California Run

I flew to California last weekend to visit my mom. She lives in Costa Mesa. They were all complaining about the heat - 80 in the day and 65 at night! Wow, our low in Phoenix is higher than their high! Anyway, the running schedule said 6 miles on Saturday, so I left my mom's and hit the Santa Ana Riverbed trail which goes straight to Newport Beach. The 3 mile turn around was just short of the ocean's edge. What a delight to run on flat ground, sea level with an ocean breeze cooling your legs! Another nice thing about running is you can do it just about anywhere and the change up of scenery is always fun.

I did a couple of these Santa Ana riverbed runs last year - in fact the picture I have on my profile, (10 pounds skinnier than today!) was taken by my brother last year.  He rode his bike along side me while I did a run to the beach.  We had a blast.  Here is another that a nice bicycle guy took of us when he saw us trying to figure out how to get us both in the picture with my iphone!

Back to last Saturday!  So I left my mom's about 9 am - (WAY too late for a run in summertime Phoenix!)  and hit the trail with my iPod and my camelback.  This year I shared the trail with about twenty thousand guys going by me at about 40 miles per hour on bikes!  Wow!  I was thinking all of Southern California is biking now!  No problem - we coexisted just fine on the Riverbed Trail.  It is always a joy to have a wonderful view when you run and nothing is better than coming up on the ocean at the turnaround point.  Never fails to make you smile and be happy you are alive and running.  That and the cool breezes - quite a difference from my desert runs!

Took Mom to her one year follow up appointment for her hip replacement surgery on Monday.  It is amazing how much get up an go she has!  She will be 86 in October.  She had full range of motion in that hip.  I saw the xray and the doc said it healed perfect.  I hope the running I am doing today will help me be as active as my mom is when I am 86.

Anyway - it was great to see my mom and my brother.  I sure wish we lived closer!  And it was great to run to the Pacific Ocean and back... in my new shoes!