Newport Trail/Beach Half Marathon

I did this fun race today. We had heard of it before but were uneasy about the beach running. This year I said "Heck, I am gonna give it a shot." I was very unsure what to expect and did not set a time goal since I have never ran on the beach before.

 The race was 6 miles on gravel hills and then half a mile of boardwalk turns out to the beach, then 6.5 miles running on the beach.

It wasn't bad! Except that I got sand in my shoes and felt strange, and had to push against the sand the whole time. So when I finished with my previous flat-course marathon time I was thrilled. 1 hr, 52 minutes.

Here I am at the finish line. What, you can't tell this is a finish line?? Neither could I.

I took 2nd place in my division! woohoo (I have never placed before)


These are our friends Brian and Ann Lacouture. Brian grew up in the same ward as me back in Vegas, and we both ended up transplanting to Oregon... Oh, and we both ended up becoming marathon runners. Who would have guessed??