Cinderella .262 Miler

Yeah, you read that title correctly: Cinderella *POINT* 262 Miler.  I had originally registered for the full marathon, but due to injuries, I dropped down to the 10k.  As I embarked on my trek up this mountain known as "Cinderella," I felt that nagging sharp pain in my back and leg, and had to turn around.  I was about .13 miles in.  My total for the day was .262 miles.  I would love to move that decimal point to places to the right, but I'll take the DNF for what it is.

Apparently, I wasn't the only one to drop out of the marathon.  My running buddies all dropped down to the 10k.  Word on the trail is that a hooded Asian thug with a machete chopped down all the pink and orange ribbons causing many runners to get lost in the woods! Who would do that?  Nonetheless, my running mates had great time.  This was a good warm up for all of us before the Bay To Breakers the next day!

Can you find Chewbacca in this photo?

Let's talk injuries for a moment.  You may recall that something happened to me the weekend of the Country Music/Flying Pigs double marathon.  I had and MRI done and here are the results:

• L1 -- L2: Unremarkable
• L2 -- L3: Unremarkable
• L3 -- L4: Minimal bilobed disc bulge only, essentially unremarkable
• L4 -- L5: The disc is slightly desiccated and diminished in height. There is a mild broad-based disc bulge eccentric to the right, most prominent lateral to the vertebral bodies. There is a right foraminal moderately large disc extrusion which compresses the right exiting L4 nerve root in the mid to lateral foramen. The left foramen is patent.
• L5 -- S1: The disc is desiccated and minimally diminished in height. There is a mild broad-based disc bulge with osteophyte which contacts the right S1 nerve root but does not compress it. There are mild facet degenerative changes. Foramina patent.

In layman's terms, what this means is that I have a bulging disc that is causing havoc on my sciatic nerve.  You know those butterflies that you get before a race?  Well, those caterpillars with wings mutated into Mothra and migrated to spine where it caused nonstop havoc to my sciatic nerve!

You gotta remember Mothra!  It's Godzilla's lepidoptera nemesis!

This sciatic nerve inconvenience knocked me out of the race for a few weeks.  I had to drop out of four marathons, which puts my quest for Titanium behind.  But at the end of the day, my health is much more important to me, so Titanium will have to wait until I heal!  I tried to have Cinderella be my comeback marathon, but it just didn't happen.  That's ok, at least I'll be rested up for the Bay To Breakers.  Here are two of my favorite shots of the B2B expo and carbo load dinner.  Good times.

When Meb saw me in line, he said, "Endorphin Dude! I remember you from San Jose!"  

And of course, the group photo.  So many Marathon Maniacs and Half Fanatics in this shot.  I love these peeps!

Flying Pigs Half Marathon

How's this for gettin' piggy with it?

My philosophy in running is that if you know you cannot finish a race, then at least show up to support your friends who are running it, that is, if you are physically able to do so.  After suffering mild heat exhaustion in Nashville the day before and having to endure the grueling 5 hour drive with an aching back, I knew I had to make a decision regarding The Flying Pigs Marathon.  It certainly did not help that I lost an hour due to the time zone change between Nashville and Cincinnati, and I didn't arrive until a little bit before midnight.  With only a few hours of sleep and that nagging sciatic pain which ultimately traveled down to my leg, I pretty much made up my mind to pull out of this 26.2 miler.  However, since I did have a custom pink flying pig cape made for this event, I wanted to try to at squeak out a half marathon, which I did.  Barely.

I arrived at the start line two hours early.  I was not able to sleep, so I just figured I get there early so that I wouldn't miss the Marathon Maniacs group photo.  Also, I wanted to make sure that I got to meet all the Facebook runners that I am friends with but have not face to face yet.  If it weren't for my Marathon Maniac friends, I most likely would have just detoured back to Madison, IN, and DNF'ed the pig.  Seriously, that was all that I had to keep me motivated to be out there.  With that sharp pain on my back and right leg and the rain that came down, I really only had my friends to look forward to.  Once the yellow and red singlets and the Half Fanatic blue arrived, I couldn't help but smile!

Maniacs!

I have to give a big shout out to my marathon twin, Dave Mari, who always goes out of his way to coordinate the pre-race group photo.  This guy always goes above and beyond the call of duty and we all appreciate it.  Not only do we get a great souvenir photo of it, but most of us get to meet the other maniacs that we don't already know or are Facebook friends but have not already met.

Finally!  I get to meet Medals 4 Mettle Scott Dahl!

And there's Wayne Sherman!

After the group photo, we all dispersed and headed to our corrals, or at the Flying Pigs, these are called "pig pens."  Four minutes before the race, the down pour hit.  Rain rain rain.  My endorphin spikes quickly flattened and the blisters started to form.  I knew before hitting that first mile that there was no way I could complete 26.2 miles.

Rain!

At about mile 2, this woman ran up to me and asked if I was Dave Mari. I couldn't help but laugh. I told her the story of how we met and the next thing I know, we're walking together the rest of the way.  Valerie had completed the Country Music Marathon the day before as well, so she was pretty beat. I'm glad I had her with me, because it made this brutal half marathon fun.  Thanks Valerie.

And there's Marathon Maniac Karen Wang! The funny thing is that at about our mile 4, an old Caucasian woman, a spectator, asked if we were married.  She seemed very happy to see us. When I said no, her smile disappeared and she abruptly walked away!  I'm really not sure what that was all about!

2:19:37 at the 6 mile mark?  Really? 

My new marathon buddy Valerie and I plugged through the rest of this half marathon.  There were a few people behind us, but we could clearly see the sag wagon.  Because of the rain, the blisters on my feet mutated and before I knew it, there were blisters on top of my blisters!  Nonetheless, with Valerie's cheerleading, I got through it and finished somewhere in the neighborhood of 4 hours and 45 minutes. When I crossed that finish line, the race volunteer handed me the marathon medal, but  I quickly declined it.  The 26.2 medal looked beautiful, but I did not earn it, so I accepted the 13.1 one.  I then limped back to my rental car and headed back to Madison, IN. Waiting there for me was my midwestern adopted family, who welcomed me home with a post race meal and party.  Seeing this bunch canceled out every disappointment that lingered in my mind for not being able to complete the double marathon weekend.

Thank you, Wickershams!

Am I bummed that I couldn't finish the full marathon?  Yes.  Do I regret dropping to half?  Not at all.  Reaching my goal of titanium is very important to me, but I'm not going to kill myself doing so.

Country Music Marathon

Clear blue skies in Nashville!

I came to Nashville very concerned about Mother Nature's violent mood swings. A few days before the Country Music Marathon, thunderstorms, severe winds and tornadoes slammed the South, killing dozens of people in four states, with Tennessee being one of them. Last year in Nashville, we had to run from a tornado. That event almost got canceled due to extreme weather.  I remember shortly after crossing the finish line, I had to quickly move into shelter in place mode due to the storm.  This year, I was fully prepared to dodge anything Mother Nature threw out at me.  To my surprise, no rain, no gusty winds, no funnels!  In fact, it was hot!  Mother Nature must be going through "the change." That could only explain the extreme and unpredictable mood swings, and the hot flashes that we all had to endure in Nashville.

The Country Music Marathon marked the first marathon in my third attempt at the double header.  Earlier this month I ran two back to back Charlie Alewine marathons followed by the grueling Labor of Love ultra marathon double.  For this weekend, I chose Nashville and The Flying Pigs Marathon in Cincinnati.  Initially, I had wanted to run the Kentucky Derby Marathon/Flying Pigs double, but because the Competitor Group announced the new Rock Idol medal for completion of 10 Rock 'N' Roll events, I had to jump on the bandwagon. The Derby would have been much more convenient for me, but because I am such a bling whore, I'll do what it takes to get that extra medal!

Intinerary:

• Fly into Louisville, KY, on Thursday.  
• Drive 50 miles to Madison, IN, to spend the night with my old college buddy's parents. 
• Wake up Friday morning and drive 225 miles to Nashville, TN.
• Attend expo and meet up with Marathon Maniacs and Half Fanatics.
• Run The Country Music Marathon on Saturday.
• Cross the finish line then jump into the rental car and drive 275 miles to Cincinnati.  
• Run The Flying Pigs Sunday morning.
• Cross the finish line then jump in rental car and drive back to Madison, IN.
• Fly out of Louisville, KY, on Monday.

'Tis the life of the Titanium-bound Marathon Maniac!

I finally got to meet Ryan Hall at an expo!

I tried to stick around to meet Kara Goucher but I had to get back to the hotel to meet my peeps for dinner.

Finally!  I get to meet Aaron Braunstein!  Along with Mr. Braunstein was my Boston Dudette, Stephanie Arango, and her awesome Mama, Mary Signorelli.

Endorphin Dude with Lyle Lyle Crocodile. We look like siamese twins in this photo, fused at the shoulder.

It was like one big slumber party with my room mates, Jennifer Walker and Kassi Vasquez.

A few of us met up at a hole in the wall Italian eatery down town for our carbo load dinner.  For most Marathon Maniacs, this is a double header weekend, so everyone was running from one expo to the next across state lines.  Because of this, not everyone was able to show up on time for dinner.  The restaurant host threatened to take our table away because we were all just sitting there drinking water.  He was actually quite rude to us, but I suppose I could understand his situation.  It was the night before a marathon at a pasta joint, and there was a line of people waiting to get a table.  I was just disappointed that he was so terse to us.  Fortunately, the rest of our party arrived and we were able to feast. The meal was less than adequate, so it's safe to say that if I ever return to Nashville, I will be avoiding this place.  The combination of poor customer service and bad food makes this a no brainer.  At least I was in good company, otherwise the dinner would have been a total bust.

We got back to our hotel at about 8pm and turned out the lights by nine.  I did not have a good sleep, as my back was killing me.  A few days ago, I started to develop a slight pinch above my right glute.  I talked to my Nashville room mate Jennifer, who is a physical therapist by vocation, and she noted that what I had was most likely my sciatic nerve being pinched.  She showed me some stretches, which I jumped right into.  I didn't sleep well that night, but I knew I could count on adrenaline the next morning.  That hormone has saved my butt many different times!  When the morning alarm went off, I got up, threw on the Endorphin suit, and ventured off to the start line with my running peeps.

Marathon Maniacs from behind!  That's Troy and Cathy.

I didn't catch this Maniac's name, so if you know her, let me know who she is!

I caught up with this Half Fanatic. Turns out, it's Louie Soriano's brother in law!

Thank you Sisters for getting me through this race!

There were a series of these signs from the Nashville chapter of the humane society.  I am raising money for the Peninsula Humane Society, so these signs really resonated with me.  The last one read, "You're almost done, but our race continues."

I'm seeing this guy pop up everywhere.  It's the Teddy Bear Man himself, Tyler Rich.

It's always tough to only hit your mile 19 and you see all those at mile 23 run right by you.  It's nice, though, when it's someone you know.  Seeing fellow Maniac Mary out there gave me that extra boost to get to the finish line.

Yay!  Finish line!  Nashville was hot and hilly, but Endorphin Dude got through it!

The Country Music Marathon was definitely a challenging race.  It's funny how I came into the marathon fearing hurricanes and tornadoes but ended up suffering from heat exhaustion instead.  It was a good thing I kept my Camelback fully stocked and I continued to hydrate myself throughout the 26.2 miles. That final 5k hurt, but at the end of the day, I made it.  Waiting for me at the finish line were some Marathon Maniac buddies of mine and Michael Kanh of WhyMarathons.com. If you haven't checked out this site yet, I highly recommend that you do.  Why Marthons is a platform for inspiration, devoted to digging into the real reason that you put yourself to the test and push the limits of mind and body.  Michael caught me at the peak of runner's high.  I knew right when he clicked on the record button that he would get the very absolute endorphin-filled best out me or the goofiest stuttering worst.  I'm glad it was the former that he caught on film.



Marathon #23 is now in the books.  Titanium scoreboard: 16 down, 36 to go!

Dolphin South End Easter 5k

My name is Endorphin Dude, and I got to scratch something off my bucket list this morning...

Figured it out yet?  No worries, I won't keep you in suspense.  This marathon caped crusader turned bunny wabbit got to be race director for the day!  What an awesome experience, and to be able to do this for my running club is icing on the cake.  On top of that icing is more icing, because Endorphin Dude got to be co-race directors with his running partner in crime, Ultra Woof!  And just when you thought there was no more room for any sugar, on top of that icing on that original layer of icing is more icing!  Chris Bliss was our right hand bunny!

Stike a pose.

After yesterday's 50k, the last thing I wanted was to run a 5k.  I'm glad I had this opportunity to be race director.  Ultra Woof and I brought our personal style to this Easter 5k, and it's probably safe to say that we knocked the Easter egg out of the park.  People seemed to have a lot of fun watching two marathon maniac bunnies lead the way.  We both received positive feedback and were even asked by some DSE members when we would return.  I am definitely open to that!

Getting started.

*clears throat* Ladies & Gentle Peeps!  Welcome to the DSE Easter 5k!

On your mark, get set...

Alex Munoz coming in for the finish!

And the kids race begins!

I'll let you come up with a caption for this one!

Ruth Anderson Ultra Races 50k

When I crossed the 26.2 mile mark of my Sunday Labor of Love race, I let out a sigh of relief.  I was just happy to reach that point.  However, there was no dance of joy, no release of endorphins, and no I-like-to-thank-the-Academy speeches.  That's because there was no finish line in sight. Unfortunately, that Sunday race was a 50k, so I still had another 5 miles to go.  I remember muttering a string of expletives to myself as I asked over and over again why I would choose to go beyond the marathon distance.  It's tough when you reach what should be the end of the race and you realize that you're just not quite there yet.  The final five miles of a marathon is tough, but the final five miles of a 50k, well, that's even tougher.  I vowed never again to run that distance.

Endorphin Dude crosses the finish line of the Ruth Anderson Ultra Races 50k.

Well, that vow didn't last long.  Two weeks after that Labor of Love 50k, I returned to the distance that I so dreaded.  I registered for the Ruth Anderson Ultra Races 50k at Lake Merced because I just couldn't pass up a local race.  The conditions for this race were much more favorable than Labor of Love as well: no altitude, no Antarctica winter breeze, no scary mountain. Plus, I had 11 hours to circle Lake Merced seven times.  What really sealed the deal was that this race took place 8 minutes from my apartment, so I could easily have the doggie nanny take the Epinephrine Pup out to run a few laps with me! 

I came into this race with the same mentality of my last few.  I needed to milk the clock for all it's worth.  With 11 hours, I knew I would have no problems.  I showed up at 6am to pick up my bib and goodie bag.  I was pleasantly surprised by so many familiar faces out there.

I was shocked when I saw my buddy Charlie!  This guy will be running Western States in a few weeks.  For those who don't know, this is the guy who got me into running.  Charlie finished his 50k while I was still plugging along at mile 12!  He finished third over all with a time of 3:45:26.  Amazing!

Fellow DSE member Noe was there.  Noe ran over 100 miles at the New Year's One Day.

Here's fellow DSE member and Marathon Maniac, Bill McCarty.  Bill continued his streak of running every day by running this 50k.  I believe he's run every day for the past three years.

And of course, there's fellow Marathon Maniac Valerie Hower.  I've been seeing a lot of Valerie lately!  That's definitely a good thing!

The race director walked us to the start line, which was about .5 miles from where race headquarters was located.  When the clock struck half past 6am, he announced, "GO!", and all of us took off.  Some runners sprinted, others ran.  I stayed behind the pack with my steady power jog.  There was no way I was going to run this one, especially with the generous time limit and a double marathon scheduled for the following week!  I needed to rest my body and take it nice and slow.  By doing so, I got to enjoy the scenery and reflect on my progress up to this point.  We're approaching the end of April, which marks a mile stone in my quest for Titantification.  I am one third of the way through and I am still on track!  Thinking like this always get me pumped up.  The first three laps went by pretty smoothly, as my mind and legs were still somewhat fresh.  I got to see more familiar faces as well as some unexpected ones on the course.

At about my mile 9, Ragnar Van Mom and Fellow DSE and Marathon Maniac Elizabeth McKay texted me and said that she needed to squeeze in a 10 miler, so she was going to head out to Lake Merced with the boys.  I got to run with these three for about a mile.

I had a mini melt down at about mile 14, but Ultra Woof came to my rescue!  Thank God my running partner in crime came out to pace me!

Chris Bliss came out to Lake Merced a little bit later with The Epinephrine Pup!  For the first time ever, Endorphin Dude got to run with his side kick at a race!

The final three laps of this 50k were actually a lot of fun because I was in good company.  Ultra Woof, Chris Bliss, The Epinephrine Pup and I plugged along for the final few miles.  The side kick, however, was carried most of the way.  It's hard to run with that Chiweenie because she stops every four minutes to sniff the grass, pee, and bark at bicyclists.  My two pacers switched off with the doggie diva carrying duties.  There were times when I got to carry her, but I had to keep that to the minimum because after 20 miles, that little rat dog felt like a German Shepard! 

Geez, you're suppose to be the side kick!  I ain't got no energy to carry you!

Sure enough, I scooped up the chiweenie and ran.  Like I said, after 20 miles, she felt more like a German Shepard!  I had to give her back to one of my pacers after half a mile or so.

When I hit mile 26.2 miles, I let out a sigh of relief.  This was the same sigh of relief that I let out at Labor of Love.  The only difference, though, is that this time it was accompanied with a smile.  Yes, my legs gave out on me and the blisters that I picked up at The Western Pacific Marathon the week before continued to nag at me, but it didn't bother me that I had one more lap to complete.  I was in good company, I had plenty of time, and my dog was loving all the attention.  I continued to plug along, and when I reached mile 30, I cheered!  I picked up the pace and ran in that final mile!

Endorphin Dude & The Epinephrine Pup flies into the finish line!

Guess what?  Not only did Endorphin Dude get to fly into the finish line with his side kick, but this marathon caped crusader scored a gargantuan two hour PR!  It was a long day out there on Lake Merced, but once again I got the job done.  Along with my pacers and my superhero side kick chiweenie, what got me through this race was the awesome support of the race director and all the volunteers.  I'd like to make a special shout out to Race Director Rajeev Patel.  Thank you for making this 50k both painless and fun for Endorphin Dude!  The aid stations were always full stocked and boy oh boy, that finish line soup was the best thing I've ever had!  I may have to return year after year just for a bowl of that piping hot curryliscious soup!

Thank you Mr. Race Director! 

I am very happy that my third ultra marathon is now in the books.  If you had told me two years ago that I would be running marathons, I would have laughed in your face.  Now I'm running ultra marathons.  What's next?  A 50 miler?  100?  We'll just have to wait and see!  Titanium Scoreboard: 15 down, 37 to go!

Geez Louise, I don't know why you do this every frickin' weekened.  Dude, I'm tired.  Can we just go to sleep now???  Oh wait, I forgot, you still have to take that stupid bubble bath with Mr. Bubble.  Geez!

Western Pacific Marathon

I can out run Ryan Hall, Meb, and Dean any day.  I am so elite that no runner can touch me! And I do it so effortlessly too, as is evidenced in this photo below.  NOBODY within a mile of me.  I rock.

I'm not lying when I say that nobody was near me.  They were actually all ahead of me!  In fact, they were far far ahead of me!  That's what happens when you have a late start. As unfortunate as it was, I got lost getting to the start line of the Western Pacific Marathon.  I took a few wrong turns and ended up in the wrong city.  Luckily I was only 15 minutes late and the race director allowed me to start. 

My running partner in crime, Ultra Woof, decided to take an even later start, so she waited an additional 15 minutes and ran with the half marathoners.  Unbeknownst to me, there was quite a fanfare due to her tardiness. As all the half marathoners lined up, a Brazen Racing staff member announced over the loud speaker, "will the person who was late for the marathon please come to the front of the line to take your start."  Can you imagine being singled out like that and having everyone stare at you as you make that trek to the front of the line to take your start all alone?  I remember a few years ago, I went to see the Blue Man Group in Las Vegas, and about 15 minutes into the show, a deafening alarm went off and the Blue Men stopped the show to embarrass a guest who showed up late.  They shined a spot light on the unsuspecting guest and serenaded them with a special aria. "You're late!  You're late!  You're laaaaaaate!"  All this, of course, was broadcasted on the big screen for all to laugh at.

I don't believe anyone laughed at Ultra Woof, but I can only imagine the confused snickering which took place.  Hey, at least Brazen didn't film and broadcast on the big screen her pushing to the front of the pack while knocking over runners with her trademark refrigerator strapped around her hips. (Yes, my running partner carries a grocery store, liquor store, and pharmacy in the form of an oversized fuel belt.)  In any case, Ultra Woof got to start before the half marathoners, and she caught up to me at my mile three.

We're looking more like Olympic figure skating pairs than marathoners. Check out this perfectly executed side by side double axels.

After having endured the most laborious ultra double of my life last weekend in Lovell Canyon, Nevada, I really needed to take this race nice and easy.  My master plan was to milk the clock and finish at a comfortable pace.  I hadn't fully recovered from Labor of Love and the double marathon the weekend before that, but I had enough gas in the tank to get through my 21st marathon.  With a 7.5 hour time limit, I believed that I could get through the race without over exerting myself too much.  That late start threw me for a loop, but I quickly deleted that virus from the hard drive of my brain and moved forward.  I plugged along the first three miles, and once Ultra Woof arrived, the race got fun.  We ran, we gorged our faces with rice crispy treats at the stations, we high fived all the volunteers.  It was funny, even though I was not in endorphin gear, everyone seemed to know that I was the marathon caped crusader.  One volunteer even asked, "Hey Endorphin Dude, where's the cape?"

What I also loved about this race was the out and back course. Throughout the 26.2 miles, I got to see familiar faces run by. 

And there's the fridge around the hips.  There are more compartments in the back.  I'm telling you, she has a grocery store, a liquor store, and a pharmacy strapped on her hips!

Here we are with fellow Marathon Maniac, Valerie Hower.  We first met Valerie at the New Year's One Day.  Valerie volunteered at the aid station at Western Pacific.

Sometimes Ultra Woof gets off balanced because of that fridge on her hips, hence her posture gets slightly off.  To the right of her is Alex Munoz, a fellow DSE member.

Not really sure what' going on here.  Looks like Ultra Woof is taking a bite out of Sharon Munoz's shoulder.  I didn't realize that my running partner is part cannibal.  I better watch my back or she'll eat it.

There's fellow Half Fanatic, David Gallegos.  Would you believe me if I told you he used to weigh over 300 pounds?  No kidding.

Here's one of my favorite runners, Alison Cooksey.  The funny thing is that we didn't meet at a running event.  We met at a mutual friend's birthday party.  Most of my runner friends I meet at a race!

And there's the Wogging Tortoise herself, Mae Lee!

I'm not going to lie, my body was exhausted.  I felt like I shuffled through this race.

It took me a long time to get to that finish line.  By mile 20, my body was beat.  The blisters on the bottom of my foot went through mitosis and before I knew it, there were blisters on top of blisters.  The final 10k was physically uncomfortable for me, but I kept chugging along.  When I finally made it to the finish line, I was greeted by all my friends.  My sister Diane, who ran the half marathon, waited for me even though she had an appointment to get to.  I saw this glow in her face, and I had a had a feeling that she was very eager to talk to me.  When I asked her how she did,  my sister exuberantly gushed, "I PR'ed!!!  By 4 minutes!!  I so want to be a Half Fanatic now!!"  The girl was clearly on runner's high, and I love it, because I am the one responsible for getting her into this running thing!  Also feeling the runner's high were Chris Bliss, fellow half fanatic David Gallegos, Wogging Tortoise, and fellow Marathon Maniac Mohan Dutt, who came out to support us even though he didn't run the race.  Endorphins ran amok at the finish line and everybody was beyond happy!  Oh, what an awesome day!

Finally!

From left to right: Wogging Tortoise, Mademoiselle Escargot, Endorphin Dude, Ultra Woof, Mohan, David, and Chris Bliss.

Running marathons is not easy.  Pursuing 52 marathons in 52 weeks is even harder.  I am doing this because there is something deep inside me that wants it more than anything else.  I can't explain it.  This is what keeps me pushing when the going gets rough.  I will pull out all the stops every time and find creative ways to get to that finish line.  I've said it before, and I'll say it again and again: I am not the fastest in the pack, but I always finish, and when I do, I feel like a winner.

Titanium Scoreboard: 14 down, 38 to go!