Bushwhacking with John

Sunday December 28th, it was 40 degrees, overcast, and just a little windy. Perfect weather for hitting the trails. John and I compromised and started at 7:30 AM. John being the adventurist suggested we look for the old blue flower trail. This is an old trail at SAR used "back in the day" when SAR was a close kept secret among trail runners and mountain bikers. "Sure, Let's go look for it" I said. The trail head was easy to find, but soon we were walking and looking for cairns (stacks of rocks serving as trail markers). We found them here and there and were on the right track (sometimes). At times we were ducking trees and fighting the brush. It has been very dry and the brush was bare, exposing their stickers and thorns. The Texas hill country is beautiful but there are plants that bite, sting and scratch. We were getting our lower legs cut, scratched and bit! I even suffered a big scratch on my neck! We found a couple of cairns John remembers putting up and we set up one or two also. John apologized for walking more than running, but I assured him it was OK with me. Hey, time on your feet is what counts. After about an hour of searching, and two miles, we found our way out to the main trail leading down to the creek and up the hill to familiar trails. Now we were running. Trail running offers a chance to leave the real world behind if only for a few hours. And running with a trusted friend only adds to the joy. The trails will take your worries away and a friend will too if you ask. What a great way to relieve stress and enjoy the company of a good friend. 8+ miles and 2 1/2 hours of time on our feet and weight off our minds.

I was Santa today!

Four weeks ago I was asked by a co-worker to be Santa for an Elf Louise project, Delivering toys to needy families. After saying yes I thought, "what did I get myself into?"
I had a wonderful time!
We were assigned 10 homes to deliver wrapped toys to. We were also given extra toys just in case. And My co-worker, Letty, took a bicycle to give to a child of our choice. Letty was so enthusiastic! I thought she had to be on some kind of happy pills.
Letty knew all the ropes, so I depended on her. At first I was a little apprehensive, but Letty helped loosen me up and soon I was Ho Ho Ho-ing and having a good time with the kids.
The pretty little girls wanting to hug me melted my heart.
One little boy had a smile that never faded. And he would giggle at every word I spoke.
The Mom's were very appreciative (a couple got real friendly with Santa, lol).
The most touching moment was when we were walking up to one of the homes, a curly haired boy about 6 years old stopped me on the sidewalk to say hello. I shook his hand and talked to him a Little bit. His home was not on our list.
We continued on and visited the next home. As we left, there was the 6 year old again with gifts he wanted to give to me! I was puzzled. His mom came out of the house and said he wanted to give me gifts to take to other children! I felt a lump in my throat and hugged him so hard as I cried and thanked him, telling him what a wonderful young man he was, and how his kindness will make someone very happy. I asked him to please never stop caring for others, and people like him make this a wonderful world.
Letty asked his mom if he needed gifts. She said no. He had gifts for Christmas. Letty then asked if he had a bike. He did not.
"we have to give him the bike" Letty whispered into my ear.
We did! He loved it!
Thank God good people are still coming into this world!
If you ever have a chance to volunteer for a project like this please do. The rewards could be fantastic!
Thanks Letty!

Rocks hurt!

Well, I have finally recovered from the 100 miler, half marathon and Flag Football. Now, I have a quad injury. I was out with Tom, Liza and Kelli on a great run at Government Canyon. I was feeling great and running well when I tripped and fell in what I thought was a grassy spot. I just happened to find a pointed rock to land on with my left upper quad. IT HURT!
I knew I had to keep running. Can't let my muscles get cold. I was running and limping along for a while but had to walk the last 2+ miles of our 12 1/2 miler. The pain was greater going down hill.
I am sure I will be hurting for at least a couple of days. Oh well, that's the way it goes in trail running.
After the run we enjoyed watching some of the du-athlon going on at Roger Soler sports in Helotes.
We were offered some bagels and cream cheese. Yum.

Flag Football

I thought I'd play some flag football this past weekend, so I agreed when asked, to be on a team in an all day tournament. I was flattered.
Wow! what fun! Most of the players were in their late 30's to mid forties with a few kids in their teens. I am soon to be 50, but I thought, "hey I can hang."
Well I did for the most part. Sprinting and stopping frequently is very different than running the trails. It felt good to be able to keep up with most of these guys. I scored a touchdown on a catch and run(about 30 yards). I fell twice and had my right middle finger bent back a couple of times. We lost one game and were co-champions of the tournament!
Today it was very difficult to get out of bed. I cannot make a fist with my right hand. It hurts! I am walking like I did the day after my 100 miler. If I sit for too long, it takes about 100 feet of walking before I am completely upright and walking almost normally. Seems like every muscle in my body is sore. But, I had so much fun, to be able play like a kid again.

Is Winter Here?

We got a tease from mother nature this week. Here in south Texas winter comes in spurts. They usually last for 2 to 4 days at a time during a three to four month span (Nov - Feb)
I was out running yesterday in Leon Creek when a cold front blew in. Oh how nice it feels to run in cool weather. The deer were stirring. They scared the s!#t out of me! First a doe then a 6 point buck. It's great running trails.

San Antonio Rock & Roll Marathon

Sunday morning, 5:15 AM, I picked up Orlando and Elda at their home. we drove to the Costco at I 10 and 1604 to pick up Linda, Elda's sis. This was Elda's first marathon event and Orlando's first half. Elda was extremely calm and said she SLEPT well! This is unusual for most runners the night before a big event.
We drove to Tom B's house where we were to carpool in Tom's truck to the start. Robert B. was there and he drove Yukun, Tom's friend, to the start in his car. We parked at I37 and St. Mary's and walked to the start. It was COLD! About 33 degrees. The staging area was very well organized , I thought. We looked around a bit and soon we all wished each other well and parted ways. I was assigned corral 1! How that happened? I don't know. 7 AM and I removed my long sleeve shirt (too early, I was freezing), checked my bag and walked to corral 1. I spotted Tom and Joe T. in corral two and hung around with them until the start. Paul Baltutis was also there dressed as Leonidus! The Spartan of "The 300" fame.I told him I was only running the Half. He said "Hey, the half is still 13 miles man! It should have a name all it's own. We'll call it the LEON." (short for Leonidus)
The race got started a litte late, about 7:40. I did not have my Garmin on and thought I would just run as well as I felt. I have adopted a new running philosophy,"I don't run as fast as I can, I run as best as I can." I felt pretty good the first few miles. At about mile 3, Tom fell back and asked me to hold his bottle as he fixed his shorts. They were falling off! He did not quite get it right. Then we saw Kelli N. on the sidelines. I yelled at her and she waved. I waved back, yelling at her to come over to us. She broke through the barriers, through the runners, and took Tom's long sleeve shirt and gloves as Tom again adjusted his shorts. He continued on, passed me, and I did not see him again. At mile 6, Joe T. came up on me and we talked a bit, then he took off. At mile 8 my right knee started to hurt. Remnants of Cactus Rose. "Oh no." I said to myself. Please pain, go away. I tried using the same Psych job on myself as I did at Cactus Rose. About Mile 10 Chuck W. came running by. I called out to him. He started about 15 minutes late, but was running well and at a great pace. We talked a while and he helped keep my mind off my knee. Chuck took off and looked very comfortable. At mile 11 the pain was now at my hip as well as my knee. I pushed through knowing I was almost at the finish. Mile 12 and I wanted to walk, but just slowed down. I took deep breaths and kept running (I did walk through the last aid station at mile 10). I was able to finish strong. Edgar was at the finish line taking photos. We shared a high five.
I saw Orlando come in about 20 minutes after me. He looked great for his first finish. We hung around, met with friends and drank our beer (Elda would come in at 5 hours and looked great! Smiling Too!).
Then I got the call.
Kelli told me Tom had trouble at mile 23 and was taken to Santa Rosa Hospital after collapsing. My God! So many emotions go through your head when a dear friend is suffering. What can I do? How can I Help? I felt helpless. 3 hours of not knowing what was going on with Tom. We tried to get in contact with his wife, Michele.
Thank God all was well. Michele made it to the Hospital with Tom. I arrived at Tom's house at about 3 PM. What a great sight to see him. He looked tired and disappointed, but TOM WAS OK!
Tom, IS OK.

100 mile recovery

11 days after completing the Cactus Rose 100 miler. I seem to be recovering well, but how do I really know? This was my first 100. two days ago I was awakened at night by a strong rapid heart beat! Yesterday, while at work talking to a co-worker, I felt a sudden pain in my chest. Is my heart telling me something? I felt good in the afternoon and went for a 2 1/2 mile run. I seem to be OK. I'll be running the San Antonio Rock and Roll Marathon this weekend. 1/2 the marathon only.
My legs and feet are feeling strong again, but feel tired this morning.