Back in the Valley

One of the first things I did the morning after I got home was go out to the barn to meet Gypsy Rose the young mule that Carol brought home to the ranch. She is a beauty but definitely stubborn as a mule as the saying goes. I started working with her trying to get her to lead and generally just get used to being handled. To say she was a handful would be an understatement and more than once I was lucky to just get manhandled enough to leave my knee, back and shoulders sore and not injured. I told Carol that long term there was no way I was going to be able to “train”   her. 

September was going to be a busy race month. After my two races in Oregon I had three weekends in a row before Joe came out for a “Runcation” where we planned to do three races in a weekend. It was definitely a run filled month. The three races before Joe arrived were the Buffalo Stampede 4 mile in Sacramento, the Running with the Cops 5K in West Sacramento and the American Legion Centennial 3.6 mile in Manteca.  They were all fun. 

That was five races for the month with three to go when Joe came out. 

Oregon Road Trip

I wasn’t home long when I got asked to help out at Brandy’s in Oregon while she traveled for work. I always enjoy visiting Oregon and I can usually get together with Smitty and Denise when I’m there. It was an enjoyable stay and I managed to get two races in while I was there, including one with Smitty. 

While I got away for a couple of hours at a time to run the Row Trail and Pre’s Trail I did most of my training on Lynx Hollow Road right in front of the house. It was rolling hills and rural and while the road was narrow for the most part traffic was light and you could see it coming. 

The first race I ran in Oregon was also the first in what I planned to be a busy racing September. It was a trail race in Charleston right by Coos Bay Home of Steve Prefontaine. The race had some tough parts at the start when we started on deep beach sand before heading up a steep, root crossed trail to a bluff overlooking a beautiful bay. I didn’t care about time and found myself often stopping to take pictures. It was a long drive to and from the race but well worth it. 

Since Brandy’s former housemate Marty was still living on the property he was responsible for caring for the dogs, pigs and goats so I had a pretty easy load really. I just fed, watered and cleaned after the miniature horses and the donkeys and swept up dog hair every day. Four Saint Bernards living in the House = lots of hair. 

I had one of the cats and the young donkey, Paco, to help me with the barn chores. 

Smitty and I had a 5K on Labor Day, Eugene Brews Cruise. It was a low key race but was fun and afterward we met Denise and some friends at the Hop Valley Brewery the race sponsor. I visited a while, had a beer and left so I could get home to let the dogs out. 

New Age Group Reunion Run

One of the things I was looking forward to while I was in the Springs was the chance to run a race with family and friends. It turned into a really fun morning running the HEARS 5K at Bear Creek Park. Stacie and Tom were there with Jen along with all of my “reunion run” friends with the exception of Gerald. Additionally one of my former athletes, Alex Orozco came with her two sons and her parents who all did the race.

The race itself was tougher than I expected and for the first time since I started racing again at 60 I got sick as soon as I crossed the finish line. This side by side picture shows how I looked early in the race and shortly before the finish. 😳

One fun thing that happened is that we were continuing my 70th Birthday celebration and I won a trophy for “oldest male”. 

After the race the kids headed off for more reunion activities and the rest of our group went to eat at, “A Taste of Philly”, one of the restaurants owned by the Orozco’s so I could say hello to Fabian. Very good food and great seeing Fabian for the first time since 2005. 

The next day I went to lunch with Filemon Loa at Olive Garden and got to meet his family. I hadn’t seen him in thirteen years either. We had a good lunch and a good time catching up. 

It was a great trip to Colorado catching up with friends and family. The highlight was the surprise party that Stacie managed to pull off. I’ll never be able to thank her enough. 

On the way home I made a side trip to Ruidoso to see Ken and Kristy. I did some hiking in Cedar Creek and some friends of theirs took us to Inn of the Mountain Gods for dinner. My ribeye was $49! 😳

Not a healthy pre-hike lunch but man I love Allsup’s burritos!