i took george to walk on the wild side

90 days
and counting

running at the beach

my run on friday went well. 10 miles taking me a long time but getting it done. i wanted to go longer but my back was acting up and i needed to save it for saturday.

i thought that it might be fun to mix things up a bit and take george to one of my favorite running spots. the hustle and bustle of PCH. the solitude of the trails are a wonderful thing but once in a while you get your "boogie on"!

running at the beach, you are in a totally different world. there is so much to look at. the first thing that i always notice is the architecture. i love looking at the bungalows, homes and mansions as i run by. then i notice the crazy drivers. the cool cars and motorcycles. lots of surfers in all their varieties. other runners and i often wonder what events they are training for. the masses on their bikes. the campers and the smells that come from their campsites. people out with their fishing poles. the smell of the ocean and the sounds of the waves crashing on the beach. there are always great places to just zone out while listening to music while i run.

we ran 20 miles down there yesterday. i picked the run and decided that this would be my reward for 3 50+ weeks on a row. my outside time was 4 hours. that would give me an hour longer then i used to run 20 miles in while training for marathons. i planned on some later power walking just in case my back pain came to visit.

we enjoyed our 20 miles. it went by pretty effortlessly. george had pain at the beginning until he got warmed up and mine came at the end. the difference between he and i is that i will make it known. george just keeps going and the only way you would know that he was hurting would be to listen to the sounds of his feet while he ran. he remains good spirited and always on pace. i, on the other hand will just stop and break into walks and let it be known that all is not well in my world. but back at the car, it's high fives and smiles as another run is put behind us. George's' impression of running at the beach.... wild and dangerous!

miles this week ~ 51 miles. on bike ~ 20. pilates ~ 2 hours