Rain and cold doesn't stop Tom and Rachel

Tom and Rachel battled the rain and cold yesterday to complete their Dallas White Rock races yesterday. Rachel ran her first marathon in 4:12:48 (results here), finishing 91st out of 700 first-time female marathoners. She was 35th in her age group out of 135.

Tom ran his the half marathon in 1:56:38 (results here) to finish 41st out of 197 in his age group, an 8:54/mile pace.

The steady rain made the race a struggle for both of us. It seemed I never got into the usual relaxed pace that we enjoyed during our training runs together. Rachel and I ran the first 7 miles together, running the first 5K in 27:06 and the 10K in 54:50. Rachel ran the half marathon in 2:01:23 but was battling tears of misery throughout the 2nd half, especially the run around White Rock Lake which was completely open to the wind. She felt discouraged because so many runners were passing her by but what she didn't realize was many of those runners were relay runners who were only running 5+ miles. In fact, at the half way point Rachel was ranked 413th out of all 1686 first-timers. By the 20-mile point she was ranked 400th and by the end she was 377th! At the finish, her lips were blue but she was now a marathoner (9:39/mile pace). Great race, Rachel!

For me, I enjoyed running with Rachel for the first part, even with the ran. I was soaked through and through but didn't feel really cold until the 10th mile. The last 2 miles seemed really slow but that was new territory for me. When I passed the 25 mile marker (12 mile for me) down the stretch, I was worried about Rachel because of the elements and, based on how I felt, was not sure how Rachel could do it.

As for as the Dallas White Rock venue is concerned, it was not that geat and definitely isn't the "Best Running Event in Texas" as their web site claims. It's just too big with 28,000 runners starting the three races (marathon, half, and relay) at the same time. I had a favorable corral start (A-3 so the third corral) based on my projected time of 1:55. But Rachel's corral was C-2 which didn't make sense based on her 4 hour goal - especially as we were dodging walkers through the first 4 miles. But since I wanted to run with her, that's where we started. The parking is far from the start and the post race meeting areas are confusing. It was difficult to find food at the finish without standing in long lines. I was lucky as 20 minutes in the pancake line scored me some great cakes. Rachel, not so lucky. She got a banana but, pancakes gone, she stood in line for 15 minutes for half a bagel. Neither of us got post-race water.

But the course is fine. There is one long hill in the half and a 2nd in the full. But compared to Austin, these were easy. The volunteers were wonderful, and when we were running through the neighborhoods, the people were great. There were plenty of water and gatorade stops. The pre-race Expo was pretty good but crowded. The swag you got mainly came from the vendors at the Expo, if you cared to stop by their booths. The medals were nice and will be a proud memory for us. You also got a long sleeve participant cotton t-shirt and a finisher tech shirt (long sleve for full, short sleeve for half). All that is good. But for us, the 3M Half Marathon in Austin that Rachel ran earlier this year was a lot cooler. But then that's only 6000 runners.

But no more complaining. They raised $106,000 for a good cause. And we did it! I can now say that I've run the half marathon faster than any person has EVER run the full marathon :)  And Rachel has done her marathon. There you go.

Vintage guitars

I was poking around the Internet today and notice an advertisement for Silvertone guitars. Back when I was 14 years old, inspired by the Beatles, my older brother and I got the itch to get electric guitars and form a band. Jim was older, had more money, and bought a used hollow-body electric with two pickups plus an amp. I had limited funds but I thought the turquoise $40 Silvertone guitar at Sears looked really cool. Then, with some neighborhood friends who played guitar and drums, we formed a band. And the rest is history! 

1960s vintage Silvertone guitar

So the ad for Silvertone guitars took me way back and I did a search for "turquoise silvertone guitar" and sure enough, I found this vintage 1960s Silvertone guitar for sale on eBay for $340. That was it! My guitar! Not going to buy it but have the picture memory is nice.

Kauai Friday Nov 11

Waiting for sun

Our last day in Kauai would be a full one because our flight out did not leave until 11pm. So in the morning we let the clouds and rain move out and, by 8:30 or so, Joan and I were snorkeling at Poipu Beach. We rented gear right at the beach and were quickly in the cool water watching hundreds of fish of many kinds and vivid colors it was beautiful, clear waters. It was a lot of fun. Oh, and we saw our daily rainbow, too.
More pictures here


After that we said goodbye to Poipu Palm #103 and headed north to Lihue. There we drove around, shopping down near the port of Nawiliwili, visiting the overlook of Wailua Falls, sitting by the beach at Lydgate Beach where we ate the lunch we had prepared.

Lastly, we went to JJs Broiler on Kalapaki Bay and sat outside on the deck watching the surfers. We sat with another couple after they got briefly rained upon and we offered them cover at our table. So that made for some good conversation.

On to the airport for the long flight home (layover in Phoenix) on US Airways. Everything was on time, just really far. We got to Austin around 1:30 in the afternoon on Saturday, full of stories about our Hawaiian vacation.

Kauai Thursday Nov 10

Thursday in Poipu started by relaxing around the condo and enjoying the ocean view. I wanted to see more spinner dolphins like we saw from the boat yesterday, but never did. Others before us have seen schools of them from our condo patio. Oh, well.

Then we headed out to drive through Waimea Canyon via the Waimea Canyon Drive. The drive is winding and slow with glimpses of the canyon. We stopped at three nice overlook areas: the Waimea Canyon Lookout, the Puu Hina Hina Lookout and the Kalalau Lookout. The first two overlook the 12 mile long canyon, coined the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific" by Samuel Clemens, while the last overlooks the ocean.

On the way back to Poipu, we stopped in Waimea at Jo Jo's for some shaved ice - yum! Then we went Poipu Beach and played in the water a little and watched the paddle surfers (see video) and enjoyed the swaying palm trees and beautiful cover (see video). And we also enjoyed another of the many rainbows we saw all over the island of Kauai. more pictures

Kauai Wednesday Nov 9

Our first full day at Poipu Palms was our boat ride day. We rose early to make sure we got over to Port Allen by our check-in time of 7:30. We had no problem finding the port side parking lot for Catamaran Kahanu. We then waited a few minutes for our First Mate, Christian, who walked us down to the boat. Catamaran Kahanu is a 40-foot power boat and there were 19 passengers on our ride. Christian was very conscious of every one's safety, carefully explaining the process of getting on the boat. Captain Lani is a native Hawaiian, fisherman by trade. His thick accent was fun to listen to as we heard the native way of pronouncing some of the places we saw.

The boat headed out to sea and the weather was great. We headed west, hugging the coast, as Christian explained some of the coastal sites we were passing like the Navy's Pacific Missile Range Facility and private beach, Salt Pond, and the forbidden island of Nihau. He also gave us a history lesson on Captain James Cook. The end of Polihale State Beach Park, at 17 miles the longest stretch of beach in Kauai, marked the beginning of our true destination - the Ne Pali Coast. The cliffs grew taller and the canyons deeper as we headed north where the coast is accessed only by boat or difficult hiking. At times, the ride was rough because the captain wanted to stay close to the coastline to get the best views. At one point, we slowed down where some other charters were tied up in calm waters for some snorkeling, but we soon moved on. We saw some caves and waterfalls and, always, beautiful blue waters.

The turnaround point was a reef and Captain Lani maneuvered the boat inside the reef and we tied up. Here, we had the opportunity to get into the water for some snorkeling. Suddenly, right beside our boat, a Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle about 3 feet in diameter appeared as if on cue. Then, one by one, the captain fitted the passengers who wished to snorkel with a pair of fins. I got my fins, went to the bow, got a mask and a short explaination of how to get in the water, and soon I was in the cool water looking at some tropical fish. Christian had thrown out some pretzels so there were hundreds of fish. I guess I only saw three varieties but it was a lot of fun and the water was very clear. We only had 30 minutes in the water and once back in the boat, they prepared a nice lunch of sandwiches, pasta salad, fresh fruit, cookies and drinks. While we were eating, Captain Lani began talking about the fresh fish of Hawaii, joking about our bass fishing and how he landed his 1100 pound Marlin.

The return trip was a lot faster as we sped through the ocean. But on the way we slowed suddenly as a school of Spinner dolphins appeared (not as good a view as this video but still very cool!). Twice, a dolphin leapt clear out of the water. After a few minutes, we continued on our way back to port. All in all, I figured that we covered 60 miles and it was a great trip. See lots of pictures here!

One our way back to Poipu, we stopped at the Kauai Coffee Plantation Museum where they have a nice walking tour and free samples of their many flavors (see pictures). Then we went by Spouting Horn, a spot where the water shoots out of the rocks every time a wave comes in. They also have some vendors there and we enjoyed looking at their wares. From there, we stopped by Poipu Beach to check it out for the first time and discovered a fast way to get the beach from our condo.

After a while spent relaxing at our condo, we walked back down to Poipu Beach and waded in the water. Very beautiful there and the people were enjoying a safe place to try out snorkeling, wakeboarding and paddle surfing. Another lovely day in paradise. Joan posted more pictures here.

Kauai Tuesday Nov 8

Tuesday was our day for moving from the North Shore of Kauai to the South Shore. But before we did, we had to have one more walk around Hanalei Bay. It was a nice morning for a walk on the beach. After that, we packed up and said goodbye to the Gardenia Suite at Hanalei Villa. We had a helicopter to catch!

On our way down to Lihue, we stopped at the Mana Oka'aina beach just south of Kapa'a and enjoyed watching surfers. Then, after searching for awhile, we found Safari Helicopters and checked in for our "Deluxe Waterfall Safari."

These guys seem to have a lot of fun but still emphasize safety. Our pilot/tour guide kept the six passengers informed and laughing and made to show the best sites from both sides of the chopper. Joan, usually afraid of heights, really enjoyed the flight. The sights were incredible as we crossed the island, over Waimea Canyon over to the Ne Pali Coast. Waterfalls were everywhere and the brilliant colors of the canyons and coastline was truly awesome. We also got a great view of the place we just left - Hanalei Bay. Anyway, we bought the video of our ride which we are looking forward to watching and re-living. more pics here

Poipu Palms

After the helicopter tour, we stopped at Hilo Hattie's, sort of the Walmart of Hawaiian gifts, before driving down to Poipu Beach. Our new home for the remainder of our Hawaiian vacation is Poipu Palms #103. The condo sits right on a rocky stretch of coastline just a short walk to Poipu Beach. We watched a nice sunset that first evening. Poipu looked a lot different tan Hanalei and we were excited about exploring it.

Kauai Monday Nov 7

As planned for Monday, we left early in the morning and drove west to where the highway ends at Ke'e Beach. There we began the hike on the Kalalau Trail. This trail along the incredible Nepali Coast offers several rigorous choices. You can hike 2 miles to Hanakapiai Beach, 4 miles to the Kalalau Lookout, or 11 miles to Kalalau Beach (overnight camping required). We wisely opted for the 2 mile trek. To give you an idea of the degree of difficulty, the 4 mile round trip took us about 4 hours with lots of stops at overlooks along the way plus about 20 minutes at the destination beach. The trail is slippery, muddy, narrow, rocky and exhilarating! Joan was a trooper even though  she is somewhat afraid of heights. more pictures

We experienced rain, sunshine, waterfalls and rainbows. We crossed streams, saw all kinds of trees, listened to birds and stepped aside for other hikers. And we had magnificent views of the ocean far below us. At the end of our hike our feet were a muddy red and our legs were sore. We waded at Ke'e Beach then rewarded ourselves with ice cold coconut milk from a vendor who chopped the top off the cocnut inserted a straw and charged us $3.  Some suggestions:

1. Start early. Limited parking at trailhead.
2. Don't bother with tennis shoes. My chaco sandals worked well. Hiking boots would too. 
3. Don't ever swim at Hanakapiai Beach! The homemade sign with tick marks for some 86 drownings is apparently true.
4. Take your time to enjoy the vistas. Most people raced by us in order to complete the  hike quickly. But they missed some incredible sights.

After returning to our villa for a snack and some relaxing, Joan put on here new sarong and I put on my new Hawaiian shirt and we drove down to Smith's Tropical Paradise for a luau! There we took a tram around the 30-acre gardens, ate some traditional Hawaiian food, and watched an exciting show of dancers and music. The food wasn't the best but about what is expected when you try to feed 500 people. The gardens were beautiful though and the dancing and music was great. We really enjoyed the show which included dances from each of the cultures of people who settled Hawaii.   more pictures here