Kumari de Silva's Staging Area

This time is my second to worst time on this race, however, in my defense this year we had a new course for the 10k. It’s HARD! If you want a challenge in beautiful scenery maybe start out with the 5k distance. But if you’re like me, you may enjoy the new distance which was added just this year: 15k. It gives you a chance to challenge yourself just a little bit more without have to go over twice your normal distance (half marathon.)

I am considering that distance for next time. . . but we’ll see.

If you are sitting on the fence about it – just sign up! The people are super nice. It’s the best swag on earth. Lots of people dress up. Nobody says you have to run, you can bring your poles and do this like a long hike, a slow jog, a walk – whatever you want. At the end you get free photos of yourself, the best tee shirt (people always want to know where I got it when I wear my SpaceRock shirts) and an entirely amazing sense of accomplishment. I am a terrible athlete but doing this every year makes me feel awesome!

Things to know for the best experience: if possible carpool. This location isn’t close to anything and parking space is limited. If offered, pay for the VIP parking, we did and it made our lives so much easier. In the future it may sell out, but the day we ran it looked like some people were still chancing it with the less expensive parking. If you do chose to park at the lot down the road there is a bus to transport you to the trail head, so don’t worry. This race is Very Well Organized. The volunteers are the best.

Some years there is an optional untimed practice run. If this opportunity is offered jump on it. It’s a nice way to make sure you know the course. This year I was slow so I was never by my self, but I did run into other people who had gotten themselves off course which effected their times. Ultimately though, this is not a race where you are running to to make the best time because it’s a trail race and circumstances like weather can really effect you. Run it for fun!

J hope to see you there. Watch out for Gorns

It’s soooo hard! Heartbreaking hills, breathtaking views, people in costumes! We had the most best weather this year of all the years I did it. But after an injury in July I haven’t gotten into the amount of training necessary to run this race. This is the first year since the first year I did it that I had to walk a lot. But I still had fun!

If you’ve never done a 10k or 5k this is a great place to start. I can’t speak to the 1/2 marathon only because I’ve never done one. The course is well marked. Parking is easy. The scenery is pretty, despite being in town you feel like you’re out in nature for most of it is on trails. Plus it’s cool to get ice cream at the end. It IS hot in June, so dress accordingly. I saw some people in tank tops but if you don’t want to get sun burnt a loose long sleeve might be better, a cap with a brim, sun screen etc., don’t be afraid to stop for water. There are lots of well placed aid stations.

This is a really great first race for anyone interested in getting into the sport. There is plenty of parking nearby, it’s easy to get to, and the whole course is paved. Afterwards you get fabulous ice cream and there were other good treats: bananas, bagels and breakfast burritos. The support staff is fantastic. Free photos from every aspect of the race.
It’s a fairly flat course and this year I made a personal best!

The Friday before the actual race I received an email that the race time would be changed (earlier.) Due to this most of the 10k participants ran in the full glory of 92 degree heat, full bore sun – I was actually sick after this race and was stunned to see my time, I almost collapsed from heat exhaustion. . . I don’t mind a challenge, I’ve been doing Space Rock and Valencia Trail, but I felt this was a sneaky kind of bait and switch. The photos from the year before showed runners in after sunset conditions running with glowsticks etc. Apparently this was only for the 5k runners. If you sign up for 10k Beware!

The first 5k are a series of killer hills, very steep up and so steep on the way down for some of the time I had to slide. About 1k of this race is single track on the top of the ridge. I get vertigo real bad so I was terrified. Gosh in the ads all I saw were the happy people running through meadows, oops! I had to remind myself that even though I was scared out of my wits, going a single kilometer couldn’t take more than a couple minutes, right? Worst 20 minutes of my life hahaha. After the first 5k the course mellows out considerably. Still this was the most challenging race I’ve ever done. I look forward to doing better next year! Support staff was fantastic, encouraging, caring, helpful and kind

The race is completely on a paved, flat, trail designed for bikers, walkers and jogging. The scenery would be pretty meh except for the fact that this is for the Arts! Every few minutes you trot past another group of performers which makes the scenery rather intriguing.
If you’ve never run a 10k before and would like to try this is a nice race to start with because it’s like a road race without car exhaust/city traffic. Plus even if, like me, you end up last – you can salute yourself for supporting the arts.
I feel compelled to explain why describe the course as a “piece o’cake” when I had such a slow time: I was running on a strained ankle. Since my Cancer diagnosis I don’t skip races. I do what I can do for as long as I can. And you know what? I think I had as much fun as anyone despite my time and despite the ankle on fire feeling I had by the end of the race.

I entered this race based 100% on proximity to my home. I didn’t have time or budget at the time to travel to races. I only knew that I wanted to get back into running 10ks, which I had enjoyed very much as a teenager. Little did I know when I signed up how small this race is. . . despite having what I thought was a pretty respectable time for a woman my age, I was way, way, way back in the pack. I got the feeling that most of the runners were part of the same Santa Clarita runners club and I was, in 2017, just starting out, doing my first race in over 30 years and not a member of any running club.

I’m pretty glad I did not check the prior years’ times before signing up. I would mos def have chickened out. That said, it isn’t a terrible thing to be a snail runner. I sweat just as much as everyone else. I exert myself. I enjoy myself.
Being a small race there was a bit of a kerfluffle trying to figure out just where the parking/start point was. The roads were blocked (for the race) rendering our GPS directions useless. I ended up having to run from from my friend’s car while he navigated finding the parking lot – – sprinting to the start line was pretty hilarious. I got there pretty much just in time. If you are doing this race for the first time I recommend doing what I did: take advantage of the “contact us” link. Someone will (eventually) contact you, no matter how silly your question is, they help.

The course is a trail made for joggers and bikers so it is far from car exhaust and traffic. That is a plus. But the scenery is only so-so.
I would like to run it again in 2019 because it remains a race close enough to my home that I do not have to travel overnight to get there. I skipped it in 2018 in favor or the Santa Clarita Arts run. The courses are very similar but not exactly the same. This race is better than that one because it starts earlier in the morning (my preference due to the heat.) Independence day classic is also less expensive. The Arts race is better than this one because of the entertainment. And because you are supporting the arts.

Either race is great if you want to know what it’s like to run a 10k!