San Lorenzo River Marathon

On June 23, Burnout Bear and I ran the San Lorenzo River Marathon in Santa Cruz.  The race was organized by Coastal Trail Runs and there were also 10k, half marathon, 30k, and 50k races held that day, as well.  We signed up for this race only 2 days prior when we heard about the race via email. We couldn't pass up the unique opportunity to run through a river, as well as the last chance for Burnout Bear to complete a race before he entered the 30s age group (gasp!)

I wanted this to be a fun racing event, so I baked oatmeal chocolate chip cookies the night before and drew squiggly blue river lines on each one with decorative icing.  (Sorry, I forgot to take a picture and they went fast after the race!)  I think that I will make a tradition of bringing special race-themed cookies to each event.  Baking the evening before a race really helped me to relax.

The marathon course climbed over 4k feet and crossed the San Lorenzo river four times... yes, that's right - FOUR times.  I was anxious about having soggy shoes for 26 miles, but what's the worst that can happen?  Gigantic blisters?  We were willing to risk it for the sake of adventure.  Besides, the beautiful redwood forest would distract us from the fact that we are soaking wet.

Course map - Marathon in pink

The San Lorenzo River (courtesy of Coastal Trail runs)

I'm glad that I wore my Salomon hydration pack because when we arrived at the race, Coastal Trail Runs hung a ribbon showing the height of the river.  It was up to my waste!  The Salomon pack sits high on my back and chest, so luckily all of my nutrition was safe from the water... as long as I didn't slip and fall in, that is.

Well, it ended up being one of the most enjoyable races that we have ever run!  Coastal Trail Runs setup a rope across the river, making the crossings really easy.  And the camaraderie amongst runners was the best that I have ever seen.  Somehow, the challenge of doing something a little crazy ignited a common fellowship amongst the runners.   I met so many new faces, made small talk with quite a few of them while running along the trail, and exchanged countless smiles and words of encouragement.  The fact that the course was twice out-and-back ensured that all marathon runners saw one another more than once.  Other than feeling a bit tired and my knees aching towards the end, I almost forgot that I was running a marathon.  (And wading in the river felt wonderful on the knees.)

Running through the redwoods (courtesy of Coastal Trail runs)

Turtle going for a swim (courtesy of Coastal Trail runs)

I was feeling pretty good all the way to the finish, and when I crossed the line I was surprised by what the clock read: 4:34!  It was the first time that I ran a trail marathon under 5 hours.  And I ended up finishing only 40 seconds behind Burnout Bear...  Did I mention that he was running with me the entire time and sprinted ahead of me at the finish?  He tells a different story about falling in the bushes and me catching up to him blah, blah blah....  :)

It also ends up that I broke the female marathon course record, strange enough.  Not many females have run the marathon course previously for some reason, so someone was going to break the record that day and I ended up being the lucky one.

If you ever get the chance to run the San Lorenzo River race sponsored by Coastal Trail Runs, I recommend that you go for it!  It is a unique running adventure.

Burnout Bear running to the finish (courtesy of Coastal Trail runs)