• November 9th, 2014
• Riverside, California
• 11/09/2014 – Mission Inn run
• Sharon: 2:41:45
• Tim: 2:15:05

16 down only 36 to go.

Yay! A nice clean room with a firm bed. Some of the rooms we’ve gotten have made me itch just looking at them. If you do this race or are in Riverside we recommend Americas Best Value Inn. It was close to the race start, friendly, and they let us do a late checkout so we could shower before getting back on the road. The guy at the desk recommended a couple of places to eat. And just as important, where not to eat – the place next to the motel that we probably would have ended up at (because we are lazy) if we had not been warned.

After packet pickup (which was quite chaotic) we had lunch at Elephant Thai. The outdoor expo was packed. Because this was a fundraiser run for the Mission Inn I thought it would be a small local event but between the 3 races (5k, 10k, and HM) there were about 3400 people, according to the volunteer I asked. Elephant Thai was tasty. I like the heart shaped rice, I think I am going to use cookie cutters or jello molds to make my rice in cool shapes. I don’t like Christmas cookies but I could make Christmas rice. Thai food is our go to cuisine because it is usually a reasonably priced source of vegetables.

Another picture of Tim carb loading

The desk clerk said that even if we didn’t eat there we should check out Tio’s Taco. And was he ever right. The food was average but that was not why it is a must see. The place is more of a one man recycled art museum. The back patio had the largest, craziest pieces but his stuff was also out front and in the restaurant. Pictures do not do this place justice.

About the artist

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

They also had excellent margaritas.

Sharon approves of her margarita

I was amused to hear people complaining about the heat during this HM. I thought it was perfect. There was not a cloud in the sky on race morning. After the last 2 races my definition of perfect weather was – not raining. But this really was perfect, starting in the 50’s and ending it the mid 70’s. It is surprising how hot 70 is in the direct sun while running.

The races started downtown but soon funneled us onto a scenic bike path that went past a couple of parks.

Most of the race was an out and back on a divided bike path so there was zero chance for me to get lost. I love seeing the frontrunners fly past. It is so inspiring to see how hard they are working. I got a high five from the first woman. Unlike last weeks race on a bike path this race did have bicyclists. In fact, this race had the fastest, most aggressive bikers I have ever encountered running. Groups of bicyclists were weaving in and out of runners. I saw some near collisions. It was both scary and interesting to watch.

This race had a timing mat that you had to cross at the turnaround. I thought that was a good feature. I’m sick of seeing people cut the course. It’s way more common than you would think. I have seen people cut switchbacks, turn around at the 4th aid station (when there were 5) or just turn around and start back when it was obviously not time to turn around. The most eye rolling thing of this sort I have ever seen was at the Elkton Butterfly Run. A woman saw her friend coming back on the road and crossed over and ran back with her. I think I yelled “seriously” at her.

Around mile 11 I talked to a guy who was bonking badly. A bonk in running is basically when you deplete all your carbs (energy) and feel like you can’t take another step. I found out that he hadn’t eaten anything during the run and had only a granola bar for breakfast. Even if you aren’t hungry, if you are going to be running more than 90 minutes you need calories. I gave him a Gu. I hope it helped, but my walk brake was over. I had planned to run to the finish but they put the biggest hill in the last half mile. Evil.

A couple of miles from the finish I noticed a lot of people passing me (WTF?) Where did all of these people come from? I figured out that the HM had merged with the 10k.

Wonderful Tim cheered me through the finish line. I hate to end this race report on a negative note but this race obviously did not put it’s money towards food. There was no food on the course and only bananas and orange slices at the end. Tim confused the hander out of orange slices by asking him for a couple extra. Maybe they wanted to encourage people to eat at the local restaurants. I think they should have at least had chocolate milk.

The happy couple after another HM

Cons

• Chaotic packet pickup
• Started late
• Angry speeding bicyclists
• Ends on an uphill
• Very limited food

Pros

• No rain!
• Frequent aid stations
• Out and back (I love seeing the frontrunners, and how many people are behind me)
• Port-o-pots on the course
• Scenic
• Nice medal
• Good cause

This race didn’t have a lot of character but it was perfectly adequate. We would recommend this race as very beginner friendly. No chance of getting lost and you will never be running alone. There were a lot of walkers and run/walkers so you won’t feel slow. The scenery is nice but watch out for bicyclists. Be aware that there is no food on the course – bring something. Also, there is almost no food after the race, but there are plenty of places to eat downtown. I suggest Tio’s Tacos – prepare to be amazed.

This guy’s T-Shirt