The Brazen Racing Save Mount Diablo Trails Challenge 10k has hills. If you like steep hills, this is the race for you.

Selina and I started out at a steady but slow pace, and picked it up as the race went along. Some days, it’s hard to stick to the mental promise of “let’s just cruise it today”, and this was one of those days. Put it this way, the last mile was at 7:37 pace, and that’s reasonably quick for (a) my middle-age (b) my body type (c) a trail race and (d) a 10k race.

Anyway, I’ve digressed. This was a fun race in a beautiful setting, and a nice way to spend a Saturday morning. What’s more, that’s 43 races completed in our 52-race challenge.

Today was race 42 on our way to 52 races in 2015! I’m sure you’ve been following along, and I’m sure you know we’re raising awareness and funds for the GBS/CIDP Foundation.  If you’re new to our fundraiser, it’s easy to get onboard: just head on over here.

Today we ran in support of the Stanford Race against Pulmonary Hypertension (PH). I learnt about PH today, and it’s one of those conditions (similarly to GBS) that’s hard to diagnose, not well understood, and needs medical research and raised awareness. I felt good running for a cause, and also raising the awareness for our cause too. It’s also fun to run around the magnificent Stanford campus!

We also ran yesterday, and the body was a little bit tired from that and Halloween celebrations last night. So, no records were smashed today, though we did pick up the pace toward the end. Out of the 750 finishers, we placed 96th and 97th. Not too competitive, but faster than a jog for sure.

Well, that’s 42 races in the history books. That means there’s only 10 races to go — join me in counting them down, and counting down every dollar toward our goal of $52,000!

When you’ve run a tough race yesterday, you’re looking for the local 5k the next day. That’s the way we play it when we’re 39 races into our 52 race challenge to raise fund and awareness for the GBS/CIDP Foundation. If you’d like to be part of helping solve the puzzle of GBS and help people in need, head on over here.

We decided to head over and support Dir Biyabir and their first annual run to send a girl to school in Ethiopia.  The race was small, pretty well organized, and exactly the same course as the Moonlight 5k.

We started off slow, warmed it up slightly, and came home with a reasonable last mile. I’m pretty sure Selina was the 2nd female over the line.

If there’s a second annual race, I’d recommend coming on down and enjoying the nice, small, friendly atmosphere of this one.

Just 14 races to go to reach our goal of 52 races in 2015! So far, we’ve raised nearly $43,000 and I know we’ve raised awareness of both Guillane-Barre Syndrome and the GBS/CIDP Foundation. If you’d like to be part of helping beat GBS and help folks in need, head over here.

Race 38 was a tough one. At least for me. My trust running buddy didn’t find it quite as hard, and beat me by a minute or so. The pictures tell the complete story.

The race was a trail run at the Los Vaqueros Reservoir, though we didn’t see any water on our run. Indeed, it’s pretty dry up there, similarly to the rest of California right now. Picture dry dirt trails, undulation, and views out over rolling hills in every direction. A nice place for a run.

I’m not quite sure what was up with me, but I found the race tough from the start. I willed my way through it, and it sure felt like I’d run a lot further than the 6.4 miles or so (the “10k races” trail races are often a little over 6.2 miles).

Anyway, as always, I highly recommend trail running and the Brazen Racing series. Always good vibes, good medals, good shirts, and most importantly some of the nicest places in California for a race.

We took a vacation to the southwest of Colorado this week, and hiked for several days around the mountains.  But the week wouldn’t be complete without another race in our journey to 52 races to raise funds and awareness for the GBS-CIDP Foundation.

We found a small race near Castle Rock, Colorado, and decided it fit the bill perfectly for race 37. The Rescue Run 5k was a fundraiser to rescue orphans, and made for a good cause and an interesting Saturday morning.

The race started innocently enough in a park. Then, it wound its way uphill over a 350ft climb onto the top of the hill in the center of the Rhyolite Regional park.  From there, it was a run around the top for a mile and a half, and then we retraced our steps down the hill to the finish.

Selina finishing the Rescue Run 5k in Castle Rock, CO

I’m not sure whether it was the elevation of 6200 feet, the 250 foot climb, the 80F / 27C weather, or all three, but it was sure a tough race. Selina and I were both wiped out at the end, and spent the rest of the day rehydrating, eating, and sitting around. In any case, I’m sure glad it wasn’t a 10k race!

That’s 37 races in the history books, and only 15 to go to reach our goal! Yes! See you next time.

We heard down the grapevine that the Rocky Ridge 10k was a tough grind. And the rumors were true — while it’s always magnificent to run Brazen’s races, this was one of the tougher ones. (I can only imagine how hard the half marathon is — maybe that’s a project for next year.)

The race started with a single track, undulating cruise through woods, and short return back down a fire road. And then the fun began — a 1,000 foot climb over 1 mile up onto the aforementioned Rocky Ridge.

I always say to Selina that “Williams’s don’t stop”. The reality is I’ve probably walked maybe six times since 1992, and usually for pretty good reasons; there was the time I’d given blood and that other time when I was dizzy and the world span. Well, make that seven times — there’s no way I could run that 1,000 ft climb.

Once we were up on top of the Rocky Ridge, the views were magnificent. The fog filled the valleys, and a gorgeous day spread out in front of us. If I wasn’t so darn keen to get the race finished, I’d have taken a photo or three. You’ll just have to use your imagination.

The end result was (as usual) Selina won her age group, and I didn’t. I’m pretty sure I was 4th in mine, and power to the guys who beat me! We’ll be back running this one next year — in fact, I think I’ll retire from running road races and stick with the trails in 2016.