I will start off saying that this was a must on my race list. Surf City is part of the Beach Cities Challenge. You must race Long Beach, Surf City, and OC in consecutive order (no matter which one you start, you do the other two in order) and you get the Beach Cities Medal! Right now it is a huge clam shell with the three medals inside. It is quite impressive. Since I ran the Long Beach Half already, Surf City was next.

This is a huge race. Around 15,000 runners we on hand and it felt like it. I am pretty new to racing (my 6th Half) and these staple races are just crowded! So many people, but the energy level is way up as well! With just two events, Marathon and Half Marathon, you knew what people were here to do... RUN!

I had arrived Saturday before to get my packet. I think with that many runners, they weren't able to accommodate same-day packet pick up. That could be tough for some coming from further distances. After the pick-up, the expo was pretty amazing. This three tent size circus was filled with many vendors selling merchandise, talking up future races, and offering samples of their yummy snacks. Of course this was the best spot for race buddies to meet and share their ideas about the plan of attack for the next day. I saw lots of selfies being taken, and I joined right in.

Race morning came early. With the idea of 15,000 people coming to run and however many more spectators, I knew parking would be tough. And it was. Arriving early was the key. Got parked, closed my eyes for a few, then got dressed for race time! 6:30 kicked off the Full Marathon and I walked up right as they left... it is such a cool sight to see take off from the side line. My Half start time was 7:45 and I was worried about it. This is Southern California and the sun was going to be up and at em'.

Race time... In my wave, race starts, and now I am dodging lots and lots of runners to get up to my pace and feeling comfortable. That is probably the hardest part about big races like this. I ran with a buddy and she and I did ok swerving through traffic. At mile five we split off and I tried to speed it up for a PR. Lots of aid stations to help along the way and the volunteers were supper supportive and motivated. There were a few small inclines that were a lot tougher than they looked. I had to slow up a bit and lost my pace. Coming around the 6 mile mark you could see the most amazing view of the Pacific Ocean. It was just beautiful. Then the rest of the way was on the Pacific Coast Highway. No trees, no shade, and the sun was blazing. It was probably 73 degrees on the last 6 miles and you could definitely tell. The last 3 miles or so felt like a steady incline. I powered through and had to slow up a bit again. The last mile was full of spectators screaming and cheering. That feeling got us runners to pick up the pace and finish strong. The finishers medals are unique every year and this years was called the Riptide (a longboard surfboard). One of the coolest medals I have seen. End of the race they had plenty of volunteers giving goodie bags that were much appreciated.

I was having an off day and ran a 1:47:14. It was the second slowest run and I was bummed about it. It could have been the weather (HOT!!) or that I had the flu four days earlier, but whatever it was I let the course beat me. I still had fun, but I will always push for the PR!

All that aside, this is an amazing race with lots of positives. Great course, great views, great finishers medal, and just a whole lot of fun! Please come to SoCal and run Surf City!