Spring at Home

Any change in season is always a delight, and each holds its own charm. Spring brings with it its abundance of new life, which is why spring is such an important celebration in almost every culture and religion around the world. The emerging blossoms range from buds to fruits to flowers in a riot of colours. The pictures below are a capture of spring just in our garden. Makes me wonder how beautiful it must be in various corners of the world at this time of the year! Hope you enjoy watching these photos as much as I enjoyed clicking them.


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Rocking and Rolling in San Francisco

     San Francisco! The city always has a charm that appeals to all, young and old, small and big, native or not and it is no wonder that the charm extends to the races that the city hosts. Every race that I have run in the city is crowded and today's San Francisco Rock and Roll Half Marathon was no exception. It was amazing to see just how many people were there to run a half marathon. As always, there were walkers and runners, the elites, the regulars, the first timers, the rebounding from injury folks (like me), varied ages, races, genders. 

     What made the race special to me was that I had bounced back from another injury in January to prove to myself that I could do it to record my first major race of 2014 (I did the Hot Chocolate 15K in January but that didn't exactly count in my opinion). I was signed up for a half the first weekend of January and dropped the idea as soon as one of my children threw up at night. In February, I was to run with a college friend and fell sick that night. So that race went out the window. In March, I was actually signed up for a full marathon but with my injury in January and almost non-running for about 2 weeks thereafter, I knew it wasn't doable, rather it would have been immensely foolish. The choice was to let that race go and continue running or not being able to run for months thereafter. 

       This race was at the end of my Spring Break, during which my children and I were booked to go to New York. Several visions went through my head about snowstorms, flight delays, etc and missing the race since I arrived home only yesterday. However, all the stars aligned this time. Health, wellness and travel. The only downside to the travel - and it was kind of big - I hadn't worn the right shoes for the most part and had walked a lot. So my plantar fasciitis on the left foot had caused some issues this past week.  I had continued with stretching and some elliptical workouts as time had permitted. 

       After my injury in January, I had consulted this massage therapist I have seen a few times at my gym and really appreciate. He had suggested some weight machines and foam roller techniques that I was already doing. I decided to see this personal trainer (Joe) at my gym who is a runner and who runs what else but a running lab! He said he was all booked up and I could see someone else. Well, I wasn't going to see someone else and was upset at not being able to see him. The following week he said he had an unexpected opening. So I did two personal trainer sessions with him and attended a few running labs that were all so useful, I can't thank him enough. After the first session with Joe, I was depressed thinking in spite of running for so long, I know nothing but it only increased my determination to pick his brain in terms of all possible tips and stretches he could provide. I bought these two contraptions after two sessions with him that have proven to be useful - a small bar and a ball. 

        Sleep was an issue the past few nights, particularly Friday night since I had to wake up 3:30 a.m. EDT, get myself ready before the children and leave the hotel no later than 5:00 a.m. to make it in time for our flight back home. None of this was recommended for my race of course. This morning, I was up nice and early at 2:45 so I could stretch, enjoy my cup of tea before leaving so that I could be in early enough to pick up my bib since i couldn't do it yesterday. I had a good feeling about the race this morning, though I knew that time would not be great. That wasn't the big factor in any case. I also had a strong, silent support group in my college friends. After having had no internet or email when we finished college, Facebook, linkedin and other forums have facilitated that connection in multiple ways. One such group we chat on is a phone chat app that cuts across country boundaries. It has been a great deal of fun, bonding and more. I knew I had tons of positive energy and messages from that forum.
     
       One of my colleagues was also running the race. I had suggested it to her since we are both signed up to run the San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon in June. She was getting a ride so we basically just got to say hi right before the race. It was really nice to see a familiar face though.

    
       Amongst the things I enjoy at a race are meeting various people. I learn a lot from talking to them. One of the women I talked at length had travelled from Los Angeles, was also signed up for the three package Rock and Roll deal. She was there by herself, and was staying back a day to enjoy the city. Another woman I talked to had travelled all the way from Germany because it was her dream to run over the Golden Gate bridge. She had strapped onto her head a GoPro camera. If you haven't seen a video made by these cameras, you should. It is fascinating. I had never met anyone at a running race wearing a GoPro because I would associate them with more adventure sports like rock climbing, surfing, skiing, underwater diving, etc. She had bought it just for this race and was pleasantly surprised that nobody else was wearing it. She had decided the different points during the race when she would videotape the action. 

        It was cold and dark at close to 6:30, the official start of the race. Being in the 10th corrall meant that I wasn't going to hit the start until 15 minutes after the start of the race. The race started near the ocean - lovely setting which came into vision by the time I started. RIght after turning the corner of the start, came a bunch of hills. You would finish one, and the next would emerge. This continued for the first mile. I was kind of pleased about it thinking that I wouldn't have to tackle hills the rest of the race which of course, was wishful thinking. After all, this was San Francisco. 

        The term Rock and Roll I felt was a misnomer. There were probably three live bands throughout the course, the first of which was after mile 8. There were jugglers and acrobats but that isn't really rock and roll. The music makes a huge difference to the morale and the tempo of the participants. It was a very well organized race though with plenty of aid stations, medical stations and volunteers. 

        After the first couple of miles, we took the turns through the Presidio with fantastic views of the Pacific Ocean, followed by views of the Golden Gate Bridge which we were soon to cross. The pictures will tell a better story of the views as well as the crowd on the bridge. The bridge run was very crowded and the sun was beating down relentlessly. The picture has a couple of people taking selfies. The selfies during the race with the views was a big deal. I did stop to take a few pictures of the views and someone did take my picture.

Just had to take this one of the ocean peeping through the trees

Looking back one could see waves of runners

Could only capture a small fraction of the people

Had someone take this photo

The gorgeous views while going through the Presidio

     The previous two times I have crossed the bridge in a race has been during the San Francisco Marathon which is held in the summer, so the fog holds steady through the bridge run and makes it very pleasant. Today, by the time we hit the bridge with the sun and the crowd, it was hot. Also, with the photo phenomenon, people would randomly stop, take pictures, walk, text, etc. This made it extremely cumbersome to navigate through the narrow passages of the bridge. The next time, it should be organized like the walkways at airports. Those standing (in this case walking/taking pictures) on one side and those running to be able to pass on a parallel path. Running across the bridge still has its own charm though and it will always be that way.

The sea of humanity on the bridge

        From there we ran down the pathway to the Marina. It was an absolutely beautiful day. By then it was a little past mile 8 and we had our first live band. Crossed a man wearing a T-shirt that read "Running my 50th half marathon). Another amazing thing about the city is how young and old, people in homes and without come out to cheer the race participants. By the time I had crossed mile 9, I had decided that I didn't need to bother about a specific time. That my goal of finishing a major race from the 1st of Jan would be accomplished and I needed to focus on a full marathon goal, hence focus on increasing that 13 mile limit next week to 15 or so. The number of outfits that one now encounters is phenomenal. 

 

This gives an idea of the nature of the day today in San Francisco

          The distance between miles 11 and 12 was the hardest for me. This was because I had thought we were done with the uphill runs which were looming in front of me and I seemed to have gone through a phase of - just plow through. After seeing the Mile 12 marker, it got easy again and of course, after 12.5, upon seeing the finish, it was like a fresh burst of energy. I had done it, albeit a slow time, after crossing 3,000 miles yesterday, overcoming yet another injury and having fun. Starting and finishing almost pain free was such a blessing! I am immensely grateful.

At the finish