Exploring Tokyo by Foot

Earlier this week, I moved from Hayama, where I was staying for a one-week Japanese language course to Tokyo, where I will be working for the next few weeks through the NSF EAPSI program (http://www.nsfsi.org/). I live in an apartment at the Oiwake International Lodge, which is a short ten-minute walk from my the University of Tokyo.

With the SD Rock 'n' Roll Marathon in my rear view mirror, and with all of the logistical complication associated with moving to another country, running fell to the bottom of my priority list. Nonetheless, at the end of this week, I managed to get back on track, with two short runs in the morning. What I quickly realized -- beyond how hot and humid it is in Tokyo (even at 6 am) -- is that I've never really run in an urban environment before. The constant weaving through pedestrian traffic, coupled with the requisite stop and go of busy intersections gives urban running a very distinct rhythm.

This weekend with temperatures dipping down to tolerable levels, I decided to explore the city on foot on Saturday and Sunday morning by taking long runs to target spots in and around Bunkyo-ku. On Saturday, I trekked to nearby Ueno Park, which is small green space with two pond areas, with a total circumference of roughly 1-2 miles. I was surprised to see many runners out early on a Saturday in addition to the many homeless people who apparently frequent the park (which is odd, because Tokyo has very few homeless people for a city of its size). I took one loop around the small bond, which has a paddle boat station for youngsters, and decided to call it quits early due to the heat. On Sunday I woke up late after a late night at a Nozaki group party (a welcome/goodbye party). Thankfully the heat had subsided drastically, so it was safe to go for a run in the afternoon. My targets were the Tokyo Dome, where the Tokyo Giants play, and then on to the running mecca of Tokyo, the Imerperial Palace. I took care to study a map before I left, and I began winding my way through the city. The Dome and the Imperial Palace, I figured were practically too big to miss. I was running along a busy main street dodging pedestrian traffic and was quite shocked to see the giant white puff of the Dome in front of me. I tried to steer clear of the swarms of people, and continued southeast towards the Imperial Palace. I traversed a river and passed under a few highways, before I saw it: a splash of green in a grey urban jungle. As I made my way towards it, I noticed was the massive moat around the palace, such that the palace grounds themselves appeared almost like an island. I hurried towards the sidewalk and began making my way around its three mile circumference. A handful of briskly moving Japanese locals passed me as I plodded forward, fully enjoying the serenity of the moment.

As I finally finished my loop, and snapped back into reality I realized to my dismay that I had no idea how to get back! Uncertain where to go, I reasoned that I could get back to the Tokyo Dome, so I set that as my first goal. From there, maybe I would recognize the way. After navigating through a different set of streets than the ones I had come on, I stumbled upon a crowd of thousands of people. I gave up hopes of running, and fell in line. We crossed over a bridge and under a sign that read "Tokyo Dome City". At least I had found it! I power-walked my way around the slow moving shoppers in search of some familiar territory, but I found none. I ran around the dome and started running in one direction. Then I changed my mind and back-tracked. I did this a few times before I noticed how long I had been running (nearly 1 hour and 45 minutes). I could tell that I was dehydrated because I was no longer sweating. This was getting bad. As I made my way back to the dome, I saw a ray of hope in the form of a big city map just outside the Dome City. After quite a lot of confusion. I set my eyes on two main roads that would get me close to the University. By this point, running was slow and I looked longingly towards the endless series of vending machines that I passed, but I was determined to make it. After losing my way a few more times, I finally found a familiar looking street. "North or south?" I asked myself. Reluctantly, my feet started moving south. I passed a Dominos Pizza that looked familiar, and then just as I was picking up my pace. I noticed that I was passing by a very familiar looking building: home!

After slurping down two glasses of water, I went immediately to Familymart for some "Pine Cola" and soba (noodles), which I consumed with ferocity. Overall, a fun adventure that could have gone a lot worse. I hope this portends well for the remainder of my stay.

2011 San Diego Rock 'n' Roll Marathon

Finished in 03:42:16.

Though this was my second SD Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, I nonetheless experienced several "firsts" in this race.

For one, it was the first time that I ever arrived late for a marathon. My plan was to carpool with two friends from Scripps, Tyson and Vicki, along with Vicki's boyfriend Zach and friend Kevin. We left my apartment around 4:15 AM and arrived at Vicki's by 4:40 AM. We packed in Vicki's CRV and headed downtown via the 805. When we exited at the 8, we noticed closed lanes everywhere, and when we then tried to merge onto the 5, we found ourselves stuck in a sea of impatient runners. Minutes ticked by rapidly as we nervously eyed the clock to no avail. After fending off countless renegades who refused to wait in line, we finally merged onto the 5, and then crawled our ways towards Balboa park.



When we ultimately arrived within a mile of the start, we left the car, and took a short detour to a Subway to relieve ourselves -- I was thankful to avoid the port-o-potties near the start line. After wending our way through traffic we got the start around 6:45 AM, 30 minutes after the first wave of people had left. This year's SD Rock 'n' Roll Marathon (and half marathon) had over 30,000 participants, most of whom still hadn't started, so by no means were we out of place starting so late. However, starting that far back meant that I was amidst a much slower crowd than usual.



I pressed hard at first in an effort to catch up to a better pace group. After just a few miles in, I had reached the 4:30 pace group, and I continued near a 8:00/mile pace until I was 6 miles in. My legs started causing me some discomfort, so I slowed my pace and kept in a comfortable rhythm, weaving in an out of the pack.

This year was the first SD Rock 'n' Roll Marathon where I really paid close attention to our route, and it was exhilarating to make my way through a city that I've come to think of as my second home. After looping around Balboa Park, we cut across the highway into the heart of downtown. We passed right by Petco Park, where I had watched the Padres take on the Astros the previous night, and then made our way through the Gaslamp District before heading north on the 163. After a long stretch on the highway, I was thrilled to spot a University of Michigan tent, and see a long string of volunteers in maize and blue. As we exchanged shouts of "Go Blue" I sprinted forward, my spirits sailing high as we charged east through Fashion Valley. Hunger pangs had been with me for a few miles, thus I was relieved to see a Gu station, and load up with three Vanilla packets.

As we turned north for an out-and-back on Morena Boulevard, the sun's intensity started getting more bothersome. I knew that the final 10 miles of the course would be essentially shadeless so I gritted my teeth and scolded myself for not remembering to put on sunscreen.

We wound our way through a neighborhood where one house was handing out beer -- which was a first for me to see. On the bridge to Mission Bay, our pack was noticeably losing steam. There was another long out-and-back in the sunlight, where I passed a girl, her back on the grass, who was wailing out in pain from cramps. My legs were actually feeling fairly fresh, and psychologically I was in good shape -- a pleasant byproduct of starting in the back and passing people for most of the race.

The toughest part of marathons for me is normally thttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifhe 18-22 mile stretch, but in this race, I found myself at mile 23 before I even realized. The final stretch was a loop around sandy embankments, where the heat and light were overpowering. I found another runner who was still keeping up a quick tempo and drafted behind him as we headed towards the finish.

With less than a mile left, I kicked hard, only to realize that what I had thought was the finish line was nothing but another turn, and it took all of my willpower to keep a strong pace at the finish after that. The runner who I had been shadowing and since passed during my kick was fast upon me at the finish line (though I'm fairly sure I edged him out at the end).



As I cooled down and rehydrated, hobbling around the finisher zone, I felt the deep satisfaction of completing a hard task. I boarded a bus to Old Town to meet up with Jae, who would take me home. I had left all of my belongings in Vicki's car since we were so late -- I hadn't checked anything. Literally all I had was Jae's phone number (the emergency number on my bib), my iPod, and a rapidly maturing sunburn -- another marathon first.

I later learned that Vicki, Kevin, and Tyson all finished. For Vicki and Kevin, it was their first marathon, and for Tyson, it was his second.