22nd Year of Running in the Books: Another Average to Mediocre Year

2014 was the 22nd year that I've run on a consistent basis, the 21st full year; I started a third of the way into the year in 1993.

I've been tracking my mileage in an Excel spreadsheet since sometime in 1993 when I decided it would be more effective than tracking solely in my day planner. Actually, I do both. I attempt to jot down my approximate mileage and time spent running in my planner book, then at some point in time I type this information into the spreadsheet.

Life in the Fast Lane: My 22 year old Running Excel Spreadsheet.

Years ago I would update the spreadsheet on a weekly, sometimes even daily, basis. I would go back and look at my training in the weeks/months prior to a marathon and analyze what worked and what I should change. I would make notes in the spreadsheet, now 1.8 megabytes in size, about if I was sick, injured, traveling or sore on a given day.  Sometimes I would go back and review these notes, but not often. 

Now it is a chore updating this spreadsheet as things are quite different for me...married, with kids, busy, busy. For the last several years I update the entire year's worth of running data at the end of the year and it is something I don't particularly look forward to doing. A chore and a bore. BUT...I'm glad I forced myself to track my mileage for so long over the years because I'll know when I need to trade in my body, which has now logged over 53,000 miles.

I vaguely recalled years ago that Excel spreadsheets have certain finite number of rows that could theoretically require me to create a second sheet at some point. I decided to look it up.

Back in the day, versions of Excel up to 7.0 limited the number of rows to 16,384, which would mean that I'd have to create a separate spreadsheet when I'm 73 years old (my spreadsheet is currently near 8,000 rows).

But versions 8.0 through 11.0 quadrupled the maximum rows to 65,536 (and 256 columns) and version 12.0, which is what I now use, expanded that by a factor of 16, to 1,048,576 rows (along with 16,384 columns). So I can safely say that my current spreadsheet,will suffice for tracking my time into the twilight of my life.

2014: How Was It? Mediocre at best. I ran zero marathons in 2014, having to bail on the Los Angeles Marathon after tweaking my right hamstring/sciatic nerve in a half marathon training run.

I actually had a pretty good start to the year, having run a pretty solid 1:24 half marathon off of moderate training, 3 weeks prior to the injury. And then in early April I was able to run a slightly sub-38 minute 10K. But my motivation level dropped and my 50th birthday mid-year travels and fun made it ever more challenging to train for anything.

So it was a pretty uneventful year of running, but I managed to rake in 2,123 miles on the trails and roads. So far 2015 has not been much different...but I'm still running, and that's a good thing.

Today's run up Powerline (Edison) Trail. Danger Ahead? Steep Dropoff? Nah. Just enjoying the view.

Results of 5th Annual Camarillo Marathon on Sunday, January 4th

The 5th Annual Camarillo Marathon took place last Sunday. This flat, two loop course the first Sunday of the year had a bit of a small turnout, but between the full and half marathon, 10K and 5K, close to 500 people turned out this cool morning.

You don't see this too often, but the winning time was just over 3 hours (and 37 seconds). 2nd and 3rd place overall came in at 3:04 and 3:07 for the men. The top 3 women finished in 3:26, 3:29 and 3:30.

It's not like a sub-3 hour performance on this course is not possible. Last year's overall winner was a 27 year old woman in 2:52, some 15 minutes faster than the 2nd place overall finisher, a male. The race was in hot, windy conditions.

113 folks completed this year's marathon, up from 79 in the previous year.

More at www.camarillomarathon.com.

Finished Half of a Half Marathon Last Sunday and Ran Trails on Christmas

This past Sunday, I ran half of the Holly Jolly Half Marathon in Camarillo, ending the year of racing with a thud. So why is there a photo of a Santa to the Sea bib number below? More on that later.

The bib number that I did not wear

Why just half of a half marathon? Why not just run the 10K or 5K? Because I fully intended to run the full half marathon until my right hamstring gave me grief about 3 miles into the race. Not a sharp pain or pull or anything; just a tightness and soreness that gradually shortened my stride and caused some discomfort.

This was a low key local half marathon/10K/5K in Camarillo, mostly flat, about 80% on roads, 20% on a bike path, double loop course. I signed up for the half marathon about 4 days prior because earlier in the year I had purchased an entry into the Santa to the Sea Half Marathon on December 14th. That half marathon I didn't even make it to.

Let's go further back. On Saturday, the 13th, my wife requested that I put up additional Christmas decorations in the front yard. Somehow I managed to tweak my lower back while working on the candy canes. My back is not very forgiving...later that night I determined I would not be able to run 13.1 miles in the morning.

2014: A year that I turned 50 years old and...felt it! A year that had some promise at the beginning, but quickly fell into an abyss of lower back and sciatic nerve problems.

While the year was not a great one for my racing, I did manage a sub 38 minute 10K back in April and for the most part I've stayed healthy and my injuries, although frequent, were dealt with expeditiously.

So, back to last Sunday. This low key race started out fine. In fact, I found myself in the lead at mile 1, where I looked at my watch and saw 6:24. This pace seemed perfectly fine to me. It translates into a 1:24 half marathon, on par with the half marathon time I ran in February.

A younger fellow passed me by shortly after that first mile, and I made no attempt to stick with him. Having not done a wink of speedwork or shorter distance races for many months, I did not feel another gear in my transmission. But soon thereafter the sciatic nerve issue that caused me not to run the 2014 Los Angeles Marathon reared its ugly head.

The beauty of a double loop course is that it gives you the opportunity to call it a day mid-way into the race and move along with your day. That's just what I did. Having experienced this same hamstring / sciatic nerve issue in the past, I took it in (diminished) stride, stopped, stretched and drove off to enjoy the rest of the beautiful day that it was.

I do believe that sitting too much is not helping my problem. So I get up as often as I can, change chairs, sit on a pillow, occasionally work while kneeling on the ground on a pillow, etc. The issue appears to be a chronic one as it has taken me out of a number of races in recent years, so I'm grappling with how to deal with it. I do find my chiropractor is able to help. Perhaps more stretching would help.

BUT...today is Christmas, and after spending the morning with the family, I was able to take off for an hour long run on the trails, injury free. Just getting out there, running without pain, was enough for me to not have a care about the mediocrity which was the last 8 months of my racing, or lack thereof.

Trails like this take me to my happy place, regardless of how my latest race went.

Results From the 6th Annual Santa Barbara Veterans Day Marathon

The 6th Annual Santa Barbara Veterans Day Marathon and Half Marathon took place last Sunday, November 8th. 

The top 5 male finishers were Sammy Cheruiyot Mutai (sounds Kenyan to me) in 2:31:40, followed by Damon Valenzona (2:34:29), Van McCarty (2:36:33 - also top Master's runner), Jonathan Corley (2:41:17) and Jason Smith (2:46:09).

The top 5 females were Paige Burgin (10th overall) in 3:06:38, followed by Jennifer Marquardt (12th overall) in 3:10:07, Jill Christ (3:14:58), Deanna Odell (3:19:41 - also top Master's runner) and Hillary Shaw (3:19:50).

There were 8 sub-3 hour finishers out of 856 who finished the 26.2 mile distance, which to me is a bit on the low side.

In fact, my 3:16 time in the inaugural race in 2009 barely landed me into the top 100 runners, whereas that time in the 2014 edition would have placed me in the top 20. My how times change (both literally and figuratively).

Next year's event is planned for Sunday, November 7, 2015. Register at sbmarathon.com.

2014 Ventura Marathon and Beach Party Celebrate Record Success

In its second year, the Ventura Marathon and Beach Party reached record numbers, drawing over 3,200 participants from 34 states and nine countries.

Overall marathon winners were Dirian Lenin Bonilla who ran a 2:32:34 (5:49 per mile pace) and Bonnie Axman Keating who finished in 2:45:15 (6:18 pace).

The men’s half marathon was won by Westlake Village resident Sean Gildea who ran a 1:08:04 (5:12 pace.) The women’s half-marathon title was won by Allison Maxson in 1:15:57 (5:48 pace).

The 2014 event raised over $25,000 for local schools and charities including Pier Into The Future, the Humane Society of Ventura County, Autism Society Ventura County, Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer, Max Cure Foundation, the Rotary Club of Ventura, and over one dozen local school groups and teams.

Race director Josh Spiker was particularly excited about the event's support of local charities and programs and gives thanks to the over 700 volunteers that made the event such a success.

The flat and fast course took runners and walkers through the cities of Ventura, Oxnard and Port Hueneme before culminating at the beachfront finish of the historic Ventura Pier.

The event included a full two-day beach party which featured over 60 vendors, food trucks, a beer garden by Firestone, seven live bands and various kids’ activities.

For more info or to check on updates about next year’s event, go to VenturaMarathon.com.

The event is managed by Vendurance Sports, a Ventura County-based running club and event management company aiming to bring high-quality, well-organized and affordable events to the region.

First Day Off Running in Two Months Today

Yes, today, Sunday, September 7, 2014, is the first day I've taken off from running since July 5, 2014. I've been running pretty much every day the entire summer, though my 50th birthday, the longest vacation since my teen years and other summer activities.

My running, however, has been nothing special, just daily 4 to 6 mile runs, mostly on trails, nothing too speedy, no races, speedwork. My fastest runs have been with the local youth cross country running club that my son participates in.

So today my quads are sore as hell. Why? Because yesterday I ran a local 5K cross country race mostly with a bunch of kids (and some adults) who have been training for the last 6 to 8 weeks. I, on the other hand, have not been in race training mode.

You can't fool your body, especially at age 50. Five years ago I could run a 5K on a moment's notice and feel fine the next day. Today I run a 5K and the next day my legs feel like I've run a marathon.

But it's a "good" feeling in that it is just soreness, not pain. No injuries. Just my muscles reminding me that if I want to run fast, I've got to train fast. A pretty basic concept. The soreness is a wake up call.

Getting back to the race, I don't even know my time. I had to bolt out of there to get to my other son's soccer game. The race was at 10am in 80+ degree heat, which is not my idea of fun. But I'm glad I did it and it gave me the excuse today to take a well-needed (and deserved) day off.

Looking forward to a fall/winter season of cool temperatures and rain. Perhaps wishful thinking here in drought-ridden Southern California, but I think we're about due for it.

The Famous CITGO Sign in Boston Tells You There's Just One Mile to Go

Although I haven't run the Boston Marathon for quite some time, I did have a chance to visit the city of Boston recently on a family vacation. In over 13 years of marriage, not once have we, as a complete family unit. been to a local Dodger game. But that didn't stop my wife from convincing me to spend the equivalent of two car payments on outstanding tickets to the Red Sox vs Yankees game at Fenway Park.

The game was a lot of fun, at least the few minute of it that I got to see between trips to the concession stands for my offspring. A growing family requires sustenance at all times.

Before the game we grabbed a snack at a local eatery (pre-game sustenance) and I looked up to see one of the most well known scenes from the Boston Marathon...the CITGO sign on Beacon Street.

Any Boston Marathon participant with eyesight will be able to recall the CITGO sign, because it indicates that you are just about done with the 26.2 mile trip. The sign is situated just about a mile from the finish of the race. I've run over 30 marathons over the years, but this is perhaps the only marathon that has such a distinctive, memorable, historal finish.

According to the CITGO website, CITGO was founded in 1910 as Cities Service Company. In 1965 its name was changed to CITGO for branding purposes, using the first 3 letters of "Cities" and ending with "GO." My wife says local pronounce it "See It Go." I don't know if that's true or not but pretty cool nonetheless.

After a brief stint as a subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum in 1982, CITGO was sold to The Southland Corporation in 1983 to provide a steady supply of gasoline to the 7-Eleven store chain. In 1986, Southland sold half of CITGO to Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., (PDVSA), the national oil company of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the other half in January 1990.

But I digress. We had a great vacation and I managed to get out there and run every single day. Not a lot of mileage, but enough to keep me feeling groovy. I have no race plans at the moment but once I'm feeling it I'll be back in the game, having just turned the BIG 5-0. New age group!

Saturday Morning Run Down Sycamore Canyon to Ranch Center Road

For those of you who have walked, run or cycled down the paved Big Sycamore Canyon Road in Pt Mugu State Park from the Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa area, you may have noticed the fork in the road about a mile from the bottom of the steep hill.

Sycamore Canyon Road / Ranch Center Road juncture

Sycamore Canyon Road / Ranch Center Road junctureMost folks continue straight down Sycamore Canyon towards the beach. But if you veer right, you are headed down Ranch Center Road. I don't get up that way very often on my runs in the canyon. In fact, I can't even remember the last time I was up that way. But this past Saturday I decided to divert myself up that path.

In general, I don't see a lot of people down in Sycamore Canyon. As beautiful as it is, it is a lot of work getting down there and about five times tougher getting back out of it up the steep fire road to Newbury Park. I'd estimate easily two thirds of the folks I see down there are on bikes and the rest are hikers and runners.

But  there are significantly less people on Ranch Center Road. This past Saturday, I was surprised to see two young teenage-looking gals jogging up the trail, chatting away, having a nice run. Otherwise, I saw about 8 cyclists as I made my way up Ranch Center Road to the dilapidated, burned down Ranch area structures where Ranch Center Road meets Wood Canyon Fire Road.

Wood Canyon Fire Road is more interesting to run than Ranch Center Road as it is all dirt trail and surrounded by trees.

Wood Canyon Fire Road is more interesting to run than Ranch Center Road as it is all dirt trail and surrounded by trees. I saw two cyclists rolling up this trail as I was coming down. Quite peaceful.

Trail runners' heaven is Wood Canyon Fire Road. I could run on trails like this any day.

Several miles downhill the trail links back up to Sycamore Canyon Road, where I ran up past the Danielson Multi-Use Area, where I saw a group of campers, then back up the canyon.

Less than a mile north of the Danielson Multi-use area is this well placed porta-john.

I was out there for about 1 1/2 hours. A good, mid-summer fun run.

Saturday Morning Run Up to Danielson Cabin in Boney Mountain State Wilderness

This morning I decided to test out my new Sketchers trail running shoes with a trail run up to the Danielson Cabin and back.

I have no affiliation with Sketchers, by the way. Maybe I should, because I'm liking their shoes more and more. These trail shoes feel as comfortable as any shoes I've worn. Every shoe brand is different and everyone has a brand that seems to fit their own feet better than others. I'm finding this to be the case with my Sketchers. They fit snug but not too snug, light, yet supportive. And comfy.

Mind you, I can pretty much run in any shoes. Over the years I've worn ASICS, Saucony, Nike, Mizuno, Brooks and a few others. Since I'm not particularly picky about the shoes I run in, other than they can't feel too heavy, I tend to go with whatever's on sale.

But the price point on the Sketchers I like on a day-to-day basis without having to wait for a sale. Plus, if I can get to the Sketchers store on a buy one, get one at X% off day, that's even better. Also helps that my kids like to wear Sketchers.

But enough about Sketchers, which is just one thing that Meb Keflezighi and I have in common.

What else do I have in common with Boston Marathon winner Meb K? Well we're both UCLA graduates. And we've both run the Boston Marathon. He ran it 37 minutes faster than my time back in the day, enough time to shower and have breakfast. But we both like Sketchers. Except, he gets paid to like his Sketchers. I don't. But that's ok with me. Or maybe it isn't ok with me subconsciously, since I've mentioned it twice now. Hmm.

So my run up to the Danielson Monument this morning was a nice, easy one, no falling and hurting myself, which is good, as the scabs from my last fall have not quite healed up yet.

I'm keeping my eyes on the trail more now. Watching where you're stepping on trails is pretty important. It is ok to look around too, but better to do so on flatter sections so you don't trip on a rock or root and bash your body around. Attempting to practice what I'm preaching.

The sky was pretty clear this morning and it wasn't quite too hot...yet. We are a few days from July and it appears the temps are going up soon. Spring is my favorite time to run, when it's cool out, but not too cool, and the sun's out, but it's not too hot.

From my house, I made it to the Danielson Monument in 36 minutes at casual pace, stopping my watch a few times to take pictures. I was back at the house 34 minutes later, which, given the downhill, seems slow, but I did sidetrack a couple minutes to see if there was even a little dribble of water in the "Waterfall" off of Danielson Road. No such like. Quite dry back there.

I've Been Running in Sketchers Before I Knew Meb Keflezighi Ran in Them

Today I just bought 3 pairs of Sketchers running shoes, including a Go Run 3, a Go Run Ride 3 and a pair geared towards trail running. Yes, 3 pairs in one day, bought with a 20% discount I had. Came out of the store with 3 pairs of shoes for about $200, including taxes.

For too long I've been running in 2 pairs of Saucony Kinvaras, also a lightweight trainer, and a Go Run 2. For the 4th time this year, yesterday I was running in the trails, my foot hit a rock, and I slammed into the ground. My right knee is pretty banged up and I've got a dime-sized lump of skin missing from my left palm from the impact, but otherwise I'm ok. But I decided, I need to buy some new shoes to get my spirits up. Not to mention, my current shoes need to be retired.

I like Sketchers running shoes because they're light, yet feel like they are giving me adequate support. They are comfortable. And I like their pricing. $80 isn't cheap but I like the nice, even number. There's something appealing about the simplicity to me.

So getting back to my latest fall. This time it happened within 5 minutes of the start of my run. And I hit the ground so hard that the pain was too much to continue, with skin and blood involved, so I walked back home.

Chatting with another of my geezer running friends, he believes as we get older, we don't lift our feet as high when we run. That could be a factor in my 4 falls this year. The last fall I thought perhaps it could be due to my Sauconys feeling slightly too big for my feet. Today's fall was in my Sketchers, which fit perfectly fine.

Deep down inside, what I really believe to be the issue is...not enough sleep. Running at 6:45am off of 5 1/2 hours sleep is not conducive to good training. Yet that's what I've been doing. I enjoy too many things, one of which is maintaining this website until the wee hours of the night. And of course my running, taking the kids out, etc. Something's gotta give.

But yes, here I am, typing this at 12:15am, when the creative juices flow the most for me.

In lieu of getting to bed earlier, my plan is to find time to take one solid nap each weekend to rejuvenate my body. If that doesn't happen, which it probably won't, I'll be pondering a plan B.