Right foot/ankle surgery

3/26/13 -

Day 1 - Surgery Day - No weight bearing allowed on my right leg for 6-8 weeks, on crutches

Today I had reconstructive foot/ankle surgery to repair my nearly completely torn/frayed peroneal Brevis tendon at the Hospital for Special Surgery "HSS". I had both a tendon transfer from the peroneal longus tendon to the peroneal brevis tendon as well as a calcaneal ostemy. I tore the brevis tendon over 20 years ago and lately I had pain so it needed to be fixed. I was told 20+ years ago that I needed surgery, so I made it pretty long before having it fixed.

I arrived at the hospital at 6am and the surgery started around 830am.

The surgery was per performed by Dr. Andrew Eilliot, who is a specialist in the foot, ankle, and orthotics. I really like him because he takes the time to explain things to me, particularly about how my arch and heel mis-alignment is something that I was born with and that if I just fixed my peroneal Brevis tendon without fixing my arch/heel mis-alignment, I would once again tear my peroneal Brevis tendon because this mis-alignment pulls at the tendon upon every step (even walking). He said that he sees this frequently after a patient has only the tendon surgery somewhere else. He said that also getting the calcaneal ostemy done would give my new peroneal tendon transfer the best chance to live/survive another 50 years. That is why I decided to get both surgeries done. Without them, he said that I shouldn't run anymore or do weight bearing sports, because I will likely tear the tendon completely and fray it from 5-10% left to zero. He also said that the peroneal longus tendon "is also stating to fray, which means if you keep running without surgery, you will tear/fray this tendon too, then you will definitely not be able to run again. Ever.". So the surgery, for me, was the only way to go. Not being able to run or do other weight bearing sports (like basketball) just isn't an option for me. Period.

Surgery went well. I received a spinal epidural for the procedure. The same epidural that women receive when having a baby!

The doctor said that the tendon was "really really bad, basically gone". They did a tendon transfer and broke my heel to move it over and then put two pins in it.

They also have numbed my leg from above the knee down for a few days, so the pain is moderate now but is projected to be severe in a few days. Pain meds, 2-4 mg of dilaudid are available for me to consume if needed.

Procedure - Given spinal epidural, some versaid, 12.5mg of Benadryl (to combat my soy allergy), and 20 of propapol. Was totally asleep the entire surgery, where they performed a peroneal Brevis tendon transfer and a calcaneal ostemy to break my heel, move it over, and insert 2 large screws into the heel so it grows back together in this new position. Also took additional versaid and other drugs as needed during the procedure to remain "comfortable"

After surgery I ate a ton of fruit and drank a cranberry juice that I later determined had high fructose syrup in it, something I no longer consume. Bummer. My wife was there which was totally awesome. She took notes, because I couldn't remember anything the doctors told me after the surgery, I guess due to being still heavily sedated.

After the surgery had 2 Percocet and 0.5mg of dillaudid (IV) for the odd feeling of numbness in my foot

Discharged from hospital around 2pm. HSS is amazing. Extremely well run, everybody knows what they are doing and are efficient. They are helpful and made me feel very comfortable the whole way through.

When I got home, my kids Mikayla and Kaiya gave me a great welcome home by decorating the entire living room with colorful stickies.

All day and evening, I was unable to feel anything from about 1/2 inch above my knee down to my toes

Had mild Nausea in the afternoon

Drank a green machine smoothie I made in my vitamix blender the day before (kale, spinach, broccoli, peas, 1 large mushroom, baby carrots, apples, banana, pineapple, dates, water, and ice. I follow a plant-based (vegan) diet, which I strongly hope (believe) will speed up my recovery, particularly on the swelling side. .

Around 9pm took 2 Percocet for what felt like shin splints halfway up my right leg. I have a history of shin splints in this location, not sure why it was flaring up tonight.

Kept my foot elevated all day and evening. Slept on my back with my foot elevated all night. A little awkward as I normally sleep in my stomach, but not bad.

It was great having my mom in town from Wisconsin to help me out. We watched the first and part of the second episode of "House of Cards" in Netflix. I find it to be even better the second time (her first time).

Food/Weight tracking.
I plan on tracking my food and basic nutrients consumption as well as my weight for the next few months, as I basically can't exercise for the next 3 months. Will be interesting to see what happens, as I am used to exercising every day.

I weighed 180.1 pounds the morning of the surgery (using a Withings wireless scale which we find very reliable and beams right to my iphone and the web) and, according to my calorie/nutrient tracking, consumed 1923 calories today, as follows:

Breakfast - nothing consumed, not allowed to eat/drink anything after 5am.

Lunch - a can of cranberry juice and a bunch of fresh fruit provided by HSS, which was impressive that they could provide - grapes, banana, baby tomatoes, honeydew, cantelope, pineapple, and blueberries.
642 calories / 9g protein

Late lunch
Green machine - 352 calories / 11g protein

Dinner (appetite still low)
2 bananas/1.5 cups of fresh blueberries. 334 calories, 4g protein

Late dinner
2 cups of salted almonds, 3/8 pint of So Delicious cherry amaretto coconut ice cream. 595 calories / 14 protein

Overall
1923 calories (goal 2,000)
38g protein (goal 50, I usually consume 70-100 grams a day but was much less today due to not eating until lunch.

46g fiber (vs 25 or higher goal)
O cholesterol (vs FDA goal of 300)
Sodium 446g (vs FDA goal of 2400)
Sugars 204g (vs FDA goal of 50) - I strive to only consume natural sugars contained in fruits/vegatables and am regularly much higher the 50g, which is ok with me because it is all natural sugars. I don't agree with those who say that fruit in sugars is bad. I believe that we can't overdose on fruit (and my bloodwork confirms this)
Carbs - 371g (vs 300) - always high due to high fruit consumption
Fat 48g (vs 65)
Saturated fat 15g (vs 20) - I regularly run over 20 as many of the foods I consume are high in "good fats" - avocados, coconut, nuts, etc

How I went from 100% healthy to a Peroneal Brevis tendon tear to surgery

This is a summary of how I went from what I thought was 100% healthy to having major reconstructive foot and ankle surgery, all within about 7 weeks.  I was misdiagnosed by both a radiologist (said my peroneal brevis tendon was normal when in fact it was completely ruptured/torn and nearly completely gone) and by a doctor who said my peroneal brevis tendon was normal (in response to my question "how do my peroneal brevis and longus tendons look on the MRI?)."  I knew something was wrong and didn't settle until I was properly diagnosed.  If there is one thing I have learned in my life is that one has to take care of their health by being educated and proactive.

Details.......

On February 3, 2013, I ran a 50 mile trail race outside of Houston, Texas called the Rocky Raccoon 50.  I had no pain in my foot or ankle during the race.  6 days later, I went for a run and an area around my ankle hurt.  It felt like a sprained ankle without having sprained my ankle (although during the 50 mile race I turned my ankle a few times, something that happens to me frequently but usually doesn't result in swelling, with the exception of the 2010 NYC marathon, where I rolled my ankle and it was hugely swollen immediately and for the last 7 miles of the marathon).  When I turned it during the 50 mile race, it didn't get swollen and I didn't think about it again until now.  I looked online and determined that the area of my pain was in the peroneal longus tendon area. My friend Justin also did some research for me and came to the same conclusion.   I'd never heard of this tendon before.

Over the course of my life, I've always had "weak ankles".  I could never ice skate comfortably because I never felt like the ice skates supported my ankles.  In college, I played basketball everyday (sometimes twice a day), and I frequently sprained my ankle, sometimes severely.  One time I even sprained my ankle in a pothole walking down the street (actually my worst sprain).  The pain/swelling in my foot during my sprains was usually worse than the pain around the ankle.   I was on crutches 4 or 5 times while in college and once or twice while living in NYC.  Doctors told me in college that I likely tore major ligaments and tendons and that it would have been better to break my ankle than to tear the ligaments/tendons, which I would likely need surgery to repair someday. I never had an MRI of my foot or ankle to determine the damage.  I wasn't an endurance athlete at this point so I just stopped playing basketball until it felt better and then wore ankle braces or taped my ankles when playing.

So,the week after my 50 mile race the pain in my peroneal longus area was severe enough that I decided to go to a doctor.  On Saturday 2/25/13 I went to the neighborhood urgent care where they took an xray, which showed arthritis but no breaks.  So the urgent care doctor was able to refer me to Lenox Hill radiology for an ankle MRI on the same date, saying "rule out tendon injury".  The Lenox Hill MRI concluded the following:

1.  Plantar fasciitis with prominent plantar heel spur and associated localized stress related marrow edema. - no surprise, I struggle with this sometimes.
2.  Chronic tear of the ATFL with scarring at the anterior lateral gutter.  - no surprise
3.  Mild tendinosis and tenosynovitis of the peroneus longus proximal to the level of the cuboid tunnel.   - new, although much more painful than "mild"
4.  Minimal ankle and posterior subtalar synovitis. - not a surprise

It also said "The flexor, extensor, peroneus brevis, and Achilles tendons appear normal in contour, caliber, and signal."

So, next I emailed my shoulder/knee doctor (Riley Williams, HSS) for a referral to a foot/ankle doctor at HSS and he recommended Dr. Andrew Elliot.  So, I called Dr. Elliot on 2/28 and the earliest appointment he had was in May.  May?  No good.   My pain level was such that I thought I might need to be in a boot.  So, my urgent care doctor (Dr. Neal Shipley, good guy, very helpful) referred me to Dr. Joseph M. Bellapianta, a foot/ankle/shoulder/knee doctor on East 92nd street.  I told Dr. Bellapianta about my history and asked him if he could read the MRI because it seems to be wrong to me based on my pain level.  Specifically, I said "can you please take a look at my MRI to see if you agree with the report's conclusions?"  He said that he did look at it but "I care much more about how you are feeling and your symptoms.  I don't want to do surgery if you don't need it".  Seemed to me like he is a doctor (young) that wants to treat people conservatively before considering surgery.  This is ok with me but I found it to be extremely disappointing that he either (1) couldn't read my MRI properly to diagnose my torn peroneal brevis tendon, particularly when I asked him to do so and/or (2) he actually didn't read it but told me he did.  Very unimpressive.

So, now more than ever, I knew that I needed to see Dr. Elliot, so like Bud Fox called Gordon Gekko everyday on the movie Wall Street to get a meeting with him, I called Dr. Elliot's office every day (often multiple times a day) basically begging for them to squeeze me in.  Finally, a week or so later they got me in. 

So the first thing Dr. Elliot said to me at my appointment was "come here Jim, I want to show you something".  He took me to a computer screen where he showed me my MRI images.  I didn't have to ask him to read my MRI, he just did it (unlike Dr. Bellapianta).  He said "your MRI report says that your peroneal brevis tendon is normal, but I don't even see your brevis tendon.  I think your MRI report is wrong and that you have ruptured your tendon.  If this is the case, you will need to have surgery to fix this tendon if you want to run again." He said "I want you to go to the HSS radiology department to get an ultrasound on your foot and ankle so they can see what your peroneal brevis tendon looks like".  So, 30 minutes later, I had the ultrasound and the first thing the Dr. Gregory Saboeiro said was "uh oh, that tendon isn't supposed to be up against the bone like that".  Basically, he said that only a very small amount of the peroneal brevis tendon remained (no more than 10-15%).  His report said that I had a "high grade (means >50% tear) but incomplete tear of the right peroneus brevis with some slender intact fibers and that the peroneal longus demonstrates moderate tendinosis without tear".  I told him that I recently received an MRI at Lenox Hill that report said that my peroneal brevis tendon was normal.  I asked him if he wanted to see the report written by Hilary Umans, MD and he said absolutely.  So I handed it to him.  Frankly, he was shocked that somebody could read the MRI as having a normal peroneal brevis tendon (and Dr. Elliot was as equally surprised).  Dr. Saboeiro said that Dr. Umans (the radiologist at Lenox Hill that misread the MRI) used to work at HSS and that he would follow up with her, but I don't know if he ever did.  The wrong Lenox Hill report is very disturbing.  What if I hadn't gotten the second opinion from Dr. Elliot?  I likely would have continued to run, which according to Dr. Elliot would have eventually resulted in the complete tear of the brevis tendon, which may have resulted in me never being able to run again.  When I had the MRI done at Lenox hill, there had to be at least 25 people in the waiting room getting tests one (on a Saturday afternoon, nonetheless).  I feel like these MRI facilities shuttle people in and out quickly and as a result the radiologists need to rush their reports to keep up.  The more reports they read, the more money they make.  As an aside, I called Lenox Hill after I got the ultrasound to let them know that there was an error in my MRI report and that I'd like them to re-issue my MRI, but the supervisor in charge of dealing with the reports never returned my call.  I need to follow back up.

One of the things I read about Dr. Elliot is that he does a great job of explaining things, including why injuries happen and how they should be fixed.  Very true.  After examining my feet, the first thing he said to me was "let me see your orthotics".  I said "Soris made them for me" and handed them to Dr. Elliot (I had no idea whether Dr. Elliot would know who Soris is).  If you've read my blog in the past, you'll remember that I LOVE Soris.  She is an expert in orthotics and fits professional athletes and Olympians.  I became a lot healthier once I started wearing her custom made orthotics.  So, Dr. Elliot examined my orthotics and said that I was one of the few people he has seen that is actually in the correct orthotics for my condition.  My condition, I asked?  What condition?  He explained that I was born with anatomically mis-aligned feet and heels, which, he said was causing my "weak ankles", as the mis-alignment means that every step I take (even walking) pulls on my tendons, causing my tendon tears, fraying, and ankle sprains  over the years.   As an aside, Dr. Elliot, who specializes in orthotics, refers all of his patients to Soris.  I asked if my endurance activities were the cause and he said "no, your heel mis-alignment and high arches are the cause..you were destined to have this happen to you at some point even if you weren't an endurance athlete, although the endurance activities may have sped it up a little bit".

Dr. Elliot's recommendation was for me to have surgery to transfer the peroneal longus tendon to the brevis tendon and to have a calcaneal ostemy, which basically breaks my heel and moves it to the correct position (with screws put in to help the heel grow/fuse into a better position).  He said that most doctors would only do surgery to fix the tendon(s), and that very often the patients that had the surgery on the tendon with another doctor come to see him after that patient re-tears the tendons that were fixed.  He explained that happens because the true problem wasn't fixed - that being the heel mis-alignment (and for my very high arches) still causes the tendon to be pulled on.  He said that if I have the heel moved over, then "that gives your tendon the best possible chance to last another 50 years".

So, I did a lot of research and so did my friend Justin.  Everything we read for a brevis tendon tear as severe as mine said surgery was needed.  Physical therapy can't heal a tendon that isn't there anymore. 

I decided to get one more opinion, that of Soris Tribino.  When Soris first met me, she was able to diagnose my problems just by looking at my feet and by watching me walk.  According to Dr. Elliot, her orthotics helped significantly slow down the progression of damage to my tendons.  When I told her about my brevis tear and Dr. Elliot's recommendations to fix it and get the calcaneal ostemy, she told me that Dr. Elliot is a great surgeon and that I should have it all done.  Sold!  I decided to get it done.

Physical therapy for peroneal tendon strain

Also got some exercises for the sore nerves in the upper part of my back.

Peroneal tendon has been very sore for a few weeks and as of yesterday I've completely shut down all exercise until I get the results of an ankle MRI I got yesterday.

Rocky Raccoon 50 mile race report

Rocky Raccoon 50 mile race report

My first trail race and my first 50 mile race.

Race date: 2/2/13
Temperature: 50 at the start (perfect), low 70s as the day went on (a little warm). Humidity around 80% (high). Overall weather was good as generally the trees shade a portion of the sun, although my heart rate was higher than normal (and many people on the course were saying this also)

Time: 9 hours 45 minutes (pace 11:42 per mile). Average heart rate 154. Out of 375 runners in the 50 mile race (375 people were also running the 100 mile race at the same time), I came in 48th place overall (top 12%), 13th in my age group, and 36th among men. A great result for my first 50 mile trail run, something I am proud of.

Garmin file - click here

I signed up for this race last summer and was about 300 on the wait list. I cleared the wait list in early January and decided to do the race, despite the fact that I hadn't run more than 13 miles since mid November, when I ran the NYRR Knickerbocker 60k (37.2 miles), 9 middle loops of Central Park in 5 hours and 49 minutes (9:20 per mile pace). So, I ran 23 and 24 miles on two weekends at the end of December/early January to train. Then, I came down with a low fever (100.4) that turned out to be a bad sinus infection that required me to go on antibiotics (Levaquin). I took 5 days off from running and went out for an easy run the next day. By mile 3, my calves hurt so much I could barely walk, so I was forced to take another full week off (apparently in a very small percentage of people, this antibiotic can cause tendon damage and fatigue. I completed 2 ironman races in 3 weekends last year and wasn't sore at all, so this was strange). The weekend before my 50 miler, I decided to try running again and I ran the manhattan half marathon in Central Park. I went really easy (I must have been passed by a few thousand people), and my calves were only a little sore, so I decided to try the 50 miler. So I ran only 3 times in the 3 weeks leading up to the race. I figured that I would find out if complete rest (i.e., a forced taper) is better than running a lot before the race, something I normally do.

I felt very fresh the week before the race after resting, but I had a nagging pain in my right foot that had been there for about 6 weeks, so I saw my podiatrist to make sure it wasn't a stress fracture (since what I read on the Internet said it might be). The X-ray of my right foot luckily showed no stress fracture or reaction. Instead, my doctor said that it showed severe arthritis in the area of my pain and a bone spur on my heal. She said "you can't hurt it more by running, so you probably can run the race, but just realize that rest is the only cure".

The day before the race, I flew into Houston on Friday morning and drove directly to Huntsville State Park, the site of the race, which is a little more than an hour outside of Houston. I checked into the race and went to the race meeting, which was cool but not really needed if one read the 12 page list of rules that Joe (the race organizer) sent out. Frankly, In addition to getting my bib, the best part was knowing how to get into the park and where to park, which ended up being particularly helpful on race morning.

My plan was to get to the race by about 545am for a 7am race time start so I could watch the 100 mile race start at 6am and feel the vibe. I was staying at a hotel in Conroe, about 30 minutes away. I woke up and ate a lot (had a microwave and fridge so I was able to cook my food for dinner the night before too, having a huge plate of black beans, sweet potatoes, avocados, and red onions., water, and a naked juice green machine). For breakfast, I had a lot of oatmeal, flaxseed, bananas, grapes, water, a couple of peanut butter and jelly larabars, and hammer endurance salt caps. I went to bed about 945 and got up at 415am. Right before I was about to leave for the race, I couldn't find my wallet. I looked everywhere and moved everything around in a panic (they housekeeping staff can't have been happy with me). No luck, I couldn't find it. I even went to Kroger to see if it was there. It wasn't. So, all I could think about was "how am I going to get on a plane tomorrow to go home without an ID". Plus, I was supposed to pay $5 to get into the park just to race (for parking). So I pulled into the park at 645am and begged my way in for free. They were cool about it. Then, I found a parking spot about 0.75 miles away and walked to the start. When I got there, the announcer said "7 minutes to race time". Great timing.

Worrying about my wallet hung over me the entire race. I told myself "there is nothing you can do about it until after the race, so forget about it". I met my friend Claire from Houston and her two friends, all running the 50 too. Claire and I ran the first 2 miles together, which was really great and I enjoyed catching up with her.

After that, I felt good, so I went a little faster. After starting near the back, I think I passed a couple hundred people on the mainly single track (I.e., one lane) course. The course was much harder than I expected. There were tons of roots, rocks, and leaves everywhere so I always had to watch my step. I tripped and fell pretty hard on a root I didn't see around mile 13. No blood, just a lot of dirt on me an scratches, which persisted for the remainder of the race. The course, primarily dirt and sand, also had rolling hills the entire way. Not huge hills but not tiny ones either. Trail runners definition of flat is definitely not my definition of flat. I found myself running a 10-12 minute pace for the first of three 16.67 mile loops. I had to work hard to achieve a 12 minute pace for the second loop and even harder to maintain a 13 minute pace for the 3rd loop. The sand surface definitely slows you down a little in certain places. When I came into the race, I told myself to just enjoy it, walk when needed, stay hydrated, and just finish (which given my small amount of training I wasn't sure I could do). The farthest I'd run prior to that, EVER, was 37.2 miles, and that was on a road, not a trail. In May 2012, I ran 32 miles on a portion of the Western States course. That was brutal and even more rocky with 10,000 feet of gain, so I'd run on a trail one other time. I've finished 3 Ironman races but that is very different than running 50 miles. Running 50 miles is much more pounding on your body.

So, I found myself running 11-12 minute miles at the same effort level as running a 9:00 minute mile on the bridle path in Central Park. This wide time spread surprised me (I wrongfully assumed that I'd be able to hold a 10:00-10:30 pace), but this spread was consistent the entire race. I noticed that most people were not running any faster than me (most slower), so this served as a warning to me to slow down. While the rest off before the race helped, my heart rate was higher, also due to the humidity and warm weather.

I stopped at every aid station (3-4 miles apart), usually had bananas, water, ice, heed, salt tablets, and after 25 miles, coke and even a little Mountain Dew! Since I don't drink soda or caffeine anymore, this gave me a pick up, although I felt a little too jacked up and had a mild caffeine headache during the race. I listened to music, Rich Roll's book, and best of all, my brother John's music. Probably 1/3 of the time I had the iPod off and enjoyed the sounds of nature, as my kids would say, "in the deep dark forest". Lots of birds and a horse I think. Sometimes I would be near runners and other times I would be completely by myself, with absolutely nobody in sight. Next time, I'd like to run with a friend to kill the boredom.

The night before the race, I was able to read all the ingredients in all the food at the aid station. Everything had dairy and/or soy (allergic)! Bread, candy, pita wraps, potato chips (Pringles). Bummer. They were supposed to have potatoes but they were going to leave the skin on, which I am also allergic to. They ended up not having potatoes, which was surprising to many.

The 100 milers run five 20 mile loops, so everybody gets to see each other on various points of the course, which was super cool. "Nice work, great job, and looking good were regularly said as runners passed each other". I was very surprised at how many "Ironman" triathletes were on the course, easy to identify by their attire (I didn't sport any Ironman gear, instead I wore my Brooklyn half marathon t shirt and a Rev 3 Quassy head sweats visor). The race course was very well marked and hard to get lost (although I was running with a guy from Arkansas for a while who was doing the 100 and I missed one of my turns for about 100 feet). I saw him take a nasty spill during his 5th 100 mile race.

I saw people going fast, walking, and even falling. One guy had a tough time getting up and his speech was slurred. "I let myself get dehydrated" he said. A 74 year old man had hypothermia after walking 32 miles.
One 100 mile lady was double pumping breast milk manually while running and storing it in her backpack for her 4 month daughter!!! That's a whole new level of dedication, I love it!!

I was surprised at the vast ability differences of the race participants. Some were young men and women who were crushing the course (one guy told me that the 100 mile race was "easy", while some were older and walking the entire course. Super cool!

At about the 40 mile point, I saw that I might have a shot at going under 10 hours, so I pushed myself to run, even at a 13 per minute per mile pace (I did the math and knew that if I did 13 minute miles for the last 10 miles I would be under 10 hours. At this point, my legs were super sore, so every step was tender and going downhill around roots was challenging, even while walking.

But, I was able to do it and ran fast across the finish line in 9 hours and 45 minutes.

When I finished, like at the end of Ironman Canada in 2012, my calves were super sore and I couldn't sit down without getting massively painful Charlie horses. This was a big problem because I knew a had a 30 minute drive to my hotel that, when I finished, I was not physically capable of doing. I ingested more than enough salt, need to look into why this happens. I went to the medical rent, got some ice and ibuprofen, and kept eating. 3 hours later, I was better. During these 3 hours, I got to watch people finish and run with their headlamps. I talked to a lot of people. People running 50 or 100 miles! The culture is awesome and it truly is amazing what people can accomplish if they try.

As I was running, I thought a lot about my wallet. Did I drop it? How am I going to get home? I remembered that I couldn't find my hotel room key either. This, I thought, was a good sign, as I reasoned that I must have put it back in my wallet, which likely meant that I had my wallet in my room. Since I didn't leave my room once I got home, I figured that it had to be either in my room or my massive race drop bag that contained all of my race food. So, after the race, I rummaged through everything and found it in my kids' panda cooler (see picture attached)!! Whew!

Other: my eyes were fine, no dry eyes like I sometimes get that make things blurry. High humidity must have helped. The pinched nerve in my neck was only twinging a little during the race and a little more for the last 10 miles.

Overall, the race was very well run and I would recommend this race.

Some of my friends think I'm crazy for doing these long endurance races. I've always considered myself a sprinter and not a "distance runner", as I was a sprinter and hurdler in high school. I now realize that I am also an endurance athlete. I do these races for the challenge and accomplishment. I do them for myself, but also for my kids, so I can be around for them as they get older, as doing these races keeps me fit and happy. Accomplishing things is extremely rewarding to me personally. I'm lucky to say that I do these endurance races because I can, but I think that anybody that puts their mind to it can do it too. I love being fit and healthy and having a goal to strive for helps keep me on track. We all have a certain "science" in our body that dictates our ability, whether fast or slow.

I have included some pictures below.  It was just before 5pm when I finished so it was still light out, but I have included some pictures of people running the 100 mile race with their head lamps.

Rose Bowl 2013

Andy and I attended our 3rd consecutive Rose Bowl on 1-1-13, this year, losing to #6 Stanford 20-14. Here are a few pictures.

Some new Frames on my wall

Getting to Know You Interview

My company asked me to be interviewed for a "getting to know you" piece in the August 2012 monthly Corporate Finance newsletter (distributed to about 2,500 people).  Here is the interview.