In hindsight, registering for 2 half marathons on the same weekend just to beef up my race completion count was a terrible idea. The one major downside to getting older is that the body takes a lot longer to recover from each race. No matter how hard I try to cut back in the number of races that I run per year, I always end up finding myself registering for too many races!
I first arrived at the Brookhurst St entrance just shortly after 6 am and was queued up behind a few cars. However the gate was closed. A couple of cars ahead of me bailed. Eventually, I did the same and headed over to see if the Magnolia St entrance was open. The left lane to turn into the beach parking lot was backed up and not moving at all as the cars from Magnolia St and the southbound traffic on the PCH were blocking up the entrance. I eventually bailed on that left turn lane and headed to Magnolia St where I made a u-turn to join that line of cars. Even that was slow going, but at least it was moving. When I finally reached the gate, it was $15 for parking. I drove past the Brookhurst St entrance and saw that it was now open. I went as far as could before finding an open parking spot.
Beach parking lot $15
After parking my car, I headed over to the finish line/bus pick up location and got in line to pick up my race packet. The race shirt looked pretty nice, but the print quality looked a little poor. It will be going into the donation bin.
Windy day!
Race shirt
I went back to my car to get my stuff in order and then got on one of the school buses which left just shortly after 7 am. The bus ride took about 30 minutes which took us out to the half marathon start line at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers 441 in Orange. They had set up a bunch of portapotties in that parking lot.
Starting area
Half Fanatics
Natalie
There was a lot of standing around, waiting for the start of the race. It was originally scheduled to start at 8:30, but the race director informed us that it would be delayed as there were logistical issues with the beach parking lots being opened later than expected and subsequently, the buses were delayed as well. He actually wanted to start the race even later, but after a collective moan by all of the runners, he compromised with a 9:15 start.
Start line
Waiting for the start
Once the race finally started, we exited the parking lot and made a right turn onto Rampart St heading north. Before reaching Orangewood Ave, we made a right turn onto the Santa Ana River Trail, heading north. It was just a short out and back. We turned around not too far beyond the underpass at Orangewood Ave. The first 3 miles were way too quick for my current level of fitness, so I had to take a walk break.
Here we go!
Shortly after reaching about the 5k mark, we crossed over to the other side of the river. Even though the course was pretty much a gentle downhill all the way to the finish line at the beach, it was pretty much a wash with the strong head wind. I ended up taking a walk break after reaching mile 6. At this point, it was feeling like a grind, but I focused on keeping pace with the runner in front of me. I ended up being slightly faster than the runners in front of me, so I began focusing on picking them off one at a time. I took my third and final walk break at mile 9.
Paced me for a stretch
At about mile 10.5, we crossed back over to the west side of the Santa Ana River and continued heading south. The sun was out and there was no was no cover out on that river trail. Also the wind was strong enough that I had to wear my cap backwards. It ended up getting some color on my face.
I don't think she wanted me to pass her. She repassed me each time!
Passed him
Almost caught her at the finish line
Ran out of real estate to pass her
Finish line
Finish: 2:03:22
Click here for my Garmin data.
A couple of strong finishes not too far behind me
After collecting my finisher medal, I eventually made my way over to the post race table to pick up some snacks before heading back to my car. I thought about waiting for some of my fast friends running the marathon, but without knowing when they had started their race, I decided to head on out. I ate the FatBoy Jr ice cream sandwich before I started the drive home.
Finisher medal and post race snacks
On the way home, I stopped at the Chick-fil-A in Brea to pick up lunch. I placed my order on the mobile app before getting into the drive-thru lane. I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich with pepper Jack cheese, fruit cup, and a frosted lemonade. I always crave a frosted lemonade after running a race!
Frosted lemonade
Grilled chicken sandwich with pepper Jack cheese and fruit cup
Sunday 3/6
I got ready and left the house for the race at about 5:30 am. I arrived at the Redlands Mall parking lot at about 6:15 am. Unfortunately, the mall has been closed since 2010 and there were quite a few homeless people loitering around. Even though I could've parked closer to the packet pick-up tents on the western end, I decided to park on the other end of the parking lot near CVS as that store was still open.
There was quite the chill in the air as I walked over to the tents. After getting my bib and race shirt, I hurried to get back to the warm car. In my haste, I forgot to pick up the goodie bag. I had to go back to pick that up.
Packet pick-up
Race shirt
Back of race shirt
Goodie bag
About 30 minutes before the start of my race, I went to use one of the portapotties that were set up near the corner of Eureka St and Citrus Ave. Since the 10k race started at 7 am, I hung out at that corner to watch the start of that race.
10k leaders
After the last walker/runner went by, I headed back to my car to get my handheld water bottle. I then headed over to the start line to wait for the start. The half marathon was scheduled to start at 7:20 am. While waiting, I bumped into one of my older race buddies that I had first met at the La Jolla Half Marathon. It's always good to see him at a race. We ended up chatting with a Loma Linda Loper.
I started the race feeling pretty good. However, I knew that the first half of the course was mostly all uphill. I made sure not to get too crazy with the early pace. Since I was running on tired legs, I ran mostly by feel. If the inclines felt too strenuous, I pulled over and took a walk break. By the 7th mile, the course started to level out and the declines started. It was pretty nice running the stretch along Sunset Dr. At about mile 11.5, I made that left turn onto Olive Ave. It was pretty much an almost 2 mile stretch to the final left turn at Eureka St for the finish line. Unfortunately, I was running or jogging on fumes. I took 6 quick walk breaks during that stretch as I couldn't convince my legs to keep on running.
Almost crossed the finish line
Finish line
Finish: 2:09:41
Click here for my Garmin data.
After crossing the finish line, I collected my finisher medal. The finishers were directed into the post race area at the Mission Gables Bowl House. There was a table with water, orange juice, and orange slices. I took a cup of OJ. Out of the hundreds of races that I've run, I don't recall ever being served OJ at the finish line.
Post race water, orange juice, and orange slices
After checking out the few vendor tents at the post race area, I started heading back to my car. Along the way, I came across the memorial to Albert and Alfred Smiley. Here's an article in the San Bernardino County Sentinel about the history of the twins.
Memorial to Albert and Alfred Smiley
I used one of the portapotties before heading on out. As I was pulling out of the parking spot, I made it a point to only use the back-up camera. Prior to driving this Tesla, I've always been used to turning my head when backing up my car. Turned out that those back-up cameras do not see or show everything. There was a guy there that had stopped so that I could finish backing out. He knew that I did not see him. When I finally noticed him, I waved at him to apologize.
Along the way home, I stopped in at the McDonald's to pick up breakfast. On the mobile app, I ordered a sausage McMuffin with egg sandwich meal. Using one of the app deals, I added an additional hash brown for another $1.
Training or preview for the LA Marathon in 2 weeks :)
No comments:
Post a Comment