coverNovDec08.qxd:coverapr06.qxd
10/25/08
2:16 PM
Page 2
®
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2008
Follow Your Heart: Train for a Half in 12 Weeks! Survive the Holidays & LOSE WEIGHT by January 1! Exploring the New Pacific Half Marathon
THE TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF RUNNING Best-Selling Author Nicholas Sparks Changes Lives on a High School Track
IT’S HALF TIME! 11 MUST-RUN HALF MARATHONS
HALF MARATHON GUIDE
LAS&FNov/Dec2008.qxd:LAS&FOctober.qxd
10/24/08
9:53 PM
Page 20
Event Preview: Pacific Half Marathon
HEAPS OF HOLLYWOOD HISTORY IN A HALF By Heidi Creed
short-lived Paramount Racetrack, you head “back to the future” towards the ocean and past multi-million dollar homes nestled in the mountainous areas of Kanan Road. However tempting it may be to stop at the Rustic Canyon General Store and Grill for a burger, you’ll have to keep going since this tour has barely begun. From here you will connect to the Santa Monica Mountain-hugging Mulholland Highway on a stretch of road known by locals as “Three Magical Miles” that spans from the Rock Store through historic Cornell to Paramount Ranch. These miles are steeped in rich California history that, when all stories told, could themselves be something presented on the silver screen: cowboys, Indians, outlaws, politicians and movie stars, have all gallivanted in this region in salacious fashion over the past century. Next you’ll pass through the historic Cornell district, which includes the Rock Store (near the course but not on the route), Steve McQueen's old hangout from the ‘70s that now is host to hundreds of motorcycle enthusiasts (sometimes including Jay Leno) every weekend. The Cornell Winery comes next, and is near the mysterious, hole-in-thewall Old Place restaurant that serves just two things on the menu – steak and clams – if there are enough patrons
You might want to bring your off-thebeaten-path Los Angeles guidebook with you as you work your way through the history-rich, first running of the Pacific Half Marathon. This virtual sightseeing tour through the haunts of Old Hollywood will make you feel as if you stepped back in time and are hundreds of miles away from all that glitters in today’s big city scene. The Pacific Half Marathon is one of two half marathons at the Dole Great Race of Agoura Hills on March 28. The other is the Chesebro Half Marathon, a predominantly trail run, where this one is all road. But it is not “just another road race.” It is likely to be one of the most unique courses you have ever run on, not only because of all the route has to offer or because you might actually want to take your time to take it all in (not too much though), but because we suggest you add movie watching to your “cross-training” regimen. The course takes runners through classic movie and television backdrops and passes an array of current and former celebrity homes. When you toe the start line in Western Town at Paramount Ranch, blurry-eyed in the morning, believe your eyes when you feel like you’re on a movie set. No, it wasn’t that you over-trained; it is that you are standing on ground where a long list of celebrities gained their claim to fame. These greatraceofagourahills.com grounds are where hundreds of Westerns were filmed, and Just a few notable prothanks to careful conservation ductions filmed along the from the National Park Service, route: the past is still very much Santa Fe Trail, Gunsmoke, The Cisco Kid, The alive. Adventures of Tom Sawyer, You might feel like a time The Adventures of Marco Polo, traveler as you work your way The Virginian, Frankenstein, The Love Bug, The towards the finish line in subFlintstones in Viva Rock Vegas, Must Love Dogs and TV’s urban Agoura Hills. After a Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman. brief tour through Paramount Ranch and a jaunt by the
PACIFIC HALF MARATHON
20
November/December 2008
worth putting logs on the fire. The next little known area situated along this stretch is Malibou Lake, an exclusive residential community built in 1922 as a resort and real estate development around a storied man-made lake. It is as haunting as it is sheer bliss. What Paramount Ranch is to Westerns, Malibou Lake was to horror films, although the production credit list isn’t quite as long. The 1931 classic Frankenstein was the beginning of Malibou Lake’s “supporting” role, and other more recent films include the thriller The Ring and the romantic comedy Must Love Dogs. The course only gives you a peek, but if the large clubhouse could talk, it would share stories about the original clubhouse fire, the for-hire rainmaker, why it is spelled with an “o”, and too-many-to-count other scandals that seem to be inherent with the A-list of people who have resided behind these gates. Onward to semi-rural Old Agoura! You will actually run by
LAS&F — LOS ANGELES SPORTS & FITNESS
10/24/08
10:16 PM
Page 21
VIEWPOINTS • PARAMOUNT RANCH: 2,400-acre movie ranch that has been the setting for more than 100 films, particularly Westerns, is the phenomenal backdrop for the starting area.
• PARAMOUNT RACETRACK: Open for just 18 months during the mid-1950s and quickly became known as one of the most dangerous courses in the U.S. It was shut down after claiming its third victim, and now sits almost hauntingly inactive as the landscape swallows it back.
• RUSTIC CANYON GENERAL STORE AND GRILL: This old standalone building is on Kanan Road just before you reach the pass through to Mulholland Highway. You can’t miss the fountains and wood-carved statues outside available for sale. Come back later in the day and you might spot a celebrity sharing one of the juicy halfpound burgers.
the headquarters of this very magazine, which is housed in a former movie screening building. Here is where your old Hollywood tour ends, and your small town charm begins as you near the finish at Chumash Park. Through the final stretch, you will explore one of the area’s most eclectic neighborhoods – beautiful ranch houses with wooden fences, sprawling yards and horse stables that will inspire you just enough to ignite a strong kick to the finish. Although the spectacular course must eventually come to an end, the good news is that, since you are running, you’re always close to that modern world you call home – and you’ll be welcomed back to reality with a post-race party for the ages at the Dole Great Race of Agoura Hills finish line. Upon completing this course you might just chalk your day up to one of your most productive, and it won’t even be 11 a.m. yet! You experienced living history, probably exchanged some good movie trivia and maybe did some real estate shopping. Oh yeah, and ran 13.1 miles. Among all of the questions that may pop-up after exploring such incredibly scenic and legendary terrain, your one big unanswered question might be: Where has this race been all these years? <<
LAS&F — LOS ANGELES SPORTS & FITNESS
HALF MARATHON GUIDE
LAS&FNov/Dec2008.qxd:LAS&FOctober.qxd
• CORNELL WINERY: This rustic farm-type house was built in the early 1900s with plans to be a church. The man with that plan, now 90-something years old, still owns and operates the Old Place restaurant next door. The Winery is currently only open to private parties for events and tastings, but hopes by next year to be able to offer public tastings of Southern California’s finest boutique wines, particularly those grown in the Santa Monica Mountains – an unique and wildly under-represented assortment. Until they get their public permit, it provides a beautiful setting to enjoy a picnic and bottle of your own wine. cornellwinery.com • MALIBOU LAKE:
This is not a typo. While there are many theories as to how the “o” got there, the most commonly held one is that the founders made it this way so it was not confused with Malibu Lagoon. It was an exclusive resort and real estate development where Ronald Reagan was named the honorary mayor in 1953. maliboulake.com
November/December 2008
• OLD AGOURA: Sitting in the northeast section of Agoura Hills, it is known for its semirural, eclectic character. The community’s name was chosen in 1928 to honor early settler Pierre Agoure, but through misspelling or for ease of pronunciation, the postal service changed it to Agoura. It became Agoura Hills with the city’s incorporation.
21