Ran at Santa Rosa Plateau today with Anne. Same course as the previous run but started a little too late for today's weather. It was a cloudless day and got hot early on in the run. Quite a few people out on the trail today. Strangely, we ran into to other sets of runners just as we approached the junction of Valley Rd trail and Vernal Pool trail( map here ) - one from the South, one from the West and us from the East. Usually I don't see anybody in the part of the park so it was kinda weird to all arrive at the same point at exactly the same time.
In San Diego today so went for a run at Torrey Pines State Reserve. Its the first day of the holiday weekend so the trails were somewhat busy. Started from the top parking lot and ran Guy Flemming trail, Parry Grove trail, and Razor Point trail going back up via Broken Hill trail.
Went to the Santa Rosa Plateau today to run the same course as the last few times. Didn't see much wildlife along the way but it was a nice, cool, foggy morning making for an enjoyable 11.5 mile run.
Ran the Holcomb Valley trail run race course today with Anne. The course starts on the shore of Big Bear Lake (elevation 7000 ft) and heads up quickly from there. The first 2 miles climbs the steep, rocky Cougar Creek trail to meet the Pacific Crest trail. From here the trail somewhat levels out and follows dirt roads until climbing again around mile 7 to meet the PCT again. The course follows the PCT back to Cougar Creek trail then back down the steep rock trail to return the starting point for 15 miles. Being that I mostly run around desert areas, running at elevation was really hard!
Trail ran at Sycamore Canyon this morning. Headed across the street from home to the Central
Ave trailhead and headed up. Ran to the Pepsi Bottling plant then headed back making a loop. Didn't see anyone else out (it was a really nice cool foggy morning) but did see 2 coyotes along the way. Unfortunately there wasn't much rain this year so there are no wildflowers in the canyon. Most years around this time, the flowers are waist high.
The GoLite Sun Dragon shoes worked great. They really grip the trail well and I was really able to stay in control in the downhill sections (there is lots of up and down here). However, they may not be giving me enough support with my over pronation. Its hard to tell yet, maybe after a few more runs. Regardless, they are better than my previous shoes.
Ran Mt. Rubidoux tonight. I bought a new pair of trail running shoes and wanted to try them out before getting out on a long run. My previous shoes did not offer enough support and I found that I was over pronating my left foot which was giving me cramps in my left calf muscle. They are Sun Dragons made by GoLite. I bought them on Zappos.com which offers free overnight shipping, no tax in CA and free shipping on returns. The shoes are specifically designed for trail running with around 10 "lugs" on the bottom for better grip. The lugs are hard tread that float on a soft rubber making them act like little springs under your feet. They absorb shocks and form to uneven trail. These shoes really stood out while running down hill (the past is 2 miles up/2 miles down) keeping a great footing allowing you to take bigger and faster strides. The shoes are sold as 1 + 1/2 sizes (mine are 11-11.5) and come with inserts to allow custom sizing. They seem to run a little big with lots of room in the toe box (great for me, I have big feet). Can't wait to get out onto a trail with them.
Ran Mt Rubidoux tonight. Still trying to get back to normal after being sick for a couple weeks.
Ran at Torrey Pines State Beach today. Started out at the top parking lot and ran down to Guy Flemming trail, around it then up to Parry Grove trail. From there, ran back to the top lot then down Razor Point trail to Beach Trail and back up via Broken Hill trail (North). A really nice day for running by the ocean, but really hot even for San Diego. I ran around 11am and the sun was killer!
So I've just been working a lot of overtime and trying to get over being sick. Its been two weeks now and I am still coughing but feeling good enough to go for a run. Its really hot (99 F) today, but started to cool off this evening. Started out around sunset and gt to the top after the sun had set. From the top we could see the flames from 2 wild fires - one to the North in Fontana and one to the South near Corona. It was amazing to see how fast those fires could move in such a short time that I was watching. Too bad I didn't bring my camera.
I was down in San Diego today to give a lecture about the use of hand held technology in pharmacy practice and the application of informatics for new practitioners. It was for a Pharmacy Informatics course at the UCSD School of Pharmacy where I graduated from last June. The class size was about 60 students and the lecture lasted about 2 hours. I was kind of strange being on the lecturer side of the room and to be introduced as "Dr. Joseph Ennesser" It went really well and I think quite a few of the students were excited to hear about how they could implement new technology into their practice of pharmacy.
