the top. The day was already very hot and Janet and I were overheating. We remember that there was an aid station at the top; however this aid station was missing. This is the first time we do the 50K, so it is possible that the aid station at the top there only on the day of the 50Miler. Thank God there was a water fountain where we could actually refill our water bottles and be on our way once again.

We reached the aid station at Juniper campground where we made another quick stop and put our hands on that delicious fruit they had there. Watermelon and melon dipped in salt never tasted so good, and bananas too.. And of course, the coke… what a life saver coke on race days is. I never drink cola except on race days, it is awesome. Heather Van Ness managed to pour cold water on us and that was a nice touch. We said our goodbyes and we were on our way… As soon as we reached Mitchell Canyon Road which is the flat section of the run, we kept seeing people walking and some had children. So we kept assuming that the finish line was just around the corner… but it wasn’t. We finally made it to the end. We ate and drank some and we were back for seconds..

Janet and I finishing the first 25K

Now running in this mountain is always something special, the views are amazing. Unfortunately I did not bring my camera this time so I did not have many pictures, so I’m “stealing” some from different places and friends that took them on that day. The second loop was obviously slower, hotter and harder. However, I was in good company and we knew it was going to be a long hard day.

What is next… I don’t even know.. It could be another 50K… or a ride or something. One thing is for sure, I am so blessed to be able to do this and most importantly to have friends that challenge me all the time. As people, our lives are influenced and shaped by a bunch of factors... and relationships are definitely at the top of the list. I have been influenced by my parents, brothers and sisters, teachers, friends etc. My values habits, behaviors, passions and attitudes are definitely learned through association with others. I am so glad to have found great friends that inspire and encourage me… for that.. I am very thankful.

Happy kids... the start of the second loop...