LA Marathon

A Day at the Expo
I took Friday off to pretty much spend the whole day at the expo. I originally wanted to take the Metro so I didn't have to deal with parking. But I decided to drive since we were going to eat dinner after everyone was done with the expo. I picked up my race packet and noticed that the layout was all wrong... typical inaugural event mistake. They setup the pickup lines where they crisscrossed each other. I noticed that my age was wrong on my bib when I went to pickup my shirt. Oh well, it's not like I'm going to place in my age group except for maybe DFL. The shirt design was crap. Less is more, but it looked like someone went crazy with their markers and then started sniffing the markers halfway through.

Ugh, $125 for this crap? Please give us a no-shirt option next time.

I bumped into Mitch. Then we went through all of the tents. I visited my favorite race booth, the Rock n' Roll booth. I talked to the same girl that signed me up for the Carlsbad all day 25k and finally got my free shirt. I later bumped into Louis and James. I swear I see the same people at all of my races.

My friend at the RunRacing Booth

I was hungry so I drove out to Little Tokyo for lunch at Sushi Go 55. Those Japanese are so in love with Hideki Matsui! I had their self proclaimed "best chirashi in town" which was a disappointment because I've had better. Next time I'll try another restaurant. I drove back to expo to finish visiting all of the booths.

Friends at the Worldvision booth

I said hi to Sarah Reinertsen and her mom.

I didn't buy too much stuff, just a new Phiten x50 necklace and a bracelet. I sampled some of that soy milk only because I was parched from the super nice warm weather. I bumped into Roccco while waiting to see if Kara would show up.

There was a tweet that said Kara was going to be there, but this was as close as I got to meeting her.

I got tired of waiting for Kara. Apparently she canceled. I went to listen to Rod Dixon a little bit. Then I hung out at the RunRacing booth with Danica. Later everybody started showing up... Lori, Billy, Ryan, Rachel, Ray, Johannes, and Jen. We then went to a nearby restaurant, Gingergrass, for dinner. Everything about the place was just okay. The company was good which was what mattered. A few of us stopped by the Red Lion Tavern afterward for some German drinks and extra grub. I love their schwarzbier... I guess it's fitting that my name is German.

Bo Sate w/Lori warming her fingers on the warm plate @ Gingergrass - It was okay... it looked better than it tasted.

Pre-race
I left the house at about 2:30am and got to the Civic Center parking lot with zero traffic. I was about the 5th car in the lot. I took a nap in the car listening to music on my shuffle. When it got closer to 4:30, I got ready and boarded the bus for Dodger Stadium. I saw a huge line of cars on the freeway trying to exit and was glad that I had arrived extra early. As a charity runner for WorldVision, I got to hang out in one of the suites which was really nice. They have really nice restrooms which always beats using the portapotties. We even got to see some of the elite athletes as they were walking to their suites. Andy Baldwin, who was also a WorldVision runner and of the Bachelor fame, gave us a little pep talk.

I ran into Jen in the starting area. We made our way to the 4:30 pace group where we waited and waited for the race to start. They announced that the race was delayed. My strategy for this marathon was to run at 30 minutes for every 5k.

1st Half
The first mile was congested. With chip timing, why do walkers insist on starting so far in the front? I wanted to start slow, but not that slow. It remained clogged until around mile 2. While jogging around Dodger Stadium, I ran into Jessica. The left knee was feeling wrong coming down the hill leaving Dodger Stadium. That's never happened before. It was nice having the taiko drums while running up a huge hill going up to mile 4. I ran a little with a barefoot runner. My day was finished at mile 7. They said that it was all downhill after the first 10k. I was completely demoralized when I saw another hill... only one of many more soul-sucking hills to come.
1: 11:01
2: 8:57
3: 8:23
4: 9:49
5: 9:40
6: 9:29
7: 10:09
8: 9:22
9: 9:57
10: 10:23
11: 10:04
12: 10:23
13: 12:26

2nd Half
The right hip was feeling weak. Saw Billy and Danica as we were approaching the mile 16 arch. I was not expecting to see them at all because they're in much better shape than I am. They pulled away from me at Rodeo Drive. I pulled over to an aid station at mile 16 to refill my bottle and I bumped into Rajan again. I did not like the steady incline through the VA Administration area. I took a potty break around mile 20. I saw things inside that portapotty that makes me thankful for being a guy and someone that does not get grossed out very easily. Somewhere around 22 and 23 my right pectoral muscle cramped up. Then it was my right butt cheek. That's the first time that's ever happened. Thank goodness for the Sunny D at around mile 24. I should've taken a second bottle. I walked most of the last 3 miles. After crossing mile 26, I saw Oksie walking near the side. I tried to get him to run it in with me, but he was hurting more than I was... so I hobbled across the finish line with both calves o' crampin'!
14: 10:51
15: 11:09
16: 12:13
17: 13:14
18: 14:36
19: 13:48
20: 15:50
21: 14:55
22: 17:09
23: 18:21 - hard to walk when your right butt cheek cramped up!
24: 14:15
25: 14:08
26: 14:58
26.2: 2:26
Finish: 5:18:07

Post-race
That was one big beat-down by the LA Marathon. It was literally a pain in the butt experience. This was my 7th consecutive LA Marathon. With the exception of last year's race, I have always done my worst at LA. It was a combination of hills and warm weather that did me in this year. I did not carry enough fuel. My body was already banged up and it was just extra tiring to run 26.2 miles in the super nice Southern California weather. It was very hard getting down to the pier and the post-race celebration area. I didn't bother visiting any booths or anything and just made a beeline for the gear check trucks. I got my stuff and made my way back to my car. Then I escaped the traffic madness on the freeway by taking a bunch of surface streets to get to Santouka in Mar Vista for my post race ramen.

When Life Throws You Lemons

Why?
It has been asked, "why do you run so many marathons despite nagging little injuries?" Well running is a great way to clear my head. In a spiritual sense, you feel a sense of connection with God. But the main reason why I do it so often is that I'm trying to combine my passion for running with charity work. I like to raise money for charities. I first started with Team in Training... yes, those purple people running all over the place at the marathon. Then I spent most of 2009 promoting WorldVision in their quest to bring clean drinking water to the people of Africa. At the suggestion from a good friend of mine, I recently have taken a more personal approach to the fund-raising aspect of my marathon running. As a brother to someone that's autistic, it really sucks to be affected by autism. He's got the body of a 33 year old, but has a mental age of about 5. I'd like to support organizations that are helping to find a cure or improve the quality of life for someone with autism. Autism not only affects the person with it but the rest of the family as well. I've sacrificed most of my own dreams and life's ambitions to help my parents out in taking care of him. Actually it's helping out my mom. In the Asian culture, the father typically has a hands-off approach to raising children. It is the duty belonging to the mother. I still live with them, but there are times when I just want to move out. When you're always there and always dependable, it is inevitable that people start taking you for granted. That's just human nature.

When Life Throws You Lemons
My friend Sam, the father of an autistic child, is running 60 marathons this year to raise awareness for Train4Autism. Here's his website: Operation Jack. This year, I'm running most of my marathons in support of Operation Jack. If Sam is running in the marathon that I'm in then I'll be wearing my Operation Jack or Train4Autism shirt. If you're looking to support a great cause, please consider Operation Jack.

EAS Myoplex - Chocolate Cream

It seems like it's been a while since I had to chance to run for more than 6 miles during a training run.

3/13 Saturday - I went out for a semi-long run. The course was one of my usual routes around where I live. It was a rather hilly course, approximately 11.6 miles. It was a cool 50 degrees when I started, but it warmed up near the finish. After about 8 miles, the right ankle felt wrong. The hip was no good either. It only felt better if I slowed down or when I was running uphill. One good thing was that the Achilles tendon was no longer an issue. Other than the hip and ankle discomfort, it felt great to be out running. I finished the run in 1:52:13 which comes out to be about a 9:40 pace.

Just as a precaution, I'm not going to run at all leading up to the LA Marathon. Originally I wanted to finish LA in about 4:30, but that's not looking too good. Still, I'm really excited to be running the LA Marathon again! It'll be my 7th consecutive LA Marathon. I love LA!

Product Review - EAS Myoplex
After my run, I drank a free bottle that I got from one of my races. It tasted mighty good. They claim that it helps your body not waste a workout. I loved the taste, but that's the same with regular chocolate milk. I'm pretty sure the latter is cheaper. While I won't hesitate to take a free sample, I will not invest in this EAS product. Chocolate milk or Ovaltine would be fine with me.

Malibu Creek volunteer recap

Volunteering at Malibu Creek Trail Run
I arrived at Malibu Creek around 6:45am. I parked on Mulholland and jogged over to the park. I wanted to run a little bit just to get the legs moving again. For the race, I was stationed at the Corral Canyon aid station (approx. 8 miles in) until 12pm. I had to sub as the gate attendant and collect the parking fee for about 10 minutes. Then I hung around the starting area to watch the start before heading over to my post. It was good seeing Danica there even though she doesn't know that she loves running trail races yet. Sorry I didn't get a picture of your zebra boots. :)

Danica working the 10k registration

The 25k/50k start at 8:30am

Corral Canyon Aid Station
As soon as they took off, I jogged back to my car and drove up to the aid station. It was a fun windy drive. I helped Marissa setup the aid station tent and table. We set out lots of salty goodies for the runners. It was really nice that the rain held up for the entire time. The area was a little muddy but it could've been worse. It was fun manning the aid station with Marissa. We traded some "war" stories whenever there was a lull. Volunteering for a road race is definitely easier, but providing aid to trail runners is just plain awesome! Runners that go off-road definitely are a different breed.

Here comes Billy!

I had a bottle of Pepsi ready for him so he wouldn't get lost.

Shacky and his Vibram five fingers

The amazing Yolanda!

Pho Show!
As soon as my shift was over, I drove back down to the start/finish area to meet up with my friends. Rachel ended up volunteering instead of running because her Achilles was bothering her. Smart girl. We waited to see the winner of the 50k. The guy broke the course record. His name is Evan, he also won the Sycamore Canyon 50k last year. He's definitely a very fast runner. He won despite being unable to train due to injury and not in prime shape.

We all drove over to Pho Show on Sepulveda near Culver to eat our pho. I had a small bowl since I didn't run a race today. Two years in a row. Looks like this is becoming an annual tradition. Next year, I'll be sure to run a 50k... but if I'm hurt, I'll be volunteering again that's for sure! ;)

Rock n Roll New Orleans Mardi Gras Marathon

Traveling to New Orleans
I caught a 1am flight out of LAX on Saturday to save a few bucks on hotel costs. I barely slept a wink on the flight. My connecting flight was in DFW where I got to eat breakfast at McDonald's, which I have not done in a long time. The last time I could remember doing so was when I was taking a few classes at PCC in preparation for submitting my applications to Optometry schools. I landed in New Orleans around 9am and looked for the bus that would take me into downtown. It was a nice and easy ride for $1.50 but on weekends they only take you up to Carrollton Ave. When I got off the bus, I should've walked straight and catch the 39 Tulane bus, but I turned right and took a long unscheduled tour of New Orleans. After about halfway to the Mississippi River, I realized that I made a wrong turn. So I had to hoof it back the other way. I was hoping a 39 bus would show up, but that didn't happen until I got almost all the way back to where I took the wrong turn. Once I got on the bus, it was a nice $1.25 ride to the Central Business District.

The Expo
I stopped by a Walgreens to buy some water and OJ. I then headed straight for the race expo at the Convention Center to try and make it in time to meet Scott Jurek. The detour cost me about 1 hour. That worked out well since I barely perused the expo thus spending $0 at the expo. I just did the necessary stuff: picked up the race packet and said hi to the usual girl at the Rock n' Roll booth. Another girl at the booth confirmed that they were indeed trying to make the Vegas race a night race. The marathon might become 2 loops on the strip. They apparently need all of the casinos on the strip to sign off on the idea.

I then made it over to the clinic where I bumped into Marathon Maniac Mitch who secured the front row so we would be able to take unobstructed pictures of some great athletes.

Mike Morgan of Hansons Brooks Distance Project, Scott Jurek, and the Rock Doc.

I didn't know he was that tall. He's a vegan too!

Greg Meyer, the last American to win Boston.

Eating and Stuff
I stayed at the Holiday Inn Express, which has become my favorite hotel chain. Nothing too fancy. They're relatively inexpensive and normally have a microwave and a fridge in their rooms. I tried to check into my room early to drop off my stuff, but the rooms weren't ready. So I headed over to Mother Clucker's to eat some wings and fries. I went with the Caribbean BBQ sauce. It was good stuff, but not my typical meal the day before a race. The rooms were still not ready when I got back to the hotel. Check-in time was 4pm and I didn't check in until 3:50 or so. That was fine, I just sat and relaxed in the lobby. The first thing I did when I got to my room was take a shower. That's one thing I don't like about red-eye flights.

I took a nap. Then I went back out to buy some more water and to eat dinner at The Pearl Restaurant and Oyster Bar. I would've eaten some raw oysters, but I wasn't taking any chances the night before a race. Instead I ordered a muffuletta. But they were out of the muffuletta bread, so I ended up having a shrimp po boy. It wasn't that great, but it kept me from going hungry.

I got all of my gear ready and fell asleep while watching tv. Using public transportation and walking saves a lot of money, but boy does it tucker you out!

Marathon Maniac singlet debut

Pre-race
I woke up, got ready, and headed over to the starting area. It was about a 20 minute walk from my hotel. There was no lines at a cluster of portapotties when I got there. When I got out after doing my business, there was lines everywhere. I bumped into Marathon Maniac Mitch again. He was taking pictures with every single Maniac out there! We hung out until about 15 minutes before the start of the race.

The First Half
My plan was to run every mile no faster than 9 minutes. I did not feel fresh from the get go. That probably had something to do with the Pasadena Marathon. However my legs still wanted to run some low 8's, but I made sure to stay behind two girls for at least the first few miles. I think they got really tired of me running up their butts after a few miles because they veered off all of a sudden to let me go by. Yes, I'm one of those annoying people! Normally I go unnoticed because I'm following a faster runner. But that was the only way to slow myself down. Thank goodness I did... even though my right hip was starting to fall apart at around miles 12 and 13, I felt way better at the halfway mark than I did last weekend. Some of the roads were in really bad shape. You could easily roll your ankle or worse if you were not careful.
1: 9:20
2: 9:02
3: 9:02
4: 9:44
5: 9:07
6: 9:11
7: 9:19
8: 9:13
9: 9:14
10: 9:44
11: 9:16
12: 9:24
13: 10:36

The Second Half
Since I was feeling discomfort in my right hip, I decided to slow things down and extend my walking breaks. When we reached the City Park, the roads were nicely paved. No more having to check to see where your feet was landing. Between miles 16 and 17, I got to see the front runners heading on home to the finish line. I tried something different in this race to see if I can prevent being light-headed at the finish. I started taking my gels at mile 16 and then one every 2 miles. It came out to almost 1 every 30 minutes. I used to space them further apart. Coming down the finishing chute was fun... it reminded me of the finish in Seattle.
14: 10:58
15: 10:21
16: 11:19
17: 12:13
18: 12:12
19: 12:11
20: 13:24
21: 13:02
22: 12:38
23: 12:32
24: 12:13
25: 12:58
26: 12:49
26.2: 1:45
Finish: 4:42:58

26.2 miles is a long way to go to collect 2 items I've paid for :)

Post-race
I ate a banana and picked up my drop bag from the UPS truck. I then went and picked up my 2 beers (if you can call it beer, tastes horrible). I drank 1 can while walking to the bus line and left the second one in my hotel as a gift to the maid. It was a short walk to the hotel from where the bus dropped us off. This was very much a typical marathon for me. The first half is usually fun and games. Then I go into crisis management mode in the second half when a body part fails on me. The race was really well organized. I've probably said it before, but the Competitor Group really has figured out the formula for a successful marathon experience. There's no doubt they're making a lot of money and thus buying up so many races. They're able to attract so many participants to their races while their predecessors couldn't.

Eating
I showered and took a nap. I woke up to go eat at Mulate's. I ordered the Cajun Boudin and the Cajun Seafood Platter. On that platter was their famous stuffed crab, fried crawfish tails, fried butterflied shrimp, crispy fried catfish, and fresh fried oysters... all served with jambalaya and french fries. Ironically, the crab was gross. Everything else was good. This place was pretty expensive for New Orleans. But that was understandable since it was across the street from the convention center and part of the reason that I was there was to help out the economy.

More Eating
I checked out of the hotel the next day around 11am and went to eat a muffuletta. My second attempt was successful since I went to Serio's Po-Boys & Deli, which was kind of known for them. When I ordered it, the guy didn't think I could finish the whole thing. He even brought out the bread to show me the size. Yes, it was huge, but my stomach and appetite was legendary when I was in my prime. Anyways I promised him that I would take my time and finish it all. It is really good if you like capers and lots of olives. After I finished it I walked over to the take the bus to the airport.

Muffuletta

Flight Delays
I love traveling, but getting back home was a hassle this time around. First the plane was delayed for about 20 minutes, no biggie. Then when everyone had all boarded, they announced the bad news. The plane had been struck by lightning on its way in, so per regulations, they needed to inspect the entire plane. There was a pretty big rain storm, so they were unable to do the inspections. They then had everyone deplane. The power went out twice in the concourse. But almost 4 hours later, we got back on the plane. When we landed in DFW at about 10:20, I had to run to try and make my connecting flight to LAX that was to leave at 10:25. The American Airlines folks all said to go to gate A25. There was no one there when I got there. So I kept walking until I saw a manned gate to see what my options were and most likely reschedule a flight for the next day. They told me that the flight was still boarding over at gate 35! I had already walked to about gate 18. So I hoofed it back the other way as fast as I could with my carry-on bag. My quads were burning up but I was able to catch my flight, but only because they were busy transferring stranded passengers bound for SNA (Orange County) to my flight. The poor folks had to be bussed from LAX to Orange County at midnight. By the time I got to my car and drove home, it was about 2am. Fun stuff.