Nostalgia - if these stairs could speak…read more My best friend in middle school had some very sweet but strict parents who seemed to have psychic capabilities. Somehow, they would find out everything we got into - except on these stairs which happened to be located right outside her basement door. They took us from the mountain and spit us out into town - absolutely thrilling! The case is wide enough that we could walk side by side and carry a conversation. This stack is at an incline, but the actual stairs aren't steep - which means it's easier to run than a lot of stairs. It's also a lot safer than walking the hill where SUV's seem to be more concerned with bikers than pedestrians. We used to skip a stair on our way up to her house - it was a bit of a climb - but it's short like under 200. We never complained because they were parent approved and we enjoyed our free-time. During the early morning hours, locals incorporate these stairs into their exercise routine. After 3pm, some kids hike these home. On occasion, a team of kids training from Davis or Redwood might come plunging through - just move. In general, they remains pretty empty. I love Magnolia because it connects Mill Valley to Scott Valley to Larkspur to Greenbrae to Kentfield to Ross Valley - which are all totally different Marin scenes. Marin County is full of little subcultures, and as a curious kid, I enjoyed exploring these during my quest to seek out diversity. TIP: there are ticks on this staircase - so check yourself the best you can or have someone check you. It's really not a long staircase which means if one happens to land on you - you could actually save yourself a bite. Also, check your dogs - lime disease is still a reality.

How many early mornings and late afternoons have been spent here, climbing stairs of all things?!?…read more Probably one of the best hidden jewels in Larkspur. Nothing like an outdoor stair machine for a workout. I must warn anyone who attempts to come here, the stairs may be hard to find at first. Just go up Magnolia Ave, pass St. Patrick's Church on your left, and slow down when you see a medical office (I think it's a cosmetic surgery office) to your left and a bunch of cafes to your right. Your best bet is to park on the street. To find the stairs, look to the left of the cosmetic surgery office. You'll see a covered bus stop and a yellow fire hydrant on the street. If you walk on that path right next to it, you'll see the base of the stairs. I also must warn people that this aint your grandma's stairs. These stairs are meant to tire someone out! Heck, these stairs ARE Arch St.! So turn up your ipod, keep water nearby, and pace yourself. They're about 3 stories up, and ends in a residential street -- Palm Ave. They have pebbles at the top to track your laps. After your mighty workout, I suggest going to Pizzeria Picco down the street :-) I know my directions might sound like a crazy scavenger hunt, but I just wanted to be thorough since these stairs are semi well hidden. Have fun!

The only complaint I have is that I felt like there wasn't enough space to run with how many…read moreattendees there were. So for people who would like to run and beat a PR, would really need to start in the front to avoid everyone else, otherwise, you are just light jogging it for most of the time due to how crowded it was. Actually, I do have one more complaint.. Why was there a $20 fee to pick up our bibs on the day of the race?? I've done many races before and I've never had to pay a fee to pick up on the morning of... We're already paying for expensive parking, and now we have to pay to pick up.. that's just kinda crazy. All in all, the weather was perfect & the route was scenic. Loved the after party at thrive city plaza and all the free goodies. Also, it was cool to see support from Festus Ezeli

Been participating in their events for over 24 years-they are efficient and fair. The Escape from…read moreAlcatraz event has been the incentive I needed to keep me swimming on a regular basis and a social event with friends that has become a focal point of each year.

I almost never leave a bad review so keep that in mind! Booked a trip to Napa to do the Napa trail…read morerun! booked flights, hotel, wineries for the weekend. its all non refundable due to us knowing WE WOULD BE THERE! They cancelled the run due to rain, which I understand. BUT! Since they are the ones cancelling, why don't I get a refund? they said I can have a credit for the race for my husband and I. Well, we can't afford to book two trips up north from Los Angeles to do the run. Extremely frustrating! I will never use them in the future due to this.

I think it should be a requirement for runners to volunteer at a water stop before actually…read moreparticipating. I don't think it will kill them to run a couple more steps to throw away their water cups. I never realized how annoying (and maybe a bit inconsiderate) to see cups on the ground when there's a trash can next to it until I started volunteering for running events. Okay, so that's my rant... Now about the run. Cat N. and I both thought it was a pretty good event with lots of major sponsors. I came to realize this after crossing the finish line and being handed a Smart Water and not Arrowhead or Kirkland, wow! There were also free Jamba Juice, Pop Chips, Honest Tea, Bear Naked and many more! And of course, free chocolate and champagne! Definitely loads of freebies. You also get a medal and champagne glass for finishing, and my favorite, ALL participants get tech shirts. It's very different since most running events only give out regular T-shirts for 5K runners and save the dri-fit shirts for half and full marathoners. But just FYI, the shirts run a little small and short. I'm regularly a small, but I got a medium. Cat N. is usually a medium, but got a large. We both agreed that this will be an annual thing for us. And BTW, it's not only for women, but men are eligible to participate as well.

I'm from Alameda and the starting line is less than a 10 minute drive from my house so I may be…read morebiased about this race since I didn't have to wake up at an ungodly hour to run like I do for most races. I've only gotten an opportunity to do the 5K but I'm really hoping to do the half-marathon one day (it always coincides with the San Diego Rock & Roll, though, and SD is typically where I am in the early summer). But the 5K was great, weather was sunny (which I don't mind for a 5K but for a half, that could be a problem), and the course was extremely flat. The cause is great and as a woman, it's always empowering and nice to run these types of races! It's also nice that it's a small race too--registration is relatively cheap and you don't feel too overwhelmed by the crowds. The only downside for me was that not a lot of people were cheering. More neighborhood spirit please, Alameda!

I've wanted to take a scenic bike ride for a long time now. I'm a novice rider so I wanted to do…read moresomething that challenged me without being too overwhelming. I knew I didn't want to take this on alone so after a Google search I found Jennifer and Baytrek Adventures and decided to book a tour and I'm SO glad I did. Jennifer asked me some questions about my riding experience and we talked about what my goals were for this ride and beyond. Baytrek has several tours to choose from and together we decided on the 'Golden Gate Day Trippin' ride. I'm so glad she initiated this conversation because it really helped calm me down and pump me up for our ride. The morning of the ride we met up in the Presidio in San Francisco. She was on time and had a boxed lunch for me. (which, by the way, was better than I had expected...no soggy peanut butter & jelly on stale white bread with a bruised, mealy red apple!) My ride was a success. It was scenic and challenging and so much fun. Jennifer was really encouraging throughout the ride. Her support helped me feel much more confident than I would have if I'd done it alone. She's also very safe, and gave me tips on riding safely in congested areas. The best part is that I felt like I was riding with an old friend. She is hilarious! I will definitely be taking another tour with Baytrek Adventures!

Let's face it- sometimes everybody needs a good bay trek. My urge came 3 weeks ago tonight. I…read morepulled into the parking lot and next thing you know I'm trekking. The staff was super helpful- they packed a lunch and and inflatable raft and off we went. The only hiccup was a lack of a bee sting kit. But once the swelling went down we were all fine. Great lunch and wonderful outfits.

No wonder the many event staff attendants along the beginning of the course were cheering so…read moremuch.....the last mile of the 5K course was pretty much consistent gentle paved rolling hills ahaha phewww. First-time participant at this event and, yeah, as someone who's used to mostly flat courses this one was a little challenging for me lol. Still fun though. The 5K course has a couple of glimpses of the Carquinez Strait, but most of the course is deep in the neighborhood. Other courses at the event are the 10K, Kids 1 Mile, and Kids Mini Run (200 meter dash). In terms of swag, I received a participant medal, a T-shirt, and a tote bag. Upon finish there were tables of fruit, water bottles, and Bodyarmor sports drinks. Nitpicks? Couldn't really hear the announcer at all lol his station was far behind the start line and his voice was pretty muffled because of that. *Highly* recommend arriving early for parking!! I arrived at around 7:15 AM and the closest available street parking spot was a few blocks away from the starting area.

I love this race so much! Specifically, it's the course that is ABSOLUTELY perfect for beginners…read moreand advanced runners alike. It's been a few years since my last event here, but it's always a good one. There's ample parking, the grassy field is huge to support all the runners and event staff, like I said the course is the star, and post-race snacks are great!

"Summer Breeze, makes me feel fine..."…read more I've forgotten how great smaller, local races are. Are all Brazen Racing events like this? Because if so, I need to run in some more! I think Ellen L's review really sums up everything I love about this race: Extremely organized, hassle-free bib pickup morning of the race (I got there at 7:45 AM and got my half marathon bib within 2 minutes...if you're doing a different event, however, you may want to get there earlier), free parking at start/finish, the fact that the start is also the finish, perfect weather, no race congestion (even though some parts of the course are narrow, I never had to slow down because of traffic nor did I have trouble passing other runners), free post-race photo downloads (everything is uploaded online so you can download/print yourself), and the best fuel stations and post-race food goodies ever! I was seriously shocked at how much food and goodies there were!!! Ice cream sandwiches? Fig newtons? Cookies? Gummy bears? Bagels? Watermelon? The list could go on, I'm not kidding you!!! If you're looking to PR in any of the 3 distances offered here, this is the course to do it. I do zero hill training and I usually run on a treadmill or on extremely flat terrain. If you're doing the half, the toughest part is the fact that there are only 5 aid stations and the middle three are at the 3, 6.5, and 10ish mile marks. So you definitely need to plan and hydrate/fuel yourself accordingly. I normally don't need water at the pace I was going until the 6 mi mark and some calories at the 9-10 mi mark, but because of the relatively long gaps in between stations, I forced myself to stop to get water at mi 3 and gummy bears at the halfway point. And the planning paid off as I did indeed PR this race! :) In sum, one of the most enjoyable races I've done in recent years and one I'm hoping to continue running in the years to come. A big thank you to all the volunteers helping out at the aid stations and taking photos of us runners!

13.1 miles of beautiful views along the Bay Trail with 5k and 10k available too. This was my…read moreHusbands first Half so instead of Running my usual pace of just over 90 minutes I paced him. ++ Possitives ++ + Tech T-Shirt, Cinch bag and Finishers medal for everyone. + Good amount of Aid stations stocked with Water, Gatorade, Oranges and Power Gels. + Great group of volunteers at 2.5mi and 10.5mi markers (same guys).They seemed quite entertained by my singing to my Husband and skipping as we passed them at mile 10.5. Glad I made their long wait out in the cold a little more interesting. + Easy packet pick up on the day (if you got there early!). We got there 20 minutes into the 1hr pickup time slot and the line was only about 20 people deep which then grew to 60+. I heard a lot of people complaining they would not get to the start line in time. Here's a tip - If you're doing a Half Marathon get there at least 60 minutes before the start. + Groupon deal for entry ($69 plus fees). I would have been pissed if I paid full price though. -- Negatives -- - Wasn't a full Half Marathon. Measured by both my Garmin and my Husbands Nike App. Had I been in my ''Serious Runner'' mode this would have pissed me off immensely. We did notice that Volunteers were moving markers during the event.. Hmm.. - Disorganized course. It wasn't completely clear where you were supposed to Run, we had Runners coming at us head on and sideways, Volunteers standing in the middle of the pathway and we were even running with the 10k people at one point. Big mess! - They also had us run through a Dog park which was really weird and awkward. It was packed with people and Dogs darting about all over the course, add into the factor that after being attacked by a large Dog I'm pretty scared of them. My Husband lightened this by stating ''WTF, we have to run through Dog shit? If I wanted to do a shit / mud run I would have signed up for one''. Lol. - Post Run food consisted of a small Costco sized tub of Red Vines, some Popcorn and a few left over dry Bagels by the time my Husband and I got there. Considering the event time was stated as 7am -12:30pm you would have thought they would have food stocked until then but no. (we finished in under 3hrs btw!) I am so glad the vendors were nice enough to give me some drinks before we started. - No water at the finishing line. What?! - $10 Parking fee we wasn't told about. Luckily I carry cash at all times. - The same medals for all distances. Come on now, I think if you're running 10 miles more than someone else it's only fair you get a different medal. A half Marathon is a big deal ya'know... As this was this events first year I understand some things won't go completely to plan but the events director isn't completely inexperienced in planning these events, it's important to be prepared for things to go a little screwy. I got an email with a long list of all of the ''hicups'' they encountered including not having enough T-Shirts for all of the Runners. For real? The intent is to make this an annual event which at this point in time I don't know if I will do it again.

Ran the 10K, nice flat and paved path along the shoreline (Bay Trail), also not very windy,…read morealthough you could tell it gets windy out here. Pretty organized race, lots of good snacks after. The best thing about this race is the views, you can see Oakland and SF so clearly on a nice day. The race does start early, 7 for the Half Marathoners, 7:30 for the 5K and 10k runners, which is good to beat the heat, all in all, a good race!!!