If the Shoe Fits

The Eden Medical Center Run to the Lake is the first race in which I won a medal in the Bay Area. Seventeen years earlier I had begun to place in my age group and was training for a 34 minute 10K. My big race was in Rhode Island, and I ran a fast first mile before succumbing to a severe side stitch and not finishing the race. Soon after I moved to San Antonio, met my wife, and over the years moved to Boston and then to the Bay Area. I ran casually during that time but didn't return to competitive running until my terrible finish at the 2000 Tilden Tough Ten (see Above the Clouds, May 2008) and later in the summer of 2003.

I resumed consistent running the following January and entered races to motivate me. My times were respectable and showed steady improvement. Finally I placed second in the M35-39 age group at the Run to the Lake, a fortunate finish since my 42:40 wouldn't have placed me in the M40-45 age group. I was so encouraged that I entered the San Francisco Marathon three weeks later and barely qualified for the Boston Marathon.

The Run to the Lake has many of the characteristics of a big race even though it's mostly local. The medals are the best I've seen for a smaller race, with different designs that match the t-shirts every year. RhodyCo manages the race, so it's well organized with mile markers and water stations. The event also features a large post-race expo that rivals those of larger events.


Today's weather is unusually cool, and I decide not to wear sunglasses for the first time at this race. My bigger decision is which shoes to wear. I feel that my racing shoes have lost their bounce, and had hoped to replace them. I bought the Adistar Competition last year, but since have learned that manufacturer, Adidas, no longer makes them. I'll have to go to Transports for a fitting.

I haven't had a chance to visit the store, so I'm considering wearing a pair of Adidas Rotterdam shoes, which are two ounces heavier than my usual race shoes. I wore the Rotterdams for the Napa Valley Marathon in March and haven't worn them since.

I've worn Adidas almost exclusively over the last four years. The only exception is a pair of Solomon trail shoes that I received for running the Pacific Shoreline Marathon--a great and discontinued premium for all finishers--that I wear for the Lack Chabot Trail Challenge half marathon. I tried a couple of other brands, but quickly developed blisters and scrapes. After wearing out a pair of Adidas, I went to a running store for a fitting. I tried several pairs and found that the Adidas Boston Classic was the best training shoe for me. Like Coke Classic, Adidas has decided to keep making the Boston Classic without changing them. This is good for me because I go through eight pairs a year. Last year I bought racing shoes for the first time, and after trying a few brands at Transports, purchased the Adistar.

After arriving at the race, I test the Rotterdams by running a couple of miles. They seem fine, but the left shoe is tight. I take the sole insert from my lightweight racing shoes and substitute it for the Rotterdam's and voila, it feels great.

The race begins with a steady climb up Lake Chabot Road. I look around me and only see Mark Ramirez (M52) near my age group. Mark finished ahead of me at the Devil Mountain 10K (see Guy on a Bike, May 2008), but he's running behind me. When we reach Lake Chabot the 5K runners continue straight ahead while those of us running the 10K make a right turn. After the turn I notice that everyone over 30 has gone straight ahead, so it's just me and a few high school runners.

The course gets more interesting. We run by the marina where it's flat near the shore. Then we take the paved path that ends the Lake Chabot Trail Challenge half marathon in the opposite direction. The path has rolling hills, and then we climb a gravel path in a gut-busting surge away from the lake to the road high above. A right turn takes us to the turnaround.

I'm chasing Derrick Thomas, a 17-year-old from San Leandro. Toward the fifth mile we're running down Lake Chabot Road, one of my favorite stretches in road racing. This is the reward for pushing on the first half of the race and the hills around the lake. On our right the 5K walkers encourage us. A small girl is zigzagging through the orange cones separating the 5K and 10K races. I barely avoid colliding with her, and her mother shouts at her to stay to the right.

I pass Derrick and hold the lead for a few seconds, but then he responds and reclaims the lead. He finishes seven seconds ahead of my time of 38:56. I run 21 seconds slower than last year, but still win my age group (M40-44) and finish seventh overall. The oldest runner who finishes ahead of me is 23, my buddy Brian Collete.

My bounty for winning includes two identical first-place medals, one for my age group and one for being the first masters (40 and over) runner. I also receive a box of 15 Powerbar Nut Naturals.

The shoe experiment went well, but I'm curious how well the shoes will work if I use them at the San Francisco Marathon half marathon in a few weeks.

States of Mind

“Daddy, why does your shirt have a ‘V’ and a ‘W’?"

My daughter Maylee has transposed the WV on my singlet that represents my competitive running team, the West Valley Track Club.

“What’s West Valley?”, asks Maylee.

“It’s kind of a state of mind.”

West Valley, or WVTC, is the oldest running club in the Bay Area. In its early days the club organized the first Pacific Association runnning events, welcomed into its ranks Alvaro Mejia from Columbia, who partly credits his win in the 1971 Boston Marathon to his training with WVTC, and started a newsletter, which became the Pacific Association bi-monthly magazine.

West Valley is somewhere in the South Bay region of the Bay Area, although the club has its largest number of runners from San Francisco, where the team trains every week. I have hardly heard of the region West Valley, so I can't describe it. I'm sure it exists, I just don't know where.I arrive at the Mayor's Fourth of July RACE around 9 AM for the late 9:45 AM start. This is a small race in Alameda, but one of the few that has a significant stadium presence. The 5K precedes the parade, so there's a nice crowd lining the street. The photo at right shows Barbara Korp and her daughter Amy, along with my daughter Maylee and her friend Sophia, Barbara's older daughter. They're watching the parade, but they arrived too late to see the race.

The RACE always gives me a chance to connect with Alameda runners that I see on the paths and strets of the city. I’m expecially excited about the chance to meet Joe King, world record holder in the mile for males 80 years or older, 7:13. He’s competed locally and internationally for nearly 70 years. Joe has a column in one of the Alameda newspapers, and I’ve read it for eight years. His columns cover a variety of topics, but I always look forward to his running columns. It’s like free coaching. Joe is an inspiration, running all his life, and having the East Bay Triple Crown trophy for men 50 and over named after him. I’ve read about Joe, seen the trophy with his name, and logged thousands of miles in Alameda, but I’ve never met him.

The photo to the left is courtesy of Ed Jay, is for use only by this web site, and may not be reproduced in any form.

I approach a man who appears to be in his 60s, resembling the photo of Joe that appears in his column. I introduce myself, and Joe tells me he owes $2,000 to a woman with my last name from the USO who taught him how to dance during World War II. He says he’s been a popular dance partner ever since, and he owes is all to Diane Witte, which happens to be my sister’s name. My sister was born in 1967.

He tells me his mile record is vulnerable because it’s slower than the world indoor record. Joe’s accomplishments include a few world records and probably numerous medals in international competition.

I tell him that I’ve read his column for years and started running four years ago.

“Four years ago? You look like a runner. How fast are you trying to run today?”

“18 minutes.”

“How old are you?”

I’m 43, and he says, “Just a kid!”

Joe tells me that he used to run for West Valley, and takes off to warm up. What a great moment for me. I had a chance earlier to catch up with some friends. The photo on the right shows Tony Fong, Neil Rodrigues and me. Neil was the Alameda high school co-athlete of the year in 2006 and now runs for St. Louis University, the alma mater of my parents and most of my aunts and uncles. Go Billikens!

Tony is the track and cross country coach at St. Joseph's High School in Alemeda, a former Cal runner, and the person who recruited me to run for West Valley. He's a great ambassador for the sport, and can always predict my finishing time within a minute and compute the accompanying pace in his head. He even remembers my times from old races, even though I'm not one of his runners.


Next to me is Suzette Smith, whom I'd run into around Alameda for years, although I never spoke to her until the Mayor's RACE two years ago. I see Suzette running on Bay Farm Island quite frequently, and also on the main island as I commute to work. Suzette places in a lot of races and qualified for the 2008 Boston Marathon. She also helps Tony coach at St. Joseph's, where her son Tim runs. Suzette and I were scheduled to run the Lake Merrit Joggers and Striders Couples Relay this year before I caught a cold. I was very disappointed, but she ran the race with her son and they both had a good time.

I change my preparation routine for this race. I decide not to eat an energy bar and drink iced tea, and instead focus on doing a real warm up. I run slowliy for 15 minutes and then do a 30-second stride (wind sprint), rest and then do a 45-second stride. I ask Niel what time he's aiming for. Last year he was nice enough to pace me, helping me hit a PR of 17:45 as seen on the right. He says he hasn't done a lot of speed work recently, so he doesn't know how fast he'll run.

The photo above is courtesy of Ed Jay, is for use only by this web site and may not be reproduced in any form.

The race is too short and has too few runners for any drama. At the start a pack of high school runners sprints in front of me, but I overtake most of them in the first mile. I pick off a few more as the race continues and no one passes me. Neil is nowhere in sight. The weather is overcast, keeping me comfortable as I cruise to a finish of 17:54, first in my age group and eighth overall. I catch up with Neil as I get a cup of water. Neil gives me the "number 1" sign, winning the race in a time of 16:26.

The photo below is courtesy of Ed Jay, is for use only by this website and may not be reproduced in any form.

As we wait for the results to be announced and medals to be distributed, I see Suzette (3rd F41+) talking to Jane Watson (2nd F41+), pictured at right. I've never met Jane and she compliments me on my singlet, saying that her father is from West Virginia. Suzette and I laugh and I tell Jane that the WV is for West Valley.

"What's that?", asks Jane.

"I don't know. It's not a place like Chicago. It's kind of a state of mind."

A few minutes later someone else approaches the three of us and asks if I'm from West Virginia.

We all laugh and Suzette jokes, "We have to tell Tony about this."

I pick up my medal, which indicates that I won the male 41 and over category. This is the only race where 40-year-olds don't catch a break and compete with older runners. The age groups are 18 and under, 19-40 and over 40. It irked me so much a few years ago that I drove to San Ramon to run in a Fourth of July race with more reasonable age groups. I didn't have any hope of competing with college runners when I was 40. I'll keep running this race until I become too old to compete with the younger 40ish runners, like Guillermo Cazares (2nd M41+), pictured to the right of Tim Smith.

Older runners share my complaint. A world-class 80-year-old like Joe King has no chance of running faster than me. The race needs more age groups, and more runners to fill them. The best way would be to post the race on the main web sites, like http://www.runningintheusa.com/. This is a simple web site that has all the major races and results. The only way I know about the Mayor's RACE is from the flyer they send to runners of past races. If organizers want to get more runners they need to seek people outside of Alameda.

This is the first in a nice progression of races. Next week is a 10K followed by a half marathon three weeks later.

Buddy System

"Are you ready for this monster?"

John Pettinechio's question hits me like a bucket of ice water in the face. Thirty minutes before the Lake Chabot Trail Challenge Half Marathon on June 1, John is not exagerating, but the shock lingers. "Do I really want to do this?," I ask myself. I'm not a trail runner. I have tried to register for Dipsea, but I've never won the lottery to enter, and the thought of running Double Dipsea or Dipsea Quad is so foreign I might as well swim the English Channel. You won't see me on at Badwater or Western States 100. Running long and relatively fast on the most accomodating courses is hard enough for me, and the running best suited to my training in Alameda. I am in the red top and black shorts on the left side of the group in the photo above. The tall guy I'm talking to is Alex Coate.

Lake Chabot is the hardest race I will run this year. Runner's World has listed it as one of its five races of the month at least twice in the last five years. I've run it every year since 2004, and along with the Tilden Tough Ten, I consider it one of my two can't miss races. Unlike Tilden, Chabot is almost all trails. Like Tilden, Lake Chabot is one of the East Bay Regional Parks, and another amazing place in the middle of the Bay Area. Great for hiking, fishing, boating, and picnicking, Lake Chabot Regional Park encompasses a huge amount of land beyond the lake and countless trails for wandering and getting lost in one's thoughts and surroundings. The first year I ran the race, I tried to prepare for it by following the course directions posted on the Golden Bay Runners web site. I did my longest trail run ever that day, getting lost and stumbling upon a Boy Scout Troop, retracing my steps a few times, draining my water bottle and luckily finding a kind woman on a horse who gave me some water and pointed me in the right direction.

My PR on this course is 1:34:56 in 2007, and I'm hoping to come within two mintues of that today. The race hits the hard section in the fourth mile, when it reaches the Loan Oak Trail. It's the only trail I can name on the course. One mile with a 600 foot incline, an 11% incline. I see a few runners ahead of me slowing down. That probably means they don't know what to expect. I pass them up and see Ralph Gowen on the top of a hill. "This is the top, Larry," he jokes. "It's just a bump," I reply. A runner next to me looks at me like I'm kidding, but I'm not.

I felt I had to focus on hill training after Tilden. I did four hill workouts in the prior two weeks: one run toward some mountains when I was on a business trip in Tucson; pushing Maylee in the jogging stroller on the eight paved miles of Tilden; and two "Challenging Hill Workouts", a treadmill routine on the Runner's World website. I keep running for what seems like forever, but my pace is barely faster than a walk. I decide to walk, then run, alternating as long as I don't lose any ground to anyone in front.

From behind I hear John. "Good strategy, Larry. You're saving yourself for later." It's not so much strategy as my lack of strength. John remains behind me and the thought enters my head. Should I aim to stay with John the rest of the race, or should I run on my own? Last year I chased John for 10 miles on the trail before passing him on the paved section and finishing one second ahead of him. Now we're going the same speed, with me running a few feet in front.

We work pretty well together. As the race progresses, we're ahead of last year's pace, which was a breakthrough performance for us. John is much more relaxed than I am, saying hello to hikers and cyclers on the path. I pass Robert Silva (M37) somewhere around 10 miles, and feel pretty good. A few hills and turns later, and I descend to the dam that forms the lake. It’s all paved until the finish, and I should be able to pick up some time from this point. Just as I try to run faster, one of my chronic problems on this course returns—side stitches. A combination of the heavy exertion and the steep downhill stretches that jostle my abdomen have always given me side stitches in this race. This time it’s worse than I can ever recall. Both sides hurt, and my whole gut is in pain. I slow down along the dam, and upon reaching the other side I slow down further as the course elevates.

When I hear John approach I say, “Go ahead, side stitches.” But John won’t leave me behind. “Come on, Larry, you got it.” I wave with my left arm for him to pass, but he won’t go. I know he won’t leave me behind, so I push myself. The next three miles I am the beneficiary of the buddy system. We pass mile 11. John claps his hands twice, “Just two more miles.” I can barely respond with more than a monosyllabic phrase. John keeps encouraging me as we pass the 5K turnoff. “Almost there.” I believe him, forgetting the wide turn to the right away from the lake. I groan inside as we take the turn that goes slightly uphill.

Then we hit another flat space and I can see the marina in the distance. The race finishes just past the marina. We have one more climb. “Last hill, Larry,” says John. We go up the hill and run side by side. As we pass the 13 mile mark, someone shouts, “We’ve got a race!” Actually, it’s an anti-race. Neither of us wants to go in front of the other. We speed up as we approach the end, and my breathing becomes labored, so I slow down. “Keep going, Larry. Don’t let anyone pass you.” I look behind us and see that someone passing us won't be a problem. The finish line is just in front and I am adamant that John finish ahead of me. I slow down, but John realizes what I’m doing and insists that I go first. I tell him to finish ahead of me, but he won’t, so I complete the race in 1:36:45, one second ahead of John for the second year in a row.

In 2007 we hugged at the end because we were so excited with our times. This year we hug again out of exhaustion. John thinks that without the side stitches we would have matched our times from last year. He may be right. The previous two weeks I experimented with my training, not doing any pushups or abdominal exercises because I was concerned about bulking up too much. I won’t try that again. The weakness in my abdomen may have made me more susceptible to side stitches. I finish third in my age group, 13th overall.

Post race I see John administering first aid to Kelly Tarkowski (F40), whose right knee is bleeding. A few minutes later I check in on her and see that both knees are pretty badly scraped. Then she shows me her two elbows and both hands, all of which are the result of a perfect six-point landing she executed on a downhill section of mile 10. In one of the great stories of the race, she managed to recover and place third in her age group. Here's Kelly, Chris Sullivan (M51), Deanna Stemm (3rd F45-49), John (1st M50-54) and Kenny Bright (M48). A lot of medals from that group.

One of my favorite scenes in the running is the award ceremony for this race. Usually awards are given in a parking lot while music is playing. Lake Chabot is much more serene. Everyone rests on a hillside, enjoying the sun and surroundings. Music would be a distraction.

I get my award when my name is called. The presenter says the nicest thing I’ve ever been told while picking up an award. “We’re honored you’re here,” They’re not paying me an appearance fee, but I guess they remember me from past years. The awards and shirts always feature wildlife at the lake. The previous four years the animal has been a bird of some sort. This year it’s a tortoise. I love the irony.

Above the Clouds

Today I make my annual pilgrimage to the Tilden Tough Ten. When the starting siren goes at 8 AM in the hills of Tilden Park, high above the urban core of the Bay Area, 65,000 people will simultaneously begin a cross-city journey in San Francisco’s Bay to Breakers. For many, an avid runner like me should run Bay to Breakers every year, but I’ve never done it. I’ve run Tilden more times than any other race. It was the scene of my worst race ever, and one of my best. I have too many memories and too many friends to miss this race. It is both serene and grueling, at least for me. I look forward to it every year, and I’ll run it as long as I feel fit.

The morning temperature is in the high 40s in Alameda as I drive to the race, a most comforting development as a record-setting heat wave brought 95 degree temperatures to San Francisco on Thursday. Tilden is difficult enough in good conditions, and I don’t welcome any additional complications. The fog hides the Berkeley hills in the distance. As I close to within a mile of the hills, I can’t see anything above 100 feet. I’m hoping this means cool conditions, maybe even mist. When my car climbs the hills toward Tilden, sunlight breaks through and the temperature rises to 56. Continuing along, I see why it's warmer. A blanket of fog has split the hills like icing in a layer cake, and Tilden is the top layer. What a glorious scene, although I’d prefer clouds and cooler temperatures. Tilden remains one of my favorite places, and I am grateful and amazed that this beautiful, remote and serene place is so close to where I live.

With U2’s Achtung Baby in the CD player, I continue until reaching the race site. Len Goldman, president of the Lake Merritt Joggers and Striders (LMJS) and runner extraordinaire, greets me and tells me that this year’s race is a near sell out. The race only has capacity for 300, but it’s usually a strong field. LMJS puts on a great race, and the club is the only one that I know that keeps a searchable database on every race result by every runner since 1997. Want to know how fast Magda Lewy, the second-fastest woman on the 2008 US Olympic marathon team, ran the Tilden Tough Ten in her only appearance? Check out the website: http://www.lmjs.gwebservice.com/ .

LMJS organizes three special races each year and two or three more casual runs each month except February. That’s 30 races a year, with more than a thousand results. If you look up Larry or Lawrence Witte, you will find my following results for the Tilden Tough Ten:

2000: 94:37, 95th overall, 24th in age group
2004: 76:08, 70th overall, 21st in age group
2005: 68:39, 27th overall, 9th in age group
2006: 67:42, 15th overall, 5th in age group
2007: 64:30, 3rd overall, 2nd in age group

In 2000 I had restarted a running hobby and discovered this race in the Berkeley hills. That year the Tilden Tough Ten became my first Bay Area race, and almost my last. My training was not technical, but I was running frequently and in the hills near our apartment south of Oakland’s Rockridge area. I had biked the Tilden route, so it was familiar. Two elements caused me great difficulty. The Friday before the race temperatures soared, and my run after work that day was exhausting. It remained hot over the weekend. At the race I ran the first half in 35 minutes, but discovered that the hilly paved part of Tilden is just an appetizer for the trail portion, which I had never run. This was the second surprise. Sweating heavily and drinking two cups of water at the turnaround, I asked a volunteer if the return was as difficult as the first half. She must have thought I was delirious. The second half retraces the first half, so each half is pretty much the same. As the sun baked the ground and the air around me, I slowed to a walk, then a stagger, and then a stop. Everyone seemed to pass me as I completed the second half in 55 minutes, finishing the race in an hour and thirty minutes.

Disappointed and discouraged, I cut back my running and didn’t run in another race for three years. Then in 2004 I returned to Tilden and finished in under 80 minutes. Elated, I continued running and haven’t stopped.

Tilden is the first jewel in the East Bay Trail Challenge Triple Crown. I’ve done well here and at the Lake Chabot Half Marathon Challenge two weeks later, but not so well at the Woodminster Run on Father’s Day. The photo at right shows me, Gareth Fong, who organizes the Woodminster race, and Len Goldman. John Pettinichio (M52) won the seniors Triple Crown in 2006, as did my friend Holly Starr (F53), below left, who won it in her first year of competition, 2005. I first met Holly at the Martinez Brickyard run in 2005. It was her first race, and when she told me her time in the 4-mile (30:10), I knew she won her division. She went on to handily win the Ruth Anderson Cup (50+ age group) in the triple crown in her first year of competition. Jeff Teeters (M48) is a regular high finisher as well, winning the open triple crown in 2006.

As we line up Jeff, pictured at right, mentions that this year’s field is fast. I have regressed with injuries and limited racing action, so my aim is to finish in 66 minutes. My strategy remains the same as last year, when I noticed that Jeff always finished ahead of me even though I started faster. I decided to stick behind Jeff for the first three miles and then try to keep him within sight.

The race starts and I’m among the first 10 runners for a significant stretch. The first mile passes in 5:50, a good pace since the race begins in a downhill. The second mile is uphill and I manage to keep my place behind Jeff, but it’s a chore. I’m breathing heavily with 80% of the race to go. As we continue, Jeff and the other lead runners pull away. Last year I finished third overall, but not in 2008. At the third mile Rebecca Yau (F21), below right, a newcomer on the Bay Area running scene, glides by me. At one point we come upon some cows, which scatter as we run by. About three and a half miles into the race I see the steep climb to the left. The photo shows the incline behind the electrical tower. The return on this section will be very refreshing, but that won’t be for another two miles.

“The first four miles of hills weaken you for the next two miles”: ancient proverb etched in a clay pot found on Tilden.

The fifth mile of Tilden is an undulating trail, rutted by cow hooves. This is the portion of the trail that surprised me in 2000 and usually determines the winner. After climbing up the first hill, I remember why this part is so difficult. The hills are hard to climb and treacherous to descend. I have to brake going down, giving me no advantage on the downhill. I manage to stay upright, but the terrain is difficult for someone who trains exclusively on the paved paths of Alameda and treadmills.

As I reach the turnaround, I see Alex Coate (M47), pictured at left, about 20 yards behind me. Alex is stronger and passes me on the first hill back. Since Alex and Jeff are in my age group I know my chances of placing in the top three (M40-49) are remote. There seem to be several masters runners ahead of me. I can see a long string of runners trailing me going to the halfway point. I mostly keep my eyes on the road, but I do say something encouraging to Holly, who’s looking pretty good. I manage to reach the top of the last hill without slowing to a walk, which is more than I did last year. Still I’m running a noticeably slower pace than in 2007. I take the downhill at mile six easy, too tired to accelerate and make up lost time. A runner making his way up the hill says I’m 12th overall. I’m amazed that he has the mental dexterity to count runners while negotiating the course.

Meanwhile, all I can determine is that Jeff is nowhere in sight, Rebecca is off in the distance, and I can’t see Alex. The weather is warm. Perfect for a picnic, going for a walk, playing outside or just relaxing. Perfect for anything except running at full speed for three more miles of hills. My finishing place is irrelevant, but I am still hoping to break 70 minutes. This would be 5:30 slower than 2007, but at least I’d get a sub-70 minute shirt. The Tilden Tough Ten features a great marketing scheme. Anyone who finishes under 60, 70 or 80 minutes gets a race shirt indicating that achievement. Rarely does anyone get a sub-60 shirt.

Two more runners pass me. I check my watch and see that I should finish in under 78 minutes: good enough. I see the parking lot by the starting line, about a mile and a half away. Nearing the end I misjudge the finish and sprint early. I know the end is near, so I try to maintain my speed. Soon I approach the finish line and complete the run in 66:52, seventh in my age group. I feel really good about it. I’m just 52 seconds slower than my goal, and I posted my second-best time on the course. Given the trouble I had with the hills and my relative lack of fitness to last year, I’m satisfied with the run.

My concern is the Chabot Trail Challenge in two weeks, which features more and steeper trails over its 13.1 mile course. I need to do some hill work to minimize the pain of that run.

I finished 13th overall. Jeff was third in an excellent time of 63:04, his best performance since 2005. Cliff Lenz (M43) was the top finisher in 60:04, just missing a sub-60 shirt. Second went to Phil Rivers (M53) in 62:39, an amazing performance that is age-graded to 81% on a very tough course. Pictured next to Cliff at the right is Jenny Wong (F33), a perennial high finisher at all the triple crown races and winner of the women’s open crown several times. Jenny finished third this year among women, her 7th straight top three finish at Tilden. She and Cliff run for New Balance Excelsior, and her dog Bender is currently unaffiliated. John finished second among males 50-59 and Holly finished third among females in the same age group.

The post-race spread is excellent. LMJS has mini Lara bars, my favorite. There’s also a masseuse, bagels and beverages. To top it off the shirts are made of a technical material that looks sharp and should keep its color. The weather was pleasant, although a little hot. The scenery was great, even featuring a deer before the race. Even though I didn’t do as well as last year, I think this year’s Tilden Top Ten was the best ever.

*************************************************

All action photos provided courtesy of Lake Merritt Joggers and Striders.

Guy on a Bike

"Stand behind the white line, this is a certified course!" Dave Rhody said through the bullhorn. Dave gave us all a laugh, as if someone's toe on the line would make a difference. Dave is the owner of RhodyCo., a race management company. RhodyCo runs six races in the Bay Area, including some big events such as the Across the Bay 12K and the San Francisco Half Marathon. He does a great job, and I wish he'd do more events. His races always have markers at every mile, start on time, and distribute medals efficiently.

The weather was cool and we were all ready to get started. I didn't do any warmup other than jog from my car to the starting line. I spoke to a couple of friends before the race. First was Guillermo Cazares, who's about my age and lives in Alameda. Guillermo's restaurant, El Caballo, is a shrine to running. Medals and plaques are lined below the ceiling around the entire restaurant. I was always impressed by Guillermo's accomplishments, but never met him at the restaurant. Last summer we met, and I've since seen him at numerous races and running around Alameda.

My other friend was John Pettinichio (M52), whom I've known longer than anyone in the Bay Area running scene. I first noticed him in 2004 at the Eden Medical Center Run to the Lake. It was the first time I won a medal, and John placed as well, as he usually does. I was struck by his conditioning. The guy is really solid. The next year I started finishing near him, then ahead of him, and then I became even faster. What impresses me about John is that while we're fairly close in terms of fitness, he's nine years older than me. This day John would run the 5K, finishing tenth overall and first in his age group, and then do the 10K as a cooldown. I hope that when I'm in my early 50s I can still run somewhere as well as John.

The race exhausted me, but the end result was positive. I needed a 5:58 pace to break 37 minutes. I felt pretty good running the first mile in 6:02, since I tend to start too fast. But I finished mile 2 in 12:30. By the third mile I was running a 38:30 pace. I was slowing down. The first half of the course is slightly uphill with one pass over a highway. Since the course follows a highway, there's a lot of open space with no protection from the wind. As my projected time kept increasing, the course's incline and the wind seemed more daunting. In front of me were Mike Maguire (M45, pictured at right) and Emily Bates (F31). They had a pretty good duel and didn't separate for the rest of the race. I figured I had no chance to catch them.

We made the left turn over the highway overpass and then went left along the Iron Horse Trail back to downtown Danville. The second half of the course goes downhill and with the wind. With the wind at my back and the race going on a slight downhill, I regained some speed and my confidence. About four miles into the race Mark Ramirez (M52) caught up to me. Mark ran a heck of a race, but a race volunteer riding a bike wearing a yellow jacket was pacing him and bugging me. "Go Mark," "You got him, Mark." "Stay relaxed, Mark." To make matters worse, Mark and I were gaining on Mike Maguire and Emily Bates. The four of us were crowded on a narrow path, with the guy on the bike keeping pace. "I'll get out of the way," he said. The only problem was that there was no where to go, leaving four runners exerting themselves while trying to avoid each other and a guy taking a liesurely ride on a bike. After waiting for him to get out of the way, I had to move ahead of Mike and Emily, along with Mark.

Mark passed me and maintained a lead. With less than a quarter of a mile to go I sped in front of Mark, causing the guy on the bike to say, "He's making a move, Mark. Sprint!" Mark responded and I couldn't match him. He finished in 37:33, and I was next at 37:38.

I was pretty happy. The race results were surprisingly slow to come out, easily the longest wait for a RhodyCo race. There was some glitch with the age breakout or something that caused us to wait 30 minutes or so after the race. Ultimately, everything turned out well for me. I placed 12th overall but first in my age group, M40-44. Had I been in the M45-49 group I would have finished fourth, which is where Mike finished. It was a fast master's field, with five of the 11 who placed ahead of me being older than 44.

While waiting, I had a chance to chat with Jeff Gehringer (M23) and Brian Collett (M23) both from Pleasanton. Jeff, on the left in the adjacent photo, placed fourth overall and first in his age group, and Brian, next to Jeff at right, finished ninth overall and second in the same age group. I first noticed Jeff at the Davis Stampede Half Marathon in February. John introduced me to Brian at the same race. Jeff ran for Cal State Hayward, and still trains with the team. Brian has been an active runner for a few years and is closing in on his 50th medal.

Before leaving I was able to visit with Ralph Gowen (M47), who ran the 5K. Ralph runs for the Forward Motion Racing Club, has qualified for the Boston Marathon and was photographed in Runner's World in a recap of the Bay to Breakers. Ralph is one of my biggest fans, or at least someone who cheers me on. Every few races he'll yell something like, "It's all downhill, Larry, just stretch it out!" He even popped up at the Napa Valley Marathon in March.

My next race is in two weeks, the Tilden Tough Ten. This race has a lot of significance to me.

Day before a race

It's the day before a 10K, the Devil's Mountain Run in Danville, CA. It's a fairly flat course where I set a PR two years ago, twice improved on since then (36:34 is my current PR). I'm hoping to break 37 minutes as I've been recovering from plantar fasciitis and had to take three weeks off following a marathon in early March. Since then I ran a half marathon three minutes slower than my PR, and then resumed normal training, which has gone well. I feel very good and pretty fit. If this race were in the midst of a few others I'd be more optimistic, but having missed three races this year because of illness or injury and having done one race in February, March and April, I don't have my normal confidence in terms of predicting my finish.

Being the day before a race, I'm cutting back all exercise. No running, pushups or swimming. This afternoon I took my daughter Maylee to the pool, and just carried her around in the water while she swam. Now that you know one person in the household, the other person is my wife Mandy. You'll get to know more about Mandy and Maylee later.