The third annual Malibu International Marathon kicked off Sunday morning when more than 2,300 runners took to Pacific Coast Highway for a fun, but challenging run in beautiful weather.
This year’s event featured three competitions, including the full and half marathons, and the newly formed SUPathlon, a combination run and stand-up paddleboard (SUP) race.
D.J. Palmer of Washington, D.C., captured 1st place in the full marathon with a personal best time of 2:42:45. Palmer, 26, had only previously raced in the Boston Marathon and Richmond Marathon.
“Miles 19 to 24 were brutal,” Palmer said after the event. “I’ve run the Boston Marathon before. Everyone talks about how bad Heartbreak Hill is. Those hills in Boston are nothing compared to these ones. It was rough, but I stayed mentally strong. I summoned a lot of energy and strength the last couple miles. I stayed calm and collected and worked on race management.”
Palmer said he signed up for the Malibu International Marathon to get a chance to visit the West Coast for the first time.
“This race is very different because of the beaches and the mountains,” he said. “The East Coast doesn’t have anything like that. It was a beautiful run. The people here are very friendly and it was just a great day to run. Weather was perfect and they did a really good job of putting this together.”
The full marathon, consisting of 26.2 miles, began at the Camarillo Airport and wound its way through the flat farmlands of Ventura. The first 10 miles took the runners toward the Navy base at Point Mugu. After running two miles alongside the base, participants entered the “Keyway to the Coast,” along Pacific Coast Highway, the rock valley passageway to the ocean at Point Mugu. The race concluded at Zuma Beach.
Caroline Cretti of Berkeley was the first woman to finish and 12th competitor overall with a time of 3:06:00. Cretti, 27, struggled across the finish line and had to be helped to the medical tent. She was fine after a brief examination. It’s the sixth marathon Cretti has run, including the Olympic Trials in 2008.
“It was a beautiful course. The weather was nice and it’s been a great weekend,” Cretti said. “The course was tough. The flat land for 10 miles was mentally challenging and then the hills made it even tougher.”
The event attracted people from across the globe, including one young lady who came from Kuwait on vacation. Aminah Abotalaf, 25, had never been to California and not to the United States since 2009.
“I’ve been running for a year and I was looking for an international marathon,” said Abotalaf, who completed the half marathon in 2:31:34. “I didn’t want to miss it. I’m tired but it was so worth it.”
While the marathon featured 468 participants, the half marathon welcomed 1,865 runners to Malibu. The half marathon started just outside Point Mugu Naval Station and stretched 13.1 miles to the finish line at Zuma Beach.
Josh Cox, 36, of Mammoth Lakes, defended his men’s half marathon title with a time of 1:08:29. He improved two seconds from last year’s race. Catherine Sanderson, 45, of Huntington Beach won the female division in a time of 1:11:46.
The SUPathlon, combining the skills of running for seven miles and paddleboarding for six miles, consisted of only six athletes. Michael Anderson, 41, won the inaugural race in a time of 2:08:40.
This year’s event pledged to raise $100,000 for Christopher’s Haven, a non-profit organization that provides a welcoming home away from the hospital for children undergoing cancer treatment at Boston’s Mass General Hospital, as well as their families. The funds will go toward plans to build a new retreat in Malibu.
The Malibu International Marathon was founded by Forever Runners, a local Malibu group comprised of marathon enthusiasts. Jennifer MacVittie, one of the event organizers, flew in from Boston to assist with the event.
“I think today was awesome,” MacVittie said. “Mother Nature cooperated with us. We had a lot of people come out to support us. Everything went well.”