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Submitted by gabbyhoo
August 23, 2013
Review
Overall this was a good race. Not spectacular – but a solid race. Free parking was ample and very close to the start. There was lots of room at the start, and there was water set out for the runners. My biggest issue with the race overall – lack of porta potties at the start. I waited in line for 20 minutes – and was actually still in line when the gun went off – two minutes early! I was able to get to the back of the pack, but because the 5k and half were mixed together, I had to do a lot of dodging early on. (No corrals).
The course is billed as “rolling” hills – but I was not prepared for the amount of ups and downs. I guess I should have known Laguna “Hills” would have been hilly – but man – it was probably the toughest course I’ve done. My quads were KILLING me by the end because of all the up and down. But as long as you come prepared (Check out the elevation maps and train on hills) you’ll know what to expect.
There were plenty of aid stations and all the volunteers were friendly and helpful.
This wasn’t my favorite race of all time, but it was affordable, on a good day (I prefer non-Sunday races) and organized well. I don’t know that I would for sure do this race again… but I wouldn’t rule it out completely.
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Submitted by sydney24
June 3, 2013
Review
Overall it was a great race. The only bad part was they ran out of water at the finish line. I finished in 2:45 so there still should have been water left.
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Submitted by ecorrine22
June 1, 2013
Review
The Laguna Hills Half Marathon is one of my favorite races, and I’ve run it seven consecutive years. I really like these features:
-Race-day bib pickup
-Ample parking
-First mile through Laguna Woods (senior village) – it’s fun to see all the seniors out cheering
-Nice course that is partly on trails and bike paths
-Lots of course support and aid stations
-Great finish area with lots of vendors
-Plenty of shuttles to get you back to the starting line
In 2013, I was disappointed that they seemed unprepared for the number of participants. There were not enough porta-potties set up so there were really long lines and many people were not able to start on time. At the finish line, they had run out of t-shirts in my husband’s size and had run out of goodie bags. This was disappointing since we had pre-registered over a month before.
I plan to run the race again next year, but I hope that the organizers tweak their planning to account for a larger field size.
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Submitted by Matthew Lovil
May 28, 2013
Review
This truly is a well-organized, excellent, top-notch race from beginning to end. It is a medium-big race which is great, not too small not too large, just right. There is plenty of parking at the start, easy in and out of the parking lot. Lots of port-a-potties, some pre-race beverages, good communication as to when to line up etc.
My only beef is the course since all runners, 5k, 10k, and 1/2 marathoners start at the same time. It leads to some early congestion until about the 3 mile mark. This is a minor beef however as the course up until about mile 5 is on a road.
the course can be considered difficult by some, the first half is mainly downhill to flat while the back half of the course contains some climbs. It can wipe you out if you don’t plan properly. Plenty of water stations throughout however so hydration was not an issue.
Post race is good, my suggestion would be to offer a sports drink in addition to water. I was in dire need of some gatorade type drink after the race. Surprisingly the bag pick up and the shuttle busses back to the start were quick and easy.
I will keep coming back each year, this has moved way up my list of my favorite races.
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Submitted by nikkib
April 30, 2012
Review
This was my first REAL race 2 years ago, so I didn’t know what to expect. I get my materials the day before so I know where to park the next day and I got there early. Parking was good, since it was at a mall. The half marathon starts at the same time as the 5k, so the start line was a little nuts. We ran through a nice neighborhood at first. There were several hills, but not too back. The 5K finished and the half marathon kept going. It was downhill on the street until about mile 8, then uphill on a bike path until the end. I was unprepared for that! The post race has cool jumpers for the kids. They had buses that took you back to the mall, too.
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Submitted by TAlbright56
March 4, 2012
Review
Watch the first mile, it will be all-out…then you hit a pretty tough and long uphill climb at about 1/2 through the 5K.
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Submitted by runnerdude
December 27, 2011
Review
I did the 5K last year and had fun! The registration and parking was smooth. The course is fun but don’t expect a PR because of a slight hill in the last mile. The finish village was comfortable, with good vendor giveaways.
