Enchanted Forest In My Backyard...What a Lucky Guy

Since taking up running last January, I've settled into running a lot on trails. Trails are less boring, keep me engaged with nature and my surroundings, much less dangerous and with softer terrain forgiving on the feet and legs .
It's been an awakening to see such beauty and the amount of landscaping and design that has been going on in the past couple of years to beautify the National Seashore, Presidio and many of the trails that weave and meander through those areas. 

For training purposes it can't be beat. San Francisco is a runner, hiker paradise in such a small area. Kind of the equivalent of a "Velodrome" for trail runners!

I can easily get in a 20 mile run and barely touch pavement! The terrain and surfaces are quite variable, from mud loose sand, wood chip to hard pack and grass. I especially like the wood chip. It has a nice feel to it and is very forgiving.

I've been exploring over the last two weeks in the Presidio and just making new discoveries all the time. I researched some of the ongoing projects and unfortunately some of the grand ideas have been put on hold due to expenses including huge environmental impact studies, maybe too much public input to. Too many opinions from opinionated people tend to bog down just about any creative idea.


The timing has been great. I'm feeling a little more confident with trail running with all the experience I'm getting on my runs through the San Francisco forests and beach trails. Who would of thought.

Going into the Northface Endurance challenge this weekend I'm feeling a little more confident with my technique. Just hoping I can take the punishment over 26 miles and live to tell about it.

Thanks to smart phones with a built in "Dork Shot" mode for this one. Lined it up pretty well with that spikey stump...

I've been testing my Brooks Cascadia trail shoes. So far in two good runs I find them comfortable but, a bit clompy and a little on the heavy side. They just don't have the flexibility of my Brooks Pure Grits. The bottoms have a lot of protection but come up a bit stiff. I think they'll make for a great training shoe but, not sure I'll wear them for NorthFace.

I'm trying to tame the competitive side of me for this upcoming race. I think I'm actually a bit out of my league even in my age group. I would really just want to run this race smart and not blow up completely. The weather is going to be pretty nasty and I have to just stay in the survival mode. If for some strange reason I feel great at mile 18 or 20 I'll just go for it...

Well, good luck to my body and may the force be with me. I'm super, super excited to meet my Ultra Running heroes! It's funny most of them a less than half my age?...again, who would of figured. Life is pretty cool and unpredictable...
Here's the women's line up for the 50 mile! Jeeesh!

... Running Chicks Link!...

ruh roh! Controversy...Diablo Trail Pt. 2

Ready?! 

Drop an Roll!

After a bad beginning today, including double dog fights in doggy day care, a full day of maintenance issues in the buildings I manage. I get this inquisitive email with somewhat snarky overtones...

Hi Peter, I would really like to hear back from you today.  There are many that are questioning your 34 minute deduction from your time.  Could you please get back to me and let me know which race you ran and when you left.  Thanks, Buzz

Sounded pretty frightening on my first read! 

So, I explained to "Buzz" how things went down with my logistical nightmare, and the merciful time judges that went way out of their way to re-sync my timing chip and configure finish times so I was able to still compete and achieve a 1st place in my "Old age group". 
I kind of felt how "Lance" must of felt when people started catching on to his game. The only thing was I wasn't playing any game. Just a victim of time circumstances.

...Original Diablo blog pt. 1 here

At least Buzz seemed to accept my alibi and I did refer him to my blog for the low down. He may or may not have read it.
By the way I beat the guy who came in second in my group by over! 10 minutes! So there...
Jeesh, wait till the next time I do this. It's two GU's with caffeine!
I worked wicked hard for this one...

Some highlights I forgot to mention from the race.

1. Towards the end of the race, (within the last mile), I totally ate shit when I glanced down to check my heart-rate, (why I bothered I knew it was maxed out) and my right foot caught a boulder and POW! My recovery was pretty quick, mostly due to embarrassment.
2. When I dropped and rolled at the finish line my left hamstring seized up and the pain was agonizing on top of the fact I felt like an idiot and tried not to show a my painful expression.
3. Since discovering Ultra, Trail and Marathon running back in January (when I started running), I've had an epiphany, a revelation and a whole new Universe has opened up to me full of personalities, excitement, motivation and competition!
As I've been exploring trail running I happened to discover a truly inspirational group of people who I had never heard of before and I'm learning of this amazing world in which they live.
I've become a fan of "UltraRunning.com" a local podcast which is now one of my favorite resources. 


I recently listened to an interview with a woman named "Sarah Lavender Smith" who writes for Trail Running Magazine and has her own blog...

     http://www.therunnerstrip.com/

which has just an astounding wealth of information and very interesting and entertaining writing, pictures and links.

Sarah actually sent me an email after contacting her regarding the Diablo Adventure Trail Run.

I had hoped to meet her Sunday but she finished the race so freaking fast and was probably home having a glass of wine and blogging about it before I even crossed the finish line!
She finished seventh overall out of a field of 170 with a ridiculous time of 2:01:06!

She has an amazing background in running and manages to juggle a life of family, business and running quite nicely.

Courtesy Brazen Racing

This is Sarah who actually has developed a technique for flying whilst flapping her braids to acquire lift...I'm looking forward to meeting her along with Dean Karnazes, and many other world class athletes at the NorthFace Endurance challenge. I'll be participating in the Full Marathon Trail. I'm absolutely looking forward to my first Trail Marathon and it's been so exciting falling into this crazy Universe of running.

Man, I could sure use a "power gel" here!