15 December 2017 - Active California Winter

As my year comes to a close I am getting to enjoy home more and more. I've made sure to get out and do a lot of running along the trails. In addition, I've also spent some time kayaking the Newport Bay. Here are some highlights...

Why do I do all this? First, I love the outdoors when the weather is this nice. Second, I want to eat junk food. But I also want to be a healthy weight. Cognitive dissonance...

In the last year, I have lost about 24 lbs. I'd love to finish off another 20. Here is a really encouraging chart from MyFitnessPal.

It's been lonely at the YMCA...looking forward to making new friends when all the new years' resolutioners show up.

6 November 2017 - Redwoods National Park, California

Imagine the length of a football field. Next, image a tree as long as that field. Stand the tree upright and you've got the monster redwood trees of Northern California. I'd been arguing with myself for a few weeks about driving further north from San Francisco. It's once thing to do a 7 hour drive there and another thing to do 4 more hours north of that. Once I got outside the city the hills, forest and fog made themselves known.

I started seeing the great trees sooner than I expected (only 2 hours into my drive). One of my favorite photos shows the scale of my car next to one of these biological marvels.

A little further up the road I found myself at Richardson's Grove State Park. Once again I stopped to hike and admire what nature can do. This place was beyond anything I have ever imagined.


I returned to my car and continued my drive. Eventually I would find the Avenue of the Giants and enjoy nearly 20 miles of pristine redwoods. I recommend this route to anyone that wants to experience this.

I eventually ended up so far north that I found the Shasta/Trinity National Forest. Why not explore this one too?

It was a long day of exploring, but I ended it very happy with what I had experienced. Someday, I will return and explore further.

5 November 2017 - San Francisco, CA - SoFi Half Marathon

For a few years, as I have discovered new race destinations, I have had a growing list of places I want to run. One of these goals was to run across the historic Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco. Last June, thanks to another race, I was made aware of one occurring this month. While this is not the official SF Marathon, this smaller event was perfect for my needs.

I decided to drive 7 hours from LA and spent most of Saturday on the road. It's been a few months since my last road trip so it felt good to get on the road again. Arriving early in the afternoon, I took a walk along the bay.

I had a nice pizza dinner and then went to bed early. I had forgotten that it was the time change weekend so I got an extra hour of sleep. Never thought I would say that I got to sleep in before a race. The starting line was just 2 blocks from the hotel so it was an easy warm up walk. It was a little cold and I found myself shivering a little bit.

I approached this race like any other. Take it slow at the start, listen to my body, and take walk breaks as needed. The first few miles were average and this course had small hills to deal with. Around mile 5 I felt a sensation I have not experienced since Disney in 2016. I didn't need a break...I just felt like going nonstop. Here are a few more photos of the experience...




It was an amazing day. As I neared the last mile I noticed a little bit of cramping so I slowed my pace a little bit. Crossing the finish line I was pleasantly surprised with a new Personal Record of 2h 20m. The last record I set for myself was 2014 at the Dayton River Corridor half with a 2h 28m. I want to keep improving.

21 October 2017 - Hocking Hills State Park - Logan, Ohio

One of my favorite hiking areas is located is south east Ohio, about 3 hours drive from Cleveland. I was first introduced to Hocking Hills about 23 years ago on a camping trip. I've gone back on my one half a dozen times.

In my opinion, the best time to see it is if you can catch the fall season where the leaves are changing color and the temperatures are in a perfect 50-70 degree F range. This past weekend the weather cooperated...its been about 2-3 years since I have had this good of an opportunity. I left Cleveland about 6am. The sunrise in Wayne county was brilliant.

I found an abandoned map on a picnic table near the parking lot. I took a few photos with my phone, not sure why...

My goal was to park at Cedar Falls and split out the Grandma Gatewood Trail. This 10-12 mile round trip trail connects Old Man's Cave, Cedar Falls, and Ash Cave. During past hiking trips I have camped at the state park and started and finished at Old Man's Cave. Usually, the last 2-3 miles from Cedar Falls back to OMC is crowded and my feet hurt a whole bunch. This time around I was giving myself an easy option to take a break and only go as far as I felt I wanted to.

I started off heading towards Ash Cave. It was an amazing Appalachian woodlands morning!

Along the way I passed the old fire watch tower. "Climb at your own risk". This is one of the highest points in the county and offers 360degrees of breathtaking views. Worth the risk...

I returned to the trail and finished another mile, arriving at Ash cave sooner than I expected. The tourist traffic was starting to pickup, but the cave was still peaceful.

After taking in the views of Ash Cave, I returned the way I previously had traveled. Back at the car I had a small snack, then started out towards Old Man's Cave. Cedar falls was super crowed by this point so I chose to skip it. The start of the trail near the falls was packed with day hikers, boy scout troops, and lost tourists. Yet, after a mile of walking, I found myself momentarily alone and at peace.

All in all, the day was a success. The woods and mountains have a strange way of resetting me. The stress of the city fades away and life just seems to make more sense. I left Logan, Ohio around 4pm for a 3 hour drive to Magnolia. The day had one last gift to give... Check out this sunset.

14 October 2017 - 10 Mile Run @ Rocky River Metro Park, Ohio

Five to six times a year I travel back to Westlake, Ohio for team meetings and professional development. Ohio is currently hitting the fall weather I love. I like to joke that an Ohio fall is a lovely 6 days of perfect weather that occurs between hot humid summer and stupid cold winter that lasts the rest of the year. 

I couldn't miss the opportunity to hit the metro park trails. With 3 weeks until my San Francisco half marathon, the long run training needs to happen. Also known as the Emerald Necklace of Cleveland, the metro park trails cover nearly 75 miles of river valley. These trails are both bike and runner friendly.

I set a goal to go 10 miles starting from the marina near Lake Erie. Here are some photo highlights...

Success!