A busy Sunday

Today I ran the Carlsbad half marathon with my running buddy.  By her watch, we finished in 1:56, but I haven't been able to confirm the official results on the website yet.  The peak elevation of this race is 75', but that's deceptive--it's very hilly.  Obviously no BIG hills, but an ongoing series of rolling hills.  The flip side is, the course is along the coast, so it is very scenic and the views are excellent enough that you may even forget how far you're running for a minute or two.

My running buddy and I were well prepared for this race, having already run 12 and 13 miles as part of our training.  We didn't even stop to walk through the aid stations, except once, where I got in her way and there was some general confusion going on.  There is nearly always general confusion going on at aid stations, between the volunteers yelling out what's in their cups, the runners yelling what they'd like to drink, and people throwing the cups on the ground, along with their GU packets, etc. (not to worry, this is expected behavior and there are clean up crews at the aid stations as well), and the cheerleaders, and bands, and random men in hula-girl aprons and grass skirts. 

I'm listing this as "Things to do in San Diego," although technically the race was north of San Diego, in Carlsbad (in case you missed that in the race title), home to Lego Land.  (As an aside, I've never been to Lego Land because it is ridiculously expensive, especially if you're not bringing along a kid to get the full experience of the place). 

If you are a runner, or a walker, and want a good reason to escape the winter, come to San Diego, complete this race, and then vacation for the next few days.  The race started out cool, in the 50s, but by the time we made it to brunch, it was in the 70s.  Not bad for January.  And because the race is in January, you'll have to train through the holidays, which is helpful if you're not looking to gain 10 pounds in November and December.

And the race was well organized.  I've run races where aid stations have been un-staffed, races started late, there was no food at the finish line, and there were moose on the course (okay, that was actually pretty cool).  I would like to take a moment to offer a big e-shout out to all of the volunteers who were instrumental in making my race a success.  Seriously, there was an aid station at mile 1.  There were first aid volunteers cycling on the course.  There were lots of local bands and people playing music.  At one point there was a stream of surfers running across the course.  It was fantastic.  Oh, and did I mention that because it's an out-and-back, you'll see the Kenyans zoom past you on thier way in? 

One risk I will warn you of, just to present a balanced perspective, is that if you don't normally run in the 70s, or haven't had time to acclimate, it will feel hot.  So dress appropriately, shed layers, and don't feel bad about stopping to walk and admire the view. 

Then we went to brunch at The Ocean House Restaurant, which is housed in a building from the 1880s.  I love buffet brunch.  There was an omelet bar, where my aunt actually just ordered scrambled eggs, but I ordered an omelet with tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers, spinach, and cheddar cheese.  They also had meat and shrimp, but I'm weird about putting meat in eggs, unless it's a quiche.  I guess, more accurately, I'm inconsistent about putting meat in eggs.  There were many other breakfast items, including waffles, pancakes, cinnamon rolls, sausages, bacon, and fruit, along with a salad bar, a soup bar, a seafood bar (which my uncle took full advantage of, but something about shrimp and crab legs after running 13.1 miles was totally unappetizing to me), a meat station, and a variety of potatoes and vegetables.  And did I mention bottomless mimosas?

Sold!