The Wharf to Wharf: Party or Punishment?

Meet Bryan Love. Mathematics teacher, father of three boys, bartender, lover of a good time. He's not your typical idea of a road race competitor, but then, the Wharf to Wharf is not your typical road race, now, is it?

Forty five-year-old Love will run his 10th Wharf to Wharf on Sunday. And he is ready. 

Last month, Love told his Junior High summer school students, "I am big and soft and white, and we are going to change that in here."

He then proceeded to run a mile around the track every day as his students heckled, cheered and taunted him on. He promised them that if he could get his mile time under seven minutes, he would tattoo a lightning bolt on his butt cheek.

His first mile time was 10 minutes and 24 seconds. 

"I was disgusted, horrified and frankly a little afraid that I was getting old, in a hurry," said Love. 

After a month of training, Love has whittled his mile time down to 8:12, and although his derriere remains starkly white, it's enough to make all of us wannabe-runners insanely jealous. 

Let Love be an inspiration to the smokers, the obese, the anti-exercise and the just plain lazy: The man hasn't played organized sports since high school football and basketball, but when it comes to road races, he's electric.

"People passing me pisses me off and motivates me. Passing people up makes me feel good and motivates me. T-shirts are big motivators for me. And mainly people watching. Shallow i know, but real," said Love. 

Inspired? Wharf to Wharf virgins thinking about giving it a go, this running advice is dedicated to you, with love from the two fun-loving running coaches of Santa Cruz Running, Rod Heskett, 44, and Jamey Harris, 41. 

"There's not one step along that six mile course where you can't see or hear live entertainment," says Harris.

That's the good news. 

The bad news, is that it's harder than it looks:

"Miles three and four of that race are probably two of the hardest miles that you could run. But it's right next to the ocean so nobody ever thinks of that," said Heskett.

Why? Elevation changes:

"No two feet falls at the same elevation," said Harris. "You know what that does to your heart?" (It $#&@'s with it, he answered) 

But that's no reason newbie runners (or people who have never run a mile in their lives) should deny themselves the fun.

"I say you run a little and walk a little," said Heskett.

"Yes, it's okay to walk. A lot of people just walk the Wharf to Wharf," added Harris.

"When the gun goes off, start walking. And then gradually pick up the pace. Easy, easy does it up the hill," said Harris. 

And hey, if Bryan Love can do it, so can you!