Temecula Half Marathon Race Report

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Last Sunday I competed in my 50th half marathon! Even though I counted up my races last year, I actually forgot that this was such a milestone race until I started to write this post and I checked on the number.  Hooray! So in any case, here is my Temecula Half Marathon Report.

Although I am an Ambassador for the Temecula Half Marathon I received no compensation and I paid for my own entry.  I did get an awesome discount for my readers. This post contains affiliate links.

Temecula Half Marathon Race Report

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Months ago, when I signed up for the Temecula Half Marathon, I didn’t give a lot of thought to the logistics of a race that was an hour and a half from my home. In most cases, when I travel to a race, I’ll stay the night before to make it easy in the morning. Temecula seems so close, though, that I chose to drive. Still, 90 minutes driving before a race is probably not the best way to warm up! I was glad that I remembered to bring my favorite Intelliroll to loosen up my tight glutes after the drive!

I was also alone. My friend Christina had signed up for the race and I’d even written a training plan for her so that she’d be more successful than our AFC trudge-fest. However, at the last minute, she texted to tell me she couldn’t make it. I guess a rough go with morning sickness and sleeplessness are a good enough reason. Yes, my friend is expecting! So, I’ll give her a break this time.

With a race start at 6:45 and a 90-minute drive, I left my house a little before 4:30. I figured at that time of the morning, I’d make pretty good time, but I was concerned about traffic and parking, and all the logistics that go into getting to a race on time. I was right about the drive time, it took me just 1:15 to get to the venue, which was on the eastern side of Temecula, which left me plenty of time to park, use the porto-potties (twice!), stow my gear and get to the starting line on time.

I also managed to bump into Nic (in the potty line, of course)! She’d told me she’d be there, but, having never met her in person I was afraid I wouldn’t recognize her. Fortunately, she saw me, and we got to chat a few minutes until we dashed to the start line. She, being a speedster, headed toward the front, while I started a bit farther back.

I was in the second wave, so I didn’t have long to wait. And we were off! I will tell you right up front. The Temecula Half Marathon has one of my favorite courses ever! It was beautiful and it was challenging. It wound through the back roads of Temecula wine country, past vineyards, wineries, and horse ranches. Of course, the perfect weather helped. The temperatures were in the low 50s at the start, the sky was a brilliant blue, and just for a little extra gorgeousness, the hot air balloons were flying above our heads.

If you’re a fan of cheering crowds throughout your race, this may not be the course for you. While the volunteers were enthusiastic, I loved this race because of the quiet, mostly shady course. Yes, it was challenging. There was over 800 feet of climbing, mostly between miles three and seven (with a sneaky one thrown in at mile 12). Of course, the nice thing about an out and back course is that what goes up must come down, so I really enjoyed the downhill running in the second half of the race.

As for my personal experience, I won’t bore you with a mile-by-mile recap. I was happy that I was able to maintain a strong, steady pace throughout this race, even on those steep uphills. I could tell that my hill training (plus the general landscape of my regular running routes) helped me keep running while many around me needed to walk (though they caught right up with me once they started running again).

I did have to stop once to use the bathroom. I’m pretty sure it was because of getting up extra early and, um, not going through my normal routine before the race, because that usually isn’t an issue for me. I pulled over at mile five and did my business as quickly as possible. I didn’t realize this until the end of the race that my Garmin kindly subtracted that minute or so from my time!

If you read my blog you probably know that I have exercise-induced asthma, which has the tendency to rear its ugly head just when I think I have the race in the bag. I’ve dealt with it from the beginning, through all my 37 marathons and previous 49 half marathons.  If you ever look at my race times from back then you’ll see they vary widely, from my marathon PR of 3:16 to 3:45 or more, all depending on my asthma experience.

In the old days, I used a lot of medication to try to prevent it. Sometimes that worked, sometimes not. These days I skip most medication and carry my inhaler “just in case.” To be honest, it leaves me with a fear of “pushing it.” I’m scared that if I run too hard, or don’t breathe evenly, I will have an asthma attack and not be able to finish. I’m actually okay with my slower times. Most of the time anyway. I do have my competitive streak.

If you’ll recall, in Rock ‘n’ Roll San Diego, I made it all the way to about mile 12.5 before I had a problem. I was fine all the way through America’s Finest City, though that was probably because I spent so much time walking it with my friend.

In the Temecula Half Marathon, I made it through most of the race. I was feeling good. Even with my bathroom stop, I was heading toward a better finish than I’d had for a couple years at least. That lovely downhill portion helped me rest up and make up some lost time. Everything was going just great.

Until that sneaky uphill mile 12. Now, I don’t really blame the uphill. My asthma can happen at any time, and sometimes occurs when I stop or start down a hill. In any case, I was at about mile 11.5. Feeling good. Almost home. Then I can feel it. My limbs feel like they’re not getting enough oxygen. I get a little flashing feeling in my vision. I feel like I Just. Can’t. Run. Anymore. Sometimes like I can’t even stand anymore.

So I stopped before my airway closed completely. Regrouped. Walked. Used my inhaler. And it worked its magic. Within a minute I was running again. Slowly at first, then up to my (still slow) pace. And I was fine for the rest of the run, though I did need a minute to regroup again after I crossed the finish line.

I hung on to finish in 2:13:46, good enough for seventh in my division. Still my best time in a couple years, so I’m good with that. And did I tell you about that finishers’ medal? Yes! It’s a real wine stopper!

The after-party was pretty awesome, though I didn’t stay long. All half marathoners received a free wine glass and 5 tasting tickets! The 5k runners also got a wine glass and three tickets, I think. It was about 9:00 am when I finished, though, and I just wasn’t feeling much like wine (as much as I hate passing on something free like that!). Instead, I had a glass of beer, then sat down to enjoy all the fun going on around me.

All-in-all, I loved the Temecula Half Marathon! It was well organized as well as being challenging and beautiful. The wine theme makes it even more fun! The weather was perfect, especially coming from the desert, a little chilly at the start and not too hot at the finish. The aid stations were plentiful, about every mile and a half, and they offered electrolytes and gels at a couple of them. The only thing that could make it better was if my husband was doing the announcing!

Would I do it again? You betcha! I would really like this race to become part of my regular racing repertoire. And guess what? Registration is already open for 2019! I don’t have a discount code, but early registration (through October 31, 2018) is only $70! You can sign up here and join me on October 20, 2019!

What’s your favorite kind of race course? Quiet and beautiful or noisy and exciting?

 

 

 

 

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