San Diego Holiday Half Marathon

(27^th Half, 2015)
So…
If you’ve been chasing the CA Half Series, you’ll likely end up at the San Diego Holiday Half medal race. Going after the Winter Exacta medal, are you? You’ve tackled the San Diego South Bay Turkey Trot 15K and then the SD Holiday Half? You’ll pick that up here. You say you’ve run El Cahon’s St. Patrick’s Day Half, Fallbrook’s Avocado Half, and you’re finishing with SD’s Holiday Half? Well, your Trifecta medal will be here waiting for you! And if you and your badass self have completed four, seven, ten, fifteen, or twenty of the CA Half Series half marathons, that medal will also be awaiting your arrival after you’ve crossed the finish line!
This was my first run at SD’s Holiday Half, my 27^th half marathon for the year; and I certainly enjoy running San Diego, don’t get me wrong. But I don’t live there. And since Holiday requires mandatory packet pick-​up at their expo (and I’m unwilling to make two trips), there’s an extra fee tacked on to those who need their bibs mailed. (I wish Holiday would just allow day-​of pick-​ups.) And what’s more disappointing is that only the bib is mailed: what I mean is that runners with mailed bibs won’t receive – and I love that these are included in the goodie bag! – the gloves or thermal blankets until the race’s end. It was so cold before the race; I wish I had them then. But I get the reasons for doing so.
Nevertheless, the SD Holiday Half is a lot of fun! I love the medals and the challenges! I love the long-​sleeved tech shirt and gloves! I love the theme! And I love San Diego!

First time in 2015, last time in 2015.
Yes, it’s a net downhill course and the medals are nice and there is lots of refreshments at the finish but the cons far outnumber the pros.
1. There is no race-​day bib pickup. Why, I don’t know. There are only 3,000 runners in this race. Race-​day bib pickup could be accomplished for that many runners.
2. Because of #1, I paid $ 8 to have my bib sent to me in the mail. Evidently they didn’t do it since it didn’t arrive. I was told to go to Solutions tent to get a replacement. When arriving they only gave me a bib, no bag, shirt, etc.
3. Since I didn’t get a bag at solutions, I had no bag for bag check. I had to go to the Chevron station to get a plastic bag for my gear.
4. The water stations are plentiful but highly disorganized and poorly staffed. The poor kids there were frantically trying to pour enough water in the cups to keep up.
5. Its not really very scenic except for the finish, Just running along a freeway for most of the way.
6. At the finish I was finally able to get my goodie bag and shirt but they were out of my size. Even though I specified Men’s Medium on my entry form when i registered in April. Had to settle for a HUGE large shirt.
7. Since they gave me a replacement bib, I was not associated with my bib number in the results. I had to contact them to attach my information with the new bib number. They have since done this.

My first year running the SD holiday half, in their third year. Overall it was cool, but hopefully I won’t be tempted to run it again next year. To be honest I’m just a big baby raised in CA and was not at all prepared for the cold! I wore 2 long sleeves & a sweater the entire race! Even the free gloves they gave us for about half the race. The weather is not their fault. But maybe if they held it a few hours later so it could warm up (idk how events work so it may be implausible with road closures).
Pros:
–nice course
–cool medal
–free gloves
–nice tech long sleeve (not a fan of design/​color)
–possibly getting a trifecta (I was unaware of the other races in the series though)
–emergency («foil») blankets in packet
–racing corals spread 3 mins apart
–pacers
–free bag check (I didn’t use)
–donation bins in beginning of course for sweaters, gloves etc.
Cons:
–parking! We had to get there around 5:40am when it was still dark and freezing outside to ensure a spot at finish! Then bused to start. I chose to wake up in middle of night basically instead of waiting an hr after race to get bused back to start (this year may have been improved from previous)
–heard parking gets crowded at start too
–directions said to exit Carmel mountain but one way it was blocked off for the race! So we turned back around freeway to exit off southbound and that exit was about to be closed as well! Normally wouldn’t be a problem but the address they gave would not show up on any maps
–they lied to me! I only signed up bc they tempted me with a PR claiming 700 ft net drop. Which may be true but there was def more than the 1 small hill they claimed! Lies. I was not prepared
–unorganized hydration stations
–long wait at finish for goodies=dying of thirst before I can get some water
It may be a good run/​experience for people who don’t mind up & down hill and braving the freeezing cold. Just not for me. They do have a drone at start so I’m excited to see how the video turns out. And unsure about the photo situation bc I only saw 2 photographers. We shall see if I post funny pics of me bundled up.

My 10^th Half Marathon for 2014! w00t. Lol.
LOCKDOWN
The race starts off on Carmel Mountain Road in Rancho Penasquitos by Albertsons, continues along the 56 bike path and finishes at Torrey Pines State Beach. You had to park a couple blocks down because the Albertsons parking lot was just one big cluster-​WHOA. The corral line-​up basically circled Albertsons. It was like a lockdown without the frisking or pat-​downs… darn. jk.
90s STYLE SWEATER
It was very cold in the morning, but it warmed up rather quickly. Early on I took off my sweater, and had to tie it around my waist 90s style. I think the last time I’ve done that was probably in the 90s. It was a little distracting. My sweater was messing up my portable CD Player. I couldn’t get my Macarena on, or sing along to «The Sign» by Ace of Base! What a disaster. lol.
BIKERS
The run was basically held on a bike path. There were signs posted that bikers were only allowed from so-​and-​so times, but that didn’t necessarily stop them. Bikers are ruthless people; their outfits associate where they belong to, they always ride in packs… so if you mess with one of them, you mess with all of them. lol. jk. The route was okay; flat and easy. Nothing too extraordinary that a person without a bike cannot do. lol.
COW BELLS
I didn’t realize this race was part of multiple challenges. If you do this-​and-​that race, you earn this-​and-​that medal. People were wearing various medals earned from either the CA Half Medal series or The SD Winter Exacta Medal. It sounded like I was surrounded by cows with bells because all I heard were medals hitting each other as people walked. I’ve never been so tempted to cow tip before… jk.
NEW CHALLENGE
Fortunately, there were free shuttles taking runners from Torrey Pines back to Penasquitos. Unfortunately, it was +1 hour wait. They should have made another challenge called run back to the start line. The time allotments were probably the same. jk.
Overall, this race was okay, but still good way to end the year. Time for a new medal rack!

SD Holiday Half is the last scheduled running race event hosted by USA ENDURANCE EVENTS for 2014. This year was their second annual SD Holiday Half & my first.
I was hesitant to run this race because Thanksgiving to New Year is my normal «break time» from running (a race). However, I thought what the heck.
Since this venue is smaller, expo was held at Road Runner Sports for a couple of days before the race weekend. Communication for bib pick up and instructions for parking or bus transport were clear. One thing to note is that the race is from A to B without the turnaround. Start of the race was in Carmel Mountain Road (by the Albertson’s parking lot) along the 56 fwy and finish was at Torrey Pines State Beach. Not a very scenic race, but still a good race. Honestly, I think this is a perfect activity to commit to after handling all the hustle and bustle of the holidays.
It was a frosty 32 degrees when the race started at 0730 — so dress warm or in layers — whatever floats your boat. Support stations seem to be available every two miles with water and electrolyte drinks, but bring your own energy gel/​jelly baby. Course was mostly downhill, but there are some uphills. You can easily PR if you have the ability to dodge some of the running traffic methodically.
I believe that is all. Swag is cool — pics of medal and shirt will be posted shortly.