UT Mt Fuji and a R2R2R

It's been a busy two weeks of traveling and running! On April 26th, I finished the Ultra Trail Mt. Fuji (UTMF) 100 miler, which is the 1st event in ultrarunning's Grand Slam of the World. Then, two weeks later on legs that were still pretty shot, I ran the Grand Canyon double crossing (aka Rim to Rim to Rim). I brought Camille with me to Japan for the five day trip. Her passport has been getting quite a few stamps in the past year. We lived-large the first night at the Grand Hyatt Tokyo located in Roppongi. Roppongi is an area of Tokyo known for plentiful (and expensive) shopping and restaurants. It had been raining for several days before we arrived and was still sort of drizzling our first night. That didn't matter to us since we were both exhausted from the long trip and weren't there to shop anyway. We had an early night after going out for sushi. Both Camille and I are sushi lovers and were really looking forward to some authentic Japanese sushi. The menu was all in Japanese, so we ordered a set dinner course and spent half the time trying to figure out what bizarre sea creatures we were eating. Some Japanese dining at the sushi bar were celebrating something (maybe just being off work for the day) and kept offering sake champaign. I'd never heard of it. Thinking I still had a day and a half before the start of the race, I had a few glasses. I taught our new Japanese friends to say "cheers" and they went a little nuts with it the rest of the night. Sushi in Roppongi The next morning we had a wonderful breakfast next to the hotel at a 'hipster-ish' restaurant and afterwards took a bus ride down to the Mt. Fuji area. On the bus, we met a runner from Hong Kong and one from Italy who'd we see off and on while at Fuji. We stayed at a small, traditional Japanese minshuku (guesthouse) on the banks of Lake Kawaguchi which was set up by a group associated with the race called Avid Adventures. Avid not only set up hotels for foreign runners, but their crew also acted as personal aid station helpers during the race. Their enthusiasm for the whole event was great and their crew was a lot of fun. The guesthouse was full of other foreign runners as well and it was great meeting them and hearing their ultrarunning stories. Our room was completely traditional and had no beds, just a tatami and some thin futons to sleep on. Camille channeled the Princes and the Pea and stacked at least six futons on each other trying to make a comfortable bed. No matter how many futons she'd lay down on top of each other, it just never got softer. It really wasn't that bad and we slept OK. Day 2 at UTMF The race started at 3:00 PM the following day (Friday). We were all thankful that the rain that had been in the area for days had moved out and we continued to have great weather for the entire race.  As far as my race went, I ran at a leisurely pace with the goal to just enjoy the experience and to finish. UTMF is only in its 2nd year and already has the reputation of being one of the hardest ultras in the world. It has over 30,000' of climb and some 3rd class rock climbing in the race's latter stages, which really came as a suprise. Also, for five weeks before the race, I'd been in flight training for the Boeing 777 and didn't have much time then to even run. I've done enough of these types of races, however, to know how to pace conservatively when I'm not 100% and avoid cratering. It was a tough run (maybe one of the toughest 100's I've done), but I managed to get myself to the finish in the top 10%. After we got home to Dallas, I was "on-call" for work but not used for the next week. This gave me time to further recover and also knock out a few projects at home I'd been putting off. I'd also been looking at buying a 2nd car since Camille would be getting her learner's permit to drive next month. I found the one I was looking for in very good shape out in Sacramento, CA and decided to get it and make a cross-country drive home to Dallas. I love big drives out west and the open road. This would also give me a chance to attempt something I've wanted to do for years: the infamous Grand Canyon double crossing in a day. So, after flying to Sacramento, buying the car and driving to my in-laws in Reno for the night (with flowers in hand for Mother's Day, I might add), I then headed for the big ditch. I got to the Grand Canyon Park near midnight on Thursday night and took a couple hour nap in the back of the car. The next morning at 6:00 AM and somewhat later than I'd planned, I left the South Kaibob trailhead for the ~42 mile roundtrip. The run was as beautiful as it was hard. I still hadn't fully gotten over my Mt. Fuji run two weeks earlier (hey, I'm 51 now!) and the last 5 mile climb out of the canyon in 100F heat near the end of the day was a real effort. The trip was great, lived up to the hype I'd read, and was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Grand Canyon selfie On the trip home over the weekend, I picked up John and Camille at the Albuquerque Airport after they'd flown out from Dallas. We spent the night in Albuquerque, then drove all the way back to Dallas the next day. They were very excited for the new car. Of course, no trip through the Texas panhandle would be complete without stops at the Cadillac Ranch and the Big Texan in Amarillo. My kids are a complete blast to travel with!! Cadillac Ranch Black Bridge Grand Canyon

Corcovado Run - Rio de Janeiro

I just returned today from another trip to Rio, where I hiked the trail to the Christ the Redeemer statue. The trailhead begins at Parque Lage and continues up nearly 1.5 miles to the top with about 2,300' of climb (average grade about 31%). As it's nearing the end of summer in Rio, it was hot and extremely humid. I don't think I've sweated so much in years.

The 3 mile jog out to the Parque Lage trailhead from my hotel took me by Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas, a lagoon right in the middle of Rio. Rowing is very popular at Lagoa and there are several rowing practice stations along the shore.

Lagoa footpath, Corcovado in distance

Rowing practice

Parque Lage

The trail gets steep and technical

Trailhead Map

Waterfall along trail

Chains aid a steep section

Back on the beach at Ipanema, Brazilians play "futevôlei." It's volleyball played with a soccer ball (and no hands). Seriously, how are we ever going to beat a country in soccer where they can play volleyball with their feet?!

Futevôlei on Ipanema

Carnival in Rio

Camille and I were in Rio de Janeiro for the weekend, which kicked off the big 4 day pre-Lenten party. Saturday night in Ipanema Beach was the biggest street party I'd ever seen, with probably more than a million people out drinking, listening to music and wearing some of the most bizarre costumes imaginable.

On Sunday, we went to the Christ the Redeemer statue, along with 100,000 or more other tourists that day (including Kimye). It was a crazy weekend, but having grown up in New Orleans and gone to countless Mardi Gras there, I'd always wanted to see carnival in Rio. Given Rio's notorious crime problem, I actually felt safer on the streets there as compared to New Orleans. Oh, and Camille was back at school by Monday morning with a lot of stories to share!

'Selfie' at Leblon Beach

At the biggest party on earth

Yeah, everyone does it!

Paris - Mid Winter

Another dark and rainy winter day in the City of Light. I emerged from the Concorde Metro station and the late afternoon light made for some nice pictures.

Panorama across Rue de Rivoli

Place de la Concorde

Paris: King Cakes, Mustard, and Macarons

The Parisian King Cakes were
quickly devoured when I got home

I just returned from another trip to Paris, where I brought home two galette des Rois - king cakes as they're known in my home town of New Orleans. The French version is more like a big puff-pastry unlike the New Orleans cinnamon roll style. Instead of a plastic baby inside, the French version has a small porcelain object such as the miniature croissant and baguette we found in ours. I bought one galette from Moisan in the 14th and the other from Paul. Both were great.

Maille mustard on tap

I also went to the Maille mustard boutique at Place de la Madeleine and reloaded several refillable ceramic mustard jars. Maille refills mustard out of 'taps' in the store which resemble traditional beer taps. The mustard is always very fresh and spicy. On the way back down Rue Royale, I passed a huge line of people on the sidewalk outside Ladurée. It was Saturday night and everybody was in the cake buying mood.

Macaron art at Laduree

Lastly, posters for Django Unchained were everywhere around Paris. I'd seen the film the night before leaving for my trip and wondered how Europeans will perceive this controversial take on America's past.

Grand Slam of the World is On

Ultrarunning's Grand Slam of the World is on for 2013! This will be the inaugural year of a race series of four of the toughest, big mountain 100 mile ultra's in the world that I will attempt in one calendar year. The series will begin in April with the Ultra-Trail Mt. Fuji. Then in July, it will be the Hardrock 100 back in my old stomping grounds in the San Juan mountains of Colorado. After nearly 7 weeks of letting my quads recover, I'll be in Chamonix and the Alps for the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc. To finish things up will be a trip to the South America for La Misión in the Patagonia region of Argentina in December.

Combined, the four races will cover four continents, six countries, 400 miles and over 120,000' of climb. I'll be the first to attempt it.

Now, for the background. The sport of of ultrarunning recognizes a variety of race series known as “slams” (e.g. the venerable Grand Slam of Ultrarunning first run in 1986), which consist of four 100 mile races in the U.S. completed in a calendar year. However, the sport of ultrarunning has seen tremendous international growth in recent years and the development of some spectacular and punishing mountain ultra’s. I seek to recognize the “slam” as a truly international endeavor and do so with the sport's most challenging events. The Grand Slam of the World is also an opportunity to experience different cultures around the world and share the love of the mountains and endurance running with others in the sport.

The Grand Slam of the World has been recognized by the sport's record-keeper on such things at run100s.com (thanks, Stan).

Madrid - Plaza Mayor

It's been a while since I've posted an update. I've been busy with flying, training, and activities with my kids..

Here are a few pic's from Madrid. I've been getting over there several times a month, sometimes spending 2 days on layover. I love Madrid and its laid-back atmosphere for a big city. I'm guilty of doing a lot of tourista activities, to include eating in the area of the Plaza Mayor.

There are some great places to run in Madrid, the most popular being Parque Retiro in the center of the city. While running a several mile loop around the park, I always see elderly people out walking and socializing. It's something you don't see to the same extent in the U.S. or most big cities throughout Europe. Madrid has a high crime rate (mostly petty thefts), but that apparently doesn't discourage these pensioners from getting out and staying active. I aspire to spend my golden years in such an engaged way.

All pictures are from the Mercado de San Miguel (near Plaza Mayor) on a recent Saturday night:

Lots of seafood stands

Packed on a weekend night
Tapas everywhere

Iberian ham

Sea urchin!!