The San Francisco marathon

This Sunday, six of the Blue Planet runners met up for the San Francisco marathon event, and held their second reunion since the 2007 Blue Planet Run. This is now becoming an annual tradition! The city by the bay boasts a magnificent marathon, and therefore was a perfect occasion to rendezvous and do some running. Since my recent tibia tendon strain had not completely healed, I was not sure whether or not I could take on the task at hand, and thus promised myself to be careful and take it slow and easy on marathon day. “Listen to your body,” I remembered the pros say.

The race was well organized and the 21,000 half- and full marathon runners were let out in waves, with the first ones leaving at 5:35 in the morning. Half an hour later it was our turn and six minutes after six, we crossed the starting line. For the next four hours it would be one foot in front of the other, and that’s how it was for the first eight miles or so. Chaim and Adam, both half marathoners, started out at the same time, but soon disappeared ahead of me in the masses of runners. On the middle of the Golden Gate Bridge, blanketed in a thick layer of fog, my dreaded injury started to nag me a bit, but by slowing down my pace, was remedied for a while. After the bridge, the course entertained several steep inclines, and by mile marker twelve the pain became so unbearable that it was clear to me that there was no way I could run another 14 miles, and thus decided to call it quits at the half marathon finish line.

With my half marathon medal in hand, and the thought that this was the first time I ever forfeited the race, I could no longer help myself and started running back to the 12.5 mile marker, where the half marathon split off from the marathon course. There I jumped back on the course and picked up where left off with 1.8 miles added to the total distance. Shortly thereafter I passed the half marathon marker for the second time, but now on the marathon side of the course. At the following aid station, the medic explained that my condition was Achilles tendinitis and that it will be very painful to run on, but that it would not rupture. With that knowledge and the hope that he was right, a compression rap and two Tylenols, I was back on the road. In the mean while the fog had lifted and the sunshine was warming up the landscape of the Golden Gate gardens. The slightly hilly terrain was flanked by large trees, a magnificent waterfall, and a brilliantly colored flowering garden. Ah, it is good to be a life, and on the run … it least for the moment!

An hour later, the electronic mat at the finish line clicked off my timing chip and this enduring San Francisco marathon had finally come to an end. I picked up my marathon finisher medal and while this certainly is not my best run, it is one I will remember for a while. After all it was a twenty-eight miler, and how often do we get to take home two medals?

Safety first and foremost

Days are zooming by like hours on a pendulum. I am busy preparing, contemplating and fantasizing about my upcoming eventure. Do I have the strength, tenacity, and endurance to pull it off? Can I raise an adequate enough amount of money to make a difference? Will my friends and family, and anyone else that will read my messages and blog of daily encounters, be inspired to be part of the solution on a subject that is in my core being since I participated in the Blue Planet Run? Ten more days and all the pre-ride pandemonium will be set in motion for a 2,500 mile 50-day transcontinental voyage.

At the moment, life for me is hectic and in full anticipation. It seems that there are not enough hours in the day. On top of that, I self-diagnosed a strained anterior tibial tendon, most likely incurred running down a steep hill earlier this week. " Par for the course" as they say and I hope that it means what it means, "sure success". For now it hurts a bit, but definitely no showstopper.

This week I bought an iphone, got an Garmin etrex device as a birthday gift, and will carry with me several other electronic gadgets. How did we ever manage without them? If only I can remember what cords go with what, and keep them from tangles and knots, my ride should be as smooth as a … you know what I mean! Having said that, when on the road, safety will be my main concern. When drivers behind the wheel are on their cell phones and let their fingers do the talking, and ladies fancy their faces with lip gloss and eye-mascara while navigating their Hummers, we cyclists better be on the lookout at all times.

Just recently being out and about on the bike, a middle aged woman in her shiny convertible mini-cooper flashed by me, cell phone in hand and a chiwawa pooch on her lap, seemingly in control of the wheel!  If I only had my camera! Adorable? Yes! An accident waiting to happen? Sure thing! So, I will be wearing a reflector vest, helmet, a road id bracelet, have a rear view mirror and a very bright pulsating light. It will put an extra few pounds on me, but as the saying goes, "safety first and foremost". And when you see me pedal stroking up and down these scenic country roads, please  give me some room and share the road!

By the end of the month, I will begin my safe drinking water campaign and journey, with the hope that many will be with me and see the need for speed to save lives, and help with a $10 donation. When that happens I will be able to call this “Rudy” initiative a success, and will ride off into the sunset with a big smile on my face! 

Le tour de l'eau

On July 28 my solo bike ride gets under way from San Francisco, to take me on a 2,200-mile cycling adventure. My mission is to raise $20,000 for the blue planet foundation thereby helping others with access to safe drinking water, which symbolically translates into $10 per mile.

In order for this Blue Planet Ride to be a success I have visions of greener pastures and passages across America with every mile paid for with a $10 bill. Imagine a road of "green Hamilton's" across the land, from the Golden Gate Bridge, down the scenic California coast, along the Natchez Trace parkway, the Blue Ridge parkway and up the Lakes to Locks passage to Montreal, Canada. What a beautiful sight that would be! And even more beautiful will be the results and happiness it will create for all those people that are suffering every day, because they lack access to safe drinking water. So please come along, follow my blog adventure and help solve this human crisis with a $10 donation, and in doing so make this world a better place for all to enjoy! Every dollar will be matched by a anonymous giver.

Donate in honor of a special occasion, a family member or a friend, and that someone special will receive an e-gift card. Click here to see the gift card message. To donate click here. If you prefer to pay in cash or by check please write "Rudy event" on the check or envelope. Thank you!

Blue planet ride - route map

The above map shows my daily "water" stops. Blue flags indicate the actual cycling part of the trip and red flags the route and major cities I am traveling through by car. For more detail on the bike ways go to Maps & Links in the sidebar. For inquiries on meeting me on the road for a presention, a townhall meeting, a fundraising local 5 to 10k run or a bike ride, please email me at: rudy@blueplanetrun.org

The Artist rendering of the "peloton" is by David Gerstein. Unlike the Tour de France, the "Tour de Water" will have no time trials or yellow jersey, but hopefully in the end will help bring sustainable and maintainable water solutions to local communities that today lack access to safe drinking water. For more information click here.

Water is life. Pass it on!

Unlike you or me, over one billion people on earth have no safe drinking water. Women and children may walk up to 6 hours a day to get water, and even then, it may not be enough, or safe enough to drink. Many drink contaminated water and then get sick. 2.2 million human beings die each year from water borne illnesses. 6,000 people die every day and 240 children die every hour. But there is hope. Click this short video link and watch what is going on in front of our very own eyes, mostly unnoticed, and find out what we collectively can do to solve this crisis.

Solutions to rural unsafe water problems involve community organization, appropriate technology, hygiene, sanitation, transfer of ownership, change in behavior, and long-term maintenance. The solutions are available today; what was missing was the infrastructure to select, fund, manage, monitor, and share thousands of grassroots, community projects.

Blue Planet’s PWX organization scales local solutions to the size of the global water problem. An empowering human network that enforces collaboration of expert resources at very low cost to efficiently, transparently, and effectively focus on funding thousands of low-tech projects that are completely sustainable and maintainable by the communities they support.

Problems like access to safe drinking water can easily be solved for millions of people around the world in our lifetime. There are so many little things we can do to make a big difference in the lives of others. I hope that you will support the Blue Planet Foundation and its mission to do something about this humanitarian crisis! Thank you for all your wonderful comments, support and continued interest. Water is life. Pass it on!