We had a pretty fun weekend, with a lot crammed into the weekend. We ran the Rocky Ridge trail run for the fourth year, went to Ocean Beach for a sandcastle building contest and saw a whale in the process. On Sunday, Beth and I did a hill running clinic that she had gotten me for our anniversary present.
So Saturday, we got up early for our trail run. Emma and I would do the 10K (6.2 miles) that included over 2,000 feet of elevation climb. Sophie and Myles would do the 5K (3.1 miles) with Beth running with them for motivation.
We love this run just because of the challenge and the crisp autumn air. It is run through the Las Trampas wilderness at the end of Bollinger Canyon Rd.. On this day, it included being fogged in on the ridge for Emma and I. It kind of reminded me of when I would ski in Washington in the fog. It was definitely refreshing. I completed the course in 1 hour 11 minutes and Emma completed it in 1 hour 28 minutes.At this race, Myles wanted to run much of the race himself. The lower part of the course runs through a bunch of oak trees and is very much like a roller coaster. Beth would wait at key points for him a long the trail One of the things he loved doing is passing every runner, then turn around and say "boo!" and then giggle to himself and run to the next runner and do the same. All the runners he passed got a major kick out of it. Sophie had a wonderful time herself. She has been running this course by herself for a while now, and did an excellent job. All three kids came in third in their age division.
After the race, we drove into San Francisco for a sandcastle building contest. I had seen an advertisement for it on a billboard on the Embarcadero earlier in the week. It was on Ocean Beach and was to benefit the arts program of 33 different elementary school art programs through corporate sponsors. There was a lot to see. 
Half way down the beach though, we noticed a bunch of people gathering along the shore. Come to find out, it was a huge humpback whale that was frolicking in the surf. I am not sure if he came in for a closer look to see what all the commotion was or if he had found a tasty meal but he sure put on a show.
On the way back home, I then stopped to show Beth and the kids the feral parrots of San Francisco over by the Ferry Building. After living here for thirteen years, I discovered them this year on the way to and from my work. You can find their story here. We could only find three this time; however, there are over 100 that live in and round Justin Herman Plaza.
On Sunday, Beth and I got up early for a hill running clinic held by a couple of runners who do ultra-marathons. Originally, Beth and I were going to spend the night in Marin; however, finances dictated otherwise. However, it was fun to see the different techniques that each use so that they limit their injuries on their multiple 100 mile runs they do each year.
Talk with everyone soon.
