Author Archives: Scott D.
REVELLING IN 2015
Hi Everyone,
Registration is officially underway for all three of the races in the 2015 REVEL Race Series.
For those of you not in the know, the REVEL race series currently consists of three marathons/half marathons:
- REVEL Rockies (Denver, CO) – 7/19/15
- REVEL Big Cottonwood (Salt Lake City, Utah) – 9/12/15
- REVEL Canyon City (Azusa, CA)- 11/7/15
Run Revel Run!
And all three of these race share some great features:
They’re all fast courses. Really fast. Like “greased lightning” fast. These races all feature downhill courses, some with descents up to 5000′ (that’s almost a mile to you and me). Can you say PR? And for those of you looking to qualify for Boston, all three courses are USATF certified.
They’re all scenic courses. Since the courses are typically nestled up in the mountains, you get some absolutely wonderful vistas as you run.
They’re runner friendly. Meaning? These races have a lot of wonderful runner perks, including some unique to the REVEL series.
Check out just some of what you get:
- No silly registration “convenience” fees.
- Social media discount and discount for forming or joining a team.
- Great bib transfer and race withdrawal policies.
- Free race photos.
- Free personalized runner’s video.
- Stylish men’s & women’s tech race shirts (with ability to choose tank top, short sleeve or long sleeve shirt).
- Great finisher’s medal (these things are sweet).
- Additional runner’s swag, like gloves and a mylar blanket for race morning.
- Great food at the finish line. In addition to snacks you expect, REVEL races in the past have also had: pizza, chicken nuggets, fresh pie, soda and beer (for +21 runners).
- These are races designed for runners by people who understand runners (let’s face it, we can be scary at times).
REVIEW: SURF CITY HALF MARATHON ’15
RACE: Surf City Marathon/Half Marathon 2015
DATE: February 1, 2015
Bring on the bling!
LOCATION: Huntington Beach, CA
DISTANCES: Half Marathon/Marathon
START TIME: 6:30am (Marathon)/7:45am (Half Marathon)
WEATHER AT START: 54° and sunny.
FINISHERS: 14,138- Half Marathon/ 2070- Marathon
(Updated from 2014 review)
So, it’s Super Bowl Sunday. What are you going to do before game time? Watch 10-hours of pre-game banter discussing which team has a better equipment manager? Heck no. Instead, why not run a half marathon (or a full), have fun, earn some bling and build up a major calorie deficit… so you don’t feel guilty stuffing your face during the Big Game.
Well, over 16,000 racers decided to just that and “kicked off” their day by pounding the pavement along Pacific Coast Highway with the annual running of the Surf City Marathon/Half Marathon.
Read the rest of this entry
SURF CITY HALF MARATHON EXPERIENCE: POST MORTEM
Hi Everyone,
A fun race at the Surf City Half Marathon today. As for my “go slow strategery,” I didn’t keep my foot off of the gas as much as I should have, but I did take it a little bit easier than normal. But I will absolutely employ the slower pacing approach next month at the LA Marathon (it’s the smart way to go). Here’s the “skinny” on my run today:
Two nice surprises, at today’s race. The first was unexpectedly running into numerous friends. I bumped into a trio of my Team To End AIDS teammates (two of whom also ran 20 miles on Saturday) at the start line. During the race I crossed paths with my friends Donielle and Loan (we did stop to take a quick selfie). And at the finish line I saw my friend Chris (or should I say he saw me) who had also followed a more conservative race strategy (to a sub 2-hour finish). I also saw several Half Fanatics and Marathon Maniacs on the course. Read the rest of this entry
SUPER BOWL SOCKS!
Good news everybody.
“Ambassador Devine.” I like that.
This week I found out that I’ll be an ambassador again this year for PRO Compression. Yup, and I’ve got the cool emblem here to prove it.
I’m a compression sock/calf sleeve convert and if you don’t know about the advantages of compressions socks/gear, then be sure to give a read here. CHECK IT OUT!
This “Big Game” weekend PRO Compression is doing a Super Bowl sale, giving 40% off all the items in their store with free shipping on all orders over $20 (now you know how you can spend the money you win on your Super Bowl pool).
And they’ve got compression socks whether you’re a Patriots fan, Seahawk supporter or just cheering on the commercials like me this year (Green Bay will be back in 2015). Read the rest of this entry
RACE “STRATEGERY”
Hey Trippers,
This Sunday I’m lacing up my shoes to run the Surf City Half Marathon in Huntington Beach. It’s the site of my very first ever half marathon back in 2009 and this will be my third time pounding the pavement along this beautiful stretch of coast.
Last year I posted a 2:06:33, which was a PR for me at the time (I’d break it two months later at the Hollywood Half Marathon and then again at the REVEL Big Cottonwood Half). It’s a fun race with a great “surfboard” medal and a good calorie-deficit primer for all of the Super Bowl chowing to come later in the day.
If you asked me what my gameplan for the race would be six months ago, I’d say this was a no doubt “balls to the wall” PR race attempt. Read the rest of this entry
BLEACHER CREATURE…
Running can be funny. There, I said it.
Challenging, painful at times and sweaty… but also damn funny.
And to a comic strip junkie like me, it’s great to see talented writers/artists making light of pounding the pavement.
Each day I’m sure to catch the latest panels featuring my favorite runner/musician/custodian “Frazz.” Jef Mallett’s strip is both funny and thought-provoking and one of my daily treats.
And if you haven’t caught the “out there” and damn witty musings of The Oatmeal, you’re missing out. Matthew Inman waxes wacky about everything from exploding kittens to overly-sensitive xenomorphs to the awesomeness that is Nicholas Tesla. He also likes to poke fun at running (let’s hear it for The Blerch).
Check ’em both out here:
Click here for “Frazz”
CERTIFIABLE… AND HERE’S THE “PROOF”
Hi Trippers!
So just a final bit of leftover fun from last week’s Star Wars Half Marathon. After clicking on the RunDisney website I discovered that I’m “certifiable”… as in I have certificates. And some other goodies.
First off, here’s my stats from the race:
REVIEW: THE STAR WARS HALF MARATHON
Disney-ized Darth and company.
RACE: Star Wars Half Marathon
DATE: January 18, 2015
LOCATION: Anaheim, CA
DISTANCES: Half Marathon/10K/5K/Kids Run
START TIME: 5:30am
WEATHER AT START: 52° and mostly sunny.
FINISHERS: 10374 Half Marathon (Sunday)/ 9195 10K (Saturday)
A long time ago (okay, it was early Sunday morning) in a galaxy far far away (aka Anaheim)…
Half marathon runners were out in full “force” (sorry, been stuck on Star Wars puns all week) for the inaugural running of the Star Wars Half Marathon. When you combine my childhood obsession with Star Wars (I had every Star Wars toy, including Star Wars bed sheets) and my adult obsession of distance running into one event you get something that excites both the big kid and the eternal 8-year-old inside me.
Read the rest of this entry
THE STAR WARS HALF MARATHON: POST MORTEM
Hi Everyone,
A fun time running the Star Wars Half Marathon yesterday.
Still sporting the remnants of a cold and vacation hangover, I knew I wasn’t 100% for this race. So instead of pushing things too hard, I just took my time and enjoyed the scenery. I even stopped for a Disney Photo or two on the course (not the norm for me). And a rock in the shoe had to be addressed, slowing me down a tad more.
Still, in the end I posted a Disney-best time for me and also ran a “negative split” (the sign of proper race management.
And here’s a few photos from the weekend:
Next race up is the Surf City Half Marathon in two weeks. Looking forward to adding a third “surfboard medal” to my collection.
Have a good day… and Run on!
STAR WARS HALF MARATHON review to be posted tomorrow morning.
THINGS TO BE OVERHEARD AT THE STAR WARS HALF MARATHON…
Hi everyone,
Get your Kessel Run on!
This weekend marks the inaugural running of the Star Wars Half Marathon in California. And if you’re like me, you spent large chunks of your childhood quoting lines from Luke Skywalker & Company.
I’ve already heard some fun Star Wars running puns like: “May the course be with you.”
So I’ve decided to add a few of my own.
Enjoy!
“No way in hell I’m letting the wookie win.”
“I find your lack of faith and chafed nipples disturbing.” Read the rest of this entry
BACK TO IT!
Hey Everyone,
Hail hail, the gang’s all here. “Team Roadkill” posing for our weekly selfie.
So my three week holiday/vacation/workfest reached its end and I’m finally back in Los Angeles (Lindy gets back tonight).
Needless to say my first few days back in town have been a blur. Friday was spent just getting my bearings. I had to deal with three weeks of accumulated mail/bills, oodles of unanswered e-mails, laundry, cleaning and taking down my Christmas decorations.
On Saturday I did my first run with my T2 gang in four weeks. Now while I did do some running on vacation, I was a little lax and I need to get back into the running swing of things. Oh, and battling a cold and some leftover jetlag didn’t make things any easier. Fortunately, we had just an 8-mile recovery run.
Next Sunday, I’ve got my first race of the year: The Star Wars Half Marathon down at Disneyland. It’s going to be a fun time and this padawan is looking forward to pounding some pavement in a galaxy far far away. Read the rest of this entry
CANYON CITY FLASHBACK…
Hi Everyone,
Just a quick note today as I start to wind down my “Va-cay” in Florida. Last week the fine folks at REVEL sent me a personalized video highlighting my race at the inaugural REVEL Canyon City Marathon/Half Marathon in Azusa, CA.
Check it out:
Click to check out the Video!
And if you’re interested in pounding the pavement along with me at any of this year’s REVEL races, check out their website at www.runrevel.com.
Have a good day and Run on!
STATS AND FIGURES…
Hi Everyone,
It was just over a year ago (Dec. 30th, 2013 to be exact) that I first launched Tripping The Kenyans. And WordPress recently sent me a “Your 2014 year in blogging” report.
It’s kind of a cool way to see how my blogging went for TTK this first year and how much I’ve grown since I first started rambling on here. I won’t bore you with the whole thing, but here’s a few diddies:
So apparently my writings would have sold out the Sydney Opera House 11 times over… or equivalent to the population of the village of Port Chester, New York (Pop: 28,967). Read the rest of this entry
VACATIONING IT TO START 2015!
Hi everyone,
It’s like this, but a bit more rainy.
Been having such a good time touring the South with Lindy that I’ve decided to stay down for another week, visiting Cape Canaveral (NASA… Woo Hoo) and spending a few days in my old college stomping ground of Sarasota. FYI, Florida State’s graduate film school was located in Sarasota for its first few years of existence before moving up to the main Tallahassee campus.
As a result, however, I’m going to be missing my first scheduled race of the New Year… the aptly titled New Year’s Race Half Marathon on Saturday night in Los Angeles. Unfortunately, they don’t offer bib transfers or deferrals so I just have to eat the registration cost. I’m not thrilled about that, but it’s a small price to pay for another week of fun in Florida (or “America’s Wang” as Homer Simpson puts it). Read the rest of this entry
RUNNING RESOLUTE IN 2015…
Hi Everyone,
I hope you’re up early and ready to dive into 2015, perhaps even with a quick run to start things off on the right foot.
And for those who rang in the New Year with a vengeance last night…
I hope you’re up and having a great first late afternoon of 2015 and enjoying sipping water on the couch while the bongos continue to play in your aching head.
Well, hello there 2015!
Either way, welcome to the new year and perhaps the “new you.”
And just like counting down the ball dropping in Times Square on TV, singing “Auld Lang Syne” and getting a smooch at midnight are traditions of the new year, so to is the dreaded “list of resolutions.”
Yup, each year we get to erase the bad habits of last year, like shaking a giant etch-a-sketch over our heads (some people have to shake it harder than others). And then we start anew by making a checklist of things we plan to do differently this time around.
Here’s a list of the top ten resolutions that seem to pop up every year: Read the rest of this entry
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