Lexus Laceup - Riverside, Half 27/29

The Lexus LaceUp Riverside half marathon was probably the most well put together race I've ever been to!  I have a love/hate relationship with small races.  Being a slower runner means that I almost always come in very near the end of the race.  On the other hand, its really nice to see different parts of cities that aren't very touristy or even that are in my backyard and I never would have known existed!  This was definitely one of those races.  Overall I was 277/313.  14/17 in my age group.  Luckily I do these things for fun!

This was my third race in Riverside in a month and I knew going into it that it was an out and back course along the Santa Ana River Trail, which means a pretty monotonous run in terms of scenery.  I had never heard of this race series until I cancelled my Nebraska trip and found myself in need of a half marathon on one of the very few open weekends I had left in the year to make 29 half marathons on my 29th birthday.  Let me tell you, this race series has quickly become one of my faves!

Because it was sort of a last minute entry for me, I didn't really look at what was included in the race entry fee.  I knew a medal, and really that's all I cared about!  Boy was I pleasantly surprised when I saw that it included a free beer AND food!!  Not only that, they had plenty of seating so that we could enjoy our food and beverage.  I always feel bad that my parents go to my races only to sit on the floor in the cold for several hours.  This race had a small expo of vendors and plenty of tables, chairs, and umbrellas! My mom sat at one of the cloth-covered tables for the first 2 hours of my race and made friends with some other spectators.  She even got a beer and free meal voucher one of the runners wasn't going to be able to use!  Score one for madre!  We always go out to breakfast after my races, but it was nice to stay in the venue and enjoy a really good meal. 

As for the race itself, I was also pleasantly surprised to see that it was a section of the trail I had never been on before and was actually quite pretty!  It was out and back, so while I saw everything twice, the road curved quite a bit and there was a good portion that was tree-lined with a small stream running parallel to the trail.  Always lovely to be one with nature.  (And since I was close to the end, there weren't a lot of other people around so I really was ONE with nature, hehe).  

Definitely the best small town race I've ever been to and I look forward to doing more of their races next year!