Last update April 6, 2009
Catalina Eco Marathon / 10K / 5K
3rd Saturday in November, Catalina Island, CA, 7:45 AM Start in 2008.
Avalon Weather, Metropole web cam, Catalina Island Inn web cam, Pavillion Lodge & Casino web cams
For app and info: call 909-399-3553, email: info@spectrumsports.net or click on Catalina Eco above for info or to register on line.
2008 race video
To quote Race Director Mike Bone: Start preparing now for one of the most challenging, difficult, memorable and fun events that you will participate in this year - the Catalina Island Eco Marathon. Come over to Catalina and experience the trails, oak trees, ocean views, bald eagles and of course the buffalo as we run from ridgetop to valleys and back to ridgetops. This experience you will never forget.
The first marathon in 2007 has been improved with less pavement and more off road trails never before used on the Catalina Marathon or Avalon Benefit 50 Mile courses. The course is out and back from Avalon and starts at 7:45 AM so no getting on the cattle boat at 5AM for the Isthmus and you can even take the first boat from the mainland if you just want to make it a day trip. This course is fast walk/jogable within the 8 hr time limit but if you think you will be slower than 15 minutes per mile, consider checking in at the start line and leaving an hour early so to be back in time to shower before for the awards party at 5 PM. Aid stations average 3 miles apart so carrying one water bottle is suggested. Make no mistake, this is a tough trail marathon that requires good ground gripping shoes and concentration. The altitude profile does not do justice to the short and steep whoops on the ridge tops. "The Hill" around mile 19 is a single track that makes Pumphouse Hill seem flat
Friday evening featured a movie at the Casino theatre made by Dean Karnazes cronicaling his 50 marathons in 50 days nd 50 states. A run inspiring movie or talk may become a regular event at this marathon.
Tradition is to wade into the bay up to your waist within 10 minutes of finishing, then having a buffalo burger or burrito and beer on the pier. Actually this really helps recovery. That evening, it's El Gallion for kareoke - fun to watch marathon finishers stagger up to the mike thinking they still have energy to sing. Sunday morning, 9AM at the Green Pier, there is an Avalon Hash recovery run. You may moan and groan on Sunday, but be thankful you followed these traditions come Monday or Tuesday.
Renting one of the Bahia Vista Condo's with 1 or 2 other couples is a good deal and can be cheaper than a hotel room. A 6 person condo is about $200 total per couple for the two nights. There is a Jacuzzi. Check out Vacation Rentals . Telephone 310-510-2276. The La Paloma is also popular with the club and see the Avalon Chamber of Commerce website for other accomodations.
Fastest boat ride - 1 hr - is from the Catalina Express terminal in Long Beach - 800-805-9201. Best to take Friday off if you can and get one of the morning boats so you have some time to relax and enjoy the islands ambiance. Return on a mid Sunday afternoon boat - more fun to coordinate your boat rez with other club members and ride together. We suggest the 10 AM Friday and 2:05PM Sunday boats from Long Beach.
Course drops down into the Valley of the Moon around mile 9 and we saw buffalo and a bald eagle around mile 20 during the 2008 event.
Ski the Valley of the Moon ought to be a bumper sticker for this marathon. Yes a bit steep but the views are fantastic on the little seen Pacific side of the island. New this year was the Hermit Gulch trail going 1.3 miles down from the Divide road and on into the Finish in Avalon. Much better than knee pounding down the Airport road pavement of last year.
My experience with the Catalina Eco-Marathon - 2007
By Scott Cline, "Tough Buffalo" Year One
So, I got a good night's sleep at my quaint motel/cottage in the little island town, woke up about an hour before the gun, took a shower, got dressed, walked a few blocks, greeted my fellow runners, and crossed the line! Perfect. None of fifty other marathon starts I've done has been close to this nice.
Is the course tough? Let there be no doubt. But there is great reward in these hills! Even the burn area, sprouting with regrowth, was good to see. Beautiful hills, and valleys, and hills, and valleys - remember that tough part? I didn't happen to see a buffalo, but you could tell they had been around. Reservoir lakes, ducks, horses, fish, boats on the ocean - lots to see - a camera is a worthy load to carry.
Even in their first year, the aid was well done. They were close enough to refill your bottles and provide nutrition. There were signs every mile and clear trail markings between them. A beautiful view awaits during the last mile dropping down into Avalon - of course ALL finish lines look great - but this one also has a wonderful prelude.
The night before and the night after can be fun too. Several restaurants, bars, tourist-style shopping, and other entertainment, even my nighttime favorite, Karaoke! And my personal daytime prejudice goes to the best old-tradition hand-built miniature golf course still in existence. But, the Grand Ballroom and the fantastic theater, complete with one of THE best pipe organs in the world, is nothing to ignore. Snorkeling, scuba, fishing, parasailing, horseback riding, golf, etc., and etc. You could easily spend a week here.
Catalina Eco Marathon Race Report by Brett Terrell
I was looking forward to doing a marathon before the end of the year when I heard about the inaugural Catalina Eco Marathon in November. I enjoyed the marathon I did before on Catalina, so I registered and started training.
There is never enough time to train enough, so as usual I started to get nervous before the race. Looking at the elevation chart I was relieved because it looked like there was a steep uphill in the first few miles, followed by some rolling ups and downs then a steep downhill. This looked like it might be easier than the spring marathon course.
Friday afternoon I rode the boat to Avalon, checked into the hotel, and joined the other Flyers at the checkin. We enjoyed a buffet supper and heard a pep talk from Bob Babbit of Competitor Magazine, who also interviewed ultra runner Dean Kanazes who ran 100 miles the day before, then kayaked to Catalina and was going to race with us the next day.
The next morning I rolled out of bed when Scott Cline
knocked on my door as he headed to the start. What a
luxury to roll out of bed and leisurely stroll one block to
the 8:15 am start. I didn't miss the 4:00 am boat ride in
rolling seas watching everyone around you turn green
before running a marathon.
The weather was great, a little cool and overcast. The start is a steep uphill out of town for about 3-1/2 miles. This was a tough part and it was discouraging to watch everyone pass as I struggled uphill. I thought, "Okay, I knew this would be tough; I will catch some of these people later." As we passed mile 3 I thought, "Great, it should start getting easier now." Wrong! What I was not able to see in the course profile is that instead of getting easy, there was a series of steep up hills and down hills until 10 miles or so. I kept waiting for it to get easy, but it never did. I finally had to accept that this was going to take a lot longer than I expected and settled in best I could to a pace I could hold. I took advantage of the slower pace to talk with friends and enjoy the scenery.
About mile 10 I actually started to feel good though I could feel the hills taking their toll. I even started passing a couple of the people who passed me earlier.
The course leveled out a bit (relatively anyway) through
trails around lakes and reservoirs in the interior of the
island. The sun started to come out and it warmed up,
but I was able to keep a steady pace. The first few
miles were so slow that when I got to this part of the
course the mile markers seemed much closer together...
at first I thought they were mis-marked. This
gave the illusion that I was moving faster than I was,
giving me a mental boost.
Around mile 18 I caught up to Scott Cline and Tom O'Hara, who took advantage of the early start. At the next aid station just past mile 19, I looked at my watch and thought that I had a shot at finishing right around 5:30 if I could keep this pace up. Wrong again!
Everything was fine for the next mile or so until I
reached a steep hill that looked like it went straight up
forever. Over the next mile it felt like all I could do
was stagger 20 steps then stop, over and over to the
top. At that point I thought all that matters is finishing
and I forgot about time.
Finally around mile 22 I passed the last uphill and started the steep descent into Avalon. I looked at my watch and realized I had a shot at breaking 6 hours so I started to push my sore and tired legs downhill as fast as I could. Parts of the road were so steep that I was afraid I would fall over and somersault to town! As I neared the finish I knew I would break 6 hours, and seeing friends at the finish gave me a shot of adrenaline and sprinted as best I could to finish in 5:56:31. All in all, a very tough course, but a very satisfying marathon experience. The course is beautiful and well run. I guess this makes me a legacy runner--do I have to do this again next year?
