Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Breaking Down the Coastal Trail Runs

Now having run 18 races with Coastal Trail Runs, on 15 different courses, I thought it'd be fun to take a look back at the races.

The "winners" of these categories are only among the races I personally ran.  I can't speak for the ones I missed.  Which, if you're curious, are Steep Ravine, Grizzly Peak, Diablo, and Malibu Canyon.  That includes three of the very hardest courses in the series.

Oh, and I'm not counting the San Francisco 50-Miler either.  I think that gets its own category.

Hardest:  Coyote Ridge - 7,350 feet of climbing pretty much says it all
Most Technical:  Spooner's Cove - loose scree on steep slopes, deep sand in places, and tons of firmly embedded rocks
Easiest:  Wildwood - very flat, almost no real climbs, entire second half is steady decline
Fastest:  Bizz Johnson - first half flat, second half ALL DOWNHILL
Most Scenic:  Coyote Ridge - beautiful vistas all over the Marin Headlands (Golden Gate is a close second, and is a very similar course)
Prettiest Forest:  Big Basin - the Skyline-to-Sea Trail is a very popular hike in its own right, and it's not hard to see why
Favorite for Running:  Canyon Meadow - just feels great to run on those trails, poses enough challenge, and no big hill at the end
Most Unique:  San Lorenzo River - wade across a waist-deep river four times!
Greatest Nemesis:  Cinderella - got the best of me twice

A more in-depth retrospective is coming soon...

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