Seaside Half Marathon/5k/10k

Incredibly picturesque. Easy run, a good half for beginners. When arriving to the seaside itself… Stunning. Your mind just wanders away adrift on salt spray in the air.
Very nice mix of running paths and city streets. Fairly well attended with aid stations. Not many spectators until the very end but a great reception party complete with beer and tacos. What more can you ask for?

(Half #6, 2015)
Now THIS is an Elite Sports run I can appreciate. Actually, any course along California’s beautiful coastline scores stellar marks in my book. The ocean breeze, salt in the air; the morning sun stretching over the horizon; crashing waves, golden sand, blue skies: all contribute to an energized run.
If you’ve run the Ventura Marathon, Seaside begins in the same area; however, instead of running south along the coast, Seaside takes you north. The course is relatively flat and certainly scenic. The water stations were well-​stocked, and gel packs were made available as well. Parking was simple, as well: there’s a structure right on the Promenade. Paying $ 8 will get you an all-​day parking pass; however, we received a quick validation from a nearby restaurant, which knocked off $ 4 from our parking.
What’s really cool about Elite Sports’ races, though, is their «Endurance Challenge»: running seven of their Half marathons awards a challenge medal at the year’s end. I want that! For more information about the Endurance Challenge, check here:
…
And, even cooler, is that Elite Sports’ races are included in the CA Half Series (
), which – if you’re into Halfs – awards a 10-​, 15-​, and 20-​run series medal at the end of the year. Running seven of Elite Sports’ inches you closer to the halfway mark!
TIP: If you plan to run any of Elite Sports’ or the CA Half Series’ races, check out RaceShed (
); it gives «race for less» discounts and promo codes.

I enjoyed this race! I shaved 1:01 off my half marathon pace on this course which is mostly flat and runs along the ocean. The weather was perfect, cool and sunny! The check-​in the morning of the race was well organized. I even had time to go back to my hotel and drop off my goody bag and change shirts before the race. The course support was excellent. My only complaint would be there were no pictures of me taken along the course. I am glad I had my camera and had taken a few pictures before the race as well as after the race at the finish line. I also took some great pictures during the race.