CasITa-to-5k At Dockweiler Beach

The CasITa-to-5k went running on the Marvin Braude Bikeway at Dockweiler Beach last night.

The Los Angeles City Recreation and Parks Department named the Marvin Braude Bikeway in honor of the former Los Angeles City Councilman Marvin Braude in recognition of his efforts to develop the bike path and beach facilities.

The 22.3 mile path, commonly referred to as the South Bay or Santa Monica Bike Paths, spans from Pacific Palisades to Torrance.

With autumn, the days are shorter and the sun was already setting when we arrived at the beach. We marveled at the beautiful shades of red and orange cast across the evening sky from the illumination of the setting sun.

As we ran along the coast, aircrafts taking off from LAX flew overhead. We saw a huge British Airways 787 that dwarfed all the other planes.

My legs felt heavy and fatigued. I wondered if this was a result of all the exhausting one-legged squats from kickboxing that morning or if I was still tired from the weekend long run.

Either way, I was grateful each time Mr. Green Garmin beeped to indicate a walk interval.

As we ran, we observed the fiery sphere descending into the horizon and stared at the reflection on the ocean's surface.

Christmas In July 5k Run

The Green Girl volunteered at the Christmas In July 5k Run today at Dockweiler State Beach Playa del Rey. I proudly represented Team Jamba Juice by wearing my gear.

The race was organized by a small group of Team In Training triathletes to raise money for the The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

I knew one of the organizers, Sara, through Team In Training from back when I was training for my first marathon but we'd never actually met in person. I came out to show my support but I was also looking forward to finally meeting her.

I helped mark the registration area and set up the water station.

There were about a hundred participants registered for this race. It was amusing to only see two porta potties and no line!

The post-run area had bananas, oranges, and water for the runners. Tents were set up by Activate Drinks, Guayaki Organic Yerba Mate, and KIND Snacks to offer free samples to the participants.

Small plastic cones were used to designate the course route along with copious chalk markings. Volunteers in fluorescent yellow vests also assisted in directing the runners.

The race itself went smoothly. Since we had enough designated water station volunteers, I went ahead and took pictures of the runners going by.

As a volunteer, I received a Christmas In July drawstring backpack and a matching water bottle along with a sample of Biofreeze.

The Christmas In July 5k Run was a small race with a really big heart.