Wooooaaahhh, is this actually an update? Ha, believe it or not, I am alive, although my mom is the only person that seems to be worried about my lack of posts :-D Hi Mom!

So, Hood to Coast is quickly approaching (end of August), and I am getting hella excited. Our team name is Grueling pace ... meager rations. I had a total Steph moment yesterday when I realized just how appropriate the team name was because the race is in Oregon. Anyway, I am pushing for team shirts in which we all elaborate on the various maladies that we suffered from. The possiblities are endless: "I barely recovered from dysentery outside of Walla Walla," "I almost drowned fording the Snake River," or "I had a near death experience by ox-trampling."


In other news, I came across a modern day Oregon Trail remake while surfing the internet for pictures. It's called Thule Trail. It's free to play!



I have decided to drive up to Oregon since I might as well take advantage of my ultra low emission vehicle, which I only drive about once a week. Seriously, I have owned the car for almost a year and have only driven about 3500 miles. I'm hoping to get a few days off of work to make a little vacation of it. We're going to stay a couple of days in Cannon Beach, OR, after the race. Christine, one of the girls on our team, found this cute little beach town.



Then, the tentative plan is to spend a couple of nights in Portland and/or Seattle. Jon is moving out to Monterey sometime in August, and I hope that he'll be able to come along.

That's about it. Brandy was here last weekend for the Wildflower Tri. She kicked ass in the Long Course. Brandywine, I miss you.

Well, I guess that the 'winter' season is officially here. Here's proof:

National Radar:

Too bad there was some rain in Nebraska!

5 day Forecast:

Unfortunately, I didn't see any lightning :(

...and, in case you're wondering, we got about 0.4" in Monterey over about 4 days. There's still salt on my car. It was exciting.

I'm doing Hood to Coast! Lindsay sent me an e-mail last week.. Paul is organizing a team, and he needed one or two more people. I'm so excited. After Reach the Beach, I mused about doing the west coast equivalent (and the original 200 mi relay). However, I didn't expect to get the opportunity to participate in it for quite a few years. It's still nearly a year away (Aug 28-29), so I will have to tame my excitement!

In other news, I finally got a new pair of running shoes. My old Mizunos were so shot that the mesh in the front of both shoes was actually torn. New shoes were much needed. Especially since the Big Sur half marathon is rapidly approaching!

Jon's in town :-D We camped in Yosemite for the 3-day Columbus Day weekend (trivia for the day: Columbus was a whoppin' 41 when he sailed the ocean blue). It was hella freezing, but we had a great time. I must say that with all they hype about bears and bear boxes, I was a little disappointed to not see any bears. Consolation: we did see a coyote. and some squirrels.

Wow, I have to say is that I understand why everyone raves about Yosemite. The shear cliffs, the panoramic views, the majestic Half dome, the sequoias, etc. Many of the waterfalls were dry, but we did get to see a smaller year-round waterfall, Vernal Falls (name is deceiving, eh?).

While we were there, a two-man team of climbers broke the world-record by climbing El Capitan in 2 hours and 37 minutes (San Fran Chronicle news story). Personally, I think that they were insane. Note the bit: "Had he lost his grip, he would have plunged 150 feet until the rope caught on an anchor. Such a fall could very well prove fatal - or at least crippling. If, for some reason, the anchor itself didn't hold, Hirayama would in all likelihood have pulled Florine off the wall and they both would have fallen at least 2,600 feet to their deaths." Anyway, I don't even think that I could run up a 3000 ft mountain that quickly! Plan for my next trip to Yosemite: tour the waterfalls and hike Half Dome!

So, I was in Massachusetts last weekend for Tracy's wedding, and I stayed in Boston with Brandy for a couple of days. I met some of her friends who are involved in triathlons. It was inspiring - most of them have done 1 or 2 ironmen.

I really need to get into better shape if I want to do the Wildflower Tri this spring. I haven't done much swimming/biking training since I got here in Monterey. Well, I've done a fair amount of recreational biking, which is good, but I need to get more intense with training longer distances (and practicing with clipping in/out). ASAP.

Well, I've been super busy here in Monterey with TPARC stuff, but I can always find time to run ;) (but not blog about it, I guess).

I actually signed up for the PG triathlon, then realized that it was the same weekend as Tracy's wedding. Sooo I got a 50% refund on that, which is good. Plus, I'm really excited for Tracy's wedding and to see all of the gymnasts!

Anyway, I was a little sad that I couldn't to the triathlon, but I signed up for the Big Sur half marathon (which is actually in Monterey and PG) on Nov 9. Yay! After I get my long runs back to 15+, I want to do a test run of the course. The run is mostly along the beach and very flat. I actually did nearly all of the course this morning on my 10 mile run.

Speaking of the beach, here is my AM beach run loop. Jealous?! That's all for now..

yay football!

Being in Boulder last week and seeing everyone running and biking around town, I really wanted to sign-up for some more races. I've been researching the local races, and I have a tentative racing plan. Unfortunately, I don't get paid until Friday, so I am a little bit wary about spending $300-400 on race sign-ups. eek! As long as the races do not sell out I should be fine...

I'm thinking about doing either the Sandman Triathlon on August 3, or the Santa Cruz Sprint Triathlon on August 10. Of course, I have not been in the pool since the beginning of June, but I'm not too concerned about swimming. I am in pretty good biking and running shape, and I am sure that I would be fine for these short distances. Whether or not I sign-up is contingent on 1) if they sell out, 2) if I have enough money, and 3) if I need to buy a wet suit (see #2).

Sept 13, 2008: Pacific Grove Olympic Triathlon

Oct 12, 2008: City to the Sea Half Marathon: "turf to surf" San Luis Obispo to Shell Beach

Nov 9, 2008: Big Sur Half Marathon This race is actually in Monterey, and the start line is < 1 mile from my apt and then passes about 2 blocks away from my apt. Actually, here's the race course if you're interested.

And then for the 2009 season, I want to do the Big Sur Marathon on April 26, 2009, and the Wildflower Half Ironman, which is not announced yet but will probably be the 1st weekend in May 2009. Basically, my race plan for this summer is anticipating the 2009 season. I need to build back into the racing distances. I also need to get back into racing shape and (possibly) lose a few pounds. During the winter, I will need to focus on hills.

I just need to add some unrelated things. I might start running on the weekends with my boss. Strange, huh? He's very active, and, in fact, he biked across the country with a friend, averaging about 115 miles per day! I'm really in awe of that trip. I thought that driving across the country was a big deal! If you look back a few posts, you will see that I considered doing Bike & Build this summer, although it didn't turn out to be feasible because of the time needed to find a job.

It's still unbelievable to me that I live in CA. I walk around with this ridiculous grin, I'm sure. haha. A couple of things that amuse me: 1) I shop at Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and the Monterey farmer's market, 2) I run on and/or next to the beach, 3) I live about 1/4 mile from the beach, 4) it's never too hot or too cold. It's just right. Every time that I bike onto campus, the security person makes a comment that it's a nice day for a bike ride. It's a nice day for a bike ride EVERY day. 5) I get excited when I see a gas station that sells gas for less than $4.50/gallon, and I haven't even bought gas yet. That's all for now.

I miss everyone! I haven't really made any friends that are my age. Everyone's really nice though, and I might call the agent that set-up my State Farm insurance. She was friendly and told me to call her. Aviva will arrive in Monterey on August 1 though. It will be great to see her :)

I found this neat tool online: http://walkscore.com. Here are some Walk scores of places where I have lived... I guess that I just thought that it was interesting. Between living approx 800 ft from the building that I work in and the Tuesday Monterey Farmer's market, I won't need to drive that often. I'm glad that I got the car though because I want to be able to explore out here a little :-D Plus, my car is so cute!

Where I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA: 8/100

My Senior Year at Rutgers:
77/100

PSU/State College, PA
PA: 66/100

My New Address in Monterey, CA:
71/100