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Marathon Details - OC Marathon

North America Marathons > USA > CA > Newport Beach > OC Marathon

OC Marathon

Hoag OC Marathon & Half Marathon, 5K

Newport Beach, CA USA

May 4, 2025

http://www.OCMarathon.com

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Race Details

The Hoag OC Marathon offers a unique experience for runners of all levels. Starting in the picturesque Newport Beach, the course winds through beautiful neighborhoods and finishes at the OC Fair and Event Center in Costa Mesa.

The first half of the route delights with stunning coastal views and affluent neighborhoods of Newport Beach. The second half takes runners through the bustling urban environment of Costa Mesa, offering a variety of landscapes and endurance challenges.

Support along the course is commendable. Volunteers provide numerous aid stations, and spectators cheer on the participants. The post-race atmosphere at the OC Fair and Event Center is lively and festive, with plenty of refreshments and unique medals.

Contact Information

Name:	The OC Marathon
Address:	4500 Campus Drive, Suite 570 Newport Beach, CA 92660
Phone Number:	(949) 222-3327
Email:	Email the organizers

Race Organizer

"Run it, Experience it, Love it" on May 1, 2016 (9/29/15)

Gary Kutscher

Please join us on May 1, 2016 for our 12th Anniversary and enjoy breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean and cruise down historic PCH through the seaside village of Corona del Mar. Run above pristine wetlands of Upper Newport, the Arts District and shopping mecca of South Coast Plaza in the "Heart of the OC" to the supportive cheers of residents in the many diverse neighborhoods and finish with a huge party at the OC Fair and Event Center.

This exceptional OC Marathon & Half Marathon course is a blend of chic coastal scenery, tranquil nature and sophisticated arts and shopping which equal the best of OC.

The OC Marathon is part of the Beach Cities Challenge Racing Series!

The Allergan Health Expo and Finish Line Festival are both located the OC Fair and Events Center, which offers a festive and distinctive finish line atmosphere.

Runner Reviews (181)

Course 3.5

Organization 3.4

Spectators 2.8

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Number of comments: 181 [displaying comments 1 to 11]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 19 > ]

L. M. from CA (5/1/2016) "Expensive parking and it's a nightmare" (about: 2016) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 All other marathons I have ran don't charge for parking, and the traffic is flawless. This one have a $10 fee and getting out took hours. It seems that they don't have any body in charge of traffic, but they sure has teenagers charging. We have to check out of the hotel and are stuck in the parking lot
A. D. from New York (5/15/2015) "Delay Half Marathon More" (about: 2015) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I really really enjoyed this marathon after the 12.5 mile split and before 6 miles. The half marathon starts 45 minutes after the full, but the full was delayed for about 10 minutes. Therefore, the elite half marathoners caught up to the 5 hour marathoners in the 6th mile and the half marathoners were with us until the 12.5 mile split. At this point, the half marathoners were going at about a 1:50 pace. During this time, at every water station, we had a mix of very fast runners getting their water efficiently, the usual 5 hour runners who stop or slow down at the water stops and the efficient 5 hour runners who were desperately trying to avoid both. I'm sure there were some collisions and scary near misses. I think the half marathoners should be delayed by at least 75 minutes after the actual start time of the marathon.
B. B. from Orange County, CA (5/4/2015) "Should have worked the kinks out by now" (about: 2015) 6-10 previous marathons \| 2 OC Marathons COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I ran the half marathon this year, having run it once before in 2009. I thought the race had some organizational issues six years ago, and surprisingly, there still are some. They've been holding this race for 10 years; I would have thought they would have worked the kinks out by now. Those of us who live in SoCal are lucky to have a ton of races to choose from. It surprises me that this race isn't better, given the amount of competition. Pros: - Weather was very nice, overcast, 60s. - The few spectators were great. - Post-race finish refreshments were adequate. - I parked near the start and didn't have a problem finding a spot. But it was rather confusing: there was a sign that said 'event parking' pointing into the lot I parked in, but no race staff collecting $/doling out parking passes, so I was half-afraid my car was going to be towed. (It wasn't) - Nice race t-shirt and LOVED the disposable race jacket given at the end. Will be great to wear to my next race and just throw out at the start Cons: - Expo: not worth the $7 in parking and battle with Friday evening traffic on the 405 freeway. It would have benefited from more signage directing which way to go inside the expo - I had a tough time just figuring out how to leave the building. Next time I'll probably pay to have my bib mailed to me - Water stations: would have benefited from more (I was thirsty by the time I hit the first one) and from better placement. Please put them on both sides of the street to avoid congestion. And please don't put them on corners for runners to try to grab/drink/toss while also turning. And not sure who thought it was a great idea to have a water station at the bottom of the hill around mile 9/10, but putting it there causes you to lose all momentum you have going into the hill. Would be better placed at the top of the hill - The course: not as fast as advertised. There are a lot of 90 degree turns, which I found disruptive. The last 1 mile stretch is really discouraging - a long straight section with a few small (but noticeable) hills and then a not-so-scenic run over the 55 freeway. - Not cool to put a sign 0.2 miles before the finish line saying 'half a mile to go'. The sign was clearly much closer to the finish than half a mile and was VERY discouraging to see - Congestion: I started encountering slower marathoners around mile 5 and then had to spend the rest of the race dodging them. In some parts, the course is so narrow you can only have 2 people abreast, and I witnessed some near-collisions, which should NOT be happening 6 or 7 miles into a race. Either limit the number of entrants to the race, stagger the races even more, or change the course to accommodate more runners. - Pacers: I hate to criticize pacers because I know people are doing this out of the kindness of their hearts (THANK YOU, PACERS!), but the 1:45 pacers ran the first half at a blistering pace, to the point where other runners were confused that maybe they had the wrong pace group (they were running sub 1:40 pace for parts of it). I know they might have been trying to bank some time to account for hills in the second half, but it just ended up burning some folks out. All in all, I found the race just OK. I much prefer Long Beach, Carlsbad, and even Surf City to this one. I might do it again just because I'm a local and do many of my training runs at the Newport Back Bay anyway, but it's not a race I'd rave about.
Eddie Hahn from CA (5/14/2014) "Separate the fields ASAP!!!" (about: 2014) 50+ previous marathons \| 3 OC Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Something has got to be done to avoid the dangrous course merge with the half marathoners. I understand that their start is later and we only impact eachother for a short time, but a section is VERY narrow and I was witness to and nearly involved in a runner collision under the bridge. The half course should be completly independent. I did not like the 3:50 am shuttle. I ran this event in 2007 and 2008. The course is much more scenic and showcases about 5 cities, and some beautiful stretch along the ocean shore. A very glamorous glitzy medal and a painters jacket, nice shirt. Average post race food, and a very small beer. The fair concassionares have the monopoly on airport priced food and drinks-we were kind of at their mercy with no other options on ground or nearby. Kind of a racket. The finish line volunteers politely waited for the last runner (9 hours) to ensure she was recognized even though the finish line was torn down after the official cut off. $10 parking is a rip-off. I waited so no issues with the traffic getting out. I missed most of the post race concert-guess I needed to run faster for that.
T. H. from Orange County (5/5/2014) "Happy 10th Anniversary to the OC Marathon" (about: 2014) 50+ previous marathons \| 6+ OC Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Congratulations to the race organizers for hosting a marathon for 10 years in Orange County. There has been continious improvement over the years including this year for the great finisher metal, good food at the finish and warm jacket at the finish. The finishing stretch in front of the band was a welcome surprise. The course remains the same for the last few years and the spectators are few but the aid stations were plentiful and enthusiastic. With over 10,000 half marathoners, the race logistics become challenging. For the marathoners, the earliest bus shuttles (3:30 am) are the best choice to avoid any delays to the start. I am in the Founder's Lecacy Club so I will be back for the 11th OC Marathon!
L. Y. from Laguna Beach, CA (5/5/2014) "Not a fast course" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I only did the 1/2, but judging by the first 1/2 of the course I can tell you that this is not a fast course at all. There's a steep incline somewhere between 7-8, and again between 9-10. The second mile is a steep downhill, I would call this course a hilly course and you'll need to do hill training. This would explain why only 5% of runners qualified for Boston this year. Volunteers were great. Aid station well manned. I heard about the nightmare of people trying to get out of the parking lot at the finish line in past years (and apparently, it took some people 2 hours this year just to get out of the parking lot), I decided to park at the start, and take the shuttle back from the finish line. It took me less than an hour (from finishing the race) to get back home. If you're looking to BQ, skip this race. If this is a local race for you, and you want to enjoy it then make sure to park at the start to avoid the headache.
D. L. from San Clemente, CA (12/22/2013) "OK course, lousy post race organization" (about: 2013) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 This was my first OC Marathon. I'm from Orange County, work in Irvine, do some of my training runs on part of the course, so I was really looking forward to it. The early start time was a drag, especially because shuttle bus times were something like 4:30 am. The scenic first fourth of the marathon was nice, with a lot of downhill until mile 7. At about mile 7 we turned inland, this part of the course was fine. Running through the South Coast Plaza Mall was kind of stimulating, breaking up the monotony a little. Also, I like the riverbed trail towards the end. Not sure why others were against that? Post race was a nightmare. I waited 30 minutes to get my bag of warmup clothes, but gave up and left for my car when I started to get too cold to function. Then it took me an hour plus to exit the fairgrounds. Apparently some genius has the runners coming through where the cars should be exiting. Doesn't seem to hard to avoid this problem, but they've had years to fix it apparently but haven't. I swore at the time that there was no way in hell I'd ever do this run again, but now I'm thinking if I'm less exhausted from the half I might be able to stomach it again. I like that it is a local race, but wish the parking fiasco would be fixed.
J. O. from San Clemente, California (6/2/2013) "Horrible organization at Finish" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 The first half is scenic, had great support - yes, it's a bit narrow at some places, but overall, I had a positive experience. However, it was a nightmare after finishing: long lines everywhere, over an hour to get my gear, and 1.5 hours to exit the parking lot. Terrible!! This isn't that big of a race! I wrote a letter to the race director and didn't even get a form letter back. I want to support my local race but unless they figure out some of these basic logistical issues, I'll be training here, but racing other places.
H. A. from San Diego, CA (5/16/2013) "FINISHERS CERTIFICATE" (about: 2013) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 For the amount of money we pay for race fee's the OC Marathon website/Director should offer a free finishers certificate for all runners. It does not cost them anything and people are using their paper in ink to print certificates. HUGE negative on their part. For those who PR'd the course it really stinks. The only option is to 'BUY' a crappy version from Marathonfoto that is not official. Since the cousre was certified as a Boston qualifier the race director should offer this to all participants like all other races. I will not return to this race. Sometimes, its the little things that make a difference.
G. C. from California (5/14/2013) "An OK course, logistics at finish need to improve" (about: 2013) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 I ran the 2013 full course. I had an overall positive experience, getting a 6 min PR and hitting a BQ with 25 minutes to spare. So I was pretty happy with my race. However I have a few comments: 1-the course did not feel as easy as the race web page indicates. The first half is rolling, and includes a lot of turns. The hills were not bad, but for me it was difficult to get into a groove until M8-9. There were some sections that were very narrow. At my pace (~6:53 avg) this wasn't a problem, but it certainly was for slower runners, and even worse for fast half-marathoners who had to struggle to pass slow marathoners on this narrow area. 2- A lot of people mention that the first half is scenic but the second part is terrible. I did not find anything particularly exciting about the first half, and I actually enjoyed the second half much more, as it is more flat (except the bridge over the 405), and with less turns. I usually run marathons to get faster, and I have no issues running into deserted residential/business parks areas as long as the course is fast. 3-There were some major issues at the finish. I stayed at the official hotel, right across the start line, which was very convenient for the start. However I had to catch a shuttle bus to get back there once I finished. I waited 50 minutes for the bus, and since they did not provide any space blankets, I became really cold with teeth shattering waiting on the exposed windy area at the OC fairgrounds. Then I boarded the bus, but it took 45 minutes (yes I looked at the time) just to get OUT of the parking lot. Traffic control was terrible. These issues are recurring from year to year and need to be addressed. Once we left, the bus driver dropped us about half a mile away from the hotel - not really what you want after a full marathon and waiting in the cold. 4- the post race food was mediocre - I was handed a plastic bag with water, some atrocious coconut water, and a couple of nutrition bars. So I think this race is a victim of its own success. It would be a nice full marathon, unfortunately it has become difficult for the organizers to manage the race with the large numbers of half marathoners.

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 19 > ]



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L. M. from CA (5/1/2016) "Expensive parking and it's a nightmare" (about: 2016) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 All other marathons I have ran don't charge for parking, and the traffic is flawless. This one have a $10 fee and getting out took hours. It seems that they don't have any body in charge of traffic, but they sure has teenagers charging. We have to check out of the hotel and are stuck in the parking lot
A. D. from New York (5/15/2015) "Delay Half Marathon More" (about: 2015) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I really really enjoyed this marathon after the 12.5 mile split and before 6 miles. The half marathon starts 45 minutes after the full, but the full was delayed for about 10 minutes. Therefore, the elite half marathoners caught up to the 5 hour marathoners in the 6th mile and the half marathoners were with us until the 12.5 mile split. At this point, the half marathoners were going at about a 1:50 pace. During this time, at every water station, we had a mix of very fast runners getting their water efficiently, the usual 5 hour runners who stop or slow down at the water stops and the efficient 5 hour runners who were desperately trying to avoid both. I'm sure there were some collisions and scary near misses. I think the half marathoners should be delayed by at least 75 minutes after the actual start time of the marathon.
B. B. from Orange County, CA (5/4/2015) "Should have worked the kinks out by now" (about: 2015) 6-10 previous marathons \| 2 OC Marathons COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I ran the half marathon this year, having run it once before in 2009. I thought the race had some organizational issues six years ago, and surprisingly, there still are some. They've been holding this race for 10 years; I would have thought they would have worked the kinks out by now. Those of us who live in SoCal are lucky to have a ton of races to choose from. It surprises me that this race isn't better, given the amount of competition. Pros: - Weather was very nice, overcast, 60s. - The few spectators were great. - Post-race finish refreshments were adequate. - I parked near the start and didn't have a problem finding a spot. But it was rather confusing: there was a sign that said 'event parking' pointing into the lot I parked in, but no race staff collecting $/doling out parking passes, so I was half-afraid my car was going to be towed. (It wasn't) - Nice race t-shirt and LOVED the disposable race jacket given at the end. Will be great to wear to my next race and just throw out at the start Cons: - Expo: not worth the $7 in parking and battle with Friday evening traffic on the 405 freeway. It would have benefited from more signage directing which way to go inside the expo - I had a tough time just figuring out how to leave the building. Next time I'll probably pay to have my bib mailed to me - Water stations: would have benefited from more (I was thirsty by the time I hit the first one) and from better placement. Please put them on both sides of the street to avoid congestion. And please don't put them on corners for runners to try to grab/drink/toss while also turning. And not sure who thought it was a great idea to have a water station at the bottom of the hill around mile 9/10, but putting it there causes you to lose all momentum you have going into the hill. Would be better placed at the top of the hill - The course: not as fast as advertised. There are a lot of 90 degree turns, which I found disruptive. The last 1 mile stretch is really discouraging - a long straight section with a few small (but noticeable) hills and then a not-so-scenic run over the 55 freeway. - Not cool to put a sign 0.2 miles before the finish line saying 'half a mile to go'. The sign was clearly much closer to the finish than half a mile and was VERY discouraging to see - Congestion: I started encountering slower marathoners around mile 5 and then had to spend the rest of the race dodging them. In some parts, the course is so narrow you can only have 2 people abreast, and I witnessed some near-collisions, which should NOT be happening 6 or 7 miles into a race. Either limit the number of entrants to the race, stagger the races even more, or change the course to accommodate more runners. - Pacers: I hate to criticize pacers because I know people are doing this out of the kindness of their hearts (THANK YOU, PACERS!), but the 1:45 pacers ran the first half at a blistering pace, to the point where other runners were confused that maybe they had the wrong pace group (they were running sub 1:40 pace for parts of it). I know they might have been trying to bank some time to account for hills in the second half, but it just ended up burning some folks out. All in all, I found the race just OK. I much prefer Long Beach, Carlsbad, and even Surf City to this one. I might do it again just because I'm a local and do many of my training runs at the Newport Back Bay anyway, but it's not a race I'd rave about.
Eddie Hahn from CA (5/14/2014) "Separate the fields ASAP!!!" (about: 2014) 50+ previous marathons \| 3 OC Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Something has got to be done to avoid the dangrous course merge with the half marathoners. I understand that their start is later and we only impact eachother for a short time, but a section is VERY narrow and I was witness to and nearly involved in a runner collision under the bridge. The half course should be completly independent. I did not like the 3:50 am shuttle. I ran this event in 2007 and 2008. The course is much more scenic and showcases about 5 cities, and some beautiful stretch along the ocean shore. A very glamorous glitzy medal and a painters jacket, nice shirt. Average post race food, and a very small beer. The fair concassionares have the monopoly on airport priced food and drinks-we were kind of at their mercy with no other options on ground or nearby. Kind of a racket. The finish line volunteers politely waited for the last runner (9 hours) to ensure she was recognized even though the finish line was torn down after the official cut off. $10 parking is a rip-off. I waited so no issues with the traffic getting out. I missed most of the post race concert-guess I needed to run faster for that.
T. H. from Orange County (5/5/2014) "Happy 10th Anniversary to the OC Marathon" (about: 2014) 50+ previous marathons \| 6+ OC Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Congratulations to the race organizers for hosting a marathon for 10 years in Orange County. There has been continious improvement over the years including this year for the great finisher metal, good food at the finish and warm jacket at the finish. The finishing stretch in front of the band was a welcome surprise. The course remains the same for the last few years and the spectators are few but the aid stations were plentiful and enthusiastic. With over 10,000 half marathoners, the race logistics become challenging. For the marathoners, the earliest bus shuttles (3:30 am) are the best choice to avoid any delays to the start. I am in the Founder's Lecacy Club so I will be back for the 11th OC Marathon!
L. Y. from Laguna Beach, CA (5/5/2014) "Not a fast course" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I only did the 1/2, but judging by the first 1/2 of the course I can tell you that this is not a fast course at all. There's a steep incline somewhere between 7-8, and again between 9-10. The second mile is a steep downhill, I would call this course a hilly course and you'll need to do hill training. This would explain why only 5% of runners qualified for Boston this year. Volunteers were great. Aid station well manned. I heard about the nightmare of people trying to get out of the parking lot at the finish line in past years (and apparently, it took some people 2 hours this year just to get out of the parking lot), I decided to park at the start, and take the shuttle back from the finish line. It took me less than an hour (from finishing the race) to get back home. If you're looking to BQ, skip this race. If this is a local race for you, and you want to enjoy it then make sure to park at the start to avoid the headache.
D. L. from San Clemente, CA (12/22/2013) "OK course, lousy post race organization" (about: 2013) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 This was my first OC Marathon. I'm from Orange County, work in Irvine, do some of my training runs on part of the course, so I was really looking forward to it. The early start time was a drag, especially because shuttle bus times were something like 4:30 am. The scenic first fourth of the marathon was nice, with a lot of downhill until mile 7. At about mile 7 we turned inland, this part of the course was fine. Running through the South Coast Plaza Mall was kind of stimulating, breaking up the monotony a little. Also, I like the riverbed trail towards the end. Not sure why others were against that? Post race was a nightmare. I waited 30 minutes to get my bag of warmup clothes, but gave up and left for my car when I started to get too cold to function. Then it took me an hour plus to exit the fairgrounds. Apparently some genius has the runners coming through where the cars should be exiting. Doesn't seem to hard to avoid this problem, but they've had years to fix it apparently but haven't. I swore at the time that there was no way in hell I'd ever do this run again, but now I'm thinking if I'm less exhausted from the half I might be able to stomach it again. I like that it is a local race, but wish the parking fiasco would be fixed.
J. O. from San Clemente, California (6/2/2013) "Horrible organization at Finish" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 The first half is scenic, had great support - yes, it's a bit narrow at some places, but overall, I had a positive experience. However, it was a nightmare after finishing: long lines everywhere, over an hour to get my gear, and 1.5 hours to exit the parking lot. Terrible!! This isn't that big of a race! I wrote a letter to the race director and didn't even get a form letter back. I want to support my local race but unless they figure out some of these basic logistical issues, I'll be training here, but racing other places.
H. A. from San Diego, CA (5/16/2013) "FINISHERS CERTIFICATE" (about: 2013) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 For the amount of money we pay for race fee's the OC Marathon website/Director should offer a free finishers certificate for all runners. It does not cost them anything and people are using their paper in ink to print certificates. HUGE negative on their part. For those who PR'd the course it really stinks. The only option is to 'BUY' a crappy version from Marathonfoto that is not official. Since the cousre was certified as a Boston qualifier the race director should offer this to all participants like all other races. I will not return to this race. Sometimes, its the little things that make a difference.
G. C. from California (5/14/2013) "An OK course, logistics at finish need to improve" (about: 2013) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 OC Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 I ran the 2013 full course. I had an overall positive experience, getting a 6 min PR and hitting a BQ with 25 minutes to spare. So I was pretty happy with my race. However I have a few comments: 1-the course did not feel as easy as the race web page indicates. The first half is rolling, and includes a lot of turns. The hills were not bad, but for me it was difficult to get into a groove until M8-9. There were some sections that were very narrow. At my pace (~6:53 avg) this wasn't a problem, but it certainly was for slower runners, and even worse for fast half-marathoners who had to struggle to pass slow marathoners on this narrow area. 2- A lot of people mention that the first half is scenic but the second part is terrible. I did not find anything particularly exciting about the first half, and I actually enjoyed the second half much more, as it is more flat (except the bridge over the 405), and with less turns. I usually run marathons to get faster, and I have no issues running into deserted residential/business parks areas as long as the course is fast. 3-There were some major issues at the finish. I stayed at the official hotel, right across the start line, which was very convenient for the start. However I had to catch a shuttle bus to get back there once I finished. I waited 50 minutes for the bus, and since they did not provide any space blankets, I became really cold with teeth shattering waiting on the exposed windy area at the OC fairgrounds. Then I boarded the bus, but it took 45 minutes (yes I looked at the time) just to get OUT of the parking lot. Traffic control was terrible. These issues are recurring from year to year and need to be addressed. Once we left, the bus driver dropped us about half a mile away from the hotel - not really what you want after a full marathon and waiting in the cold. 4- the post race food was mediocre - I was handed a plastic bag with water, some atrocious coconut water, and a couple of nutrition bars. So I think this race is a victim of its own success. It would be a nice full marathon, unfortunately it has become difficult for the organizers to manage the race with the large numbers of half marathoners.

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Marathon Details - OC Marathon