Lassen National Park

Bubbling mud pools and steam holes.

Views at Olympic Valley California

Looking down at Squaw Valley (you can see the haze from the smoke); Monument at Emigrant Pass;
vista from the hike up to Emigrant Pass; the bottom picture shows where the race would have continued from Emigrant Pass.

Cancellation! ... Dismay ... Reorganization

For the first time in 35 years, the Western States 100-mile Endurance Run was cancelled. We heard about it from Robert's pacer when we were halfway to our destination. The lightning strikes from a couple of days before had developed into fires, two of which were near the trail. The air quality was extremely poor and after much deliberation with the Forest Service and Air Quality, it was decided the race should not go on. After the initial dismay, Robert was already looking up other 100 mile races to run instead. As soon as we got home, he registered for the Lean Horse Hundred in South Dakota on August 23rd (Tanya's birthday). We'll get to see Mt. Rushmore while we're there.

Since it was too late to cancel our reservations for the next night, we continued to Olympic Valley. Forrest and Francie decided to come anyway and we had a nice stay there. Not much sleep though - the room did not have air conditioning and since we needed to have the window open, voices carried and it seemed people were out partying most of the night. The Western States organization went ahead with the talks they had planned and provided a dinner on Friday night as well as a breakfast on Saturday (in lieu of the brunch provided after the race). The entrants for 2008 are requalified for 2009 if they wish, instead of having to enter the lottery again. We ran (Robert and Forrest) and hiked (Tanya and Francie) the first four miles of the race, up to Emigrant Pass. Steep! Emigrant Pass is at 8900 feet. It's a beautiful area. Forrest and Francie went on to San Francisco and then up to a friend's wedding in Oregon. Robert and Tanya cancelled most of their other reservations except for the one at Crater Lake. We went up through Lassen National Park (steam holes and bubbling mud pools). Crater Lake wasn't as blue as usual, due to the smoky air, but still gorgeous. Most of the trails were closed because of snow, so we didn't get to do a lot of hiking. All in all, a nice trip, although not the one we were expecting!

Countdown

Only two weeks to go until the Western States 100-mile Endurance Run! Robert's legs are tired, but he thinks the training has gone pretty well. Forrest and Francie will meet us in Olympic Valley, CA for the start and will be support crew with Tanya. The race starts at 5 a.m. on June 28th and Robert hopes to finish by 5 a.m. June 29th, although since this is his first 100-miler, he would be willing to finish before the cutoff time of 30 hours. If anyone is interested in following the race, there are chip times on the website (http://www.ws100.com/) so you can check and see how he's doing at different points in the race. His race number is 386. On the way home, we'll stop at Crater Lake, visit Melinda and her gang in Sherwood, and swing by to see Silas, Sara and Eli in Richland.

Catching Up

We are so behind on the race report. Since we last blogged about races, Robert has run 5 ultras and 1 marathon. The marathon was the Flying Pig on May 4th in Cincinnati (12 of 50 states). The big excitement was a fire along the course. The race had to be diverted and was a little longer than the usual 26.2. No pictures - but the runner was 3rd in his age group and received a Flying Pig Plaque.

He also did well at the Washington State University 100K. There were only 4 solo runners (3 finished) and a lot of relay teams. Robert was the 1st solo finisher. Probably due to the great support along the course (see above right).

The picture above left is from the McDonald Forest Trail Run (50K) near Corvallis, OR. It was kind of nice to be back in the western Oregon coast range for awhile. And we got to visit Silas and Sara on our way down (pre-Eli) and Melinda, Jeff, Bryce and Joel on the way back home.

New Beginnings

It's been awhile since our last blog. The biggest and best news since then?

We have a new grandson! Elijah was born May 18th. Another boy to join the grandchild ranks, along with Bryce and Joel. By the time we got to the hospital, he was nine hours old, but his mom was as cheerful as ever. His dad looked kind of tired... so T-Papa was happy to hold him.

11th State

Robert completed 11th of 50 in his all-states marathon quest this morning. He ran in Austin Texas and finished at 3:08:28, 2nd in his age division. Not bad for a training run for the Western States 100! No pictures, since Tanya is at home in snowy Spokane Valley. Yesterday Austin had thunderstorms and tornado warnings, but the runner reported that the weather today was perfect.

It's good to be an experienced runner. A co-Austin runner new to marathoning thought the Vaseline handed out on sticks at the aid stations was an energy gel. Yummm.

Last night was the awards ceremony for the Bloomsday Road Runners Club. Robert was awarded Senior Male Runner of the Year. See his award below.

The Training Has Begun

WooHoo!

Big News! Robert's name was selected from the lottery for the Western States 100 Mile Trail Run. There was only a 16% chance of selection this year and he was selected on the last draw. It starts June 28, 2008; ends the next day. He was hoping Forrest could be his buddy runner during the night hours, but since Forrest is having Achilles problems, that might not be a possibility, although Robert is willing to perform surgery on Forrest's foot. Maybe everyone could come camp with us to be part of the EVENT! Now the planning begins - our lives will be affected by this for the next 6 months. We're considering going to Miami in January so Robert can run the Miami marathon - as one of his training runs.

What else would we blog about?

Anyone who reads this blog probably already knows Silas and Sara announced that they are expecting a baby in May. Exciting! Even after being grandparents twice over, it still seems like a strange concept to be a grandparent. The grandchildren we have are great (how could they not be - they have great parents) and how could that not lead to a picture? Joel, wearing his dad's shoes, with his dad's keys, going to work like dad does.

More running news - Robert ran the Route 66 marathon in Tulsa, OK. Fairly flat course, but hilly at the end - the worse place for hills. Are you wondering how he did??? 12th overall, first in his age group. 3:03:56. Not only did he run well, he was interviewed by the Tulsa World. If you're interested in his (brief) quote in the paper, look here: http://www.tulsaworld.com/sports/article.aspx?articleID=071119_2_B5_ONWor06475

Tanya gimped through the Quarter Marathon (she switched from the Half 'cause her feet were bothering her), but she still got a cool Route 66 medal.

Tulsa was interesting. We stayed at a downtown hotel since it was only a mile from the start line. Downtown was almost empty. We walked down the middle of streets with no cars on them. We had to walk ten blocks to find a place to eat (it was a fun place-we were told to try the sweet potato fries and they were good!). I guess there are other sections of town that have a night life, but downtown wasn't it. The motel owner told us they're hoping it will change once the new stadium is built. It was great weather - we walked around in shirtsleeves at night, while in Spokane it was snowing.

Tulsa was the tenth state Robert has run a marathon in - 10 being the amount needed to join the 50 states club (a marathon or longer in each state). He filled out his entry form as soon as we got home and is already mapping out next year's runs. If he runs 2 a year, he'll be 75 when he's done, but as is usual with Robert, when he's passionate about something, he goes all out. Watch for him to run at least 4 next year.

What's up

Your blogs are a great read - exciting stories and action photos. This edition of our blog won't have either (we forgot our camera, again). We mentioned that this site would likely be filled with running exploits and we will be true to our word. Last weekend was a beautiful day to participate in the Spokane Marathon (Tanya as a crossing guard, Robert as a runner). Tanya had to stop a Priest on the way to Mass and Robert was able to finish 6th overall at 3:04:15. He was the first "mature" runner (40+) and gave up the 4 and 5 positions at mile 22 and wasn't able to regain them despite a hard finish and only seconds behind. This is a tune-up for the Route 66 Marathon and an attempt at going sub 3 hours for the first time in 5 years. Tanya is still nursing sore feet but is hoping to be able to complete the half marathon in Tulsa, OK. She's had to give up on the hope of winning the event. Tomorrow Robert gets to try his hand as a Race Director for a local cross country run. Love you, even those we don't know.

Mr. Tomato Head

Mr. Tomato Head is from my Mom's garden. He was born with a nose and mustache, but she gave him the eyes and hair (with collaboration from my brother Carl). Isn't he cute? Sadly, he did not survive. He sacrificed himself for the greater good. Of course, he may not have thought it was good, but we sure did.

Testing

Hey, we added a photo. It means nothing; it's from this summer and it's about running.

I Can't Believe It's Butter

Yes, we've entered the modern age. Abraham Lincoln and Christopher Columbus (thanks to him we have Monday off) would be surprised that Robert and Tanya would be blogging. But blog we will. Blog, blog, blog, blog. Does that count?

This will mostly be about running exploits, mindless ramblings and if we can figure out how to attach pictures, maybe an occasional picture. But know this... the hot tub is warm and the Canadian Geese are loud. And Robert probably came in 7th in a half marathon today. The final results aren't in yet.