(Half #7, 2015) From…read morealmost 5000 feet up, amidst and atop the beautiful Sierras and the local foothills of Auberry, lie increasingly scenic and awe-inspiring views of the blanketing valleys below, beautifully green and heavily spring-abundant. The roads, lined with pines, meander and curl, making their way closer and closer to the mountain floor. The air, chilled from a snowfall the evening before, is clean, crisp, and still. And I ran it! This isn't just a Half; it's a Heavenly Half. And it's truly one of the most beautiful courses that I've run to date. Added, the route is almost entirely downhill, point to point, beginning in front of Cressman's General Store on Hwy 168--forget trying to find cell service--and ending at Auberry Elementary School off Auberry Road. Soul 2 Sole has paid so much attention to the running aesthetic that I quite possibly won't be able to fully appreciate anything less from this moment onward. Yes, I was THAT amazed! "Heavenly" blue skies and majestically brilliant, silver-lined clouds: and He said to Moses, "Climb the mountain to God." But what's even better is that Soul 2 Sole has a three-race challenge, all of which are part of the CA Half & Full Marathon Series: it begins with Auberry's "Heavenly Half"; moves on to Exeter's "One Hell of a Half" during the fiery, August heat; and finishes with "Judgement Day" in Bakersfield. Complete the trio, and you'll receive the following: * Soul Half Marathon Series Jacket ** Wall Medal Holder for your bling *** Soul Series Mega Medal **** VIP Treatment at Judgment Day Half The swag for the Heavenly Half was amazing just the same: * Early registrants received Insulated Event Coffee Mugs and Runner's Hats. ** Very cool Finisher Medals and Heavenly Half Stadium Blankets for everyone. *** A tasty, hot breakfast served with Top O' The Morn Chocolate Milk. This race was awesome. If you decide to run it, wait until the Heavenly Half--a race that sells out quickly, limited to only 1,250 participants--when it commences in March. To complete the Challenge means doing so in the same calendar year. And the series challenge medal...it's said to be legendary!

I love this event. Never missed one. This is a great course. However, the last one that we did on…read more03 18 2018 was pretty challenging though. Temperature was very low, road conditions were tough, black ice was there for at least the first 7 miles which forced me to stop numerous times as I refused to take these falls on black ice. I will still come back. Always. :)

This was my very first triathlon and it was fantastic!…read more 1. Race is very organized. Volunteers are spectacular and clearly know what's going on. Post race BBQ was delicious. 2. Location is BEAUTIFUL. I can't believe I had never been to Bass Lake until this past weekend for the triathlon. This little gem is tucked away near Oakhurst, just south of Yosemite. 3. Course is challenging but scenic. You are at an elevation with rolling hills for the run and bike portion. The lake temperature is perfect. I can't wait for next year! Thanks to everyone that was a part of the Bass Lake Triathlon!

I LOVE love LOVE this race! It has something for everyone....ultra marathon, regular marathon, two…read moredifferent half marathons that you can enter into as a walker or runner, and even one that you can split in half and do as a team relay (two person). The accompanying events (a fitness expo and after race amenities) are awesome....as is the organization (plenty of port-o-potties, water stations, etc). And with each racer receiving a shirt, and finishers receiving sweat shirts, medals, brownie sundaes, breakfast, massages, and a trip to the wine/beer garden after (I'm always too tired to enjoy this), this is one of the most swag-rich races in the state. Of course, having it in my own "backyard" doesn't hurt. I've done the race twice in the past, and look forward to bettering my time next year, and the year after that!

Two Cities Eye-Q Marathon and a Half was the most exciting marathon in California yet. Dean…read moreKarnazes was a phenomenal speaker and motivator. It was definitely a treat to have him as our guest speaker. I don't think many of us know or understand his accomplishments. The man is legendary. Overall, I thought the course was fairly flat and fast. It's a small race ( 200-250 Ultra, 400-450 Full, 3800 Halfs, and many many relays. (6,000 runners / walkers with 1,500 volunteers) This marathon is quite new to Fresno. This was just its 3rd running, so you can imagine how many newbies are here. I don't mind it but I'd wish they knew common etiquette. I do, however give kudos to all who have tried running, supported, and volunteered for this event. Without it, it would be meaningless. I was impressed on how well it was run, although, I felt some of the organizer could of done better. I also really appreciated that the marathon only cost $90 ($75 half, $65half relay) and had the best swag. I got a long sleeve black / blue technical shirt, a racing cap, a finisher's medal and a sweatshirt! Not to mention all the goodies after the race... Definitely, a recommendation to all new runner due to course, it's not challenging at all unless you do the Ultra. My advice- train better (w/ a pace setter, a team), smarter with technology, , mentally, physically, emotionally, and diligently. Slow and steady wins the race. "Drive less, run more, and save the planet for tomorrow." - Stanley K For other marathons throughout California, check out: http://www.halfmarathons.net/race_calendar_california.html OR around the world: http://www.halfmarathons.net/ For a good read: pick up The Courage to Run - "A guide to running for your life" by John " The Penquin" Bingham ( Great for anyone starting off ) or: Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen ( Ideal for intermediate ) Are you 50 miles in 50 days...ready? :) Hoorah! Good Luck! And please don't think Fresno suffers from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), because most days, we don't! :)

The best. Wanna relive it! Don't go. There is too many people already! Was the best, back in the…read moreday. Now too much security and they take it too serious. Blues people are chill and the best. Young A-holes ruin it. All you young people only come if you are chill and cool. Most of you are too egocentric. Chill TFO.

Local race track at the Madera Fairgrounds. We've been going there for years. Last night was the…read moreHarvest Classic. Sprint cars and super modified cars. The concession stand has been closed (disrepair?) but there were two food trucks to satisfy the cravings. Bring a stadium cushion, those bleachers get hard.

Everything went well! The employees at the speedway were amazing. The food vendors were amazing…read more. It was my grandson's first race and he was the only racer, that was a little disappointing, but we were still excited!!! can't wait for the next one

This was one of the location races I wanted to check off my bucket list, and it did not disappoint…read more Who wouldn't love visiting and running through beautiful Yosemite to Bass Lake. We stayed at the Best Western Plus st Oakhurst and caught the shuttle in the morning about a 10 minute walk away, that took us to the start line. We started timely and the course was beautiful. I would say the first 5 miles were the hardest because I did not train for trail running, but I wasn't trying to PR so I was just taking my time and enjoying the scenery. All in all, if you love location races, I would definitely recommend this race. The only thing I would have done different was to go to the expo a little later in the day. I arrived pretty much when they opened and some of the vendors were not set up yet. No food vendors were up and no smore's section was set up yet. I saw some of the vendors arriving as I was leaving.

Getting there: To get to the start line, we had to drive to…read moreYosemite High School and get shuttled to the start line, which took about an hour via shuttle. No, you are not able to drive to the start. Experience: This was my first half, or even race in general and it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. Our wave time was at 6:00 AM I believe and from our campsite as bass lake, we were 30 mins away from Yosemite High School, where shuttles take racers to the start line. The shuttles were over an hour late causing us to miss our start time. At first we thought this was going to be a big deal, but when we arrived to the start we realized it didn't matter. We were able to finish the race in about 3 hours and 30 minutes, beating the sweep time of 4 hours. Tips: - Get to the shuttles early. It takes an hour to get to the start and parking gets crazy at the high school. Plus, the shuttles were not on time.

The dude and I came to Clovis Fest on 9/25/21 and planning on attending with my niece tomorrow…read more9/26/21. We stopped in to check out all the Goodies. Parking was so easy to find come early as a lot the neighborhoods were filling up pretty fast. We live down the street but decided to drive over in case I wanted to buy something and too heavy to walk back with. They have over 200 Booths with unique items. I am mostly interested in the Princess Booths with the face painting which I am planning on getting my face done along with my niece tomorrow. They also have a Beer Garden which was not open yet when we arrived today at 10am. They have so many food booths from BBQ, Country Fair Cinnamon Rolls, Boba, Indian Food, Mexican Food and Fair food along with the other restaurants in the area such as Luna's, House of JuJu, Roll Me Some and other goodies. I love the little girls Garden Booth and wanted to buy everything up from the little girl and her parent! They were so pleasant and nice. All my Princess Senses were tingling. They had performances going on and live bands and signing up for Raffles which I highly recommend which I did win a Raffle before coming to a different outdoor event so they are LEGIT! The Clovis Chambers, SPCA was there with Puppies, Republican and Democratic Parties and SUPPORT OUR POLICE when CLOVIS PD was there looking GOOD :D the dude and I couldn't stop staring haha it was fun. They have a Kids Zone filled with games, petting zoo, princess face painting and so much more! I would highly recommend giving Clovis Fest a try. I loved the music and performances and seeing all the young entrepreneurs and established booth owners and unique shops. Clothing, hats, food for days! It was hot dat so make sure you grab water, hat , sunscreen and a the many boba or shaved ice or ice cream places to cool off. Coming back tomorrow and planning on getting a new plant to add to Our garden. Totally fun, Family friendly event and did I tell you they have A TRAIN RIDE!!!! I highly recommend coming!!

I really love watching the balloons take off. It's such a beautiful sight to see. You have to get…read morehere early if you want a good spot. Parking fills up quickly and people settle into the rodeo grounds early in the morning. The balloons take off after 7 and there are about 10 balloons total. One balloon stays behind to offer tethered rides. Pretty cool for only 10bucks a person. Across the street where the farmers market usually is in Clovis are tons of vendors. They sell everything from soap to food. All unique gifts to take home. The cutest thing this year was they had little kids selling their products. It was great to see young entrepreneurs. There is also plenty of delicious eats to chose from with all the great food trucks and restaurants in Clovis. So if you're ever free when they have Clovis fest again it's a must to come check things out.

Opening day/night of The Big Fresno Fair (note you must have a clear bag now instead of a purse or…read morebackpack, but they'll give you a tiny complimentary one if you don't have one). I'm missing the horse racing though (as they don't have horse racing this year). I really enjoyed that part of the fair so hopefully they'll bring it back next year. IDK? I'm here tonight to see Joan Jett in concert. So far spent, $20 parking,$15 entrance fee, $11 for a plastic cup of J. Lohr Cab and $15 for a Corn Dog. & $9 for Elote corn... Oh, and I ran into Jack Sparrow ;D

Took the boys with me this year, as my eldest daughter ventures off with her friends on the rides…read more My daughter sends me a video of some girls fighting in line to go on a ride. Of course anything for the kids because for them price isn't a concern. They enjoyed every moment of it just being out and about with the scene. I helped myself to some local whipped honey and bee pollen. The corn dog and curly fries brick was about $25 and the grilled corn was $7. The sea lion show attracted many people and a lady going around with bubbles had the kids jumping with joy, my toddler enjoyed both. If you look past the food, there's still much to enjoy. I just got food items that my kids would enjoy. I'll be going to the RnB Concert this week so we will see how that goes, I kind of scoped if there was any new vendors. I think I'll just be going for the usual smoked turkey leg and sticky cinnamon roll:)

I have gone skydiving 6 times and I still think THIS was one of the best experiences ever! I went…read morehere years ago, but the experience was one of a kind and something I will never forget because of the views and the kind instructor. I went by myself but the instructor made me feel comfortable and so excited to jump! I want to do it again.

Great people & amazing skydiving experience. Although we had to wait over 2 1/2 hours because they…read morebooked a group at the same time as me. It was hotter than Hell. It was frustrating. Sarah was apologetic. It was worth it. An overall great experience.