Mitch's Walking Homepage

My Favorite things about walking

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My Favorite Web Sites

Loma Linda Lopers
Walking Stuff Store
Walking Tips

I am building this web site as I train for my very first marathon (walking). My wife and the rest of the 16 minute group of the Loma Linda Lopers are my partners. The goal is to walk the LA Marathon in March 2002. Please E-mail me with any comments if you are an experienced walker. The 16 minute group and I need all the help we can get. Please check out the links for more walking information.

• I will give you a weekly report of my progress as I strive for the goal of walking a marathon. (I will also include the group in my report).

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  • Sunday October 21, 2001 was our 12th week of training and 11 miles the distance. The 16 minute mile group started out with 9 walkers. We stayed pretty much as a group for the first 3 miles, however 2 rambunctious members took off and left the pack in the dust. We remained a pack of 7 for about another mile, when 2 other members dropped back a bit. Our pack of 5 remained together throughout the duration of the walk. We finished in about 3 hours, the furthest I have ever walked at one time. The biggest problem we are facing as a group is having to use the portable potty. I suppose as we train and learn what to eat and drink this should get better. Thats it for this week.

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  • Sunday October 28, 2001 was our 13th week of training and we walked 12 miles. We started out with 8 members, 2 of them took off and left us in the dust again, 1 dropped a little behind, and we had 5 in the main pack again. The porta potty was not nearly the problem it was last week. We finished between 3 hours 15-20 minutes. The weather was a little drizzly, and the temperature was about 60 degrees. All and all a great day for walking. Pictures of some of our group. Guess which one is me? (Hint, I probably am wearing pink)

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  • Hal says Miss Lynn is looking for a Restaurant.

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  • Sunday November 4, 2001 and it's half-marathon time, (almost) 13 miles. The weather was a little drizzly, however it was great walking weather. My wife and I decided to go out early, 6 AM, so we could finish in time for our church committments. We met up with the 16 minute group on the way back in at the 4.5 mile mark and picked up one of our group for the rest of our walk. We finished in 3 hours 35 minutes. We are making great strides. A few more pictures of our group.

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  • Walking sure is a lot of fun, but it can be a bear.

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  • Man's Best Friend (Notice his fetch stick)

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  • Sunday, November 11, 2001, and the Lopers participated in the Mission Inn Run. My wife and I and several of the Lopers did the 5K walk. We had a lot of fun, but O' my shins, we went a lot faster than normal about a 14:30 pace. One of our own, TP, won a second place medal for his age group in the 10K, a fantastic accomplishment. A few pictures of the day. (note: I will address fellow Lopers by their initials now and in future writings.)

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  • Sunday, November 18, 2001. Todays walk was set for 12 miles, however my wife, BH and I decided to go out early again at 6 AM due to out church committments. We also decided to do 13 miles instead of 12. Our time was a good at 3:28.30. We met several of our 16 minute group on the way in at the 4.5 mile mark, and we finished up together. We figured out a way to balance the physical and spiritual aspect of our training, by going out early then going to church, however we miss walking the whole way with our 16 minute group. The weather was in the 40's when we started and ended up in the low 60's, great walking weather. Next weeks distance is 14 miles and we will be out of town for the Thanksgiving Holiday, but we plan on walking the full distance. Until next week, keep on walking.

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  • We sure feel old and stiff after a long walk.

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  • Saturday, November 24, 2001. My wife and I decided to do our 14 mile walk while on Thanksgiving Holiday in Lancaster, CA. There is a wonderfull park called Apollo Park, named after the Apollo Astronauts, just north of the city with a great paved 1 mile track around 3 lakes. The wind was the usual for Lancaster, steady at 35 MPH with gusts to 50 MPH. We had a great time fighting the wind and getting in our miles. We finished in Just over 3 hours and 45 minutes. Just as we were leaving heavier winds came up and then the rain, we just beat the worst weather. A few pictures of the park. Until next week, Happy Walking.

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  • Sunday, December 2, 2001. I decided to go out early again because the distance was 15 miles and my wife was ill and would not be joining me, and there was no speaker for today. I e-mailed several of the group, however they were unable to make the early start time for a variety of reasons. It was cold at about 38 degrees and I had a light windsuit to cut the chill. The walk was great, and I had a chance to reflect on a lot of things during the almost 4 hour walk. The runners passed me a mile or two from the end of the walk, as the temperature rose to a hot 55 degrees. That's it for this week, next week the Holiday Classic, until then Happy Walking.

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  • Sunday, December 9, 2001. Today we participated in the Loma Linda Holiday Classic at 15K . As a group we did great with 2 first place medals in different age groups. All received participant medals, and all of us set personal best times for the 9.3 mile distance. Santa was there to share in the fun of the day. We are on track for the LA Marathon. Next week 14 miles, until then Happy Walking.

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  • Sunday, December 16, 2001, and the distance is 14 miles. Our paceleader was back today after toe surgery. He walked with us for 8 miles. The rest of us did at least 14 miles, and my wife and I did 16 miles. As we get closer to marathon distance you notice the little things that may get you in the long walk like rubbing under the arms, or a little spot in your shoe that doesn't feel right. I'm sure these are all good things in the long walk (run). A few pictures along picturesque San Timeteo. Until next week, Happy Walking.

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  • Sunday, December 23, 2001. My wife and I have decided to change our schedule. Instead of doing the Highland Half-Marathon on January 20, we are going to do the San Diego Marathon as a training walk as well as our first full Marathon. Today we did 10 miles at a relaxed pace, just under 17 minute miles. Next week we are going to do 18 miles then wind down for a couple of weeks leading up to San Diego. (If winding down is 12 and 10 miles) The temperature today started in the mid 30's and ended up in the upper 40's, pretty cold for us Southern Californians. As you can see by the picture cloths get shed at the 2 mile checkpoint, however some of us don't shed our cloths at all. Until next week, Happy Walking.

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  • Sunday December 30, 2001 was week 22 and we walked 18 miles. Our pace was just under 16:30 and we finished in 4:56. Needless to say this was our longest walk to date. We felt good after the walk, however we lounged around the rest of the day. We experienced no unusual aches or pains afterward. I think all the training is paying off. We are getting excited as we get closer to the San Diego Marathon (3 weeks). Until next week Happy Walking.

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  • Walking 18 miles turns you into a skeleton.

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  • Sunday January 6, 2002, the first long walk of 2002 and the distance was 12 miles. We set out as a group of 6 and finished as a group. We averaged 16:30 per mile, which is I hope our marathon pace. The weather was great topping out in the 60's by the end of our walk. We continue to progress with no unusual problems. The San Diego Marathon is 2 weeks away. We are ready. Until next week, Happy Walking.

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  • Sunday January 13, 2002, we decided on 10 miles in preparation for the San Diego Marathon on January 20. I thought I would never say or feel that 10 miles was a short walk, but it was. We averaged 16:07 per mile and felt good. The rest of the group did 19-20 miles and the reports were that it hurts. We are excited about San Diego and will find out what 26.2 miles feels like. Until next week Happy Walking.

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  • Sunday January 20, 2002 and it's San Diego Marathon Day. We arrived in the Carlsbad area before lunch on Saturday, went to the expo, got our bib and goody bag and went to lunch. We did our carbo load at lunch on Saturday, went to the mall, then went to our room to watch some of the Raider-Patroit game. We had a bagel and banana and went to bed early, about 8:00 PM. We did not sleep well. Between the anticipation of the race, and the noise outside of the motel, it was a rough night. We got up at 3:45 AM, took a quick shower, dressed, and made the short drive to the parking area. We finished getting ready in the parking area, and prepared for the 5:30 AM start. We had a bagel, banana, water, and we were ready. We gathered at the starting line with the other walkers and we were off at about 5:36 AM. The first part of the walk was in the dark, and we had two young men in their rollerblades with lights leading our way. We covered the first mile in about 16:30 pace, good for the warm up. We started to clip off the miles at a good pace. I never told my wife what our pace was, however I knew we were going better than expected. The sun finally started to come up and we were already at the 5 mile mark, and our time was about 1:18 which was under a 16 minute pace. We continued on, took water, Gaterade, and Clif Shot, whenever available. We clipped off the first 10 miles, and had no desire yet for the dreaded porta potty run. The wheel chair athletes caught us at the 11 mile mark and they started an two hours after us. These athletes are really fast, courageous, and magnificent. The elite runners caught us as we approached mile 13. They started two hours after we did, and well what can you say. These athletes are in tremendous shape, have guts, and are crazy, enough said. We got to the halfway point in 3:24 and I knew we were flying for us, about a 15:37 pace. We kept going, took all the fluids and Clif Shot that we could, and continued to feel good. We clipped off the miles, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, we realized 19 miles was as far as we had ever gone, and we still felt good. We hit 20, 21, 22, and we started to break a little, but our pace was great. At 22 miles I told my wife at this pace we will be done in a little more than an hour. She said OK and we could smell the finish line. At this point we were a little tired, a little sore, but the prize was ahead. We continued on, mile 23, 24, 25, and finally the sign that said ONE MORE MILE TO GO. We got really fired up and went for a strong finish. My wife was great, however I started to fade. I realized that I did not take anything at the last water station at mile 24, but kept going feeling a little numb. The spectators encouraged us, half mile to go they yelled, you can make it, a quarter mile to go, it is just around the bend, we could smell the finish line. We made the last turn, and saw the finish line. We got an extra burst of energy and crossed the line in a time of 6:48:06, a 15:33 pace for our first marathon. I immediately took one of my trail mix bars and shoved it in my mouth, I knew my blood sugar was low. We proceded to the area to get our chips removed and beyond that the prize awaited us, the finisher medal. My wife was the first to receive hers, and she got a little choked up. I received my medal with a mouth full of trailmix bar. We walked and dedicated the race to my cousin who passed away last summer from cancer, and my wife's sister who is recovering from cancer. The experience was fantastic, and as I write this story on Tuesday morning I am OK except for a little soreness, and my wife reports the same. Our first marathon was great, and now the finish of the story. We did not use the porta potty once during the whole race. I guess we ate and drank properly. Special thanks go to the Lopers and especially the 16 Minute group and our paceleader T. who kept us on track. Back to training now for LA. Until next week Happy Walking.

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  • On The Road

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  • These Athletes Are Tough

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  • These Guys Are Fast

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  • The Prize Is Near

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  • The Reward

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  • The Hard Work Paying Off

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  • Sunday January 30, 2002 and we took the day off, a well deserved rest after the San Diego Marathon. We will be back at it next week with a 21 mile walk. Until next week, Happy Walking.

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  • Sunday February 3, 2002 and we had a short 21 mile walk today. We did OK until about the 13th mile when the porta potty called and we took an unexpected 10 minute break. (Well I guess the call of nature should not be unexpected) We did great as a group with 7 out of 7 finishing the 21 miles with an average time of 16:20 per mile. We are getting anxious to do the LA Marathon and we are ready. Bring It On! Until next week Happy Walking.

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  • A Snails Pace Today

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  • Sunday February 10, 2002. Today we were scheduled to do 14 miles, so naturally my wife and I decided to do 8 miles. We are saving our best for LA. Our pace was about 15:45 a mile, a far cry from the close to 17 minute pace several months ago. We are getting ready. Till next week, Happy Walking.

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  • Sunday February 17, 2002. The preparations for the LA Marathon continued today with a nice 12 mile walk. The weather was light rain and about 50 degrees. This was probably the worst weather we have experienced this training season. The group was together for the first 6 miles or so, then started to space a little. I had an extra boost today and ran/walked the last 6 miles. My pace was about 14:25 per mile, and the rest of the group was on the 16:00 minute pace. This was our next to last training walk before LA. We are ready. Until next week, Happy Walking.

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    Some Days You Have More Energy Than Other Days

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  • Sunday February 24, 2002. Today is my birthday and we are going a paltry 10 miles today for our final tuneup for LA so what the heck. We all stayed together and did OK. One thing we have all expressed is that now 10 miles seems like a short walk. We have truly come a long way. We are mean, lean, walking machines. Next week the big one. Until then, Happy Walking.

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  • Sunday March 3, 2002. The big day has finally arrived. Yesterday we arrived in LA, went to the expo, got our bib and chip, checked out the expo, checked into our hotel and walked up the Angel's Flight and had a 2:00 PM carbo load at the California Pizza Kitchen restaurant. We walked around the Jewelry District for a while then went back to our room for early turn in. We slept pretty good. Sunday the Lopers all met together at 7:00 AM at the LA Athletic Club for pictureas and final instructions. The runners went to the starting line first to get into their position, and the walkers went up about 15 minutes later. We waited in anticipation for the 8:45 AM start, however the race was delayed by a suspicious object on the course threat. After everything was clear the elite runners took off at about 9:22 AM and we crossed the starting line about 7 minutes later. We had a great first 10 miles, and the people on the route were great. The walkers did have one disadvantage, the gatorade and later the water was hard to come by on the course. If not for the fluid I carried with me, my wife and I probably would not have made it. The heat also started to rise and by the end of the race it was near 80 degrees. Anyway we continued on mile after mile and did pretty very well. Our group stayed together and we all finished together at the finish line hand in hand heralded in by our Loper trumpeteer. Six of us crossed the finish line together, and the other three Super 16 group came in about 10 minutes later. They were slowed by the illness of one of our members, however she and they finished with great courage. So nine of the Super 16 group started the race and nine of us finished. So, this brings to an end our first marathon year with two under my wife's and mine belts. We look forward to the late summer and the start of serious training again. It has been a great experience and we are much healthier than when we started almost a year ago. This also ends the web page. It has been fun keeping you up to date. Maybe I will do another web page next marathon season. Until then Happy Walking!
    
    Email: genset2001@hotmail.com