Sunday, June 25, 2017

Pediactric Cancer Research Foundation Half Marathon

I'm very pleased at how well my body recovered from the LA Marathon, especially since I had the PCRF Half Marathon (March 26, 2017) to run just a week after it. I had very little soreness and no dehydration, unlike the last time I ran LA. I attribute this to my level of training and also using my Tailwind Nutrition in my water bottles. My goals for PCRF was to help raise money with my Team Renegade for cancer research, listen to my body and to run the race with friends.


This was my second year running the PCRF Half Marathon. I love what this race stands for and it meant a lot to me to be able to participate in it. On a personal note, a family member was hit with a rare childhood cancer out of the blue and she fought with everything thing she had to beat it. She is currently in remission but still has to have blood work done frequently and is closely monitored. Just like I did last year, I ran this race for her.

The race course took me by surprise last year! My town tends to be pretty flat for the most part but form this race I learned that there can be some pretty hilly sections. I had not expected some of the hills and slow building inclines. This year, with the help of marathon training, I came to this race better prepared. My running partner, who trained with me for LA, also got talked into running this half. Peer pressure from running friends is a very real thing :P We ran the race at a comfortable pace and made sure to keep ourselves hydrated. Of course we stopped along the way to take some pictures because that's just what we do.


The race starts (and finishes) at the local community college campus, runs down a local street and then connects over to the running/bike path. We then connected into a neighborhood that brought us to another running/bike path to take us over the interstate and towards Quail Hill, where I love to run the trails there. This race did not take us on the trails but up a rather big hill and headed towards another local college campus. After a few miles we turned to cut through another neighborhood and then jumped back onto the original running/bike path that we first started out on. This section tends to be a hard one, mentally, since you are running about half a mile past the finish area and then turning around to head back to cross the finish line. Each way we ran on the course there was always a group of volunteers cheering everyone on and making sure to hand out water and fuel.

Once you cross the finish line you are invited to stay and enjoy the activities and food trucks that they have set up. It's extremely kid friendly. The parking is easy to get in and out of with lots of spaces to pick from. They offer bib packet pick up the day before the race and before the race itself. The race distances consisted of a Half Marathon, 10K, 5K and kids run. I'm looking forward to running this race again next year.

I was rocking my Renegade Race Series visor, Orange Mud VP2, Tailwind Nutrition in both water bottles, INKnBURN Lucky tank and skirt, PROcompression socks and Topo shoes.

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