Homeward Bound

AM: 72 mins. (10 miles)
PM: Travel

In the interest of time, my burgeoning sickness and race recovery, we opted to forego today's scheduled long run in favor of a medium-length effort. The three of us headed back out to the bay--only a different parking lot this time, several miles closer than the one we'd started from previously--for a relaxed, flat out-and-back along the dirt trail. Despite vowing to keep the pace in check, Tanya and I settled into a faster-than-prescribed clip. Blame it on the flat surface and the cool, crisp air I suppose. At any rate, it felt easy, and though my legs are a bit sore from Friday night they didn't seem to mind.

The remainder of the day was spent traveling back East. All was well until the last bit of our flight back into Charlotte, when we flew straight into the path of a nasty storm that was lambasting the area. I'm not exaggerating when I say the turbulence was so bad that two grown men on the plane, one of whom was seated directly behind me, threw up in flight. Needless to say, I have never been happier to exit an aircraft in one piece and with clean clothes in my entire life.

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San Francisco Saturday

AM: 51 mins. (7 miles)
15 mins. core

So you would think after a long day and a late-night race, Tanya and I would've slept in until at least noon today. Unfortunately that's not how it played out. Despite not getting to bed until nearly 1am, we were both begrudgingly wide awake at 6. That's only five hours of sleep, which is probably about five less than I needed. But what can you do? We watched some bad morning television, raided the hotel breakfast immediately after it opened, did some core work and otherwise wasted time until our 9am run with Simmons. We headed back to the bay for an easy out and back, and I was surprised to find that my legs were barely sore (of course the race was only about eight hours ago, so tomorrow might be a different story).


When in Rome...you eat clam chowder out of a bread bowl even though
clams are bottom feeders.

Wanting to take advantage of the gorgeous weather and our last afternoon in Cali, we opted to take a trip into San Francisco for a few hours with Tanya's parents. They'd driven in from the desert to watch her race and offered to pick us up on their way to Fisherman's Wharf. I think everyone else in the area had the same idea as we did because the place was packed, but it was still fun to walk around and enjoy the sights. By the car ride home, however, I could tell the race and lack of sleep was starting to take its toll. My throat developed that tickly, scratchy feeling that usually precipitates the onset of a cold, and I felt steadily worse as the evening wore on. Instead of taking part in our planned 3-mile shakeout, I opted to drink a few glasses of juice and crawl into bed just before 9. Let's hope I feel better tomorrow.


View of the infamous Alcatraz prison from Fisherman's Wharf

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Sightseeing in San Fran

Day off

I pretty much knew I wasn't going to get a chance to run today due to travel. Unlike in Atlanta, where I can leave my house exactly 65 minutes before my flight and still make it in plenty of time, today my parents and I left Mt. Pleasant at 8:30 to make the two and a half hour drive to DFW. I spent the rest of the afternoon gradually making my way westward, and finally touched down in San Francisco just past 4pm Pacific time. Jordan and his mom picked me up and we headed into the city for a bit of sightseeing before making the drive up to Santa Rosa.

Kitty cat for adoption in the window

Maybe it's because today is the day after Christmas or maybe it was just a standard Friday night in Union Square, but the place was packed. We walked around for an hour or so and took in some sights, including the new ice skating rink, the adorable kittens and puppies up for adoption in the window and Macy's and the world's largest sugar castle (whatever that means) at the Westin St. Francis hotel. The weather was perfect, cool but not uncomfortably so, and it was a great night to be out and about in the city.

Christmas tree in Union Square

Oh, and I did go for a run...for about 70 meters. Jordan brought me a pair of Luna Trainers and I took them for a spin in the driveway. Pretty sweet.

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