"Old habits reappear - Fighting the fear of fear ... Frayed ends of sanity - Hear them calling me." - Metallica - "Frayed Ends of Sanity"
I had a devil of a time at Mount Diablo on Sunday.
That's a polite way of saying that this race nearly killed me. I managed to finish in 11:42, which was a slight improvement over last year on what was generally considered to be an even tougher day than last year's furnace-like conditions.
I've never been so frazzled during and after a race than I was today - and that's including the Ironman triathlon and 100-miler in my past. I was in one of those "I'm never doing this again" places, but I think after a couple of days that feeling should (hopefully) pass.
I have dozens of pictures to go through and about 100 muscle cramps and spasms to work out, but I hope to have a full race report posted here on Tuesday or Wednesday. Until then, feel free to start your week with some classic headbanging riffs, courtesy of Metallica. (Strange link - it's from a Spanish website - but the concert video rips)
Metallica - "Frayed Ends of Sanity" (click to play):
On Thursday, I was lucky enough to enjoy this view:
Taken from Yosemite Point, a side climb at the top of Yosemite Falls, the tallest waterfall in North America. I'll have a separate post about it sometime.
On Sunday, I'll be taking in this one:
Vista near the summit of Mount Diablo, one of the biggest, baddest hills in Northern California ultrarunning.
The timing of these two occurrences probably isn't ideal; taking a six-hour hike on one of the most rugged trails in Yosemite National Park isn't exactly a recommended method of tapering for a tough 50-mile race. However, sometimes you just have to take these opportunities when they come along.
I don't really have lofty expectations for the Diablo race on Sunday. Like last year, I've pretty much treated this lead-up week as a regular training period, and this weekend's race will be opportunity to gague my fitness compared to this point last spring. I'll have somewhat dead legs, and I won't go as fast as I might be capable of, but I'll definitely enjoy the experience.
Just like it's not every day that someone gets to hike to the top of Yosemite Falls, it's not every run that I get to journey up and down the slopes of Mount Diablo all day long. So when you get the chance to do such things, it's probably best to seize the moments when they come, and consider yourself grateful.
In the fall of 2000, the California Milk Advisory Board launched an advertising campaign with the intent of getting more Californians to purchase locally produced dairy products. In hindsight, the ads might be considered a precursor to the whole locavore movement, but that’s probably giving the Advisory Board too much credit; more likely, they were just concerned with boosting their bottom line.
The campaign exceeded their wildest expectations, and nine years later, is still going strong. The commercials are funny and clever and have fun with some cherished tenets of life in California. And since I encounter so many cows while I’m out running the trails of Monterey County, several of the 30-second clips play on a continuous loop in my subconscious while the miles are clicking away.
However, because the campaign was initially meant to run only in California - it didn't go nationwide until 2007 - it occurred to me that, even in the YouTube era, many of those early classics might be unknown to the majority of the country. So today’s post is basically a retrospective of California Cheese’s greatest hits.
The theme of the campaign was equal parts absurd and brilliant: it was built around the notion that “Great cheese comes from happy cows, and happy cows come from California.” They played heavily on the endearing, highly prevalent sentiment of most Californians that our quality of life is far better than anyplace else in America. To local residents, it was an easy sell.
I mean, most of us here honestly do think that life in California makes us happy:
And if you have the right frame of mind, even the dangers can be fun:
We romanticize our laid-back California lifestyle …
… and poke fun at folks from other states. It’s almost too easy for Californian cows to tease “rival” Midwestern cows – either because of the weather:
Or the way they speak, doncha know:
We love the idea that California girls are the greatest babes in the world ...
(Incidentally, for several years after seeing this commercial, I would yell “Hey ... you workout?” whenever I passed a cow on the trail, even in the company of other runners who didn't know what the heck I was talking about. Honestly, that line still cracks me up. By the way, I'm nearly 40 years old.)
... and that they aren’t easily impressed by some faux-French sophistication:
I could go on and on with these, but by now you get the idea. The commercials are wonderfully funny; they highlight the positive side of living in California; and they have lots of cows. You can see why I love them so much.
Finally, I’ve saved my favorite ad of the campaign for last; it unites the sheep (and sheepdogs) I encounter in Fort Ord with the cows I adore in Toro Park. No matter how many times I watch this one, the sight of sheep speaking in thick Scottish brogues and making like Braveheart warriors never fails to crack me up.
Hopefully now you can appreciate why I have visions of cows dancing in my thoughts so often while running the trails, and why those thoughts always make me smile. From my experience, great running comes from happy runners - and this happy runner lives in California.
Wildflowers have been exploding like fireworks in Monterey County lately, which is as good a reason as any to create little photo tour and share some of the scenery I get to enjoy on a regular basis. It’s also a nice opportunity for me to polish my photojournalism skills in preparation for the races I’ve got coming up - the first of which is this coming weekend. So let's get right to it ...
Our tour begins in Toro Regional Park between Monterey and Salinas, which I wrote about in a photo post from last year. It’s literally right across the street from the Fort Ord open space that I described in the sheep post earlier this month. In other words, if you’re an ultrarunner, this is a pretty sweet place to live.
The wildflowers are so abundant right now that some of the smaller ones are easy to miss. For example, from a distance, these little guys aren’t dense enough or large enough to color the hillside from a distance – but when you look closely, they’re all over the place. I sometimes wonder if they’re jealous of their bigger, more splashy relatives.
These guys always remind me of one of those drinking bird toys … so I call them “drinking birds”, because I have no idea what their real name is. (I know, I could look it up – but I kind of like my drinking bird name. It fits, don’t you think?)
Purple was kind of the theme of the day out here, as these lupines can attest. At least, I think they’re purple - more on that in a second.
Having dense lupine on either side of a steep trail doesn’t necessarily make the climb any easier … but sometimes it helps make the pain more enjoyable. If that makes any sense.
Here’s what I mean about the color ambiguity: my wife is convinced that my blue and purple wires are crossed somewhere in my optic nerve. We’ve had probably a thousand disagreements about intermediate shades like this, where I’ll say something is blue, and she’ll say purple – or vice versa. This lupine picture hasn’t been altered; I say it looks purple. But if you call it blue, I guess we can still get along.
Further up the hill, the yellow flowers (they’re definitely yellow, right?) start muscling out the purple/blue ones. This is also where the 1600’ of climbing it takes to get here really starts paying off – as evidenced by the killer view of the Salinas Valley in the background.
Of course, runners always have to share these pastures of heaven in Toro Park with the land’s namesake residents, who also seem to have a knack for lounging around the prettiest spots with the most breathtaking views. Really, can you blame them?
Every time I see the cows in a setting like this on a beautiful sunshine day, I half expect them to break out in song, like these gals:
(The clip above is from one of the funniest ad campaigns of all time – which I’ll write more about in my next post).
Unfortunately, I can never tell if the cows are really happy or not. Take Cow 84 here – what emotions does her face reveal? Contentment? Peace? Indifference? Irritation from the annoying clown trying to take her picture? She certainly doesn’t look ecstatic – although perhaps that #84 tag has something to do with it. That’s probably not a lotto ticket on her ear.
After a few minutes, it’s time to bid my bovine friends farewell and venture back down the hill. I must say, the cows never seem to miss me when I’m gone.
It’s totally spoiled to say this … but by this point of the run, scenes like this start blending together. More purple, more yellow, more beauty, yada yada yada. Just another run in paradise.
Off of the hilltops and into the canyons on the descent, the prominent flowers give way to the little guys again, such as these purple sweeties. (They are purple, right? Just checking.)
Eventually I make my way back to the car and head off for the rest of my day, which inevitably seems mundane compared to the experience I’ve just enjoyed. I’m not sure what it says about me that all it takes is a short run amidst a few flowers and cows to make me happy for the rest of the day … but whatever it is, I hope I can stay this way, and enjoy these moments, for a long time to come.
When it comes to hometown races, marathoners on the Monterey Peninsula are really quite spoiled.
We have one of the most beautiful marathons in the world right outside our front doors – one whose scenery, challenging course, and outstanding race organization make it a top rated event year after year. The Big Sur Marathon frequently gets ranked at or near the top of “must do” marathons from various publications and websites.
So why would any of us here decide to skip such a world-class event? It would take a race of extraordinary character and history to justify the extra time, money, and effort of travelling out of the area. The list of such races is remarkably short – but the Boston Marathon is definitely at the top of it.
The primary downside (besides being 3000 miles away) of Monterey County runners participating in our sport’s greatest rite of passage is that the Boston Marathon is usually only six days before Big Sur. Therefore, we’re faced with a decision each year: should we run Boston, or Big Sur?
The question is the topic of the latest Monterey Herald article, co-written with my friend Mike, which follows below.
** Running Life 04/9/09 “Boston or Big Sur”
As soon as the calendar turns to April, the dreams of marathon runners take flight. Springtime marathons are marquee events in all the greatest cities in the world: Boston, London, Paris, and of course, Carmel.
Yes, our hometown event ranks right up there with the most highly respected marathons in the world. Runners from every state and all corners of the globe come to the Monterey Peninsula to run the Big Sur Marathon on the last Sunday in April.
Likewise, it’s nearly every marathoner’s dream to run the famed Boston Marathon, traditionally held on Patriot’s Day, a Massachusetts holiday observed on the third Monday of April. In 2009, as most other years, the Boston Marathon is a mere six days before Big Sur. Therefore, local runners face a dilemma each spring in deciding which marathon to attend.
Honestly, you can’t go wrong with either choice – and for a handful of hardy (feel free to substitute crazy) local runners, the decision is too agonizing, so they just do both. This year the two of us are doing split duty: Mike will join about 15 other Central Coast runners who are running at Boston on April 20th, and Donald will stay home to run Big Sur six days later. Although both races are world-class events, the experiences we will take away from each will undoubtedly be quite different.
Big Sur will always be our favorite. It’s our hometown marathon. We know how much time is donated by local volunteers and how hard everyone involved with the race works to ensure its success. It’s an opportunity for friendly competition with our friends on one of the most challenging courses in the world. The scenery is breathtaking, and it’s the only day of the year that it’s safe to run on Highway 1. Big Sur has been voted the best marathon in North America by several publications.
No other marathon can compete with the sights and sounds of the Big Sur Marathon (as we’ll describe in two weeks) – so why would locals go anywhere else? Only the allure and history of Boston can occasionally take us away from home. Simply put, Boston is the most famous and prestigious marathon in the world. Running there is like playing baseball in Yankee Stadium, golf at Augusta National, tennis at Wimbledon, or driving at the Brickyard – while competing right alongside the professionals. Boston has more history - over 110 years worth – and attracts more talented runners than any other footrace. Runners are required to meet qualifying standards in order to enter, so participation in the race is considered an honor by all marathoners.
Best of all, the entire city goes marathon crazy and treats every athlete like a star for the entire weekend.
In addition, Mike has extra incentive to travel east: his son lives in Boston and will also be running the marathon. It’s going to be a father-son dual for family bragging rights.
The choice between Boston and Big Sur is always tough – and next year, the temptation to do both races will be greater than ever. For Big Sur’s 25th presentation in April of 2010, there will be a special “Boston to Big Sur” challenge. Any runner who does both marathons will receive a special award, jacket, and recognition on race day. If you’re someone who likes to experience the best of both worlds, maybe you can join them.
“Do you step in line or release the glitch? Can you fall asleep with a panic switch?” - Silversun Pickups, “Panic Switch” (after post) **
You know what sounds great right now? Taking a little spring break.
Between training and writing and testing products (many reviews to come, trust me) and family activities and preparing for races and, you know … actually holding a job, things have become pretty hectic recently. There’s definitely a sense that life has shifted into a higher gear, and the only thing that can be done is to hang on and enjoy the ride.
It’s not necessarily a bad situation; in fact, it seems like any path to ultramarathon (or, for that matter, ironman) success has to travel through Crazytown at some point along the way. Truth be told, it’s not such a terrible place to be – I’d much rather face the burden of being overstretched than the bane of having nothing to do.
And yet, I occasionally long for more idyll times, especially when my kids are out of school and enjoying beautiful spring days without me. Times when they can spend an afternoon drawing signs for me on our driveway:
I’m not sure whether to feel flattered that they were thinking of me, or bewildered that they made me look like such a freak. Because I don’t really look like that stick figure, you know; if you'll recall from a post last September, I actually look like this.
I love getting reminders that sometimes it’s best to chill out for a while, even if it’s just for brief moments in an otherwise chaotic existence. I don’t really plan on dialing the intensity back between now and the end of June, but I’ll try to steal little moments here and there to recharge my batteries as needed.
It’s kind of like taking a nap with a panic switch.
**
It was almost exactly one year ago that I posted a video by a band who seemed to be an unknown commodity to just about everybody except a handful of Southern California hipsters. Clearly, the Silversun Pickups aren’t going to sneak up on people anymore. “Panic Switch” is the first video from their new album, which picks up the distortion-rock groove right where the old one left off. Click and enjoy:
Continuing on the product review theme mentioned in yesterday’s post, I wanted to take a slight detour to promote one of my favorite companies again. Actually, it's not so much a review as it is an update.
It’s not exactly breaking news that I’m a huge fan of Drymax socks – that information is fairly well-established. What you might not know, however, is how easy it is for anybody else to fall in love with Drymax as well. A friend of mine found this out recently, and the story is a good illustration of a company that is doing all the right things.
After hearing me rave like a lunatic about Drymax for about eight months, one of my training partners finally decided to give their trail running socks a try. I figured he would be amazed; to my shock and dismay, he was only disappointed.
He asked if I wanted to buy the socks from him - which I would have done in a flash, if I didn’t suspect there might be a larger story to unfold. So I told him about Drymax’s money back guarantee, and put him in contact with a Drymax rep to offer his feedback.
Giving my friend's money back would have been good enough, but Bob at Drymax went two steps further: he let my friend keep the socks he already had to pass along to someone else, then offered to send samples of other styles that my friend might like better. The two of them are working back and forth on that one as we speak; I’m totally confident that those kids will work something out.
In a time when every kind of business is struggling to stay afloat, when companies are using any means necessary to wring every possible dime out of its employees and customers alike, when corporate greed and deception trump service and honesty by a mile, it’s refreshing to see a company that not only plays by the rules, but routinely goes the extra mile to make its customers happy.
Anecdotally, I know their methods must be paying off, as Drymax socks are becoming more and more prevalent at ultras and triathlons all over the country. Their grassroots outreach and promotional efforts are becoming a groundswell in the community of endurance athletes.
Here's the coolest part of the story: while the Drymax business model is one worth boasting about, the company doesn’t do a lot of trumpeting (although I’m probably a couple of blog posts away from applying for a per-diem marketing stipend) in comparison to their larger competitors. That’s because the product speaks for itself.
If you haven’t tried a pair yet, check out these trail socks from Amazon.com or these options from ZombieRunner and select a style you like. If they’re not your thing, just return them and get your money back. You've quite literally got nothing to lose - except maybe a blister or two.
One more note: my review last fall was for the version 3 Drymax socks; the current models on sale online are version 4. I'm hoping to get my hands on - or, more accurately, my feet in - some updated models in the near future, and of course I'll post an update on the new style.
I can pretty much predict how that one will turn out, but I'll let you know for sure when it happens.
