A footrace embraced by the South Bay running community for more than four decades is back on track this year at an all-new location. To add to the excitement, two young runners are hoping they can be placed in the world record books. The Los Gatos Great Race is now in its 44th and instead of running the four-mile route used since 1978, along Highway 9 from Los Gatos to Saratoga, it will now be run at Oak Meadow Park and Vasona Park which are connected.
It was apparently too expensive to keep the previous route along the highway. Holding the race in the parks will create a 25% saving which can be used to bring more money back to the Rotary Club of Los Gatos. On top of that, the park setting is allowing race organizers to add for the first time, a one-mile kid's fun run. There will also be more room for vendors and sponsors including the international charity ShelterBox which provides support to Ukrainian refugees.
Oak Meadows and Vasona Parks are already popular destinations for runners but people who join the race will get a new experience. “The soil at Oak Meadow is just fabulous for a race. I think it’s really neat to be able to run through the park. We’re going to be taking them in some areas that a lot of runners probably never even run on in the park because we still want to keep the distance at 4 miles,” Great Race director Mike Norcia told the Mercury News.
The race route has already been released and will offer participants plenty of views of the water features in the parks. The first mile of the race will take runners along the side of Vasona Reservoir.
Map Credit: MapMyRun.com
Two middle school students in Los Gatos have their sights set on breaking a world record at the Great Race. 13-year old Gabe Heule needs to beat 23:10 which is the record for 13-year old boys. ”Knowing that I have a good talent, it keeps me motivated because I know that I can keep running faster and faster, and knowing that my coach is always there for me, telling me about these world records I can break, and going to nationals and stuff, I really like that,” Gabe told the Mercury News.
12-year old Ava Padilla must come in under 28:05 for her to capture the world record for 12-year old girls. Ava is relatively new to competitive running. “I’ve coached runners who won the national championships and set national records, and no one’s started out like her,” running coach Mike Exton told the Mercury News. We wish them both the best of luck!
All of the Great Race details, including times and prices, can be found at lggreatrace.com.
