Michael Beckwith's Staging Area

This is the toughest race of the year for me. This was my 7th year doing the Diablo 50k, and without a doubt, the best weather I’ve experienced here in April. AND we had SNOW on the higher parts of the mountain! This was my 33rd 50k, and 38th ultra marathon. We started at 0630 and the temps were in the mid 30s, but once the sun came out, it was a most beautiful day! Lots of mud on the course, but the dozen or so creek crossings kept our shoes clean and feet refreshed. The 1.5 mile out and back (just prior to Curry Point, 3 miles round trip) was very very muddy and slippery. Would’ve loved to seen how the race leaders made it through here. The course was slightly adjusted this year. The really super steep downhill part of Mothers was shortened, which was awesome! A change near the end added about 700′ total to the previous years (8100′ vs average of about 7400′ previously.) I’ll add the new map to this review. This made the aid station distances a little different than before. They were as follows:
Little Pine: mile 2.9 (no cut-off)

Rock City: 8 (no cut-off)

Curry Point:13 (cut-off = 11:10 am)

Diablo Summit: 16.5 (cut-off = 12:35 pm)

Juniper: 23.1 (cut-off = 2:55 pm)

Burma: 27.3 (cut-off = 4:05 pm)

As you can see there are really generous cut off times. While this race is very difficult (IMO), with an 11-hour cut off, it is achievable for a lot more people. Averaging a 20-minute pace will get you in before the cut off.

I’m already looking forward to next year’s Diablo 50k! As always, major kudos to the Brazen Crew, and all the amazing volunteers who work countless hours to make sure we’re all taken care of! And props to the 50k sweepers!

Random fact: Did you know that on a clear day, you can see parts of 40 of the 58 counties in California! 🙂

This was my first time doing this race, and I really enjoyed it. I ran it with my twin brother and we had lots of fun! It’s one of the largest half marathons in the nation. Prior to COVID this race had 20-30k runners. This year, the half marathon (MINI, they call it) had 14,193 runners. I’m not sure I could imagine twice that many people here. 🙂
The expo: The expo was really great. It was held in the downtown Indy convention center and had tons of vendors and fun stuff to do. It was also the same time as a comic convention, so that was super cool to see soooo many people in the convention center (and around town) for that.
The race: Very well organized start, with many waves. We were in the “I” (the letter I wave, and we started right at the correct time. Big huge corals and tons of volunteers to help or answer questions. It takes a little bit for the runners to thin out a little, but it wasn’t bad. LOTS of people on the streets cheering us on, including bands and groups of locals, even just people sitting on their front porches. When you turn from 10th street to Main Street (mile 5), there are TONS of spectators lining the street, cheering. That was pretty awesome! Of course a big highlight of the race is running the full distance around the track at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Definitely a cool experience. The track is 2.5 miles long and they were blasting music the entire time. The best part of this, was coming to the main stretch (not sure what it’s called.) where the grandstands and start/finish (Indy 500) line is. Once you exit the race track, it’s about 5 miles to the finish, and even more people out cheering you on.
Post race party: This was huge! So many people. Lots of food and music and other things to do. It is held in Military Park, which is really nice, and along the river walk.
The city: My brother and I spent 4 days here, and had lots of fun. Tons of great restaurants and bars, as well as parks and museums. Before I go any further, I must say, GO TO SHAPIRO’S DELI FOR LUNCH. I promise you will not be disappointed. Also, there’s a great arcade/beer bar in downtown, called 16-bit. I HIGHLY recommend this place!!

Overall a really fun getaway weekend and a very well put on race! 🏁

I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again. I love this race. It holds a very special place for me! This was my 7th year doing this race.
Even though it was it was one of the coldest WTCs I’ve done (I think it might’ve been THE coldest), we did luck out on a few parts. It wasn’t raining at the start, which is a HUGE win! We all knew it was going to rain, but nothing is worse than standing around in rain waiting to START a race. The rain started at 11:30 am and rained all the way through till about an hour before I finished. This was also good!! The course as expected was extremely muddy, and the water crossings were ice cold! Knickerbocker didn’t have as much water as I’ve seen in years past, but that wouldn’t be true for the rest of the course. I took a big fall at mile 17 at the super fast moving water crossing. I was alone during that crossing, so I didn’t have the luxury of seeing someone in front of me cross it. I stepped on a rock that was solid, but my second step went to a rock (about 18″ deep) that wasn’t solid. I slipped and fell in to the water, hands and arms down, to protect my head. 🙂 This normally wouldn’t be a big deal but I had literally just put my gloves back on because the freezing rain was back. Now I had freezing cold and wet gloves, so I had to take them off. I wrung them out and put in my pocket and wasn’t able to get them back on for a couple hours 😱 When I got to ALT it started raining really hard. But the hot chicken broth was all I needed to keep going. 🙂 Luckily the rain had slowed considerably by the time I got to Goat Hill. Chugged a little more broth for the last five miles. As soon as I finished, I went over and grabbed a diet coke and went to my car (had the best spot in the lot, because I got there at 6am) to thaw out. I hadn’t been in my car 5 minutes before the hail storm started. I took that as a sign to just go home!

In a nutshell! Do this race. 🙂

This is one of my most favorite races. Dipsea trail from Stinson Beach to Mill Valley, and back. Fourteen miles, and just over 4,000’ of gain. The weather this year was absolutely perfect! This was my 7th year doing it, and it was my fastest!! The Brazen crew and volunteers (as well as DSE) are the best in the biz!! Highly recommend this race!!

This is a really fun and easy race. It’s held at the San Leandro Marina, and is just an out and back. All along the water, and the weather is (usually) perfect. Five fully stocked aid stations for the half, and flat as a pancake. 🙂 A good place to push for your PR. As always for Brazen, you’ll be richly rewarded by the most awesome crew and volunteers. Swag is always amazing too!

This race is brutal, but SO FUN!! FOURmidable has four big climbs, including K2 (training hill). I ended with about 5,600′ of gain. It was a little warm this year, but not too bad. Singletrack Running puts on an amazing event here! With good food and snacks during and after the race! Plus the views from this race are epic!! Oh, and a really nice white hoodie to the finishers!

This race is without a doubt one of the toughest races I’ve ever done. Every 50k (aside from Diablo) and 50 miler I’ve done just don’t compare. With that said. It is one of my all time faves now! The race starts in Mill Valley, goes to Stinson Beach, then back, then repeat. 4 trips on the famous Dipsea Trail. 28.4 miles, and 8,500′ of gain. Aside from the ascends and descends, it’s all flat. 🙂 LOL.

The organization of this race is top notch. Tons of volunteers to help you along the way. Be it crossing a road, or supporting you at aid stations, they’ve definitely got you covered. This year they did all the usual food/etc at the aid stations, but the volunteers handed you the items you wanted. They also had little baggies filled with things like pretzels, which was really great. They would fill up my water bottles and I’d stuff a bag of pretzels in my pocket and take off. Everyone was so great and supportive during the race. There is an aid station at mile 4 (Cardiac) and one just before the Stinson Beach turn around (~mile 7). Also one at the start, for the half-way turn around. This means you have plenty of places to eat or fill your water (at miles ~4, 7, 10, 14, 18, 21, 24, finish). Also, because this is a 2x out-and-back, you get to see everyone three times. Which is really helpful, especially in the latter parts of the race, when your legs are on fire! Everyone was so supportive and encouraging! After the race there were awesome full sized sandwiches as well as lots of drink options. Along with the shirt, this year we also got a Quad buff and a hat.

I definitely recommend this race!!

What an emotional race! First in person Brazen race in ~17 months. A wonderful event held at the San Leandro Marina. Flat, easy course along the marina, with great views, tons of aid stations, super supportive volunteers, and all the goodies that come with a Brazen event.

I had no idea how I was going to do at this event, but just wanted a 2:11 (10min/mile pace). Felt great and ran the entire run just a tad faster. That felt great. So awesome to see the Brazen crew, volunteers, and friends! I highly recommend this race, there are distances for everyone, and whether you are a first timer, or looking for a place to PR, this course is for you!

This race was really great!

Lots to say, so I’ll try and keep it brief, and bulleted. 🙂 Some things I loved about the race:
Running across the Bay Bridge! I mean c’mon, how cool is that.
Limited to only 1,500 runners (likely due to size of pedestrian path on the bridge). The good thing is that from the start to the actual bridge is about 4 miles, so there’s a good amount of spreading out that happens, and I never felt crowded on the bridge. I stayed ahead of the 2:00 pacer and even after the turn around it never felt too crowded.
Easy parking at the start (we got there early, so it wasn’t an issue at all). They had lots of other places to park as well, from what their website said. And I didn’t hear of any complaints about where people parked.
Great swag. Got a small bag, a cool beer glass, a great shirt, awesome medal, some bib clip things (I didn’t use them, because I use RaceDots, but tons of other people were using them), nuun, and Hydrapak reusable cup for all runners (I didn’t use mine, as I brought my own hand held, but these cups are great for ultras)
Amazing social media presence before, during and after the race. Lots of folks out there taking professional pics for FB and IG and posting real time. That was cool.
Free professional photos on the course (searchable by bib number which is a plus).
I only stopped for a couple seconds at the very last aid station to fill my bottle, but I felt like there were plenty of aid stations. They were cupless (which is great!).
Course is basically flat, now with that said, the Bay Bridge itself does have a higher center than the ends, so that part is about 2.25 miles and 200 feet of gain. All gradual, plus a little head wind. But coming back from the turn around, was great, tailwind, plus a 200 foot drop.
The spectators and volunteers were great. Lots of high fives and encouragement. Even the police officers that were helping close streets were clapping and encouraging runners. Right before mile 13, there is a little over pass with the tiniest incline, but after I pushed it for almost two hours, it felt a lot higher lol. Then turn and BAM, you’re done. Beer and a taco afterwards (although the taco line was pretty line, so I just stuck with beer).
Lots of on course bathrooms.
Bag check went super smoothly. Was very impressed with this.

I will say the starting area is kind of small, so make sure to get with your approx pace group early. I made the mistake of socializing too long and was towards the back, which led to a little congestion in the fist 1/4 mile. Nothing too bad though.
Also, no race day packet pick up. But there were MANY other days you could pick up which was awesome! And they offered mail out service (which I think you need to sign up for early).
Overall, definitely a top 10 half for me (and I’ve done a lot!) 🙂
Definitely coming back next year!!
#raceonraveon

I did it! 100 half marathons. And super happy that my 100th was a nice easy Brazen half. Not a lot of easy Brazen races, but this one is super fun and super easy. Easy to get to, easy to park (and lots of it, right near the start), and an super fun easy course. A couple out and backs and a little loop in the middle. Never dull. Bunch of fully stocked aid stations, with the best volunteers in the biz, cheering you on. I couldn’t have asked for a better day for my 100th half!! My twin brother came out to surprise me and run it with me and he loved it too. If you’re looking for a PR, this is an easy race to get it. (I took it easy and definitely wasn’t going for a PR, but this course is fast). It’s also right on the money as far as distance.

Brazen rocks!!

This is a really easy flat race out at the San Leandro Marina with views during the entire race of the San Francisco Bay. Starts in a park area and can get a little muddy at the start/finish, but the other 99.9% of the race is on paved path and gravel path. This year had the most amazing rainbow (double, even) to start us off. Just a tiny amount of rain before the race started, but none after that, and when the sun came out it was really nice!!
This is a very popular race because of its location and how flat it is. There are plenty of aid stations in the half (they also do a 5k and 10k). I would recommend this race for any new runners, or seasoned folks looking for a PR.

This is one of my favorite runs in the Bay Area. It starts and finishes at Lake Chabot. The half marathon takes you all the way around the lake, with some pretty awesome views. There are some decent climbs in this race as well. It is about 13.6 miles and has just over 2,000 feet of elevation gain. The start/finish area is really big, so you can hang out afterwards and relax. The theme of this race has been around a fish (in a kilt) and a monster in the lake. None of which actually exist, but if you own a kilt, this is the race to do it in. You will not be alone. Even the race directors wear them. After the race there is a bagpipe player and a single-drum player, playing traditional Scottish (?) bagpipe music. What’s not cool about that? 🙂

Also, come on, this is a Brazen race. They are 100% the best in the biz.

Hope to see you out there next year.

What to say about the Modesto Marathon??

I really, really enjoyed this race. I am not one to normally love a flat road marathon, but this one was great. I signed up for this race to help pace my twin brother who was running his first marathon. I was really looking forward to spending the day with him, but honestly, wasn’t really looking forward to 26.2 miles of asphalt. That was until the race started. 🙂

Modesto sometimes gets a bad rap, as a city. But this race takes you through a couple miles of old well-kept neighborhoods, where the houses are great and the people are better. Lots of neighbors came out side to cheer on the runners, and some even had their own little aid stations set up. One lady even had champagne and OJ on a small table on the curb. Mimosas anyone? 🙂 This was around the first mile. 🙂 After this, you head over the west side of the freeway for a country road run, which will be a vast majority of where you’ll run. This part of the county has a lot of farm land. Lots of almond orchards and some dairy farms. The neighbors in these areas were just as friendly. Lots of them came out to cheer, and some of them even had refreshments. One family went all out (and you can tell they do this every year), they had a full beer bar set up out in front of their house. 6 kegs tapped and ready to go. Small plastic cups on each keg for quick filling. And we’re not talking Coors light. These folks had great beers. I think I saw an IPA and a couple Stouts (WOW!). (I really really love beer, but I couldn’t bring myself to stop. I would’ve probably not left!). They even had a keg in the front with a “DNF Start Line” sign in it. LOL that was super funny.

There was a good amount of miles where runners were running in both directions. If you know me, you’ll know that I really like this. It makes it a lot of fun. You get to see the leaders, and you get to see people you are leading. Big fan of that!

This race has Marathon, marathon relay, half marathon, half relay, wheelchair, and 5k distances. The marathon and half start at 7 am (which is nice), and the wheelchair, and 5k just before and after 7.

The swag: Cool bright red shirt and a nice thin zip up hoodie. Also, the medal was cool, and it’s pretty big (small detail I really liked was the ribbon on the medal was stitched right about the medal so the medal didn’t slide around or flip over. Nice touch.)

After the race there was a beer and wine garden, and some vendors selling some things as well. There was also a tent with finish line photos already printed and hanging up for you to just take with you. That’s pretty cool. I’ve been to a few of those, and people really like that.

Overall this is a race that has a small town feel, with a great production. Parking is close to start and finish. (I got there early as usual so I parked on first floor in the parking garage that was two blocks from the start.)

I really look forward to doing this race again.

This is a super cool race. It is out at the Richmond Marina. Nice views of the bay (and boats). 🙂
Was a very special race for me because I did it with my grand babies. It was their first race, and they loved it. (7 month old twins)
If you do this race as well as the prior race (2 weeks previous, Bay Breeze), then you get a super awesome connector medal that makes your two medals one MEGA MEDAL! Gotta love that.
They also had something really awesome at this event this year. A sponsor of the race was giving out an extra medal if you did your race in a particular time or faster. I believe it was :32, 1:34, and 2:03 (5k, 10k, half). That had a lot of people going for the extra bling.
Lastly, it’s a Brazen race, so you know for a fact you’ll get the best experience ever!!
Come on out and do it with me next year! I promise you’ll enjoy it.

This is a super fun race that I look forward to each year. The half marathon is a double loop + lollipop out and back. I don’t know if that’s official, but it sounds cool. 🙂
It is held at Coyote Hills Regional Park, and runs around the park, over to near the Dumbarton Bridge, then back. Very runnable rolling hills. Total elevation gain on the half is only about 700′. This is >90% (non exact math) paved bike/running path.
Aid stations and volunteers are super awesome as always. There is a really cool finish to the race, which goes down a very short downhill trail, and loops you around to the finish.
Oh, and there isn’t parking at the start, but Sam and Jas spoil us with luxury busses to get us over to the start. We get to park in a really nice parking lot just over a mile away, and then jump in our fancy busses.
This is must do race if you are unsure about hills etc. This is a nice warm up. Plus it brings out the coolest people ever.
PC: Jay B.

No, really.. never say die. Like ever. 🙂

This is a super fun race. It is held at Lagoon Valley, and you do two loops with beautiful views. It has approx 2000′ of elevation gain. Lots of fun downhills to zoom down. Plus, many runners dress in pirate themed costumes (and even talk like pirates)—how can one go wrong with that?

So, what are you waiting for? Put this one on your list next year. I promise it won’t disappoint. Tell ’em 111 sent you. 🙂

HEY YOU GUYYYYYYS!!!

This race is really fun. What better way to start off your Independence Day than to run a fun 5k. Of course Brazen puts on the best of the best races, and this one is no exception. There is really easy parking at the start, and a super fun kids run around the park before the race. Also, when you run through neighborhoods, people come out of their house to cheer you on.
Definitely shouldn’t miss this race. And if you go, dress in your best red white and blue. After all, it is 4th of July!!
This race is #111 approved!

Make no mistake about it.
I do like this race.
Keep in mind, I’m running all of Livermore anyway. 🙂
Every. Street.

Race started an hour early this year, at 7am.
Understandably, I was very happy about this.
Now for some bullets on the race.
Scenery is very beautiful in some parts—wineries, etc.

Lots of friendly supporters on the course.
I live very close to the start, so I walked over.
Very cool to have pacers out there helping.
Extra porta potties at the start would’ve been nice.
Race expo is the only place to get bib and shirt (day before).
Might I suggest expanding that a little.
One other thing, is that the shirts were unisex only (which means Male).
Running this race is still very fun.
Expect to see me there again.

Ok, ok, first. I am stealing the “Dam” part of this title from my friend, Shanna, who put that in her title first. I loved it, and I stole it. 🙂 Thanks, Shanna.

This is a really fun run. I decided super last minute to sign up for this run and run with some friends. It starts at the Shasta Dam and ends 26.2 miles later on the beautiful Sundial Bridge. It is a pretty simple run, but for someone like me that does so many more trail runs, running the pavement for that long made it a little tough on me.

Ok, let’s talk about what I liked about the run… here we go.

Easy to register, even just a couple days before the race.
Beautiful start area. You start right next to the Shasta Dam (see my title is making sense now, right?). You can see the amazing Mt. Shasta and lots of other great sights.
It’s a rather low key race. Only a couple hundred marathoners, and some that are doing the relay. It was a little cold in the morning (not that bad though), but the Dam visitor center was open to us. That part was really nice, and much warmer. They do drop bags at the start, so I bundled up with a sweatshirt till the start of the race.
There were a few aid stations. Just with water and electrolytes, and some had GU and Gels. For someone like me that doesn’t use either of those, I just brought my own Tailwind.
There is an AS you pass three times. My friends call it the bermuda triangle. I’m not sure if that’s an official name, but hey, it worked for me. They were BBQing at that one. And on my third pass through (around mile 22, someone offered me a couple small pieces of tri-tip. Not having eaten for a few hours, it was the best food I had ever ate. 🙂 Thank you nice BBQing man.
You finish on the super cool Sundial bridge. That part was pretty fun.
Lots of snacks (chips, etc) at the finish, and lots of hot soup. I had about 3 big cups worth. Mmmm
This race has great views. You are basically running alongside the Sacramento River the entire time. With all the rainfall we’ve had lately, it was really cool to see how high and fast that river was moving.
You cross over a couple bridges during the race as well.
The first two miles is basically all down hill. Fun way to start a race. 🙂
The rest of the course just had some rollers. Nothing really more than that. Total course gain for me was just under 800′.
This entire course is on a pedestrian paved trail. Not a lot of other runners/cyclists. The ending is through a little park for the last mile or so, which was a nice change of scenery.
The people. Everyone I met was super nice.
This course is BQ course (Not that that would ever matter for me) 🙂
I actually feel like I had an ok performance at this race. I don’t do a lot of flat road halfs, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I wanted to keep a 10 min pace the first half, then an 11 minute pace the second half. Well, I kept the 10 minute pace exactly (or just ahead of) for the first 19.5 miles. Then I just got a bit tired. It was smooth sailing for me, the first 20.
Cool medal, bag with strings, and long sleeve quarter zip shirt.

Couple points to keep in mind.
There is no chip start. That means everyone has the same start time. Not a huge issue because there aren’t a ton of runners, but something to definitely consider. If you are looking to BQ or PR (etc), just get up in the front. I stayed way in the back and started with my friends. This cost me my BQ, as it took us 1.75 hours to get to the actual start. OK OK, that’s just a joke. Honestly it only probably took 30 seconds off my time.

As I mentioned above. There really isn’t food on the course per se. I don’t know if the bbq is actually for the runners, or not, but I got some, and I loved it. If you are like me and eat real food during races, just keep that in mind and bring your own.

Overall, I really enjoyed this race. Just wish it wasn’t 3 hours away. 🙂

Till next time….

This has become a great tradition of mine, to end the year running Brazen’s New Year’s Eve race. It’s normally called “Almost” New Year’s Eve, because it’s held on the Saturday before New Year’s Day. But since 1/1 fell on a Sunday, it meant the “Almost” was removed from the name. Which gave us back-to-back days to race. Yay!

The weather was just a little cold in the morning, and we were able to finish the half before the clouds came in. This was a plus, because most years it’s been really cold. Also, this marked the first year that this race was at Quarry Lakes, in Fremont, instead of Lake Chabot (which is where the 1/1 race was).

Also, Brazen changed up the course a bit for this race, so that made it a bit more interesting. You head out where you normally finish the half, and then cross the bridge to the other side of the creek, and then do a T shaped run. Never more than about 3 miles without changing direction or getting to an Aid Station.

They also do the Streaker ceremony (see https://brazenracing.com/community/streakers/ for more info) before the race. And this year they kicked it up a notch by putting out Stars along the red carpet with each 2016 Streaker’s name. Very nice touch!

This race also has the Tri Valley Run Club folks come out and pace. I stuck along side Arnel, running with TVRC, who was comfortably pacing the 1:55 group. I made it my mission to stay ahead of him. Him (and Peter and Michael) motivated me to keep going, and I finished with a….

…wait for it…

ONE
FIFTY-TWO
FIFTY-ONE

Yes! a 1:52:51. Just 33 seconds off my all time Half PR. I was pretty stoked about this. Attaching a pic of me with Arnel (1:55 pacer), when he “finally” made it in. 🙂

Happy New Year all… let’s do it again real soon.