Tag: Peru

Finishing Is The Reward

Posted by on December 23, 2017 in Activities, Adventure, Destinations, Travel

Last month, I reported on my then-upcoming adventure at the Marathon Des Sables Peru in a post called Crunch Time. If you were unable to follow along with the race, I’m happy to report that I did complete the 155-mile, six-stage event, ranked in the top 100 competitors—which was my stated goal in an even earlier post, All About The Goal—and as the top ranked American in the field. Finishing this footrace was no easy accomplishment, but always with the end in mind, I did manage to work through challenges during the race and come away happy with my results. (more…)

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Crunch Time

Posted by on November 16, 2017 in Activities, Adventure

My last big week of training for the upcoming Marathon Des Sables (MDS) Peru is in the bag. Running over one hundred miles and consuming thousands of extra calories to keep me going during the week has been a challenge. But now it’s taper time—and crunch time.

With the months-long training schedule and those last big miles complete, I get to back the mileage down and let my body heal and rest up before toeing the start line in the Ica desert of Peru later this month.

To round out the last couple of weeks and all this running, one of our grandkids’ football teams made it to their championship series, and we are fortunate to live close enough to go to the games. And they WON, they took it ALL!

Also, I’ve had a couple of really fun speaking engagements, attended two really fun dinner parties, and had to get new tires on my car. You know…life.

My MDS Peru run is an End Polio Now campaign with Rotary International. (more…)

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Marathon Des Sables Peru Update

Posted by on October 30, 2017 in Activities, Adventure

“Or, we could take the foot,” said my doctor. In return, I said, “You didn’t have to go there.” I thought it was a negotiation, and he had to go medieval on me. My fault, though. I suppose he was right, and he had made his point. But, I didn’t have to like it one bit.

Let me go back to the beginning: So, I was training for the Marathon Des Sables Peru, a 155-mile, six-stage footrace in the Ica desert of Peru set for late November. (Click here for previous posts on MDS Peru.) Of course, training takes place around life, so one must compromise. This year saw our fortieth wedding anniversary and the fiftieth anniversary for some close friends of ours, so we all decided to celebrate with ten days on Kauai. You know, the usual—enjoying sun and sand, snorkeling, dining out, taking in the sights, and experiencing some new and exciting things. (more…)

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All About The Goal

Posted by on September 29, 2017 in Activities, Adventure, Destinations

Earlier this month I posted a short promo video announcing that I have joined the campaign to end polio. (Read on for another video with more detail.) This project is a partnering with the Rotary Club of Middletown, California—one intended to raise funds and awareness to finish the “Last Mile” to eradicating this horrible disease.

Please join us: donate at End Polio Now. #polioslastmile


Very few runners have the wherewithal to win a marathon, an ultramarathon, or a long stage race—I applaud and marvel at those who do. For those of us without that ability, and using a bit of self-reflection, well, we must determine what it is that we expect from our performance. That process is easy for me because I am goal oriented and steadfastly stick to my goals until they are accomplished, or they no longer make sense. (more…)

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I Need A New…

Posted by on June 5, 2017 in Activities, Advice, Destinations

So now my first few short training runs are in the bag; six months to go.

Being well into “middle age” (and retired from professional life for a few years now) does not make me old. The body may age, but I refuse to get old. That’s a conscious decision we can all make.

Last year, my logbook indicated that I ran, walked, and hiked a total of 2,700 miles in calendar 2016. At the start of that year, our local running club, the Lake County Milers, posted a mileage challenge―speaking to my competitor’s spirit―and I had some big things planned for the year. For example, I trained for and ran only one ultramarathon, the Redwoods Creek 50K (31 miles), and then I planned for and hiked the John Muir Trail in California (approximately 220 miles plus an additional 30 miles to join the JMT from Cottonwood Lakes trailhead). I also walked my second Camino de Santiago in Spain, the Via de la Plata (625 miles). (more…)

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