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Last weekend I ran the Santa Barbara Half Marathon for the first time. I had heard about the race the year before from some of my Rock Runner friends, and although I was interested I wasn't ready to commit. Earlier this year though I received a coupon for $15 off registration, and after running the race past a few of my racing friends, I signed up!
The original idea was that Erin & Jojo would be driving down from San Francisco with Cooper the dog, and I would be driving up from San Diego with my two dogs, with all of us meeting in Santa Barbara in a swanky vacation rental. Well, finding an affordable place that accepts three dogs is no small task. In the end we all booked rooms at the Oasis Inn & Suites in Santa Barbara, a pet-friendly "resort". I left San Diego around 7:30pm on Friday night, picked David up at the Burbank Airport around 9:30pm, and then we headed up to Santa Barbara arriving at 11:30pm. Not the ideal arrival and bed time for the night before a race, but oh well, that's how it worked out.
My Favorite Furry Travel Partners
We had all been watching the weather reports in the week leading up to the race and were getting nervous about the predicted rain. I HATE running in the rain! It was POURING Friday night on our drive up and I was losing hope for a dry Saturday morning. Miraculously though, it ended up being dry and beautiful! A bit chilly, but but who cares. DRY is all that matters.
Big Bird Running in a Tutu?
David played race shuttle driver Saturday morning and we dropped Jojo & Erin off at the marathon start, and then he dropped me and their friend Anthony off at the half start. We were about an hour early for the race (unheard of for me) and we stood around for what seemed like hours waiting for the race to begin. While we were waiting I met up with Tara and Ben, briefly chatted with Stacy from my Rock Running group, and managed to find Erica who would be my running partner with a common goal of a 8:30 pace.
I was so excited when the race finally began. I felt like I hadn't really raced for time and pushed myself in a while, and I wanted to see how my body responded. The race started out in Goleta and followed the bike path for several miles. Although I hadn't been in Santa Barbara for years, and I won't even mention how many years its been since I went to school there, I was amazed by how well I remembered the path which I had biked and rollerbladed on many times during my years at UCSB.
Santa Barbara Half & Full Marathon Course Map
(click on the image for a larger view)
(click on the image for a larger view)
The course had a few rolling hills which I mentally prepared for, and they really didn't bother me until I hit the hill at mile 10. I was keeping on pace up until this point around a 8:30 mile, but mid-way up the hill at mile 10 I felt like the hill would never end, and sadly I succumbed to walking. As the hill turned the corner though I realized I gave up too soon! The hill was about to end. I picked the pace back up and ran the rest of the course.
Soon after beating that last hill and knowing that it was all downhill from that point to the finish, the course turned onto a street bordering the ocean. Around this same time the *marathon* leaders were escorted through by the police. Wow, the marathon started only 45 minutes before the half. So these guys were about to finish a full marathon in only 45 minutes more than it took me to run half the course. I love seeing the elite runners go by and the combination of the ocean view, the elite runners, and an American flag flapping in the wind choked me up for a brief moment. I'm such a sap! I love running and racing and at that moment I couldn't imagine anything else I would've rather been doing.
Approaching the Finish Line
Soon miles 12 and 13 approached, and finally I was entering City College, running across the field, and running across the finish line. I had set a goal of a 1:50-1:55 finish, and was extremely pleased to see that I finished at 1:52!
Official Finish Time: 1:52:13
Mile Splits for my Running Nerd Friends
Post Race with Tara - Go Glam Runners!
Cooper Anxiously Awaiting His Mother
Jojo & Erin Looking Strong!
(Powered by Glam Runner Tutus)
We waited on the side of the road for about 20 minutes before we finally saw them. Jojo grabbed Cooper as she passed by, and the two of them plus an extremely excited dog headed towards the finish line.
Off to the Finish!
We hung out for a bit on the field while the newly accomplished Marathon Maniacs rested, before whisking them off to Baja Fresh for some lunch. Yep, I dragged them to Mexican food without letting them shower. I can be cruel when I'm hungry ...
David, Dog Whisperer
After lunch David and I headed back down to San Diego and I bid farewell to my favorite little college town. This race was my 7th half marathon this year with one more to go. I'm doing a 10K turkey trot on Thanksgiving Day, followed by a half marathon turkey trot the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The following weekend I'm running my 4th and final marathon for the year, and then I'm done racing for 2011! Race number 19 of 21, here I come!
Santa Barbara Marathon Race Shirt & Finisher's Medal
2 comments:
Way to hit that goal time! Awesome job! The picture of David with the dogs is TOO funny!
Dang girl, I feel like you are racing more than ever! Glad to hear you had a good time and there were so many people out there rocking tu-tus (spelling??)
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