RUN, HOUSTON

Fred Faour: You are never too old or too out of shape to take up running as a hobby

Fred Faour: You are never too old or too out of shape to take up running as a hobby
Start running and you might see views like this one of AT&T Park in San Francisco. Fred Faour/SportsMap

So yes, technically I am on vacation, celebrating my wife's birthday with a trip to San Francisco. And it is a pretty slow time in Houston sports, so I could easily pass on writing my Monday column and no one would fault me.

Alas, I had some time after recovering from a nice run and thought today's missive would take a different direction.

For the past several years, we have been running (well, in my case jogging or staggering) through 10ks as a way to at least pretend to stay in shape. One of our favorites has been the Run Houston Race series, which features five different runs at five different locations around Houston. It is a cool way to keep your running goals, see some different places in the city and get in a nice run (they do 5ks as well). Two years ago, we did them all. Last year, due to travel conflicts, we missed most of them. This year, we vowed to do them all again.

Then this trip came up and conflicted with Sunday's race at UH-Clear Lake, the third in the series. Of the five, it is probably my second favorite (behind the UH run), in part because I spent a lot of my college life (and all my post-graduate work) at the school, and always had a fondness for the area.

Fortunately, the series now offers a "Virtual Race" option for just such conflicts. In essence, you have to run your sign-up distance three days before or after the actual race day to get credit for running. No offense to Clear Lake, but getting to run along the bay in San Francisco was a bit of an upgrade.

 

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The Bay Bridge. Photo by me.

My path took me from downtown San Francisco to The Embarcadero trail. It was along the water the entire way, and allowed me to get sensational views of the Bay Bridge and perhaps the most unique baseball stadium in the country, AT&T Park. My time was almost record slow, but it was hard to not stop and snap pictures quite often, and my always dodgy knee decided to buckle about 7k in. But I finished it, got credit for the third of the Run Houston races and also managed to take in some amazing scenery. (And pretty sure it was about 20 degrees cooler than it was in Clear Lake today).

I don’t run in these things to try to post fast times (not happening) and I don’t care if I finish last. I do them to have a reason to stay in shape, have some fun and push my aging body. As we get older, some of the things we used to do just aren’t practical (basketball, for instance. I am one snapped knee from six months of rehab, and who has time for that?). I was never much of a runner -- I always needed baskets or goal posts to shoot for -- but I enjoy it now nonetheless.

So if you are thinking of getting started, there are a lot of ways to get going. I started with the C2-5k app, which got me off the couch and started a program of running and walking to build up enough stamina to run a 5k. After about a year of 5ks, we stretched out to 10ks, and have been doing them ever since. At one point I actually ran a half marathon, and eventually would not mind trying another, but I am a long way from that at the moment. Regardless, the point is anyone can get out and run, and you are never too old or out of shape. (It's not like I am in perfect shape). Run Houston has two races left in the fall, (UH and Constellation Field in Sugar Land) and you have plenty time to get up to 5k speed.

Plus, there is no shortage of races for different causes every weekend in Houston. I tend to back off most of the summer races because the heat and humidity is so oppressive, but every now and then one crops up and I try it. (And vow to never again run in August, then sign up for another race two weeks later).

So if you have been looking  to get off the couch, and want to try something that can be fun, has a nice social aspect to it and can help you get in better shape, download the app and get started. You might find you enjoy it.

And before you say there is no way you could do it...I am an old, slightly overweight man with bad knees and health issues. If I can do it, what should stop you from getting started?

Then you can feel better about yourself when you blast past me on a run. 

 

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Thieves broke into Travis Kelce's house in October. Photo via: Wiki Commons.

For months, daring bands of thieves linked to South American gangs have been making off with piles of jewelry and cash from the homes of the biggest superstars in sports, targeting the likes of the NFL's Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.

Sophisticated pillagers have deployed drones and signal jamming devices, sometimes posing as delivery drivers or maintenance workers, to gain access to gated neighborhoods and thwart home security systems, according to warnings issued by the NFL and NBA.

But in recent weeks, investigators across the U.S. have made a handful of arrests connected to at least one of the high-profile heists and discovered stolen sports memorabilia, jewelry and art stuffed into storage units in New Jersey.

A group of Chilean men stopped in January while driving in Ohio were charged Monday with stealing nearly $300,000 worth of designer luggage, watches and jewelry from Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow’s house. Photos showed one suspect wearing a sparkly necklace with Burrow's jersey number that he had worn during interviews, according to a federal complaint unsealed Wednesday.

“These individuals seem to be the alleged tip of the iceberg,” said Kenneth Parker, the U.S. Attorney in southern Ohio, who believes the men are working with South American theft rings that for years have been ransacking opulent homes from coast to coast.

Some luxury watches and jewelry stolen from homes across the country — not just those belonging to athletes — ended up being sold at a pawnshop in Manhattan's Diamond District and stashed away in nearby storage units, federal authorities said in court documents released Tuesday that accuse two men of fencing the items.

Whether the entire string of burglaries targeting athletes are connected to the same crews from South America or if those groups are working together isn't clear. Federal authorities leading the investigations have been tight-lipped since the FBI warned in December that crime organizations were preying on professional athletes.

Superstar athletes targeted in home burglaries

Investigators say international crime rings have looted high-end houses for years, but now they're going after some of the biggest names in the NFL, NBA and NHL.

Thieves broke into the homes of Kansas City Chiefs teammates Mahomes and Kelce within days of each other in October around the time they played New Orleans and Kelce’s superstar girlfriend Taylor Swift watched the game from the stands.

Jewelry valued at about $30,000 was stolen from NBA All-Star Luka Doncic's home in Dallas in December. Pittsburgh Penguins star Evgeni Malkin reported a home invasion in January that happened while his team was playing at home.

Similarities in the string of break-ins

Law enforcement officials warned sports leagues last fall that thieves had been striking on game days when they knew the players would not be home, often smashing through rear windows.

Some of the groups scoped out their targets by posing as home delivery drivers or joggers in secluded neighborhoods.

Burrow's home in Ohio, which sits on a gated street tucked along a wooded area, was broken into while he was in Dallas for a Monday Night Football game in December. The men charged in the invasion were found weeks later traveling with a Husky glass-breaking tool that one of them bought at Home Depot, an FBI agent wrote in an affidavit.

Players have been advised to not only beef up their home security but also avoid posting their whereabouts on social media.

Thieves targeting items that can be sold underground

The theft rings are focused on cash and items that can be resold on the black market, such as jewelry, watches and luxury bags, according to an NBA warning based on information from the FBI.

The two men indicted this week in New York City were accused of buying stolen watches, jewelry and other expensive items from a variety of burglary crews and reselling them at their pawnshop in Manhattan since 2020.

Court documents said the pair were tied to five separate burglary crews and linked one of the two suspects to the men accused of breaking into the residence of a “high-profile athlete in Ohio” on the same day that Burrow’s home was hit.

A judge on Friday denied bail for the pawnshop owners.

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