Pali Lookout (Maunawili trail)

On Saturday, Lisa, Jan, and I decided to meet at the Pali Lookout for a run on the Maunawili trail. Jack came along too and brought a surprise guest: Kristin, who was visiting from Boulder. Newcomer Robert joined too. The weather was pretty good - no rain and not too hot. The trails were a little muddy and slippery, due to the rain the night before.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/25484760
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Terrain" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Sat, 2/20/10
Start: Pali Lookout
Trails: Maunawili (out & back)
3:19 / 12.1 miles / 16:26 avg

More Concrete Road, Valentine's Biathlon, Great Aloha Run

Here are last week's routes.

First, Annie, Lisa, and I met at Parking #2 for more Concrete Telephone Road. Then a little out-and-back on the trails.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/24913382
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Terrain" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Thu, 2/11/10
Start: Parking #2
Trails: Concrete Road - Puu Ohia - Tantalus Road - Kalawahine & back
1:13 / 4.5 miles / 16:26 avg

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Then Sunday was the Valentine's Biathlon. Brad and I did the relay - I ran, he swam. And since it's for Valentine's Day, the 'hand-off' is a kiss.

In the Married category, we were 9th overall. But 7th in our age group. Sheesh, tough age division. In any case, the races put on by the Waikiki Swim Club are always fun.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/24913735
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Hybrid" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Sun, 2/14/10
Start: Magic Island
Run: 23:23 / 3.1 miles / 7:34 per mile
Swim: 18:59 / 1000 meters / 1:54 per 100 meters
Total: 42:22 (7th of 21 teams)

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Finally, on Monday I walked the Great Aloha Run with my friends. Last year, Darrin and Neil decided to try it for the first time. This year, they were back for more. And they even got Chad and Kendall to join us too. If you've only run GAR, it's actually a LOT of work to walk it. Luckily the weather wasn't too hot and we talked story the whole way.

Kendall, Darrin, me, Chad, Neil before the start.

After the finish. Great job guys!!!

http://connect.garmin.com/player/24914915
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Hybrid" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Mon, 2/15/10
Start: Aloha Tower
Finish: Aloha Stadium
2:30 / 8.2 miles / 18:12 avg

Big Island: Snow, Lava, and Sand (4/09)

In April 2009, my parents came to Hawaii for a visit. We made a trip to the Big Island. And I took my Garmin along.

We went up to the summit of Mauna Kea, which was amazing. The tour company, Mauna Kea Summit Adventures, picked us up in Kona and drove us up to the Vistors Center, where they gave us parkas, gloves, and a warm dinner. Then it was up to the top to watch the sunset among the snow and observatories.

Finally we went down the mountain slightly (to warmer temperatures thankfully) for stargazing and hot drinks. The guides pointed out the visible constellations and looking through the telescopes was super cool. They showed us Saturn - you could actually see its rings!

For fun, I tracked our route to the top of Mauna Kea with my GPS watch. If you zoom in, you can see the observatories at the summit.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/3845780
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Hybrid" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Sat, 4/11/09
Start: Lanihau Center, Kailua-Kona
Roads: Queen Kaahumanu Hwy - Waikoloa Rd - Hawaii Belt Rd - Saddle Rd - Mauna Kea Access Rd
2:30 / 76.4 miles / 15,600' elevation gain / 31 mph

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We also drove out past Kalapana, where the lava was flowing into the ocean. We took flashlights and binoculars and followed the path in the dark. From the viewing area, you could see a faint red glow. And once in a while you could even see lava shooting into the air as it hit the water.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/3880015
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Hybrid" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Mon, 4/13/09
Start: End of Hwy 130
Trails: Changes daily
0:18 / 0.5 miles (one-way)

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And of course, Brad and I had to find a trail to run on. From Wawaloli Beach Park, there is a trail along the coast. The trail goes north to an old lighthouse (demolished shortly after we were there) and extends south of the beach park to a surf spot (Pine Trees). The trail consists of sections of sand, dirt road, and some lava.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/3845695
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Hybrid" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Sat, 4/11/09
Start: Wawaloli Beach Park
Trails: North to lighthouse & back - south to Pine Trees & back
1:21 / 6.8 miles / 11:57 avg

Puu Ohia and Kaena Point

On Thursday, Jan and I ran up to Puu Ohia trail. Then to make our run a little longer, we added a loop up the Concrete Telephone Road.

Click the map or link below to go to the Garmin Connect site.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/24223885
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Terrain" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Thu, 2/4/10
Start: Parking #3
Trails: Parking #3-Parking #2-Kalawahine-Manoa Cliff-Puu Ohia-Parking #3-Parking #2-Concrete Telephone Road-Puu Ohia-Parking #3
1:13 / 4.4 miles / 16:43 avg

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On Sunday, Lisa, Jan, Tai, Annie, Andy, Arvel, and I went for a run at Kaena Point. Most people started from Dillingham Airfield. But I started at the beginning of the dirt road. There were whales offshore, 2 monk seals on the beach/rocks, and nesting albatross.

Click the map or link below to go to the Garmin Connect site.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/24224002
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Hybrid" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Sun, 2/7/2010
Start: Kaena Point (North Shore)
Trails: Kaena Point
2:29 / 10.9 miles / 13:39 avg

Annie, Jan, Andy, Tai, me.

How Accurate is the Garmin Forerunner 405?

I'm going to start including some routes from 2009.

Shortly after I got my Garmin Forerunner 405, I went to a nearby track for a run and to break in my new soccer cleats. I wore my new GPS watch, because I thought a run around a track would be a good test of how accurate the routes appear.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/1734500

1. On the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Hybrid" box. Zoom In.
2. Press the "Play" button

You can see that I:
- Ran 1.5 laps around the outside of the track.
Stopped at the bleachers to change from my running shoes to soccer cleats.
- Ran 2.5 laps around the grass football field, which is inside the track.
- Had to detour around the shotput cage at the NW corner of the football field.
- Started getting blisters from the cleats and walked across the football field back to the bleachers.
- Put my running shoes back on.
- Ran 0.5 lap back to the gate.
- Started walking home, while trying to figure out how to turn off the watch.

For another somewhat silly perspective on Forerunner accuracy, check out this Garmin blog post, which answers the question: When using a Garmin on a cruise ship does it measure the ship's movement or your movement if you run laps on deck?

Reverse Trek Loop (sorta) and Jan/Ultrarunning Article

On Saturday, Jan, Lisa, and I met for a run. Even though it rained all night, the Tantalus trails were still in great condition. Wet, but not muddy. I'm lucky to have good running friends, because I definitely would've bailed on this rainy morning if it wasn't for them.

Click the map or link below to go to the Garmin Connect site.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/23829725
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Hybrid" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Sat, 1/30/10
Start: Nature Center
Trails: Hogsback-Makiki Valley-Kanealole. Hogsback-Makiki Valley-Nahuina-Kalawahine-Manoa Cliff-Moleka-Makiki Valley-Kanealole.
3:04 / 10.2 miles / 17:59 avg

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Jan's company's newsletter featured an article about her and ultrarunning. Very cool article and pictures!

Check it out on the HURT Hawaii website.

Rancho San Antonio - Los Altos, CA

Over Christmas, Brad and I went to San Jose, CA to visit my family. We lucked out with the weather and got in a couple of trail runs while we were there.

The trails at Rancho San Antonio are mostly wide, dirt, fire roads - different from the muddy, single-track trails in Hawaii. In the map, you can see how much drier the terrain looks, compared to the usual green of the Hawaii map views.

The day after Christmas, Aaron joined us for a little while - and brought his new daughter so we could meet her for the first time.

Wait a sec, this isn't mom!

This isn't either?!

Whew! At least dad is here!

Brad and me at the top of Rogue Valley trail, with the south end of the SF Bay in the background.

Click the map or link below to go to the Garmin Connect site.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/23321846
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Hybrid" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Sat, 12/26/09
Start: Rancho San Antonio Main Parking
Trails: Permanente Creek to Deer Hollow Farm - Rogue Valley - Wildcat Loop - back
1:27 / 6.5 miles / 13:20 avg

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On Tuesday, Brad and I ran the Powerline (PG&E) trail. I'd never been on it before. Fun hill.

Click the map or link below to go to the Garmin Connect site.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/23321878
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Terrain" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Tue, 12/29/09
Start: Rancho San Antonio Equestrian Parking
Trails: Coyote - PG & E - Upper High Meadow - High Meadow - Coyote
1:39 / 7.9 miles / 12:37 avg

Nature Center & Peacock

On Thursday, Lisa and I went for a morning run.

Click the map or link below to go to the Garmin Connect site.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/23367111
1. In the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Terrain" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Thu, 1/21/10
Start: Nature Center
Trails: Hogsback - Ualakaa (out & back) - Makiki Valley - Kanealole
0:58 / 3.1 miles / 18:29 avg

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Then Saturday, Jan, Andy, and I met for a run up at Peacock. Cheryl was there too.

Jan, Cheryl, Andy

Me, Jan on Crossover Road

Andy and Jan heading back down

Click the map or link below to go to the Garmin Connect site.

http://connect.garmin.com/player/23367262
1. On the map image on the Garmin site, select the "Hybrid" box
2. Press the "Play" button

Sat, 1/23/10
Start: Bottom of Long Road
Trails: Long Road - Crossover - Access Road (partial) - back
4:05 / 16.9 miles / 14:27 avg