TAKING PANDEMIC IN STRIDE

Trail runners compete in what’s thought to be 1st organized running event

Standing near the finish line after running 13.1 miles in one hour and 33 minutes, Glenn Racz of Temecula stood shirtless and grinning in the sun at Daley Ranch in Escondido Saturday, exulting in the sheer joy of racing again.

Sure, he and his fellow distance runners never stopped tracing the trails when the pandemic forced formal running competitions into hibernation across the region and the state. But grinding it out all alone, Racz explained, is simply not the same thing as lining up to go against others with that evil red number on the clock counting ever upward. And a race date on the calendar, he added, changes the game weeks, even months, before it arrives.

“It’s something to look forward to, and it has been a while since we had that,” Racz said. “It’s great to have motivation to train, and it just gets you to another level because, then, you’re coming out here with more purpose.”

“The adrenaline, it’s not the same, on a regular day versus in a race,” added Ezekiel Aguirre, a warehouse worker from El Cajon who, after finishing his half marathon, was already dreaming of a 50K.

Both were among about 135 people who arrived early Saturday for The Ranch 50K/half

Marathon run by Second Wind Trail Running. The event, said codirector Sean Scace of Santee, received a special permit from the county health department and is believed to be the first sanctioned running event to occur in the region since fears of COVID-19 contagion brought increasingly stringent shutdowns to the sporting world.

If the race went well, many speculated that additional events might be allowed in the near future. County officials did not respond to a request Saturday for more information.

Trail running reappeared to cap a week in which the state began thawing its rules for outdoor activities, declaring that, as of April 1, stadiums and concert venues will be allowed to fill 20 percent of their seats in counties that achieve the second-least-restrictive level of California’s four-tier reopening blueprint.

Getting the county’s blessing, Scace said, came with a host of Covid-related requirements, including spacing runners out at the starting line.

“We’re starting 10 runners every 10 minutes, and that’s not how something like this would normally start,” he said.

Runners were given specific starting times before race day and asked not to arrive more than 10 minutes before stepping off to avoid crowds of people standing around together before or after competing. Temperature checkins for all runners and volunteers were required, and participants had to wear masks when within 20 feet of others on the trails.

All signed medical waivers confirming that they had experienced no COVID-19 symptoms and assuming responsibility if they ended up getting sick after participation. Attendance from outside Southern California was strongly discouraged, and the number of entrants was capped at 150 — 100 fewer than last year’s inaugural event.

On the trails, runners were asked to give verbal cues when passing to allow enough time for the person in front to step aside, minimizing the chances of rubbing shoulders on the narrow single track. Even snacks and drinks at aid stations were shifted to singleserving sizes to minimize the chances of sweaty hands sharing more than intended.

Many might wonder whether racing is still worth it piled under so many rules?

Both Racz and Aguirre said yes, though they had different takes on what it’s like to race when everyone can’t start at the same time.

Aguirre, 47, who said his last race was a 50K in Puebla, Mexico, was excited not to continuously hear and feel another person right on his heels.

“You go at your own pace, you finish at your own time, so it’s better for me,” he said. “With somebody right on your tail from the start, halfway through the race you can already be burned out.

Racz, though, said he missed the hunt that occurs when runners compete over long distances. Maintaining a steady pace over long distances, even with a competitor bearing down, is part of what it takes to win.

“Getting chased, chasing someone, that can be nice,” he said. “Having it all spaced out so you don’t really know who’s where, that’s a necessary evil during this COVID time.”

paul.sisson@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @Paulsisson

NELVIN C. CEPEDA U-T PHOTOS Competitors in Saturday’s The Ranch 50K/half Marathon were encouraged to wear masks, and start times were spaced out.

A runner celebrates near the end of his race by jumping and clicking his heels together. Many participants said they were excited to feel the motivation of competition again.

NELVIN C. CEPEDA U-T PHOTOS A race organizer briefs the first group of runners on course markings before the start of the event. The event was put on by Second Wind Trail Running.

During the race at Daley Ranch in Escondido, runners were asked to give verbal cues when passing others.