Musical Influences

1. The Sex Pistols

Oh, man.  The Pistols.  The original U.K. punk band, the guys who started the whole movement.  When these guys emerged in London in the mid 1970's and sang about anarchy and going over the Berlin Wall, people were both intrigued and baffled.  No band had ever done that before and listeners didn't quite know what to make of it.  Some people thought they were out of their minds and they were serious about their lyrics, but the smarter listeners knew it was just to get people riled up.  I love stuff like that.  To me, the Pistols are about being rebellious.  Their original and unique fashion styles as well as their music was clearly a message to listeners that they were all about doing what you want to do and dismissing the belief that things have to be a certain way, or else.  When I heard their record for the first time, it hit home for me.  I love to crank that record on my iPod while I'm running.  It gives me such energy.  Part of the reason why I enjoy running is because it's my way of rebelling against the world that I was exposed to growing up, where people had the notion that if you didn't play football or basketball, you weren't an athlete.  Oh really? Those poor people.  They just don't know any better.  The tone of that album blends perfectly with my feelings on that, and all the other things I rebelled against as a kid.  The message I've developed and that I adopt from their music is "take your oppressive, closed minded attitude, and cram it".  In late 1976, the Sex Pistols did a TV interview with Bill Grundy.  He was acting like a total ass, provoking the group, and even making suggestive remarks to the female members of their entourage.  He was just being disgusting.  Then he asked the band this: "I just want to know one thing...are you serous?" apparently referring to their music and lyrical content.  That was the dumbest question Bill could have asked them.  Of course they replied sarcastically and proceeded to swear at him on live television.  It was awesome.  That only made me love them even more because I have such low tolerance for people being blatantly rude and inappropriate.  I would have likely done the same thing.  Unfortunately, the Sex Pistols fell apart quickly.  Their manager was jealous of all the attention they were getting, and he wanted to take sole credit for all of their creative ideas, so he resorted to shady business practices to do so.  He and Johnny Rotten, the band's lead vocalist were butting heads constantly, and tensions rose between him and the rest of the band as well.  Sic Vicious, the bass guitarist had developed a severe heroin addiction by the time the band dissolved.  During their final show he was, as Johnny Rotten put it "completely out of his brains.  Just a waste of space on stage".  His addiction ultimately led to him dying of an overdose in late 1979 at only twenty-one years of age.  During their short career, the Pistols only put out one record, but honestly, that's probably the way it should be.  That record is so powerful, I feel it would have been very difficult for them to out-do themselves.  There are a lot of great punk rock records out there, but no one had ever put out anything like that before, and no one has ever since.

2. Amy Winehouse

Since Amy Winehouse emerged in the early 2000's when I was a teenager, I always knew who she was, but I didn't become interested in her from a musical standpoint until I was older.  Sadly, she battled numerous hardships in the final years of her life including alcoholism, drug addiction, depression, and eating disorders, the first of those issues ultimately leading to her death in 2011 at age twenty-seven.  To me, nobody's music touches the soul quite like Amy's songs.  "Back to Black" was her most commercially successful record, and it's a great one, but I feel that "Frank", her first record, is still her best work.  She was known to be revealing in her music and every song of hers is like a short story about her life.  Because of this, a lot of her fans felt that they had a strong connection to her.  It was easy to gravitate towards her.  When I listen to her music, it's almost like she's sitting right there, telling me stories about her life.  And the cool part is that even though a lot of her songs are emotionally charged, they're not necessarily depressing.  They always have a good grove to them.  She was not a bubblegum pop singer.  Her music is hard to categorize.  It's like taking jazz, hip hop, soul, and bossa nova and throwing it all into a blender together.  A lot of her songs featured her playing guitar and singing while incorporating horns and piano over a hip hop style turntable beat.  I always thought she had the coolest voice.  Low and raspy, yet extremely soothing, especially in her songs where she recorded layered backing vocals.  Her music is one thing, but what also drew me to her was her personality and image.  Her dark features, long black hair, and the style in which she wore her make up were very unique to me.  Despite her superstar status, she could have given a damn less about being a celebrity.  She didn't like the spotlight and was known for assaulting members of the paparazzi when they crossed the proverbial line.  During interviews she came across as being very personable and down to earth and during her live shows she spoke to the audience and expressed her appreciation for them.  She was a beautiful soul and we lost her way too early.  I like a lot of female musicians, but there's just something about Amy Winehouse that can't be matched.  RIP Amy, we miss you!

3. Limp Bizkit

If you grew up in the 90's, the only way you wouldn't know who Limp Bizkit was would be if you lived under a rock.  During the late 90's and early 2000's, they were one of the most commercially successful bands in the world.  Say what you want about them.  They've certainly had their fair share of controversies over the years, but these guys had a bigger influence on me as a teenager than arguably any other band I listened to.  Some people, especially parents and socially conservative groups, might listen to Limp Bizkit and say "oh, these guys are just angry and negative.  Let's not let our kids listen to them".  But I disagree.  On the contrary, Limp Bizkit's music was one of the most positive things I had in my life during my teen years.  When I was growing up, music was my outlet for aggression.  Unfortunately, not everyone understood that.  I would occasionally get mocked for being a Limp Bizkit fan, while the goodie tooshoes kids would have their boring classic rock or teen pop playing in their headphones.  All teenagers are emotional and go through various stages of angst and insecurity.  While some kids in my school channeled their angst through taking drugs or engaging in sexual activity among each other at young ages, I channeled my angst and aggression through music.  Limp Bizkit appealed to me because they had songs where they were completely pissed off and out of their minds like "Break Stuff" and "Stuck", but they also had songs that were calm and soothing like "Re-Arranged" and "The One".  It was a perfect balance.  They have a couple of songs that I think are downright awful though.  I have no idea how the song "Nookie" became a hit.  That song is ridiculous, immature, and stupid.  But not every song can be amazing.  I think all of their records are pretty cool, but "Three Dollar Bill, Y'all" was by far their best work in my opinion.  I love that record!  It's so raw, edgy, and experimental compared to their other albums.  It's one of my all time favorites, even now as a thirty-three year old.  The song "Faith" is one of the few songs where if I hear it in public I go crazy and jokingly tell everyone to "be quiet!" because the song is on.  The original version by George Michael is awesome too, but Limp Bizkit's version to me is "the" version.  There is so much happening on that record, experimentally.  They were one of the first bands to combine hip hop style turntable beats, sampling, and scratching with down tuned, heavy metal style guitars.  The last minute or so of the song "Nobody Loves Me" consists of only drumming and the crackling and popping sound of DJ Lethal's turntables.  It's so cool to listen to.  There is a song at the very end of that album called "Everything".  That song is a true masterpiece.  It is over sixteen minutes long and was recorded as an improvised jam session.  The song is calm, beautiful, and has an incredible baseline.  The tone of that song reminds me of being out on the trail in the wilderness in the dead of night during an ultramarathon or a hiking trip when things are dark, calm, and quiet.  It used to annoy me when people said that Limp Bizkit were a Korn rip-off band, or that they "sounded just like Korn".  They weren't, and they didn't.  I could never understand why people thought that way.  Korn and Limp Bizkit's music may have had some similarities, but to me, they were completely different bands.  However, I feel that several bands that emerged later ripped them off.  People went so crazy over Linkin Park and acted like they were the greatest thing to ever happen in music.  They're good musicians and good song writers (RIP Chester), but I view them as a Limp Bizkit rip-off band.  I feel like they essentially took Limp Bizkit's sound and style, and morphed it into something softer with PG rated lyrics that were chock full of self pity rather than anger and aggression.  To me, Limp Bizkit was (and still is) about three things.  They're about friendship, outdoor adventures, and having an outlet for anger and aggression.  When I was in school I belonged to the ski club, a ten week winter program.  Every Wednesday after school during the winter, we would get on a bus with our gear and they'd drive us out to the local ski hill, where my buddies and I would spend our Wednesday evenings carving down the slopes on our snowboards.  At 9 PM, we'd board the bus again, and get driven back to school, where our parents would pick us up.  It was such a fun time.  During the bus rides I would always listen to Limp Bizkit in my headphones.  They became my soundtrack for hanging out with my friends and snowboarding.  When I listen to them nowadays I reflect on those days of racing down the slopes at Mount Holly with my friends and causing harmless mischief, along with current day outdoor adventures that I have with my new friends.  Their music is about friendship and outdoor adventures, something much more positive that what the casual observer might see.

4. Oasis

Ah, Liam and Noel.  The notorious Gallagher brothers.  While Oasis, the five piece idealistic britpop band from Manchester has had several members through their years of activity from 1991 to 2009, the Gallagher brothers (Liam on lead vocals, and Noel on lead guitar) were the sole constant members and conceptual leaders.  And when I say brothers, I mean they really were true brothers.  They hated each other.  They insulted each other on stage in front of their audiences.  During their first American tour, Liam even changed the lyrics in the songs to insult Noel while the band was performing.  Growing up in the suburbs of Manchester in an Irish family and having a abusive alcoholic father, the Gallagher brothers were prone to violent outbursts towards one another.  The band broke up when Noel quit after Liam broke his guitar during a heated confrontation.  Nevertheless, they remained in the band together for several years and during the band's active years they had a deep mutual respect for one another despite their sibling disputes.  A lot of the arguments probably stemmed from the fact that Noel wrote all of the songs and Liam was just his lyrical mouthpiece.  The dynamic of Oasis was always interesting to me because I've never seen a professional band relationship quite like their's and I probably never will again.  Aside from their turbulent personal lives, their music has always captivated me as well.  Like most bands that I love, no one has ever quite matched up to what they did musically.  They're so unique that any band who tries to copy them (and there have been plenty) would be so transparent and ridiculously awful.  Each of their albums has a different personality to it.  My favorite is "Definitely Maybe".  I feel like that one contains the most upbeat and positive work they've done, and the album also has just the right amount of sensitivity with songs like "Live Forever" and "Slide Away".  I really enjoy "Married with Children" the last song on that record.  It's pure and simple.  Liam singing, Noel playing guitar, that's it.  Even though they hail from England, Oasis's music had such a big influence on me because ever since I first heard them, I have always thought their music had more of a California sound to it.  Something about the tone and style of their music made it sound more to me like they were beach dudes from Southern California, except of course for their thick Manchester accents.  During all those years in school I would just listen to them and imagine living in California.  That's what their music was all about for me.  The song "Champagne Supernova" used to, and still does remind me of being on a California beach during a sunset.  I, along with so many other people, wish that the Gallagher brothers would just put their sibling rivalry bullcrap aside and continue to make music, but unfortunately it doesn't look like that is going to happen any time soon.  For now, I'll enjoy what Oasis songs currently exist and if there are new ones in the future, we'll see how they match up to the old ones. 

5. Motley Crue

Saving the best for last.  Motley F-ing Crue.  These guys are my all time favorite band of any genre.  I could write an entire post on the impact that Motley Crue has had on my life, but I'll try to condense it while still getting my point across.  I have always simply referred to them as the most kick-ass band that ever played.  I've never seen such a diverse band that takes heavy metal, hard rock, punk rock, blues rock, glam rock, and country rock, and blends it all together so wonderfully.  Everything I look for in music: edge, attitude, rebellion, aggression, but also sensitivity and sentimental moments created from lyrics and musical tones, I've found in Motley's music.  In particular, Mick Mars' guitar playing.  He's such an amazing guitarist!  There truly is no one out there who plays guitar quite like him.  When the band first formed in 1981 it was his idea to down tune the instruments a whole step to make the music sound more rough around the edges.  It was brilliant because it gave Motley such a unique sound, and all the copy cat bands tried so hard to replicate their style, but failed miserably because they couldn't figure out what the hell they were playing.  Over the years, Tommy Lee and Vince Neil both left the band temporarily and were replaced by another vocalist and drummer until they ultimately decided to return.  During their absence, there was a notable shift in the band's sound (to me, anyway) but overall, they still sounded like the Motley Crue I knew and loved.  But if Mick Mars were ever to quit and they brought in a new guitarist, they wouldn't be the same band to me.  That's how important Mick's style of guitar playing is to their sound.  Motley's music is the soundtrack to all of my outdoor adventures, whether it be running on trails, hiking through mountains, snowboarding, or whatever.  Something about their music and the feelings I experience while being active in the wilderness blends perfectly.  I associate specific experiences with specific songs and records in the Motley Crue catalog all the time.  For example, the song "Public Enemy Number One" makes me think of running on a mountain trial and reaching the top, admiring the view far below.  And "Red Hot" makes me think of ripping down a mountain on a snowboard, and the adrenaline I feel while picking up speed (while staying in control, of course).  The music is one thing, but there's also the band members.  All four those guys have been through so much in their lives.  Broken childhoods, coping with life long diseases, alcoholism, drug addiction, anger management issues, jail time, rehab, ups, downs, everything.  As I've mentioned, there were brief periods in the band's history where Tommy and Vince left temporarily, but other than that, the same four band members have remained intact since the bands inception in 1981.  I think the fact that there are four guys from different backgrounds who have different ideas, is the key element that makes Motley Crue such a unique band.  A lot of people who are casual observers would probably write them off as just another stupid 80's hair band.  They're not.  If people would take some time to listen to their music hear how unique it is, they'd quickly realize that they are a completely different entity than all of the rip-off bands that came after them.   I couldn't even tell you what my favorite Motley Crue record is, because I love them all and they all have their own unique sound and personality.  Sometimes it's "Dr. Feelgood", sometimes it's "Theatre of Pain", sometimes it's the new songs that they recorded in 2019 for their film "The Dirt".  Whether they continue to play for one more year, five more years, or ten more years, nothing will ever quite match up to the Crue in my mind.  They will always be number one, and when all else fails, I know I can always rely on them.

Honorable mentions that I may write about in the future: Billy Joel, The B-52s, Outkast, Eminem, Grateful Dead, NOFX, The Black Eyed Peas, and more! The list is too long.

The Long Delayed LAM Race Report

The late morning sunshine warmed my back as I sat on the curb looking on towards the sea of people parading through the street down Ocean Avenue.  The 2020 Los Angeles Marathon was in full swing as thousands of runners continued to cross the finish line further down the street, where their families and friends waited to congratulate them.  I had finished about an hour ago, gone back to my car to change into my sandals and a clean shirt, and came back to the finish area to wait for my friends.  Before long, my good friend Edith emerged through the crowd and took a seat next to me on the curb.  "Congratulations!  How do you feel?"  Although she was in pain, Edith had crushed her previous marathon PR by over thirty minutes.  I was thrilled!  She trained extra hard for the LA Marathon this year and had accomplished her goal.  Although her legs were yelling at her, she was feeling great mentally.  We were soon joined by our friend Nellie who had come out for support.  The finish line area was becoming increasingly more crowded, so we decided it would be a better idea to wait for the rest of our friends at the beer garden, which was being held at a local bar on the 3rd Street Promenade.  Edith's boyfriend, Danny had planned to pick her up, so we congratulated her one last time and bade her farewell.  After we parted ways, Nellie and I made our way through the crowded streets of downtown Santa Monica towards the beer garden.  When we arrived we rendezvoused with our friends, took photos, and congratulated each other.  When I saw JC, my good friend who paced me the last twenty miles at Tahoe Rim Trail 100 the previous summer, he informed me that he had dropped out at the halfway point.  I ran by him at mile twelve and although he was in pain, he still seemed to be going strong, but it sounded like his decision to drop was a wise one.  He had strained a muscle in his hip and feared that if he continued, the injury could become more serious.  Sometimes it's best to just listen to your body, even though dropping out of a race can be emotionally painful.

Getting out of LA took a while.  It wouldn't be Los Angeles if there wasn't traffic, and the street closures during the marathon were certainly a contributing factor.  But several hours later as I drove up the five freeway through the Central Valley, it occurred to me that of all the times I've ran the LA Marathon, I've never written a race report.  So, now would probably be a good time!  However, before I get into how the 2020 LA Marathon went, allow me to set the background for why this race is so symbolic for me.  Saturday, March 2nd, 2012 is a day I will always remember.  It was the day I moved to California from Chicago.  I stepped off the plane at LAX airport with a backpack and a beat-to-shit, overstuffed duffel bag.  I had enough stuff to last me about two weeks before the rest of my belongings arrived in boxes I had sent from Chicago through USPS.  I was starting a new job on Monday and I wasn't broke, but my aunt and uncle, who live two miles away from the airport, were kind enough to let me crash with them until I got the ball rolling, so to speak.  My uncle would later recall that when he picked me up from LAX that night, my demeanor indicated that emotionally, I was both excited and terrified.  Sounds about right.  A few days later while surfing the internet, I saw that the 2012 LA Marathon was going to be on the 18th, about two weeks away.  Initially I didn't think much of it, but the more I thought about it, the more I wondered if I should sign up.  I had spent the last six weeks knocking off thirty to thirty-five miles a week through the Chicago winter, mainly for fun, and I hadn't ran any further than ten miles since the fall (this was before my ultramarthon days).  The LA Marathon course intrigued me; it was point to point, my favorite type of course.  I also noticed that it started at Dodger Stadium and ended at the beach in Santa Monica.  For someone who had just moved to Los Angeles from the Midwest, that sounded pretty friggin' cool.  Despite my lack of distance training, I decided to take a chance, and I signed up.  I still, to this day don't quite know what got into me the morning of the race.  Maybe I was having a great running day, maybe I was fueled by the excitement of now living in California.  Who knows.  Whatever the case, I ran my fastest marathon to date that day.  Since then, I've finished the race nine straight times, every year since 2012.  I ran with my buddy, Julian for a couple of years.  He was one of the first friends I made in Los Angeles, and we'd spend our Saturday mornings training for the marathon by running along the ocean through Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach, Playa Del Rey, the Venice Beach boardwalk, and Santa Monica.  Other years I ran with my co-workers and my hiking friends.  In 2016, when the race was held on Valentine's Day, I proposed to my former wife after the race.  And most recently, I've been traveling to Los Angeles from the Bay Area to participate.  The point is that as the years go by and my life changes, running the LA Marathon is one thing I can always count on, and it has now become something of an annual tradition. 

The typically busy streets of downtown Santa Monica were desolate and quiet on the morning of the 2020 LA Marathon as I turned into the parking structure.  Once I chose a spot, I made my final preparations and began walking towards the shuttle pickup area at Santa Monica City Hall as I sipped from a cup of piping hot 7-Eleven coffee.  Because the course is point to point, the organization offers shuttles to transport runners from Santa Monica, where the race ends, to the start line at Dodger Stadium.  It was still dark outside and the predawn air was crisp and energizing.  The events that led up to this morning included a fairly uneventful drive in the early morning hours to LA from Sunnyvale the morning before, spending time with my aunt and uncle, meeting some friends for pizza the night before, getting all the way to my aunt and uncle's house and having to drive 30 minutes all the way back to the pizza restaurant because I left my debit card on the table, and getting a fairly restful night's sleep in my aunt and uncle's guest room.  As I approached city hall, the shuttles emerged.  The race had sold out this year so there was a long line waiting to get on the shuttles, but it moved quickly and we had a smooth ride to the start line.  Upon arriving at Dodger Stadium, I ran into a few of my friends in the parking lot while heading for the restroom and we wished each other luck.  The organization had set up several portable restrooms in the parking lot, which was helpful, although I was truly flabbergasted when I discovered that a few people were stealing rolls of toilet paper from the inside.  At the time, COVID-19 was becoming a major public health issue in California and people had already started panic buying toilet paper.  Now people were stealing it from portable restrooms.  So much for being calm, rational human beings, I guess. 

At 7:00 AM the gun went off and the marathon was underway.  A huge sea of 22,000 runners charged from the start line as music blared, the race officials spoke over the loud speaker, and reporters and spectators cheered from the sidelines.  We made our way out of the stadium parking lot and down Sunset Blvd.  Because of the massive amount of participants, the organization starts the race in staggered corrals to avoid overcrowding, for which I was thankful.  Having too many people on the course in the early stages of a race can cause congestion and potential for runners to trip and fall.  During the first few miles, we drifted along Spring street through Chinatown where we encountered a group of spectators dancing on a street corner in Chinese dragon costumes, and into Little Tokyo where we powered up the first hill of the race.  At the crest of the climb we made a right turn past a large group of people playing Japanese percussive instruments.  The sound of taikos being played was energizing to me and I smiled and waved to them as I cruised by.  One of the things I love about this race is that it showcases the diversity of Los Angeles magnificently.  I often jokingly describe it as the best tour of LA ever.  Families gathered along the sidewalks outside of their homes in Angelino Heights to cheer on runners, and as we cruised into Echo Park around mile six, I noticed that a group of people had set up a hot dog stand on the side of the road.  I laughed out loud at the thought of anyone wanting a hot dog six miles into a marathon, but nevertheless, some runners decided to partake.  As we ran down Sunset Blvd. we ran past Masa of Echo Park, one of my favorite pizza restaurants in Los Angeles.  They were one of the very few places in my experience that crafted real deep dish Chicago style pizzas.  Because they take so long to bake, you have to order sometimes an hour in advance, but it's so worth it!  Shortly after passing the seven mile mark, we ran down a hill into Silver Lake which treated us to an astounding view.  Down the hill in front of us rested a panorama of buildings, palm trees, and small mountains in the distance.  I soon passed through one of the many water stations during the race, where I grabbed a cup of water from a volunteer and drank it down.  Most of the water station volunteers consisted of middle school and high school students along with teachers and other members of the community.  Volunteers really do a great job of making races like this happen, and I made a conscious effort to thank the volunteers and tell them how awesome they were as often as I could while passing through the water stations along the route.  As we ran into Hollywood around mile nine, Sunset Blvd. turned into Hollywood Blvd. and we ran along as the tall buildings blocked the sun from the palm tree lined street.  Before long, I approached the halfway point, where I encountered a rambunctious group of spectators sporting Mexican flags with bike horns and noise makers.  Their energy made me smile and I gave them a few hand claps and shouts as I passed by.  It was around this point, that I passed JC.  We embraced in a hug as I ran by, but sadly, he was having some serious pain in his hip.  I gave him some words of encouragement before continuing on towards the thirteen mile mark.  The one thing that irks me about the LA Marathon is the fact that there are mile markers every mile on huge pillars with a clock showing how much time has elapsed since race start.  This concept is very different than the trail ultramarathons in the mountains that I'm used to running.  Being made constantly aware of what mile I'm on and what my pace is during a race has the ability to drive me crazy in a psychological sense.  I prefer to just run and not worry about things like that.  During the first few miles I tried to ignore the mile marker pillars and the clocks, but at mile five I gave up.  Just because I wasn't used to it doesn't mean there's anything wrong with it, and it doesn't mean I can't adapt.  So, I decided to appeal to the resilient side of my personality and instead of fighting it, I accepted it.  When we're forced into situations in life that we're not used to it's always better to try to adapt and make the best of things than to resist.  So, from mile five onward, I decided it was okay to notice the mile markers and clocks as I passed by.

A few miles later at mile sixteen we ran past the famous Whisky-A-Go-Go club aka "The Whisky" just before banking left off of Sunset Blvd. onto San Vicente.  I've always been a big music guy and although I've developed a wide musical taste in different genres over the years, Motley Crue remains my all time favorite band.  I thought about back in 1981 when no one knew who they were and they developed a cult following by performing at the Whisky every night.  Several other bands from the LA scene, especially during the 80's also got discovered by performing there.  That place sure has a lot of history.  Things seemed to be going pretty well as I covered more miles through West Hollywood and down Rodeo Drive through Beverly Hills.  As I ran down Santa Monica Blvd. the crowd support was growing more intense, which I enjoyed because the further I progressed, the more exhausted I became.  The street was now lined with cheer leading squads from locals schools, marching bands, booths from local charities, and local people who just wanted to come out and watch.  Their energy was a powerful tonic and I could feel my pace gradually getting stronger as I moved forward.  Just as I approached mile twenty, I heard people calling my name from the sidelines.  It was my friend Alex and his wife Krissy.  I would have loved to go high five them, but they were on the other side of street and I had already ran past them by the time I noticed them, so I just clapped my hands and said "Yeah! hey guys!"  No matter how many times I run this race, I always seem to hit the proverbial wall while I'm running through Brentwood around miles twenty-two and twenty-three on San Vicente Blvd..  In 2015 it was eighty-eight degrees out and by the time I reached mile twenty-three my legs were so cramped up, I had to sit on the curb and stretch them out for a few minutes.  I was ready to quit because I didn't think I could keep going, but thanks to some supportive spectators, I sucked it up, got back on my feet, and hobbled my way to the finish line.  Luckily, today I had kept things pretty stable so I continued running as the crowds continued to cheer us on.  As I approached mile twenty-five, I recognized some familiar faces along the side of the road up ahead.  It was my friends Corina and Sheny Espino, the Espino sisters.  They were leaders of a local running group called "Anytime Runners".  The three of us along with the help of a few others worked collectively to get our friends Tony and Gus through the Rio Del Lago 100 miler last November.  It was great fun pacing those guys from mile forty-four to seventy-four.  Corina paced them from there to the finish line and Sheny waited for them at all of the crew check points to provide them with food and provisions.  I ran by, gave them each a big hug, and promptly resumed forward progress.  With just a mile and a quarter left, I tried not to get ahead of myself.  Although I had been feeling pretty good, anything could still happen.  At this point, the best thing to do is just keep moving and hope that nothing goes wrong.  But be ready in case something happens.  When I finally made the left turn onto Ocean Avenue from San Vicente, I knew I was on the homestretch.  From there it was around a half a mile to the finish line.  The seaside air felt cool and refreshing as I ran the final stretch of the race down Ocean Avenue and across the finish line.  Even though it was my ninth time finishing, it always feels great when I take those final steps across the finish line.  I still wasn't able to crack my PR from 2012, but nonetheless, I had a solid race, and felt good pretty much the whole time.  I was thankful for all of the volunteers and race staff for being there to ensure we had a successful event.  The dancing dragons in Chinatown, the taiko band in Little Tokyo, the hot dog stand in Echo Park, the beautiful scenery in Silver Lake, Hollywood, and Beverly Hills, all the way to the last thing I saw that caught my attention; a spectator during the final half mile stretch holding a poster that read "You Fucking Did It!".  It was a great day and I relished in the magic of it all as I walked to my car, changed into my sandals and a clean shirt, and returned to the finish area.  I hobbled through the crowd and sat down on the curb, legs stretched out, waiting for my friends to finish.