A Long Road Behind. An Open Road Ahead.

Deal with the past. Practice forgiveness and gratitude.

Be optimistic about the future. Let go of worry and fear.

When you can do that, you can truly celebrate the present. 

I'm a bit of a statistics geek. When I get a bucket of numbers or lists and I have free time (like I do during a slow Thanksgiving week), I like to look at the past to see what I can learn.  With our 100th half marathon coming up next week in San Antonio, it was nice to take a trip through the first 99.

We started in 2005. When we were racing with Team in Training, the idea of doing more than a half marathon every 12 weeks or a full more than twice a year was not within the realm of possibility. We didn't even speak about it. I think the idea was that our participants, many first time marathoners, should concentrate on their event so it's the highlight of the season. Pre-event tune up races detracted from the big one. I get that. And that's how we trained for the first four years. Most of the races we did for the first 5 years were with TNT.

That changed in 2009. Our tenure as TNT mentors and coaches went to an every other year basis and the teams in the Bay Area got smaller, probably due to competition from other training organizations. We added a few of the short hop destination races like Rock n Roll Vegas (with a day-time Run Through Wedding) and a local race featuring a Walk Division (Eye-Q Twin Cities Fresno).

Rock n Roll Las Vegas 2009. Our first vow renewal, photobombed by Elvis.

In 2010, we also found out about the bonus Heavy Medals offered by Rock n Roll. That year, we had 3 halfs and a full to get the Grand Slam. We also met a Marathon Maniac, Kamika Smith. That meeting on the Seattle causeway led us to join the Half Fanatics and eventually the Marathon Maniacs.

This was one instance where Susan and I did different races. Susan did the full in Seattle because I had done one extra full in Anchorage. I did the half 5 months after reconstructive knee surgery (and PRed).
Kamika finished his 100th full on the day we met. I never thought we'd come anywhere close to that total for races.

2011 was a step change. We were on a Southwest flight for RNR Arizona and somehow we had an unscheduled layover in San Diego. We were sitting in the aisle/window in row 2 when a perky blonde lady from the C group asked if she could sit with us. She ended up chatting with Susan for the hour long flight to Phoenix and it turns out she knew all about Rock n Roll. She even mentioned that they were adding a few inaugural races in Providence, Rhode Island; Savannah, Georgia and Miami Beach. By the time we got off the plane we were so excited we registered for another 5 races that year.  Turns out that young lady was Ann Wessling, the striped-socked, high-fiving announcer for the Rock n Roll races. We ended the year with 10 races (9 half marathons) and our first (inaugural) Rock Idol Heavy Medal. Garret Schmidt saved us a second medal for our picture on the shores of Rock n Roll Miami Beach (ours was in the mail).

We hit another inaugural in RNR Pasadena in 2012. I'm not sure where it got into our heads that we would do another 10 races, but the schedule filled up quickly. We met Dan and Jackie Evans, contestants from The Biggest Loser season 5.  They were in the early stages of setting up The Biggest Loser RunWalk race series. We signed up to raise money for Team Future, the Chicago area charity they were supporting, and they were gracious enough to treat us with VIP passes for Rock n Roll Chicago. That was the race we met Beth Deloria and Jim Austin. Beth is the director of social outreach for Allard and the GetBackUp Today movement. She runs with a special brace on her left foot because her ankle was paralyzed from a spinal surgery, but it hasn't slowed her down. She's a Boston qualifier and she and Jim are among our closest friends. By the end of the year, we bought memberships to the Half Fanatics group (#1731 and #1732) as Christmas presents to each other.

In 2013, things took a turn for the ridiculous. We had become good friends with Al and had dinners and post race celebrations with him and Caryn since RNR San Jose 2012, but when Competitor Group had a scheduling overlap putting Rock n Roll San Antonio and Rock n Roll Las Vegas on the same day, Al called me saying 'you know, it might be possible to do both'. We'd done full marathons before that, obviously, but even this was a step up. That was the year Double Live / SA2LV happened. We also added the inaugural Berkeley Half Marathon the following weekend to moon up to Earth level as Half Fanatics with 3 halfs in 3 states in 10 days. That split double gave us a good start for the Brazen New Years Eve/New Years Day double, just a month before we did full marathons 4 days apart on Antarctica and South America.

A second vow renewal, this time with a larger party on an emotional weekend.

The finish line at Vegas with a warm welcome from Ann.

2014 was our busiest year with 47 half marathons between us. Susan had the extra race that year at the Zooma Women's marathon in Napa, California. I didn't race in it, but was there in full support in an electric blue tutu. We also added the 50th Anniversary Mustang Half, a once in a lifetime chance to race on the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. We were able to walk in The Biggest Loser RunWalk races in Casper, Wyoming and Panama City Beach, Florida. It was also the year we did our first Disney races, starting with the Dumbo Double Dare in September and Disney Avengers in November (as the first half of the Avengers/RNR Vegas Double Live 2). We were even part of George Melichar's moving art museum at Rock n Roll Chicago. At Rock n Roll San Antonio, we hit our 15th RNR race, putting us on the first ever Heavy Medal Hall of Fame for CGI.

2015 saw another pair of Disney races and two The Biggest Loser RunWalk races.  We went back to where we did our first full marathon in Anchorage, Alaska to mark 10 years since our first race. The celebration was also our 20 year wedding anniversary.  With the inaugural Rock n Roll Brooklyn Half, we checked off the 25th state for half marathons. After this year's Disney Avengers/Rock n Roll Las Vegas double, we also finished our 15th RNR for another entry into the Hall of Fame. 

Messing with Darth

Dan and Jackie. The Biggest Winners in our book.

More than anything, we'll remember our first 99 races with our friends. We cheered for Joe for his 100th finishing his Rock n Roll race in DC. 

In the rain at DC for Joe's 100th Rock n Roll

We prayed for Beth as she underwent major surgery in March and recovered quickly enough to race again in May.

Pre-race at Rock n Roll Raleigh. Beth was just a few weeks out of abdominal surgery and came out to cheer us on. We all wore bibs in her honor.

We came together for Erin Zeman. Joe, Kevin and I wore her husband, Jake's bib from the day he passed away at Rock n Roll Savannah 2013.

Rock n Roll San Antonio will be our 16th RNR each for this year and our 45th half for 2015 combined. And it'll be a race where a lot of our best friends are hitting the 15 race Hall of Fame for the year as well. I want to see how many people I can fit into a group selfie of all the friends we've made over the years and the ones we hope to see for years to come.

I am grateful for every time I post a picture of my suitcase and the dozen or so luggage tags from the races we've done that year.

I'm glad that our bodies have forgiven us for the miles that we put on them.

I'm looking forward to the finishing in San Antonio on Sunday. It'll be the last of our first 100 half marathons.

At that time, and always, we'll celebrate the present.

~//~

I found this way of displaying our race history a little surprising. It didn't really dawn on me that we have been racing nearly every other weekend for almost three years now, most of them out of state. It does make me wonder if we've found a sweet spot or we're just taking a quick pause before going to the next level.

By the numbers, the 100 Half Marathon breakdown and stats.

Top Race Companies: 
- Rock n Roll Marathon (67 and 68 halfs, 5 and 4 fulls)
- runDisney (4) 
- The Biggest Loser RunWalk (4)

Most Frequented Races: 
RNR San Diego (6)
RNR Chicago (6)
RNR Seattle (5)
RNR Arizona (5)
RNR Las Vegas (5)
We've also done Nike San Francisco 10 times, but 8 of those were in support and we did the full marathon as pacers.

States with completed Halfs: 25
In order of completion: California, Alaska, Hawaii, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Illinois, Texas, Tennessee, Rhode Island, Virginia, Florida, District of Colombia (yes we'll count it), Oregon, Colorado, Ohio, Missouri, North Carolina, Wyoming, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Louisiana, Indiana, Michigan, New York.

Canadian Provinces: 2
Quebec, British Columbia

Legacy Races: 
RNR Portland (4 years). We haven't seen this on the 2016 RNR schedule yet.
RNR San Francisco (3)
If you count these: Disney Avengers (2) and RNR Raleigh (2). 

Fastest halfs: 
Walking: Ron 2:22:28 RNR San Diego 2015, Susan 2:29:23 RNR San Diego 2014
Run/Walking: Ron 2:55:54 (yeah, go figure) RNR Chicago 2014, Susan 2:30:03 RNR Cleveland 2013

Best Age graded performances:  
Ron 63.27%, Susan 65.63%

Best Overall Finishes:
Ron: 1st place - TBL Casper 2014, TBL Las Vegas 2015, 3rd Place - TBL Panama City Beach 2014, American River Parkway 2014
Susan: 2nd place - TBL Casper 2014, 3rd place - TBL Las Vegas 2015.

Age grade awards:
Ron:  1st Place - Eye Q Fresno, 3rd Place - Eye Q Fresno
Susan: 1st Place - Eye Q Fresno, 1st Place American River Parkway (twice)

Favorites - random categories, because people always ask the question:
Ron: 
Favorite overall - Kauai. Tunnel of Trees and the most beautiful finish chute starting at mile 11.
Favorite Urban - RNR Chicago. I can do without the bridges, but the city is awesome.
Favorite For Speed - RNR San Diego. 4 PRs in 4 years (one in the 5K)
Most memorable: RNR San Antonio/RNR Las Vegas 2013. For many reasons.

Susan: 
Favorite Rock n Roll race - Vancouver. The last 3 miles smell like fresh cut Christmas trees.
Race with the most to look forward to at the finish: Diva San Francisco (Tiaras, Feather Boas, Champagne)
Most Scenic: Maui, Monterey

It Only Took Us Two Years to Finish These Races - Brazen New Year's Eve / Brazen New Year's Day Half Marathons

We've heard about Brazen Racing, our friends have done Brazen races, there is even a Brazen race held in our backyard at Quarry Lakes every year. But it wasn't until we needed to do some trail training for Antarctica that we signed up for our first Brazen race – Brazen New Year’s Eve Half Marathon on December 28 (our last race of 2013 – Honest!). We were quickly roped into signing up for the companion race Brazen New Year’s Day Half Marathon so that we could earn that all important bonus medal. After all, it’s really all about the bling even though we’re running out of places to put all of our race medals.

We’re very happy to report that our first Brazen experience from registration to completion of the second race was a very positive experience. For an organization that hosts 24 races in a year, many that sell out, we shouldn't be all that surprised that they know what they’re doing. The website is informative and helpful. Once you register, Brazen kept us up-to-date with a series of emails on the particulars about race day.

We picked up bibs early at Fleet Feet in Pleasant Hill Thursday and dropped more money on Antarctica gear and Allied Medal holders. Race packets and shirts for both races were lined up all around the store so it was really convenient to get everything at once. Brazen also has race day pick up at Lake Chabot as well as race-day registration if the event has not sold out.  

Race morning was chilly by California standards - high 30's, warming into the mid 50's, but the Lake facilities were more than enough for the small race. Come early if you want to park in the lot ($5 fee) or park free on the street and warm up a little on the walk in. Sweat check was very efficient to shed extra layers.

Deja Vu! New Years Eve and New Years Day. Ron needs to do something about the wrinkles, but Susan looks fabulous as always.

Count down with a megaphone (honoring park rules) set us off on what would be quite a hilly adventure. The New Year’s Eve race circumnavigated Lake Chabot counter clockwise with the equivalent of approximately 250 flights of stairs. The New Year’s Day race took us around Lake Chabot clockwise on the same course.

The weather was ideal for a winter race. No rain (although the Bay Area desperately needs rain) and  the temperature at 7:30 am was 39F. Those in shorts and t-shirts were chilly at the start, however, those of us in long tights and multiple long sleeve tops got hot after climbing a few hills and had to start shedding layers with temperatures climbing into the 50’s.

The small field size ensured that the trails were not overcrowded. Those needing up to 4.5 hours to tackle the challenging course could take advantage of an early 7:30 am Hiker Start (note that Hikers must reach mile 9.16 by 11:30 am). The regular half marathon started at 8:30 am followed by the 10K at 8:55 am the 5K at 9:10 am. This comfortably spaced out the participants on the narrow trails. Quite of few of our future Team in Training kids (Taj and Teo and the Ladrillonos) cleaned up on the 5K medals!

Some unique sounds entertained us on the race course. Unlike Rock ‘n’ Roll races with bands every mile, Lake Chabot is forest land that is peacefully quiet and serene (other than mid-way through the course where you hear repeated gunshots from the Chabot Gun Club shooting range). You also pass the Lake Chabot Golf Course where golfers were also enjoying the sunny winter day. The only other human made sound came from the racers who every time they looked up, they groaned because all they saw was another hill to climb.

For us road racers, the hills were a welcome change from the constant pounding of pavement. Walkers have to be particularly careful to pick up their feet more than usual to avoid tripping over sticks along the trail but we like to think we have a particular advantage climbing with the hill technique we've developed. Runners enjoy the down hills and the soft trail. This led to the typical sea saw passing of nearby participants for long stretches of the trail. At times, we were alone on the trail with no one in sight ahead or behind us. Fortunately, the course markings were very clear with color-coded tape for each race distance hung from nearby branches and on the ground. Mile markers were clearly color coded with double anchored flags (a different color for each race distance). Flour was used to mark arrows signaling the correct direction and blocking off side paths so that you didn't make a wrong turn accidentally. These course markings were on par with those marked by Coach Rudy for our TNT training – Rudy’s renown for having the best course markings in all of the land.

Top left: A hill. One of many. Top Right. Lake overlook - this may now be my favorite woodlands half!
Bottom Left: Katrina on the rickety bridge (NYD). Bottom Right: Jasmine and Zara near mile 10 on NYD.
The Wolf Pack was out in force this week!

The water stops were well placed (at the top of hills) and were well staffed with at least a half a dozen volunteers. If you volunteer for a Brazen race, your next Brazen race entry is discounted (and sometimes free). Not only does this help racers afford more races, this also means that the volunteers are race savvy and participant friendly. Water stop supplies were well stocked including pretzels, oranges, Gu, Jelly Bellies, water, and Ultima. Participants tended to congregate for a few minutes at each water stop relishing the opportunity to take a quick break, say hi to friends and fellow participants, and everyone generally looked like they were have a good time.

Speaking of good times and leaving lasting positive impressions, Brazen had It’s-It ice cream sandwiches at the finish in four flavors (vanilla, chocolate, cappuccino, and mint). I’m not sure if we were more excited about the large race medal or the It’s It ice cream sandwich – it’s kind of a tie! We had heard that it was easy to eat the equivalent of your body weight at the end of Brazen races and now we know why. Even though we finished within the last hour of the race, there was still plenty of food available including Dixie cups filled with pumpkin pie, pecan pie, apple pie, carrot cake, red velvet cake, birthday cake, and M&M’s. There was popcorn, bagels, Nutella, peanut butter, etc. We didn't get in our protein after the race but we certainly got our 200 calories in and then some plus a sugar rush.

Not shown: 4 styrofoam coolers full of It's-It Ice Cream Sandwiches. *drrroollllllll*

Brazen also provides pictures free of charge. Though they are not indexed by bib number, they're in time order so you can actually see a short stop motion clip of yourself at various points at the race. Complete albums found here.

Would we do a Brazen race again? It depends. Some of the more difficult steep races are probably not going on the bucket list right away but some of the flatter more scenic races might creep into our race schedule in the next few years. The Quarry Turkey Half goes along the Alameda Creek Trail where we usually train, so we'll definitely add that (and the Nitro Turkey in Sunol) to our list around Thanksgiving. We’d definitely look forward to volunteering at a future Brazen race; it looked like a lot of fun! Kudos to Brazen race organizers. We were impressed all around and would definitely recommend this race series to anyone at all levels and any distances.

Deja Vu... again?  Thanks to Lance Null and Belinda Agamaite for taking the pics!

The Brazen New Year's Eve and Brazen New Year's Day offer half marathon, 10K and 5K distances. You get the same medal for completing any one of the three distances. There were 415 participants on NYE (median half marathon finish time 2:34) and 388 on NYD (median 2:32). Results are posted here: New Year's Eve Results, New Year's Day Results. 

The course was modified slightly between races this year. New Year's Eve was posted as a 13.36 mile race (though Ron had it exactly at 13.1) and New Year's Day was 13.17, eliminating a small loop near the start/finish. Both Susan and Ron had a much faster time for the second race, but it probably had more to do with the slopes than the change in distance.

Registration fees are very reasonable ($43 for the 5K to $65 for the Half) with discounts if you sign up before mid November. Brazen does a great job of honoring the "Streakers" - people who participate in all 24 races in the year by racing or volunteering. The shadow box below holds all of the 24 medals plus a bunch of double-race 'connectors'. Picture here on their Facebook page of Streaker Tuan Ha.

Weather (2013): Chilly for California. Both races started in the high 30's and warmed to the mid 50's by the 11:30 finish time. There wasn't a cloud in the sky on either day.

We had to take off early after New Year's Day to join our neighbors who've been wanting us to join them at Golden Gate Fields for the last 15 years. Our $20 starting stake lasted us for 6 races and we walked away with only losing $8 (plus $2 to tip the valet). We ate more than our fair share at the buffet.

Bonus note: Corrigan Sports 10-Miler/5K Series will hold their first race in Foster City on January 12th, 2014. Completing this and the other two races in Marin County (May 25th) and Santa Clara County (August 24th) earns a bonus medal. The last price increase is on January 6th, but you can get a $5 discount if you use CARINO in the coupon code for registration. Ron plans to use it as a taper for Rock 'n' Roll Arizona the following week. Hope to see you there!