I have always wanted to do a century ride, and when I got an injury that kept me from running for a few months I figured it was a good time to get on my bike and complete this goal.  I chose the Wine Country Century, put on by the Santa Rosa Cycling Club, which as rumor had it was quite a popular event.

The ride started at the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts in Santa Rosa.  Check in was smooth, and just as the sun was rising, my friend Michelle and I were off.  I was initially worried about bike congestion with 1,500 riders, but everyone started at different times and there were a variety of distances offered so congestion was never an issue.

The first portion of the course headed west and wound in and out of the wine country backroads, passing family owned wineries and farms.  There were no cars in sight, but the roads were a bit torn up and we had to navigate around a number of pot-holes.  Also, it was cold, really cold.  With weather predicted to be in the 80′s we did not expect such a cold morning, and clearly we should have worn more layers.  My fingers and toes were numb and my teeth were literally chattering!

There was a long gradual climb up towards Occidental and then a long descent through the redwoods down to Monte Rio, which was just gorgeous.  Before we knew it, we were at the first rest stop at mile 25. The rest stop was literally just that, people were r-e-s-t-i-n-g.  There was a massive array of food and a warm potato breakfast burrito just made my morning (along with some cookies, fruit, and chips). We lingered for a bit, as that seemed the thing to do, and then headed out again.

The second section continued through the redwoods to Guerneville, and then east to Forestville.  It was still cold!

Eventually we made it out of the shade and back into vineyard territory and the temperature began to rise.  The second rest stop was at mile 48, just next to the Russian River.  Once again we munched and munched and munched.  I felt sick getting back on the bike, but how could I resist so many goodies.  These were the best rest stops ever!

There was another 22 miles until the lunch stop near Lake Sonoma, which I though of as 22 miles to burn of all the food I had just eaten and work up an appetite for lunch.  We passed by Healdsburg and what seemed like at least a thousand wineries on the way.  I was questioning why I was biking in 80+ degree heat instead of drinking at any one of the wineries we passed, hmmm.  We arrived at the lunch stop and raced to get some very tasty sandwiches among other things.  The event organizers had layed out dozens of picnic blankets and people were napping all over the place which I found quite amusing.  If I had layed down for a nap I don’t think I would have gotten back up.

We didn’t dally too long at lunch and carried on to towards Geyserville, then Jimtown and finally the 4th and final rest stop.  On this portion of the course I started to feel some quad fatigue and then some pain from the seat that was a pain unlike any I have ever experienced before, wow, wow!  I was so glad to get off my bike at the rest stop.  To my welcome surprise, there was Coke at the rest stop, which I knew would numb all of the seat pain and pull me through the last 15 miles.  As usual I got my “finish line is within grasp” adrenaline rush, which helped power me through.  How could I not power through with a barbeque and Lagunitas beer at the finish!  Before we knew it, we were at the finish line and yes, eating once again.

Overall I though the Wine Country Century was a fantastic event that was extremely well organized.  The course had 3,300 ft of climb which is not a huge amount, but enough for my first century.  The scenery was gorgeous and the course was well planned.  I would definitely do this event again, but for now I’ve got to get my feet back on the trails.

I have never really embraced yoga before, as it never satisfied my cardio craving.  When I got a hamstring overuse injury last year, I knew I had to change something in my routine to maintain muscle mobility if I wanted to keep putting a lot of miles on my feet.  Now yoga in a 100 degree room, that sounded like something more up my alley.

Bikram yoga was developed by Bikram Choudhury, and brought to the United States in 1971.  Bikram yoga is a 90 minute routine of 26 postures, the first half of which are in standing and the second half are on the floor.  Yoga studios claims that a regular yoga practice has many health benefits: eliminates toxins, improves spine flexibility and health, lubricates joints, stretches and tones muscles, etc. etc.

I have been attending Bikram yoga classes at studio in the Bay Area called Funky Door Yoga and let me tell you, it is appropriately named.  As soon as you walk in the door there is a smell that is just hard to describe other than saying it is a combination of humidity and funk.

I dragged a friend along to my first Bikram yoga class, and as the instructors say the first class is to just get use to the heat.  I found myself pouring in sweat in just a few minutes, and I had barely done anything.  It was easy to follow the verbal instructions and keep up with the poses.  I have never had good flexibility, made worse by all the running, so I did have to modify some of the poses, but part of the allure of Bikram is you can easily measure progress with the poses as they are the same each time.  I found the standing poses to be quite do-able, and each pose is performed twice.  I was pleasantly surprised that there was a lot of Shavasana, or corpse pose, with the series of floor poses.  Even just laying on the ground in over 100 degree heat makes you feel like you have done something.  Since I have some experience exercising in extreme heat I was able to make it through the class without problem (although my friend was not as lucky).  I must have sweat out a few liters of fluid which felt cleansing and rejuvenating.

Each time I have gone, the poses have become a bit easier so perhaps there has already been some flexibility improvement.  And after class, I just feel fantastic.

I do appreciate that the instructors do not push people to stretch more than their bodies are capable of which can lead to injury.  I also appreciate that people can sit out poses or leave the room as need be.  Taking this into consideration, people need to be aware of their own bodies and respect what they are and are not capable of doing to avoid injury.  I have treated a few patients with yoga injures, but none so far from Bikram.

Bikram is definitely not for everyone, and I can think of a few friends that might shoot me if I dragged them to a class.  But for those that can tolerate the heat I think Bikram is a good addition to any training program, as it does work on maintaining flexibility.  For the endurance athlete, maintaining flexibility can enable one to train harder and longer with decreased risk of injury.  I do plan on keeping Bikram in my routine.

Since I have been giving my legs a bit of break from running, I have been embracing road biking.  I happened upon a fabulous bike trail that runs along the American River from Sacramento to Folsom.  The length of the trail is 32 miles each way, which therefore allows for up to 64 miles of biking (or if you are like me and take some wrong turns you can go even farther)!  In fact this is the longest bike trail in California.

The bike trail starts in Old Town Sacramento, but I have been starting in Discovery Park (1 mile farther), which is where the mileage markers officially begin.  Discovery Park is easily accessible,  just off CA-99, and there is a $5 day use fee with plenty of parking.  In actuality there are many places to jump onto the trail along the entire route, but why not bike the whole thing?

From Discovery Park, the trail heads in a northeasterly direction and is very flat as it starts to wind out of Sacramento.  The trail has distance markers every half-mile which makes it easy to track progress.  Ideally the bike trail is for bikers, and walkers and runners are suppose to stay on the dirt paths on both sides, but this does not always happen.  There is also a 15mph speed limit for bikers, and this does not always happen either.  For the first five miles you can’t really see the river but more of the surrounding wetlands, which are scenic in themselves. I have found this to be the least used part of the trail.

At about mile 6 you come across your first real glimpse of the river and the real beauty of the river and surrounding areas begin.

For the remainder of the trail you remain quite close to the river, except for a quick jaunt by the Campus Commons Golf Course at mile 8.  Just after mile 6 the trail gets more populated and I have found on weekend mornings there are a large number of running and walking groups.  In my experience these groups repect the rule of staying on the dirt paths to the side.  Bathrooms, port-a-potties, water fountains, and picnic benches start to pop up and you will find them at regular intervals for the remaining length of the trail.  Refueling water is never a problem, nor is finding a scenic place to sit and rest.

The trail continues to be relatively flat, and passes by a few parks.  Much of this portion of the trail is shaded by surrounding trees, which would make it more desirable section in the hot summer months.

There are a number of offshoots of the bike trail, a few of which I accidently took the first time I was on the trail.  The biggest offshoot not to miss is just after the Nimbus Fish Hatchery around mile 24.  The trail splits in two and you can either head down and go under the bridge or head up and go over to the opposite side.  The actual bike trail goes up and over the bridge and then comes down to hug the river.  If you take the other trail you will eventually get to the same spot in Folsom, but it is not as scenic in my opinion.

This part of the trail is quite exposed and I have heard in the summer you have to watch out for rattlesnakes that sun themselves on the hot pavement.  After a few more miles alongside the river you reach the city of Folsom and the Old Rainbow Bridge.

Continuing on you will see the walls of Folsom State Prison which I find always a bit eerie, and thankful that I am on my bike in case any prisoners recently escaped and are lingering around.  The trail starts to climb, and this is the biggest and longest climb of the trail, although it is really not that long.  The trail levels out again and you finally arrive at Folsom Lake, 32 miles later.  As you can see from the photo the water levels of Folsom Lake are sadly low, but you can get a glimpse of the snow capped Sierras in the background.

There is a park at Folsom Lake, and plenty of picnic benches to stop at before heading back.

Overall this is a great bike trail to get in some relatively flat, scenic miles, with plenty of bathrooms and water fountains along the way.  In addition, not having to worry about stopping for stoplights and cars is fantastic!

For more information go to: www.theamericanriver.com

Happy Biking!

It has taken me a while to get together my event calendar for 2012 since I have been recovering from injury.  I did not want to commit too quickly to an event that my body would not be ready for, so I am breaking up the year into two halves.  The first half will not include any running events since my body is still telling me to take a break from that, but this has forced me to embrace some other activities which I am thrilled about.  Here is the lineup:

• Mt. Rainier Climb (May 2012) – This 3 day climb ascends Mt. Rainier in Washington (14,410 ft), the highest volcano and glaciated mountain in the continental US.  This adventure will involve learning some technical snow skills, with ropes, crampons and an ice axe.  I’m looking forward to this one!

• Mt. Kilimanjaro Climb (July 2012) – Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro has been on my list since I first saw it on Safari in Tanzania when I was 12 years old.  I am finally making that dream a reality, while I ascend to the highest altitude (19,330 ft) on the African continent.  The last time I was in Africa was when I served in the Peace Corps 10 years ago, and I can’t wait to go back.

Smaller events that are not confirmed but that will most likely happen in the first half of 2012: a road bike event, and a quick climb of Mt. Whitney (14,505 ft).  Stay tuned for more event updates!

Now that the year is drawing to a close it is a good time to look back on my races and adventures of 2011.  This year proved to be another busy year, with some big and challenging, yet fun events (click on titles for the full Blog entry).

Pirates Cove 50k (March 2011): I made a last minute decision to run this race because another race I had planned on the same day was cancelled.  The Pirates Cove 50k was in the Marin Headlands and the course had over 11,000 feet of elevation change.  It was a freezing cold, rainy day and these unexpected conditions threw my body into shock and jump started the year.

Molkolumne 50k (April 2011): I had an extra entry for a Ultrarunner.net series race so I decided to run the inaugural Molkolumne 50k near Lodi, California.  It was a beautiful course with rolling hills and an elevation change of over 13,000 feet.  I got pretty lost, but somehow still ended up finishing 1st female.  I’ll take it!

Gobi March 250km (June-July 2011): The Gobi March was a 6 day, 155 mile, self-supported race through the Gobi Desert in China (hosted by RacingThePlanet).  To sum it up, I met some amazing people and it was hot!!! I finished 4th female overall and won an age group award. Incredible adventure!

Grand Canyon Rim to Rim to Rim (October 2011): Some friends I met during the Gobi March and I took on the 42 mile Grand Canyon Rim to Rim to Rim crossing. It was a challenging but fun day with over 10,000 feet of ascent and 10,000 feet of descent.

NYC Marathon (November 2011): I had applied to the NYC marathon lottery for 3 years, and this year, the 4th year, I finally got in!  I wasn’t in shape to run this marathon as I had been recovering from injury, but I powered through and completed this massive event which had 50,000 competitors and 2.5 million spectators!

2011 was quite a year, and I pushed through the Grand Canyon and the NYC marathon with injury which I am now focusing on rehabilitating.  It is tough for me to be in the position of patient, as I am use to being on the other side and helping others recover from their injuries, but I am pushing on.  I have too many ideas for adventures in 2012, but I know I must recover first before I can get too excited for what’s to come.  Stay tuned!