i have been wanting to run this race ever since i started running. it’s a part of the destination races series which i love, and it’s about as “local” of a race as i can get to where i grew up. the past couple years i had other things going on that didn’t allow me to run it, so this year i decided to just sign up already, even though i had a couple things going on the weekends before. it was way back in like december since these races sell out so early, so it’s been in the works for a while. plus i had a couple friends from college i hadn’t seen in forever coming to town to run it and my friend jessica who i ran big sur with was running it also.
as mentioned in my previous post, i got down to my parents on thursday and i had been feeling pretty sick. friday i was still not feeling that great, but was feeling better as the day went on. i figured as long as i could sleep through the night without my stomach acting up i would be good to go. i ended up sleeping like a rock and was awoken from my sleep all too early at 4:15am. why am i doing this again already? definitely crossed my mind, but i was excited and hit the road to meet up with my friends. we got there in great time, found the best parking spot ever and hopped right on the bus to drive us a few miles to the start.
it was pretty chilly when we got to the start line and my teeth were definitely chattering. we had about an hour to kill so we just cruised around trying to stay warm and hit the porta potties a couple times. there were definitely not enough at this race so i was glad we had the extra time to wait in line. before we knew it, it was time to head to the start line!
jess and i sporting our big sur marathon shirts
college friends!
since this was my 3rd race in 3 weekends i was definitely planning on taking this race slow, and knew i would most likely come out with a new PW (and i did) which i was totally fine with. my legs were tired and sore and i hadn’t been feeling good, all i wanted to do was have fun!
jess and i decided to run together since she was just cruising it too, and we started off running at an easy pace trying to find our groove. there are rolling hills as soon as you start and i could tell immediately that my legs were not recovered from the previous weeks. i was feeling tired and cranky and i seriously didn’t know how i was going to make it through 13.1 miles. i tried to keep confident, but wasn’t saying much of anything since i knew i would just be whining. later on jess told me she was nervous for me since i wasn’t saying anything at all, which isn’t really like me when i am running for fun.
we wound through some beautiful wine country and passed some amazing houses. we saw a baby horse galloping in circles with it’s mom…. i love baby horses! when we got to mile 3 i seriously was wishing i was running a 5k so i could stop. the sun was coming out so we were definitely warming up fast.
eventually i found some energy and started chatting away with jess and just felt better about it all, even if my legs were hurting. it was a beautiful course and i was going to have fun! around mile 6 you come to the biggest hill in the course and i may have had a thing or two to say when i saw it. more hills?!!?
you can see the people in the very top of this pic
climbing up up up
we told ourselves this was nothing compared to what we had done 2 weeks before and just got up and over it. we were rewarded with some amazing views when we got to the top.
we stopped at the top to refill our bottles and pose for a quick picture facing the other side. such a beautiful place and day!
we wound down the other side of the hill and made our way through the back roads of wine country. it was so pretty and i was happy now, although tired. i was enjoying it all and taking everything in.
everyone kept asking us about big sur and saying it was on “their list” and we definitely had good things to say about it. the spectators along the course kept calling us “big sur” also which made us laugh.
finally we were getting close to the end. there were still a few more rolling hills in the last 3 miles that i was not very excited about, but we made it up and over them. once we hit 13 i found a burst of energy in my legs and passed a bunch of people getting to the finish. i just wanted to be done! i crossed the finish line of my 13th half marathon and 3rd race in 3 weekends, very happy and very tired.
13.1 miles/2:06:22/9:38 avg pace
within a few minutes we all met up at the finish line and headed over to get our wine glasses and do some tasting! it was such a gorgeous day out and the race finished right in the middle of solvang which is such a cute town. i was able to hang around for about an hour and even got to meet a blog reader who came up and introduced herself! i loved meeting her (hi erin!) and was so glad that she said hi to me 
overall i am very happy i did this race. i finished the destination races california series so now i get another medal that they will send me! i love their races, they are always beautiful and have the best post race celebration you can ask for.
i wasn’t able to stick around for long, because another reason i was down for the weekend was to help throw my future sister in law a bridal shower! i got home, got ready and headed over to the shower location to set up. it was a busy day but well worth it and i definitely indulged in my fair share of celebrating by the time the day was done.
i made a couple trips to this table
biggest cupcakes ever and delicious cookies – YUM
me and the beautiful bride to be!
this morning i got to spend mother’s day morning with my mom and then i hit the road back to the bay area. it’s been a long busy weekend, but definitely was a great one.
hope you all had a great weekend and
happy mother’s day to all the amazing women out there,
especially my own mom
i totally saw you at the start! i thought it looked like you but i wasn't sure and i didn't want to embarrass myself if it wasn't : / i think it was seriously the most beautiful race i've ever run…i was smiling the whole time! glad you felt good and finished strong with yet another race under your belt, congrats!
What a great post and what a beautiful race. Gorgeous scenery with wine-tasting at the end? That sounds like the best. What's next for you?
The race sounds like it was a blast. Beautiful course. I ran 3 races in 3 weekends too, but they were shorter ones
Love the dress you wore to the shower!
Congrats on your race…what a beautiful area to run in! BTW, your PW is a time I can only dream of for now
Congrats on completing the destination races! Looks like gorgeous views!
Another great race…congrats. What a beautiful course!
Nice job – beautiful pictures.
Even your personal worst is better than my personal best!!
Amazing pics Aron, and well done on the party too! Those ARE big cupcakes!
Your are really motivating me to push some limits. I hope I can run a marathon, then two more races including a half within 3 weeks of each other.
Apart from having tired legs, nothing hurts? No foot pain?
Great job!
Congrats on gutting it out! 13.1 is a long way to go when you're not feeling it. Sure looks like a beautiful race and gotta love the post-run wine!
Love your dress at the shower – you look gorgeous!
P.S. mailing out your "goodie box" today!
Wow! 3 races in three weekends in no joke. It looked beautiful. Now you can rest! Seems you are feeling better, so that is good. Did you have some wine?
you run/race in the most beautiful places! 3 races in 3 weeks? youre pretty much a huge bamf too
congrats!
Those race pictures are gorgeous!
Again- you're a rock star. Congratulations. What a beautiful race too!
NOW…it's time for you to relax a bit!! Great job on an incredible 3 weekends!
Another race I'd like to run! So pretty! Now you get to relax and sleep in!
What a weekend! Way to go on the half! Now rest up girl
Wow! Amazing views! Great pictures! What's on the schedule for weekend #4?
wow, you've had a GREAT 3 weeks! 
What a beautiful course. Someday I will run in CA … preferably a race where there's wine involved!
You've been a busy lady. I hope you've got a massage scheduled!
Races like that sometimes turn out to be the best. Congrats!
This race sounds awesome! Any road race that gives you wine at the end is AMAZING in my book
Congrats, I love the intensity, 3 races in 3 weekends, crazy!
Love the pics from the wine run!
Looks like a ton of fun and sometimes a PW is alright 
Great job on all the races and dang girl, share some of that bomb food with me. shoot!
What a course! Thanks for the pics.
looks like you had a fun race!!
you were all matchy with us too! wooot wooot! 
Sounds like such a fun race! Great job completing the 3 for 3!
3 races in 3 weekends is quite impressive and that course looked hilly. Great job.
Nice hill. Too bad it was paved. HA!
Looks like you had the perfect day for a race!! And all that food at the bridal shower must have been awesome for post race recovery!!
I've always wanted to do this race as well. Someday, I'll make the trek. Looks beautiful!
glad you enjoyed this race! the pics are beautiful and you are such a skinny minny!
must've been a bridal shower kind of weekend – i had one too!
What fun to run a race with all your friends and to see Jess again so soon! I already commented on your recovery post, but would otherwise have said, "Take some time off now!"
Yay, great job on a fun race, glad you got a gorgeous day for it!!!
You are a racing machine, girl!
Have I mentioned how much you make me miss California?
HIlly, but beautiful countryside. Great job even if you weren't feeling 100%!