Super Bowl Sunday Race

With the Super Bowl a little over 2 weeks away, it also means that the Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Half Marathon is right around the corner. The (26th annual) race is held on Super Bowl Sunday in Golden Gate Park and it will be my third time participating. As it tends to be the first event of the year for me, I’m looking to start the year off on the right foot.

The course is a typical route through Golden Gate Park and the Great Highway. This may tend to be a downer for some since Great Highway can be mundane and Golden Gate Park is a common route for most SF runners, but I see it as an advantage. Imagine running a race where you know the course like the back of your hand. In a given year, I’ll run sections of this course over a dozens times. That means I can rely less on the mile markers and trust my instincts knowing which sections to turn on the burners and which to take it easy.

It’s a point to point race and includes a half marathon and a 5k fun run/walk — the race fees are minimal in comparison to most ($50/half, $30/5k - $10 discount for 16 and under for both). There are no medals handed out to all the finishers, but it does include a race day t-shirt (or upgrade to dri-release wicking shirt) and a small Post-Race Expo. Not to mention that participation in this event helps support the Koret Family House, The Harbor Light Center for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, and Support for Families of Children with Disabilities.

BONUS: Yes, it is on Super Bowl Sunday, but you’ll make it home before the pre-game show and it gives you good reason to enjoy all the super bowl party food. After all, you just burned a bunch of calories and it is your duty to replace those calories with pizza/beer/chips/margaritas/buffalo wings/nachos or whatever your food of choice is.

You must pre-register, and it is limited to 10,000 participants with no race-day registration. Come out and join the cause.