06/10/10 San Diego Rock-n-Roll Marathon

New title: San Diego Robs-your-Soul Marathon

If you think that the third time would be a charm, you'd be incorrect. After doing this race in 1999 and 2000, in hindsight, I now realize that it took exactly one full decade to erase the misery and suffering. If my long term memory had been better, there is no question that I would not have signed up for this event. Now I remember that there is not a single musical act in the world capable of striking the perfect chords to ease the pain of this event. I'm not sure who exactly was supposed to be entertained by the twenty six bands along the course, but it definitely wasn't the runners. Even if my favorite band had been on the course at mile 17, it would've sounded like animals being tortured. I'm not sure anyone actually likes mariachi music, but at mile 18, I guarantee you everyone despises it. Music along a marathon route doesn't alleviate the suffering, it just adds a soundtrack to the ridiculousness of the whole experience.

I not only matched the local flowers, I moved about as fast as they did.

The start... I've got a bad feeling about this!

Let's climb aboard and sail to the finish!

Meanwhile up near the front, the really strong runners were still smiling!

See how the road was higher on the right, lower on the left?
This is less-than-ideal for running, especially for SIX miles.

Finally, a decent running surface!

Once the herds of people thinned out and there weren't as many bands playing, it was downright peaceful.

And scenic too.

Mile 25 on "Fiesta Island" was very much not a fiesta.

Now I understand the phrase "Lucky Dog!"

Getting this one engraved with "Never Again."

Finish time: 3:29:18. Exactly 6 seconds slower than LA Marathon just three months ago, but much more musical and brutal.

As always, thanks Lorenzo for photos, support, and love!

03/21/10 Los Angeles Marathon

I finally got around to doing the math for my LA Marathon split. This was the wrong race to aim for a negative split because there was no marker at all for the 13.1 mile halfway point, so I simply guessed (randomly picked) a spot that seemed about one tenth of a mile after the 13th mile marker. According to my completely unscientific approximation at that point, my first split was 1:44:37, which is EXACTLY an even split for a 3:29:14 finish time. Of course, if I guessed wrong, perhaps my first half was 1:44:38 and my second half was 1:44:36...? Who knows.
In case anyone is interested, here are my mile splits.
1) 7:42 (faster than I wanted)
2) 7:23 (woops, too fast again)
3) 7:22 (downhill, sorry!)
4) 8:10
5) 8:42 (uphill - the "Music Center Mountain")
6) 7:32
7) 7:52
8) 8:02
9) 8:01 (finally settled into the pace I wanted for first half)
10) 8:03
11) 8:12 (if I had a nickel for every SRLA kid that passed me at "Red Bull" speed...)
12) 8:02
13) 8:30 (uphill, and I used this as a "rest mile" to get ready to speed up the 2nd half)
14) 7:58
15) 7:54
16) 8:05 (trying to speed up, but I think planet Earth must be slowing down or something)
17) 8:05
18) 8:12 (my plan was to get the 2nd half pace around 7:45, but things not going as planned)
19) 7:59 (okay, getting warmer...)
20) 8:01 (oh for Pete's sake... Who the hell is Pete anyway? Peter Piper? Peter Pan?)
21) 8:28 (uphill, grrr... completely lost my sense of humor, everything is now anti-funny)
22) 8:13 (I've stopped caring and just want it to be over. Hello wall!)
23) 7:54 (and now that I couldn't care less, I'm obviously relaxed and running faster!)
24) 7:52 (then I got through the wall and started passing people, including some SRLA kids!)
25) 7:41 (I told myself that everyone else's legs hurt too, so stop being such a diva)
26) 7:36 (once I could see the finish line, I was really able to push hard despite the pain)
I didn't feel tired at all. In fact, I remember that my mouth was completely closed and I was breathing through my nose for the last five miles - that's something I'm usually able to do when I run at a comfortable "fresh" pace. The problem seemed to be that my quads really started to hurt at the halfway point - not cramps or anything, just heavy and sore, like they were bruised from being beaten with a hammer. I'm pleased that I was able to increase the pace, despite the pain, during the last four miles, but in reality it's not too impressive considering those miles were all downhill. I think I wasn't ready for any uphill at all. As you can see, even the slightest incline really affected my pace. But I'm glad to be back under 3:30 and hoping to get even faster this year! I think my 30th marathon will be San Diego Rock 'n Roll on June 6th.

05/23/09 Jesolo Night Marathon, ITALY

Italian Lesson One: "Dove Piazza San Marco?"
(Do-vay Pee-yaht-sah Sahn Marrr-ko? Roll the "RRR" in Marco)
Translation: Where is Saint Mark's Square?

After six months of Italian lessons, we arrived in Venice and immediately got lost.
But fortunately, the very first thing we learned was how to ask for directions to Saint Mark's Square in Venice. In my best Italian, I politely asked a man for directions.
He responsed with, "Es tut Mir Leid, aber Ich kann nicht Italianisch."
Which means "I can't speak Italian" IN GERMAN.
Lorenzo promptly stepped in and had a five minute conversation with the guy, IN GERMAN.

Good thing we spent all that time learning Italian.
And it was even better that Lorenzo mastered German back in high school...



The palace in Piazza San Marco.


Lorenzo at the Grand Canal in Venice.


I had to get in a little climbing!


It almost sounds edible in Italian, but it's still McDonalds.


Sun about to set before the start of the Night Marathon.


Seriously, this is NOT a postcard.


Lorenzo rented a bicycle towards the start and took some of these great pictures before the runners came along.


The pace car, a Lamborghini of course!


The lead pack coming down the street.


The first big wave of runners.


I started in the purple short sleeved shirt, but was sweating even before the start in 75 degree temperatures with about 80% humidity.


It was completely dark by the time Lorenzo was able to work his way through the crowd and catch up to me. But it was still warm and humid, so the shirt had to come off.


Even in Italy, they have Super-Size French Fries.
Mi dispiace! (I'm sorry!)


For those of you who know him, you'll agree that this looks EXACTLY like Keith!


The road was lit with candles for much of the course making it the most romantic marathon that I have ever run!


After running Vancouver and Toronto, I'm starting to get the hang of this Kilometer thing.
Marathons are 26.2 miles which is 42 Kilometers, so the course marker in this photo means there is still an eternity left before the finish!


When "FINISH" is written in big bold letters across the course, it means the same thing in Italian as it does in English!


My shorts were so sweaty that I had to repeatedly grab the hem and wring them out as I ran! This was by far the sweatiest I have EVER been!


Smiling in the internet cafe when I saw the marathon results.


Tenth female, first American female!


After the marathon, it was a perfect opportunity to rent a scooter and enjoy some Italian countryside scenery. It looks like Lorenzo was enjoying the scenery... of himself!


This is my "Perfect Italian Photograph" - the scooter, the Adriatic Sea, and cappuccino!!



Italian port-o-potties are "jolly" in Italy!


Our gracious hosts and their family at the beach, thank you Ivan & Franchesca!



Every meal was amazing, especially when staying with local hosts who were related to the owner and the chef!


A kiss in Venice IS even more romantic. In fact, the captain of a ferry pulled over and waited for us to take this photo before boating behind us. Afterwards, he gave us the thumbs up, the universally recognized sign for "Vita e buona" (Life is good).

02/08/09 Melbourne Florida Marathon & Mom's Birthday!

The innaugural Melbourne Music Marathon was 2/8/09, and more importantly, so was my mom's birthday!

The course was made up of two laps around a 13.1 mile loop. It was mostly flat except for two bridges over the water, which each had to be done twice. Every few miles, we were treated to some musical entertainment.

It was so great to see Mom at the halfway point!

I can't remember if this was the first lap or the second... But it was so great to have Lorenzo keep me company and more importantly, he kept me smiling!


Mom and Grandma cheering at the finish made me feel like I could run the whole thing all over again!

I was shocked to see my results!

Due to the fact that this was the first year of this marathon, the organizers seemed a bit unorganized at the awards ceremony. We had to wait over an hour, but it was worth it to receive my first gold medal!

Marathon Results

The next day, we took our Couchsurfing host Rhonda to the rock climbing gym in Melbourne.

Then Lorenzo and I drove down to Key Largo.

John Pennekamp state park.

Feeding the tarpon.

Then it was back to Cocoa Beach to spend more time with Mom and Grandma. This is their "backyard" - the Atlantic Ocean.



Thanks to Grandma and Mom for all the homemade meatballs and lasagna!