a couple of my running buddies had participated in this event in previous years and said great…read morethings about it, so i decided to give it a try. in addition to the usual foot races, there was also a carnival for kids at the finish line and all proceeds would benefit education for underprivileged children. i'm definitely a fan of an event that focuses on kids!
for this particular event, there was a choice of 3 distances:
1. half marathon (13.1 miles)
2. 10k (6.2 miles)
3. 5k (3.1 miles)
i signed up for the half marathon since i had a good experience running a half at hellyer park/coyote creek trail last year.
the pros:
-VERY REASONABLE race fees, $30 for the 5k, $35 for the 10k, $60 for the half if you register during the regular registration period. add $5 for late registration and $10 for day of the event (if not sold out).
-FREE and EASY PARKING at hellyer county park. the organizers were kind enough to include the usual $6 parking fee with registration so we didn't have to queue up and pay at the main gate. just tell the ranger you're there for the vibha race and they give you a dashboard ticket for the day.
-CLEAR MILE MARKERS for each race distance, in both miles and kilometres. seeing kilometres was definitely a first for me since i've only ever raced in the u.s. and all markers are done in miles.
-ACCURATELY MEASURED DISTANCE, as my garmin read 13.09 miles upon crossing the finish line which is pretty much spot on with the official half marathon race distance of 13.1 miles. yes, i ran the tangents which is probably why i came up slightly under, shaving seconds off my finish time!
-FRIENDLY VOLUNTEERS directing runners in the parking area, manning aid stations along the course, and keeping the refreshments' tables well stocked after the race. i especially appreciated one of the aid station volunteers who told me to just throw my cup on the ground and go on with the race and that she'd pick it up after me! that was helpful as i saved some time!
-LOTS of PORTA-POTTIES near the parking and start/finish areas. there wasn't even a line just before the start of the half marathon and i don't think i saw anyone else using these after i finished.
what you get:
*choice of PACKET PICKUP for bib, tshirt and goody bag at sunnyvale sports basement 2 days before the race or road runner sports in campbell the day before the race. for those who couldn't attend either, they could arrive to the race early and pick up their packets on site.
*white, cotton, FINISHER'S SHIRT with a colourful vibha dream mile logo
*navy blue, drawstring GOODY BAG filled with discounts to local retailers
*several AID STATIONS with volunteers handing out cups of water, there were at least 7 aid stations that i counted for the half marathon which was more than sufficient and very much appreciated on this very warm day.
*customised VIBHA DREAM MILE MEDAL for each half marathon finisher - nice perk considering we paid almost twice as much as those who ran the shorter distances.
*TONS of POST-RACE FOOD & DRINKS, including assorted bagels, peanut butter, fruit preserves, cream cheese, sliced bread, bananas, water, coffee, and tea. there was also a line for a full plate of indian food! i skipped this line since it was quite long by the time i got there.
*SPONSORS including sweet tomatoes and ginny bakes passing out muffins, cookies, and granola bars at the finish area.
*AUTOMATED EMAILS with your starting time, split at the turnaround point, and official finish time. gotta love technology!
the cons:
-since the aid stations were not listed on the website, nor were they marked on the course maps, i had to ask 4 or 5 volunteers before someone could tell me where exactly the water & aid stations were. even though the 5th volunteer (after doing some digging herself) told me that the stations were at miles 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12, she was wrong as this is not where they were. based on my garmin, the stations were located at approximately 1.6, 2.9, 4.5, 6, 7.9, 9.4, 11, 12.3 miles, respectively. it was a bit challenging to time my water and electrolyte intake since these did not match what the volunteer told me, and i also had to think/calculate the aid stations after the half marathon turnaround point. i think it would be helpful to list these aid stations on the map for future runnings of this event.
-this course was also not very scenic. although we ran through hellyer county park/coyote creek trail, i basically saw one tree after another, after another.
-around mile 11, the half marathon course merged with the 10k course, and around mile 12, all three courses merged together which created quite a bit of congestion especially on such a narrow trail.
i was pleased with my strong finish, as i managed to pass quite a few runners in the second half, and wound up placing 4th in my age group (missing the podium by 25 seconds) and 8th female in the half marathon.
thank you to vibha for putting on such a well organized event!