Cal International Marathon logistics?

if you don't wanna get there really early, take a cab or something. uber.

and i don't think joining the 3hr pace group gets you any sort of priority considering there will be hundreds of people running sub 3

Self seeding at CIM is very easy. Just make your way to the start at 6:50ish. In your case just line up between the 2:42 and the 3 hour pace groups. These pace groups won't be more than a half dozen or so rows apart so they will be very easy to find.

In my experience the busses will run from just before 5 until the LONG line is gone. There are a ton of busses and they are very efficient. I've only been on the earlier busses so can't comment on how long it takes to get through the line, but I would guess it would be 30 minutes or more.

Take the bus. Stay on the bus, where it is warm. I don't think I've ever had to stand at the start line for more than 15 min. If you're not squished in the mid pack, it will thin out in the first mile. Not crowded at all, but the early buses do suck. Oh, and it took 6 years, but they finally lost my drop back (that was the year it rained, and it was a free for all gear retrieval, so I'm sure someone took my dry clothes).

1. The race is self seeding, no corrals, so if you really want to be near the front, go up there. Unlike most races I've been running lately, the walkers haven't tried to take over the front rows, at least not yet. The first mile is downhill on a wide 5 lane road, intersection of Auburn-Folsom Road and Folsom Lake Crossing in Folsom California, and the race heads south. Watch this video on YouTube, it shows what the start is like, at least from the back of the pack:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jluI1rvO3gk

2. Getting to the start. The bus is the easiest way, but you do have to get up early, and almost all the buses are old yellow school buses. The buses didn't use to leave the start area, so you could stay on the bus and stay warm, but I think I heard that might have changed, I don't know. You might want to FB or tweet the race and find out (My parents live near the start, so I don't take the bus.) And in case you were wondering, there are tons of porta potties at the start. A ton of them. I think the VIP gets you on a nicer modern bus where you might be able to sleep in a seat. And while Uber is tempting, I'm not sure how many Uber drivers are floating around downtown Sac the morning of the race. There are generally a bunch of cabs waiting outside of the Hyatt in the morning to take people to the airport, but with the race course road closure of L Street, I think the drivers get moved to 12th street.

3. The first 6 miles. Don't blow up on the start of the race. Since the first 0.8 miles is downhill, many runners get sucked into running too fast at the start, and once they hit the rolling hills over the next 5 miles, they end up dying towards the end of the race because they went way too fast the first 10k. The profile shows that the race is a net downhill, but there are rollers at the start.

4. The weather. Though Sac is the capital of "Sunny" California, expect the weather to be cool. Every 3-4 years it seems like it rains. Most of those years, a little, one time, a lot.

5. The course is not scenic and while there are pockets of fans, like in Old Town Fair Oaks @ 10miles or at the half point or @ mile 20.5, don't expect a large crowd to carry you forward.

6. VIP. The Sutter Club is a nice place and it is right next to the finish line, but that is a lot of money for a couple of meals and a bus ride. If you have the money, cool. Just seems a little pricey to me, and I make $500k/year and am married to a supermodel.

Good luck

Side question, what's up with a 2:42 pace group? Maybe I'm totally missing the significance of that time.

minong wrote:

Side question, what's up with a 2:42 pace group? Maybe I'm totally missing the significance of that time.

Probably an artifact from the original women's B-standard for the 2016 Olympic Trials Marathon. It was originally sub-2:43 until they changed it at the last minute to 2:45. Not sure why they'd have it for CIM this year though. The OT qualifying window for 2020 isn't even open yet, and they haven't announced what the qualifying times will be. So maybe I'm completely wrong, but that's my best guess.

minong wrote:

Side question, what's up with a 2:42 pace group? Maybe I'm totally missing the significance of that time.

My hunch is that in the past that was for women trying to get the OTQ. Not sure why they'd have it this year, since the window hasn't opened yet.

darkwave wrote:

minong wrote:

Side question, what's up with a 2:42 pace group? Maybe I'm totally missing the significance of that time.

My hunch is that in the past that was for women trying to get the OTQ. Not sure why they'd have it this year, since the window hasn't opened yet.

Yep, I'm sure that's it, thank you!

darkwave wrote:

minong wrote:

Side question, what's up with a 2:42 pace group? Maybe I'm totally missing the significance of that time.

My hunch is that in the past that was for women trying to get the OTQ. Not sure why they'd have it this year, since the window hasn't opened yet.

Bragging rights.

The women's OTQ is becoming a sub elite bragging rights goal, because with Boston's popularity they don't stand out by BQ'ing anymore.

HobsJog wrote:

darkwave wrote:

My hunch is that in the past that was for women trying to get the OTQ. Not sure why they'd have it this year, since the window hasn't opened yet.

Bragging rights.

The women's OTQ is becoming a sub elite bragging rights goal, because with Boston's popularity they don't stand out by BQ'ing anymore.

Sub elite for men or for women? For men all you need is close to 3 flat, for women all you need is something even slower