January 11, 2022
The weather unfolded as expected. It was a great day for running and for spectators with light jackets or sweaters. Under mostly cloudy skies, the temperatures ranged from the upper 50’s to low 60’s. The winds were 6-7 mph for the Women’s race at 9:30 AM PST and had died down to 0-3 mph for the Men’s race an hour later. The course is mostly flat with a few little hills to beak things up. It starts with a long grass straightaway on the east side of Mission Bay Park, with one driveway to cross, takes a sharp left to cut across to the Bay side of the park and then heads back over a somewhat uneven mostly grass surface with some dirt and then heads back in a big loop around the inside of the park and the loop finishes by heading back past the start and on to the next loop. On the last loop, athletes are directed to a finishing chute that parallels the starting 200 meters. The Women’s race is 3 loops for 6 km, the Men’s 4 loops for 8 km.
The course looks like it should be fast. But a number of athletes, both in 2020 and 2022, have observed that the surface is soft, that it tends to absorb a runner’s stride rather than return the energy expended. In a pre-race interview, Renee Metivier observed that the course is ‘spongy.’ The Men’s winner Sergio Reyes, observed after the race that the course was ‘more technical’ than he remembered. Perhaps he meant that rather than open fields and wide tracks, the runners are often on a somewhat curvy path dictated by palm trees on both sides and sloping terrain near the water, skirting around picnic areas and playgrounds. The consensus seems to be that the course is not fast, despite appearances. That is backed up by the times. When I checked a few runners who competed over the same distance at both Tallahassee and Mission Bay, times tended to be a minute or more slower at the San Diego course. Tallahassee is fast, but maybe not Mission Bay, despite the promising terrain.
Paul Carlin
USATF Masters LDR/Media Coordinator
Running Professor LLC/www.runningprof.com
