At the starting line it seemed like there were maybe 5 or 6 of us that were there to win. We were all able to get right on the line and not worry about crowding. When the gun went off I went out in the top four. It didn't take long for a tall lean runner to start pulling away. Sticking right behind him was an impressive older runner. They drifted away from me within the first mile, but never out of eye sight. For the first two miles I was running alone, just watching the two ahead of me and shadowing their moves. I kept my ears open listening for breaths or feet behind me, but didn't have any company until the start of mile 3. I heard some feet coming up behind me. They kept their distance for awhile but were slowly creeping on me. First a shadow passed me and then it's owner. My mouth had gone dry at the second mile so I gladly took water from the halfway point aid station. Though I was working hard, I was still able to thank the volunteers and knew I could continue on. Instead of staying with 3rd place I kept my distance. I didn't allow him to hear me breath or see my shadow. He would have to run scared, knowing I was somewhere behind him. The first half of the course was mostly a slight downhill, but when we turned onto Agoura Rd. and headed toward Kanan and onto Cornell I knew we would be facing some climbs. I backed off my pace a bit at the start of Agoura to prepare for the climb up to Kanan. I questioned if I would be able to get back into third place, but once I was at the on Kanan I knew it was definitely a possibility and would just come down to who wanted it more. The runner I was battling with was going a little taking the downhills a littler quicker than I, but lost pace on the uphills. With the amount of ascent we had coming on Cornell I knew I would eat into him and then race to finish in the last mile. This is exactly how it played out. Luckily for me, the last mile starts with one of largest climbs on the route. I started my charge on the hill and made my pass before the crest. Since he was already a weaker climber, I was easily able to gap him and start pushing my way down the hill toward the final turns. My only worry was how much of a fight he would put up to try to regain time with his downhill. I was flying as I turned into Paramount Ranch. To add a little distance to the route we had to turn right and run 100m before U-Turning and heading in. I make the U-Turn and see that I'm securely in 3rd place. I had broken the other runner. I head a solid kick through the finish and stopped my watch at 36 minutes.

I found out afterwards that the tall lean 1st place finisher is Greg Woodburn a USC distance runner and the 2nd place finisher is 44 year old Jerome Vermeulen a former All American Track runner, All American Cross Country runner, and NCAA National 5000 meter champion. I will gladly fall 30 seconds behind these guys. The runner I was competing with was Howard Jacobs, a former Florida State track and CC runner and according to his bio, a former pro triathlete.

I had my timing chip cut off then waited for the 4th place finisher to come in. I shook hands with him and exchanged kind words. Did the same with the 1st and 2nd place finishers as well. I grabbed a banana and some water before headed up the course to find Lauren on her way in. I didn't have to wait long, she was killing it! We hopped on the shuttle bus back towards the expo. She got massaged and I got stretched. We both enjoyed the provided pancake breakfast and celebrated our accomplishments.


A beautiful course that is both simple and challenging. The net downhill makes for a fast course, but you earn your time by tackling three good climbs.