I have been trail running a lot recently and feeling great on the longer distance runs and the uphill climbs. Given my very busy work and weekend schedule, my goal is to run a half marathon at least once, preferably twice a month to keep in running shape. Interestingly, I would never have thought I could do this a couple years ago. Now, I can get up and run a half marathon any time of the day. Except when I have a whole in my shoe, no traction left and it's raining on a steep trail :) Unfortunately, confidence can sometimes lead to overconfidence, which is a bad idea on long steep trail runs. Table Rock race, organized by La Sportiva was set in the Mt. Tam region in Marin (north of the Bay Area). The first 3 miles of the Table Rock run wound up ~2000 feet and subsequently descended 2000 feet in 3 miles to near the start line. At this point, the half marathon continued up 1500 elevation game for 3 miles and the final 3-4 miles was the descend down to the finish line. On the first part of the race up 2000 feet, my pace was strong and I was passing several people along the way. On the way down, I passed several runners as well, until two ladies refused to give way to people, undeterred by their own slow pace. I tried to run fast on the downhill and ended up twisting and subsequently spraining my ankle around mile 5. Luckily, the start (and finish) were near the end of mile 6, \xde5so I was able to exit the race to rest my ankle. Here's our course map. We started with the Pink course and then went out to the orange course Take a look here at our brutal elevation map: Even though I wasn't able to finish my race, I had a great time and an awesome exercise! The best part? Justin finished 5th in his age group at the 10K! That's the pink look above :).
Here's Justin looking awesome with his
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I HATE to be writing this post because I love how hidden and quiet this wildlife preserve is! My friend described this area as a "Gem in the Rubble". The Preserve is located on the East Bay side of the Dumbarton bridge and has miles and miles of running, hiking, biking trails. There are usually very few people around here and they're always the friendly sort. Being on the bay, there is usually a cool breeze, but not quite as bad as the one in San Francisco. This area is marshlands, so the smell of salt and sea is very heavy - but I find it refreshing. Throughout the running trails, the views of the bay and the dumbarton bridge are stunning. Several wild rabbits run around the trails, so keep an eye for them. The area is mostly dog friendly and I have brought my pup, Snow, for many runs around here. Here's my usual afternoon run route: Here are some pics of the gorgeous views along the way! Hope you enjoy this hidden gorgeous part of the SF Bay Area!
Since we moved to NorCal, we have been trying to do a bunch of outdoor activities. The great thing about the Bay Area is its crazy awesome geography that offers beach and mountain activities within 100 miles. So 4th July weekend, we set out with our mountain bikes to the Mt. Tamalpais region. The trail we decided to do can be found here on MTB Project. A bit out of shape and strapped for time, we decided to bike only a section of that trail. Here are the basic directions: 1. Start at Muir Beach 2. Bike Towards Muir Woods on Muir road 3. Turn left on Deer Creek Fire Road (several hikers will also be hiking around here) 4. Return to parking spot by coming down Coastal View Trail (awesome single track downhill) The Deer Creek Fire Road section of the bike ride is pretty much entirely uphill. Not too bad for someone in shape. Which we were not. It kicked our ass and turned out to be quite painful. Combine that with temperatures at least in the 90s with sun beating town. Needless to say, we were tanned and totally exhausted at the top. As soon as we go to the Coastal View Trail, all the exhaustion disappeared because the ride down was super fun! This single track trail has views of the bay almost the entire way and is very beginner friendly. This part by itself made the painful bike ride up totally worth it! After our bike ride, we loaded our bikes back in the car and drove down to Muir Beach for some fun in the sun. As it turns out, the sun was nearly gone, leaving us in an overcast windy beach. Not to worry, we were determined to go swimming with the dog! The water was FREEZING and invigorating. I will do it again! After swimming around, I quickly put on some clothes and headed out to the car to change, keeping my lady parts hidden from the swarm of July 4th visitors! I think (I hope) I succeeded =D It was a great day of biking, hiking and swimming. Next up, we had lunch at a lovely vegan/ organic lunch spot called Cafe Del Soul on the way out. I had hummus edamame wrap, that was delicious! I highly recommend this place! Clockwise from top left: 1. Justin on his awesome bike on the trail uphill, 2. Me, biking down from the highest elevation of the ride (with relief), 3. Gorgeous scenery from the top of the ride with Coastal View trail in the distance, 4. Swimming in freezing waters on Muir Beach!
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MahimaNuclear Engineer, Product and Strategy expert, Vegetarian, Adventurer. Categories
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