Not marathoning Moscow ‘til September – but was forewarned to apply for my Russian travel visa far well in advance. Aside from needing a passport in June (to race in Canada), politics can play a role in how fast & how many visas are processed by both the US & Russia. Similar to the US – people are people, but government is its own separate animal.
Went online & attempted to complete my application thru the Russian Consulate. Pages & pages of questions – family history, employment resume, university & degrees, medical history & insurance. Seriously – not so easy. Ultimately, paid a service to assist. FedEx’d my application & passport to the Houston consulate. BAM, 8 days later…comrade I’m travelling to Russia 🙂
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- all official — Cyrillic alphabet & everything
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- pages of bureaucracy
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- only getting stronger – Dima just ran a 1:43 Half
Keenan • February 5 at 8:49am •
It’s official — signed up for the Moscow Marathon on September 25th. SUPER excited! Dmitriy Cherkovskiy – Sign up!
K R Haga
Поздравляем, вы зарегистрированы на Moscow Marathon 2016 на дистанцию 42,2 km.
Ваш беговой номер 1809.
Старт состоится 25.September.2016.
Мы вышлем вам напоминание за несколько дней до забега.Удачных тренировок и до встречи на старте!
NewRunners
Haga K R
Thank you for registering for the Moscow Marathon 2016, distance 42,2 km.
Your race number: 1809
Start on 25.September.2016We’re looking forward to your participation. We’ll send you a reminder before the day of the race. If you have any questions, please contact us at info@newrunners.ru
Good Luck with your training. See you on race day!
NewRunners
—– Moscow, 1998 —–
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- Lenin
Dmitriy Cherkovskiy, 2015
I worked in Russia 1996-1999, a lifetime ago. 4 years out of university, I lucked into a ‘6-month’ position which provided opportunity to live overseas & manage employees for the first time – three young guys in particular, Dima [dee-mah], Vlad & Dima (Dyomin, the other Dima).
On the K* timeline, this experience intrinsically shaped who I am today. The people I met, being immersed in a foreign land – Russian language & customs – invaluable, absolutely life-changing.
St Petersburg, 1998
Initially a fish-out-of-water, sooooo far out of my conservative comfort zone. Russia taught me to live, to take risks (not everything in life can be carefully planned) & be thankful. I’ve never gone hungry. I’ve always had a roof over my head.
I know one can never recapture a time & place – if I could, it would be 1998. Comfortable in my Moscow life, I invited a group of friends & family to Russia, the Baltics & Scandinavia. Memory I’ll never ever forget.
3 years ago on FaceBook, reconnected with Dmitriy Cherkovskiy (Dima). This fall we run the Moscow Marathon. Слава Богу [Slava Bogu] – thanks to God!
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- Corporate K* – young gun sporting suspenders & a tie
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- office vodka — that’s how we worked in the 90’s
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- Dima Cherkovskiy, 1997
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- Dima Cherkovskiy, 1997
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- office football: lucky to be included, I never mastered soccer
Truth: Past tense is by far the easiest Russian verb conjugation. 2 years of lessons from Tatiana (weekdays 7:30-9am) – I took the Metro, bought groceries, interacted at work (as Director of Finance)…but sadly, often only spoke in the past. “I just went to lunch” (as I’m leaving the office), “hope you had a good weekend” (as folks departed Friday). Fun memory — LOL>
Last day — no surprise, hard to say goodbye.
Up early, showered, packed, keys on the counter, door locked behind me — aloha. Aloha, hello & goodbye. Goodbye Wailea, hello volcano hike 🙂
Ya’ll know I’m a fan of our National Parks — and hiking, that’s my first love. Hit the highway & spent my last Hawaiian day in Haleakalā Nat’l Park. We Americans are so blessed. Whether it’s Glacier, Yellowstone, Yosemite, the Rockies, Crater Lake, Pikes Peak, Mammoth Cave, Assateague Island, Grand Teton or Haleakalā — our nation’s strength, its core, its inner beauty comes from the land…Atlantic to Pacific, we Americans are blessed. National Parks are our country’s greatest gift to its citizens. HUGE fan!
Renewed my annual pass at Park Headquarters, then started the climb to Haleakalā Visitor Center & Pu’u ula’ula Summit 10,023ft — high even by Colorado standards.
This dormant volcano last erupted 400 years ago. Lava poured from Haleakalā & flowed south to the Pacific, just east of Makena. I remember my hilly Day One run — landscape formed from this same massive explosion.
Aside from stunning views at each of the Park’s three overlooks, I appreciated the dramatic temperature drop. After 4 days of island humidity, mountain breeze & low 50’s were a welcome relief 🙂
Summited Maui’s high point, an easy .2 mile hike on Pā ka’oao Trail. Whatta view! Haleakalā Crater was formed from wind erosion — not dome collapse like Crater Lake in Oregon. Arid, desolate, wind swept sands. The volcanic panorama was more reminiscent of Iceland than tropical Hawaii.
Spent so much time landscape gazing, left myself only an hour to hike from Keonehe’ehe’e (Sliding Sands) Trailhead. Orange, reds, browns, taupe, auburn, pink, maize — not ONE colour of sand, but an intricate patchwork of WOW!
Clouds gathered (first rain all holiday). Drove north shore, back to Pāʻia for one last mind imprint — dinner at Mama’s Fish House. [Excellent recommend, thanks Tina.] Menu varies based on the day’s fresh fish catch. Yeah, FAAANN-FRICKIN’-TASTIC!
Mahalo, Hawaii — thanks for 5 unforgettable days; Wailea to Lahaina, Pāʻia to Hāna Bay, Molokini Crater to Haleakalā.
Mahalo, Hawaii. No regrets, nothing left undone.
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- sunrise
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- LOVE our National Parks!
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- Hawaiian Goose, the Nene
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- climb up to Haleakalā Visitor Center
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- life always finds a way
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- volcanic panorama, reminiscent of Iceland
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- first Pu’u ula’ula, then Keonehe’ehe’e
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- Pu’u ula’ula Summit 10,023ft — high even by Colorado standards
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- formed from wind erosion, not volcanic dome collapse
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- colourful patchwork of WOW!
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- barren, desolate & beautiful — last eruption 400 years ago
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- arid, wind swept, volcanic landscape
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- memorable, last dinner in Maui
