I was excited to run Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon. I haven’t been wanting to run a ton of half marathons lately, but the M2B Half is always a fun one. While it’s downhill, there are some climbs, including at miles 10 and 11, that throw people off. Is Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon downhill? Yes, but it’s not the aggressive downhill you see in races like Revel. If you’re looking to fall down a mountain that’s not really the case here. In fact, the downhill is so gradual that you may not really feel it at all.
Anyway, last year at Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon, I had a great race and surprised myself by running 1:29:40. I was hoping to be back under 1:30 this year, but sadly that did not happen. My body was just not feeling it. While I didn’t feel “terrible,” I just felt sluggish, and that’s how I felt the last few weeks. Anyway.
Before the Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon:
We had other plans that fell through, so I had a fairly lazy Friday and Saturday. We got to the Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon expo around 3:20, picked up my packet, and then chilled. It was one of the lazier pre-race half marathons I’ve had, and I felt good about that. I felt pretty well rested and I was pretty pumped about that. Life has been lifing lately, so a down day before a half marathon is rare but welcomed.
The Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon starts at 6:10, so it’s an early morning. I was lucky my spouse dropped me off at the Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon start. I’ve taken the buses before, and they’ve been fine. Since I signed up just a couple months before the race, all that was left was the 4 am bus. Although I do think they should have more later buses, I understand why they don’t. I can’t speak to how strict they are with busses and if you can board a later bus (they do say absolutely not at the expo).
Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon Race:
The Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon race started right at 6:10 a.m. The other times I’ve run, it’s started late, but this went off right at 6:10. I am always surprised that the Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon is not a massive race. In my head, I expect it to be huge, but it’s really not. There are a fair amount of bathrooms and I think I got through the line in about 10 minutes around 5:50…
As mentioned at 6:10, we were off. There are a few rollers in the first couple of miles. I settled into what I thought was my goal half marathon pace, but then the 1:30 pacer went by me like I was standing still. LOL, I don’t know if I was in la-la land, but it turns out I was running closer to 7:15. Whoops, I then picked up the pace by the end of mile 2. It was a little late, considering I ran a 7:02 and 6:56 when the goal was 6:52. I could tell my legs didn’t feel like I would want/expect for a sub 90 half marathon.
From there, I was playing a bit of catch-up, but I also wasn’t feeling great to do that. It felt like every mile was a struggle. I logged a 6:43 and 6:50. It felt like I was working entirely too hard for how fast I was going. I was feeling a bit defeated about it. Trying hard but not really going as fast as I could.
Luckily, the miles ticked by fairly quickly. I found myself halfway around 45:10. I knew there was still hope to break 90 minutes, but not really much. The last few miles have some hills, and while they aren’t huge, when you’ve been going downhill for so long, any hill does feel big.
I took a gel around the halfway point and was starting to feel slightly better, and I found myself logging a few 6:4X miles. I was excited because I thought maybe I just needed to warm up. In 2024, I ran CIM and needed about 20 miles to warm up so I am never really that surprised anymore. Around mile 6ish, you are on the bike path for a few miles, and even though this is my third time running the race, I’m still surprised we run on a bike path.
By mile 10, I was slightly under 1:30 pace. The pacer was still fairly far in front, but I told myself you are doing great. I was slowly starting to pick people off. Just after mile 10 of the Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon, you leave the bike path and head into town. This is where a couple of the hills are.
The first doesn’t seem bad. It’s maybe a quarter mile long. You get over it, go down a small downhill, only to go back up. The second is what beat me up. But from there, you go downhill and onto a short out and back before heading toward the finish.
The Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon and Marathon finish is kind of brutal. You go around the park, but you can literally see the finish about half a mile out as you circle it. I just wanted to be done. It’s nice because there is plenty of spectating/parking available, but for the runners it is just brutal.
I crossed the Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon finish in 1:31:02.
Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon:
I was happy I didn’t give up in the Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon, but it was not the outcome I wanted. I had really wanted to be under 90 minutes. Now a few days out, I have realized I did come down with some sort of small upper respiratory sickness, so I do feel better about that and why I didn’t feel “great.”
Questions I’ve been asked:
Is the Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon fast?
Yes. The Mountains 2 Beach Marathon half marathon has a net downhill course from Ojai to Ventura, and that’s why most runners sign up. It is a fast race, but it’s not a 3,000-foot drop race. If you don’t respect the flatter miles and uphill, they will feel hard.
Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon course profile:
The course is point-to-point, starting inland in Ojai and finishing near the coast in Ventura. The first few miles are mostly downhill, then it settles into longer, straight sections. There aren’t a lot of turns or technical sections, so it comes down to pacing and staying engaged.
Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon elevation gain and downhill
This is a net downhill half marathon with a few hundred feet of elevation loss overall. Most of the drop happens early. It’s not steep the entire way, but the early miles can add up in your legs. By the later miles, the course feels flatter, and the last few miles do have uphill.
Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon results and average finish time
Results tend to be faster than many other half marathons because of the downhill profile. I think it’s a combination of it being a fast race, but a lot of people come for specific time goals.
Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon registration and date
The race usually takes place in May. Registration is done online through the official race website. It has grown in popularity with runners looking for a fast half marathon in California, so it can sell out.
Would I run Mountains 2 Beach race again?
Probably, I think they do a good job. The expo is easy and the race is well organized and accurate. Plus it is a lot smaller than many other local races which can make for an overall more relaxing experience. It’s a fun one…it’s important to realize if you think it’s a “3000 foot downhill” that is not the case here.
You can see Strava here and all race recaps here.
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Questions for you:
What is your favorite half marathon?
Have you run Mountains 2 Beach?