I ran the Suncadia Half Marathon this weekend! And my one friend SkinnyRunner ran the full marathon and WON 1st place! Congratulations to her!!
(Remember when SR had a running blog and was funny and would take walks with me all the time and go with me to races? I miss that, do you?)
Anyway…
I was invited to run the Suncadia Multi-Sport Festival and had my pick of races – bike tour, marathon, half marathon, trail race or 5k! I was going to run the full but decided to step down to the half marathon because even though I ran a 19 miler and 18 miler recently, I don’t feel like I’m in the best shape and didn’t want it to be a march to my death.
The full marathon started at 7:30am and the full started 8am. So while I waited for the half to start I watched SR run past around mile 2.
Then, I hit the porta potties and said hello to this cow before heading to the start.
The race is all on Suncadia property. This was the perfect chance to explore and enjoy the resort area.
It is really gorgeous and green here! But it’s also hilly. The course is pretty tough and some parts were windy.
After going up a few hills I was definitely happy I decided to do the half.
It’s a challenging race, but fun and pretty. We passed by a lot of great scenery but the absolute highlight was when I saw a deer right before mile 12!!!
I had to stop and take a video and a few pictures. This completely made my day! I don’t get to see this kinda wildlife in Orange County.
The course is on paved trails or streets that run around the property – except for the .1 mile that is from the start / finish to the street.
I finished the half marathon in just under 2 hours. Since the race was so challenging I just tried to do my best and run the tangents.
This is a fairly small event with 60 runners in the full marathon and about 150 runners in the half marathon. The expo and post-race party is small too but there were plenty of bananas, Z-bars, Clif bars and water. There was also a beer ticket on the bib, but I am not a beer girl. Packet pick-up, the race start and everything else I can think of was well organized.
What I wore to the Suncadia Half Marathon:
A. ProCompression Visor and Socks
Question: Would you stop in a race to take a picture of a deer? What animal would it take for you to stop?
I was invited to run the Suncadia Multi-Sport Festival. All opinions are my own.
Congrats SR!
Wow congrats! Looks like a challenging but fun race! I’m sure it was nice that it was so small! I don’t usually bring a phone or camera with me while I’m running races but I would totally stop and take a picture of something cool! Like a Moose or Elk or something!! hahah
SR!! I love to hear that she is still running and kicking arse! I miss her blog!!!
congrats to you and to SR!!! damn, girl is fast. so nice to see her again, even briefly 🙂
What fun! You were smart to do the half and enjoy it.
The views from the hills were probably almost worth it! Congrats on the half!
Answer: an armadillo or giraffe.
I’ve seen deer on training runs but not during a race. I did a half marathon in Wyoming and one in Montana that were both on ranches so I saw lots of buffalo. 🙂
I didn’t see any deer but would have welcomed any reason to stop. It was a lot hillier than I thought! It was nice meeting you as you were leaving the porta potties. Not awkward at all….
I would stop for a turtle or a frog then try to figure out how to take it home. I live in WA so deer and eagles are the norm. I’ve had deer pop out of no where and it’s not as cool as it sounds. Deer will attack people if they feel threatened. I don’t want to make the news that way.
I love your orange tank top! Thanks for posting “what I wore” and links!
Typo: “The full marathon started at 7:30am and the full started at 8am.”
The views in that race look amazing…
I feel like if I ran enough races throughout the year I would probably stop for an animal…
but since I practice yoga everyday I can barely make any races lately so when I do I like to focus on my time 🙂
Beautiful place for a run! When I was worried about times I wouldn’t have stopped for pics but now I would lol
nice job! sounds tough. I am doing a half this weekend as part of marathon training (i’m doing my 1st in October). I am guessing I will finish around 1:35ish but will obviously be thrilled if it’s faster!
I actually stopped yesterday to take picture of a mamma and baby deer. I see them often in my neighborhood. I also see turtle, frogs, geese, ducks, and other unidentified furry critters. Oh, and if I’m willing to drive a half hour, I can run with horses on the beach….
Running with horses on the beach sounds like a fairy tale 🙂
Congrats on your half!! That’s so exciting. The race looks beautiful.
And I can’t believe SR got first in the full! I used to read her blog as well.
https://thedogtribe.com/2016/08/02/full-day-healthy-meals/
Thanks! And yeah, SR is an amazing runner!!