Greetings! It's been a while since my last race recap. Life was a little too hectic to type one up after the Lexus LaceUp 5K and the Rock 'n' Roll LA Half, but I'm back now! With that being said, here's my recap of the Revel Canyon City Marathon from November 12th.
Registration: I signed up almost a year before the event after hearing about it from my friend Becky. It was pretty inexpensive and they had a few special discounts. Registration for 2017 is already open at the Revel Canyon City Website and the early price runs all the way until April. You can use the code CanyonCity17 for $10 off and if you link your Facebook profile, you get another $10 off.
Packet Pickup: The event expo was fairly small, but it was extremely well organized. It was only one day (Friday) and was held at a nearby warehouse with 10 or so vendors. There were a few large backdrops with signs (26.2, 13.1, PR, BQ) that people could hold up for taking pictures, they had those at the finish festival as well. I got in and out in 10 minutes so I could beat rush hour traffic back home.
"Swag" Bag: I received my bag at the first table when getting the race bib, which had a timing chip attached to the back of it. Also in the bag were a few flyers, a sample of vita gummies, mylar blanket, and gloves. The next table had the race shirts and really nice cold weather hats with the race logo. There was an option during registration to select long or short sleeve shirt. I got the short sleeve, because SoCal. There was also a shirt exchange table in case yours didn't fit.
The Race: This race series is known for its large elevation drop and this one did not disappoint. Before the race, shuttles bused runners from around 600 feet elevation to over 5600 feet. It took the bus just over an hour to get up the mountain and arrive at the start area located at Crystal Lake Recreation Area. It wasn't as cold out as I was expecting it to be, but I still used the gloves and mylar blanket to keep warm. Gear check was a little unorganized, they didn't have any volunteers at the gear check truck. People were just tossing their bags in and walking off. The race started right on time at 7 and the first mile was all downhill. After that there was a very small climb to a turnaround sign, then the huge downhill section began. The course was extremely scenic with awesome views of the San Gabriel Mountains. As you can see by the map below, the course had a lot of twists and turns over the first 9 miles, which made it possible to see other runners far below. Shortly after the halfway point, which I reached in 1:55, the steep downhill ended and a few rolling hills appeared. This is when I hit the wall due to lack of training. I walked the majority of the uphill climbs and ran easy on the downhills. At mile 23.5, the course exited the mountain section and entered the city of Azusa. There were a good amount of spectators out to cheer everyone on at this point. This part of the race was mostly flat with a couple of turns that led to the finish line. I finished in 4:37 which was good enough my third best marathon time, the downhill sections definitely helped. The course as a whole was blazing fast while still presenting a challenge. The aid stations were spaced out perfectly and were stocked with water/powerade. A few of them had gels but I didn't use them since I had my own.
Post-race: Upon crossing the finish line I got my giant medal, a bottle of water, and half a bagel. The race bib also had tear off tickets for pizza, pie, and aloe water. I left those at home in the water bottle I'd originally planned to use, oops! I waited in the short line to have the picture at the top of this post taken. Even though race pics were free, I had someone take one with my phone for the mandatory post-race Instagram post. On my way to the beer garden, I bumped to Melissa Williams. We've followed each other on Instagram for a while and done a lot of the same races, but never actually met in person. It's always great meeting up with online friends. Retrieving my gear bag was lightning fast as they had people calling out bib numbers as runners approached. The beer garden was right in front of where the band was playing and they were giving out Coors Light, blah. That would be my only complaint about this event, but since MillerCoors was a silver level sponsor I understand. I headed out after I had my two beers and changing into dry clothes.
Results and Photos: Results were immediately online and text message updates were also a free race perk. Pictures started getting posted late Monday and all were available Tuesday evening, there was even an option to select 4 of them for a custom highlight video. Free race pictures are definitely on of the best perks a race can have and they even had signs along the course when a photographer was upcoming!
Final Thoughts: This is a race that I will do again for sure, possibly at some of their other locations as well. For around $100 you get amazing views, a nice race shirt, a hat, a giant medal, pizza, pie, beer, and free pictures. It's hard to think of another event with that kind of value. I look forward to returning November 4, 2017 for another crack at raising that PR sign!
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