California International Marathon 2014 race review from a first time runner.

 I don't run alot of road races but for that very reason I felt like testing my marathon PR (3:46) in a BIG way. I got the idea back in the late summer that a road race would shake things up and reinvigorate my training. When deciding on which marathon to run I always favor a new course over a re-do and since San Fran and Napa have already been done CIM is the next logical choice. CIM is synonymous with Boston Qualifying and I figured why waste the opportunity. If your going to run it you might as well go for the BQ which is 3:15:00 for 40 year old men. Chopping a half hour off my PR is probably unrealistic but that's my style. Go big or go home. That 2 month training cycle did not go well due to health issues and I went into the race clearly under trained so my plan was to just rely on my grit and expierence. I planned to line up in the 3:15 pace group, hit the 7:15 pace and hang on until I passed the finish line or passed out.

Gear Review: New Balance Minimus Zero

originally posted in 2013

New Balance Minimus Zero- What a lucky shot in the dark this shoe turned out to be. I was wasting time at the outlet stores and walked into a New Balance outlet. I saw my beloved Minimus 10 Trail (see above) and right next to it was what looked like a road version. It was indeed and it did not have the "open holes" in the sole that love to invite roots into the soft underside of your foot. I was nearly sold on that alone. This shoe is a zero drop shoe, hence the name. It is extremely light at 6.4oz and very comfortable. I think it has ample space in the toe box but does not feel sloppy at all. Quite the contrary, it has a sock like fit that seems to really hug the foot. The upper is extremely breathable. The shoe was designed to be worn either barefoot or with socks. I prefer the later. The midsole is made with Acteva (not the yogurt) and the outsole (tread) is made by Vibram. All of the overlays are "welded" on like the Kinvara and as you can see the structure of the upper comes from the honeycomb style plastic which you do not feel on your foot. The tongue of the shoe is attached on one side, some call that a burrito style tongue. The laces are anatomically angled toward the big toe and that really does seem to help the shoe fit to your foot when you lace it up. I love this shoe. I have about 150 miles on mine so far and would gladly buy a second pair. Other reviews on this shoe say it lasts a REALLY long time so I wont need one for a few more months at least. The NB website says these shoes retail for $109. I bought mine at the outlet for $60. That's a bargain for a shoe that feels sooooo good on your foot. A word of caution for those who might try this shoe: It's a zero drop shoe. If you have not run in zero drop shoes be sure to GRADUALLY increase your mileage with these. Consider doing a loop course so you can switch to a higher heel drop halfway through your run. In time your Achilles will adjust to the extra stretch and your running form will thank you for it. Until then, be patient.

Gear Review: Saucony Kinvara 3

Originally written in 2012

2012 Kinvara 3

This is a great shoe. I feel like this is the love child of my Pure Cadence & MV2's. My Pure Cadence were approaching the replace point and I thought I was going to go buy another pair. My brother had mentioned his love for the Kinvara line a few times and I recently fell in love with the Saucony Xodus trail shoe. So I decided to do a comparison at the local Road Runner Sports Store between the Brooks & the Saucony's. It was close but the Kinvara is just a touch better and I don't know what it is that makes the difference. The Kinvara is a 4 mm drop shoe that connects to the road as well if not better than any of the other shoes I've tried. Its definitely a light weight shoe at 7.7oz. The upper doesn't have the traditional sewn in overlays strategically placed to pull the shoe into your foot. Instead it has a "Flexfilm" that can be described as a plastic, filmy sort of nylonish material that locks the shoe upper onto your foot. This is a really great shoe at one of the lowest price points ($100) for a shoe of this quality. I ran hundreds of training miles in this shoe and even used in the Napa Valley Marathon in early 2013 where I set my PR. This shoe is not to be missed. I really feel confident in telling you to go out and try this shoe. Buy it at a store where they have a good return policy so you feel safe in making the purchase and then go do 3 or 4 days in the shoe and I am certain you will love it. You will not return it and you will come back to this post and leave a comment telling me I was not full of hype but rather spot on with my analysis that this is as close to a perfect shoe as any could be.

Gear Review: Newton MV2 from 2012

Original article written in 2012

Newton MV2 from 2012

Newton MV2- Pronounced MV Squared, these racing flats are a zero drop feather light shoe. The lightest shoe ever produced by Newton at 5.2 oz these really do feel like socks. The shoe still utilizes the trade mark "lugs" technology that is synonymous with Newton shoes. For those who aren't familiar, Newton shoes are all about midfoot/ forefoot striking and their shoes really do help promote a midfoot strike. The MV2 fits like a race shoe, very snug. If your looking for more of an everyday fit with a bit more room in the toe box I would buy a 1/2 size up. If you have never run in a zero drop shoe it is significantly different than even a 4mm drop. The extra stretching of the Achilles tendon takes some getting used to. To ease the transition Newton gives you a 2mm heel lift when you purchase these shoes so you can gradually step down to the zero drop. The barely there feeling of the racing sole is akin to the barefoot shoes I've tried. The one draw back for me are the lugs of the right shoe sometimes line up oddly under the pad of my foot and I develop a hot spot. The longest I've run in these is a half marathon and that's kind of pushing it with these shoes. There is just not much support in these shoes and that's okay because they are not meant to be an everyday trainer. They are meant for speed and they deliver. I hit my 5k PR in these shoes at :20:27. Not bad for an old man!

Gear Review: Brooks Pure Flow 2 vs Kinvara 4

My beloved Kinvara's are coming to their final miles. I usually run my shoes to 500 miles if possible and start breaking in my new shoe starting around mile 400- 450. By the time 500 hits the new shoes are broke in and good to go. The last time this happened with road shoes I was wearing Brooks Pure Cadence trying to get use to a lower heel height and less stability. I thought I was switching to the Pure Flow but my brother convinced me to try the Kinvara 3's and I was blown away by how light and comfortable these shoes felt. It was actually shocking to walk out with a better shoe than the Brooks Pure Flow! That same scenario played out again when I went to go get another pair of those amazing Kinvara's. The new model was on the shelf and everyone seemed to be out of the old model.

Road running vs Trail running

Whats the real difference between road & trail running?

The Napa Valley Marathon is next weekend and I have been prepping for it since the holidays in a variety of ways like making sure my legs were up to the distance and my endurance & stamina were in top shape. It didn't dawn on me that I had not really run a significant amount of road since last summers San Francisco Marathon. In fact the only asphalt I ran on was to and from the trails and sometimes I skipped that in favor of running on trails that are a few miles from home and better to drive to. If you ever wondered what it really feels like to compare road vs trail read on.