Surf City Half Marathon

This past weekend, I ran the Surf City Half Marathon for the 2nd time. The first time was actually my very first marathon! I was quickly reminded along the course why this is one of my least favorite races. Like I said before, it is just flat out boring. I know I’m spoiled by living in L.A where the beaches are within walking distance, but 13.1 miles of beaches? Let alone, the entire 26.2. No wonder I crashed so hard last year at Mile 15. The race itself was fairly uneventful. I didn’t have a time goal in mind and since Goofy’s Challenge, I’ve been taking it easy and slacking on my mileage. Mentally, I’m so exhausted with long runs and even thinking about going out for a 20+ mile training run stresses me out. I had to miss a 24 mile training run 2 weeks ago because I just wasn’t feeling it and somehow hurt my left foot while trail running. Excuses aside, I better pull myself out of this slump soon because I have Pasadena Half next week and Napa Marathon and L.A Marathon next month. Someone remind me why I signed up for all these races back to back? I think a well deserved “break” is called for after L.A Marathon, although now that I think about it, I have San Diego RnR in June, San Francisco in July and my first 50K in August. Yes, I need an intervention….

Anyways, back to the race…In the back of my mind, I was secretly hoping to qualify for the New York Marathon with a time of 1:37. Surprisingly, the times for New York are harder than Boston, but you are also able to get in with a half marathon time. I’m not sure why I want to run New York so badly, I think it’s just another goal for me to work towards and another excuse to sign up for more races.

The entire course was pretty much along Pacific Coast Highway, with the exception of 3 miles winding into some neighborhoods overlooking the bluff.  I still remember the exact song I was playing on my iPod on repeat during last year’s race when I was running over the bluff. Lady Gaga-Just Dance, don’t hate. One of my least favorite parts about this course is the constant ins and outs and turnarounds. You would be running for a couple miles and see runners running the opposite way and wonder how much further until the damn turnaround. It’s a little discouraging and only serves as a reminder that you have to run back the exact same way. My legs felt a little stiff in the beginning of the race, but they loosened up after a couple miles in. After Disney, I realized how important it is to start off slower than goal pace, which is how I was able to do so well and feel great after despite the near freezing temperatures. Even though it might be scary to purposely take it slower and not get caught up with all the hype and energy in the beginning, your legs will be so much more refreshed later on in the race. It’s all about pacing, and I didn’t fully understand this until after Disney. After I crossed the finish line, I felt like I could have maintained a steady 7:30-8 min pace for another 13 miles. I felt great after the race with minimal soreness the next day. A successful race in my eyes.

I ended with a PR in this race, but it was bittersweet because I missed New York by 2 minutes. I just wanted to break 1:40 because the past couple half marathons, I’ve been stuck at 1:45. Oh well, I have pretty much all year to work on my half time and I’m going to try for New York again in a couple weeks at Napa Marathon where I will need a 3:30. Training until then? Track, hills, trail runs, and one more long run, 21 miles in Palos Verdes this weekend.

Oh yeah, I told myself this was going to be the last time running this race, but last weekend I met someone who was wearing a Surfboard Legacy shirt and I asked how she got it. Lo and behold, you have to run this race three times in a row (half or full) to get the shirt and pin. Dammit, guess I’m in it for one more year.

Race Results