It was a great day to race the 2007 Long Beach Marathon and everything fell into place nicely. (Well, at least for me…I didn’t run the race)! This year, we drove a different way to avoid the crowds and easily found a place to park close to the starting line. We didn’t have to stress getting to the starting line before the gun went off. Val, having more race experience is much better at managing race day anxiety than a year ago and I believe that only helped her performance as it did today with another half marathon personal best time of 1:40:34. (See the stats below).

The weather was ideal for a race with a starting temperature of 58 degrees and no wind. Humidity was high, but not a factor.I skated the course, looking for photo ops to catch Val in flight. As it turned out, I skated about the same distance as the half marathon, so I consider that my training workout for the day and I assure you it was much easier than Val’s effort. At the points along the race course where I caught up with her, Val looked strong and confident and totally immersed in the race. Val is one of those competitors who lives for race day and once the gun goes off, she goes off. She ran a strong, smart race. I’m am proud of her and inspired by her. Great race, Foo!

For more pictures, click here.

Long Beach International City Bank Marathon     -    Half Marathon