My Long Beach Half Race Report

I received an entry into the Long Beach Half Marathon as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find, and write race reviews! All opinions are my own.

Six days ago, I ran the Long Beach half and boy, I had all of the feels.

Expo

Parking for bib pick up is tricky as the expo is held at the Long Beach Convention Center and so parking is a little difficult to find. We parked a few blocks away and walked over to avoid spending $10+ to park at the center itself. Once parked, bib pick up was easy peasy. They do have metal detectors so don’t be carrying any knives with you when you enter. 🙂 I picked up my bib, shirt, some last minute supplies, found my name on their banner and out I went.

Can you spot my name?

They also sell parking passes for the following day if needed.

Race Day

The half marathon started at 7:30 so I was dropped off around 7 and made my way to the starting area. The full started at 6 and both the half/full courses circle back towards the start around mile 6 so we all got to cheer on the marathoners as they passed us by.

The start for the half was smooth sailing. I found myself near a 1:55 pacer and ran with them knowing full well that I haven’t been able to run that fast in a few years or so. LOL. I knew it was too fast a pace to keep with my training for this race, but I was being stubborn as usual and held on for as long as I could. Apparently that was 7 miles and honestly, it was a glorious 7 miles. I am a crazy person and love rolling hills and turns and for the first 7 or so miles, there are a lot of it. I had a blast running along the course and seeing all the sights for those first set of miles.

Then, at mile 7, it straightens out and you’re just along the beach for 3 miles before you make your way back towards the finish. That part was brutal. Since the race started at 7:30 am, by the time I got to mile 7, it was around 8:30 and the sun was out beating down on us with no shade. Luckily, I brought shades and a visor, but yeahhhh, I was pretty drained from the sun. For miles 10-12, I was on the struggle bus. I started run/walking and beating myself up for not being faster. I also forgot my flip belt and body glide, which meant that I was holding my phone the entire race AND got some unwanted chafing. No bueno. 😦 Luckily, my friend was stationed at mile 12 and once I saw her, I quickened my pace and headed to the finish. HOORAY!

I didn’t get to enjoy much of the post-race festivities as I was super duper tired and couldn’t reach anyone due to low cell reception. I did enjoy the coconut water, which I chugged down in a minute. LOL.

Pro tips

Bring a hat/shades for that stretch along the beach. If it’s not overcast, the sun will take a toll on your body (unless you train in a hot climate).

If you are planning on meeting anyone, make sure to have a plan before you race. That way, they know where to meet you. Due to the congestion of all the runners, cell reception is extremely poor and I didn’t get reception until I left the area.

If you are planning on getting picked up, walk a few blocks out of the convention center. Your driver will 100% appreciate it as there is quite a bit of traffic due to the road closures.

Enjoy the course! When I wasn’t beating myself up about being faster, I had a lovely time! LOL.

The Long Beach half was my 29th half marathon and in all honesty, it hasn’t felt like that many. 🙂 Every half I’ve participated in has brought up the same feelings – pre-race anxiety, pre-race excitement, on course awe, on course pain, on course “OMG I can see the finish line”, and post-race joy that I finished. And although I’ve experienced these feelings before, it’s still surprising to me that I haven’t gotten bored of them. LOL. I guess, that means that I’m in the right sport, yeah?

It’s Race Week for the Long Beach Half Marathon

I received an entry into the Long Beach Half Marathon as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find, and write race reviews! All opinions are my own.

Woohoo! It’s race week again and I’m super excited. I haven’t raced since the first week of August and I was going through withdrawal from not doing double digit long runs. LOL A few weeks ago, I mustered the motivation to do 10 miles and uh, let’s say that I was strong up to mile 8 and then was on the struggle bus for miles 9 and 10. In my defense, miles 9 and 10 were when it was getting real warm and the sun was just beating down on me.

My 10 miler a few weeks ago

Nevertheless, I am not deterred. I am a bit nervous, but I’m always nervous before a race so I don’t think this is out of the ordinary. I don’t think I’ve ever come to a race with the confidence that I’ll do well. LOL.

My plantar fascitiis is still ever so present and I have just come to accept that it will go away when it wants and that all the stretching in the world is not going to fix it. I’m just glad that it hasn’t gotten worse over time. 🙂 It just takes a few miles of running for the plantar to ease up and I can run without pain.

Like all my previous races this year, I do not have any goals except to enjoy the distance and finish. I ran this race in 2015 and had such a great time. The course is truly beautiful and for 90% of the course, you can see the ocean. 🙂 I’m a fan of the pretty water. LOL.

I have a few more runs left to do this week, but I feel confident that I’ll have a great time. Plantar has definitely taught me to enjoy the process more and I think I’ll be getting a lot more out of this race than when I ran it 4 years ago. Wish me luck!

If you haven’t signed up and still want to, you can use code LBMBR10 for 10% off your half/full registration and I’ll see you there. 🙂 

 

Running Around with KnockArounds

Disclaimer: I received a pair of Knockaround Sport Premium Sunglasses as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find, and write race reviews!

Hey there! It’s been almost a month since my last post and I’m oh so sorry about that. I’ve been going through some personal and professional things and I just lost the motivation to blog. But, I’m back now and this time, it’s to tell you about KnockAround’s Sport Sunglasses that have come out recently.

KnockAround, as you may have already guessed, makes sunglasses and they’re based in San Diego. It was founded by Adam “Ace” Moyer, a graduate student of UCSD and as a San Diego native and UCSD alum, this brings me great joy. 🙂 What’s even better is that these sunglasses are awesome.

Their newest collection is their Sport sunglasses, which have a nice little rubber nosepad that prevents the sunglasses from slipping down your nose when you’re living your active lifestyle. I’ve worn them for several weeks now and they’re as comfy as be. The nose pad doesn’t leave any indentation on my nose even after several hours of wearing them and they prevent the sunglasses from bouncing up and down when I run.

The most common issue I’ve had with sunglasses over the years is that the tint of the lenses will start to peel off shortly after a few weeks. Even though I’ve only been testing this pair for only 4 weeks, I’ve had other KnockAround pairs for much longer and the tint has never peeled off. Hallelujah. Having a tint peel affects my visuals and is really annoying.

One other issue that I have is keeping the sunglasses on my head. I’m not usually aware of what’s on my head and I flail a lot, which results in a lot of dropped sunglasses. I’ve dropped these a few times and they’re still in perfect condition. 🙂

The Knockaround sunglasses start at $10 and come in a bunch of different colors with both standard UV400 protection and polarized lenses. If they don’t have the combination you want, they can also customize it for you. My particular sunglasses are the Premium Sports in Aquamarine/Fuscia and honestly, I love this color combination. I’ve always been worried about matching in clothes, but these color combinations are so vibrant that I just don’t care anymore. Match or don’t match with my clothes, I’m still going to wear them. LOL.

If you want your own pair or any of their other sunglasses, use code BIBRAVEKNOCKS3 for 20% off your entire order. 🙂 And if you don’t believe me when I say how great they are, please feel free to read any of my other BibRave Pros’ reviews linked below.

Ben – Renee – Brandy – Tim