Here’s a shoutout to my loyal reader, Marie. You’re an all-around good human being and a charming dinner companion.
Now I’d like to offer a public service announcement about summer workouts to Marie and my other two readers: You should enjoy as many summer workouts as possible and wear sunscreen.
Summer may not start until next weekend, but school’s out and the sun lingers long into the evenings, so it feels like summer has arrived. For me, it started at the Santa Barbara Athletic Association’s Summer Social last Thursday. I was sipping beer with an ocean view while people talked about their 4th of July plans (Semana Nautica 15K, anyone?). When I left, it was still light enough to see the fat squirrels darting across the parking lot. Life is good.
Here are a couple of highlights from my weekend workouts.
Friday I went for a long* walk and discovered that Farren Road and Gibraltar aren’t the only places I can train for Tough Enough or get a good booty workout. Check out the elevation profile of my wanderings along the Mesa. The hill in mile 3 was the Douglas Preserve. If you always run through it, I recommend walking now and then. There’s a lot to take in and, if you walk, you’re less likely to get knocked over by a running dog.
Saturday I grabbed my new bike and my friend David** and rode to Carpinteria. We checked out the new Tomol Park, which Rotary helped build. Bring your kids! On the way back, we stopped at Cafe Luna in Summerland. The mozzarella, mushroom and truffle oil wood fired pizza is wonderful. It was a bit cold out on the patio, but in my imagination, it was a beautiful summer day. It was so much fun that it barely felt like a workout!***
Sunday, after a quick trip to the Santa Ynez Valley to try out some new-to-me wineries, I felt like going for a leisurely jog. I texted Leah, and within 15 minutes we were running together. That’s the magic of summer. You can just go outside and go. Note: This is a lovely time of year to run in Isla Vista. It almost passes for an idyllic seaside town.
So get out there!
* Long is a relative term. A quarter mile feels long when it gains a few hundred feet in elevation.
** I didn’t actually “grab” David. That would be inappropriate. Nor did he grab me. I just want to be clear on this point. It’s just a figure of speech.
*** This is a lie. It felt like a workout at many times. There was sweat. There was pain. There was an increased heart rate. There were spandex. Even the Ortega Hill bypass is still a hill. Also, don’t ever trust anyone who says “It’s all downhill from here.” They’re usually lying.
