Monday, October 16, 2006
The Healing Heel
It is just after 6:30 on a Monday night and normally I would be sitting in my Marketing 540P class at Emory University's Goizueta Business School... instead I am looking out onto a mass of the San Francisco skyline on a beautiful, crisp October day from atop my 20th floor hotel room.
October could be the best month of the year. When I was growing up in the flat, dusty, cactus-ridden city of Apache Junction, I looked forward to October because it was when the desert heat of the Arizona summers finally broke. Since moving to Atlanta, I've seen that October is also a time when the lush, green leaves turn color to magnificent reds, oranges and yellows and fall to the earth in loose clumps.
But, October is also a month of reflection - In past post (When The Tree Becomes A Shrub) I have expounded upon the recent loss of my grandparents and most impactfully, the loss of my father, who died two years ago this Thursday. It is hard to share feelings of loss with people who have not dealt with such events themselves and amazing how people of similar fate find such solace and comfort in discussing these things amongst themselves even though they may have very little else in common.
Of the many bonuses of this trip was the ability to focus on my marathon tune up run. As a good handful of you know, I have been suffering through a dastardly bout of plantar fasciitis and that has essentially hindered the sprints a bit. Clearly, this isn't amputation-type issues, but more of an irritant pain. Well, rest has done me good and although the pain and issues still lurk, I was ready to commit to a 20 miler through the streets of San Francisco.
In my preparation for my past two marathons, Paris and now New York, I have been fortunate to have been able to trot through some pretty neat cities: San Diego, Phoenix, Palm Beach, FL, Venice, FL, Boston, (and some not so neat: Norfolk, VA, Wichita, KS). However, my Sunday morning stroll through SF was definately a favorite...
The run started from our hotel in Union Square, straight down Market Street, along the Embarcadero, past the TransAmerica building, through Nob Hill and Coit Tower, out to end of Pier 39 to say good morning to the sea lions, through Fisherman's Wharf where the odor of clam chowder and sourdough bread bowls was already in the air despite the early 8 a.m. hour. As I headed up the hill through Fort Mason and along the Marina district, I came upon a group of swimmers finishing off the first leg of their Escape from the Rock triathalon. Then I enjoyed a sandy couple of miles along Crissy Field (I don't think it is named after Suzanne Sommer's character on "Three's Company", but I can't be sure.) Either way, it w
as quite a sight to see dogs romping through the beach with their owners in tow and the stunningly red Golden Gate Bridge in the background. At the Fort Point, I wove my way up to the start of the bridge.
Since this was a 20-miler, there was no way that I could encourage my girlfriend to join me on the whole trip, but she did plan to meet me at the bridge and run that over and back. With precision timing, she jumped out of her taxi cab, just as I came up the hill and we took on the mile and a half trek over the bridge with the early-morning Pacific Ocean air whipping in from the West. It wasn't until I crossed the bridge in Marin County and turned around to head back in did I suddenly realize how far 10 miles is when you have urban landmarks to guide you. The city looked miniscule in the distance... wow. It was quite relaxing to come back across the bridge and be able to look out and see the bay and city beyond it. Because I took on some pretty agressive hills on the way out, I knew that I could talk my girlfriend into running a bit longer with me, since those uphills became downhills on the way back. Before we knew it, she'd covered more than 8 miles including a steep uphill climb to the top of Hyde, just so we could say that we ran down Lombard Street - the world's crookiest street.
All in all... it was a very pleasant and peaceful run and reinfo
rces that I am ready for NY next month! I am also ready thanks to all of your support... in the past month, Team Continuum has received quite a few donations in my name. At this moment, I am a mere $120 from my goal of $2500. THANKS TO ALL OF YOU FOR YOUR HELP WITH THIS including:
- Andi, Tim & Sybil Thomas (Decatur, GA)
- Chris & Liorah Curtis (Mesa, AZ)
- John Calabrese (Laguna Beach, CA)
- Stewart Aragon (Roswell, GA)
- Fred & Sheryl Barlam (Phoenix, AZ)
- Jason Kaup (Mesquite, TX)
- Theri, Ted, Steve, Matt, AnnMarie, Veronica, Andy, Tracy, Amanda and Marie (Garden City, NY)
- Cara Daly (Atlanta, GA)
- Billie Jean Conn (Chandler, AZ)
- Doug, Eileen, Lindsay & Alexis Cohen (Marietta, GA)
-
October could be the best month of the year. When I was growing up in the flat, dusty, cactus-ridden city of Apache Junction, I looked forward to October because it was when the desert heat of the Arizona summers finally broke. Since moving to Atlanta, I've seen that October is also a time when the lush, green leaves turn color to magnificent reds, oranges and yellows and fall to the earth in loose clumps.
But, October is also a month of reflection - In past post (When The Tree Becomes A Shrub) I have expounded upon the recent loss of my grandparents and most impactfully, the loss of my father, who died two years ago this Thursday. It is hard to share feelings of loss with people who have not dealt with such events themselves and amazing how people of similar fate find such solace and comfort in discussing these things amongst themselves even though they may have very little else in common.
Of the many bonuses of this trip was the ability to focus on my marathon tune up run. As a good handful of you know, I have been suffering through a dastardly bout of plantar fasciitis and that has essentially hindered the sprints a bit. Clearly, this isn't amputation-type issues, but more of an irritant pain. Well, rest has done me good and although the pain and issues still lurk, I was ready to commit to a 20 miler through the streets of San Francisco.
In my preparation for my past two marathons, Paris and now New York, I have been fortunate to have been able to trot through some pretty neat cities: San Diego, Phoenix, Palm Beach, FL, Venice, FL, Boston, (and some not so neat: Norfolk, VA, Wichita, KS). However, my Sunday morning stroll through SF was definately a favorite...
The run started from our hotel in Union Square, straight down Market Street, along the Embarcadero, past the TransAmerica building, through Nob Hill and Coit Tower, out to end of Pier 39 to say good morning to the sea lions, through Fisherman's Wharf where the odor of clam chowder and sourdough bread bowls was already in the air despite the early 8 a.m. hour. As I headed up the hill through Fort Mason and along the Marina district, I came upon a group of swimmers finishing off the first leg of their Escape from the Rock triathalon. Then I enjoyed a sandy couple of miles along Crissy Field (I don't think it is named after Suzanne Sommer's character on "Three's Company", but I can't be sure.) Either way, it w
as quite a sight to see dogs romping through the beach with their owners in tow and the stunningly red Golden Gate Bridge in the background. At the Fort Point, I wove my way up to the start of the bridge.Since this was a 20-miler, there was no way that I could encourage my girlfriend to join me on the whole trip, but she did plan to meet me at the bridge and run that over and back. With precision timing, she jumped out of her taxi cab, just as I came up the hill and we took on the mile and a half trek over the bridge with the early-morning Pacific Ocean air whipping in from the West. It wasn't until I crossed the bridge in Marin County and turned around to head back in did I suddenly realize how far 10 miles is when you have urban landmarks to guide you. The city looked miniscule in the distance... wow. It was quite relaxing to come back across the bridge and be able to look out and see the bay and city beyond it. Because I took on some pretty agressive hills on the way out, I knew that I could talk my girlfriend into running a bit longer with me, since those uphills became downhills on the way back. Before we knew it, she'd covered more than 8 miles including a steep uphill climb to the top of Hyde, just so we could say that we ran down Lombard Street - the world's crookiest street.
All in all... it was a very pleasant and peaceful run and reinfo
rces that I am ready for NY next month! I am also ready thanks to all of your support... in the past month, Team Continuum has received quite a few donations in my name. At this moment, I am a mere $120 from my goal of $2500. THANKS TO ALL OF YOU FOR YOUR HELP WITH THIS including:- Andi, Tim & Sybil Thomas (Decatur, GA)
- Chris & Liorah Curtis (Mesa, AZ)
- John Calabrese (Laguna Beach, CA)
- Stewart Aragon (Roswell, GA)
- Fred & Sheryl Barlam (Phoenix, AZ)
- Jason Kaup (Mesquite, TX)
- Theri, Ted, Steve, Matt, AnnMarie, Veronica, Andy, Tracy, Amanda and Marie (Garden City, NY)
- Cara Daly (Atlanta, GA)
- Billie Jean Conn (Chandler, AZ)
- Doug, Eileen, Lindsay & Alexis Cohen (Marietta, GA)
-
