Monterey Bay Half-Marathon (Monterey County, California)

I've been running half-marathons all year long it seems, but in recent months I have failed to train regularly. A while back, a co-worker mentioned the Monterey Bay Half-Marathon to me and described it as nothing short of amazing. Apparently, the route takes runners right along the ocean for several miles. When I looked at my calendar, I noted that the weekend it was being held, I had no set plans and so, I decided to drive the 5-ish hours from Reno to Monterey to take advantage of this beautiful run.

There were a number of other things I wanted to do this weekend, from wineries to breweries and from hiking to spelunking, I was able to fit just about everything I wanted into this terrific trip. The primary reason for the trip though was to run the half. 

Rising at about 5:30 the morning of the run, I walked the mile or so from my hotel to the starting line. It was still dark out, but runners seemed to be pouring in from every direction to join the crowds at the race. As I understand it, the registration numbers were around 15,000 runners this year - that's a pretty big race!

As 6:50 approached, the organizers started launching corral after corral until it was finally my turn. The route starts out circling around downtown Monterey, until it finally hits trails along the ocean shoreline. I'm able to maintain a decent pace for the first few miles, but as I see the 'elite-runners' heading he opposite direction, I know that I'm moving like a snail in comparison to them. I push on Nevertheless. 

The organization of this run is outstanding. While headphones and personal music is discouraged for potential safety reasons, a number of bands and other entertainers are set up at regular intervals to provide some rhythm to those of us driving ourselves towards the finish line. Among the entertainers are a couple of bagpipe players (the sounds of my ancestral homeland always inspire me) and group of about 30 taiko drummers pounding out a driving beat for us.

After the turn, the races route doubles back along the ocean before heading into the famous Cannery Row. Finally, I see the finish line in the distance and begin to push myself to finish. While I didn't set any personal records for this 13.1 mile run, I still greatly enjoyed myself. The scenery and overall organization of the race make it a must do!