Read what runners are saying about the Valley Crest Half Marathon!
Gerry Ward: “May I take this opportunity to express my appreciation to all concerned with the Valley Crest Half-Marathon. My home city is Belfast, North Ireland and I entered for the race on the basis of being on vacation with my son who lives in LA. Having participated in many races here over the past 20 years I must say I was impressed with your organization and band of willing helpers – the entire atmosphere on the day was so very friendly. The race itself was certainly challenging (or at least it was for me…) as we in Ireland have very few courses of such hill magnitude stretching over the 13-mile distance. It was therefore all the more pleasing for me to come first in my age category of 70+ and to receive the lovely medal. This is something I will cherish and place amongst the others I have been fortunate to attain over the years. If I am fortunate enough to get back to LA sometime again I will try to arrange the visit to coincide with the race. In my 11-day stay with my son I had a wonderful time, so full of happy memories and to have participated in the Ultraladies’ event was ‘icing on the cake’.”
Rebecca Gallivan – What I appreciate most about this race is that this is a race for people who just truly enjoy running and like to be one with nature. Running a record time is not the primary focus in this race. The terrain and challenge of the course, the coming together with others of like mind and spirit, the high when you reach the top of the summit is the focus of this race. It’s a good one and I will definitely be back.
Arlene Lewis – It was my first Valley Crest 1/2 and I loved every second of it!!!! I can’t wait for next year and wish there was another Valley Crest 1/2 this weekend already. Great course, great aid stations, enough porta-potties, easy registration, fun post-race food and awards ceremony! I’m going to call it a Goldilocks race… it was just right! Thank you Nancy and all UltraLadies and volunteers for putting on such a terrific race!
Saundra Whitehead (race committee) – A woman that works with me ran the Valley Crest 1/2 marathon on Sunday. This morning, she came and found me and she went on and on and on and on about what a great race, how well organized, how well marked and what a good job we all did, she won some socks, and the food was great! She kept saying so much that I was almost blushing. She told me to pass on her appreciation to you and to say that she would be running this race again next year. The Valley Crest was a huge success. You can be proud!
Bonnie Wright (#96) – Thanks for a great event. Ralph (#97) and I really enjoyed the challenging course and appreciated all those wonderful volunteers at the aid stations. It was a hot day and they went out of they way to make us feel very pampered. Thanks again for a fun event.
Alex Lamb – Thank you very much for a wonderful event last Sunday. This was my 2nd time running the Valley Crest Half Marathon. I will be sure to enter next year. Again, thank you very much for a well-run event and the excellent raffle prizes. I will be picking up my Montrail shoes from the Starting Line next week.
Gloria Roberts – Thanks for a great event. It was my first Valley Crest Half Marathon and I have been telling everyone in my running group in Orange County what a nice race you’ve put on. The course, though challenging, was fun, and the support and camaraderie was wonderful. Thanks again.
Mike Martin – I am at work still nursing some sore muscles, but thought I would take a break from my whining to say that I had a BLAST! This is the second year I’ve run this event and once again you put on a fun race. I was real glad to find the aid stations so well stocked and manned by the friendliest volunteers. Last year I tripped on the course and came in bloodied, but this year I remembered where that spot was, and avoided a spill. Any way thanks again for a great race and I plan to participate every year!
Ellen Kukuchka – Congratulations on a successful outing! And all those prizes – woweee! Everybody walked away feeling like a winner! The volunteer staff is stellar as always and the participants are polite, friendly and still manage to post some impressive times. It’s nice to see this race is attracting some bona fide fast runners. Great job and I’ll see you on the trails…
Jerry Vicich – Thank you, thank you!!! That was a great time even though my time wasn’t so great. What a well organized and beautiful run. I’ve only been in a dozen or so official runs but this one is by far my favorite. See you next year!
Erik A. Schnautz: “My wife and I ran the Valley Crest Half this morning. We want to thank you all for such a great time and for making us feel so welcome. Everyone we saw and spoke with this morning really impressed us and all are a credit to your club and our sport. We’ve been running from Marvin Braude Park for the last ten months or so and we had no idea there was such a great group of people who share our enjoyment of this treasure.”
Sharlene Wills: “What a day! What a race! Better than last year (and that was great)! Thank you so much, Nancy and all the volunteers, for again putting on such a wonderful event! My guide this year, Jean Ballantine, who is a Legger, said to me more than once, “I’ll do this race with you any time!” We had a lovely day. Once again, thanks for a great race, and I already look forward to next year.”
Mary Button (Race Ready): “Thank you for the extremely well-organized, challenging, but SCENIC trail half marathon. We realize that a great deal of planning is necessary to coordinate such a successful race! Gerry & I both enjoyed the course and the camaraderie of the runners. Race Ready is proud to be a sponsor of the race. We wish you continued success with the Valley Crest. We sincerely hope the race continues to grow and succeed. We will be certain to spread the word to fellow runners about your great event.”
Shari Nicholls: “What a great half-marathon! It was the first time for me and I really enjoyed the morning. The awards and the raffle prizes were given out quickly. I did get a 2nd place in my age group! Thank you to all the volunteers for a well-organized race and fun time!! The homemade tamales were fantastic!!”
Christine Welsh (Injinji Footwear): “Thank you very much for having us at your event on Sunday. We enjoyed being there and speaking with many of the UltraLadies. It was a very well run event, and the participants seemed to really enjoy it (minus the hills!) Thank you as well, for your support and promotion of our product. Once again, thank you from all of us here at Injinji Footwear.”
Thom Deane: “I thoroughly enjoyed the half-marathon… I was amazed at the amount of give-aways after the race – truly generous (even I got something).”
William Capone: “This is a race put on by experienced trail runners for experienced trail runners. A really great and challenging course with all the difficulty you want to see. The kind of difficulty that makes you draw from your experience and brings out your best. You feel challenged and satisfied when you finish this one. I have already placed the date of next year’s race on my calendar. I will be back with as many of my trail running friends as I can bring.”
Jeanne Tomcavage: “Did the half marathon today… it was a blast … and I will do it again next year … ready for the hills this time! Thanks for creating such a good environment and introduction to the world of outdoor running! You almost broke me — but not quite. I’ll be back.”
Steve and Belinda Bellingham: “Two out of two and already looking forward for the third one next year!! Thanks for a wonderful race!”
Rick Sanford: “I want to thank you, your volunteers, and sponsors for putting on such a great race. The volunteers were cheerful and friendly, the refreshments were plentiful, and the door prizes were top notch. The course was very scenic and proved to be a substantial challenge for this boy from the Texas plains. I hope to run the Valley Crest Half again in the future, and I’ll highly recommend it to my running friends. Thanks for the experience.”
Jennifer Henderson: “Thanks for a great race. Dave and I can’t think of any way to improve it. We really like the course with especially the two turn-a-rounds. It’s always fun to see the leaders and your friends. We will look forward to it again next year.”
Aimee McManus: I just wanted to say thank you to you and to the UltraLadies and to all of your volunteers. Sunday’s race was tremendous fun! As I described the race to friends, I tried to explain to them that the people at the event really made the day. What an incredibly genuine and fun and supportive group! Not only the organizers and the volunteers but the runners as well. I am a member of TNT and all of our runners had a great time. We all thanked our coach, Greg Minter, for including the Valley Crest 1/2 Marathon as part of the training schedule. For those running the Anchorage Marathon in two weeks, your race was the perfect precursor to that event! They will go to Alaska feeling confident and strong. On behalf of our group, I want to thank you for making our TNT runners feel so welcome!
Red Figueroa: Congratulations on the success of your inaugural Valley /Crest Half Marathon!!! My team in training team had a wonderful time and we all thought that the race was very well put together. I’m proud and grateful for all the work you put in it. We look forward to next year!
Paul Frieden: This was the most enjoyable race I’ve run in a long time. I’m looking forward to the second running and I’m sure it will be even better. I have no other comments, except it was really fun. Thanks…
Anonomyous: It was a wonderful race. The organization was perfect. Plenty of food and water. Cheerful and enthusiastic volunteers. All of the raffle prizes were a wonderful touch. Tom and I had a great time and we are looking forward to running again next year. However, could you get rid of the “old dame” in the 65-69 age group who ran a 2:04! WOW!
Mike Miller: Just wanted to thank you and all the volunteers for a wonderfully organized,fun race. My one reservation prior to entering was that it might be dull, given the “all on Mulholland” course, but that didn’t prove to be the case. There were plenty of interesting people to look at and talk to, the road’s condition required me to stay focused and, after all: who can be bored when you’re flying down a hill? Add to that the great support at the aid stations and the “Sunday with the (running) family/picnic in the park” post race atmosphere, and you got yourself a classy race–all the more impressive given this as its inaugural year. Based on my experiences yesterday, I’ll be running all the Valley Crest Half-Marathons. Kudos to you and your team.
Bill Capone: I just wanted to congratulate all of you on putting together a really great trail 1/2. The course was really good–challenging, but not too difficult–the aid stations were perfectly placed for a 1/2 and there was gel available in two locations. I hadn’t tried Hammer Gel until yesterday. This run is definitely on my list of “to do” races for next year. The price was very reasonable –to keep the run going I would not feel at all uncomfortable paying $35 or even $40. Again, you put on a really fine event.
Shirley Blush: Just a note to say thanks for a great race… The course is tough but I like it. Had a very good run. Didn’t know how it would go after running the Rock ‘n’ Roll marathon last weekend. The weather was much better than R & R. Cool! Hope to see you on the trails in the near future.
Steve and Belinda Bellingham: We enjoyed the race very much!! We think the support provided was wonderful. This race brought a lot of good runners in the area. This is a race we will definitely do again next year.
Steve: This was the first time I’ve run (well, with a little bit of walking) a half-marathon. The most I’ve run before now was 10 mi on a flat track. Overall, the run was fun, but harder than I expected, and today I’m really sore. But I went faster than I expected I would. (2:18:00) I liked the water stations, especially the last one with the oranges (I think that was mile 10). Oranges were a nice touch. Overall, I had fun. I’ll probably remember it more fondly in a couple days though when the pain goes away.
Ben G: BIG THANK YOU, for organizing today’s event. Same goes to your wonderful staff and volunteers. I enjoyed this morning’s run. It seems like most runners knew each other. I talked to runners I met in Catalina, Portland & LA. Could have done better on time. Unfortunately it was too late to find out the last mile was uphill. Still came 1:52 after running last week’s Fontana 1/2M.
Rick Light: The Valley Crest Half-Marathon was truly an enjoyable experience. It was well organized with plenty of water and volunteers at the water stops and plenty of goodies at the finish. Everybody was encouraging everybody else. As race director, you did an excellent job! You made the Ultra-Ladies and the New Basin Blues shine. Congratulations! I can’t wait until next year’s race. One minor correction. I ran with my Suunto Altimiter watch and it calculated 1,430′ of net gain and 1,430′ of net loss instead of 2,230′. My quads, however, disagree.
Bonnie Ades: Kudos to you! well done! Exceptionally well done. I’m sure it was a big success and will continue to be an even bigger one! Only good things can be said about all parts of that race!(except I’d change the wording to very challenging!) I love my medal!!!!!!!!! I’m going to sleep with it. It’s a first – first place for me! (lucky me–all my competition was working!).
Leah Davis: I hope you all consider your race to be a success because I was sure pleased. I heard no negative comments. The only thing was I didn’t see any mile markers between 6 and 12, which doesn’t mean that there weren’t any – just that I didn’t see them. I hope you make it an annual event as we need more trail events. I finished in under three hours (2:58:17) which was my only goal. Thanks.
Eric Schneider: We had a great time. Enjoyed the view and was impressed by the water stations. Pretzels were a lifesaver Thank You.
I ran your First Annual Valley Crest Half Marathon and very much enjoyed it. Very good course, well-marked, with easy to find mile markers. But for the fact that the race is billed as the first annual, I would never have known it. The race went off on time without kinks. It is evident to me that the paramount reasons for the success of the event were:
- It was put on by real runners and not race directors–you know what is important.
- The race was well-staffed with volunteers.
- Your entire crew worked hard and was very enthusiastic.
Thank you for this very positive running experience.
Pat M: The run on Sunday was a hit. You’ve got a gem going. I hope you decide to do it again. The support was there for all of us and it was appreciated. If you can do this caliber of a race the first time out, it can only get better. Thanx to you and all of the Ultraladies for a great day.
Amy Chan: I’m a little slow on this, but I wanted to thank you and Larry for a wonderful race. The race was very well organized and I enjoyed the “Mom and Pop” feel of knowing the race organizers, many of the volunteers, and some of the sponsors. Although I didn’t win anything (darn it! 
) I think the raffle is a fun way to encourage people to stick around for the awards and relax. I encourage you to keep that part for next year, assuming the generous donations will pour in again.