It’s brutally hot here in California at the moment. A heat dome or heat furnace or maybe just a descent into a level of Hell usually reserved for the Texas panhandle. But it’s been topping 100 for the last few days and into next week.
Still, I had signed up for a race out in Ventura County… and it was by the ocean… and it’s usually a good 10-15 degrees cooler there no matter what dome or furnace is running inland.
And indeed, the race startline was a downright delightful 63 degrees. Unfortunately, I opted NOT to rush into the “early start” when I arrived — it was going off in a few minutes and I probably should have taken advantage. But I was doing race-day bib pickup and I was dragging a bit and, hey, it’s a dry heat and it’s cooler here by the ocean — whatever, right?
It got hot… and fast. Not unbearable. Not 100 degrees. But cloud cover was minimal and the sea breeze was like an oscillating fan that kept getting stuck in the wrong direction. But it did get a bit toasty. And I got a lot slower as the day wore on.
Still, it gave me time to ponder — who were all these people running this event? The organizers are good folks but they’re relatively small time and run by a core group of dedicated runner types who put their time and money into some decent shirts, cup-less water stops, and a taco truck at the finish. I mean, it’s good, don’t get me wrong. But the course is kinda boring even though it’s run along the shore — they use the same one for a couple of marathons each year. Honestly, I just ran this course a few months back when it was called The Seaside Marathon. I’m not really sure why I come back — they’re a little pricey for the amenities (though, the tacos are pretty good… more on this later). And the as I said, the course is a snoozer. Three loops out and back with some views of the water but mainly views of caravans and campers (or at least for 1.15 miles each way).
I mean seriously — look at all these people gathered for the marathon start… and a few possibly waiting for the later starts of the half, 10K and 5K. It’s still a lot of folks.
I know why I do it — I’m trying to account at least in part for too much eating and drinking, I’ve got a non-diagnosed OCD and singular focus fixation and maybe I can sweat out a few of these germs that seem to be plaguing me and blah-blah-blah. Basically, I’m not right in the head. I get it. I know it. I own it. But what’s these other people’s excuses? Are they crazed like me? I mean, I guess I know the world is a strange, messed up place. But don’t these people have anything better to do on a Sunday morning? Isn’t there some farmer’s market they should be going to?
Side note: in previous runnings, I’ve always been creeped out by at least two campers flying a Trump 2020 or Stop the Steal or (gulp) Trump 2024 flag. But today there were no Trump or right wing flag flying at all. There was a Puerto Rican flag, a rainbow flag, a flag for plumbers (!!), and a US Air Force flag. May this be a sign of the future.
Anyhoo, you can click on the previous race above for some pics or scroll through these:
Bottom line: I drove out, I ran… and then I walked and ran… and then I walked a bit more… poured water over my head… got to the finish for the third loop and then, this is what I’m taco-ing about:
Some days are just about getting to the finish line. This was one of those days. And I got to the finish line. Three times (because of the loops ya know?). But I got there. Sometimes that’s enough.