Per the usual Saturday morning routine, I finished watching the English Premier League matches before starting the day. I then ate lunch before making the drive out to Fairmount Park in Riverside to pick up my race packet. It was a half hour drive each way. With the price of gasoline so high in California these days, next time I probably should just pay for race day pick-up. In addition to the usual bib, race shirt, and tote bag, we were given a Honey Stinger waffle, a Nuun tablet, and our choice of a Santa hat or reindeer antlers. Last year I got the antlers, so this year I got the hat. Both were of very poor quality, so if I run this race again in the future, I'll forego taking either one.
Race shirt
Swag
In the days leading up to the race, the weather forecasts showed that there would be a threat of rain on race day, so I didn't decide on what to wear until before going to sleep. The final forecast showed that the rain had a good chance of starting later in the morning. My fingers were crossed for a dry race!
Flat runner
Sunday 12/8
Instead of parking at Lot 33 just North of the Riverside Convention Center and having to take a bus ride over to Fairmount Park, I decided this year to get to the start early and find nearby parking. I was able to get one of the last spots at the end of Fairmount Ct. It was nice to be able to hide in the car and stay out of the cold morning air until right before the start of the race.
As the 7 am start approached, I got my stuff ready and walked over to the starting area. I gathered with my fellow Half Fanatics for a quick pre-race photo in front of the inflatable snow man. After that I went to the starting corral and positioned myself behind the 1:50 pacer.
Half Fanatics pre-race photo
Start corral
I held back a bit during the first mile, but it was still too hard of an effort. After somewhat unintentionally maintaining that effort for another mile, I had to take an unscheduled early walk break to calm down the heart rate. The course had been changed a bit due to recent rain, but it remained relatively unchanged from last year's course. After the first 5 miles, I finally was able to settle into more of an even pace throughout the rest of the race. I continued to take regular walk breaks to make sure that I didn't aggravate my right foot arch. However the usual calf cramps slowed me down a bit during the last couple of miles.
Finish: 1:57:41
Click here for my Garmin data.
Finish line
Thankfully the rain held off for the entirety of the race! In fact it was dry even long enough for finishers to enjoy the delicious food from the food trucks. After getting my finisher medal as well as a selfie with my good friend, Andrea, I headed over to post race area to pick up my bonus medals. Along the way, I picked up a bunch of KIND bars and a small bottle of water. In addition to getting the LaceUp Challenge medal, I ran enough races in California to earn a 7 race medal with the CA Half & Full Marathon Series.
Andrea
Finisher medal
LaceUp Challenge Finisher medal
7 race CA series Challenge medal
We had a choice of food from several food trucks, but just like last year, I went with the All American Cheeseburger from Baby's Badass Burgers food truck. After enjoying my burger and shooting the breeze with my friends about our races, it was time for me to head home.
Post race goodies
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