Turn the Beet Around

Last weekend we were invited to 'Friendsgiving' an event hosted by Elsie's original owners. This was a very special occasion as Elsie has not seen them or her brother from another mother-Humphrey-in about 8 months. Besides contemplating what scarf Elsie was going to wear to the reunion, I had to figure out what to bring. I wanted to try out a new recipe that I could possibly use for Thanksgiving at my parents' house next week and found the perfect one to experiment with from Robin Robertson's-Vegan Planet. I love the bright colors of roasted beets and it's a tasty side dish to almost any fall meal.

 Orange Roasted Beets & Shallots with Toasted Almonds & Fresh Mint:

Ingredients:

5 Large beets-scrubbed and quartered (I peeled some of the stringy/rough parts)

4 shallots quartered

2 TBSPN organge juice concentrate

2 TBSPN olive oil

1 TBSPN chopped fresh mint

2 TBSPN toasted chopped almonds

Salt & pepper to taste

Method:

*preheat oven to 425 degrees

1. Mix the oil and OJ concentrate together.

2. Mix the OJ/oil dressing with the beets & shallots and place in a large baking dish (I initially thought there were way too many shallots but they shrink). Sprinkle with salt & pepper and cover with foil. I prepared this ahead of time allowing the beets & shallots to marinate for about an hour.

3. Bake for 50 minutes, turning the beets & shallots halfway through.

4. Serve warm garnished with fresh mint and toasted almonds

Babymoon-November 12, 2013

Last Friday marked my last day at work for 2013. I have been at my current place of employment for almost 9 1/2 years. During that time at most I have taken about 2 weeks off from work. My employer will allow me to take a total of 6 months off for maternity leave. This could leave some women wondering what they would do with their time but not me-I feel like I have a lot of organizing and prepping to do and my biggest worry is that the baby will decide to come earlier than Dec. 10th. I also still have a bit of a bucket list (like one last Sunday night at the 500 Club, stuffing my face at the Hella Vegan Eats food truck at Dolores Park, paddle boarding at Jack London Square, hike to Cataract Falls in Marin, etc.) I need to work on once all the baby prep stuff is done.

But first things first-Babymoon! GK was a little worried about being too far away from a hospital in case of an emergency and of course Elsie had to be included so we decided to revisit one of our favorite spots-the Stanford Inn, an eco-friendly resort in Mendocino. This was the spot of our first getaway together in 2011 and where we became engaged last New Year's Eve. For this trip I was especially looking forward to a prenatal massage in the forest, vegan food, and a king sized bed with extra pillows.

After my massage I returned to our cozy room complete with a fireplace to find GK and Elsie engaging in some serious cuddle time.

We then relaxed which consists of watching TV since we don't own one. Unfortunately the inn does not have Animal Planet (a favorite) so we settled on the Food Network's reality show, "Chopped," that  had a special Thanksgiving theme. Above is the view from our room where we could see the ocean and we took a short break from the TV to appreciate an amazing sunset. Then it was time to head to dinner at the inn's Raven's Restaurant.

Probably because it was a Tuesday night, we were one of about three couples, and I have an incredibly healthy appetite these days-we were finished with dinner in a little less than an hour. Clockwise from the upper left hand corner-roasted beet frisee salad with lemon walnut pate, vegetables tamales with beans, rice,  & avocado slaw, homemade mushroom tofu ravioli with cream sauce & sauteed chard, and barbeque pulled tempeh sandwich with citrus slaw. Unfortunately I was too full to order dessert.

 Being a model is hard.

After dinner GK took about an hour to get a fire going and Elsie had her holiday photo shoot (sorry-no previews). I fell into a blissful sleep with the fire crackling in the background, surrounded by at least five fluffy pillows, and no alarm clock to wake up to.

In the morning I decided to take advantage of the solarium swimming pool. Because I've been feeling ahem, a bit warm these days, walking to the pool barefoot, in just the inn's bathrobe was pretty invigorating and I reminisced about all the ice baths I took last year while training for the North Face Endurance Challenge 50K.

36-week belly shot.

It's official-I still float!

After the pool we had brunch-tofu Florentine and roasted potatoes for me and quinoa and black bean enchiladas complete with freshly squeezed orange and carrot juice.

 Then it was Elsie time and we took her for a walk on the grounds. Here she is checking out the organic garden.

And here she is ignoring the llama.

Elsie refused to look into the camera so I looked in the direction she was-at what I have absolutely no clue but I hope it was interesting.

GK's turn to look intrigued.

We even ventured down to the dock at Catch a Canoe. Elsie is NOT a fan of water and typically refuses to walk on a dock. However, when we took her leash off and proceeded without her, she summoned the courage and joined us. She was so nervous she wouldn't even accept the treats we offered her for being so brave.

I would have loved to stay just one more night but that would have been pushing it with all we have left to do in the next few short weeks. We'll be back in 2014 though with just a little extra luggage:)

Vegan Breakfast Tacos

I just returned from a quick trip to visit my brother and his fiance in Austin, Texas. Austin cuisine is home to such culinary delicacies like migas, queso, and breakfast tacos. Northern California has yet to truly catch on to the breakfast taco  phenomenon so I attempted to get my fill while in Austin. After just a few days back in Berkeley I was craving those savory, tasty little tacos so I whipped these up with what I had on hand this past Saturday morning.

Ingredients:
Small yellow potato-diced
Yellow onion-quarter, sliced thinly
Olive oil-1 TBSPN.
Tofu-1 package (firm)
Salt/pepper to taste
Tumeric-TSPN.
Red/orange bell pepper-diced (3 miniature)
Cherry tomatoes-10 (sliced in half)
Corn tortillas
Toppings-avocado, vegan sour cream & salsa

1. On a low/medium heat, cook the potato and onion in the oil.
2. When the onion begins to wilt, crumble the tofu into the mixture. I recommend crumbling in large chunks (1 1/2-2 inches) because as the tofu cooks it will break into smaller pieces.
3. Once the tofu is coated in oil, immediately sprinkle the tumeric over the mixture. Add salt/pepper.
4. After about 5 minutes, add the peppers and continue to stir regularly to avoid burning the vegetables.
5. Once the tofu starts to brown (about 10 minutes total cooking time), taste and adjust salt/pepper.
6. Add the cherry tomato halves and allow to cook for 2 more minutes (just to heat the tomatoes to bring out their flavor). Remove the pan from heat.
7. While the tofu mixture is cooking, heat the tortillas, either directly on the flame of your gas stove or wrap in foil and place in the oven on 350 degrees for about 5-10 minutes.
8. Fill each tortilla with a generous scoop of the mixture. Top with sliced avocado, vegan sour cream (I like the Tofutti brand), and salsa (my favorite lately has been La Cascada's roasted salsa that you can find at the local Farmer's Markets in Oakland.Berkeley and luckily at Whole Foods).

Vegan B.L.A.T. with pesto

Pesto-it's not just for pasta. GK recently developed an appreciation and interest in tempeh so I decided to introduce him to the vegan B.L.A.T. (bacon, lettuce, avocado, & tomato) sandwich after being inspired by the B.L.T. at Herbivore. Since I just made a batch of fresh organic pesto-I decided to add this to the mix and the result was pure heaven.

 Ingredients:
2 slices of bread
3 strips of marinated tempeh
Ripe tomato-sliced
Avocado-mashed
Romaine lettuce
Vegan mayonnaise
Pesto


1. Lightly toast your favorite bread (I prefer sour dough).
2. Fry the tempeh (I like Tofurkey brand tempeh-smokey maple bacon flavored) until lightly browned.
3. Assembly-I prefer the mashed avocado over slices because it helps keep the sandwich "glued" together. Then layer: tomato slices, fried tempeh, lettuce leaf, topped with bread slathered with vegan mayo (Earth Balance or Follow Your Heart are good brands-steer clear of the TJ's brand) mixed with a generous dollop of fresh pesto.

Vegan Pesto

 I recently visited a friend who has an amazing garden that I am insanely jealous of. She offered me a big bag of fresh basil that I happily accepted-partly because the basil I tried to grow this year sucks but also because I love basil. Best thing to do with an abundance of basil? Fresh vegan pesto of course!

From The Vegan Planet by Robin Robertson:
2 garlic cloves
1/3 cup of pine nuts
1/2 teaspoon of salt
2 cups (or more) fresh basil
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
Optional: oil packed sun dried tomatoes, nutritional yeast, light miso

1. Using a food processor, first grind the garlic, pine nuts, & salt together.
2. Add the basil and process until minced.
3. With the food processor running, slowly add the oil through the feed tube.
4. Store in an airtight container with a light layer of olive oil over the top.

Race Report-San Jose Half Marathon (10-06-2013)

When I found I was pregnant in April I vowed to keep on running. This was tough the first trimester because I was always so tired to run after working. I had planned to run the SF Half Marathon back in June for a PR but was in no shape or mood to do so. Instead I volunteered at the Run 365 hospitality tent to support all of my running friends. As my energy improved beginning the 2nd trimester, I decided to register for a race in an effort to stay focused on training runs and mapped out a plan.

For the past few years I've preferred running trail races. In fact-my last race was the Mt. Diablo Half Marathon when I was just 6 1/2 weeks pregnant. Due to my history of falls on the trails, I stopped running them during the 1st trimester. When choosing a race I was solely looking at timing and support-this is how I decided on the San Jose Rock & Roll Marathon that was last weekend.

I would be around 7 1/2 months pregnant by the time the race came around. This gave me enough time to gradually increase my distance. The Rock & Roll race series are large races (San Jose had 12,500 participants) and are well staffed/supported (translation-bathrooms galore along the course!). The San Jose Half Marathon also boasts a flat course and it's only about an hour drive from home.

My next challenge was finding someone to run San Jose with me. After Lisa saw the adorable California bear (pictured above) dressed in sunglasses and running shoes-she convinced herself that this was going to be the race shirt of all race shirts and happily registered.

After training about 10 weeks of semi-following my training plan that consisted of increasingly slow runs, water aerobics, and prenatal yoga, race day finally came. Luckily I was able to sleep solid for 8 hours before picking up a slightly hungover Lisa and heading to San Jose. After parking and walking to the start area I saw my dream running scenario-row after row of porta-potties. From past posts on Daily Mile you can probably tell that the urgency to pee while running has been one of my biggest running challenges during my pregnancy.

Here I am struggling where to attach my race bib. I contemplated pinning it over my belly but this too awkward so I settled for my skirt.

I insisted on starting in wave 20 that was even further back than the wave I was registered for because I was worried about my pace blocking faster runners. When I saw a registrant in blue jeans-I realized that this was totally unnecessary. While the race started at 8am-we didn't cross the start line until after 8:30am. Luckily the weather was great and neither of us were chilled but I did start out running with an unnecessarily sore back.

My goal was to maintain a pace between 12:30-13:00 and run the entire course. Lisa happily obliged and we updated each other on our lives over the next few hours. I had been worried about breathing as it has felt strained during my most recent long runs but amazingly-this never happened on race day. I also assumed that every time I saw a porta-potty on the course I would want to stop but this didn't happen either. After skipping the first opportunity to go due to the lines-I decided to stop at about mile 3.5 to use the restroom and there was a short line. You would think that one of the runners would seen my state of being with child and allow me to cut to the front of the line but no such luck. I checked my skirt for trailing toilet paper after I finished and we were off!

I decided to wear my Hydrapak for the race since the forecast predicted sun (when we finished it was 72 degrees out). Luckily a portion of the course had some shade but I think the heat actually helped my muscles loosen up so it really didn't phase me. About every 30 minutes or so I took a shot blok or two to maintain my energy. Surprisingly at mile 8 I had to refill my Hydrapak because I had already gone through a liter of water. I took this opportunity to stretch my back as it was getting a little sore but other than that-my legs felt amazing and I was having no trouble breathing.

I kept an incredibly consistent pace throughout this race and only stopped to use the restroom a total of three times.The last mile and half was the most difficult. With the sun shining, visions of Freebirds burritos on my mind, and a sore lower back-I was ready to be done. Lisa gave me the motivation I needed by insisting that we pass a guy running in a tartan kilt with matching do-rag on his head. I agreed and we picked up the pace and flew by him. Shortly after that, we crossed the finish line and I knew deep down that this race ended my running for 2013. More importantly-I was totally fine with it. I had accomplished what I had set out for back in April and had a blast doing it.

Official time-03:04:25 (30-week belly shot)

This also marks the third race that Lisa and I have run side by side-Skirt & Dirt in 2012 and the Mt. Diablo Half Marathon-two of my favorite races. During the Olympics last year there was a calculator where you could plug in your height & weight to find out what kind of Olympian you would be. Lisa turned out to be an Eritrean marathoner and I believe that I was an American judo fighter. I can't imagine another potential Eritrean I would have rather run San Jose with-it would not have been the same without her.

Flowers from GK to go with my last medal of 2013.

Looking back I ask myself-what would I have done differently? I did not get in all the runs and workouts that I had planned. Between work and just needing to sleep 8-10 hours some nights, I was only running on average 2-3 times per week. I incorporated some water aerobics and a few yoga sessions too but not as much as I had hoped. I decided not to stress too much about it because I knew that I had a strong baseline to start with and I was able to get in my long runs on the weekends with my longest being just over 11 miles.

I would have also purchased the right gear much earlier during training (see my past post about the Fit Mama Running Skirt). About three days before the race I woke up twice in the middle of the night with cramping calf muscles-dramatically screaming out for help even though they subsided pretty quickly. One recovered immediately but my right calf was still tight on Saturday. What better excuse than to blow $55 on a pair of compression socks at the Expo? After putting them on race morning-within ten minutes my legs felt great. I plan to wear these things were I go into labor.

But that's about all I would change. I had a few moments of-what did I get myself into? I need to finish sub-3 hours, but luckily these thoughts were short-lived and I was able to return to my original goal of staying in shape while doing something that I have loved over the past five years. And Lisa helped by reminding me that I was going to be the fastest woman running in their 3rd trimester on race day.

I couldn't have done this without the support and encouragement from others. My doctor (who is a Boston qualifier) supported my running from day one. All of my Run365 friends who took turns running an increasingly slow pace with me over the past four months so I wouldn't have to run solo. And, of course, GK who not only woke up with me several early mornings after working late to be my sag wagon while I ran my long runs on the streets of Berkeley and Oakland-but who offered countless foot/calf massages, back rubs, and creative protein packed meals during my training.

Lassen Volcanic National Park-September 12-15, 2013

Gotta love friends who plan in advance. My good friend Heather who loves the outdoors and traveling booked a cabin at Lassen Volcanic National Park about 4 months ago. More specifically-Manzanita Lake pictured above. Luckily she invited me, GK, and Elsie to join her. There was extra room and so my dear running friends Lisa and Virginia also came along. Heather could not have picked a better time to make a reservation-the weather was absolutely perfect.

Before you judge us for calling staying in a cabin "camping," the cabin we stayed in was seriously basic-no electricity, no restrooms, even Elsie was prohibited from coming inside. We arrived on Thursday afternoon and took a picturesque walk around Lake Manzanita.

 Elsie takes water safety very seriously

Unfortunately national (and most state) parks are not dog friendly. Elsie was confined to a leash and not allowed on any trails. However, she entertained us the entire weekend by snapping at flies and accidentally hog-tying herself multiple times.

Lassen Volcanic National Park is home to smoking fumaroles, meadows freckled with wildflowers, clear mountain lakes, and numerous volcanoes. On Friday we decided to hike to Bumpass Hell and then on to Cold Boiling Lake.  

Back in the 1860s Kendall Vanhook Bumpass stumbled upon the area and his leg was badly scalded when it broke though a thin crust above a mud pot. He told his friends and townspeople about it, describing it as "hell." A newspaper editor was interested in the story and convinced Bumpass to take him to this place. Unfortunately, Bumpass' leg broke through the crust again - this time it had to be amputated. We chose to stay on the boardwalks.

After an easy 1.5 miles we were at Bumpass Hell. It's surprisingly unintimidating and striking at the same time. Sulfur filled the air while we checked out the fumaroles and bubbling ponds.

 Lisa, Virginia, & Heather obeying the rules.

 After taking in the sights at Bumpass, we decided to power on to Cold Boiling Lake for a longer hike. As we hiked away from BH-we found this great viewpoint-note the boardwalks in the background.

The hike to Cold Boiling Lake was moderate and less populated. The hike was beautiful and really showed off Lassen's scenery. However-Cold Boiling Lake consisted of one measly bubbling pool that could have been caused by an underwater frog. But Virginia, Heather, and Lisa don't judge and instead embrace the beauty. We stopped here to have lunch and within about 10 minutes, it started hailing. Couldn't have been more perfect. We finished our meal standing underneath the trees, catching ice chunks in our hands.

Survived the ice storm-Virginia, Lisa, & Heather. Entire hike was 6.70 miles.

While we were gone-GK & Elsie had some adventures in Lassen too.

Overlook to Helen Lake. 

On Saturday the ladies headed out to hike to the peak of Mt. Lassen but due to the heat and because the peak is actually only open a few times a year-they ended up hiking to Brokeoff Mountain. GK and I left the park to explore some dog friendly trails.

27-week belly shot

Elsie and I before the start of our hike.

 

The temperatures hovered in the low 80s. While there was quite a bit of cover, Elsie is sensitive. She typically hates water but when we neared Hat Creek she happily splashed around in it (only up to her ankles) to drink some water and then plopped herself down in the shade.

After our hike, GK took a kayak out on Lake Mazanita while I napped and Elsie guarded the cabin.

Unfortunately I failed to take pictures of all the amazing meals we shared. Since 3 of us are vegetarian/vegan-we had quite the spread-vegan Frito Pie one night, vegan fajitas, baked sweet potatoes with braised spinach and chickpeas in a coconut sauce, leftover breakfast burritos. I was also introduced to Cards of Humanity and will never think of musicals quite the same again. After 3 nights of relaxing and just plain enjoying ourselves-it was sadly time to head back to the bay area.

But not before we stopped at the Sun Dial Bridge in Redding:

A footbridge that crosses the Sacramento River and it's environmentally sensitive. The tall pylon and cable stays allow the bridge to avoid the nearby salmon-spawning habitat there are no supports in the water while encouraging public appreciation for the river. Apparently the Sun Dial only works on the summer solstice. But still-it's pretty cool. Plus they sell dairy free Italian ice.

Our family portrait. Getting Elsie to look directly at the camera has been one of my biggest challenges of 2013.

Lassen Volcanic National Park is a decent drive (5-6 hours) from the bay area if you leave at a time where you can avoid traffic. Another perk is that the roads are not that curvy and it would be pretty hard to get lost. The Manzanita Lake cabins were not only affordable but really convenient and allowed easy access to all that the park has to offer.

Vegan Endurance Mice meet the Trigger Point Performance Roller

A few weeks ago GK saw a mouse in our house. His response was to lock Elsie in the bathroom which accomplished absolutely nothing, only resulting in a confused dog. I didn't think too much of it until I came home one evening and saw a little mouse in my bedroom scurry into a hole near our closet. GK patched the hole up. Then, a few days later as I was getting ready for my long run I found this:

That was my mocha flavored endurance bar from http://vegasport.com/ that I had been saving for a challenging long run. I had been storing it in my closet along with my running gear. Fast forward a week and I started to notice an.... odd smell in my closet. I did some investigating and found that the mouse had invaded my stash of shotblocks, gels, and drink powders. At this point it was on with this well nourished, energized, vegan mouse.

A few years ago I thought I had a mouse problem at my old place and purchased these humane traps that I found on the PETA website. Turns out we had some other type of critter that was quickly evicted by our landlord after a small hole was patched up so I never caught anything. I pulled the traps out of storage, made some peanut butter crackers, and placed one in my closet.

 These traps don't hurt the mouse. Just isolates it and then you relocate it elsewhere after it has had a complimentary meal. I had visions of walking Elsie to a park or field to relocate the little sucker.

However, after a day of no mice in the smart trap-my closet still smelled, a smell I just couldn't explain. GK commented a few times that maybe a mouse had expired in my closet. I realized that I needed to take a closer look since I had cleaned up all the fuel/food that had been in my closet. And I found a very sad situation. Two mice had somehow got trapped in my Trigger Point Performance Roller (used to roll out sore muscles associated with exercise) that I had placed upright in the closet.

The slick plastic on the inside prevented them from escaping and my guess is that they succumbed to starvation. What a terrible way to go. What is also sad is that this also tells you how often I use my roller. I provided the two mice a proper burial that included a Tom's shoebox casket in the compost bin.  I now plan to store my roller on its side and keep all food items out of my closet in order to keep these little guys at bay.

Registering

Shortly after I went public with my pregnancy, friends started dropping off baby supplies. Lots of clothing , swings, slings, books, you name it. As I've been told by multiple friends that babies outgrow many things so quickly and I've come to realize that the baby industry will suck you dry-I feel incredibly fortunate to have such generous friends. I checked in with a close mother friend (J-Gil) who not only appears to have had success with parenting (she has 2) but also researches important stuff like safety and durability and requested that she tell me what it is we really need. Her advice seemed solid.

Once I finally decided I had a decent collection of gently used items and it was time to register. Since I took last Friday off to see Flight of the Conchords with GK, I figured that he could entertain me by coming along to register for the big items at Babies "R" Us before the concert.

Here we are contemplating heading inside. See the calm/smug look on GK's face? Apparently he thought registering was just completing paperwork at the store. About an hour later he was like a trapped mouse looking for an exit route.

While I was finishing the initial paperwork-GK told me that he found something he wanted. This seemed encouraging and I assumed that he had been checking out the baby monitors next to the registration desk. I should have known it was more something like this-a double breast pump, "because we can't have lopsided boobs," he told me. Seriously-how difficult can it be to register? I have to admit I was totally I overwhelmed myself within about 30 minutes.

When you register at Babies R Us you're given a list of "must haves" that includes items I've never heard of. I did my best to stick to the basics-car seat, stroller, playpen, sheets. They have many of the products on display so I took advantage of this opportunity to introduce GK to some of the gear.

Here he is successfully (post-sales clerk demonstration) folding up the Snap n' Go stroller. I encouraged him to pick out some of the prints for swaddle blankets and he gravitated towards the ones that had animals that looked like Elsie. He did good and once he started pacing I told him we could leave after we made our first actual purchase for the baby. This:

One of the perks of having a baby in the winter-it's completely legit to dress them up like animals on any old day. I've always had a soft spot for polar bears. Ten fun facts about these gorgeous creatures-my fav., they're obsessive about staying clean.

The following day I went online to add a few things and it was surprisingly much easier than being in the store distracted by the variety. I prefer to sort items by highest rated as I completely trust what 400 people seem to agree on. My goal is to try to complete it by this weekend and then have J-Gil review and give the final stamp of approval.

What would you recommend as your must have baby item?

Bay Bridge Trail-September 8, 2013

Back in 1989 part of the Bay Bridge collapsed during the Loma Prieta earthquake. Clearly bridges are not supposed to fall apart and those of us in the East Bay have been more than deserving of a new bridge for quite some time. After multiple weekends of bridge closures over the past few years so that work could be completed on the new span and the temporary addition of the scary S-curve, the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge opened right after Labor Day complete with a pedestrian path!

I needed to get a long run in last weekend and missed my group run on Saturday so I planned to try out the new Bay Bridge Trail that starts near IKEA. I had received many warnings from friends NOT to park in IKEA's parking lot so we parked on Horton right off of 40th St. in Emeryville-just about a half mile from the trail head.

Here's GK basking in the beauty of the trail head across from IKEA-you can't miss it, it's right next to the crosswalk.

The first few miles out will take you underneath the MacArthur maze. Exciting primarily because it's all new. There's a marked bike path and then a hard packed trail next to it for runners/walkers. While dogs are allowed along the path (and on the new span), Elsie stayed home due to some recent self-cannibalistic behavior brought on by allergies.

The old span with some unknown male checking out his armpit (photo credit: GK).

A comparison of old v. new.

The run from the trail head to the new span is very flat and then you have a very slight, almost unnoticeable gradual uphill on the span. Again the path is wide enough to allow walkers, runners, and cyclists to exist together peacefully (nothing like the unpredictability while running on the Golden Gate Bridge). Here I'm feeling pretty good as I was able to use one of the porta-potties before starting the climb over the bay. However- 5+ miles without a bathroom break at a 12:45 pace proved to be incredibly challenging. Luckily-a potentially awkward/illegal situation was avoided.

Right now you can only run to the first tower as the expansion to Treasure Island cannot be completed until the old span is demolished. The part of the span that you can currently run on is about 2 miles total. I ran to the end for a much needed stretching break and we took pictures just like everyone else who reached the dead end. Quite striking.

GK just before the turn around on his bike. I may have promised to watch football later in the day in exchange for getting up early to be my sag wagon. He entertained himself with my new iPhone 5 and snapped a million pics of our trek.

Happily exceeded my goal of 9 miles! This run was definitely a confidence booster-much needed as the San Jose Half Marathon is only 4 weeks away. I now know that this race will not be a problem as long as there are available restrooms to use.

I highly recommend this trail for its accessibility, views, and very low level of difficulty. While I had GK guarding me, as long as I ran during light hours (span is actually closed at dusk), there are so many people utilzing the trail that I never felt unsafe. If you want a shorter distance, you can start from Maritime St. in West Oakland. Depending on your distance I would also recommend bringing your own water as there did not appear to be water fountains available on the trail yet.