Ala Moana Diamond Head Circle Run

There really is nothing like an early afternoon run in Honolulu.  Except for probably a run in just about any other beautiful island community.  I was in Honolulu for a quick distributor show, and after setting up the Okuma booth, had an opportunity to get out and squeeze in a few miles. 
Started the morning off with some fresh papaya that the Aunties gave to me.

After some fresh fruit and the set up, ran back up to the room and made a quick change into the running gear.  It was a beautiful afternoon.  Here is a view from my room at the Ala Moana hotel overlooking the harbor.  We had whales crossing in front of the harbor all week.  It was great.

After looking out at the whales and ocean for a bit, it was time to head out.  Here is a shot looking up as I was leaving the hotel.

And a quick shot looking across the street from the hotel.

From the hotel, I head on over to the Ala Wei canal and start the run towards Diamond Head. Here is what I am looking at as I head down the Canal.

Lots of interesting things in the canal.  This year I saw multiple shopping carts, a mattress, probably the biggest puffer fish I have ever seen, and various other objects that I couldn't decipher. 

Once you get to the end of the canal, about mile two, you head past the Honolulu Zoo and head through the park.  This is what it looks like when you get to the end of the canal looking toward Diamond Head.

From here you keep heading straight until you get to Diamond Head street. From there I like to head to the right and keep the ocean on my right side.  No particular reason. 
There is a little incline when you actually get near the water and head up past Diamond Head.  Once you get to the crest of the street, there are some spectacular views.
Here is a shot looking where I just came from.

And a shot of where I am headed.

There is a nice little bluff when you get to the crest that I like to stop for a quick stretch.  At this point you are at roughly mile 4-ish.  This year I stopped to watch the humpback whales playing just outside the surf.  Unfortunately I couldn't get a good picture of them, but with the help of Instagram, I did manage a pretty nice shot overlooking the sea.

Once you leave the crest of the road, you start to head down the other side and around the back of Diamond Head.  You complete your circle and get back on Paki road and then rejoin the Ala Wei Canal and work your way back to the hotel. 
All in all it was a 9 mile run and felt really good.

This was a good little training/prep run for my upcoming Rock N Roll Pasadena Half that is coming up in a few weeks. 
Of course, after a nice long run you should generally reward yourself for a job well done.  I did just that.  Here is my reward from Shimazu Store on School Street right next to H1 just short of Liliha Street.

This was the Strawberry Colada and Pina Colada combo.  Yummy!

It was a great trip and a successful show for Okuma.  Our new Ulua reel was a hit.

Happy Running!
Dave

Lake Wilson Bass Fishing Oahu Hawaii

Just returned from a business trip to Hawaii.  I know, tough job!  I hear it all the time.  I had a quick opportunity to get out with Stan and Chris Wright from www.hawaiibassfishing.com.  What a great day on the water.  Beautiful day, but unfortunately with the recent rains, the water was high and cool.  In fact, here is a shot from the launch ramp area overlooking the little cove off to the left.  Pretty high water.

The guys really like the water a little lower, and quite a bit warmer.  In fact, we were out looking for Peacock Bass and they like the water temperature in the 76-78 degree area, and we were showing about 68.  Kind of chilly.
We had a sort of grey-ish day to start off, but beautiful none the less.  Who would have thought there would be a freshwater lake, with pine trees around.

The fishing was a little slow in the morning, but got better in the afternoon.  Almost as soon as the sun came out I was able to land this Largemouth Bass.  Not bad for Hawaii!

Here I am a little surprised that I actually caught a LMB.

We did manage three Peacocks on the trip.  Here is a picture of Chris with one of his "under 10lb" peacocks, as he called them.

They do actually get them at the lake up to 8lbs or so.  I guess I'll have to go back and try for one of the big guys.  

Aloha!  

Dave

#bassfishing #hawaii #aloha #bass #Okuma

Evening Fullerton Run

Had a chance to get out and do a little afternoon trail run on the Hiltscher and Juanita Cooke trails in Fullerton.  It was a very beautiful afternoon with lots of people out enjoying the great weather.  Though it was a little chilly, chilly for California at least, it was gorgeous.  People were running and out walking their dogs.  Apparently everyone hasn't given up on their new years resolutions yet.
Here is a shot of the trail.

Knocked out a quick 3.25 trail miles, but it was very nice.  Good to be out enjoying the brisk, clean air.

Happy running!

Long Beach Breakwall Calico Fishing

Had a little chance to get out and try for a few evening Calico Bass out at the Long Beach Breakwater. Conditions were excellent and the fish were on the chew.  Fished a few Savage Gear Sand Eel baits and had a great bite going.  We managed over 20 bass each as well as over 20 Sculpin each.
Here is a shot of one of the better bass that I managed.  Okuma

The Okuma Serrano and Cedros Inshore rod did the trick.  The Long Beach Breakwall is an amazing place.  It often holds aggressive Calico Bass, and the night time bite is a magical time.

Happy Fishing!


#bass #fishing #Long Beach #Okuma #SavageGear #Swimbait

Disney World Port Orleans Riverside Run

Disney World Port Orleans Riverside Run

Just returned from a quick trip to Orlando.  Actually trip was revolved around my nephews football game that happened to take place in Daytona Beach this week, but the Disney portion was sort of an addition.  We spent a day at the Magic Kingdom and a day at Epcot.  Still love me some Disney!

Anyhow, we stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside.  Great little resort that used to called Dixie Landings back in the day.  Perfect little layout, and each building is somewhat spread out and away from each other.  All set in a bayou setting.  In fact, the section we were in is called the Alligator Bayou.  This shot kind of gives you the feel of the environment with big, thick trees.

There are actually two sections to this property.  The Alligator Bayou and the Magnolia Bend.  The Magnolia Bend section is pretty nice too, with a southern plantation feel.

This set up also has a great set up if you are a runner.  If you do the inner pathway around the island, you are looking at roughly .7 miles.  If you take the full loop, heading toward Port Orleans French Quarter, you are looking at 1.7 miles.  A couple loops and you are good to go!

This first shot is a look down the river from the intersection sign above.

From here, you run through the last couple buildings of Alligator Bayou, and on into the Magnolia Bend section.  Once you enter the Magnolia Bend, you start to see some of the beautiful plantation style buildings.

From here, you keep on heading down the river, and come across some pretty bridges.

There's a bridge in the far distance, but this is more of a shot of the grass lined river, and tall trees.
Once you get in about the middle of the Magnolia Bend area, you can look across the river and see the main lobby and boat dock area of Port Orleans Riverside.

We'll make our way around and get a better look soon.
A little further down the river you come across a pretty bridge that leads you towards the French Quarter area.

Now you'll be getting into the Port Orleans French Quarter.  This is a completely separate resort, but it is joined by this running trail.
Here is a shot of the pool slide at the French Quarter resort.

King Triton looking down over us.

From here, you run about another quarter mile or so and turn around. Instead of going back over the bridge, you continue forward and head into the Riverside lobby/boat dock area.

It can get a little congested here, so be careful of kids running around, strollers, etc.  It is a Disney resort, so there are plenty of those.
Continue on around the river and you come into the actual dock area.  This is a wood planked portion of the run with a great water wheel on one side.

This make for a nice little change of scenery for a few minutes.  Once you make it through a few curves and turns, you end up back on the regular running path.  I forgot to mention that the path is a nice flat, easy on the feet, cobblestone type of path.  Easy to run on with the Vibram 5Fingers.

I completed 2 full laps for about 3.5 miles.  It was a nice cool morning with no humidity to speak of yet.  It was also pretty windy as Hurricane Sandy was blowing on by us off the coast.
As I was heading back to my room, I came across this little guy waiting to greet me.  Must be a relative of Jiminy.

Of course, to finish off a nice run, we headed out for a little dinner that evening.  Weird, but this was the only picture I had of our meals.  This was from Cookes of Dublin at Downtown Disney.  Fun little Irish pub style restaurant.

For everyone else, it was either fish n chips, or the breaded hamburger special.  I opted for a green salad and some fries.  And of course a big cold Guiness to wash it down.  When in Rome...I guess!

Happy running!

Cocodrie Louisiana

Just got back from a quick little "business" trip down to Cocodrie Louisiana.  We fished with the boys from Top Water Lodge.  This is a real class operation.   They have two nice lodges right on the water, with a nice little fleet of boats.
We had two days of fishing and got into some fantastic Bull Red, Sail Cat, and Black Drum fishing.  Here are a few shots from the trip.  Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to sneak in a run down there.  Next time.
Our mornings would start off down at the dock getting the boats/bait/rods all prepared.

Once on the boats, you we take a nice stroll through the bayou, at roughly 40-50mph.  We did stop at a few places to soak in some scenery.

Once the sun actually comes up, you can really open the boats up. 

Pretty little sunrise over the bayou.

Some spots the Gaff Top Sail Cats were just plain thick.  You couldn't get your bait down fast enough to get into the redfish or drum.  Here is one of the larger models that we got into.

We also managed to get into some big Reds.

And another nice little red.  This guy was pretty torn up, so I had to crop the picture as to not see his tail.  They like to roll around the oyster beds.

This was a fun trip, and if you are looking for a place that will work hard to get you into some fish, look up Top Water Lodge.  Good times!

Dave

The Awesome Marathon! Santa Monica CA Sep 23 2012

The Awesome Marathon Santa Monica CA Sep 23, 2012

I had a chance to get involved and run in a neat little event this weekend.  A friend of mine told me to check out www.rocketracingproductions.com.  They offer pretty cool, small format, weekly, or close to it, races.  The event I got involved with was called The Awesome Marathon.  In consisted of a 10 Miler, Half Marathon, Marathon, and Ultra.  Being a wimp, I decided to join the 10 miler just to get my feet wet with the group.  I only found out about the event last Wednesday, and thought what the heck.  I registered that day, and got all set up.
Sunday was the day of the event.  Registration started at 6am and the race began at 6:30.  For those who have entered any big races, 30 minutes doesn't seem like a lot of time to pick up your bib and get registered.
Here is a shot of the registration area.

Well the best part about these events is the small amount of participants.  My goal for this race was to come in the top 100.  I think I was able to accomplish that as there were only about 50 people running. 
Here is a shot of the pre-race rundown and instructions.  It was sort of a run to here, turn around, run to there, turn around sort of thing.  Fun and intimate.

 Just prior to the 6:30 race start, I got my bib and was ready to go. Don't mind the numbering system, as I don't really think it meant anything.

On last look up at the morning sky, and we were on our way.

There were a few possible loops that you can run depending on what exact race you were running.  My 10 mile loop was fairly simple.  Run south along the beach and turn around before you get to Venice.  Then run back to the start completing a 2.2 mile loop.  Then run north along the beach for about 4 miles and turn around and come back to the start.  This will give you your 10 mile loop.  Sounds pretty basic, and it was awesome.  Little signs along the sand or chalk lines written along the bike, running path.
Here is a quick and blurry shot from right at the start.  This is on the southbound loop.

Once you get down to the designated turn around for the 10 milers, you head on back to the start.  There you can grab water or a snack.
Here is a shot of me as I get back to the start line.

Once you pass the start line again, you begin your 4 mile out and back.  Here is a shot just passing the starting line heading north and looking toward the world famous Santa Monica Pier.  You can see the Ferris Wheel off in the distance. 

After about a half mile or so, you get a better shot of the pier. Here you can see the Ferris Wheel, Roller Coaster, etc.

Once you pass the pier, you just kind of keep running for another 3 miles or so.  This is from about a mile past the pier looking toward Malibu and the edge of the Santa Monica Bay.

Just keep on winding along and you eventually get to the end of the running/bike path.  This is an open format, so there are no spectators, no cowbells, and no one around as you can see from the shot above and below. 

In fact, there weren't a lot of people around at all. You kind of run at your own pace, and just keep on going.  You cant miss the turn around as they do have a table at the end with refreshments and snacks.  Good place to stop and stretch if you'd like.  The shot above is just before getting to the end of the road.

Here is a quick shot from just before the turn around, about 4 miles from the Santa Monica Pier.  You can see it in the distance.

We had a beautiful morning, and great weather.  It did get a little warm once the sun finally made its way out, but not too bad at all.  As I mentioned, this was an out and back course, so you do see the same places on your way back.
Here is a quick shot of me coming into the finish.  I finished in 2 hours 18 minutes.  Slow jog today.

Once you get to the end of the course, every finisher gets a medal.  I was in a hurry to get back to my car as the parking meters start at 9am, and I was chit chatting after the race and almost forgot about it. 
Anyhow, here is a shot of my finishing medal, from in the car. 

All in all, this was a fun little race.  I definitely think I'll be getting involved in more and more of these events.  The price is right at $28 compared to upwards of $150 for some of the big races.  Good bunch of runners, and everyone was cheering each other on as you'd pass them on the paths.

The part about the whole thing was that I had a top 5 finish!  I actually came in 3rd place.  That probably sounds good except that there were only 4 people in my division.  Oh well!

Happy running!