Ah Hell...I Forgot to Give this a Title

Golly...I'm prolific this week! Must be Spring Break :-)

Back to running news. This morning, we (Betty, Elsie, Mik, BBJ, Santiago, and I) ran the SDTC's Low Tide Run. We ran from La Jolla Shores, up the part of Torrey Pines State Beach that is nearly impossible to get to, then up Torrey Pines and back down to La Jolla. Check out this elevation!

Both Lisa, who is running the La Jolla 1/2 and Irene have written about running the hill this week. It's daunting hill to run, and probably because I haven't run all week, I was pretty nervous about it. I wanted to do well, because this week's run mimics the most difficult part of the La Jolla 1/2.


I'm thrilled to say, it wasn't fast, and it wasn't pretty...but I did it. I ran the whole hill (I kept thinking Lisa did this. I can do it. Lisa did this. I can do this. Of course, Lisa would be just kicking my ass in her relative sprint up the hill right now, but I can do it.)

Last year for this run, it was about 80 degrees by 8am, and I was MIS-ER-A-BLE! This morning, it was about 50 degrees, and even though I broke a pretty serious sweat climbing over the rocks to get to the state park, and by the time I hit the cliffs, I was WAAAAAAY overdressed, it was WAAAAAAY better to be running in 50º, overcast weather, than unseasonably warm weather...I hope the cool weather holds for two more weeks, but I'm not optimistic about that.

Mik and Betty hovering in the car before the run because it too cold to be outside of the car.

Elsie, in the oh-so-fashionable garbage bag/warm up gear. I swear she's been a menace with lost clothing articles lately.

The run starts off at Kellogg Park (known to locals as simply La Jolla Shores). We run up the beach and if the tide is REALLY LOW, you can continue to run up the beach, but this morning, the tide wasn't REALLY LOW, and it was actually coming in, so like last year, we ended up walking over the rocks, close to the cliffs (Betty kept calling it "bouldering" which makes me giggle)

So, even though it was pretty cold on the shores, against the cliffs, it was pretty warm.

The run on the beach is one of the most amazingly beautiful things. Like I said, we run along the Torrey Pines Cliffs. It's really difficult to get to. In fact, San Diego's nude beach (Blacks Beach) is located here (nobody was nude sunbathing at 7:00 this morning...because I know you were wondering). But here's what we did see.

1. A dead seagull
2. A seal
3. A jellyfish

4. Beached whale - sad, but UNBELIEVABLY SMELLY.

In the future, when I want to REALLY insult someone, I'm going to call them a rotting beached whale. I'll know how AMAZINGLY bad that is...

Some other shots from the beach portion of the run. (My pix really don't do the beauty of the place justice...)

This is what happens when you take pictures while running...It seemed like such a good idea at the time...

Betty and I with the cliffs in the background...do you recognize the glasses? Nike sent me a new pair HOORAY!

Betty and me with the surf in the background!

So...the first 1/2 of the run went really well. Foot and hip felt fine. Certainly running on the sand, even the hard sand, helped this.

Running up Torrey Pines went well (if slow). Then we ran about 3 miles on a relatively flat, slightly downhill Torrey Pines Road. I still felt pretty good. I stopped at each water station and stretched for a bit...which slowed my overall time a fair amount, but I am able to walk tonight, so that's a good thing, right?

I also want to tout the amazingness of Gu Roctaine...that stuff ROCKS! I took one before I started the hill, and I think that's part of the reason I felt so good for the whole rest of the run. Usually when I run for 2+ hours I'll go through at least 2 Gu...I never felt a need for a second one. I like that. Each of those puppies is 100 calories, and I know I need the calories when I'm running, but I'm also getting calories from the Vitalite at the water stations. It kills me to be consuming calories on something that isn't...oh, PIE or BREAD or something really yummy, like a mimosa, or wine...I will be using it again...

But I digress a bit...back to some other fun run photos.

Down the hill - Betty at Water Station 3

BBJ and Santiago caught up with us (of course, they ran 14+ miles to our 11) LOOK! Santiago is SMILING! (of course, maybe that is because I was yelling at him to "SMILE FOR THE CAMERA!" He enjoyed that...)

Then, came the roughest part of the run...the last downhill mile to La Jolla Shores...It is a brutally steep downhill. I tried to run it really slowly, but with every step, I just felt like I could feel all of my weight on my achilles and knees. This will be the toughest part of the La Jolla 1/2 in two weeks...mostly because it will still be followed by two more miles and one smaller climb.

Another blurry shot of us running down the hill...the blur in front of me is Betty. Yeah, another incredibly blurry running shot. I'm a photo genius, aren't I?

The crew...after the run (all at once!)

After the run...back to World Famous for some well-deserved mimosas and breakfast. You won't be surprised to know that by the time I came home, got in the spa, took a shower...it was NAP TIME.

I have so much to get ready for school on Monday, it isn't even funny...where did my spring break go?