100 Miles at 180 Pounds

My "Doing Stupid Things While 20 Pounds Overweight" Tour continued with the Solvang Century, only one week after the LA Marathon debacle. The first 20 miles went great. I even joined a pack with some serious cyclists that was averaging 25 mph through some rolling hills. Nevermind that I was at my anabolic threshold within the first hour of a 6-plus hour ride. It felt good. Until my buddy Aaron dropped me at mile 35. And until my legs totally blew up at mile 60. I was ready to get in the sag van at mile 70 when an old dude on a recumbant bike exhorted me to finish. "Son, I'm 72 years old. I'm going to finish this ride, and so are you." Embarrassed, I coasted my way towards the finish. I hope that I'm inspiring 30-year olds when I'm 72.

My new friends Drew and Whittney and I went to Bacara resort and spa in Santa Barbara for post-race recovery massages. I learned something about myself: I enjoy a good spa treatment.

All smiles at mile 20

Fresh from our sports recovery massages at Bacara Spa

More pictures from the Solvang Century weekend with Drew, Whittney, Aaron and Annabelle here.

26 Miles at 180 Pounds

My New Year's resolution was so simple: lose 15 pounds by March 4, 2007. I've lost that much weight in as little as 40 days. But that was before I turned 30. It seems that on my 30th birthday, my metabolism came to a halt. So March 4th came, with me weighing 180 pounds. A full 20 pounds heavier than when I first did the Los Angeles Marathon three years ago.

I was worried at the start. I didn't train properly. I really ate a lot of crappy food over the past three months. But for some reason, I got to the starting line in Universal City very confident. I would hold back, and aim for a modest time of four hours, thirty-five minutes, meaning that I would have to average exactly 10:30/mile. A snail's pace.

Miles 1-16 were awesome. Best I'd ever felt in a marathon. Maintaining 10:30 was a walk in the park. Then at mile 17, I noticed my heart rate was reaching critical. I don't know why I didn't realize it earlier. Maybe it was the cockiness that comes with running a course that's mostly downhill for the first 16 miles. Maybe it was the ideal running weather, which coincidentally disappeared at mile 16.

At any rate, I struggled to stay on pace.

Then came mile 18.

Body shutting down. Must . . . have water. Start walking. Oh look, there are Dad and brother. They have cameras. Must . . . run . . . for . . . picture!

I walked the next three miles, then did my best impression of the ghouls in "Thriller" to try to run/shuffle my way to a sub-five-hour marathon. To no avail. Official time: 5:02:49.

Damned extra 15 pounds. I was so depressed after the run that I drowned my sorrows in Tecate and Mexican food in Boyle Heights. Drunk and full, I resolved to lose 15 pounds by August 4, the date of the Vineman Triathlon. Who's taking bets?

Check out the pictures my dad and brother took here.

Recognize this guy?

Tour of California - Part II

The Second Annual Tour of California Healthcare Lawyers Viewing Party took place in Long Beach.

As you probably know, the "Cuban Missile" from Toyota United won the stage and Levi Leipheimer of Discovery won the race.

Here are some pics.

Discovery leading the pack:


The peloton:



Recognize this bike?



Here's a closer look:



That's right. It's the world champion's TT bike.

More to come.

I Got Schooled

Benjamin runs the same 10-mile route through Culver City every Saturday morning. I had to work all day today, so I thought a morning jog with him would be a nice and not-so-streneous way to start the day. It was supposed to be a piece of cake. In our last race together, the olympic-distance 2006 Ventura Breath of Life Triathlon, I beat him by a good 18 minutes, a full seven of those minutes were gained over the 10k run. During last year's Wildflower half-iron distance triathlon, my half marathon was 10 minutes faster than his.

But I didn't count on two things: 1) Fernando decided to run with us, and 2) Benjamin has been running twice as much as I have. And he got pretty fast.

I was a little worried when my heart rate soared over 160 in the first mile, but I figured that if Benjamin could keep Fernando's pace, so could I. It was a very annoying whenever we each called out our heart rates, and Fernando's was consistently 10 bpm slower than mine. Right up until mile 6, however, I had no problem holding pace. At that point, I made the mistake of reminding Benjamin that I beat Fernando to the top of Mandeville canyon on a bike ride a few weeks ago. Actually, my mistake was speaking loud enough for Fernando to hear, because he immediately gapped us.

But a funny thing happened at mile 7--I started feeling good! I closed the gap to Fernando, and on a short downhill, I shot right past him. For about 5 minutes I really thought that I was going to be the first to the end of the run. I was feeling so euphoric when I realized that Fernando wasn't making up ground that I didn't take heed of my heart rate monitor screaming at me to slow down. I stopped looking at it. I didn't want to be reminded that I wouldn't be able to sustain 90% of my maximum heart rate for more than a few minutes.

To make a long story short, the wheels flew off the wagon when Fernando effortlessly passed me. I couldn't even think about keeping up. By the time Benjamin caught up, my body wanted to shut down. But good 'ol Benjamin was nice enough to keep me company. We ran together as he scolded me about challenging the machine known as Fernando. Then at mile 9, he dropped me.

I now know that it was a conspiracy. Fernando drew first blood. Benjamin finished me off. Thanks a lot guys.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My heart-rate chart tells the entire story. I was in over my head from the get-go:


I'm actually proud to say that this was the fastest 10-mile run of my life--I averaged a 9:02 mile. Yeah, I know. I have a long way to go to reach my goal of a sub two-hour half marathon.


-Arnold

Midnight Ridazz, Ride On!

I always look forward to the second Friday of the month, because that's when my favorite party rages. Like any other party, there is loud music, blinking lights, and plenty of drunk people. Unlike any other party, this one is on wheels. Midnight Ridazz yo!

Last night's ride was themed the UFO ride, and people showed up wearing space helmets and masks. There were a couple Elliots with their trusty E.T.s as well. It was a nice leisurely 16-mile ride through Pasadena and around the Rose Bowl. There were a few challenging hills, and some fast descents. It was a bit scary going downhill at 35 mph in pitch dark and with hundreds of bikers around, many piss-drunk. And it got more than a little cold.

There's nothing like getting in a nice workout at midnight on a Friday. It makes the end-of-ride Tommy's chili burgers all the more satisfying.




Click here for more pictures from the ride.

More GPS Fun

Being the über-geek that I am, I took my Garmin 305 GPS wrist watch with me to Mammoth this weekend so that I could track where I went with my snowboard. Just looking at this map makes me miss the mountain.

Saturday was a very long day. I woke up at 2 a.m. to meet my cousins in Pomona. We got to Mammoth around 9, played for about 6 hours, then drove back. It was a punishing experience encompassing over 10 hours of driving in a single day, but it was well worth it. The coverage at the resort was very poor--there were lots of exposed rocks on the bowls that I love so much. But even on a bad day, Mammoth is my favorite place in California.

-Arnold

New Years Day Run

The second annual New Years Day invitational was successfully held this morning. Participation was up a whopping 100% over last year as I was joined by Fernando.

It was cold at the start, with temperatures around 40-41. To be honest Fernando looked pretty bad when I arrived. He told me that he had been at a party the night before and didn't get home until 4:30. He had also had a bunch of beer, which is not known as good way to carbo load. I thought, who knows? Maybe I'll be able to take him for a change. Of course, it was not to be.

I had measured the course via Google earth and Fernando and I both had GPS units (my Garmin and his Timex). I don't know why but mine went haywire right after we started. It started clicking off miles every minute or so and it ultimately said we had run over 30 miles. Not too shabby.

In any event, we ran from the Jefferson overpass to the bridge at the end of the causeway and back. According to Google, that's exactly 13.1 miles. My Garmin gave me a total time of 2:03:34, which translates to 9:25/mile. Of course, Fernando pulled away from me in the final mile and finished about a minute ahead. I'm not sure what I have to do to beat that guy. Whatever.

Considering that last year was 2:10:39, or 9:57/mile, I guess I met my goal. Maybe next year I'll break 2:00.

Benjamin

The race heats up!

2007 Ford Ironman 70.3 California Entry Fee
Fernando Hernandez	$210.00

T-Shirt Size	Large
One Day USAT Insurance	yes - $10.00
USAT Membership Number
Emergency Contact	Yuman
Emergency Contact Phone	323 290 2235
Occupation
Please list any other significant medical information:
List any past half or full Ironman events in which you have participated:
Will California Half Ironman be your first Triathlon at this distance?	yes
Personal Insurance Carrier	Kaiser
Policy Number
Company
Race Classification	Age Group For Awards and AG Kona Slots
Have you ever dropped out during a race for medical reasons?	No
Age Division	M 35-39

That's right. Mr. Hernandez is in - competing for awards and Kona slots.

GPS

I take my Garmin with me on business trips. I'm trying to collect routes from all over. Here are some from the last year. Click on them to see the maps at a decent magnification.

1) Legendary Central Park. It was nice, but I'd go crazy if that was the only place around to run. I don't know how NY'ers do it.



2) West Palm Beach. Eerily deserted last week. And the ocean was on the wrong side.



3) Chicago. Very cool. Lots of tri folks out swimming along the edge of the lake. Mile markers and everything. Really very nice.



4) Washington D.C. If not for the idjit living there, running near the Whitehouse would be nice. Too humid though.



5) The famous Beverly Hills High School. Not very far away but it is a different city.



6) Dallas, Texas. A pit. Hot, ugly, and boring.



7) Orlando, Florida. A city that's just a huge strip mall.



8) Philadelphia, PA. Right past the Rocky steps. Pretty nice.



9) San Francisco. I love that city. I'd gladly move there.



Happy New Year everyone.

B.