Thursday Twins

That's Trail Trouble's triathlon training buddy powering through the end of the Twins. What a beautiful morning...It's sometimes hard to believe we're still in HK.

Sir Cecil is my Homeboy

I just want to say that Sir Cecil is my homeboy. His "ride" makes up a solid chunk of most of the long runs I do these days. Running on the relatively flat and picturesque path, weaving above the melee of the northern section of HK Island, this morning it occurred to me, " Who is this Sir Cecil and what was he riding?"

So I looked him up. Thank you very much Wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cecil_Clementi

Very smart guy. Turns out he spoke fluent Canto and Mandarin and he also read Sanskrit. I love the old colonial governors. They were definitely adventurers. Some of the highlights of his tenure include the abolition of female maid servitude and the resolution of the HK-Canton labor strikes. Most importantly, he left an excellent walking/running/ jogging path.

Go Cecil...Now I need to find out about his lady... she has a whole separate ride. Giddy up!

Baby steps

So suddenly there are lots of people (that I actually know) who are pregnant and having babies...

A fellow bridesmaid from my best friend's wedding just had a little girl; a camp friend just had her second boy; two classmates from my study abroad year are due before the end of the summer; and one of my favorite HK couples is expecting Baby K in the next three weeks (my money is on August 16th for that lucky kid).

Wow. It's incredible to think about. It's really exciting.

One of my own friends from babyhood had her first child over two years ago. Suddenly that newborn plays baby basketball with her dad and twirls around in tutus like Meredith and I did when we were her age. It astounds me to watch (via facebook) how quickly she grows and learns. When I first met her she could barely lift her head, but sure enough, she learned how to roll over, then crawl, and now it seems all she does is dance. What an adventure.

I am deeply in awe of all of my friends as they bring these incredible new people into the world, and I'm trying to take some inspiration and a page out of their playbook by approaching some of my goals with patience and baby steps.

I tend to jump into the deep end head first (with a couple of front flips first if I can manage it), but this time, I'm trying out a new approach- taking time to slowly build up my strength, my endurance, and my skills. Last week I added spin and interval training to the agenda. Next week I plan to join a running clinic to improve my technique. I'm also adjusting my eating and sleeping habits. I ate pineapple today!

It's scary. This weekend I'm off on my first solo 25km run. In some ways I'm tottering, unsure of the next step and wondering just how far I'll make it.. But I bet 25km in the blistering heat and HK pollution is less painful than childbirth...so I'll stick to this adventure for now and keep that in mind when I want to quit.

22km in 35 degrees

...And that is what you get. Trail trouble's butt print...

Trail Trouble convened our weekend escapade below Parkview at 7am on Saturday morning. A number of our HK compatriots were heading in the opposite direction ie home to their beds as Amy can attest when she drove past Home Base.

We loaded up on Gatorade and Pocari Sweat before assuming our usual trek down the Round the Island Route. Knowing the route made things a little bit easier and after the first two big hills, Mt. Butler Road and Sir Cecil's Ride, we started to cruise. The two tall troublers led the way as usual, but we know our meet up points, a quick splash in the waterfall and off we go again...

To hit the full 22kms, we decided to run all the way down Shek O Road. It's a nice run except that in order not be creamed by buses and legions of bikers you have to run in direct sunlight. No breeze, no shade, no sidewalk...It was hot and humid and the only relief was filled with exhaust when buses and trucks passed by. But still we made it and were filled with a massive rush of exhilaration.

The ipod measuring our distance got run over by a car at 21.7kms so we probably went a bit beyond 22km but who cares...It was painful and the API was definitely in the high range on Saturday so we may be doing more harm to our lungs than good to our muscles, but we definitely finished with a huge sense of accomplishment and some massive bottles of water in town.

Hard to believe that our Singapore race is going to be more than double that. Next week we'll get to the halfway point- 25km on the agenda...let's hope it rains...

One week away from old(er)...

Email to a Gobi friend:

"I’m really looking forward to this weekend. I’m shipping my brother out to Sai Kung for BBQ, so he can have some fun (and I can hit the hay). He’s only 24 so still needs to rage all the time…ah youth…anyway...squash tonight. Long run and a movie tomorrow. Hiking and swimming on Sunday.

When did I become an adult? Oh wait, that’s not until next week when I turn 27…sheesh…"

That's almost believeable...

It's been so long since last we met...

...lie down forever lie down. That is the opening line of the Georgetown fight song, and it seems rather apt following my month long hiatus from blogging. It's been a crazy month. I've said goodbye to a LOT of friends, entertained visitors, and recruited a new roommate- my brother Chris. As usual, I've seen the standard business trips and an awful lot of rain.

But we're just under three months away from my next race- The North Face 100 in Singapore. I've teamed up with my friend Amy, who legs are about as long as my entire body, as Trail Trouble- greatest team name ever! This time, I'm actually going to do some significant training and aim to run the entire race. The point of this is to figure out if I actually like these ultramarathons, or if the appeal of the Gobi lay more in the escape from my blackberry and spectacular scenery.

So now, basically I'm back trying to figure out the meaning of my life and get some exercise at the same time. There's new urgency as friends get married, have babies, and head back to the US, and I move firmly into my late 20s on August 16th and need to look hot in all those bridesmaid dresses.

Trail Trouble's training has gotten off to a bit of a slow start due to typhoons and travel schedules, but independently we have explored cities ranging from Tokyo to Istanbul (NOT Constantinople...ha) in our running shorts and asics. We enlisted lots of training partners and hopefully will be more than ready come Oct 24th...