Michael: Travel Day

The little tigers
Crouched and scowled at each other
Then the fight began.

Thursday, August 4, 2016

We are now in Costa Rica, closer to Saturday’s race but still not quite sure how we’re going to get there.

Didier, the very accommodating and very French, if that’s not a contradiction in terms, proprietor of the Tiriguro Lodge is doing everything he can to help us out by looking on the net and calling his “pirate” taxi driver to take us to Turrubaras. But there seems to be some confusion as to whether there’s a direct route or if a more circuitous course will have to be mapped out. The difference will determine how early we’ll have to get up Saturday morning since my race starts at 5:30.

It could also have a slight subconscious influence on my pace, as we’ll need to be back at the hotel to collect our bags and then get to the bus station by 2p.m. if we’re going to catch our 4 o’clock bus to San Vito. That give me a good 6 hour window to complete the 50k, but I have very little idea of the difficulty of the course. But I do know that it’s an out and back with a largely downhill profile on the way back to the finish. That means if I can get the first 25k done in under 3 hours, we should be good to go.

Fortunately, many of our puzzles could be solved today. This morning we’ll hop on a bus and head to the Escazu Multiplaza where hopefully at packet pick up they’ll be able to help out both with directions and questions about the course and event. Then we’ll relay this information to Didier and he’ll confirm with his pirate when we’ll need to be ready to sail.

Outside of a grocery store visit, that’s all that’s on the agenda today.

As far as highlights of the long ride from Panama to this beautiful little area of Costa Rica:

*At the border there were hundreds of African refugees. I had no idea this was happening here. It appears that they come here without documentation, and aren’t willing to give out their proper identity or country of origin so they can’t be deported back to their home country. At the moment, they’re just languishing in camps near the border.

*Also at the border I exchanged dollars for colones, the Costa Rican currency. Chris, one of the ex-pats giving us a ride, gave me this tip for figuring out the exchange rate: double the amount of colones and instead of saying thousand, say dollars. For example; 40,000 colones doubled is 80,000, but instead of saying 80 thousand just think $80 and you’re in the ball park. An example working  the other way would be if you had $2, cut it in half, and that would mean $2 is worth about 1 mil or 1 thousand colones.

*The drive along the coast was mostly a long drive through oil palms that have replaced the large banana plantations that were started in the 30s. Occasional views of the old banana villages that were constructed around open grass squares are visible from the road.

*Our guides, Chris and John, who have homes and family in both Panama and Costa Rica, also told us that the oil palm plantations have gone back to using oxen and cattle to harvest the palms as it was discovered that tractors caused the soil to be compacted to the point of not being conducive to long term financial success.

*John also told us that for some odd reason Panama doesn’t follow the Spanish colonial norm of always building a plaza in the center of town with the Church on the eastside and the plaza on the west. Costa Rica does.

*We stopped at one of the few points where the road meets the ocean in a small village -----. It looked straight out of a tropical scene from the 60s/70s with the thatched roofed patio filled with Americans and Europeans with their pony tails, tank tops, and well tanned but now crusty skin ordering organic meals and treats. The chocolate chip cookie I had, or whatever it really was, was delicious.

*I didn’t expect much from the small village of Orotina, but from a quick view, it appears to be a very nice little town. Didier was kind enough to drive us to a brand new restaurant where we had a great dinner.

*From my initial impressions of the two countries, I would compare them to some of their popular cars. Panama is like a Suzuki Jimny while Costa Rica is like a Rav 4.

Michael: New Neighbors; Near and Nearer

The pale yellow rose
Is appreciated by
The ants for it’s taste.

Monday, August 1, 2016

For the past two months we’ve been at peace with the world. It appears that could be changing very soon.

Yesterday a young family was doing a superficial clean up of the empty house behind us. We’re very much hoping that the landlord, on her second go round of renting her dad’s old house, has learned a few lessons and was wise enough to advise the family that this is a very quiet and peaceful neighborhood and to make sure their lifestyle aligns with these standards.

I’m disappointed that our solitude is coming to an end, and I don’t expect people to act like they’re monks taking a vow of silence, but I’m very much hoping to avoid any awkward confrontational chats. Conversations I’ve never liked having in English let alone in my limited Spanish.

A bit down our short farm road the owner of a just constructed house came out to greet me on my way back from my morning run. She informed me that her family is only going to be there for a week, then it’s back to Switzerland where her husband is from. They’re looking to rent and they’d prefer ex-pats as opposed to Panamanians because she believes they’ll take better care of the place. This isn’t the first time I’ve heard this. It’s interesting that Panamanians are a bit prejudiced against their own.
I wish I new some very quiet people who’d like to rent their place.

It’ll be interesting to find out how are old neighborhood has changed once  we get back from our mini-vacation to Costa Rica.

Michael: A Great Test Run

The severed cow’s head
Left behind by the poachers
Is a buzzard’s meal.

Sunday, July 31, 2016

Today was my last long run before my taper for next Saturday’s 50k so I wanted to give everything a good shake out, including some newbies to the crew, like band aids for nipple guards, some Vaseline like product for anti-chafing protection, Spenco thin insoles mated with my relatively new Hoka ATR Challenger 2s, and shorts with large hand pockets with the right pocket altered with a snap to test if it would ease my anxiety of using open pockets for fear of loosing gear or nutrition.

To begin with I haven’t used nipple guards before nor do I often apply anti-chafing lubricants. But this race is forcing all the participants to wear the shirt they supply so best be prepared. No problem with either one over my 3 1/2 hour run. Though I will say forgetting that you’re wearing flesh toned band aids and getting a glimpse of myself sans nipples before showering was a bit of a “Man Who Fell to Earth” experience.

Similarly, this will be my first race in the Hoka’s and I wanted to see if I could get a better heel fit with the Spenco inserts and the runner’s loop lacing system paired with thin quarter Wright socks. I also wanted to put the ATR2s through some slop and a complete drenching to see how well they’ll hold up if presented those challenges. Check the plus boxes. Shoe set up is good to go. They don’t sell Hokas here in Panama and if the same is true in Costa Rica, I may get a little extra attention at the race as being an extra “special” trail runner.

The shorts’ pocket concern was also alleviated. I put my small first aid kit in the snap pocket and a zip lock bag of cheap cookies in the open pocket. Everything stayed in place, but I do feel more comfortable with the snap being there. Yet it was nice to reach for the cookies without hassling with a snap or a zipper. I wouldn’t be happy if the cookies in their zip lock slipped out, but until I lose something from the open pocket, I’ll leave it that way for convenience’s sake.

Why cookies? Because that’s what’s being provided at the aid stations. I might carry two 5 oz. gel flasks that would allow me to go about 3 hrs. on my own gel concoction, but after that, and since the second half of the race is mostly downhill, I’ll rely on whatever the aid stations have got to give.

Now it’s time to wind down, pack up and get ready for wild ride to Costa Rica.

Michael: What if My Race Number's in Spanish?

What if My Race Number’s in Spanish? Saturday, July 30, 2016

Outside our window
The whale breaches the ocean
And breathes in the stars.

Soon Kimme and I will be off for our first international trail race, not counting the short few we’ve done here in Panama. Those we’re events that were 15 minutes away. Kimme’s doing a 21k and I’m doing a 50k.

The list below is a mashing of lists from Runner’s World, Ultrunr.com and my experiences. It’s not a complete list but specific to this race which will be run in a warm and humid environment and involves over night travel. It’s also not complete in the sense that it only involves items that are race related. I figure there are all kinds of lists out there for tourist travel, and though there might be some cross over, I feel they’re distinct enough activities to best refer to separate checklists.

Pre-Race
*Kool & Fit or other warm up oil,
* Vaseline
* nipple guards
* sunscreen/insect repellent
* race # on belt or pinned
* warm-up pants & jacket (may not be needed for this race), *hydration & nutrition loaded into pack
* I.D. & some spare cash
* music.
Race Wear (from the ground up)
*shoes
* socks
*calf sleeves
* running boxers
* shorts
* short sleeve shirt
* arm sleeves
* mountain bike gloves
* running watch
* wedding ring
* necklace
* cap
Gear
*Ultra Aspire Revolt vest with 500ml bottle
* gel flasks
*small zip lock with toilet paper/hand sanitizer, moleskin, Bio Freeze, duct tape,
* small zip lock
* bag for warm up wear and gear.
Nutrition/Electrolytes
*Home made gel
* salt tabs
* pre-race meal supplies (If you’re a fanatic about it. I’m on the quasi -religious side when it comes to pre-race breakfast.), *vitamins/supplements.
Travel Related
*itinerary- reservation #s and contact info. (plane, train, bus, car rental, hotels…)
8 maps
* pajamas
* ear plugs
* warm clothing
* shake out running attire and shoes.
Miscellaneous
*bottled water
* foam roller, massage stick, knotty ball
* headlamp,
Considerations
*Since our hotel has a refrigerator and a coffee maker, we can go shopping, stock the fridge with our normal fare and pretty much eat as usual including our pre-race meal (That’ll be muesli with almond milk, banana and coffee.)
Also, since we’ll have to check out before the race is over, we’re hoping our hotel will hold our bags. Then we’ll have to have wash towels and soap, otherwise it’s going to be a long, stinky and uncomfortable bus ride to our next hotel.
We’ll also being changing time zones, altitude and climate. We’ll have a few days to adapt those changes.
At packet pick up we’ll need to ask how far apart the aid stations will be as that’s not included on the web site.
Rationale
*Calf & arm sleeves aren’t for compression or warmth, they’re for protection in case of a fall, brush, insects, and the sun.
Running boxers with the North Face shorts sans liner but with pockets allows me to stash trash quickly and to carry a small zip lock with first aid in one pocket and an empty zip lock in another. The empty zip lock I’ll use to put cookies in from the aid stations if they turn out to be far apart.
The stations will have Gatorade but I’ve never liked the stuff, but I have been training with cheap cookies. They don’t have gels of any type.
The cap, possibly with neck gaiter, isn’t just for sun protection. This is a race is in a tropical environment so I can lightly spray it with bug spray instead of applying it directly to my neck and ears where it would probably sweat off a lot quicker than it will from my clothing.
I’ll have a poncho with me but I don’t expect it’ll be necessary to carry it during the race. Even if it rains, it should be plenty warm.
So if it’s going to be warm, why the extra set of  warm clothes? Key word: travel. Sometimes planes, trains, and buses can be air conditioned to the point of near frost bite.
We may need the headlamp to walk to the taxi on race morning, but won’t need it for the race.
This is a travel experience where we’ll be staying near the race venue  two days before so we’ll have at least one extra set of running wear so we can do some easy jogging the day before the race.  
Depending on what we’re told at packet pick up, I’ll probably start with one gel flask, but will have two with me just in case I get nervous and don’t want to trust the aid station nutrition so early on in the race.

Michael: Updates

Vapor rising from
A pair of jeans is as strange
To me as God is.

Friday, July 29, 2016

One week without the net or land line phone didn’t kill us, but we’re very glad to have them back. Stick around for a while, please?

First off, I called my ma. If it were a desperate situation I could’ve used my cell phone, but everything’s fine and warm, if not down right hot, in good old Southern California.

Next up was polishing off some of our trip details for next week’s Costa Rica adventure. Unfortunately, some of the small but important details are going to have to wait to be arranged for in person and at the last minute; like finding a taxi that’ll take us from our B&B to the very early morning race start Saturday morning. I’m hoping that we can handle that on Thursday.

At least, according to the net, we can take a bus at 4.p.m. after the race from San Jose to San Vito, a very nice little town only about 30 miles from our casita in Volcan. By the time we arrive near the border we won’t be able to take a bus across because the border closes at 4 p.m., but that’s not a concern. On Sunday we’ll walk to the very enjoyable Wilson Botanical Gardens in San Vito before having lunch there then heading for home. San Vito is known for it’s Italian cuisine so very much looking forward to a pasta splurge post race.

I can also now pull up a race checklist which I should cut and paste into a word document just in case Zeus throws another bolt our way. It’ll be good to get all that nervous packing out of the way sometime this weekend.

Then it’ll be time to rest up, enjoy the ride and see what it’s like to race in the hot and humid foothills of Turrubaras, Costa Rica.

Michael: Had to Happen

The little lizard
Balanced on the bucket’s lip
Seems prepared to leap.

Thursday, July 28, 2016

This has been an unusual week.

Today was the first day we’ve had both the internet and our land phone line. I saw my first large Panamanian snake yesterday. It didn’t rain for two days, then rained for three hours this morning; both abnormal. And to top it off, because it was raining this morning, instead of just calling off my typical Thursday morning ride, I put it off until the afternoon figuring the clouds had spent themselves and I’d be able to get a dry ride in. I was mistaken.

Not only did it rain for the last hour plus of my ride, at times it rained very hard; dangerously hard. So hard that when I directly faced into the rain I was almost blinded by the large heavy drops hitting my eyes. Fortunately the road I was on snaked so much my near blindness never lasted for long.

I’m also just not comfortable riding in the rain, let alone a downpour. Fortunately, my bike has disc brakes, so braking wasn’t as much of a concern as with calipers. No, I was the concern. I wanted to be relaxed, but not so relaxed I’d slide out in a turn, or let the bike glide down hill into a pot hole I couldn’t see because the road is coming at me in small waves.

And even though there are few cars and trucks out there relative to Los Angeles, my old stomping grounds, I could barely see and that had me concerned as to how well I could be seen, or how concerned Panamanians are about looking out for a dufus cyclist.

I could say all’s well that ends well, but as any cyclist will tell you, that’s not the case after a wet bike ride. I may be clean, warm and dry, but tomorrow my bike’s going to remind me that it wants a little tender loving care after getting me home safe and sound.

Michael: Runner's High Goes Well With Stupidity

Bright silent lightening
Illuminates the darkness
With flickers of white.

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

The other day I talked about how a young woman named Kiara was frazzled by a very loud barking dog. Today was my turn for an even more unexpected animal encounter but, I believe, because I was running I had a much different and perhaps even goofier reaction.

I’ve seen snakes on the road here before. They were small and dead after being hit by cars, but until today I hadn’t seen one while trail running in Panama. This one was large, about 3 ft. in length, thick and very much alive and kicking. Well, not kicking; more like stretched out in the middle of the farm road. I’m going to call it an ebony kneelback, because it looks like the picture of one.

If I had been walking I probably would’ve reacted like Kiara did to the dog; shimmy and shake and scream my bloody head off. But because I was running I pretty much calmly ran by the tail end of the snake.

And I don’t believe it’s because running makes you brave. I feel it focuses the mind in a way that other priorities become more important. Like I’m having a real good run, the snake’s not coiled, why miss the opportunity to set a course P.R.? And my new running partner, Mario, might catch up if I’ve got to wait too long for this snake to shuffle off.

I definitely wouldn’t claim that the chemical changes that occur while running make me a wiser decision maker.