jingle bell 5k

deadlines can be a good motivator. then why is it i'm typing this instead of studying for my finals? i guess because i love procrastination.

last week 7 of us BRS'ers met up to do this little 5k with a few thousand other close friends of ours. we met another BRS'r before the race who is more of a lurker, Todd. i made the call to meet up in front of a bar before the race. no, not to drink, they weren't open at 8 am. i wanted to go for a nice little warm up run before i kicked off my huaraches and went bare for the race. Nick is the only one who joined me.

we met jdleon, suzanne, janson, paraganek, and joshh at the bar. we got our packets from jen who organized the team sign up. PG didn't get his packet for some reason so jen gave him hers. amazingly she got a faster time than me even though i finished before her.

about a mile into the warm up run i had to get rid of excess water. i went to a gas station hoping they would let us in. this place is on burnside which is just across the street from chinatown, skidrow. everything is locked up in soda coolers. i don't think i've ever been inside there and i don't frequent any stores in chinatown so i was slightly surprised to see this. i talked the attendant into letting us use the bathroom. he was reluctant but nice.

i feel i should mention i picked up nick and janson, yes that is his real name, for the ride to downtown portland. both are from small towns. when i crossed the street against the light and in the middle of the road they were hesitant to say the least. they looked at me as if i was the first barefooter they ever saw. ;) i harassed them, what else would you expect from me? they had to follow me as they had no clue as to where we were going.

on our way to the starting line nick and i got to see the kids fun run. we watched in envy as some of the kids had perfect form. we felt sorry for the others wearing tanks on their feet. you could spot the difference even with our old, poor, glasses wearing eyes.

jen called us to get to the start. i'm glad she did as i thought we had like twenty minute until the start. it was only ten. we met everyone and stored our stuff. when we started stripping clothes and shoes people started freaking out. josh had brought a few wigs for us to wear. he, janson, and paraganek wore bright blue curly wigs. i was left with a mullet. ya, i butt rocked it for the race.

we made our way to the starting line. splitting up and finding each other again some how. josh took off to the front. he's fast and competitive. PG would've been there with him if he wasn't in a bit of pain. he hung out with me this time and we picked up nick, janson, and suzanne. jen was with us but went on her  one of her constant potty breaks and started from further back.

suzanne shocked me when we finally started running. she said her goal was to keep up with me for the race. i asked why shoot so low? we laughed. i am doing maf training but decided to just go for it. i was going to speed up each consecutive mile. it was nice running in a pack. everyone was following right behind me. that part was weird. as runners would comment about me the others would pass. they tell me the people got quite uncomfortable. little do they know i heard nearly every comment.

i'm not hardcore. i'm not tough. you guys in shoes are the hardcore ones. you're all wearing a lot of extra weight on your feet. that's what i wanted to say. believe it or not i kept my mouth shut. i'm thinking maybe i should make a tshirt with that on the back for races. i chose not to be such a smart ass. it doesn't help speaking to a large audience but works better more one on one or to a small group.

before a mile came up nick blasted by us. at the time i didn't want to catch him. i just let him go as i wasn't ready to speed up so soon. right after that the front  runners started coming back. the guy in the lead was just coasting at a sub 6m/m pace and he made it look effortless. the others who followed you could see were working hard. joshh was one of them. i yelled loud at him and he smiled. scared the other runners around us who at barely a mile in looked life they were miserable. so i shouted out good morning to everyone. still no response.

we saw joshh and the others at an underpass. this was the roughest section of the race. it was not much fun on the way back. there were way too many joggers and walkers to run on the painted lines. the walkers were supposed to go after all the runners. we all know how people listen nowadays.

after mile two i told janson i was having a good time watching all these beautiful women's behinds. i wanted to grab a few of them. he smiled. as this was only the second time meeting and first true run together he didn't know me that well. by this time i sped up. i saw nick and couldn't control myself anymore. i went to give him a smack on the left cheek. i wound up moving to his right side so when i hit him i hit his hip instead hurting him and my arm a little. he was like wtf. he tried to chase me down to get me back for it but couldn't catch me. too bad for me as i hate not knowing when he's going to pay me back for that.

next pg took off. i tried but couldn't catch him. i was wearing my hrm and still breathing through my nose. the hrm was beeping the whole race as i ran faster than what i have preset. at this time though my hr got over 190. i had to slow down a little. there was no way i was going to catch pg. i kept a pace close to 190 until the end. i felt good but i noticed that i was hungry a lot faster after this race than when i normally run slow and burn fat.

we run to the plaza as we hear josh's name announced. he and todd are on stage singing i can't remember what. actually todd was singing with joshh just smiling and bouncing along. they got on stage to get free tshirts. the whores.

after everyone got together we searched for a bar for the obligatory post race beer. nothing was open. we found one place finally. rock bottom brewery. i wouldn't normally mention their name but they gave us our drinks and food for free. $50. it was way beyond anything we expected. they did it because they weren't prepared for so many people to come in on a sunday morning. i guess they didn't know there was a race going on. we sat about twenty minutes before we got help. yes, we will be going back.

we talked and got to know our newest running members. jen gave us our tshirts and we said our goodbyes. it was a fun day but at 11 am it was only the beginning. time to go do other stuff. here's a pick of the five of us together during the race. none of us ever, so far, brings a camera. well, except for the time when pg brought one to take a pic of chelsea from Germany for our group run with her.

there was a blurry pic online of josh at the starting line. amazingly no one can find a pic of jen. she's a ginger with BRIGHT red hair so you would think you could find a pic of her easily. no such luck.

boxing

i feel the need to get this off my chest. i love boxing. its the best sport there is. two men in the ring to see who is better. no one to blame but yourself if you lose. sadly, someone or something else always takes the blame for the loss. rarely do you see a true man say "it's my fault".

tonight's fight is a rematch between Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito. they had a good fight last time. Margarito took the win with a knockout of Cotto in the 11 round. Cotto admitted the defeat was his fault, at the time.

a couple of years ago Margarito fought Shane Mosley. Mosley's trainer felt Margarito's hand wraps before the fight and told the ref they didn't feel right. they had him undue the wraps and redo them. testing later showed his hands were wrapped with chemicals in plaster of paris. the press went on to say he wrapped his hands with plaster. this is not the case. there were two chemicals on his wraps present in plaster of paris, true, but not the plaster itself.

now, forgive me here if i got it wrong as i no longer follow boxing religiously. he may have felt the wraps after the fight. either way Cotto went and looked at the tape of his fight. when the ref raised Margarito's hand to signify him as the winner, Cotto thought he saw something funny. he's been calling Margarito a cheat publicly.

Margarito says he had no clue his trainer did this in the first place. he fired him for it. a man who was like a father to him. it hurt him deeply to fire the guy but he had to do it. he's now cast as a villain in boxing. to accept his role he's grown his hair long and has a goatee. he's loving the attention. his wife hates it. its really eating him up inside but as a boxer he knows any attention is good attention and attention sells tickets and pay-per-view.

i look forward to seeing what i believe will be Margarito redeeming himself tonight. Cotto is a good fighter. i just don't believe he has the mental capacity to beat Margarito. Antonio is a warrior. he won't stop coming forward, which is how Cotto likes to fight. only difference is Margarito can bang where as Cotto just taps away. he'll get discouraged and won't be able to take the barrage of punches Margarito will dish out. i think he will either quit or get knocked out, again.

i still see rumblings of people calling Mayweather a cheat. he's an ass and among many other names i don't want to take the time and mental energy to call him, is he's not a cheater. he hit Ortiz after the ref told them to box. he was polite and professional in hugging Ortiz for the intentional foul. i myself would not have been so forgiving. he showed himself to be a true professional and i respect him for that.

it was Ortiz' choice to not keep his hands up at all times, like every boxer is warned to do at the beginning of every fight. after the hug Floyd saw an opening and took it. who could blame him? the guy had just intentionally head butt him. i would have kicked the guy myself. he was perfectly within his right to hit him and by no means did he cheat. Ortiz knew he was wrong for doing so and didn't blame Floyd afterwards or talk bad about him because he knew he got what he deserved. besides, he knew he had no chance of winning the fight.

Pacquio won his fight two weeks ago. i know he looked horrible and was beat up. problem is Marquez stopped fighting after the middle rounds. i guess he doesn't know his history. the fight, if close, always goes to champion. in order to win the belt you have to BEAT the champion. sad thing is, Marquez was thoroughly beating Pacquio. he should have won that fight. Pacquio had a look of defeat on his face throughout the fight and at the end didn't believe he won.

Marquez only has himself to blame. had he kept the pressure on those last few rounds the fight and belt would be his. instead everyone is talking about how he got robbed and Pacquio was given a gift. no. Marquez GAVE the fight away. history has proven this over and over. if you're beating the champion you have to keep beating until the end of the fight. not stop in the middle because you feel you have a comfortable lead and don't want to risk getting knocked out. if you don't want to risk getting knocked out then don't get in the ring. period.

school

i feel like a hypocrite. i tell my girls to get good grades yet here i sit ignoring my own homework. i should be writing the paper that was due last wednesday but i'm not. instead i'm surfing the web, eating, walking the dog, and now blogging.

procrastination should be the first definition for man in the dictionary. we all do it. we all know better. there are very few of us who will go knock out an assignment upon receiving it. we will sit and wait as we find other "important" things to take up our time. like blogging.

i have plenty of organic chemistry reading and problem solving to keep me busy, yet i'm not doing that either. i go to lecture everyday and i felt a bit lost the time i showed up an hour late. hey, i was sick and didn't even realize i was late. usually ten minutes but an hour and ten minutes? i must have been more out of it than i thought. i went home that day instead of going to lab because as i sat in the back of class, i didn't want to cough up a lung on my neighbors, i noticed i stepped in dog poop. horrible morning.

shit, i sit here now after my bfast wanting to take a nap. there goes the dog scratching on the door to be let in. he made me take him out and asked to go on the patio after. so i let him in, made some tea, and washed the dishes. all in about 5 mins.

now i just have to refocus and type out that paper. it's not something i wanted to do. i would have dropped the class when i found out about the paper on the first day. i was approved for financial aide and i got a note from the counselor that this would be the last time at PCC since i've exceeded the allowed credits there so long as i stuck to my submitted plan. great. i have another dilemma now that the class i was supposed to take next term is at the same time as my o chem. i'm not changing my o chem for an elective so i will find something suitable and deal with the consequences. it's better to ask forgiveness than permission.

that's one premise i plan to put into my paper. i emailed my teacher about a problem i had with it. he never got back to me. i forgot about it and every time i tried to talk with him after class some one else was. time goes by. i don't do any interviews, like i'm supposed to, and the paper is due. great. now it's late, no interviews, and i have another field trip to do and write about next week. fuck.

well it's not going to write itself unless i start it. i'll let you know how it goes. i just better not fail. a C would be much better than the F on my transcript. oh, that's the reason i'm taking this class. state and local government. i apparently took it in my youth and got an F. i guess that explains why i don't remember the class or the other two on my transcript with F's.

run like hell

great name for a race right? i liked it. it's meant to invoke fear of running from zombies, the theme costume for this year. it could also have meant how people literally ran, like hell. heel strikers galor. so many marshmallow shoes. bad form everywhere. i didn't even notice one pair of vff nor any other minimalist shoe. then again, i started at the VERY back.

i did pass one lady "speed" walking. she had her arms swinging far across her body with her forearms parallel to the ground. she was swinging her legs so far out in front of her she could have touched her toes with her heel on the ground. it was a horrific site. she made it her mission to tell me how i was going to destroy my feet. she kept yelling at me as i passed and once again when she was headed to the turn around. i told her my feet are fine. she kept yelling. i played nice instead of going back after her. it does no good to scream at a brick wall so why waste my energy? i was having a good time and some battles aren't worth fighting.

now that i got that part off my chest, rewind to the beginning. My friend Jen posted about running this race so she could dress up like a zombie. her and her husband would be doing it and she wanted other bf'ers to go with. i signed up as well as our friend Daniel. other people apparently went from the BRS, barefoot runners society, but for one reason or another didn't meet up with us. i'll tell anyone now who wants to find us at a race. if you don't see us before the start then you'll find us at the finish near the beer garden and if they don't have one then we bring our own beer.

i never go for a run until i finish my morning business. it took me a while this morning for some reason. it's usually two and good but this morning was i think twice more. so i got downtown a little later than i wanted. oh, this was my first road race and it was through downtown portland, near the waterfront and touching into the nw part. i parked in a my boss' parking lot since she didn't need it. the race organization recommended public transportation and carpooling saying there would be limited parking there. so i parked over a mile away only to see there was a lot of parking even closer. oh well because it was a great warm up for me. like i said i was running late so i had to run to the start, after i fixed my huaraches. it seems the knots on both luna sandals wore off at the same time. no biggie. just a five minute fix.

i was calling Daniel to let him know i would be there. we both agreed to meet in front of the bathroom. see above. when i looked for him i knew the race was about to start so i went to the bag check to drop off my backpack and clothes so i could run in "costume". i think only the tweeners got my costume. i believe i heard some girls get it right like twice. not sure but i'll stick with that number. i told myself i would run around screaming for Bella but i never did. i'm a bit shy, sober that is. i tried to emulate Jacob, from "Twilight", but as my little girl reminded me, i'm too fat, old, and hairy to look like him. doh! oh, i'm also not dark enough. damn. oh well i still did it.

when i came out of the bathroom and got into "costume" i couldn't see Daniel. i knew the race was starting as they kept announcing it. i headed toward the start and before i crossed the street the horn blew.  i didn't really panic. starting in the middle slows everything down. i ran down the side towards the front as far as i could. i didn't see him so i headed to the back. it put me nearly two minutes behind the starting gun to cross the start line.

Daniel and i were the only ones running the 10k so Jen said she's try to find us after since she did the 5k which started a half hour after. when Dan and i finished we went to the end and the 5k was still running so we stepped in the middle and found Jen and David. they had great zombie costumes. David had a baby eating his brains if you can't figure it out.

so where was i? oh yes, racing. i have recently bought a garmin forerunner 405cx so that i can use the hrm, heart rate monitor. i want to do some MAF training. if you don't know, look up Phil Maffetone. he developed a great way to build your aerobic capacity by training with a hrm. according to my zone, my aerobic fitness sucks. i wasn't supposed to race according to the training. i was planning on a different costume so i could run the race with my hrm but i swear the news said it was going to rain so i changed costumes for one better suited to running in the rain, which i love. going as Jacob i couldn't wear the hrm so i decided to run as close as i could to my zone and only pick it up if i feel i should. i ran the first 4 miles at my max zone and then picked it up quite a bit.

i was questioned by a few people. congratulated by others. harassed by the one lady. heckled by one mom pushing a stroller. only thing was i gave her back more than she bargained for. she was funny but i kept hitting home runs off of everything she threw at me. don't ask me to repeat because remember, i was at the beer garden after and had my share as well as other's free beers. yes, two free beers per racer and not everyone drinks. lucky me. if that women was faster i would have loved to stay with her. she was funny and her friend was hot. i tried to talk to the hot one after the race but she shied away from me. c'est la vie.

i felt great through the run and somewhere around mile two i felt something on my left pinkie toe. i looked later and i got a big blood blister. i was able to adjust my form and ran comfortably. it's made me aware that i land on the very outside of my left foot and roll in and that's what caused the blister. i had never run more than four miles bf on pavement but i think i did well. like i said at mile 4 i had decided to pick up the pace and felt great. i usually race on the trails and always go out too fast. i end up chugging along the middle and finish at a leisurely pace. this time i did it different and i'm glad i did.

my friend's wife had posted on fb that she was doing the 5k. i had planned on looking for her after. my buddy saw me cruise to the finish line and has a picture of me from behind. he had no idea i was there, or at least was unprepared to see me. if he ever gets me the pic i'll post it. he said i was booking even though i felt like i was just coasting. hung out with them after the race also. he also took one of me with a guy dressed like a spartan who ran the half marathon with a heavy ass shield. couldn't believe he did that. and people think bf'ers are crazy. oh well. at least Jen got this pic of me with officer Dangle.

i saw many costumes during the 10k. i made fun of gumby. he said he was fine in that thing. i laughed at a guy in a dog suit. many zombies including this group here. we kept passing each other until mile 4 where i left them behind. i was kind of annoyed but one girl was hot. she had an amazing ass so i kept my mouth shut and just tried to follow her. sadly, she wasn't in this pic taken by the local big paper. there were quite a few fine asses there. i'm going to do more road races for sure since there are more women there than at trail races. i think the stats at the end had twice as many women as men. love those odds.

i ended up finishing the race in 1:06:23. not fast but i finished strong. i'm happy with the results as my energy was great the whole run. i never slowed. didn't hit the wall. i could've sprinted to the finish if i wanted but there were so many people walking to and after the finish line i just took it easy. they gave me an official pace of 10:41 m/m. i had to have started at about 13 m/m then picked it up to 9 m/m. i came in at 968 out of 1425. slow, i know but i'm doing MAF training. not like i would have finished much faster if i had ran and i would have been wiped out from the effort. the way i ran left me feeling great.

since it was early, the day continued from there. took the kids, Jen, and another friend to a pumpkin patch. good times.

i can't forget to post some pics of Daniel. i laughed hard when i saw him. i looked for him when runners passed by me at the turn around. i was totally shocked when i saw his costume as it was a bit out of character for him. it's no wonder i didn't notice him. warning, the last shot is what was underneath the grass skirt. i laughed even harder when i noticed his speedo.

Tahoe Rim Trail

a few weeks ago i took a trip to Reno to vacation and visit my brother. i only had two weeks off between terms and i needed a good break. i believe i did my first post about how my plans were all changed because my girls were still in school when i got out. so i went alone.

i left my dog Mury with a friend. my brother's german shepherds scare the crap out of him, well, urine at least. he's squirted at least once when fat boy Bear growled at him. another time i watched Bear growl and Mury and he dropped like a fainting goat. i laughed so hard and still laugh when i talk about it. hell, i'm smiling and laughing now. it was something i will never forget. then there's River. she doesn't like anything that moves thats smaller than her. if it does she jumps on it to stop it. she has poor Mury petrified to move. i have to stop her so that he can get around. my brother thought it was funny once to pick my dog up and dangle him in front of River. it was but it terrified the little guy. he's so insecure i always to push him to be friendly with strangers and other dogs but he won't do it. so i left him instead of torturing him.

the problem for me to leave him behind is he's my running partner. i can always count on him. there's been maybe two to three times max when he didn't want to run with me. he's a stubborn little dog so he tries to get his way with me a lot. he will stop and not move until i either pull him or change directions. those few times i couldn't get him to move at all.

so i made do by running with the shepherds. the first day i took them both out while i was bf. no problem but i got a crack on the side of my left toe. it was a big crack. the skin was thickening up like a callous and split open like a muffin top. it didn't feel nor look too good. i ran the rest of the time with my huaraches on.

now came the next to last day in Reno. i had wanted to go see Tahoe and run there. supposed to be some beautiful trails. 168 miles to be exact. i didn't need that much. i found a stretch of 6 miles that would work out for me. the map description said it had a waterfall.

i knew to leave Bear at home. fat boy would just be too much for me on an unfamiliar trail. he likes to pull and if i went bf there's no way i could slow him down and enjoy my run. it was a good call. the trail was nice soft sand with lots of rocks on it. not too bad but with a 100 lb. beast pulling me and watching River as well, i couldn't do it. not alone at least and for this run i would be alone.

i found the parking lot that i needed for the trail. i started with my huaraches on. i met some people who were coming down the trail. they confirmed i was on the correct one. i took off the sandals and put them in my pocket. i then let River off leash and watched her run around. she had a blast. she is an amazing dog. one day i will get my brother to you tube a video he made of him training her. apparently everyone at the dog club stops to watch those two work since they are so insync and she is super athletic.

every chipmunk or bird she saw, she was off chasing it. she once took off some 50 yds downhill chasing something. i called her up to me and she just kept running along the hill. i was afraid i was going to have to call in for a rescue. lucky for me she came back up charging full speed. that was the only problem i had with her. whenever we came up to other people, even if they had a dog, she would stop immediately and stare at me. that's a damn good dog and hard to teach.

we made it to this beautiful waterfall where i made her go in and take a drink. now this is a really tiny stream. i'm used to seeing Multnomah falls. they are huge. this was like a garden hose in comparison. it worked though and was still a beautiful sight.

we went up the stone stairs and continued on the trail. about 3/4 of a mile we came to a fireroad. it looked like it went all the way back to the beginning. there was no way i was going to go down this bf for some 3 miles. it wasn't soft sand and it was littered with big rocks. we turned back instead and came back the way we came.


once at the car i went to the lake. it was huge. i mean really big. i didn't have all day to drive around since i was likely going to pick up my niece from school. i found a dock in the nearest town. River jumped in the water no prob. she loves to swim. i found a stick and was trying to teach her to jump off the end like they do on ESPN. she was scared! after a few tosses she was jumping by the end but not nearly what she's capable of.

i had had enough and was ready to go. i was bout to drive back to Reno and just get some IN n Out there but didn't make it. i was starving. i went slow and saw this little taco shop on the side of the road with some tables outside. mandatory when you have a dog with you. especially a beautiful one like River who someone might steal. she might bite them but she would be worth more than they could imagine.

once fed we drove back to the house. i didn't pick up my niece because, well, she's being a teenager. other than that it was a good day. Bear didn't even throw a fit when we got back. i thought he might attack River out of jealousy for being gone with me all day. thankfully he didn't.

Warrior Dash

this is three weeks late. like i said, i'm always late. it was three weeks ago today i made my way to my second consecutive year at the northwest warrior dash held at horning's hideout in north plains, OR. as much as i tried both years, no one wanted to run it with me. all too scared i guess of a little 3.2 mile run with military type obstacles, beer, music, women, free stuff, bbq turkey legs and lots of people.

the WD is just a huge party. it's not like any other race i've been to. there's not much competition going on here. there's a lot of out of shape people and everyone is looking to have a good time. there are many groups of people who go in matching costumes. (hint to whoever wants to do it next year). being a huge party with groups of people going alone last year, i didn't want to go alone again this year. i talked a friend into going with me. only stipulation was i had to stay the night at her place since she didn't have a car. i wouldn't ask her to take the bus that early, my heat was at 10am, and i didn't feel like driving so much. so i slept rather well on the floor with little mury at the bottom of the futon.

these are a couple of pics of the henna my friend was nice enough to do for me. it was a total fail. even though i slept with it on it didn't stain dark enough to see. i wanted everyone to know for sure that i indeed ran the WD bf. if i got questioned i just wanted to show of the henna and also promote the barefoot runners society.

so off we went. i stopped at my place to make myself my morning herbalife shake and drop off mury. i didn't want to and was upset that other people brought their dogs. damn, should've brought the little guy. next year. 

i wanted to get there early because when i went last year it took over an hour for me to get in and park. i missed my slot by two hours and ran it with no energy. this time i had it worked out better. so did the WD crew as when we left at noon there wasn't a traffic jam like the prior year. so in quickly and to the registration table. all i had to do was find a zip tie for my timing chip. i left my stuff with my friend and got into the chute.

i had planned on walking around or running a little so i could be properly warmed up for the race. oh well, can't follow through on every plan. at least i wasn't late. people were starting to notice that i was bf but no one was talking to me. too scared i guess. then the announcer starts picking on people in the crowd. first calling all of us crazy for coming out to run the course. then he picked on muscular guys, one in the front, about how he was going to burn out and get passed by all the women.

then he sees me and asks where's my shirt. stupid me just points to the crowd and say over there. later of course i realized i should have said "don't worry about it, it's too small for you." then the women next to me start yelling he's bf and he has no shoes on. the guy was like "what?" he asks "what are you doing without shoes?" then he walks to the timer's table and says "hey guys i'm going to go run a race without shoes." he's lucky i decided to keep my mouth shut. or am i? i had planned on saying, but didn't, "hey this is the WD so why would a REAL warrior need shoes?" sometimes the best thing to say is nothing at all.

some guy in five fingers came up to me and started talking to me. i should've got his name and pushed the BRS but didn't. nerves, excitement must have gotten the better of me. i just stood there kind of swaying from side to side waiting for the heat to start. 

finally start it did. fire went off and the horn blew. off we went. i was in the middle to keep from being stuck behind so many out of shape people yet they managed to be in front anyhow. if you're out of shape, why are you starting a race at the front? just a few feet into the run i let out my battle cry. scared everyone. some guys says "there's the bf yeti." i just laughed. i may have said something but i can't remember every smart thing that comes out of my mouth.  

the course started out exactly the same as last year. going around with numerous hills. of course i got passed uphill by strong runners only to pass them on the downhill. that's a big advantage of being bf. going downhill is easy. you just have to relax and let go. i think it was here on one of the first sets of hills that i got passed by batman and the flash. both in their underwear and capes. funny.

we hit the water and from here i knew i had an advantage. no waterlogged shoes. the only thing i was worried about was getting out of the water. last year i ran with bikilas and was slipping. i had to crawl out because it was so muddy. that's why i picked an earlier time this year. less mud. i was right. i made it out easy and upright. last year this is where i lost all my adrenaline and had absolutely no energy left in me. i went too long without food and was pretty dead after hitting the water. a volunteer told me i should go take a break at the aide station and drink some water. of course i didn't and pushed on. this year i had planned it better so when i got out of the water i was able to keep my pace.

next obstacle was a two for one. tires, junk cars, then more tires. easy. i had no worries about broken glass cutting my feet. with people likely to slide over the cars there was no way they would leave sharp objects exposed. i was right. then it was a small stretch downhill. i zipped down and to the bridge. this is where i had my first energy drop. i start races too fast. i will learn to race better sometime in the future. on the other side of the bridge was the first water station. they had two since it was the hottest weekend predicted for the summer. this is where the volunteers started noticing me running bf.

a short flat stretch and then i hit the wall. no, a real wall with a rope to climb up it. it was easy. made it up in a second. getting down, that took me longer. i didn't want to drop and hurt myself. i think when i ran it last year and hurt my right ankle when i jumped in the water. as my ankle still hurts i wanted to make sure to not land on it. i made sure to take it easy coming off of each obstacle so that i didn't re injure or hurt something else.

i made it through a few more obstacles no problem. more volunteers and runners making comments. a few volunteers said "wow, bf, that's a real warrior!" i agreed. one guy called me crazy and i yelled out just a little. another girl who passed me uphill asked how my feet where holding up. i said "fine, how are your water logged shoes?" she laughed. i think i said something after that but can't remember. this is where i paid the price for the running i did earlier in the week.

i hadn't been running most of the summer because of advice from Michael Sandler and my foot. i had tried running a couple of time but my foot hurt so i stopped. with a week to go i decided to go for a run. my friends had wanted to do a 10k on labor day because it was on the stretch of wildwood that we always run. there was no way the three of us are going to allow a race on our trail and not be a part of it. so i took mury out on sunday and did a long slow run to see the course. it was all downhill. unfortunately for me, i went backwards this day and ran it uphill. nine miles. not too smart. killed my quads for the race the next day as well as the WD. i tried to run more to work out the legs but it didn't work. they were not cooperating.

i wound up walking the few uphills they through in at the end. last year they had one steep uphill at the end. this year there was more with different obstacles that were more challenging. they had a new one of staggered table tops. i blew right through those. then towards the end was some downhill. i had some kid right by me. we had been passing each other all throughout the race. he saw me land on a pine cone with my left foot and roll on it. i hit the ground with a flat foot and bent knee and kept on going. he said "nice recovery." thanks was all i replied. i should have said more but saved the smart ass remark for the wrong time. right around the corner there was a girl on the ground holding her ankle screaming. paramedics were on the way and volunteers surrounded her. it was then i made my comment which i realized as soon as i said it made me look like an ass. "that's why i don't wear shoes, always rolling my ankles." doh. wrong time Michael. too late.

then came the end. i hit the mud pit face first and pulled myself through on my elbows. it worked great. they warned us at the beginning not to dive or jump in as it wasn't deep. of course i didn't. i'm crazy, not stupid. so at the end i come right behind this girl who starts to climb out. i came up to her so fast i could only yell out "don't kick, don't kick my face." she looked back and i then had room to go to her right. the same announcer was here and he saw me again. he asked me what happened to my shirt. i just smiled at him and lifted my foot out of the mud. i don't think he saw it, at least not until i tried to get out of the mud. i have to say try because my lord this stuff was slick. i tried twice and just lid back down. then he noticed me and said " hey everybody, this guy just did the whole race bf! let's give it up for him!" the crowd went wild. i moved to the right edge of the mud pit and was able to get out. almost forgot to say he told me not to let the girl pass me. i'm thinking, why not? did you see her? what's wrong with getting passed by a woman who's in shape and beautiful? i see no downside, just a nice backside. much better that looking at some guy.

from here everyone slides out because it's so slick. i slid on my butt and i wound up on my back since bf don't have any traction in that slick of mud. i almost hit the girl who was about to kick me in the face. lucky she saw me coming and moved to the side. i felt like a fool here. i had no control. i got up once i hit the hay bale. i started running for the finish and slipped on my knee. everyone was in shock and i was just laughing, hard. it was funny. i ran the whole thing no problem only to slip right at the end where all the spectators were? doh! had to laugh.

i crossed the line and they put a medal around my neck. everyone gets one. they tried handing me bananas and water. i didn't want any of it. i was screaming asking for a knife. no was was answering. finally a woman asked me why. i showed her my zip tie on my ankle. my foot was going numb at the end of the race and i realized i put it on too tight. i wanted it cut off and she did. relief. 

i found my friend and she told me how long it took me. i was in doubt. i didn't want to believe it. i was in better shape than last year. there was no way it took me almost ten minutes longer. last year i did it in 29 mins and some change. this year was 38 mins and some change. aagghhh! oh well. i had killed my quads  and paid the price in the time. i later looked at the results online and saw that i was in the 16th percent. last year i was in 20% of the finishers. did i get faster or did the field get slower? more it turns out. the course was harder and times were slower from the previous year. last years best time was 15:09. yes. 5:03 m/m. amazing. he was 36 and beat the next time by more than two minutes.

the day was done. i had my beer and relaxed. my friend was freaking out that there was no cell signal and couldn't reach her daughter. so i decided we should just leave. i had wanted to run it again for fun instead of trying to beat my time. which i failed. i was burnt though. i knew huger would kick in, it always does. so we left to get some lunch.

i will be signing up again next year. they already have the dates and times posted. the sooner you sign up the cheaper it is. it's not cheap but it is a blast. if you're undecided, just watch this video. i'm not in it but this guy ran the same course. he has the best video out of Oregon. he cut quite a bit but you get a good feel of how it is. i would also watch his video of Washington WD. enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQXtIn0ySXc&feature=youtu.be

Reno

ok so i've been in reno for almost a week now. i haven't written anything since i left portland so this will just be some ramblings about my trip and may include a post about the Mayweather fight or it could get it's own post.

i said in my last post how i got some In n Out when i drove by. if that wasn't clear, i did. no way i could pass up that greasy goodness. it's been some two years since i've eaten there. paleo diet be damned. i had to have a double meat with some fries and it was good.

i had a four by four meat the day after with some fries. i think that was my first one ever and it was good. you poor people who've never had In n Out, get some if you can. better than any other fast food burger chain. i had a double meat again yesterday and now i'm thinking i may have to have one for breakfast to start my trip tomorrow.

so my first day in reno all i did was eat and sleep. the heat was a bit too much coming from my climate. i read everyone on FB complaining about rain. haha. sunny n hot here. next day i was able to take the dogs for a run. all i really did here was walk the dogs and drive my younger niece to school. the older one got rear ended the day before i came down so all she did was sleep. poor girl didn't eat hardly anything until saturday.

ah saturday. talked my brother into going out with me. he wasn't too happy and was quite all night. don't know whats up with that but i just tried to enjoy the time instead of making a big deal about it. don't worry about what you can't change.

so we went to hotel atlantis to meet my sis-in-law's friend. my god she was very well endowed. even thought i met here for bfast the same day, she was wearing a sweater so she had the girls hidden. i did my best to not stare all night. of course being a guy you just fail at that no matter what. we gambled, i should say the girls gambled while my bro and i drank.

next we went to the peppermill. they have a club called edge. they wouldn't let me in with my huaraches on. told me no flip flops. i lifted my pant leg and said these aren't flip flops. guy says no sandals. i said i'm a tourist and don't have shoes. he says put on some boots. i tell him i'm indian and am not wearing cowboy clothes. he smiles and looks away as i say come on how about some native love. i just smiled and walked away. the other girl was ready to take me to walmart form some cheap shoes until she said cover charge was $20. forget that noise.

off we went to downtown with another new girl in tow who's even shorter and nearly as well endowed as the other. wow i'm terrible. i can't remember the name of the place we went! i know it starts with an e and that's all i can recall at the moment. i know it's attached to circus circus and some place else. was cool in there. younger people walking around.

we were about to go into some club there but all went to eat instead. of course the server says he didn't hear me say no cheese on my burger so i had to wait even longer to eat. then i disgusted everyone by eating everything. after food i'm ready for bed. so we went home.

not too much of a highlight for a long awaited night out. i'm just not as energetic as i used to be.

i guess i can talk about the fight. i was trying to get my brother to go out and watch the fight but of course he didn't get ready until it already started. i had a feeling that would happen so i found a free live stream of it. i caught it from the second round. Mayweather was being his elusive self.

to the controversial and final fourth round. by the way, i used to be quite the boxing aficionado. unfortunately i no longer have cable and work every weekend so i can't follow fights like i used to. when i say fights i mean boxing. the sweet science, not the mma street fighting crap. i want to watch guys stand there and play physical chess, not wrestle and submit. that is boring to me. i have watched very few mma fights and even fewer have been worthy of watching. you can say the same thing with boxing but at least they will be on their feet and can have points deducted for being inactive.

so in the fourth Ortiz got some shots on pbf and backed him into the corner. once he couldn't hit him again he tried to blatantly head but him. the whole crowd saw him and booed him for it. he knew he was wrong so he gave pbf a hug and was apologetic. if i was floyd i wouldn't hug after such a blatant fowl. accidents happen that was beyond a cheap shot.

joe cortez, the ref, deducted a point for the head but. he told them to box and ortiz went to pbf, pretty boy floyd, for another hug and apology. pbf did it again, like i said, i wouldn't have. when ortiz backed away from the hug he took his eyes off of floyd and his hands were down so floydortiz got what he deserved and he knows it. people who say floyd took a cheap shot don't know shit about boxing. the first rule a ref tells the fighters is to protect yourself at all times. he told them to box and ortiz wasn't paying attention when floyd hit him. had it been me i may have lost my composure and fouled him back. good thing for floyd he didn't. he just got even by keeping his composure and knocking ortiz out.

Reno trip

once again plans change last minute and on the road. my step dad didn't drive down with me like he was supposed to. i woke up at 3am anyhow, when he was supposed to be at my place, and started getting ready. took just over two hours to pack up, make lunch, shower, and go. dropped off Mury at a friends after getting some gas and i was gone.

i beat all the morning traffic out of portland and salem, even eugene. i still drove fast as i wasn't able to get through to orange torpedo rafting co. and let them know i was coming down from portland. i had my sister-in-law look up the number for the office in Merlin and call them. they called me back right away as she told them i was lost. they said i would make it in time by 9:30am and not to worry. i thought they left by then so pressure was off.

i made it and went rafting with two women who were, let's be polite and say more than just friends. don't expect me to always be politically correct. one talked to me while rafting and the other didn't. when it was over they were gone. it was a fun trip and the guide was funny. young guy who's name i can't remember now. he lived in germany for a year and mm, wow, somewhere in the middle east.

it was fun to go rafting but was definitely better in the beginning of summer when the water level was higher. also found out when we finished that they were using smaller kayaks but switched to bigger ones because people kept falling out. pshh. wish i would've known that before hand as i had a lot more fun in the smaller one. i hit a wave and rolled into it like your supposed to. impressed the guide that i did it right and didn't get knocked out of the kayak.

after that was done i took a nap down the freeway. after a lovely four hour drive in the morning to go rafting it took me another six hours to get to reno. best thing was is that there's an In n Out burger two exits from my brothers place. yum. no other fast food burger can even come close.

call me mr no plans

ask me what i'm doing this weekend and the answer is always the same. i'm going to work. the only time i make plans is if someone else makes them and i agree to them.

for instance take now. i mean right now. i've known for months that i had until september 15th to use this groupon i bought for white water rafting in Medford and i didn't decide to go until today. scratch that. i had decided a long time ago to go this past sunday until i loaned out some money. i know, don't loan it out right? not always easy when it's family. i almost always have money, not a lot but some.

so i called the place tonight to reserve a trip and they didn't answer. i left a message and they didn't call back. i called again and this is all during business hours, no answer. great. i'm just getting up about 4am and going. oh, so my step father needs to go to Reno as well so we'll be driving together. at least following each to medford where he will wait for me while i go rafting, hopefully. once finished the plan is to drive straight to reno.

see why i never make plans? life. things always happen to screw them up so i try not to plan for too much or too far in advance. i planned this out in june to go alone so i could go hike crater lake, raft, then go to reno to visit my brother and his family. one thing after another and here i am making last minute plans to go.

i was going to drive down to crater lake and hike around. get to see a true natural beauty. then i would camp somewhere and go rafting the next morning. once done rafting i was going to camp again or go to reno. my plans are always broad so that i can adapt to anything that comes up.

why did i wait until now? school. i bought three groupons for me and my girls to go rafting. my oldest said right away she didn't want to go. that changed when i told her my niece was coming along. good. now problem. i couldn't go while i was in school and when i finished the girls were still in. i signed up for summer school, a condensed course of physics, smart i know. with only a week off i had to go in that time. my girls wouldn't go because those were the last days of their school and they didn't want to miss out on the big party the school was planning. great.

now that i finished summer school i had to wait until i did the warrior dash. don't worry, race report will be posted in a few days. did that and like i said, i loaned out money. i do have a little bit of money on me but the problem is i don't know how i will pay for school next term. so far i've been denied by financial aid because i passed the credit limit allowed at school. i have appealed but that takes a month.

i almost made the trip last night but i was a bit tired to do anything. i went for a run today and felt great. minus my hip. i then went to pilates, worried that i wouldn't have enough time to pack if i did leave. i'm glad i went because it woke me up and i feel great from it. it's quite a work out if you've never done it. i do recommend it. so i get home and have the idea of borrowing a friends tent who lives out by my mom. good because i could get my oil changed there. new problem. i eat dinner and get tired. ugh. jiffy lube has already closed so i'll be getting the oil changed on the road sometime tomorrow.

fine. i call my sister-in-law and she tells me my niece is fine. i'm like what do you mean? oh, she was in a car accident and the car got totaled. poor girl. two years of driving and two accidents of being hit from behind by idiots who weren't paying attention that the car in front of them was at a complete stop! this time the car is totaled and she is in a lot of pain. so in comes the step father who will be driving down his spare truck to my brother because they need an extra car to get around.

great stuff right? maybe you can see why i've started this blog now? it's a way to complain and anyone can just move on instead of telling me to shut up. at least this way i won't know you're ignoring me.

i'm always late

is this from being raised by a mexican mother and puerto rican father? i can remember always being late for everything. being late is normal to me. i don't like to show up early and wait. in my family it's pretty expected to show up late. at my cousin's wedding a few weeks ago she told everyone it started at 4pm. people were still showing up close to 5pm, when the wedding got started.

here i am some what late, five years after blogging becomes popular i decide to start my own. i don't even know how long ago it became popular so please don't blast me on that to the one person who may read this.

if it wasn't for the bus system when i went to school, i would've been late all the time. i think the only reason i was on time when i started driving was i don't like to be in trouble. detention is no fun. i am on time to my classes now that i'm back in school some 20 years removed. i don't like interrupting. i tend to be considerate but do still wind up late once in a while.

i tried going to school out of high school but had no clue on what to do and no desire to do well. so after floating around and seeing myself with no savings or anything to pass on to my daughter. here i am later in life going back to school so that i can help set her up with a better life than i was able to take advantage of. life is a journey and i will continue on.