2008 Venice Christmas Run Slideshow

Venice Beach XMAS Run

Xmas Run

Tanya and I has a great run Saturday at the Venice beach Xmas run. We both PR'ed at the 10K distance.
Tanya ran a 47:10 at 7:37 pace and placed 5th in her age, I ran a 47:56 at 7:44 pace and placed 37th in my age group. I will write a report and post photos later.

Ultras a easier than 10K's, you have to run to fast in 10K's.

MJ

Christmas Run: Venice Beach

Tomorrow morning Tanya and I will be heading to Venice Beach to run the Christmas run 10K. It should be a fun event, we have run this event a few times in the past, and it draws a large crowd. Because of the location, the speedsters come out from UCLA, USC, and the Santa Monica Track Club. They are out of my league, but I plan on putting forward a good effort tomorrow. My goal is to run under 50 minutes. I think my 10K PR is 54 mins.
MJ

High Desert Ultra: Report and Videos

Tanya and I decided to get up early and drive to Ridgecrest the day of the race. That meant leaving home at 4:30am, the drive is 2 hours and the race start time was 7:00am. The drive was nice, and we made it there without incident at 6:30am. I ran into race headquarters and picked up our bibs and goodie bags. The weather was very cool, so we had to decide how many layers to wear, but we didn't want to over dress. There is nothing worse than carrying to much stuff; but it is also no fun when you are under dressed and it is freezing!



Just before the start we saw so many friends, this race brings everyone out. Depending on how you look at it, this is a great race to either end your race season, or mark the beginning. Tanya and I decided to really start out easy, our goal was to average 5 miles each hour, then try to run a negative split on the second half of the race. Breaking six hours was the ultimate goal for today.


Tanya and Dorsh



The miles where just rolling by, it was such and incredible day. The desert is such a beautiful place, you can see for miles and miles. The mountains in the distance are the beginning of the High Sierra's. The weather was cool the skies were over cast, just perfect for trail running.




It just doesn't get much better than this, some people run for speed, some for competition, some for enjoyment. At times I run for all of those things, but this day I was running for enjoyment. No pressure, just me, Tanya, trails shoes and this beautiful desert.



20 miles down and 10+ to go. The Temps began dropping at this point, and rain was threatening. Nothing worse than being cold and wet (Ugh). Luckily we made it to the finish before the skies opened up!



One of the rare occasions I finish before Tanya, I just had a little more in those last five miles. We both finished under the 6 hour mark so we are pleased with that. The High Desert Ultra is a great race when stepping up to the Ultra distance; no mountains to climb, and the people are great!
Finishing times: 5:45 (Marc) 5:50 (Tanya)2009 here we come!
MJ

Vegan Thanksgiving and plenty of Running

Tanya and I had considered running a local Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning, but decided to pass and go on our own trot. We did an up tempo 5 miles on local trails. Where we ran can be a very busy place, but I was pleasantly surprised we had the trail almost to ourselves. Being thanksgiving morning I found that a bit odd, I thought it would be packed with people trying to burn extra calories for all the over eating that would be happening later that afternoon. I have to say that thought was on my mind; I knew I was going to most likely over eat.

Eat well we did ! Our Vegan Thanksgiving dishes were a hit! I just wish I had taken pictures to share with you all. We made a Mushroom and Collard Green Lasagna, the large dish was wiped completely clean and the guests were looking for more. This was our the first time making this dish, we anticipated it being good, but it turned out great.

And for dessert a Double Layer Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake I borrowed the recipe and the picture below from fatfreevegan.com and I loved it. In my family we traditionally make sweet potato pies for the holidays, but I was pleasantly surprised on how this pie turned out and it also disappeared very quickly. I guess I could substitute the pumpkin with Sweet potatoes (yams).

And what goes great with pie? Ice Cream, we tried Coconut Bliss for the first time. It was "Off the Hook"! Coconut Bliss is a vegan ice cream made from organic coconut milk, and it was worth the high price tag! Good Stuff!

On Friday Tanya and I woke up early and hit the trails again, and what a beautiful morning it was. The skies were clear and there was a cool crispiness in the air. Prefect to put in a few miles. We decided to power walk 10 miles and just enjoy the morning. Often in ultra events because of a long steep climb, or you are just broken down you have to walk. There is no better way to train for those times than to get out and focus on walking.

On Saturday we met and ran with fellow blogger/runner Pamela. Pamela was in town from Jacksonville Fl, so we decided to meet at the Santa Monica stairs, and then share a few miles together. I can speak for Tanya and I both, Pamela was a breath of fresh air, we connected immediately. She was down to earth and easy to talk to. After walking the stairs 5 times we headed down the beach and ended up doing an easy 6. We talked and talked the entire way. Pamela is running the Jacksonville Marathon in a few weeks, she is going to do great!

Sunday it was back to the trails. We ran 10 easy miles. I must say I am feeling pretty good. The aches I had been experiences are fading. I was curious to see how my body respond from the back to back days, but I felt great. We plan on having a easy week of training to be ready to run the High desert ultra next Sunday.

We hope everyone had an enjoyable Thanksgiving weekend; we sure did and meeting Pamela was the best part!

Happy Trails,

Marc and Tanya