Five Stars for San Francisco Half Marathon!

Amy and I had a near picture perfect San Francisco Half Marathon on Sunday, July 25, as we ran with 25,000 other runners over the hills of SF. Yes, there was the whole 3am wakeup, 3:30 drive, etc. But everything went so smoothly! No complaints here. To a Dad, few things bring a smile to my face and joy to my heart more readily than to see my adult children succeed in doing hard things. I can see and delight in the accomplishments of all three of my kids’ lives (the proud Dad that I am), but on Sunday’s run, my focus was on Amy. Despite a challenging pain in her knee, by the strength and help of God, she ran and finished the 13.1 miles!! Yahoo! OK, I ran and finished too, AND was exceedingly pleased at both of our efforts and results. Matter of fact, we were both delighted as to how the day went. We ran the course in a little over two hours; slower than when we ran the Santa Cruz Half in April (a relatively flat course), but Sunday’s was a great run none the less! And we felt good in conquering the hills of SF.

In my description of the course (my prior blog entry), I said there was a hill to run in rising from Bay level at Crissy Field to the deck of the Golden Gate Bridge. True, this was a killer hill of effort. Yet before reaching it was another hill that rose from Aquatic Park to climb over Ft. Mason and down to the Marina Green. After that was the hill to the bridge. Running the bridge (each direction) was also like running a hill as it slopes up to the center point of the span, and then back down. As the picture above shows, it was a foggy morning so visibility from the bridge was poor. By the time we reached center span we could see our breath! It was chilly; we were sweating and it was chilly. The picture also shows how the race had one lane closed for us to run north, a second lane to run south and a third as a safety buffer between us and the cars. After the bridge was the hill running through the Presidio, and after that was a series of hills leading to Golden Gate Park, where one more hill needed to be surmounted before the final slope down to the finish line.

   

Just as we were rounding the corner to enter the park, I noticed something. I'll call it an “OZ” experience. We had been running along streets of houses; the houses were non-descript in color, the pavement and sky were the same shade of gray. But as we entered the park everything turns “Technicolor”; the trees and bushes are vibrant greens, the walking paths dark brown, flowers were blooming, even the sky seemed to lightened as we headed toward the finish line.  I wouldn’t have been surprised to hear Munchkins giggling along the route… actually, I would have been surprised. J One can really appreciate the thoughts and great efforts behind designing, creating and maintaining civic parks. Good job SF!

My rating for this race would be 5 stars out of five stars. Great destination race! Scenic course! Professionally organized! The organizers have it down cold. From the plentiful discounted parking opening at 4:30am, to the organization of the starting waves, to the upbeat announcers, to the ginormous glow stick illuminated balloon arch sculpture, to all the wonderful volunteers along the course cheering us on, to the plentiful water / aid stations, to the finish line organization (water, Cytomax (Gatorade like drink), finisher metals, food, busses & even a first for me: Irish Coffees for those over 21! …I don’t actually see the point of this, but it did bring a smile to my face … and no I did not imbibe). Add to all this the cool weather made for a great running environment. Amy and I both said, “We hope to run it next year!” Then, after getting back to the Embarcadero and the start line… it was off to Blue Bottle Coffee.

… Ahhh time to savor the taste of victory!

Running San Francisco – Sun. 7/25

This coming weekend Amy and I will be running a ‘fun run’ – The San Francisco Marathon!   Well… S.F. Half Marathon, actually.   (http://www.thesfmarathon.com/). The Wall Street Journal calls the course “one of America's most beautiful marathons.” I totally agree. What other race allows you to run the SF waterfront (without worrying about traffic ) and across the Golden Gate Bridge (and back), then end in Golden Gate Park? I ask ya! Sounds like a beautiful day in SF! Many races combine events to attract runners and pay for the logistical support needed to run events such as the SF Marathon. Races also contribute a portion of their net proceeds to local charities supporting athletics. The organizers in SF must have thought, “Hey! Why not attract some extra runners by running our marathon, two half marathons, a 5K race and a running event for kids (Munchkin Fun Run) on the same weekend?” So they did just that! The first half marathon will start with the marathon runners; the second half marathon will start 13.1 miles away finishing with the marathoners. In itself the marathon and two half marathons will attract 20,000+ runners AND will bring millions of dollars spent by these runners to the local economy, a win-win for everyone.

The Marathon and “first half” Half Marathon start at the SF Ferry Building (ahh… Blue Bottle Coffee! http://www.bluebottlecoffee.net/) on the waterfront at 5:30am. Yes, I said 5:30 in the morning!! We plan on leaving the house at 3:30am (as in: oh dark thirty), drive, find parking, find the start line, then stand in the cool of the morning waiting for the gun (as in I wish I had a gun (well maybe just a rubber band gun) to shoot someone for such an early start!... just kidding!). The elite runners start first. These bad boys and girls are fast and will compete for cash prizes. Then the rest of us begin one ‘wave’ at a time. A ‘wave’ describes starting the race in groups of runners who self estimate their finish times. We’re hoping to complete the 13.1 miles in around two hours.  So we are in Wave #3 and should start about 5:42. Using chip technology, each runner’s start and end times are captured on computer for later web publication. More on chip timing another time for the techie readers among us.

So we’ll be off and running north along the Embarcadero, past Coit Tower, Pier 39, and past Fisherman’s Wharf and the Aquatic Park. We’ll continue running NW along the Bay, through part of Fort Mason, past the Marina Green, through Crissy Field and up a hill (and oh, what a hill!) to the deck of the Golden Gate Bridge. Here’s the real reason the race starts early. With thousands of runners, the organizers have arranged to have lanes of the bridge closed for runners’ use only. Having walked the bridge before, the views of the Bay are spectacular with oodles of sailboats, ocean freighters and views of the City, Sausalito, Bay Bridge, and, Alcatraz and Angel islands in the distance. The total length of the bridge (one way) is 1.7 miles! The race turns around at the bridge’s Marin side Vista Point (we’ll be a little over 7 miles into the run at this point) and heads back across in a second closed lane. Once off the bridge and back in SF, we will run heading SW, continuing up a hill, skirting the Presidio and run through the headlands of SF where if you turn around and run backwards (being careful not to trip) you might see the Golden Gate from the Pacific side. We then run past (and above) Baker Beach (remember the movie The Princess Diaries with Anne Hathaway?), then down onto 27th Ave. for a straight shot into Golden Gate Park where the Half Marathon ends on John F Kennedy Dr. at 8th Ave. near the de Young Museum (http://deyoung.famsf.org/). An aside: Check out the "Birth of Impressionism" exhibit that's at the de Young right now. Janet, Amy, my sister Cindy, my Mom (Hi Mom!) and I went last weekend. It was marvelous! Wonderful day of art, laughter and special family time. OK, we're back...The full marathon continues further through the City ending back near the Ferry Building. Amy and I, having completed the Half, will hop an event sponsored bus for a ride back to the Ferry Building.

…Then we get coffee and savor the run and shared victory.

PS – What is also amazing is that while 20,000 folk are running in a SF Marathon event (like us), there are another 15,000 people running the Wharf to Wharf this same day. That’s a whole lot of runnin’!  

Running with the Tiger!

Like most people, the thought of running through the African savannah with a tiger sounds rather dangerous and might not be appealing, let alone running with THE Tiger on the streets of Santa Cruz, California. Enter my friend Tom Salge, Tiger. Last year Amy and I had the pleasure on running not once, but twice with my younger brother. Here's the story of our first run together…Wharf to Wharf 2009.

 July 26, 2009, Tiger, Amy and I set forth on our first time together to run the Wharf to Wharf race (http://www.wharftowharf.com/ ) in Santa Cruz. Running with 15,000 of our closest friends plus Shelly and Janet (i.e., if multiple ‘mouses’ is mice, then multiple spouses would be spice? … as in they are the beautiful spice in our lives!). Janet and Shelly dropped us off near where the event busses would take us to the starting area. The run is from the Santa Cruz Wharf to the Capitola Wharf (hence the name; get it? got it? good!).

OK, our first challenge: Amy and I went to use the port-o-potties and Tiger said he’d wait for us on the side. Now emerging from the potty to look for Tom would be a system overload even for the best US border patrol facial recognition system. Looking for Tom (as Tom looked for us) among 15,000 faces is a challenge. Tom’s looking for me in a white runner’s hat (that narrows it down to a several  thousand) in the crowd. We’re wondering why we didn’t pick a specific spot to rendezvous. We did find Tom (or he us). We found our spot in the pack near our running pace.

We hear ‘On your mark; get set!” And starting gun goes “blam.” You know how when lightning flashes and you count seconds before the thunder arrives to determine how far the flash was? One, one-thousand, two, one-thousand, etc.? We are so far back in the pack that we never hear the gun. Yet people are cheering around us that we are off and running! Well, maybe not running. Walking really. Yet like so many around us, we are like thoroughbred race horses (thorough bred race tigers?) chomping at the bit to run! I think we started jogging at about the one mile marker, and maybe start running at pace at around 3 miles.  We still had to weave and dodge around walkers and runners through the entire six mile course. Yet we did not lose our spirits as this race has 50 plus entertainment groups spaced along the route. You name it: ukulele academies, garage bands, San Jose State marching band, heavy metal bands, bagpipes, pop, jazz, medieval recorder ensemble, taiko drums, and much more! This is truly a fun run. We even saw Elvis running (I guess he’s not dead!) along the route. Great family atmosphere, no major stress on running fast, yet you do run 6 miles! I love this run. The net proceeds from this race go to support local area sports programs. Check out their web site and make sure you register early because this race sells out every year.

But wait! That’s not all! Janet and Shelly didn’t just ditch us, but instead left us to our run and headed over to Capitola for some quality coffee time and to wait and watch for their manly men and daughter to finish strong! After we crossed the finish line, we received out race t-shirts and goody bag, found Janet & Shelly then drove to lunch in downtown Santa Cruz at Hoffman’s Bakery. What an excellent day! 

MP3’s: Inspiration, or audio blinders…

Step with me again into the way-back machine, this time to 1987, when I ran the Humboldt Marathon. Nobody, nope none, zero, zippo, zilch, nadda… no one listened to music while running. The audio world (back in the old days) was transitioning from cassettes to CD’s. The technology just didn’t support the bouncing & jarring that accompanies running. Without wanting to sound sanctimonious, people ran for the joy and challenge of it. One enjoyed the surroundings, spent time in thought, prayed, and even talked with others as you ran (imagine that??).  It’s not until 1997 that the first MP3 player came on the market. And then, in 2001, a quantum leap in marketing / technology happened, the first Apple iPod was announced. The rest, as they say, is history.

I happen to feel that the introduction of MP3 players has played a big part in the growth of the sport. Tunes can encourage, help pick you up, carry you through tough runs; tunes can distract you from aches and pains; tunes can inspire to greater performance.  Especially when you can put a playlist together of music you want to listen to.

On the down side, listening to tunes can be a distraction that can put a runner in physical jeopardy. MP3 players can be akin to audio blinders to the world around us, blocking our ‘vision’ of the beauty and world of which God has blessed our path. You may not hear a car or bicycle approaching or turning into your path, or hear directions or warning from someone (e.g. friend, race official, alien space ship landing, etc.). Some races forbid the use of MP3 players for this reason. Many races list USA Track & Field Rule 144.3 as forbidding the use of such if you are competing for prize money, but ‘allows’ the use of MP3 players for the rest of us.

I like running both with and without my Nano. As a rule of thumb, if it’s a trail or early morning run, I don’t play tunes. As a run progresses, I will play tunes to help carry my through. For the marathon, I will follow this same rule. Early on, no music, but later when I need that lift, I’ll be listening. And I’ll make sure to have a full charge on the battery before the gun goes off.

Here’s a sample of running tunes that help me run:

Dive, Steven Curtis Chapman

I Am Free, News Boys

The Power of Love, Hewie Lewis

Run, Hillsong Live

We Didn’t Start the Fire, Billy Joel

Get Down, Audio Adrenaline

Flood, Jars of Clay

Big House, Audio Adrenaline

Jesus Freak, DC Talk

Independence Day, Martina McBride

Pressing On, Reliant K

You Lift Me Up, Rachael Lampa

Jesus Is Just Alright, DC Talk

Running On Empty, Jackson Brown

Kingdom Come, Hillsong

Here is Our King, David Crowder Band

Son of Man, Phil Collins

I Run To You, Lady Antebellum

Email from Ishimwe...

Last week, we received an email from friends (I’ll call them as T. and K.) who are visiting the Ishimwe Center in Rwanda. Both of these Godly women will be there for about a month, serving the kids and helping as needed. Below, I cut and paste part of their email update for you to get a taste of life at Ishimwe. How different life in Rwanda is from San Jose, and yet we all serve the same loving God. HE wants the best for ALL people, and that best is Jesus! The picture is of Faith, Roger and one of the kids, Bonfils. Enjoy the letter. – Johnny B

“Nine children arrived last week!  We have started working with the children with phonics, letters and numbers, games, songs, English words. They are an eager little group.   I believe last year, President Kagame established Rwanda as an Anglophone nation.  Previously it was Francophone.  Yesterday, the young helper/somewhat like a nanny was instructed to call out to the children “Porridge time” (she doesn’t speak English--- she was so excited to say some English words).   Faith and Roger’s--- influence goes far beyond just helping the children.  Each caregiver or person employed here has a story to tell. Many of the stories are lives of abandonment, rape, great sorrow, etc.   Each person is treated with dignity and with instruction from Faith, their lives are being enriched. 

Faith has been struggling with a severe head cold.   Many of the children have dry coughs-- typical for this time of the year.  June is a time of dust and dryness post rainy season.  My eyes have been quite itchy in the mornings.   On Sunday, K., Angela and I along with the children’s care giver and the driver--snuggled the 9 children into our vehicle and had a great morning taking the kids to church.  Faith attends an English Speaking International church.  Worship songs are sung in both Kinyarwandan, English, and Swahili.   We took the kids to church without Faith (who stayed home to rest) and we did well.  The (kids) are very well behaved.  

There is a strong police/security presence.   This sense of security has helped the nation to flourish. They need to be instructed-- and to continue to see the fruit of hard work and education and respect for all as there are still remnants of hatred. And there are always extremists trying to incite agendas of the devil. The country is clean--- Kigali has come a long ways in the 6 years since I last visited.  There is still much to be done!  Faith has so many ideas.    

The electricity has been out daily for the past week.  We think either they work on the infrastructure during the day or it is planned conservation.  It goes off around 9 am and then on again around 5pm.   Electricity is very expensive.  So I boil water in the tea kettle and put it in my shower bucket and add water and viola-- wash my hair and sponge bathe.   Amazing how one learns to live without a water heater and paper towels.     

We had the most delicious African coffee several days ago.  Espresso, steamed milk/foam with chocolate and ginger.  I think the water they used was infused with ginger.   Oh-my was it delicious!!!”