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Randy’s LA Marathon Race Report
Randy and Tonya With Their Finisher’s Medals
This wasn’t my first LA Marathon and I’ve run it through warm, hot (and I mean hot) and very wet weather. I’ve trained for it with different running groups and on my own. What made this one, my 9th LA Marathon, so memorable and such a great experience was all the Beach Runners that were out there that day.
I’ve previously trained with a large running group, the LA Leggers. A great group of people and I’ve made some wonderful friends from those days. But, I think we seem like such a close knit group, as we are a smaller unit with great mentors and with Gary and Steve to lead us on.
The LA Marathon morning started off with Chris and her boyfriend, Ted, picking up Tonya and myself around 5:45 am (the South Bay Beach Runners). Ted dropped us off at the Metro station downtown and we zipped up to the starting area around 7 am. Thanks again to Chris and Ted for making transportation up there so easy! We were there early enough to wait in the portapotty line for about 40 minutes. While in line, we talked to some racewalkers, who planned to do the marathon in 4 1/2 hours. Some of those guys are fast! I think one of those two did place in the top 5!
Finally around 7:45, we connected with all of the Beach Runners who were finishing up the body looseners. However, most important of all, we made it in time for the group photo. We then marched on down to the start line, to wait with some 20,000+ runners.
One thing that made this marathon different at the beginning is that you couldn’t hear anything. Didn’t hear the national anthem or the starting gun. When we finally approached the start line, could hear a bit of the Randy Newman “I Love LA” song, but not like when it starts downtown.
During the first few miles there were quite a group of us together. However, around the Hollywood Bowl, I saw Lani, John and Kristin zip ahead of most of us. By the way, once we started never did see Chris again! Where did you go?
From there until mile 10, Uncle Sam kept a group of us together: myself, Ashley, Kate and Michael (forgive me if I forgot someone or got your name wrong). While running together, we said hello to former Beach Runner Earl. As I was relying on the water stations for refueling, Uncle Sam kept on eye on me to make sure I would catch up. We even all stopped at the portapotty together around mile 9. I think you have the makings of a mentor in Uncle Sam!
I’ll confess right now, I don’t do well in heat and as I was starting to feel it effects, I dropped back and let Uncle Sam and company go ahead. My tendency from them on was to slow down or walk when the sun was out, then pick it up when there was shade. The last time I wanted to do was pass out that day.
A few miles later, I walked with Tonya for a while. Then Erin for awhile and we shared some pain gel for some aches and pains as she was not feeling great at that point. But she must have recovered as she passed our little group at the end. Steve ran with me briefly a couple times during the race. And somewhere during the marathon, I saw Huell Howser on the sidewalk watching us all run by (or was he a delusion due to the heat?)
Then, out of nowhere, Gary appeared and ran/walked with me for a while. Had a nice chat for him about running, traveling, yoga, etc. I left him in line at one of those lovely portapotties and I went on ahead. It was around mile 20 or 21, at this point I thought I was facing a lonely finish. However, somewhere around mile 22/23, I found 3 Beach Runners I hadn’t seen since the start: Larry, Beth and Roxanne. Larry kept us going, doing a run/walk routine (flashback to my Legger days!). Dave caught up to us around this time and went ahead. Then Erin passed us also. Somewhere around mile 24/25, Larry blurts out: I want a f$%$%g bacon cheeseburger! I think that was our motivation to finish. Anyway, it must have been the last half-mile or so and Larry made us all run in to the finish line. Thanks again, Larry, Beth and Roxanne. You helped me make a strong finish. We got our medals and Steve was there to congratulate us. Shortly after, Tony finished and then after we dropped her off, I stopped off at Jack in the Box for a f$%$%g bacon cheeseburger.
I’m not sure how many Beach Runners were out there that day, but I think I counted I was able to run with about 15 of you during some part of the race that day. Everyone was so supportive, whether it was coordinating transportation, calling each other on cell phones to see how we were doing or helping one another on the course. Congratulations to all of you that completed the marathon and thanks again for making this a great experience.
Randy, Beach Runner, SoCalRunning.com Member
Erin’s Moving LA Marathon Race Report
Erin Kisses Her Deserved Finisher’s Medal
Well, my first marathon went off without any major problems. The only real setback was the heat. At the starting line all I could think was “Gosh, I’m so nervous. I hope I make it through this!” Then I thought of the advice given to me just a couple of days before by my aunt (a 25-time marathoner who has finished in the top 100 women in Boston). She told me “My advice to you as a first-timer: just have fun!”
Before I knew it, I was at mile 3 and my roommate was waiting on me with a Cliff bar. Then at mile 4 I developed side stitches. I thought “Great. This is going to be a loooooong day if I’m already experiencing pain”. I stopped and walked for a few minutes until the aches subsided.
I saw Tonya at mile 12 and I had to stop and get rid of a pebble that had somehow made its way into my shoe. She shared some of those frozen orange slices with me. By mile 13 I realized that I wasn’t going to finish in the time that I wanted but the frustration didn’t last too long. I just remembered my aunt’s advice.
Miles 14-20 were pretty much a blur. I took advantage of that pain-relieving spray at mile 19! My left calf kept feeling like it wanted to cramp. With the heat being as intense as it was I didn’t take chances. I walked when I needed to and jogged when I felt strong enough. I think it was at mile 20 that I saw Larry and jogged with him for a little bit until I had to walk again.
Between mile 21 and 22 I walked. I saw a young woman laid out on the sidewalk receiving medical attention. At this point I’m thinking “Am I going to make it?” Despite all of the water, Gatorade and Gu I had consumed I felt zapped of all my energy. I heard someone call my name from behind but thought I was just delirious from the heat, but it was Gary! I was being hard on myself and he said “Look behind you! You’re ahead of a lot of people.”
Soon he left and I was alone again. I almost wanted to cry, call my friend Amy and tell her that I was ready to quit. Right before mile 22 I had a bad thought. As some of you may know, I’ve lost a signifcant amount of weight since joining the Beach Runners in May of 2006. Some evil little voice was telling me “Just because you lost weight doesn’t mean you can finish a marathon.”
As soon as I thought that then something else hit me. The thought soon turned into “Look at how far you’ve come already! You’re doing something that only a small percentage of the population will even attempt. Your mother (R.I.P.) would be so proud of you!”
That’s really all it took because I was suddenly able to run steadily from mile 22 all the way to 25 when I passed the drummers. That last mile was eerily quiet. There was a good crowd but only a few continued to cheer. I saw Larry and Beth up ahead, mustered what little energy I had left and yelled “Laaaaaaarrrrryyy!” He turned around and in typical Larry fashion yells “Come on, girl! Aim for my butt!” I did and I ended up passing him.
I saw the mile 26 sign and it was so close yet so far away. I walked fast then jogged and repeated the cycle. When I rounded the corner and saw the finish line I pictured my mom cheering me on and I cried like a baby. I cried so hard that when I finished, the volunteers thought I needed medical attention. Then another volunteer asked “Do you just need a hug?” to which I replied “YES!!”.
My time was 5:59:38. Today (March 9th) my mother would have turned 50 years old. Finishing this race was my gift to her and to myself. If someone had asked me Sunday or Monday if I wanted to run another marathon, the answer would have been NO! Now that I can walk without a limp I’m thinking “Hmm. I have to beat this time!”
Erin, Beach Runner and SoCalRunning.com Member
Steve’s LA Marathon Report
Most of the Beach Runners and SoCalRunning.com Members Before the Start of the 2007 LA Marathon
Within a week, hopefully, you will see my LA Marathon experience on a SoCalRunning.com RunCast. Until then, here’s my report.
The day started at Universal City, actually Ventura Blvd. We showed up over an hour early for the start. With about a half hour to go before the scheduled start time we did the ChiRunning® Body Looseners. Total strangers jumped in and joined us. Let’s face it they look fun. Why not join us? I gave the group a quick pre-race talk. They didn’t need much; they had read Gary’s inspirational story and my tips on SoCalRunning.com earlier in the week. Everyone knew what to do. The x-factor would be the heat.
We started as a group and within a half mile some of the faster runners took off. I stayed back with the slower group. Why not, it was so crowded I wasn’t going to go much faster anyway. It was downhill after the 1.5-mile marker. I wanted to go faster and I had only planned on running 18 to 20 miles, yet the group was why I was there, so I kept the downhill slow.
The Beach Runners hung together in a couple little groups. We took the first half slow and steady. About mile 10 I heard my name called. It was ChiRunner and SoCalRunning.com member, Al. I worked with him about a year-and-a-half ago. We would run together for the next 6 miles. It was great running with him. Of course, all the time I was meeting new people. We ran past a church that was on the marathon route. A priest and nun were out cheering on the runners, so I asked the priest to forgive me for missing mass. It looked like all morning masses were cancelled. When the LA Marathon runs through your neighborhood, you are stuck.
I was going to jump out at mile 8 yet the day was too pretty. When I was driving to the start of the race the basin was so clear and beautiful my love for LA was renewed. I decided to stick in the race until mile 13 then hitch a ride with Jorge. When I got to mile 13 I forgot to look for Jorge. At that point I figured I needed to get at least a good 3 hours in. I kept running.
I had a backpack on with 10 pounds of cameras, phones, food, pain killers, bandages and Body Glide. Around mile 15 a lady ran up to me and asked if I had something in my pack for a blister. Of course I did, so her friends and I pulled over to the curb and I bandaged her up.
From mile 16 to 20 I ran with Bobby and his girlfriend Anna. We met all sorts of people like Estaban from Belize, the Dharma girl and a couple of City of Hope runners during this stretch. At mile 20 Coach Gary calls out my name and really topped off my day. He ran 3 hours the day before and was recovering from a cold. I told the group not to expect seeing him. He carried my backpack for a couple miles, then gave it back to me so he could go back find other Beach Runners.
Armand and Steve Jamming at Mile 21 with Core
At mile 21 I heard a cool band. I went over to them to cheer them on when I recognized the percussionist, Armand. Suddenly I realized it was Core, LA’s premier jam band. I was a member of Core a couple of years ago. I jumped up on stage and started jamming with them. After a few minutes it was time to get back to running. I picked up the speed and caught Bobby, Michael and Carol.
It was at mile 22 I started to tire. I pulled out the video camera and talked to more people. Marina was there in her Beach Runner shirt cheering us on. I got a hug and was back on course. Kate caught me at this point so I started running with her. Next, we would find Mark then John. Kate went on and the three guys walked.
I bought a couple of fruit ice cream bars for Mark and I at mile 24 and kept walking. Mark finished his bar and ran ahead. John soon left, so I pulled overat mile 25 and waited for the next Beach Runner to come along. Who would be the next to show?
As fate had it, it was Vern, the perfect person to run in with. Vern and I ran together quite a bit this winter. We took it easy until the last half-mile. Just before the final turn home we saw Barb, Kristy and Sandy. I got my hugs, caught Vern and we crossed the finish line together.
In the end I ran around a 5:20, my slowest marathon ever, yet my most enjoyable. The heat really didn’t affect me. I ate better than any other marathon I had run before and made sure I was drinking at least 8 ozs. of water an/or sports drink every aid station. I was loaded up on Bio-Builde and enjoyed a fun after marathon party on the lobby bar floor of the Bonaventure Hotel with some other Beach Runners.
Thanks to all the runners, their families, friends and the LA communities that supported us for 26.2 awesome miles. Look for the RunCast soon.
A special thanks to Jorge and Core for the pictures.
Train Focused, Steve Mackel – SoCalRunning.com Co-Founder, Beach Runners Head Coach
Steve and Vern Approach the Finish Line in Great ChiRunning® Form
John’s LA Marathon Report
John’s Happy Ending
Report from the slowest of the three “Rebel Runners” from the LA Marathon.
The last few weeks I have been running with fellow Beach Runners Kristin and Lani (a.k.a. Rebel Runners). We branded ourselves rebels for doing some things differently, like driving most of the LA Marathon course last week to help us prepare. We stuck together for most of our training runs. Sometimes I was a little faster. On Sunday, when it (in theory) mattered most, I was the one to fall back.
There’s one aspect of my running that I’m not happy about. Maybe I don’t look it, but I am officially a “Master Buffalo” (go to the Catalina Marathon website for the definition). I am male, over 40 years old, and (ugh) over 200 pounds. Of course, I can‚t do anything about being male or older, but my weight could come down a bit.
One thing I learned on Sunday: buffaloes run better when it is 30 degrees than when it is 80 degrees. In my case, nearly 1 hour better.
I already knew I would run the LA Marathon slower than my last one in January. First, a ligament in my left ankle had been tender for a couple of weeks, and I needed to avoid injury. Second, weather reports warned us of a hot marathon, which would slow us down. Third, Beach Runner Mentor, Jesus told me that a 7-week break between marathons was extra challenging. He explained that a short break between his marathons affected him at Pacific Shoreline, where he “bonked” and couldn’t match his blistering 3:19 Las Vegas Marathon time.
I was tempted to think that lesson was: Jesus should stop running sub-3:20 marathons and be more like the rest of us. Instead, I took his advice and prepared myself for a slow run.
The start was incredible, with Coach Steve and about 20 Beach Runners all bunched together, raring to go, and watching 20,000 people ahead of us slowly get across the start line. Steve gave numerous people leg massages. He gave a banana to Kristin when her pre-race banana got victimized by a wayward trickle of pee, courtesy of somebody who couldn‚t wait in line for 30+ minutes to use a porta-potty.
After a couple of miles with the big group, Lani, Kristin and I rebelled and ran a bit faster together for about the first 16 miles, probably averaging about 10:30s. It was around that time that “body sensing” started telling me that I was going to have to go slower. I wasn’t suffering any injuries or pain; my left ankle was holding up really well. Instead, my heart was pounding and focusing on breathing well wasn’t getting the heart rate down.
So, I knew from experience the heat was getting to me. This happened at times last summer in our Beach Runner training. I used to run in extreme heat long ago when I ran in high school in the summers in Arizona, 25 years and many pounds ago. My body was telling me to slow down or it might shut down on me.
I still managed to keep Kristin and Lani within sight. At mile 18 we stopped for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and other goodies, courtesy of Kristin’s boyfriend/Beach Runners Helper Wade and Lani’s (ha-ha) fiancé/Beach Runners Helper John. (Ask Lani sometime about the ha-ha part.) I decided that survival was more important than speed. I munched down food and water like a buffalo grazing at the beginning of springtime. Then, we, along with Mentor Chris who caught up with our group, ran off.
Or more accurately, they ran off. For the first time in a marathon, I started walking. My body told me to treat the last 1/3 of the marathon more like a walking buffet than a run.
Walking gives you a different perspective on a marathon, when many people are passing you instead of the other way around. I admired how so many runners were obviously burned out like me with more than a 10K to go, and yet they were walking or shuffling along determined to finish the race. I saw many who were not very “chi” in their running but were nonetheless passing me up. I admired those who had running form issues and yet could finish marathons.
I was so happy that even though I was so obviously having a bad race, I didn‚t care just as long as I avoided hyperthermia and finished. Maybe I would have been upset if this was my first marathon, or I had hoped to PR in the race. Instead, I knew there would be more marathons ahead. In fact, I am hoping to run a sub-4:00 marathon one of these days. To do that, I know it would be best not to injure myself or pass out in this race. And, of course, drop some lbs. in the future.
Around mile 20 I walked with Coach Gary and we chatted generally about the joy of running even when you’re walking.
Gary then went backwards to find other Beach Runners. I then employed my new version of ChiRunning®: walk up the hills; trot down the hills; and do something in between on flat lands. And, chug down liquid at each water station like a buffalo who just completed a trek through the Sahara Desert. I was gulping down 3 or 4 waters/Gatorades every time, in addition to what I had left on my fuel belt.
Around mile 24 Coach Steve and Beach Runner Mark caught up with me. They were slow because they are running the Catalina Marathon in 2 weeks. Slow … and insane is all I could think at that moment. Then another Beach Runner caught up; the heat fazed her so much, she described how she felt dizzy during a rest stop. I thought, “Man, we are all insane to be going through this stupid race.”
A wave of insanity (as well as shade from the clouds and tall buildings) hit me at mile 25 and I ran as fast as I could to the finish line. A few Beach Runners (including Barbara and Kristi) cheered me on as I made the last turn to the finish. Per Garmin, I finished at 5:15, crushing my “negative” PR time by 33 minutes. I was a happy buffalo.
I caught up with rebels Kristin and Lani and learned the heat eventually slowed them down. But they came in about 15 minutes faster than me. One of them (I won’t say who), was rather woozy from the whole experience.
I then found my wife/Beach Runner Helper Laura, who hugged me and fed me more peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
As I send this off to Coach Steve on Wednesday, I am feeling less sore than I was after my prior marathons. My tender left ankle held up well, and everything else feels pretty good. Everything that comes with the Beach Runners (ChiRunning®, Power Yoga, great running buddies especially the Rebels) did their job again.
The LA Times reports that Fred Mogaka won the marathon with the slowest time in its history. When asked if he liked his time, Fred said: “I was very happy with my time because I win.”
If you finished this marathon, you win, so be happy.
Beach Runner and SoCalRunning.com Member, John
Al’s LA Marathon Race Report
Kate and Al Around Mile 18
Well, the Marathon is over. I felt a bit under-prepared going into the last week. This was my first marathon. I had not done any training runs over 3 hours, and had caught a pretty bad cold the two weeks prior to the race, which was still lingering. I also had planned to do a couple more training runs with Steve, but the last few months before the race, I was occupied by a house remodel, and a possible impending job transfer. But I had been running plenty, and figured there’s got to be some people in worse shape running it.
I met my friend Doug at the parking garages downtown about 6AM. We got on the red line, and headed off to universal. We wore our sweats, it was still a bit cold, and would check our stuff at the Sweat Storage by the start line. We checked in our stuff, and headed over to the starting area. It was a mass of people, as far as you could see. We must have been somewhere in the middle. We walked across the start line at about 8:38, and started off slowly, since it was so crowded. The first few miles were deceptively easy, as it was all downhill, and we probably ran too fast, like a lot of people did at the start. However, there were lots of walkers and slower runners, causing us to have to shift left and right.
I had commented about how crowded it was to Doug, and another runner near me heard me and replied that it would not open up until mile 9 or 10… wow, oh well I thought, I’ll just have to get used to the crowd. We were doing really well for the first two hours. We had run the city of Angels 1/2 marathon in 12/06, and though difficult, we did it in 2:20. I was shooting for 5 hours today. I was still feeling pretty good when we reached miles 12 and 13. I was drinking plenty of water, and eating a GU or two at least every hour. It was getting hot. The sun was out, and it must have been in the mid 70’s.
We were keeping a 10 minute pace. My friend had fallen behind shortly after that though, and I spotted Steve. I started running with him for the next five or six miles. He really helped keep my pace, since I wasn’t running with a metronome. He also helped by giving me some electrolyte pills, and some on the spot coaching, which helped tremendously. We did the alphabet band name thing like Toyna mentioned in her post. I don’t think we got past the A’s… (By the way Steve, here’s the band ABC: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ABC_(band) that you didn’t remember). I pretty much ran with Steve and some of his gang until mile 19.
At that point, I was running with his friend Katie for a couple miles, when I decided to stop at the exit of the Champion music/motivation tunnel. I thought that would be a good place to wait, and see if I could spot my friend. I waited for 10 minutes, he didn’t show, so I kept going. About mile 20, I saw my friend’s wife, who had accompanied us in the morning. She was riding the Redline around the course to try and keep up with us. I stopped with her and waited for another 10 or 15 minutes until he showed up. I really wanted to finish the race with him, since we had been training together for it for the last six months. He was still running, but very slowly. He told me to keep going, so after some more water at mile 20, I continued on.
This is where things got extremely difficult for me. I was running solo at this point, trying to keep going. The east side of LA was pretty desolate in spots except for runners. Not many spectators. Not much motivation. The view across the 6th street bridge of downtown LA was enough to keep me going. There were also some people handing out cups of beer in front of a place called Sam’s Hoffbrau. I thought it was brewery, but someone told me later it’s a strip joint. I found out later, Doug made a pit stop for a beer inside, and was high-fived by all the patrons inside as he exited.
By mile 23 and 24 I was in bad shape. I couldn’t keep running, so I told myself to walk 1 minute, run 5 and just repeat this until the finish line. It was all I could do to keep that going. When the one-minute walk was up, I mustered enough strength somehow to start running again. The last mile, as people began to line the streets and cheer the runners on, propelled me to the finish. A runner who had finished already was sitting on the curb about a 1/2 mile before the finish, and gave me a “Looking strong Alper! You’re almost there!” This and all the other people cheering was really overwhelming. I finished the last mile without walking. The last mile seemed to go by too quickly, and suddenly it was over. I had crossed the finish line.
I was in a lot of pain as I walked through the finish area grabbing a banana, some trail mix and orange juice. I went to the Sweat Storage picked up my stuff, and headed to the reunion area to wait for my friend. I saw his wife, and we hung out there together for him. I stretched out and tried to hydrate. He came in about an hour after me. He said he walked the last few miles, but we had both finished, and we were happy with that. So, I actually didn’t even get my final time yet. I was so wrapped up in finishing, I didn’t check the finish clock or my watch. I think I came in about 5:15. After the race I thought I would never do another marathon. But now it’s been two days ago, and I already want to do it again.
Al – ChiRunner & SoCalRunning.com Member
Toyna’s LA Marathon Race Report
Tonya’s Awesome View at Mile 23
okay Steve – if I don’t write a report now, I wont at all…so here goes…
LA Marathon 2007. This was my 1st LA marathon, my 2nd marathon ever and my 2nd training season as a mentor. I remember reading an article once that compared running a marathon to riding a rollercoaster — in that article the author suggeted that if in fact you do enjoy the ride so much, do you really want it over in a few seconds, or do you want it to last longer. That was the experience of this LA marathon for me. Easy of course to say now that it’s over and took a little more than 6 hours. 1 hour off my goal of 5 hours — which really isnt that bad considering what experiences that one hour contains – which was less about running, more about connecting with people.
As we had been warned, the start of the race was quite congested – but I kinda liked it – it was the most I’ve run with other Beach Runners than any other race and at some point in the race I ran with at least 11 other BR faces. We had no choice but to start slow, however the heat was less expected and around mile 9, I was starting to feel the effects of the heat and slowly started losing my other sub 5 hour peers who ran ahead of me. I stopped to walk at mile 10 and it was at that point that I was handed a ziploc bag of sliced, ice cold —yes ice cold, oranges, from a little boy in the neighborhood. That was when I really began to take notice of the people on the streets, the cheering sections of families on their porches, on their lawns, sitting there simply to cheer us on – taking enough time and care to freeze the oranges, so they would be ice cold for us. That bag felt so good in my hand and I was able to share those oranges with 3 other BRs.
Around that same time, I had lost the one BR I had committed to run with when he stopped, with the help of Steve, to bandage a blister on his foot. Nonethless, with the advent of cell phones we were able to catch up near mile 11. He was hurting from the blisters (maybe even from the beer from the weekend, but I’m not one to say) and I was hurting from the heat- so we walked a little longer — we started running again, but around mile 13 – stopped to take another walk break. It was at this point that I knew 5 hours was out the window – and my partner was not up to running anytime soon. So I suggested some strategies – walk one mile, run one mile — that lasted half
a mile. He suggested….with a smile… walk 1/2 mile, run 1/2 mile. I suggested … with an even bigger smile….we take our time and enjoy the experience — we’ll run when we’re ready. And that’s exacly what we, well – I better speak for myself , that’s exactly what I did.
With my running partner in tow, and me pushing him along, I ran through the fire truck hose at mile 16 and every other water hose thereafter, expecially when it was the hose of a child in his yard. I danced through the motivational tunnel at mile 18 – and every time I heard any music. I took pictures of the downtown landscape somewhere between 18 and 19 and one of me and my partner shortly after that; — I happily took ice from a kid on the street and placed one ice cube in my sports bra and one under my cap…. I made a point to slap the extended hand of every child we saw and cheered back at any spectator who called my name; I gratefully hugged Gary at mile 21 who walked with us to about mile 22 and at mile 23 convinced my partner
to catch up to this cute guy also walking. We talked to him until about mile 24. 5 at which point, we were ready to run— -all the way to the finish.
It took us an hour longer than we hoped, but in that time we exchanged smiles and affections with strangers; told jokes; discussed life and love and ex-loves; questioned our sanity; named bands, and then movies, from A to Z; cheered along those who were passing us; and made plans for our next training season. It wasn’t pretty – but it was good.
Seeing all the cuture and diversity of LA, reminded me of what I love about living here. Getting a ride to and from the event with Chris and Randy, having Steve massage my calf with Tiger Balm at the start, seeing Gary at mile 20 – Barb at mile 25 and even sighting one former BR as a spectator wearing her BR shirt – reminded me what I love about running and why this indeed is a running community!
Thanks Beach Runners- for another great race — see you in May.
Toyna, Beach Runners Mentor & SoCalRunning.com Member
Running your First Los Angeles Marathon
(Finish LA Marathon 2001)
By the summers end of 2000, I was not in good shape. In one summer I had been fired from my job, lost the love of my life, got seriously overweight, and hit emotional lows. In other words, I was a depressed mess.
One thing I remember is standing in the shower and not being able to see my feet because of my belly. For some reason, I just remember that image. And this spurred me to take some action.
I had always wanted to run a marathon. In fact, twice, once in high school, and once in 1999, I had tried preparing for a marathon only to injure myself on long runs. I had no idea what I was doing both times…running in old shoes, no hydration, no eating, no stretching, and certainly horrible power running form.
But in 2000, I was ready to change my life around by training for and running a marathon. I called up my buddy James, and used my considerable persuasive skills to convince him to train with me for the Los Angeles marathon. James was my mountain climbing partner so we both had the mentality to train for and accomplish a difficult athletic task.
Training for the Marathon
I’m not sure where I got my training program from but it was fairly standard…2 runs in the week followed by an increasing long run on the weekends.
In all the training went well with James. We trained on the strand linking Torrance beach to El Segundo. But the longest run we did was about 18 miles leading up to the marathon. Which I’ve learned is not enough.
The running helped my emotional situation. By getting out and running it took my mind off my troubles, my heartache, myself. Yet I still had a belly that was not shrinking despite the long runs. But I was getting a lot more endurance, feeling better about myself, and was deepening my friendship with James.
The crazy thing was….I was smoking at the time. Not a lot. But still a half pack a day. Insanely enough, I would finish a long run then smoke some cigarettes.
The night before the Los Angeles marathon, I was so nervous I smoked close to half a pack.
And I do remember one day about two weeks before the marathon simply freaking out from fear that I was not prepared enough. I was mortified that my body would break down on the course and I would have to explain to all my friends and family why I couldn’t finish the marathon despite all my best laid plans. I remember having to sit in my room in front of my closet, meditate, and pray to God for answers about what to do.
I was paralyzed with fear of not finishing. And the answer I received in that session has guided me through many marathons now…don’t worry about the results…just focus on what you can do today to prepare…today…not yesterday…not tomorrow…but today.
And I walked away from that closet that day. And went for a run on the cliffs of San Pedro…the same cliffs Beach Runners are now running…and saw pelicans riding the wind…and the ocean crashing on rocks…and the sun go down…and…
I let go. I let go.
I could only prepare for the marathon by going for a run that day. That’s all I knew. And that was enough. I would have to believe…have faith…that I would finish. Because that is what faith is…a hope in the unseen. I was scared. I felt underprepared. I felt my smoking would not allow me enough oxygen to finish. My higher power would have to give me the strength to finish because I didn’t feel strong enough.
And that’s all we can ever really do to prepare for a marathon. Do something today…right now…to prepare. Take 10 deep breaths. Go for a run. Stretch. Do yoga. Close your eyes and visualize crossing that finish line. Rest. Eat a salad. Plan a run.
Just do something. Because that was the answer to fear for me. Go running and pray or meditate. That’s all I could do. And through this develop some faith.
Running for Yourself
So the morning of the marathon I’m standing in line for the porto potties with about 1000 others (I’m not kidding) and guess who I see?
My ex girlfriend with her new guy. This was no coincidence. I loved that girl all through graduate school. But I was a mess at the time, didn’t have my act together, far too much partying, too immature, unable to make a commitment to anything, preferred the company of my buddies…and so… she moved on… while I was under the delusion that she’d sweep all my shortcomings under the rug…wait around for another few years…marry me…and we’d live happily ever after.
I spent many training runs obsessed with thoughts of her. Running up hills pissed off determined to finish this marathon to prove to her that…yes…I could actually finish something I started…that yes…I could make a commitment…that yes…I could live a healthy lifestyle.
And there she was.
We exchanged pleasantries like you would with an ex. Her new boyfriend was running the marathon also. She said she had to go…obviously trying to not be seen with me and she walked away with her new guy.
And I stood there. And it dawned on me how much time I had spent training…preparing for this marathon…for someone else other than me. I had really started training to get my thoughts off of this girl I had loved soooooo much. To heal my broken heart.
So in this crowd of 24,000 runners, thousands of spectators, I saw the one person I needed to see in order to close that chapter of my life. Right before I ran 🙂
James and I stood in the back of the largest line I’ve ever been in. The start of the marathon. First time LA marathon people will be amazed at the experience. James and I prayed. We joked with others. I prayed some more. Randy Newman’s “I love LA” blasted on the loudspeakers and we were off. God was going to have to guide me through this race because I had no idea how to.
Finishing The Marathon
The run went well. Up to about mile 16 or 17 when James began complaining about leg pain. His complaints and pain got worse mile my mile. I was hurting also. We only knew power running so of course we had started much too fast, had poor form, and ran pushing and pulling with our leg muscles, tiring them out much too early. The wall hit about mile 19, and James began walking. I was popping Advil like an addict trying to deal with the pain. And James started saying he would be unable to finish. I got pissed.
“There’s no way we did all that training to quit now,” I said. I suggested we stop and pray. Which we did. Not sure whether that helped him but it sure helped me. I had to ask for more strength to finish.
And in that prayer I heard an answer that still guides me today. “You will get the strength to finish by helping others”.
“You will get the strength you need by helping others.”
With that answer I started what has been a six year practice for me now. “James, you can do it.” He was cursing in words I can’t repeat here, but after words he told me my words were pissing him off so much, he found some energy to keep going.
I began saying motivational words to the other struggling runners around me, “Hey, great job.”. “You’re almost there.” “You’re my hero.” “You’re looking strong.” Anything to keep them going. Some looked surprised at me, but most were like, “Thanks”, “You’re looking great also.”
And the more I began to turn my attention to others, to helping them anyway I could, to using every cliched saying I’ve ever heard in the movies, the more…I forgot about how my legs were feeling…and trust me…they were killing me…the more I helped others…the more strength I was finding to finish.
James and I found our legs again at about mile 24. For first time marathoners this is very important, you will hit a wall, feel completely exhausted, like you cannot take another step, but you must, you find the strength somewhere, somehow, and then magically, between miles 21-26 your legs will gain a new energy out of nowhere, enough to power you to the finish.
So James and I crossed the finish line four hours and forty two long minutes after we started (4:42). We jumped up and down hugging one another and I cried. I cried for the lost girlfriend, I cried for my grandfather who had recently passed away, I cried for the family dog (my old running buddy) who also recently passed, I cried for all the times I had tried to accomplish something and failed, I cried for myself, that I had done something good for me. I had done the impossible. I had done the training. I had done the spiritual work. I had found some belief that “Yes, I can succeed.”
The Spiritual Journey
James and I could barely walk for days afterwards. James told me repeatedly out on the course that day, “I will never do this again.” And he hasn’t.
But I found something out there. Something about myself, about God, about helping others, about faith, in the training and the pain of mile 19. A seed was planted that day. A seed that has grown into doing the LA Marathon a total of four times, the Long Beach marathon twice, the Big Sur marathon, the Catalina marathon, and an ultramarathon. A seed that grew into ChiRunning and me becoming a marathon coach. A seed that grew into Yoga and teaching yoga on the grass to 100 runners at a time. A seed that grew into my current body…30 pounds lighter…stronger…more flexible…and smoke free.
A seed that grew into the tree of current running and coaching practice. It brings tears to my eyes to even think back to the origins of this journey that has led me to Beach Runners, Yoga, SoCalRunning.com, and writing this massively long blog entry.
Thank you for taking this journey into my past with me. And the journeys we take every Saturday. And I have faith that you will find something out there on the Los Angeles marathon on Sunday, something that will sprout into a beautiful tree in your life. Keep your heart, ears and eyes open that day.
Because that something special is waiting for you.
Good luck everyone,
Gary
gary@socalrunning.com
George White’s Buffalo Run Report
Why is the Catalina Half marathon called the ultimate trail run?
I don’t know why other people call it that – but I do know that it was the hardest 13 miles I’ve ever run. I’m tired, I’m sore, and I’m happy. It was a great run. I honestly don’t know why I signed on for this. I really wasn’t looking to do another marathon any time soon, but I wanted to keep training with the Beach Runners. And I’ve already run the Pacific Shoreline Half twice – PR’d there in 2004 at 1:49. So I guess I was looking for a new challenge – and I sure found it.
I had to get up way early – 5 am. We had to get on the boat before 6:00 am to catch the 6:15 am boat. We arrived at Avalon about 7:30 – me, Steve, Gary, Jim, and one of Steve’s private coaching clients, Mark Kirsh. Mark is just too much. He’s been running a marathon a month. He just ran I think it was #11 last Sunday – the ING Miami marathon. He qualified for Boston – and he’s running that in March or so.
Anyway – I had all of the usual pre-race energy – I got my packet, my number, pinned it on my Beach Runner’s technical shirt. We got in line – it was such a small field – I’m like Gary – I really like these smaller races.
Immediately – Steve and Gary take off like jack rabbits on crystal meth. Mark was pretty much keeping up with them. Jim was somewhere behind me. I started out doing 8:00 minute miles – and they were all out of sight after the first half mile. We saw a guy smoking a cigarette with his girlfriend before the race – I passed him at about the first ½ mile. We kept climbing and climbing. We rounded several more curves – again – more climbing. Then after the first mile marker – we had a slight downhill. I was doing 6:30’s at that point for a few hundred yards. Garmins are great, aren’t they?
Then we went uphill again – and I thought to myself – I can handle this. Then we got to the water stand and the trail started. It was steeper than the road. I thought – this should level out some time – then it got steeper. Right after the Mile 2 marker – I passed Mark – he had stopped and was taking a drink of water. Then – more climbing. And it got steeper – and I walked a little – maybe 20-30 yards. At this point – I was doing 12-13 minute miles. I love my Garmin. This was my first race with it.
Then I rounded another curve – and it seemed like around every curve – it got even steeper. So I made sure I had my lean, and that I was taking short steps, and I remembered the uppercuts. For about the next 3-4 miles – I was pretty much run-walking. When it got less steep – I ran. When I got to another steep portion – I walked. When I got to mile 5 – my total time was 1 hour, 5 minutes. Usually on a half marathon – I’m at or past mile 7 at the 1-hour mark. Then I got discouraged. I was thinking this is the slowest half marathon I’ve ever run – but the scenery was unbelieveably beautiful. Steep cliffs, deep blue or aquamarine, turquoise – so many versions of blue in the ocean.
On parts of these hills – 5 or 10 people in front of me and 5 or 10 people behind me were walking – so I knew it wasn’t just me. These were tough hills. Just like mile 19 in the San Diego marathon – everyone I was with walked.
I always thought of myself as a trail runner – I’ve done PV with Gary, I’ve done El Moro in Orange County several times – there’s a great 10-mile loop there – but nothing prepared me for this. I’ve never run 6 miles continuously up hill – and it kicked my butt. Then I also mixed in some of Danny’s sideways/sidestepping – and that seemed to help. Then I got to the top around mile 6 – and my legs felt like jello. I was so whooped – and I wasn’t even half way done. I was going to finish – you pretty much have to on this one – but it wasn’t going to be pretty. Then I had a little downhill – and I let myself go and that felt great. A woman passed these two guys – and they said something discouraging about taking downhills too fast. Those guys obviously don’t know much about Chi running. Then it started going uphill again – really steep – and I heard Mark behind me. He said “Hey Chief” and we walked that hill and ran some more. We probably ran together for a mile or two. Then I was on my own again. And I was tired, and sore and I wondered what I was doing here. And my shoulders were sore from all of the upper cuts.
I was hating this stupid race. Why do they even call it the Buffalo run when you don’t see any buffalo? And what’s up with a 16 or 18 minute mile? My 84-year old mother can walk faster than that. I was hating life at this point.
What was I thinking? Why in the !@#$%(*&^% did I decide to run this race anyway? Obviously – I wasn’t thinking or I wouldn’t be getting up at 5 am to get my legs beat with baseball bats and get my ass kicked and handed to me on a platter. I could be in bed, curled up with Michele instead of this torture.
Then it was getting hot – and I stopped for water and Gatorade at every aid station. I also had some of those Cliff blocks. Then it was not as steep and I pretty much ran every mile. I saw Steve and Gary – it was about mile 7.5 for me and 9.5 for them. They looked tired and didn’t say anything to me. Then I hit another aid station – and some more water, Gatorade, and cliff blocks – and I saw Mark on his way down. Then I had one steep part – then it leveled out – then I hit mile 9 and turned around – and it was all downhill after that. I hit the aid station again – got a handful of Cliff blocks – and kept running. At mile 10 – it was still pretty steep. I was running 9 to 9:30’s at this point – but it was really steep and it was rocky – and I was afraid of slipping on the rocks.
Then I hit the aid station right past Mile 10 – filled up on more water, Gatorade, and Cliff blocks. By this time I was getting some kind of sugar buzz and getting all liquored up from the Gatorade and Cliff blocks – and I was running behind 2 guys – we were doing 9 minute miles – which is pretty good. By this point the path was wide, flat, and no rocks. It was still steep – but I decided that I didn’t have to run behind these guys – I was a Chi Runner – and I leaned forward a little – and took off. Within a 20-30 yards – I was doing 7 minute miles – and passing everybody I could see. I flew by the guys I was running behind – and not only passed everyone I could see – I flew by them. I’ve kept up with Gary stride for stride on a PV run – not under race conditions – but I’ve kept up with him under training run conditions – and I’ve got some of his magic/mojo for running downhill.
I continued to pass people. I checked my Garmin – I was doing 6:13 to 6:30 minute miles – and loving it! I passed at least 10-15 people. I was going so fast – I almost missed one of the curves. I was within about 1 foot of going over the edge before I corrected myself. It was pure gravity pulling me down. I just let go – leaned forward – and let my stride kick out the back and let myself go ridiculously fast downhill. It was one of the best kicks I’ve ever had in a race or a training run. When I passed people – it wasn’t just passing them – I flew by them. It was so fun. Then after 2-3 miles of this exhilaration – we got to the road – and it was still slightly downhill but not as steep – and I kept passing people. I was doing 7:00 to 7:30 minute miles by this point – but I continued to pass people – and it was so fun. No one passed me while I from mile 9 on down. And I said to myself – I said self – no one passes the Great White going downhill. (The Great White was a nickname given to me a long time ago by some people I worked with).
Once we were back on the road – I only passed 3 or 4 people – and I couldn’t see anyone else to pass up – so I ran with this guy from South Africa for a while. Once I got to the last half mile – I saw a chunky guy to my right – and I said to myself – this guy is toast – I’m totally passing this guy up – and I did – I blew right by him. And I had about ¼ of a mile to go – and I saw this woman – and I said to myself that she was not finishing ahead of me – so I leaned forward a little more and blew right past her as well. Then I had about 200 yards to go – and I wanted to finish strong – so I kept up a strong pace –then I saw I Steve and Gary with their cameras filming me – so I totally had to make sure I had the proper form – the lean , the arms, etc. for a Beach Runner – and then I was done. And I was so glad to be done with this race.
Even though none of us made it to the podium (we did meet several people who did – such a small field) but I’ve got my own awards.
First of all – the Sandbagger Award – is a tie – going to both Gary and Steve. Before the race – both of those two were whining about how little they had trained, how out of shape they were, yada, yada, yada. Gary was in Thailand and Cambodia for a month – Steve had the herniated disc – by the way these guys were carrying on on the boat ride over – you thought these guys couldn’t even make it to the finish. Steve even said he was just really going to take it easy. We started out – Gary was filming the start and it took him a while to catch up with us – but we started doing 8:00 minute and 7:30 minute miles. They took off pretty fast. After the first ½ mile – I totally lost them. Gary ended up finishing at something like 1:56 – 6th in his age group – Steve was around 2:03 and he made it 12th in our age group. Both of those guys smoked me by 20-30 minutes. So much for taking it easy and being so out of shape.
Mark Kirsh gets the “I can’t believe he’s here” award. After my last marathon – I spent 2 weeks sleeping in and stuffing myself in Italy. He ran the Miami marathon the week before the Buffalo run. And it wasn’t a flat race – it was pretty darned steep. I can’t imagine running this race a week after a marathon.
Jim gets the Most Improved Award. Jim is doing remarkably better on hills since the last time I ran hills with him in Palos Verdes. Steve, Gary and I were discussing how much progress he’s made since last summer. Way to go, Jim.
Jim also gets another award – the Babe Magnet award. Just looking at Jim – Babe magnet isn’t exactly the first thing that pops to your mind. Jim’s a decent enough looking guy – but not really what I would consider a Babe Magnet. Then he puts on the Uncle Sam hat. I always wondered why he wore that hat. It’s not really aerodynamic. And it doesn’t really shade his face much – but it sure does get a lot of attention from the ladies! He had several pictures taken with babes – young, older, and everything in between – and sometimes several women. Congratulations – Babe Magnet.
And that concludes my race report. Will I run this next year?? I don’t know. If I could only do some more hill work………….
Beach Runner and SoCalRunning Member and “Good ol Boy Yoga Teacher”,
George White
Finishing in Style – Buffalo Run Race Report by Roni
Musings after finishing dead freaking@#$%&* LAST at the Catalina
Buffalo Run.
As in all life the victory is really in the journey, no matter how %#$
%%&^ long it takes, in this case it was 4hrs 20-minutes.
This ill planned, and minimally trained for day became a vision
quest, mourning the loss of loved ones and reaffirming the beauty in
life itself.
From such an early age i was told ” second place is no place”, and
more recently “age and treachery will always triumph over youth and
talent”, neither axiom related at all to today…What does, is that
with a resolve of spirit and help and guidance of well placed mentors
(beach runners, / john garey pilates), and the love we carry for each
other I was able to finish. To engage in an event, both restorative
and challenging.
Thank you all for caring, encouraging and congratulating.
Roni
Gary’s Buffalo Run Race Report
Beach Runners Gary (with bloodied knee), Mark, Uncle Sam (Jim), Steve, and George
“i have come to treasure that part of myself a lot, that part of me never, ever gave up. regardless of how intense the pain. that is the part of me that will get me through the Bardo. i trust in this and continue to cultivate this part of me. racing helps me stay in tune with this priceless part of me” Steve Ilg
My Buffalo Run Race Report, February 12th, 2007. Catalina Island, California.
My initial goal was to just finish the race. Considering my running shape was not good. Mainly because I had spent a long vacation in Thailand/Cambodia and did limited running while I was over there.
How limited?
My longest run was about five miles. I saw more bars than long runs.
However my yoga routine was consistent…3 times a week and sometimes more. During my yoga routine I was working my core/abs hard and working on both body and inner strength. So I was getting stronger. Always pushing some kind of limit.
So I had no idea how I would do on the Buffalo run, which I figuered would be quite hilly and difficult. The Buffalo run is a half marathon, with over 1500 feet of elevation gain. And on trails. Hard. Difficult. Scenic. Not too many runners. My kind of race.
To my advantage I had somewhat of a base after doing a lot of trail running in November/December culminating in doing my first ultramarathon on December 23rd.
After an early boat ride over there, Steve, and Beach Runners Mark, George, and Uncle Sam (Jim) arrived in Avalon. While we were all expecting rain, the weather could not have been any better…warm, slightly cloudy, and crystal clear.
In other words, ideal running conditions.
After a quick breakfast, the race preparation was on. Long sleeves and jackets got quickly stashed away in backpacks as there was no rain in sight and the weather was warm.
The total number of participants was limited…maybe 300-400 tops if even that. I’ve done the alternative…Los Angeles Marathon with 23,000 runners. And I much more prefer the smaller races. Its easier to meet people, the course is not crowded, you have space to pass people. There’s many benefits.
The gun fired and we were off. Typical of my race I dropped a water bottle from my fuel belt within 100 yards of the start. Fell behind Steve but then caught up to him.
My goal for the first eight miles was simple…keep up with Steve Mackel. After running with him twice on the Mt. Baldy race, I know he kicks serious ass uphill. The fact is I am not that fast uphill. I am steady, I am efficient, but not fast.
Steve is fast uphill. I’d let him do the pacing. Even though he is recovering from a serious injury, he has been running well the last month so I figuered he’d have some juice.
Within the first few hundred yards of the we lost the rest of our boys. It was a hill right off the bat, steady climbing, like we do in Palos Verdes. And I love hills. Then we got on the trails.
And we kept going up and up and up.
We’d turn one corner and see another set of switchbacks up a hill. In all, the first six miles were uphill. Both Steve and I, as accomplished hill runners, found a pace we were comfortable with, and just settled in.
Within miles we were passing runners who started out too fast. Our form was great, moving to the metronome, arms swinging, taking short strides. The key on the uphills as a chirunner is to run efficiently. Basically the goal is to not run with your leg muscles but rather with your core and upper body, relaxing your whole lower body. That way once you get to the top, you’re fresh and then can start passing exhausted runners.
Steve got ahead of me between miles 5 and 6 but not far, maybe 30 yards, as I was working my ass off to keep him within striking distance. At this point, I could feel my lack of training the last month but I just began breathing heavier and heavier flooding my muscles with oxygen. If nothing else using yogic breaths, I can breathe heavier than my fellow runner, a major advantage early in the race.
At the top of the hill (6 miles in!!!), a downhill section finally began. My initial thinking was to stay with Steve the whole race. Cross the finish line together camaraderie kind of thing. First race of the season, no rush, no aspirations.
But right off the bat downhill, I began flying. I surprise myself everytime during trail races how fast I am downhill. I just love running downhill. Its easy and fast for me. Steve watching my speed tells me “go for it. don’ wait for me”.
Being polite I say “No. I’m running with you”. But then he tells me, “Go for it, you’ll get a great time.”
So I take off. Flying by people on the downhill sections. I’m like Jonathan Livingston Seagull. Like Michael Jordan draining 3’s on Portland. Like Sarah Hughes on ice. Pure joy in movement.
The uphills start again and just as I was thinking how fast I was going, God reminds me to concentrate and I slip and land on my hands and knees.
Cutting up my knees on sharp small rocks.
I look at my knees after running for another 30 yards and blood is pouring out of my left knee all the way down to my socks. Not good. I need to stop and take care of this.
Luckily enough a rest station was close, I ask for a first aid kit, and quickly put gauze pads on the wound and tape it up. Steve passes me.
The hills begin again. I see my pacer, Steve in sight, maybe 50 yards ahead of me. So I buckle down, breathe hard, and dig deep to catch up to him. Which I do at about mile eight.
We hit the turnaround point, run together for a bit commenting how hard and beautiful the running has been up to this point. Then the big downhill begins. My dream come true…5 miles of downhill running to finish the race.
Using the methods of ChiRunning, I can run dangerously fast down hills, letting gravity pull me down. I run sub 6 minute miles downhill. Nobody passes me. I passed over 12 runners on Saturday.
The last mile was downhill on asphalt, and I have to admit, I was tired from undertraining this season. I could not catch the last two runners in my sight. And I ran with everything I had in me for the last mile. Fast.
I crossed the finish line, feeling proud that I did not wuss out on the run. I ran like a warrior. With pride, with honor, with everything I had in me, with the desire to pass others, and unwielding in letting others pass me.
Yet complimenting everyone I could on their racing, especially those I was passing.
My time: 1 hour 57 minutes. Age place finish: 6th. Anytime you finish in the top ten of your age group is a fantastic finish. Certainly would have had higher if I hadn’t taken the spill, dropped water bottles, took pictures, and dropped my camera.
I am so stoked with this finish for the first race of the season. So stoked. It motivates me to train hard the next month for Catalina, so I can run hard there also. I’m shooting for a top three finish for my age group in the American Trial Championship now.
So all the boys had fantastic finishes also. Steve, struggling with the downhills, finished just a few minutes behind me (2:03).
A heroic performance considering his comeback from injury.
Be sure to compliment Steve on his comeback race. Mark came in strong. George came in smiling and said something we all agreed with, “This was the best course I’ve ever run!” Views of the Pacific, wilderness, and harbors. Five miles of downhill to finish the race. As a ChiRunner he was passing many runners on the downhill section.
And Uncle Sam came in with his typical smiling good spirits. Everyone ran hard. Noone gave up despite the the difficulty of the course.
I’m so proud and honored to be running with ANYONE that chooses to do a hard race…the difficulty is what makes you grow.
But Steve and I are most proud of a Beach Runner named Ronnie. We saw her in line to catch the boat. She has only run a few times with the group on Saturdays. Loving to do the trails in Palos Verdes so much she parks at the Golf Course to ensure she spends more time on the trails. So Ronnie finishes last on the Half Marathon. Last. And she was proud of that finish!!! Steve and I were too. Why?
Because she found the courage to CHOOSE to do a difficult race and found the determination and grit to finish it.
So runners, as this year starts, and you’re making your running goals and planning your races, choose to do a HARD RACE. Quit taking the easy route. Face your fears and do something you’re scared of. Because when you face these fears, and am struggling, breathing hard, and find some strength in your breathing, your faith, your training, your yoga, your teammates, your chirunning, your determination, your faith, your faith, your faith… you will find
The real you. A king. A queen. A warrior.
The Catalina full marathon is in four weeks. I can’t wait. Come join us.
Gary
Founder – Coach Steve
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