California Dreaming

Can you believe that Kristian and I just spent four whole days in California and I didn’t take a single picture? I even had a replacement camera for the one that got stolen. I guess I was just too busy soaking up the sunshine.

Kristian and I flew out to California last Friday to spend a long weekend with my sister Allison and her husband Dustin and so that Allison, Dustin and I could run the Surf City marathon and half marathon. It was a bit of a whirlwind visit, but we had a great time. Highlights include:

• Eating lunch at Allison’s favorite hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant. I was a little concerned when the Haz-Mat team showed up on their big truck, but it turns out they were just there for some tacos.
• Dustin finishing his first ever marathon. I think he wasn’t exactly thrilled with his time, but I’m impressed that he finished.
• Consuming our traditional post-race In N’ Out Burger. There is nothing like burning 1300 calories during a half marathon and then getting them all back with a cheeseburger, fries and a milkshake.
• Sister bonding time while getting pedicures. My toes haven’t seen the light of day since we got back (and they’re not likely to any time soon), but that’s really besides the point.

We may or may not have watched a certain football game with some of Allison’s friends. I don’t want to talk about it.

The race itself was fairly decent. It was a lot hotter than we had expected it to be and my time suffered accordingly. The course itself is nice and flat and quite scenic. Most of the race happens right along the beach,  down the Pacific Coast Highway. I was pleasantly surprised by all of water stations (at least one every mile and sometimes more than one).  There was also great crowd support. With 20,000 runners, there are bound to be a few spectators.

I probably could have use a few more days to relax with Allison and Dustin, but it was a nice break from winter and the daily grind.