(Half #9, 2015) Wine…read morecountry... Peaceful. Serene. Refreshingly scenic. Inescapably beautiful. Transcendent... While running along fields upon ever-growing fields, whether canopied with vineyards or blanketed with citrus orchards, you can't help but take your time, slow it down and soak it up, breathe deeply... The mustard flowers perched upon the roadside; an occasional, speckled cow minding more its breakfast than your intensions; and the horizon, blue and infinite... These runs require soul...yours. Enough music surrounding you, your earbuds will be fine this time left at home. Over 400 enthusiastic runners rallied in beautiful Paso Robles for its 12th Annual Half Marathon. They arrived not only from all over California, but from Nevada and Tennessee, Oregon and Colorado, Minnesota and Hawaii. They came from Arizona and Ohio and Utah and Washington, from Kansas and Virgina and Texas and Nebraska. Laced-up and eager, runners--ones also harboring deep appreciations for great-tasting California wines, I'm sure--embraced this event as not simply another run, but a vacation. Certainly, the fun wasn't ending upon the finish line. If you've ever been wine tasting around Paso, you'll understand. If you haven't, go. Besides the very cool medal--seriously, I cannot gather up enough!--wine glasses commemorating everyone's awesome achievements were awarded to all. Looks like, along with my medals, I'll be starting another collection! Great job, Paso! See you again next year!

I've been attending this event since 1996, and I wouldn't miss it for the world! I started out…read morecamping but as I've gotten older, there is nothing like having a RV at Wildflower.

Happy 30th Birthday Avia Wildflower Triathlon!…read more It was my 3rd time returning to Wildflower and I was really looking forward to the challenge. I anticipated that this years event was going to be a little more over the top than previous years since they were celebrating their 30th year anniversary. Sure enough, the festivities and the race did not disappoint. The multiple races that take place over the weekend always run so smooth. Whether you're doing the Mountain Bike course, Long Course or the Olympic, it all runs so seamless and without error. Since it was a big anniversary, it seemed that lots of triathletes came to the area to compete and celebrate this milestone with TRI-California. The park was packed with people and the transition area was pretty full of bikes--more than I've ever seen. Plus, Long Course sold out a month or two before the event. Like previous years, I took part in the Olympic Distance Triathlon and this year and it was still the tough course it had always been. Just because I wanted to make it that much more difficult, I did it with the FLU! You got that right...a fever, headache, body aches, cough - it wasn't pretty. I still completed the race but I didn't get a PR, that's for sure. Loved the race, loved the course, loved the finishers medal, finishers towel...loved everything about the weekend (except that I got sick). I don't recommend ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER doing Wildflower when not feeling 100%. But, I got my finishers medal and I get bragging rights that I conquered the hills of Wildflower even with the flu holding me down. I'm looking forward to seeing you in 2013!

First time running it, a few thoughts: - swag is…read moreridiculously sparse, but oh well - while they announce a "bucolic course in the hills of SLO", get prepared for 2/3rds of the course to be on the road with other cars passing by (people in the area love their trucks, it smells every time a car passes by). A decent 2-3 miles is on an access road by Highway 1, with the noise etc. People with sensitive lungs/avoiding to work out where there's car pollution should be aware of this - hydration stations 2, 3 and 4 ran out of cups. Runners were offered the option to lift the giant water bottles and drink out of it - super hygienic. C'mon people, paper cups are cheap, you know how many runners have signed up, and hydration is too important to be fuddled with!! - they "ran out of beer" when I arrived at the finish line (runners were still arriving for another 30-40 min after me). Another false claim in the confirmation email "enjoy a beer at the finish line", and again, it's not that hard to know how many runners there will be that day. I don't think I'll do this race again. The scenery is more appealing to me than city races, but it's really poorly organized. There are waaay better organized races in similar settings - including Mexico by the way (valle de guadalupe).

Just ran the City to Sea Half Marathon yesterday and I thought the organizers and event staff did a…read morefantastic job. 2012 brought in a record number of runners with City to Sea clocking in at 2500+ participants. This is a point-to-point race that starts in downtown SLO and brings you through stretches of rural backroads, beautiful coastal roads with scenic ocean views. The course is relatively flat with a few gentle rolling hills starting at mile 5. There are numerous fuel and hydration stations and excellent course support throughout. The pace groups were very helpful (they run at 15 minute intervals) and really kept me on target with my finish time. Runners can enjoy live bands, wellness and nutritional information and a delicious full breakfast catered by Scotty's Bar & Grill (grubby breakfast burritos) at the finish. There is a convenient bag drop and pick up station and a shuttle service to bring you back to the start. The pre-race expo included a variety of top-name vendors, great specials (my Nike LunarGlide 4's and Mizuno Wave Precision's were 20% off) and featured a few of the latest brand new designs in running gear (liked the ear bud/sunglasses). The race packet included a very nice gender specific techincal fabric shirt, which I will get a lot more use out of than one of those big baggy unisex t-shirts. The registration fee is one of the lowest you'll find -- while most half-marathons are priced at $100 +, the City to Sea is very nicely offered at $65 - 75. If you haven't been to this race, I highly recommend adding this one to your race list. A 5K and a Kids Run are offered as well. There is something for everyone to enjoy at this beautiful event.

I absolutely loved this race. It was my first half-marathon, and I've caught the bug. After years…read moreof semi-training for 5K's and 10K's, always to be left kind of disappointed with my performance, I finally just went for it with a 1/2 and am so glad I did. The course for Salinas Valley is gorgeous, the community running the race is incredibly friendly and good-spirited, and few things compare to the self-pride of completing this kind of physical challenge. Additionally, this was by far one of the most well-run races I've participated in. Everything from parking to nutrition stations to the post-race event were well-planned and expertly executed. I wasn't much up for all the wine tasting after throwing myself across the finish line, but it seemed fun! Maybe I'll toughen up by next year; the chocolate milk beat out Cabernet this time. If you're on the fence about running a half, know that the large majority of folks were run/walkers; I came in around 2:37:00 and was in good company. I had a blast and am already looking forward to next year. The one thing I *won't* forget is Body Glide - these thighs just aren't made out for August heat in Salinas. Lessons learned! ;-)

Just ran the race today. It is one of the most well organized event I've participated in, not to…read moremention one of the most scenic. The traffic flow and parking were well thought out, the goodies at the start and end of the race were great (water, plain bagels & cream cheese, grapes, candies, water, coffee, wine, coconut water), there was a massage service at the finish area, the mile markers were in nicely done boards and in large print, water and port-o-potties were available every few miles, and there were volunteers carrying pace boards that I found helpful in reaching my goal time. I look forward to doing the race again next year!

I found myself in California during Thanksgiving, and I was itching to run a turkey trot, as I have…read morenever done that before. Just my luck, right in Salinas, CA (where I was staying), a local church was putting on their first ever turkey trot for the entire Salinas Valley. Held at Toro Regional Park, it only cost $25 for day-of registration, and the money is used as a charitable donation to support youth leadership in the area. It could not have been easier! The turnout was about 300 people, and the weather was beautiful! I wore shorts and was happy. Registration was smooth and included a very nice finisher's t-shirt as well as a loaner ankle bracelet for official timing. The run itself was contained entirely within the park. The running surfaces were mixed in nature and included running paths and even a field of grass. The course was not designed for high speed though as there was an out and back section up an extended hill, a run through the grass, a narrow channel crossing area to the final stretch, and a little bit of rolling hills before the finish. The turns and varied terrain made it exciting though and with two out and back legs, you could quickly determine where the competition was. I didn't stick around for the awards ceremony which was a BIG mistake. I learned later that I actually placed third in my age division which entitled me to a medal. About a month later, I received the medal in the mail though, so I lucked out. I was especially thrilled to learn I had done so well, but I was disappointed by the quality of the medal since it does not have the name of the competition written on it, does not indicate my place or age group, and only has one word on the whole thing written on the back: CHINA. Um, yeah. At any rate, it was great that they followed up and sent that out to me. I really appreciated that. I would definitely recommend the race to anyone living in the area. There was a large walking contingent in the back of the pack, so it is certainly a viable option for those who want to get out on Thanksgiving morning and be active, without the pressure of a competitive run. Great race; not a place to PR though.

I ran the 5k race back in 2008 and thought it was great. It was my first running race ever and I…read morewas ecstatic when I finished. They gave medals out to everyone, which left me with a great souvenir to remember my first race. There are basically no steep hills and the course is out and back. No cars at all. Make sure that, when you finish, you keep your place in line because that is how they rank you. Near the end of my race, I sprinted past two people and, for some reason, they both passed me in line. I was really tired after I finished so I walked somewhat slow through the line. There was kind of a large gap between me and the next person so that's probably why they passed me. They we're in better shape and weren't really pushing themselves during the race - I kicked their butts anyways. Oh ya, and bring a friend to take pictures of you crossing the finish line. P.S. It's cold there in the morning. I took off a star because the course really isn't that interesting/ pretty...especially when we're surrounded by WINE COUNTRY.