Trail runners and hikers like to set the fastest known time (FKT) on various routes, some of them quite elaborate. More famous ones include through-hikes on the Appalachian trail, and rim-to-rim (or rim-to-rim-to-rim) in the Grand Canyon. Because of Covid19, a lot of formal races and other events have been postponed or cancelled, so FKT … Continue reading Another Side Effect of Covid19- A Proliferation of FKTs →

Recently I reviewed Tim Davis's inspiring book Tripolar. I was then fortunate enough to ask Tim some questions in an email and got some great responses. Here are the questions along with Tim's responses (in italics). 1. Did I get the story right in a nutshell? For your recovery, the 12 step program and support … Continue reading Follow Up On Tim Davis, Author of Tripolar →

The air quality was still ok yesterday morning. CalFire the fire that's affecting us now 86% contained. Go firefighters! So I rode out Redwood retreat rode to Mt. Madonna road, which leads to the back entrance to the county park of the same name. This took about 2 hours and 45 minutes round trip on … Continue reading The Beautiful Mt. Madonna Park →

I just finished the excellent book Choosing the StrongPath: Reversing the Downward Spiral of Aging, by by Fred Bartlit, Steven Droullard, and Dr. Marni Boppart. Fred is 85 years old, and vigorously pursues various athletic activities, including downhill skiing. His story alone is inspiration enough to make it worth reading the book. Stephen is closer … Continue reading Take the “Strongpath” for Successful Aging →

The air quality around here still gets to unhealthy by later in the afternoon, because of particulate matter from the fires. But in the mornings the last couple of days it's been "fair" so I've been able to exercise outdoors. I can wear an N95 mask if I have to, but that makes it unpleasant. … Continue reading Workout Out in Cleaner Air →

I just read the book TRIPOLAR: The Story of a Bipolar Triathlete, by Tim Davis. This is a very inspirational book, much more than the title indicates. Tim had a very difficult childhood and became addicted to alcohol and some serious drugs as an adult. His recovery is an amazing testament to the power of … Continue reading Tripolar- an Amazing and Inspirational Recovery Story →

This was taken by a firefighter who's my friend's brother, he's over on the Santa Cruz side of the mountains helping fight the fires over there caused by recent lightning strikes. These are part of the "CZU lightning complex" (https://www.fire.ca.gov/incidents/): In the foreground is the Santa Cruz boardwalk, with downtown behind it. On the other … Continue reading Wildfire Threatening Santa Cruz →

We have a "high pressure" ridge in our area that's been trapping the high temperature- multiple days of temperatures over 100 F, and, uncharacteristically for this area, not cooling as much at night. On Tuesday we had a thunderstorm with lightning that started a bunch of wildfires that CalFire calls the "scu lightning complex".: 157,000 … Continue reading Overdoing it in Bad Air →

One of my goals has been to improve my uphill hiking speed, because I have had difficulty in the past keeping up with faster hiking groups. From my recent training, it seems to be improving: there is one steep road I walk up nearby that was taking about 15:00 minutes and I've gotten it down … Continue reading Faster Uphill Hiking →

It's been really hot here lately, high of 107 F today. So I did strength training in my garage early then went for a walk with my hand weights locally, when it was still down in the 80s. The neighborhood behind us has a nice walking path with some oaks and eucalyptus trees shading it. … Continue reading Strength Training and a Local Walk →