Spoke to Coach Cyndee before I left town and told her that I would be in Monterey, CA. Could maybe swim, no bike and would take running shoes for sure. She set me up with a rest day on my travel day and then hill repeats my first day here.
Dude! I’m at sea level!
She must have been here before, because I step out of the elevator to head to my hotel room and there is a window looking out directly at this huge hill behind the hotel. Hot damn, I’m in business. I make a mental note for the morning.
I get up early and try to disturb Melissa as little as possible. She is a great sport, but I know I wake her up when I get up at an ungodly hour to go exercise. Got to do it though, because as soon as things get rolling for the day, I know that I won’t have a spare moment the rest of the day. I roll out with the pre-dawn into the mist.
I jog around the corner of the Marriott and hit W. Franklin Street which is immediately uphill. So much for a warm up. The street runs through a residential area straight up the hill. I’m not normally a sidewalk guy, but the streets here are narrow and the parked cars push you out into the street far enough that you would have to tap dance over the hood of a car as it came down the street toward you.
I can find beauty in a lot of things, the landscaping here is mature and the cypress are absolutely beautiful. They look like the wind came down with shears and an Ipod filled with Flock of Seagulls music for a little trim. The tops of those trees are flat and teased out my friends.
The hill turns out to be about ¾ of a mile long, with the last quarter mile being the steepest section. I drive my arms forward and lean into the hill. I feel pretty good and look forward to these workouts. I’m going to need this strength and leg drive at Dipsea.
Breathing hard, I hit the top of the hill and run up to one of the entrances to the Presidio of Monterey. The Presidio (fort) was founded on June 3, 1770. The Presidio has been both active and abandoned several times throughout its history. Controlled by Mexico for a time, it has been held by the US Army since the mid-19th century. Since 1946, the Presidio has been the home of the Army Language School (ALS).
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| Franciscan Fr. Junipero Serra gave the Thanksgiving Mass on the same day that the Presidio of Monterey was opened by the Spanish. Religious requirements for the Presidio were left to the charge of Fr. Serra. (Madonna and Child from the Mission at Monterey where Fr. Serra lived). |
I wave at the guards as I turn around to head back down. No response. Maybe they think I’m a terrorist.
The next repeat they studiously ignore me. Maybe everybody runs up this hill. I’m only repeating the steepest ¼ mile. Maybe that doesn’t bear mentioning in this part of the world. These people are obviously animals.
Repeat #3. They are both looking at me now. It is my turn to pretend to ignore them this time. I try to appear non-threatening. It would be embarrassing if I had to explain to Melissa that I got shot running repeats to a guard shack at the top of the hill.
Up again. I feel good but also am starting to feel the hill. There’s now some little engine that could in my stride. I’m running out of time. Got to get back to the hotel and get Melissa up. I don’t pay attention to the guards as I flip around for one more.
Last one. I push hard. Focused on everything moving forward but it is definitely getting hard. Driving to the top of the hill I hear a deep voice shout at me, “All the way!”
I look up from the sidewalk in front of me and see the two guards at their post. I drive hard for the stop sign at the top of the hill. I wave and one of the guards waves back. My day is complete and it’s not even breakfast yet.
I head back for the hotel and enjoy the view of Monterey Bay on the way down.
47:26 / 3.71 miles
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