Why go to Mars?

A friend of mine asked me about the Mars Science Laboratory and what happens after we land:

and after we get the info..? then what? how will it change or improve our life today? Besides keep you in a job :0)


That is a very valid question and I thanked her for asking!  (This is a long response, but I hope you read it through :) )

Why should we spend money on exploring another planet when there's so much we need to do here on Earth?  Why support thousands of employees for out-of-this-world jobs, when there's probably a few people in everyone's block that are out of work?  Sure, for every dollar in the Federal budget, NASA get's 1/2 a penny, and every year it decreases; it's still money, right?

My honest belief is that it is in our DNA to explore; to develop technologies that will not only benefit our children, but our children's children; to inspire the young that their potential is limitless, that MATH is NOT a bad 4 letter word; that SCIENCE is NOT scary. I believe that preventing human beings of pursuing this "dream" would handcuff the very spirit that drives us.  Ponce De Leon, Columbus, Lewis and Clarke great explorers!  Opportunity, Spirit, and hopefully Curiosity, amazing tools for the current explorers!

It's also valid to ask, what has NASA ever done for me? Here's a nice link that shows what everyday items were developed (directly or indirectly) from NASA:
http://www.nasa.gov/externalflash/nasacity/index2.htm

Smarter people can answer this question better than I can, here's Neil deGrasse Tyson answering (it's only 5 mins :) ):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qbm7RWLHI3c

I am truly blessed and lucky to wake up every morning and be associated with NASA.  As a child growing up in Eagle Rock, I dreamed of working here.  I am inspired every single day that our work today will benefit generations and generations to come.

Budget Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budget_of_NASA#Annual_budget.2C_1958-2012

Chicago (+SF) Training: Adding Healing Time

So I did a stupid thing last week. At the end of my long Sunday run, I added a huge hill. Not bad, but I ended up sprinting that hill. Unfortunately, on the way down back to the car, I was in pain. Got home and had a pretty bad calf cramp session.

I didn't think anything of it. Did my maintenance runs during the week with no problem until the pre-long run. Total pain in my calf. I hobbled that shorter milage.. But I had a race the next day...

So I ran the race and should have PR'ed it, but dangit if the calf pain came back! GRRRR..

I know, the internet knows, everyone and their brother knows what the solution is.. rest that leg.. grrrrr! The last time I took a rest from the Hal Higdon bible was when I had a fever... It was tough but I rested a couple days and came back blazing...

So, I have to take a 5 day rest.. FIVE DAYS!! I've ended up doing a lot of pushups, pullups, and situps..

We'll see what happens this weekend.. According to the schedule, it's a pretty long run.. I'm going to cut 2 miles from the Sunday run and 2 miles from the Saturday run..

Let's see how this works..

The Relay '08: Drivers Wanted

It's still a year out, but the one thing I'm worried about is finding willing drivers. I really would like to have 2 per vehicle to that they can trade off.

I guess, we still have to work out the logistics. Are the drivers going to drive from L.A. to Calistoga? Are we going to fly up and rent up there?

The driver and navigator's duties are one of the most important. All that a runner has to think of is finishing their leg. The driver's got to think of traffic, route (because in the late night legs, I figure the runner's going to use the van's lights as a beacon to follow), time, and dealing with 6 cranky runners.

Sure, I'd love that job!

Chicago (+SF) Training: Adding HIIT

Started adding HIIT to the schedule. I've never been one to sprint. I was always happy that I could do the distances, but I figured it'd be nice to add speed to the workout.

So, looking at:

http://www.johnstonefitness.com/php/training.php

Which is an AWSOME site for inspiration, he did HIIT training.

I found this workout at:

http://www.musclemedia.com/training/hiit_table.asp

Table 1
	HIIT Workout 1	HIIT Workout 2	HIIT Workout 3
Week 1	One 4-minute cycle (as shown in Table 2)	One 4-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 5-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)
Week 2	One 5-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 5-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 6-minute cycle (same as previous workout)
Week 3	One 7-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 7-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 8-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)
Week 4	One 8-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 9-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 9-minute cycle (same as previous workout)
Week 5	One 10-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 10-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 11-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)
Week 6	One 11-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 12-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 12-minute cycle (same as previous workout)
Week 7	One 13-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 13-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 14-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)
Week 8	One 14-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 15-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 15-minute cycle (same as previous workout)

Table 2

Jogging for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Sprinting for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Jogging for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Sprinting for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Jogging for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Sprinting for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Jogging for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Sprinting for 30 seconds

I just did my first attempt on yesterday for a 4min stretch (+5min warmup/ 5min cooldown). I did it on a treadmill just because I KNOW that if I do this outside, I'll freakin' cheat.

I did it yesterday AM early b/c I figured I'd have enough for a quick 4miler in the afternoon since the 1/2 marathon on Monday made me adjust the Hal Higdon training for the week.

WOW, it was ridiculous! I actually did a 6min stretch with 30sec at 20:00min/mile pace and 30sec at 6:40min/mile. OMG after the short 5min + 6min + 5min workout, I was DONE! It doesn't feel like an 8miler. It was completely different. That short span had me sweating like a dog and the pains in the legs were MUCH different.

I figure to add this routine to the Tues/Thurs workouts. I figured I would be able to rest up during the day to keep the Hal Higdon maintenance runs. I was going to add it to the AM Saturday runs before the "easy" short long run prior the the long run on Sunday. There is NO way! So, it's Friday AM for this.

I'll see how it works after a couple weeks. I hope to gain speed and not injury.

Van Issues: Deux

Another thing I'm going to try and do to save money, is to see if anyone we know has a van they can loan us for the weekend. We still have to work out the logistics. Right now, I'm assuming that some people will be riding up to Calistoga from the van starting here in So. Cal.
Now, there are some runners that are actually from the No Cal area, so.. gotta spec out if we can rent a van up there. Maybe there will be people that would like to fly up north instead of riding.. and just fly back.

But, one thing for sure to check on, is whether or not anyone has any info and a van that can be "loaned" to us for the race weekend.

VAN issues

So, looking into the vehicle situation.. I've priced a couple of the recommended rental places. It looks like I can reserve from Thrifty right now. The van holds 7 including gear..

The price is $116/day and I'm going to reserve:

Pick-up:

ONTARIO AIRPORT, CA, USA

Date:

Apr 18, 2008 09:00 AM

Drop-off:

Same as pickup

Date:

Apr 21, 2008 09:00 AM

Car Type

Van

Rate $58.48/day

Total Base Rate* $175.44

3 days @ $58.48/day with Unlimited Miles

Now I have to find another van!


---

More runners!

Now Jim and Guy from up north have decided to join our team! GREAT!! Welcome!

What have I gotten myself into?

Mr. Fox has convinced me to do a 70 mile bike ride the day after I do an 18 mile run!
Now, I *could* always back out of the ride or do the 18miler some other day, but the gauntlet has been thrown down!

Oh, man....