It all started a year ago when I ran the 2012 San Francisco Marathon. I missed a turn on the course and ended up having to back track to make up the mileage I accidentally skipped. I vowed that I would come back in 2013 so that I could run the correct course with no mistakes. A bonus was that my friend Tony was going to be completing his 100th marathon at San Francisco, so I'd be there for that as well.
Another race that had been on my radar for a couple years was the Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon. The Seattle Marathon (different than Rock 'n' Roll Seattle) was my first ever marathon, so the city has some sentimental value to me. Seattle is also home to some very dear college friends that I had been hoping to visit in the not so distance future. When I found out that my running friends Jenny and Carrie were making plans to run Rock 'n' Roll Seattle this year, I knew that 2013 was the year to finally run it.
One problem though...traditionally, the San Francisco Marathon is in July. However due to conflicts with the America's Cup, it was moved to June for 2013 only....one week before Rock 'n' Roll Seattle. This created a bit of a dilemma because being a Midwesterner, trips to the west coast are not easy and making two on two consecutive weekends would be prohibitive...unless I made it one big running trip!
...and that's exactly what I did.
Once it was decided to spend an entire week on the west coast, other races soon got added to the schedule...3 additional races to be exact. The first being Brazen Racing's Trailquake trail race on Saturday. If you ever have an opportunity to do a Brazen Race, I highly recommend it. This is the second Brazen race I'd done and both times, they were great experiences. They're a top notch race company, providing medals for all distances and an all-you-can-eat buffet at the finish. Trailquake had 5k, 10k, and half marathon options and I'm thankful that Tony, our friend Jennifer, and I decided to register for "just" the 5k. This 5k was no joke, it was a mile and a half up the San Andreas Trail, gaining approximately 775 feet in elevation before turning around and going back down the trail to the finish. It was definitely a workout, more of a hike than a run, but a good warm up for the San Francisco Marathon the next day.
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Jennifer, myself, and Tony before Brazen's Trailquake 5k (photo courtesy of Allen Lucas)
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| Tony with his bobblehead commemorating his 100th marathon |
On Monday morning was Tracy's Fat Ass. "Fat Ass" is a term used in running to describe small, low key races. The small, family atmosphere was a nice change after the large race the day before. My intention was to do the marathon distance that morning. This would be my second double (2 marathons in 2 days), so I was optimistic that it shouldn't be too bad. Tracy's course consisted of 4 large loops around Lake Merced in San Francisco followed by 2 smaller loops to equal 26.2 miles. Tony had decided to just do one loop around the lake and then volunteer for the rest of the day counting loops as runners came through. When I had finished my third loop and was heading out on my fourth, Tony joked that he had switched me from the marathon to the 50k division. At first I scoffed at the idea, but by the time I had finished the fourth loop, I had decided that I was indeed going to go for 50k.
Why would I decide to tack on another ~5 miles on my 3rd day of running? There were three reasons that I used to convince myself during that fourth loop:
After three days of running, it was nice that Tuesday was a rest day. We spent a quiet day doing some errands around San Francisco that needed to be done before we left on Wednesday to drive to Seattle. There were three of us on this epic road trip....Tony, our friend Christine, and myself. The drive was mostly uneventful, but when we stopped at the Oregon's Visitors Center for a bio break, we stumbled upon a unexpected find. A mini shrine to Prefontaine, the former Olympic runner from Oregon. After some pictures, we were back on our way to Seattle.
Once in Seattle, we had a couple days to do touristy stuff and meet up with both running and non-running friends. It was great spending time with my old college friend Tom and his wife, Cherie, and their daughter, Katie. Friday afternoon, the four of us decided to take a walk near the staging area for Saturday's race. I snapped a quick picture of Katie running, but it wasn't until after I had taken it that I noticed the backdrop that she was running past at the time. I think it would make a great publicity shot for the Rock 'n' Roll series, if I do say so myself:
Before I knew it, it was Saturday morning....race day. Christine, Jennifer, Jennifer's husband Mitchell, Jenny, and Carrie all ran the half while Tony and I ran the full. It was a warm day and my body was getting tired, so it wasn't my best race ever, but I got it done and met some great folks along the way.
It would have been great to hang out in Seattle for another night with our friends, but we weren't done running yet. As soon as the race was over, Christine, Tony, and I were on the road again. We headed to Eugene, Oregon for our last race of this epic road trip, the Grapes of Half half marathon. This was a new race that started and ended at wineries outside of Eugene. It was a fun race with only about 100 runners. The first half of the race went very well and, surprisingly, I was keeping a good pace, even thinking that a PR may be possible. However, those hopes went away during the second half which was considerably more hilly and by then, the 90+ miles on feet and legs were definitely starting to catch up with me. My pace slowed down considerably. Following the race, I was able to get a post race massage and we enjoyed some complimentary wine from the finish line winery before starting to return to Seattle.
When it was all said and done, in 9 days, I completed 100.1 miles in 5 races:
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| Following Tracy's Fat Ass...and 60.8 miles in 3 days |
- I had a 50 mile race on the schedule later in the summer and the additional mileage would be good training
- With the current plan for this vacation, I was going to be doing 94.8 miles. Upping to the 50k would bring me that much closer to a 100 mile vacation.
- I was currently on target for a 7+ hour marathon, but I never wanted to see another 7 hour marathon. A 9 hour 50k, on the other hand, was more acceptable to me at that point.
Yes, I realize that the only truly valid reason was #1, but at that point, #3 was the most important in my mind. So, when I finished my 4th loop and Tony told me I had two more to go, I surprised him by saying "I've done the math. I actually have 3 to go. I'm going for 50k!" I ended up finishing just over 50k with 31.5 miles, and a new 50k PR!
After three days of running, it was nice that Tuesday was a rest day. We spent a quiet day doing some errands around San Francisco that needed to be done before we left on Wednesday to drive to Seattle. There were three of us on this epic road trip....Tony, our friend Christine, and myself. The drive was mostly uneventful, but when we stopped at the Oregon's Visitors Center for a bio break, we stumbled upon a unexpected find. A mini shrine to Prefontaine, the former Olympic runner from Oregon. After some pictures, we were back on our way to Seattle.
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| The Epic Road Trip begins! Tony, Christine, and I heading to Seattle |
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| We were pleasantly surprised to see a Prefontaine display at the Oregon Visitors Center |
Once in Seattle, we had a couple days to do touristy stuff and meet up with both running and non-running friends. It was great spending time with my old college friend Tom and his wife, Cherie, and their daughter, Katie. Friday afternoon, the four of us decided to take a walk near the staging area for Saturday's race. I snapped a quick picture of Katie running, but it wasn't until after I had taken it that I noticed the backdrop that she was running past at the time. I think it would make a great publicity shot for the Rock 'n' Roll series, if I do say so myself:
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| Competitor (owners of the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon series) should really pay me for this photo! :) |
Before I knew it, it was Saturday morning....race day. Christine, Jennifer, Jennifer's husband Mitchell, Jenny, and Carrie all ran the half while Tony and I ran the full. It was a warm day and my body was getting tired, so it wasn't my best race ever, but I got it done and met some great folks along the way.
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| Fellow Double Agent (Half Fanatic & Marathon Maniac) Tyler, myself, and Tony after our Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon finish |
It would have been great to hang out in Seattle for another night with our friends, but we weren't done running yet. As soon as the race was over, Christine, Tony, and I were on the road again. We headed to Eugene, Oregon for our last race of this epic road trip, the Grapes of Half half marathon. This was a new race that started and ended at wineries outside of Eugene. It was a fun race with only about 100 runners. The first half of the race went very well and, surprisingly, I was keeping a good pace, even thinking that a PR may be possible. However, those hopes went away during the second half which was considerably more hilly and by then, the 90+ miles on feet and legs were definitely starting to catch up with me. My pace slowed down considerably. Following the race, I was able to get a post race massage and we enjoyed some complimentary wine from the finish line winery before starting to return to Seattle.
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| The bling from 5 races over 9 days. |
When it was all said and done, in 9 days, I completed 100.1 miles in 5 races:
- Brazen Trailquake 5k 1:14:52
- San Francisco Marathon 6:53:56
- Tracy's Racing Tracy's Fat Ass 50k (31.5 miles) 9:11:05
- Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon 6:55:21
- Pink Buffalo Racing's Grapes of Half - 3:34:03
I wasn't sure how my body would react to so many miles in such a short amount of time, but I'm happy to say I felt great when it was over. There was only one casualty from the trip. After Tony dropped me off at the airport, he was driving to return the rental car when one of the tires blew out. Thank goodness, it didn't happen while we were on the highway!
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| The only casualty of the epic road trip - blown tire a few blocks from the rental return |
Have you ever taken a running vacation? You know what they say "A vacation without a race is just poor planning!"
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