Who: VN Publisher Joseph Connelly
What: A Run Around a Lake
Where: Lake Merced, San Francisco, Calif.
When: November 21, 2010
Why: Vegan Athletic Prowess
The Scoop: Brendan Brazier is a vegan machine. The former professional triathlete, two-time Canadian 50k champ, best-selling author of Thrive and Thrive Fitness, formulator of the Vega line of plant-based food and sport drinks, and Hugh Jackman's vegan guru was in the Bay Area on a promotional tour when he received a call from VN Publisher Joseph Connelly (that would be me). The San Francisco-based Dolphin Sound End Runners were holding their weekly Sunday morning race, this one being the Lake Merced Single/Double, meaning one or two loops around the 4.5-mile man-made lake. I invited Brendan to join us. He said he'd try to be there.
Ominous clouds hovered over Lake Merced on the morning of the race
Gene Baur is a vegan wunderkind. The co-founder of the farmed animal rescue movement, president of Farm Sanctuary, and best-selling author of Farm Sanctuary: Changing Hearts and Minds About Animals and Food was in Northern California for his Orland property's annual Celebration FOR the Turkeys, held Saturday, November 20, which included special guest John Salley, four-time NBA basketball champ and the newest vegan... well, you get the picture. I invited Gene to the race. He said he'd try to be there.
Joseph Connelly is a vegan. Slow of foot but swift of mind, he might not finish first but enjoys writing about himself in the third person. He's a runner as well, and his connections as publisher of VegNews Magazine sometimes come in handy. The morning of the race the weather was horrible—cold, windy, and quite wet. I was pleasantly surprised when Brendan called. "I'm on my way."
Gene, meanwhile, was driving in as well, and it didn't look good. Taking a wrong turn after crossing the Golden Gate Bridge, the race started without him. About two miles in he blazes by me. He had a five-minute late start and was making up the time. Gene finished a quite respectable 21st overall in the single loop race, and probably would have been in the top 10 had his GPS been working. Brendan, meanwhile, ran away with the double loop, finishing not only first but nearly three minutes ahead of the second place runner. You can view the results here.
Brendan Brazier, Gene Baur, and Joseph Connelly at the VNHQ
After we all showered and warmed up, we headed to Herbivore for brunch and then a quick stop at the new VNHQ, where we showed off our trophies, sort of. Brendan and Gene left signed copies of their books, which we are giving away! Simply submit a question for either Brendan or Gene in the comments section below to enter; we'll pick the best, you'll win a book, and we'll even get them to answer your query.
