February 1, 2019
A Friday. A 2 1/2 hour drive down to Huntington Beach thanks to good ol’ SoCal traffic. On Sunday morning it would take me 55 minutes… admittedly, at 4 AM. But that’s proof positive that if we just had half the number of cars on the road we might actually be able to get places in California.
The expo was the same as it ever was, hence my Groundhog Day reference in the quick summary yesterday. I do always appreciate the balloon palm tree displays however.
Post expo, we had dinner with Kerry and Jean, two of my Table 44-mates from years past. Always good to see them — and this was the first time they got to meet my brother. So that was nice.
February 2, 2019
Saturday was monsoon season in Los Angeles, such that even the LA River flowed, a rare occasion indeed.
February 3, 2019
As for the race Sunday, the course was as it always has been — a run out on PCH into a neighborhood and park area, back to the PCH for a few miles, turn around and then a 10 mile out and back stretch on the beach bike path. It made for inexplicably unnoticeable tail winds for a few sections and debilitating head winds, especially in the final 5 miles back to the finish. I slowed tremendously in that back stretch, seeing my Boston Qualifying pacers blow past me as surely as the wind blew into my face. In the end, I was 5 minutes slower than last year… and thanks to the revised BQ standards, was about 10 minutes off a BQ time. Ah, well. Such is life.
At least the rain wasn’t omnipresent and torrential as had been forecasted. We ran toward it a few times and got a bit misted… and the hardy winds blew more than a few sea sprays onto us… but mostly it was a perfectly fine temperature/weathercast… if not for those damn headwinds.
LEAR
Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! Rage, blow!
You cataracts and hurricanoes, spout
Till you have drenched our steeples, drowned the cocks!
You sulfurous and thought-executing fires,
Vaunt-couriers of oak-cleaving thunderbolts,
Singe my white head! And thou, all-shaking thunder,
Smite flat the thick rotundity o’ th’ world,
Crack nature’s molds, all germens spill at once
That make ingrateful man!Act III, scene ii
As I mentioned yesterday, the highlight was assuredly grabbing lunch with everybody afterwards at Hawaiian styled Duke’s, a place I know well from Waikiki.
And thanks to Brent and Tamela, I know its Hula Pie dessert even better. We introduced this delight to Steve and Kerry and Jean… and I think it’s safe to say it was well received.
The major hiccup of the race came when I walked back to my car, where I had parked for $10 for all-day parking. It was 2 PM and everything was chained up.
After briefly considering climbing over the fence and pulling a Sweetwater exit, I opted to walk all the way around the perimeter where I did find somebody who told me if I walked the other way there was an exit still open for the cars.
At least I wasn’t the last one to leave.
I was the second to last.
