Honestly, this hasn't been my favorite of the Lace Up races (Irvine still ranks high in my books). Palos Verdes is just a logistically challenging location given the hills, tight roads and not a ton of open spaces to stuff in a race expo or venue. It works, given that Lace Up is so small, but not without challenges.

The race started late - thankfully, because I was one of many stuck at the top of the cliff at the parking lot that required shuttle service. Not Lace Up's fault, but only 1 of the 4 scheduled shuttle drivers had shown up that morning so he was frazzled and scrambling to get people to and fro as fast as he possibly could.

The course is beautiful - challenging, but beautiful, but otherwise kind of boring at the same time. I can stare at the ocean for hours, but the course is just on the main road that hugs the cliffs that fall into the Pacific. Houses (though gorgeous ones) overlooking you, but at least the ocean always providees a great backdrop.

My results were faulty at the end, so I had to wait until later Saturday afternoon for them to actually update. I don't know what actually happened, but they were accurate once posted later in the day. My true disappointment came with the "post-race brunch" that was really a salad and some kind of mushroom empanada thing. Not at all what one wants after a hilly course!

Otherwise, Lace Up puts on a great race and I'll be tackling my third in the series in just a few weeks at Riverside. I'm grateful to be an ambassador for Lace Up, so please note that these are just my opinions and not reflective of Lace Up's nor any other ambassador's!