Sunday Runday: Lululemon 10k

A couple of months before I headed to Vancouver to run Lululemon's SeaWheeze Half Marathon, Lululemon announced their very first United States race.  A 10k that just happened to be in San Diego.  I mean, I had to sign up, right?

Lululemon knows how to run their races, so I wasn't too concerned about this being an inaugural run.  Plus, I'd run the course (in the other direction) before with friends.  And this was going to be another run with friends, because just about every person a knew had also signed up.

The race started on Shelter Island, where parking is at a premium, so they shuttled us over to the start.  Which isn't novel for races, but if you've ever been shuttled before you'll know that usually means you're in for a VERY early arrival time.  And this was no different.  We shivered in the dark and cold until eventually the sun came up and it was time to start.

The race course was great.  One of the reasons my friends and I enjoy this route is that a lot of it is very scenic, running beside the San Diego Bay.  It's also predominately flat, and the hills that exist are some of the most mild in San Diego races. 

Like in Vancouver, Lululemon had a spin class there to cheer us on along the route...I think.  It was a little hard to tell because we must have run past it between classes?  People were mostly milling about, not actually on bikes.

There were also spirit stations throughout the course with drag queens, hula hoopers, and sharks!

We had a lot of fun running the race - which is one of the best reasons to run with friends.  And when we finished, we were given a medal and a donut!

The post-race festivities included a pop-up shop with a line that wrapped around the entire event, along with several other vendors.  Our race bags for SeaWheeze included a pair of running shorts, and this race gave us a tank top, so this year I've managed to score an entire running outfit, just from participating in Lululemon races!

As anticipated the 10k was really well planned and went so smoothly.  None of the kinks or snags that many first-time races have.  I hope they continue to come back to San Diego!