I took some time off of work and left at lunch to drive up to the Hollywood Palladium for the race expo. That's the one thing that I don't like about races that take place on a Saturday. When I got there I drove around and circled a bunch of blocks to find parking. There was so much construction going on that the traffic was pretty ridiculous. I eventually found free street parking on Vine St just South of Sunset Blvd.
I walked over to the expo and picked up my bib and shirt. I also picked up my legacy cap. Just like last year, I thought the expo area was a bit dim. I guess my eyes aren't as good in my old age. :) There wasn't much to see, but before leaving the expo, I signed up for the Run to Remember LA Half Marathon. It was a race put together to pay tribute to the first responders who have made the ultimate sacrifice and give their lives in the line of duty. It was $65 to registered at the expo. On the way out and back to my car, I took a free green screen photo. These photos come out pretty nice!
Saturday 4/11
I arrived at about 5 am and just like last year, I parked again at the open lot at the corner of Selma Ave and Ivar Ave. Once again the signs were confusing and not very helpful. There was nobody there to collect money, so basically those that decided to park here were gambling with whether or not we'd be paying a big fee upon exit or having our cars towed. Since it ended up being free last year, I thought I'd chance it again this year.
I then changed into my Superman gear and started heading over to the starting area at Hollywood and Highland. It was a zoo at that intersection. They were still allowing traffic to run on Highland Ave. I chatted with fellow legacy runners are we waited for the pre-race photo at 5:30 am. We took a whole bunch of them over the span of 15 minutes. People kept grouping up for a photo until eventually I left to go use the restroom.
Starting line
Legacy Runners by Dave Klukken
After taking care of business, I got into corral 1. I lined up at the back of the corral and bumped into one of my friends. The race announcer was one energetic dude! He should be running with us. He tried his best to wake up the crowd. I knew better than to waste my energy before a race when I'm attempting to run a PR. :)
Race announcer, Mark Jones, trying to wake up the crowd
The race started at 6 am. As with last year, I don't have any splits to list as I could not spot a majority of the mile markers. I've never had that problem at other races so I'm thinking that they're either really really tiny and obscure or they just don't exist! The course did not change from last year. It was mainly a straight line course down Hollywood Blvd, Sunset Blvd and Santa Monica Blvd with a bunch of out and backs North and South of that line.
The race starts with almost an immediate right turn down Highland Ave for the first of eleven out and backs. It then continues down Hollywood Blvd until a left turn up Gower St for the second out and back, followed by a left turn on Yucca St before heading back to Hollywood Blvd. The third one was a left turn up Bronson Ave. The fourth one was a left turn up Western Ave. The fifth one was a left turn up Vermont Ave. Then it went down Sunset Blvd before turning right on Santa Monica Blvd for the sixth out and back. This turnaround was pretty much the halfway point. Now on the way back, the out and backs were now on the South side. The seventh was down Vermont Ave. The 1:40 pacer passed me but I kept her within sight. The eighth was down Western Ave where I started having to dodge those in the 10k race. I caught up and overtook the 1:40 pacer and was hoping that I could stay in front of her. The ninth was down Bronson Ave. The tenth was down Gower St. It was a little cruel to run past the finish line at Vine St for the eleventh and final out and back with the turnaround at Highland Ave. During this stretch, I was passed by the 1:40 pacer again. I had run out of gas just as I had last year.
Photo from Jesus Guillermo Rodriguez
Near the finish line
Finish: 1:41:56
At the finish area, they had a PR gong for you to strike if you set a PR. Even though I felt that the course was short, I guess it was okay for me to strike the gong since it was a course PR. Last year I ran it in 1:43:24. For some reason, I'm good at running u-turns and love rolling courses. My personal best for a certified course is 1:44:31. Anyways, I like the star shaped medals. I wonder what next year will bring for the 5th edition.
Medal
I had a flight to catch for a work conference so I didn't stick around after the race. I also wanted to hurry back to my car to see if it was still there! It was, so I changed out of my wet clothes and drove home to take a quick shower before heading to the airport.
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