Scenes From the U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials in Los Angeles on Saturday, February 13th

The U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials took place on the Los Angeles Marathon "Stadium to the Sea" course on Saturday, February 13, 2016. 

The men's race started at 10:06 a.m. with a field of 211 qualifiers who ran qualifying marathon times of under 2 hours, 19 minutes (or sub 1:05 in a half marathon) between August 1, 2013 and January 17, 2016.  A total of 86 men met the "A" standard time of under 2 hours, 15 minutes, receiving funding support to get to the race.

Start of men's race (Photo Credit: Carl Pytlinski)

The women's race had a field of 246 qualifiers who ran a qualifying time of under 2:45 in the marathon (or 1:15 in a half marathon). A total of 42 women met the "A" standard of 2 hours, 37 minutes. A total of 11 "masters" women (age 40+) qualified, which was quite impressive.

Start of women's race (Photo Credit: Carl Pytlinski)

It was a warm winter day in Los Angeles, with temperatures in the mid 60s in the morning, reaching high 70s towards the finish of the race. And the race started mid-morning to accommodate TV broadcasts...unlike typical marathons that start early in the morning.

A total of 108 men completed the marathon course, including the top three, who are now slated to compete in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio. The overall men's winner was 29 year old Galen Rupp, who was actually competing in his first full marathon!  His time of 2:11:12 earned him his 3rd trip to the Olympics, having competed in the 10,000 meters at the 2008 Olympics and 10,000 and 5,000 at the 2012 Olympics. Rupp took the silver medal in the 2012 10,000 meters, the first American male medalist in the 10,000 since 1964.

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Keflezighi and Rupp in the lead  (Photo Credit: Carl Pytlinski)

Following Rupp in 2nd place was three-time Olympian and now 40 year old master's runner Meb Keflezighi, who finished in 2:12:20. Meb is a sensation indeed, having earned the silver medal in the 2004 Olympics, the first American medalist since Frank Shorter in 1976. After missing the 2008 Olympics with a hip injury (though he still finished 8th in the Olympic Trials), he went on to compete at the Olympic level again in 2012 with a 4th place overall. Rounding out the top three was 27 year old Jared Ward in 2:13.

A total of 149 women completed the 26.2 mile course, with the top three spots going to 32 year old Amy Cragg in 2:28:20, 32 year old Desiree Linden in 2:28:54 and 34 year old Shalane Flanagan in 2:29:19. This will be Cragg's and Linden's first visit to the Olympics. Flanagan holds the 2nd fastest American marathon time ever (a 2:21:14 at the 2014 Berlin Marathon) and this will be her 4th visit to the Olympics, having competed in the 2004, 2008 and 2012 games.

Cragg and Flanagan  (Photo Credit: Carl Pytlinski)

Congratulations to all of the competitors and best of luck with some solid training to those who have earned the right to compete at the 2016 Olympic Games!

And for 26.2 training tips to complete your first marathon

Marathons within a one hour radius of Ventura County

Some extremely fit looking runners at the 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials  (Photo Credit: Carl Pytlinski)

California Minimum Wage Increased from $9 to $10 Per Hour on January 1st

Since July 1, 2014, the minimum wage in California has been $9 per hour (up from $8 per hour effective January 1, 2008). But effective last Friday, January 1, 2016, the minimum wage increased to $10 per hour, an 11.1% increase for those earning the minimum wage.

The 2014 and 2016 increases were driven by legislation enacted on September 25, 2013.

The Federal minimum wage has stood at $7.25 since July 24, 2009. $7.25 in 2016 dollars equates to about $6.55 in 2009 dollars.

To learn more about California minimum wages, visit www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/faq_minimumwage.htm. Federal minimum wage laws are at www.dol.gov/dol/topic/wages/minimumwage.htm.

However, if you are a California sheepherder (there must be one or two in Ventura County, right?), you have your own minimum monthly salary that increased from $1,600.34 effective July 1, 2014 to $1,777.98 effective January 1, 2016.

Why is there a separate minimum wage law for sheepherders in California? Well back in 2000 hearings were held by the Industrial Welfare Commission in which sheep ranchers lobbied for an exemption for general minimum wage rules for sheepherders. 

There are not many commercial sheep producers in California and it was estimated that only 300 to 400 sheepherders, mostly foreign nationals, existed in 2000 in an occupation that "remained largely unchanged over many centuries." Flocks range generally from 800 to 1000 sheep (that's way more than I need to count myself to sleep).

Long story short: Due to the unique nature of the job of sheepherder, it was deemed appropriate to apply a different minimum wage law for this particular profession.  Based on a 2,080 hour work year, a sheepherder's wage in 2016 translates to $10.26 per hour, slightly more than the average minimum wage worker. Not baa'd.

Looking for a job that perhaps earns more than the minimum wage? Don't be a sheep! Check out THIS LIST of over 300 employers in Ventura County and surrounding areas.

Viewing the Supermoon Total Lunar Eclipse on Sunday, September 27th in California

Video Courtesy of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

A total lunar eclipse will take place on September 27th,  the second lunar eclipse of 2015, But this one is different, because it will rear its head at approximately 6:40pm. And the total eclipse, according to this Los Angeles Times article, starts at 7:11 p.m. and ends at 8:23 p.m. This total eclipse is quite family friendly!

The moon will appear to be larger than normal as it will be just 59 minutes past its closest approach to Earth in 2015 at mid-eclipse, sometimes called a supermoon.  Continue watching the moon come out of the shadow of the Earth until 10 p.m.

The National Park Service is on board, as it hosts a group led by Focus Astronomy at Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa in Newbury Park from 5-10PM. Telescopes will be available for viewing and photographing the full eclipse until 10pm. Once the sun sets, the telescopes will be focused on the moon as it rises over the hills.

California Department of Motor Vehicles Now Offers 1960s Legacy Plates

image is for illustration only. final design of the plate will differ. (Image courtesy of dmv)

State legislation introduced the California Legacy License Plate program offering car owners the chance to purchase replicas of California license plates similar to those issued in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Out of these three decades, only the 1960s plate reached the required 7,500 orders before January 1, 2015. As a result, California drivers can now relive the 1960s with a black and gold replica available for your motor vehicles.

The plates are available  at www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/dmv/detail/legacyplates/index or by mail or at your local DMV office or auto club.

The plate costs $50 for either a sequential or a personalized plate. Renewal fees are $40.

The plates will not look EXACTLY like plates issued in the 1960s because current law requires plates to be reflectorized, but I don't think most folks will really notice the difference!

Ventura County Area Schools in U.S. News 2014 Ranking of Nation's Top High Schools

In April, U.S. News & World Report published its 2014 ranking of the nation's best public high schools. The rankings were based on data from 31,242 public high schools and from that total, 19,411 schools with high enough enrollment and sufficient data to be ranked.

As in 2013 and 2012, schools were ranked based on: (1) how well students tested in state-level reading and math proficiency, taking into account disadvantaged student scores (who tend to score lower on tests); and (2) college readiness, based on how well schools prepare students for college-level work.

The median college readiness score, measured on a scale of 0 to 100, was 18.17 (it was 14.8 and 16.3 in 2013 and 2012). A readiness index of 100 means that all 12th graders took and passed at least 1 Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate test.

There were 2,026 California high schools and over 2 million students enrolled during the 2011-2012 survey period. To be ranked in California, schools must receive either a gold (top 500 nationally) or silver (top 501 to 2,019 nationally) medal. 415 Callifornia schools received gold or silver medals (down from 501 in 2013).

Rankings of local high schools in the Conejo Valley, Ventura County and adjacent areas and summarized in the table above. There were 14 local schools that received gold or silver medal status and thus were ranked nationally and in California. Last year, Moorpark and Fillmore High Schools were on this list but were not ranked for some reason this year.

Topping the local school rankings for the 2nd year in a row was Foothill Technology High School in Ventura, which moved up 3 places to the 35th top rated school in California. Rounding out the top 5 were Westlake, Malibu, Oak Park and Calabasas High Schools.

Overall our local schools performed quite impressively! 19 out of the 23 schools on the list scored at or above the median college readiness scores.

While the rankings and underlying detailed information are interesting and informative, before coming to any conclusions, do check out the detailed school information available at www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/california.