And the flags were flying!
To me, there's just about nothing more fun than running a race in a distant land while on vacation. New people, new places, new trails, roads and paths. It's just a great way to expand your running horizons.
So while on vacation last week in the not-so-distant lands of San Diego, I ran a little 8.2 mile race called the Low Tide Ride and Stride. Yes, Ride and Stride. The bikers, and there were a lot of them, took off 15 minutes before the runners. And why "Low Tide..."? Because we were right on the sand - about 10 feet from the breaking waves. It was absolutely beautiful. And the course, which hugged the Silver Strand State Park, with the mighty Pacific on one side and the San Diego Bay on the other, had very little housing or storefronts along the route - most of the way, it's state park or military land, so it was basically nothing but the sand, the ocean, and the beach. I can't recommend it enough.
So now that the wonderful part is out of the way, we can talk about the actual race. I was slow, but two full days of driving to get from Corvallis to San Diego and then a 12-hour day walking around Legoland does not exactly get your legs ready to run. Surprisingly, the sand wasn't bad at all for running. The footing was solid on the packed sand. It was hot, but really, what can you expect for Southern California in July?
And although I assumed I'd be the only Northwesterner down there, I've got to give out big props to Ryan Bauthues from my old home town of Bellingham, Washington...who took 7th place overall! Way to go, Ryan!
Two big thumbs up for the Low Tide Ride and Stride.
