Why & How I came to be a runner Part 2

 Back in March I wrote an article titled Why & How I came to be a runner. That was part 1 of my running memoirs series explaining how I came to be the runner I am today. I am the least likely person to become a runner but that's the way life rolled for me. If you haven't read my first article I highly recommend you do that before diving into this one. This second article picks up where the first one left off and it describes 2 important lessons that I learned early on that every beginning runner should pay attention to, shoes and mental limits.

 

June trail races in the Bay Area

An explosion of races fall out of the sky in the month of June! Eleven "one off" events (events that are not part of a regular race companies schedule) and four events from Coastal Trail Runs help thicken the selection. ITR and TCTR are both holding 50 milers. Not to be out done PCTR is holding a 6 hour and a 12 hour event. Every distance imaginable is available including the odd ball 8k, 15k, 25k & 30k distances. The world famous Dipsea & Double Dipsea is taking place in June as it does every year. It really doesn't matter which side of the bay you live on, chances are that a race is being held in your neck of the woods this weekend. We have races as far flung as Vallejo & Brentwood to Santa Cruz and all points in between. If you cant find a race with a distance you want that is close to home in the month of June you are one tough customer to satisfy. Get out there and enjoy the trail season!

Horseshoe Lake Trail Run Review

May 19th 2013-  We had the most excellent weather for running this race. Sunny and mild in the morning and gradually warming as the day went on. Not too hot or too cold. The location of this race is super convenient for me. The race was held at the Skyline Ridge Open Space Preserve on Hwy 35 just west of Palo Alto in the Santa Cruz Mountains. It took about 35 minutes for me to make it up there from Redwood City simply because those mountain roads are slow winding climbers. My wife and I got on the road around 6:30 am and made it to the parking lot just past 7:00.

Lynch Canyon Trail Run Part 2

So I signed up for "The toughest Trail Run in Solano County". Thats how it was first presented to me and I've been stuck on it ever since. If it's the toughest then I want to test myself against it. I searched the web to confirm this claim and found very little in the way of reviews on this race. I went to the website and one thing jumped out at me immediately, Dave Mackey was here. For those who aren't familiar with Mr Mackey he is a Boulder Colorado ultrarunning elite having won more races than I have ever entered. He is the current course record holder for the half marathon distance. Now I know why the race offers free New Balance shoes to anyone who can set a new course record. Good luck beating Dave's 1:31:28! For the ladies it is Penny Macphail that holds the record at 1:46:20. That too is smoking fast for a trail half no matter what gender you are.

Achilles Tendinitis: My latest joy!

Waking up in the morning and stepping down with my full weight on my left foot I noticed my Achilles tendon was tight and quite tender. A few steps later the pain and it's accompanying limp started to subside. By the time my shower and morning routine were over the pain was basically gone. Must be the result of the back to back races last week I thought and paid it no more attention. I had just run the Napa Valley Marathon and then six days later ran the Way Too Cool 50k so I deserved some lingering effects. 

I have a 40 minute commute to work and again stepping out of my truck I was reduced to a serious limp for half the parking lot before the pain subsided and the flexibility of my ankle returned. More proof that I did something to be proud of was my thinking. Along with the fact that it might be in my best interest to go easy on tonight's run. I did not notice the pain again until I got up from sitting at my desk for quite some time. This was starting to become annoying.  Everytime I rested my legs via sleeping,  driving or sitting my Achilles would flair when I "woke it up". I honestly thought this was a short term side effect. When the pattern kept repeating itself for days on end I got a little more concerned about it but still not enough to be proactive in solving the issue. It will work itself out in time was my primary thought as I soldiered on with my running schedule. A month later I ran the Croom Fools 50k. The Achilles problem never really left but it had gotten less frequent and less severe. Days after the race it was apparent that the problem andthe pain was back in full force.  Stretching it became habitual as I tried to keep it loose all throughout the day. It didn't get better. Here I am a month later and every morning and every time I'm off my feet the pain is there. I have finally decided to take it seriously and look into solving this problem as the pain of having a tight Achilles was lasting pretty much all day unless im 3 miles into a run.

Lynch Canyon Trail Run - June 1st

I received an email recently about this run and was instantly intrigued. The subject of the email read "Lynch Canyon Trail Run: The toughest trail run in Solano County". I like to search out tough runs on tough course and yet somehow this one has slipped by me over the years. The other reason for me to get out there and give it a go is the fact that I have never run in Lynch Canyon before. New trails that are challenging... who could refuse! So far my running in the North East area of the bay has been brutally difficult so to say that this is the toughest is hitting me in my sweet spot. I have recently drove I-80 on my way to the Vacaville Outlets and took a mental note of the beautiful rolling hills just outside of Vallejo. Just before you come into Fairfield you will see the sign for the Lynch Canyon Open Space Preserve. When I saw that I thought "Well that's a hell of a coincidence!" I took it as a sign that I was meant to run this race. If you are like me, looking for a challenge on trails you've never run, then read on my friend!

Trail racing in the bay for the month of May

Brazen Racing has 2 offerings in the month of May:

• Western Pacific Marathon, Half Marathon, 10k & 5k- May 4th- Quarry Lakes Regional Recreation Area- Fremont
• Wildcat Half Marathon, 10k & 5k- May 18th- Wildcat Canyon RegionalPark- El Sobrante

Coastal Trail Runs has 2 races in May as well:

• Cinderella Trail Run- 50k, Marathon, 30k, Half Marathon, 10k- May 11th- Joaquin Miller Park- Oakland
• Horseshoe Lake Trail Run- 50k, Marathon, Half Marathon, 5mi- May 18th- Skyline Ridge Open Space Preserve- Palo Alto

Enviro Sports has 1 trail event in May for us:

• Wild Boar Half Marathon & 10k- May 11th- Mt Tamalpais State Park- Mill Valley

West Coast Trail Runs also has 1 run in May

• Coyote Lakes- Marathon, Half Marathon, 10k & 5k- May 18th- Harvey Bear entrance on San Martin Ave

Pacific Coast Trail Runs has 1 event early in the month of May:

• Armstrong Redwoods- 50k, 30k, 17k & 9k- May 4th- Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve and Austin Creek State Recreation Area- Guerneville

Inside Trail Racing has 1 event late in the month of May:

• China Camp- Half Marathon, 10k & 5k- May 25th- China Camp State Park- San Rafael

The Mermaid Series has one of their events in May with a new distance:

• Mermaid Run East Bay- Sirena 18 mi, Half Marathon, 10k & 5k- May 11th, Quarry Lakes Regional Recreation Area- Fremont

Wolf Pack Events has a brand new May event:

• Mothers Day Run- Half Marathon, 5mi & 5k- May 11th- San Pablo Dam Resevoir- El Sobrante

One off events in the month of May:

• Quicksilver 50mi, 50k & 25k- May 11th- Almaden Quicksilver County Park- San Jose
• Miwok 100k- May 4th- Stinson Beach
• TCRS#5 - 5 mile- May 12th- Bahia Vista- Novato
• Ohlone Wilderness 50k Trail Run- May 19th- Ohlone Wilderness- Fremont