Author: stewscat

2010 City of Laguna Hills Memorial Day Half Marathon

Race summary: Well organized, good course spectators and support.  Very long slow downhill followed by uphill for the last 4-5 miles.  Decent race swag and medal.

In honor of Memorial Day I wanted to post about my first half marathon, which was the City of Laguna Hills Memorial Day Half Marathon.  I had been running consistently outside since January of 2010 and figured that I had done a handful of 5Ks and 1 10K and the next natural progression was to attempt the half marathon distance.  I was staying with my folks in the OC and this race worked out as perfect timing.

Packet pickup was at Road Runner Sports in Laguna Hills.  After I moved to San Diego, I discovered their lage facility in the SD area and it became a favorite spot to shop and find shoes.  The San Diego location also has their Clearance Store where at the time you could buy new shoes of the previous year’s edition for a lot cheaper (~1/3-1/2 of the original MSRP).  From what I recall the packet pickup was straightforward and smooth, no significantly long lines or anything of the sort.

Race morning turned out to be a beautiful one.  I had to drive about 30 minutes south of my folk’s place to get to the race and the sun was coming up as I drove down the freeway.  The start line was situated between the Saddleback Memorial Medical Center (the key sponsor of the race) and the Laguna Hills Mall, which provided plenty of racer parking for free.

race start
Race start

I was definitely nervous as this was my first race at this distance.  I felt confident that I would be able to finish as I had done a training run of 12.9 a few weeks before.  My biggest concern was still the shin splints.

The race starts out with a short 2 mile run through a small residential neighborhood (I think to ensure they reached the full 13.1) before coming out onto Alicia Parkway (a long stretch of road that was downhill for the first half of the race).  My right shin started to burn about 1 mile into the race while in the residential neighborhood and I thought “This is going to be a long day.”  I slowed down for a few miiles to see if that would ease some of the pain in my shins.

Miles 3-8 were down Alicia Parkway and this was all downhill.  I realized as I reached the turnaround point that I’d have to go uphill for the last half of the race.  The sun had come out a few miles into the race and was starting to warm up.  There was a good amount of spectators and people cheering, which was definitely helpful to keep pushing.  At the turnaround between 8 and 9, we moved onto a bike trail that was paved.  My right knee also started aching around this time and I just had to grit my teeth and keep moving forward.  The bike/run trail took us along the Aliso Creek and wove through parks and other areas.

Coming up to the finish line and finish area, there were a ton of people there cheering which really helped.  Since this was a race close to where my family lives, my parents and sister and her family were out at the finish line.  I was really glad seeing them.  I crossed the finish line and only really recall getting my medal and maybe a bottle of water (at the time I didn’t really check out the other post-race activities).  One neat thing about this race is that you received a 2nd tech shirt after finishing (I had received one at packet pickup as well).

Since my family was there, I didn’t have to take a shuttle back to the mall to get my car.

finish
First half done!

Final chip time: 2:25:16

-StewsCat

2014 Rock’n’Roll San Francisco Half Marathon Race Recap

Race Summary: Quick, efficient expo.  Early morning bus ride through the city to reach the start.  Hilly course with good amount of on-course support and spectators.  Beautiful run across the Golden Gate Bridge.

This was my 2nd RnR SF half marathon.  I also ran the inaugural race the year before.  For the second year of the race, the organizers decided to completely change the course.

Since I’m in Sac, SF is only a short 1.5-3 hour drive, depending on the traffic.  We love going to the city, though parking and driving there is not the easiest.  Since we were bringing the dog, we found a dog friendly hotel near Union Square.  Even though it is the touristy spot, it was located where I could walk to the finish line (shuttles took us to the start from the finish line) and actually is in a decent location to a lot of restaurants.

The expo was at the Moscone center and as per usual with RnR races, it was efficient.  I didn’t have time to explore the expo because the wife and dog were waiting outside the building.  But I do appreciate the quick packet pickup.

For my usual pre-race pizza dinner, we ended up at Pizzeria Delfina in the Mission District.  Originally we were going to try out Flour & Water, but the wait was too long.  This pizza joint is located adjacent to their italian restaurant Delfina in a small location.  The kitchen took up about half the space and there were a few small tables as well as a long counter.  Somehow we wound up getting seated at the counter after only a 5 minute wait.

Race morning I woke up super early as per my usual routine.  The hotel didn’t have in-room coffee so around 4 am, I ran across the street to a 24/7 pharmacy and picked up some nasty tasting coffee.  I then made my way to the finish line at Civic Center Plaza.  There I boarded a bus to the very west side of SF (northwest corner of Golden Gate Park).  I sat next to an older gentleman who said he had done a ton of Rock’n’Roll races.  We discussed some of the races that we had both done.

The start line had plenty of porta potties and there was no wait should you need to relieve yourself, which I liked.  My friend and her husband were also running the race but they were running late and we didn’t end up seeing each other.

All RnR races have corral starts.  I lined up in my corral and we were off.  The beginning of this race is a little disheartening.  You run about 1/4 mile and make a right turn and face your first hill.  This is a long slow upwards climb so its best to mentally prepare for hills.  Also because we were running through many neighborhoods, there is a noticeable dearth of bands on this course compared to other RnR races.  We wound our way along the western coast of SF and towards the Golden Gate Bridge around mile 4.  I had run across the bridge the previous year at the inaugural RnR SF race and knew the bridge is not flat.  Many people were stopping when they reached the bridge to take a selfie.  Since I had done this last year with my friends, this race I kept pushing and tried to pick up my pace since I had a slow start with the early hills.  After crossing over the bridge and back, you then run along the north end of SF past Crissy Field, the Palace of Fine Arts, and down towards Fort Mason.  Upon passing Fort Mason, we hung a right onto Polk Avenue and headed south towards the finish.  This was a little deceptive because there were a few more hills in this area prior to a downhill to the finish.  By mile 11 at Fort Mason, my legs were pretty shot with the up and down hills and I was just hanging on to finish.

Final chip time: 2:16:34

I felt good about that time given all the hills.

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2014 medal (below) compared to 2013 medal (above)

-StewsCat

 

Runservations

My made up word for observations made during a run.

  1. I’m really not a fan of sunscreen.  A few years ago I started to slather it on when I went for long runs and more recently have been fairly religious about using it anytime I go for a run.  There are a few occasions where I still will go without, when its raining or super overcast.  I know that I should still wear it when it is overcast because the UV rays penetrate through the clouds.  I’ll continue to use it regularly because I know it protects my skin and reduces my risk of skin disease.
  2. What I eat and how I work have a major impact on my runs.  Last Thursday I did 7 miles and it felt really good/easy.  Wednesday’s workday was the standard 12 hours and not too active.  Today I made it out for 7 again but my legs felt incredibly heavy and tired.  Yesterday’s workday was about 13 hours and very full up standing and other activities.  Also I have not been eating well this week, we had some yummy snacks at work including various chips (my kryptonite), dip, and donuts.
  3. I’m not looking forward to summer.  We’ve had some unseasonably warm weather here for the time of year.  Today was actually supposed to a be a little cooler but it was already still fairly warm by 9:30 am when I set out on my run.  The summer is only going to get worse.  This makes it harder for me to do long runs because I like to start my runs in mid-late morning and in the summer it will already be up into the 70s-80s at that time.  My ideal running temperatures are probably in the low 50s.  I even like doing the high 40s runs too.
  4. Lookin’ forward to some fun this weekend at my cousin’s wedding in the Sonoma area.

-StewsCat

No knead brioche

No knead brioche

Thought I’d try another recipe from the Weekend Bakery.  This time it is their no knead brioche.

Ingredients:

  • 250 g AP flour
  • 100 g butter, melted
  • 70 g water, room temperature
  • 2 eggs (~110 g) – surprisingly I weighed my eggs and they were each 55 g (makes me wonder if they weigh eggs to separate em out into the various sizes they sell in the supermarket)
  • 50 g honey (recipe said runny honey, I just used the honey I squeezed outta my container)
  • 5 g salt
  • 3 g yeast (my scale is a bit finicky so I may have somewhere between 3-4 g in my recipe)

I started by mixing together the eggs, honey, water, salt, and melted butter.  Whisked it for about 30-60 seconds.  Then I added the yeast+flour mixture and mixed it until it was homogenous.

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Mixture prior to resting

Then I let it sit for 2 hours.

I did a stretch and fold 3-4 times.  The dough was fairly well together so I placed the entire thing in a bowl, covered it with plastic wrap, and put it in the fridge for about 48 hours. Now you have the option of dividing the dough into 6 balls to create 1 loaf, or you can do petite brioches.  Since I didn’t have time to let a full loaf proof for 2-3 hours, I decided to make 6 small petite brioches.  So I divided the dough into 6 pieces and formed them into balls.  These were placed in my muffin tin that I greased with butter.

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Prior to proofing

To let it proof, I just tossed the whole tray into my microwave (so I wouldn’t have to fuss with putting something to cover them and possibly getting them to stick).  The site I was basing the recipe off of said to let them proof for 30 minutes.  I found that it took about 50 minutes to proof to my liking.

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After proofing

I had pre-heated my oven to 375F.  I baked it for 7 minutes at this temperature

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Great oven spring!

Then I dropped the temperature to 320F and kept on going (the site said 8 minutes but they weren’t golden brown at that time so I kept them in).  I probably baked it for a total of about 30-45 minutes.

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Lightly golden brown

I glazed the top with some melted butter and set them on a cooling rack.

They came out delicious.  Good structure on inside, very buttery.  Wife approved.

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Good crumb structure

YUM!!

-StewsCat

 

Current shoe rotation – Altra & Asics

Since my injury last Feburary-March, I decided to try a completely different approach to the shoes I run in.  After recovery, I looked to explore some new types of shoes.  Previously I’d been running in stability shoes, typically from a few different brands (Asics, New Balance, Saucony).

Through either facebook or all the various running sites I visit, I learned about a company called Altra.  I actually had been looking at the brand for over a year before I pulled the trigger and invested in some of their shoes.  There are a few unique features of their shoes including the foot-shaped toe box as well as zero drop.  A shoe’s “drop” is the height difference from the heel to the toe.  Most running shoes have a “drop” of anywhere between 6 and 12 mm.  A zero drop shoe is flat all the way across (hence a 0 mm drop).  The store where I purchased my first Altra Running shoes only had one style in the size that I wear.  I went with the Altra Provision 1.5, which is one of their stability shoes.  These shoes tend to a run a little on the small size and the original US9.5 that I ordered was too small.  Typically I have been US9.5 in all my running shoes.  I returned the shoes and purchased some US10 shoes and these fit much better.

Putting these shoes on, I noticed that the shoe kind of hugs your foot.  With the widened toe box, your feet/toes aren’t squished like most running shoes to their narrowness.  One of the neat things that the company does with their shoes is they provide a little instruction booklet in the shoe box.  This explains that these shoes aren’t like your average running shoe and your body (feet, legs) aren’t adapted to running in these shoes long distances right away.  They suggest a long, slow break in period so your body adjusts to the shoes.  Some of the reported differences is that there is more strain on your achilles due to the zero drop.  My first run with the shoes was a very short 1.6 miler.  I definitely felt different muscles working in my legs with these shoes.

At the same time as the Altra Provision 1.5, I also decided to try an even more stable shoe than traditional stability shoes: Asics GEL-Foundation 8.  This shoe is classified as a motion control shoe.  Motion control shoes are the most “stable” shoe to help with pronation.  I threw on these Asics right after a short run with the Altras and boy did I notice a huge difference.  It felt like my feet were in a large boat with the Asics.  The Asics are also a bit heavier than the Provision but they felt more stable.

For awhile I would rotate between these two shoes and then I decided maybe I needed a 3rd alternative for a shoe because I was still experiencing some aches and pains.  I know shoes aren’t the key to solving all injuries, but I had also implemented some other tools to help with my injuries.  I bought a foam roller and started rolling.  Also I looked up some good stretches to help with previous plantar fasciitis and knee pain.

A good deal came up for the Altra Repetition.  This was a departure from the “minimalist” Provision 1.5 and actually is deemed a “maximalist” shoe.  These shoes have a thick foam cushioning running along the entire underside of your foot.  These types of shoes have been used for many years by a lot of ultrarunners who do 50+ mile trail races in the mountains.  Slowly the maximalist movement has trickled into the road running scene a little.  I figured that having a shoe with some extra padding may actually help offset the lightly padded Provision and be different than the motion control Asics.  After trying the Altra Repetition, I really liked these shoes.  They provided some great cushioning and also had the zero drop that I preferred for trying to run with a mid-foot strike gait.

So over the last year or so now, I’ve had a 2, then 3 shoe rotation that seems to work.  I haven’t had any major injuries (*knock on wood*) in the last year or so.  Still a few areas of aches and pains but nothing long lasting like some of my previous injuries (which I’ll talk about later).

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(From left to right): Altra Provision 1.5, Asics GEL-Foundation 8, Altra Repetition

Up next in the rotation will be the Altra Provision 2.0 (to replace the 1.5), Saucony Guide 8 (to replace the Asics), and keeping the Altra Repetition (as the mileage is much lower than the other two at this time).

-StewsCat