top of the world

tyler and i are running in big baz's 15k this saturday. do i feel ready? hmm...we've done quite a bit of running lately, but i've felt quite tired after the last three. crikey. we did a beach run last thursday and since it was high tide, we ran in soft dry sand. my legs were on fire by the time we made it to the balboa pier. we made it halfway back to the newport pier when we decided to run on the boardwalk. t's knee was bothering him and while i wasn't happy about that, i was thankful i could get off the sand.

we also had a beautiful run at el morro. we took a different route that time and ended up going through some incredible areas, including this pretty grassy meadow area:

you can faintly see the trail through the grass behind me.
we went back to el morro this past saturday (we had and are having the most incredible weather - it was nearly 80 degrees over the weekend!), but a park ranger was standing at the gate turning people away. the park is now closed indefinitely because of the recent rains we had and some of the trails need major repair. so we ended up going to top of the world in laguna beach which was awesome but very challenging. it was alllll the way down and then alllll the way up. turns out we did over 900 feet of elevation. some areas were so steep and over that sandstone that makes it really slippery. i sat and slid/crawled my way down in a couple of areas. this was down "car wreck canyon." we figured out why it was called that when we got to the bottom:

i was pretty tired after this run (more like hike). on the way up (and i mean up), i could see tyler waaaay up ahead, teeny tiny in the distance. i tried running at some points thinking i might catch up, but some of the uphill was so steep. overall though, it was a beautiful trail. we also saw some amazing carved out cave boulders. maybe you have to see them so that makes sense? we were kicking ourselves for not having brought our phones to take photos.

so, saturday will be here before we know it, and i'm not sure if i'll feel 100% ready. i am excited though because my parents will be here. it'll be their first time seeing me race (and compete in anything athletically for that matter).

stay tuned.

xo,
jessica

car wreck canyon photo via here.

we did it again

the humble runners ran in the big baz 12k last saturday at blue jay campground at the saddleback mountains. tyler joined the group this time, and we also recruited a new humble runner - tayler's husband, branden. the trail was really beautiful - challenging in some areas, but it was awesome. one minute you're climbing up rocks and the next you're hopping over streams. sister ran late that morning (no pun intended) due to circumstances beyond her control as they say, so we started a little late. the others went ahead and i waited for her so we could start together. after about three miles, we lost each other, so we basically ran the race alone, which turned out to be quite nice. of course it would have been great to run with the group, but it was still okay running alone. it was so beautiful that you kinda forgot you were even running/walking. here are a couple of videos - one of me getting to the finish line and one of jennifer. we came in last since we started late, but we're okay with that. it's not about the time after all, right? we unfortunately don't have video of our fellow humble runners getting in, but we assure you they made it in in great time feeling great.

and the humble runners: tyler, jennifer, big baz (a very experienced humble runner), me, tayler, branden

xo, jessica

New Year! New Shoes! New Challenges!

      I started the New Year with an annoying cold and I'm still not sure that I'll be feeling well enough to join Tyler and the ladies for this Saturday's 12k. Either way, I've got to get back in the game steady and strong once I'm feeling well again. I'm hoping that will happen soon because I'm excited to share that I just joined Map My Run's 30 in 30 Challenge. Check it out! Plus, I got new shoes and some sexy gaiters from Dirty Girls (thank you Culleen!) for Christmas. The shoes have been awesome at the gym so far, but it's time to get them good and muddy! They are the Nike Livestrong Lunarglide +2, seen below (waaaay down below)...
I'll report back later to let you know how it's going. Also, visit back soon as I cover my sports bra shopping experience properly titled, Say No to Jiggle in Jogging!
Happy New Year, Jennifer

flurries, vegas, and the treadmill...

White Vegas!

                                       

After a good month, I'm back on the blog track.  It's been a bit on the slow side when it comes to running.  Partly because its been raining a good bit and also because I've been spending a lot of my free time (Winter Break) knitting up a storm for Christmas.  See, I have another blog devoted to my adventures in the fine craft of knitting called the greenhorn knitter, with which I have been spending a lot of my time.  A bit unfaithful to the humble runners which is inexcusable, I know.  I will be better.

Anywho, I made it a New Year's resolution to run, no matter what.  I could even go so far to say, "rain...er...snow or shine."  Today, in Las Vegas, we got a few inches of snow and it was a blistery 32 degrees!  I didn't want to risk catching a cold before the run this weekend, so I settled on the treadmill in the rec room at my apartment complex.  No matter what...right?  It felt great! I made sure to set the workout for hills with a pretty decent incline so I felt like I was workin' it.   I did 4 miles in a little under 40 minutes and my knee (been suffering from some ITBS lately) didn't hurt a bit.  This is quite a relief because it tells me that most of my knee pain must be from the lack of give of the streets.  Duh.  I know.  At least I know my joints are OK.  Well here's to New Year's resolutions and running...no matter what.  Happy New Year all!

Cheers!
Tayler

i love dirty girls (gaiters)

the humble runners each got some new (and awesome) dirty girls gaiters for christmas, courtesy of santa (errr...my mom-in-law). got these snazzy splatter painted ones and a pair of groovy disco-ish looking ones. took them for a test run (pun intended) and they were superb. southern california experienced some pretty incredible rainfall most of last week, so a lot of the trails were closed at el morro. but that didn't stop us. we (tyler and i) hopped right over the caution tape and kept on truckin. okay, i do understand that that's probably not something to brag about or be so nonchalant about. as a humble runner, i'm not in the business of making haughty comments about disregarding safety. however, it'd been a few days since we'd had rain, so a lot of it was dried up. we took one detour when he hit a flooded area and everything worked out. except for the part where we saw a coyote. not kidding. tyler said it was a baby (i just saw its head peeking from around a corner from a distance and i wasn't wearing my glasses). but i digress. my gaiters were super muddy (they served their purpose) but we had a great run and did a total of 6.26 miles. i wore tyler's christmas present, the garmin forerunner 310xt. it tracked my pace, distance and time. my average was a little over 14 minute miles which isn't great, but also isn't bad considering the detouring and walking over muddy and slippery areas (and walking when i was really tired).

i had taken two weeks off from running (last time was the run in texas with my bro and sis) and i got sick after that plus with alllll the rain...anyway. i went on a run with my fellow humble runner, tayler, and was so winded. i felt nauseous and so out of breath. my chest hurt real bad. i was feeling worried about our 12k after that. but, i got back out the next day with tyler and felt great afterwards. here are a few photos from the day. since his knee is still pretty sore, he did a run/walk so he snapped a few photos of me.

here are the gaiters before:

tyler looking pumped (kinda):

me in my new arm sleeves and the garmin watch on my left wrist:

a taste of the treacherous trails:

and my gaiters and shoes after the run:



xo, jess

big baz 2011 12k

hello dear readers...hello? anyone? anyone out there? it's been a while since we last posted that i'm afraid we may have lost our loyal following. we did have a loyal following...didn't we?

so ladies and gentlemen, here is our next big goal: the big baz 12k on saturday, january 8, 2011 at blue jay campground at the cleveland national forest. we'll reach between 3,000 and 4,000 feet of elevation, so this is a little (okay, a lot) more intense than our 9k. that's big baz here to the left. looks like a real nice guy, doesn't he? i'm hoping the humble runners can get a photo with him.

i've been running pretty consistently. you know tyler is dealing with some itbs from his 50 miler, so he's taking a break from running until that heals. instead he's been riding his bike alongside me while i run on the boardwalk. what a guy, huh? this is great since i have to go in the evenings and i'm not comfortable running alone when it's dark. my sis and i were also in texas this weekend for our mom's 60th birthday, so we went for a run with my brother. the road was pretty perfect for running on (somewhere between asphalt and gravel). we had dogs chase us, saw lots of horses, etc. now i've come down with something - a sore throat and chest thing, so i'll have to take some time off. stay tuned...

xo,
jessica

photo via here.

Pound the Pavement to this- Skanky Hip Hop

    Call it a guilty pleasure or blame it on my Jersey roots, but I have a soft spot for cheesy, masoganistic, booty-shakin' beats! Do you know the song, Sexy Bitch by David Guetta featuring Akon? I can't hear this tune without wanting to get a move on or bust a move, whateva!  For me, getting a good run or work out in makes me feel sexy and alive. Listening to lively beats like this get me pumped! "They say she needs to slow down. The baddest thing around town." Love it!! Have a listen...
                                              http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cefQbsIrc1I

                                               Love, Jennifer