November - Memories That Shape Our Life

The Memories feature on Facebook makes me realize how big a month November is for us. Events on and off the race course have brought some profound changes, new goals, solidify friendships that we hope will last a lifetime, and galvanize our resolve to never give up.

In 2010 Susan and I raced in separate states on the morning our friend Michelle passed away from ovarian cancer. The shock of the news spurred us to dedicate our races to her memory. As sad as we were, it opened the door to meeting Sally and Art and Becky Klein, who started us down the path to pushing ourselves from being back-of-the-packers to being sub 2:30 half marathon walkers. 

In 2011, we raced Rock n Roll Savannah in the inaugural year. Our friend Anita had spinal fusion surgery 9 months before that and finished her first half marathon. Adding that inaugural race and Providence helped us get our first of four Rock Idol Heavy Medals.

In 2012, we were on our way to Port Douglas Australia for a marathon where the starting gun was a total solar eclipse. This was the third of the five continents we have checked off for full marathons.

In 2013, we were getting ready for the first Double Live Album tour, otherwise known as SA2LV. We finished the Rock n Roll San Antonio Half in the morning, hopped a flight, renewed vows at the starting line of Rock n Roll Las Vegas to finish out the double race day.

In 2014, we got to see an epic effort of mind over matter when we supported our friend Al at Ironman Florida. After the swim leg was cancelled due to treacherous surf conditions, he overcame a crash during the bike leg.  He rode the last half of the 112 miles and ran the full marathon with several cracked ribs. A few weeks later we did a much easier double race day at runDisney Avengers Half and RNR Las Vegas. 

As for 2015? We sat and watched our friends Jessica and Diana crack PR's at Revel Canyon. Running the half at Revel was six-year old Jordan, (younger brother of Blanca Ramirez, the youngest female to finish marathons on seven continents). Early over-achievement is in their blood. 

There were sad reports from Savannah this year as another runner died under hot conditions at the RNR Half. This came on the second anniversary of Jake Zeman's passing in 2013. This year, Jake's brother-in-law Dwight and his widow Erin ran with Jakes bib for during the half marathon for Team Trust. Jake's son carried it for the one-miler in his father's memory. In the shadow of tragedy, our spirits fight on.

Early last week, I got a call from my former campaign manager from Team in Training, asking if I'd be interested in coming back to coach the TNT Peninsula team and help get the Walk program going again.  Two days later, I saw a Facebook post that my best friend from sixth grade had died of leukemia. No one from my high school class knew about this, even at our 30th High School reunion last year which I was unable to attend. 

I think the coaching position is a foregone conclusion.

So much going on. Time doesn't stop just because we're not traveling. 

It's time to pack for Avengers/Vegas again. 

It's time to make some new memories.

~//~

The Pannell Report

This is an unofficial count that John Pannell does manually. Thanks, John!

With only Las Vegas and San Antonio left, 41 people have already completed the requisite 15 races for entry and another 48 still have a shot at the Hall of Fame. People are making a good push to get that epic bling, so great job on the part of CGI marketing for the incentive! The 27 sitting at 14 races is as many as there were in in all of 2014 (there were a few more with 15 since European races were not counted toward Hall of Fame).

Races   

13 21 14 27

15 17 <--- Hall of Fame 16 8 17 1 18 5 19 5 20 4 21 1

Among the Rock n Rollers that I know of completing their 15th race this weekend in Savannah and entering the Hall of Fame include Los Angeles Ambassador of Rock, Bill (@ChinoLoco).

Martin, the fifth from the 2014 Hall of Fame to repeat.

Kevin, fresh off his 100th Half at RNR Merida.

And last, but not least, the man crunching the numbers, John Pannell himself! John stayed the weekend and ran the 5K for the Remix. He also ran the 1-miler... with the Hall of Fame medal the entire way. I'm surprised he didn't topple forward from the weight!

Four more from the 2014 Hall of Fame are on track to repeat in Vegas this weekend (Wesley, Juan, Susan, and Ron) and Arnold will repeat in San Antonio. Ilona, Carl, Mitch and Joe are already in for a second year. I'm pretty sure another 4 more people will repeat, but I haven't had the chance to catch them in person to know when it will happen. 

Special Note: For those of you who are going to be at Rock n Roll San Antonio, we're trying to get a group picture of as many of us that can fit into a a shot. There might not be enough room on the stage, but keep an eye out for a meeting time and location.

Let's celebrate together.

Good luck in Vegas everyone. Light it up!  #StripAtNight

From the Sidelines - RNR Philadelphia, RNR Merida, New York City Marathon 2015

Playing the remote spectator is a good change of pace. We only get a couple of breaks of three or more weeks between races during the year but I got my fill of marathons just watching my Facebook feed.

Rock n Roll Philadelphia saw another beautiful race day. Forty-four runners qualified for Olympic Trials. Timothy Ritchie took first overall with a time of 61:24. Maegan Krifchin took the women's title at 69:52. Ninety-seven of the 14,480 finishers broke 75 minutes, a pretty phenomenal field.

Most of the Rock n Roll Heavy Medal crowd were in Philly. Shout outs go to another dozen who finished their 15th race of the year to qualify for the 2015 Hall of Fame, bringing the unofficial total to 29. Among them, all-time RNR race leader Joe Harris who is the fourth to repeat as a Hall of Famer. Carl and Ilona hit 15 in San Jose. Mitch got there in Denver. 

Side note, I saw Mitch on the course in San Antonio last year and asked if he was going to try for Hall of Fame again. He said 'absolutely no way'. I think the new set of Heavy Medals and an enthusiastic group of friends changed his mind.

Photo credit: Adrian Mauricio

Hours after RNR Philadelphia ended, the inaugural Rock n Roll Merida took place on the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico. The 2,458 participants dealt with mid-80's starting temps and kicked off the Day of the Dead celebration in style. 

Hitting a milestone in Merida was Kevin, who finished his 100th half marathon, sporting a custom bib from the 100 Half Marathons Club. Kevin was recognized by the race organizers with a special trophy similar to what the top finishers received as someone got word he had chosen Merida for this milestone. Kevin has the 2nd highest Rock n Roll race total all time. 

Last up on the weekend was the biggest marathon of them all in New York City. A number of friends from White Continent/Punta Arenas were among the close to 50,000 finishers including Barb (a Nike SF Legacy runner), Fiona and Soren (coming off Ironman Copenhagen), Fran and Tom (completing their 183rd and 200th full marathon, respectively). Along with "Team Numb" were friends Rebecca and Julie. Rebecca finished her first marathon since being diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer (having never smoked a day in her life). She ran NYC after having a lung removed. Read her amazing story here.

Left to Right: Barb, Rebecca, Julie, Soren, Fiona.

Tee (another White Continent/Punta Arenas alum) ran NYC again. Since beginning running in early 2012, she's finished 46 full marathons, completing the 6 World Majors in 24 months and earlier in 2015 ran the Triple 7 Quest. It's exhausting just keeping up with her!

Other friends (and maybe more that I missed on FB) completing NYC were Ann Marie, Brian (from Team in Training), Todd (Run with Clay) and Colleen from CGI. RNR Gypsy Kamika was one of probably many who ran RNR Philly and took the train to New York for the double weekend. Meb set yet another Master's record at NYC and finished 7th overall. 

Weather in NYC was beautiful. This race is eventually on my bucket list as soon as we finish full marathons on all continents, establish a world record and maybe get through more of the 50 states half marathon list. 

As for Ron and Susan? We sat at home doling out Halloween candy and put in two sessions (morning and evening) totaling 16 - 18 miles. Short of figuring out how to pack for the trip, we're ready for another round of Avengers/Vegas a week from Sunday and our second Heavy Medal Hall of Fame. 

The people you meet on the Creek Trail ;)

I'm not sure I can take sitting on the sidelines for one more weekend, but we don't want to throw off our half marathon count. We'll hit our 100th in San Antonio! Hope to see you all there.

~//~

The Pannell Report

This is an unofficial count that John Pannell does manually. Thanks, John!


With only Rock n Roll Savannah, Las Vegas and San Antonio left on the Tour Stop calendar, we have 91 potential entrants to the Hall of Fame for 2015.

Twenty-Nine have already made the 2015 Hall of Fame. 62 more still have a shot including:

17 at 12

20 at 13

25 at 14

12 at 15 Hall of Fame

2 at 16

4 at 17

6 at 18

4 at 19
1 at 20

I've also confirmed at least 9 people from the 2014 Hall of Fame are on track to repeat in 2015 (Juan - Savannah; Martin, Susan, and Ron - Las Vegas; Wes, Arnold - San Antonio). I'm pretty sure there are 3 or 4 more people will as well, but I haven't had the chance to catch them in person. 

Early congrats to anyone who hits the 15 mark in Savannah. 

Pac Man Fever - Rock n Roll Los Angeles Half Marathon 2015

Things to think about if you ever decide to race in a costume.

1) Make sure you try it out before the race. Don't just hop on a treadmill for 60 seconds because most of the real weird stuff takes time to fall apart.

2) Read the description about the material. Even if you order from Amazon, different vendors have different thicknesses and fabrics.

3) Chafing. In places you probably don't expect, like the armholes, neck, and the shoulders for outfits that were allegedly 'one size fits all' if you happen to be a size 2.

All that said, note that I ignored all of this before Rock n Roll Los Angeles.

California races are super convenient. A reasonably early flight from Oakland to Burbank and we're at the expo almost as it opens. This was the second weekend where CGI was staffing two different cities, the other being north of the border in Vancouver. I'd say about 80% of the people we know on the circuit chose to come to California. This is also the third of nine consecutive weekends with RNR races for those making the late push to the Heavy Medal Hall of Fame. 

First things first. Hit the expo, grab the pins. No luggage tags this time around. I kinda wish Brooks would do those for every race, but I picked up yet another half-zip in a charcoal. I have to say, the colors for the gear are getting better.

Ron, Amy, Susan, Ainsley and Arnold. By the end of the year, we'll all be Hall of Famers.

This is the last time we see Monarch the California bear. He had some costume cooling issues which made me really appreciate not having a costume that I was wearing over my head.

If you're wondering, the Cali-Combo medal is NOT actual size.

We grabbed lunch at Tom's Urban with Al and Kamika and loitered a bit to wait for Tawni and Caryn. The sliders hit the spot. The lighting was challenging, but I'm glad Tawni remember to ask for a picture. 

With the short trip and the extra gear prep to do, we were back in the hotels for a few hours before dinner at California Pizza Kitchen. Pictures didn't happen. Part of me says it's because I'm trying to enjoy the moments more and part of me is just getting forgetful.

Sunday October 26th. Race morning.

Now keep in mind, we coordinated the idea months ago, but only ordered costumes four to six weeks before the race. Except for a video preview I posted to make sure no one backed out, race morning was the first time we'd seen each other's outfits.

The concierge at the Sheraton was amused.
Pac-Ron, Caryn (Inky), Al (Blinky), Susan (the gameboard), Kamika as The Pineapple.

OK, it turns out that the classic Pac Man game doesn't have a pineapple, but since Kamika is from Hawaii, we thought it had to happen. His was the most recognizable costume on the course, other than the kids who thought he was Spongebob's house. It was a short walk to the starting line to meet Tawni (Pinky), Sherry (Sue) and Don (the edible ghost).

Jim and Beth were busy elevating the level of crazy for some of their TeamUP captains. Virginia (left, holding the sign) joined them in Las Vegas for a 10K on Saturday, drove 4 hours to LA and did the 5K for her first double race weekend in two different states.  

I put a lot of work into getting sounds effects into my phone, some of them being loaded the night before after downloading a Pac Man app and Voice Recorder Pro. A small bluetooth speaker in my bottle pouch made for a good distraction (or annoyance, depending on how long you were behind me). Listen carefully and you can hear the 'waka waka' sound on a 10 second loop coming out of my rear end.

The costume got a lot of attention, even from some of the four-legged participants. Bill "Chino Loco" Kwok, Rock Ambassador for Los Angeles, had a cadre of Running Elvi and a puppy in a stroller. ASPCA was the race sponsor, so this was perfect.

LA had the cheer squads going in full force since this was downtown and we didn't have any early morning noise restrictions like we've had in Brooklyn and San Jose. 

The course goes south to take a loop around the LA Coliseum and back, so we got to see a stream of runners coming back toward us. There were lots of Ninja Turtles, Thing 1 and 2's, Tweedledees and Tweedledums, an Ivan Drago and Rocky, a few Forrest Gumps and even Rosie the Riveter (with the paperboard "You Can Do It" sign behind her). Everyone had the same idea to stop by the arch for pictures. The Coliseum is a national landmark, after all.

The course changed slightly due to some issues at the 6th Street bridge, so we were diverted north to the 3rd Street bridge. Out and backs are good for this kind of picture since we see most people regardless of pace. 

We got this backwards. Sherry was supposed to kill me.

The course change shouldn't have been that big a deal, but it added a substantial hill that peaked at mile 7.5 and 12. We caught Ilona and Carl zipping down at mile 12.5, Ilona keeping a close eye on the ground, because at that speed and a decent sized pothole on her scooter, things could get dicey.  The top of the hill had some good views and the Toyota Inspiration mile kept us entertained.

This wasn't going to be our fastest race. With three fast races in the previous month and Double Live 3 coming up in mid November, this was a great one to throttle back and enjoy. Even the Pineapples are happy.

The group did get a shot at the costume contest thanks to Colleen. Based on applause, I think we took 5th behind the Jamaican Bobsled team, Forrest Gump and Devo and the dude in the Red Solo Cup.

Thanks, Amy, for taking this pic!

The costumes held up pretty well all things considered. The plastic ribs in the Pac Man structure worked loose at mile 8 and started poking me every step until I yanked it back into place. Al's Red/Blue ghost costume was a layer of rubber with light fleece on the inside, so he was roasting a bit. The ladies did a nice job with what turned out to be compression tops and Kamika kept his pineapple top on the entire way. 

We'll be watching our friends from the sidelines for the next two weeks, skipping Philly/Merida and Savannah. This is a good time for a break with the holiday season and the decorations going up, just as long as we don't let the Eating Season go too far. We still have Rock n Roll Fever!

Waka waka.  

~//~

Rock n Roll Los Angeles was run for the 5th year in 2015. Signups were not available for 2016, but if it falls on the same weekend as Vancouver, this is probably the race we would do. Vacation time will be short with Victoria Falls on the schedule.  There were 7,780 finishers in the half marathon (median finish time 2:26) and 1,516  in the 5K (37:57).  The course winds past the Staples Center, LA Live and the Coliseum and over the LA River into Alviso Village. Race temps were in the high 60's, but thankfully, we had cloud cover the entire race. It could have been toasty for the ghosts.

The Pannell Report (Heavy Medal count) going into the Philly/Merida weekend has 91 people with a shot at finishing at 15 or more races to earn a spot in the 2015 Hall of Fame. This is the last weekend to actually double down with Philly/Merida, but if it's possible, it's likely cost prohibitive. 

18 at 11

19 at 12

23 at 13

13 at 14

5 at 15     Hall of Fame

3 at 16

4 at 17

4 at 18

1 at 19

We don't personally know anyone who hit 15 this weekend, but I'd be happy to update it if anyone lets me know. I'd love to recognize the accomplishment! We're projecting a total of 11 repeat Hall of Famer's from 2014. Ilona and Carl were the first and two more should join them this weekend.

This was our 97th half marathon and 70th RNR half or full marathon. I think the medal walls are going to get a much needed makeover when we get a break in December.

A View From the Top - Rock n Roll St. Louis Weekend 2015

October brings a full race schedule for the Rock n Roll Marathon Series. For three weeks we have choice of two cities for the weekend. We'll ignore the fact that SOME people didn't make the choice this weekend but raced in both St. Louis and Denver.

Landing at Lambert International after an early morning flight gave us plenty of time to get to the hotel before going to the Expo. The Metro ride was convenient and dropped us off within a couple blocks of the Hilton Ballpark and we could go straight to the expo. The $4 for the 2 hour pass is worth it and saves a bunch on cab fare. 

This year, we didn't have to contend with the Cardinals being in the playoffs having being eliminated a few days before by the Cubs.  Yes, Back to the Future may have been right!

Yeah. I think we got this.

Even with the Cards done for the year, the water near the Old Courthouse was still dyed Cardinal Red. It made for a nice contrast with the crystal blue skies.

We dropped our bags at the hotel and a half mile walk to the Expo. First step was to find and congratulate our friend Jennifer on her recent engagement. We see friends at Competitor Group more than we see some of our own families, so this was a great way to start our visit.

This weekend saw the fourth round of entrants to Rock n Roll Marathon's Heavy Medal Hall of Fame, awarded for finishing 15 races in the calendar year. Sherry (right) and James would earn the medal in St. Louis and Leny got the coveted backpack and swag package in Denver. Leny also celebrated two major milestones over the weekend - her 100th half marathon and more importantly, 5 years cancer free!

Thanks, Grace, for the picture and for finding us the RNR pins!

We had a lot of prep for two races and were going on little sleep (especially Sherry), so we hit a quick dinner and tried to figure out what to do for the forecasted mid-30's starting temps for the 5K on Saturday. We should be used to this. Two years ago when we were here, it was almost the exact same weather. Thanks to Facebook, we even knew what we wore.

Saturday October 17th. 5K. 
Probably the best memory I had of our 2013 race here was the sunrise through the Gateway Arch. As we made our way to the start line, the sun came up. My wife is my sunshine in more ways than one.

The 5K was new this year. With about 1300 finishers, it looks like it has a good chance of being back in 2016. It was set up with the same start/finish as the half marathon, so logistics were great for the race.

We had some special guests this race. Amy (already a 2015 Hall of Famer) had a dozen of her family members join her. They ran and walked in memory of Amy's uncle Bill who died of cancer.  Hyalker has been running for young Katy (in the stroller) for years, donating his medals to her. She and four family members joined us as well.

Joining us just before the gun was the 2015 RNR race leader, Leah. She may have been trying to catch up on sleep or prepping for her flight out right after the 5K.  See, she was in town only for about 20 hours before flying to Denver to the the Rock n Roll Half Marathon on Sunday. She was awarded a de facto Remix medal for doing two races over the weekend, even though they were in different cities... in different time zones.

The 5K course was a nice out and back and gave us a chance to cheer for each other on at the 1.5 mile turn. I waited a few minutes for Susan and we waited for Hyalker and Lawrence, strollers in tow.

Hyalker's run with Katy was the first time he'd raced with a stroller. He's planning on doing the half marathon with her next year as long as he figures out how to keep his hands warm.  Lawrence said his puppy, Molly, was a real chick magnet.  Katy agrees.

Race 1 done. Obligatory selfie after trying a couple of the 76 flavors of Gooey Butter Cake for brunch at Park Avenue Coffee. One could argue which action was more sickeningly sweet. Heh.

We tried or  gave away White Chocolate Raspberry, Cinnamon Roll, Butterscotch Toffee, Triple Chocolate, Red Velvet, Turtle, Pumpkin, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Espresso Chip and of course, Original!

We caught up with Michelle and Ted at the expo and set up dinner that night at Charlie Gitto's. We also caught up with Jennifer, the Maid of Honor at our wedding 20 years ago when we were all in grad school at Wisconsin. Jen drove an hour and a half from Springfield to cheer us on at the half. 

It's always interesting to see how friends from previous lives integrate with our current circle. We kept telling Jen that we're not the craziest ones. We have crazier friends. The jury is still out.

The non-selfie turned out well. I'll use it instead!

About this time, Al was starting a Denver vs. St. Louis thread. With the magic of social media, it was nice to see what our friends were doing hundreds of miles away. Beth was in early and dining alone, so we sent a few encouraging comments and likes her way. Al noted Denver had "Zombies, Beer Festival, Perfect Weather, Bourbon Tasting."  St. Louis countered with "Marching Band Competition, Gooey Butter Cake and 50th Anniversary Gateway Arch tour."

Each according to his tastes.

Sunday, October 17th. Half Marathon Day
Early morning twilight is rough for the iPhone camera folks. The pictures we took were limited to an extended group selfie and a few more sunrise pics.

About 10 minutes into the race, my phone powered down because of the cold. Fortunately Susan's was fine. Fortunately, I was able to use the charcoal hand warmers in my Flipbelt to get the phone back going by mid-race.

The RNR loyalists at the start of the half in St. Louis. This group represents close to 200 Rock n Roll races this year, more if you include 5K and 10Ks.

Left to right(ish): Ron, Michelle, Ted, Sherry, Amy, Ilona, Susan, Hyalker, Carl, Irene, Jesus. I didn't catch the names for the other three gentlemen.

Some of the best stories come from pictures I take spontaneously. Amy runs for a reason. And her accomplishments this year are because of her dedication to the goal she set at the start of the year. She ran a personal best in St. Louis, beating her previous best by 3 minutes. This was her 16th Rock n Roll race of 2015.

I remember the half marathon course being pretty fast. There were some rolling hills, but knowing that we ended near the start, we knew that every uphill would give us a downhill later. It took a while to get warm, but the sun came out strong. By the time we were finished, it would be comfortable sweatshirt weather, at least in the sun.

There's a band I wouldn't have expected. Ukulele Fight Club!

This was one of my better races considering I wasn't actually pushing too hard after San Jose and Brooklyn. I walked the first 10K in 1:10:12 and had a slightly faster back half, hitting a good negative split for the last 5K at 34:33. I've got my sights set on RNR New Orleans for another shot at a PR, so I don't want to take the usual time off for the Eating Season (roughly Halloween through Easter).

Jennifer was using the Share My Location feature on our iPhones to keep track of our progress and it worked perfectly. I caught her on the side of the road just past mile 13. She was busy wowing the spectators around her with her knowledge of racing, race walking and technology.  Plus she had cool signs.

I don't always get pictures of Susan finishing, but when I do, its with her personal cheer squad.

This year, Competitor Group added Heavy Medals for 8 and 9 races, along with adding the 15 race Hall of Fame medal. However, anyone between 10 and 15 (or over 15) are in Heavy Medal Limbo. Amy took it upon herself to make a stack of homemade Heavy Medals with the RNR St. Louis logo on them, awarding them at the finish line.

Ilona hit 17. The scooter survived the race without issues, thankfully...

Carl also finished race #17. He said if Ilona's scooter had another flat tire, it would have ended up in the Mississippi. Maybe a good intro for an episode of Homicide Hunter?

Ilona awarded Amy her 16. Her Race Twin Ainsley received her Hall of Fame medal an hour later in Denver (below).

Amy earned her 15th in Brooklyn last weekend.  Now BOTH are Hall of Famers!

Susan and I hit our 13th. With 3 more races scheduled, we should finish with our second Hall of Fame in Las Vegas.

Michelle and Ted are at 11. They have four more races this year so if all goes well, they'll hit Hall of Fame in San Antonio.

Missing from this picture is James, the third Hall of Fame entrant of the weekend. I asked Amy at the Heavy Medal booth and she's guessing there will be 40 - 50 Hall of Famers this year. There may be a lot more, at least mathematically. We still have a month and a half left!

After a late check out and cleaning up, we took a tour of the Gateway Arch. Some of the pictures through the windows were really impressive. The view at the top was spectacular.

Half marathon #96 in the books. 

We're still feeling like we're on top of the world!

 ~//~

Rock n Roll St. Louis was held for the fifth year in 2015. This year they added the 5K for the Remix Weekend, but discontinued the full marathon. There were 5,758 finishers in the half marathon (median finish time 2:15:34) and 1,334 finishers in the 5K (median 35:51). Both times we've been there, starting temps were in the 30's (though the signs at the banks showed a starting temp in the mid to high 40's). Disposable layers are a good idea.

The race for the Hall of Fame continues. Unofficial numbers ("The Pannell Report") have 13 already in the Hall and potentially 94 total unless someone pulls off a Philly/Merida double. 

16 at 10

21 at 11

25 at 12

14 at 13

5 at 14

4 at 15     Hall of Fame

4 at 16

4 at 17

1 at 18

Rock n Roll St. Louis brought our half and full marathon total to 140 Rock n Roll races as a couple. We have a few more milestones coming up this year so I'm going to go back and verify our count. Given that this was supposed to be a one-and-done bucket list item, I think we're entitled to celebrate a few times as we keep going.

Next stop, Rock n Roll Los Angeles and an epic costume race!