Sutter Home Napa

The Biggest Little Marathon in the West Sweats the Details and Lets You Enjoy the Scenery.

© KEN LEE

SSSST….PSSSST….

Come here. No, closer. Want to know the best-kept secret in long-distance running? It’s the Sutter Home Napa Valley Marathon (SHNVM). Shhhh. … don’t tell anyone. Let’s just make it our little secret.

DOING WHAT IT DOES BEST

For 20 years, Napa has perked along, minding its own business, doing what it does best: putting the runners first and treating them to an unforgettable race on one of the most beautiful marathon courses ANYWHERE in one of the most picturesque regions of the country.

The now defunct Silverado Striders started the event back in the running boom days of 1979. During the early years, participant numbers hovered around 1,000, dipping as low as 750 one year. More recently, entries have been up around 1,500, with between 1,100 and 1,350 finishers. To celebrate the race’s 20″ year, the race directors allowed the entrant pool to swell past 1,800. They won’t do it again, they say, because a bigger field—there was a recordhigh 1,532 finishers this year—“might jeopardize the quality of the experi-

ence for everyone. And that’s not fair.’ You could tell there were nearly 200 more finishers this year mingling around—and occasionally getting bottlenecked—at the quaint Vintage High School where the race ends. And you could see the race directors making mental notes about how to improve the situation next year. Because if there’s ever a race that sweats the details, it’s Napa. For example, there were muffins, fruit, juice, and coffee in the lobby of the host hotel on race morning because runners had to be on the buses to get to the start before the hotel restaurant opened. Each finisher also received a personal escort out of the chute.

For the first 14 years, the title sponsor of the race was Calistoga Mineral Water, which has stayed on board as the largest product sponsor. Sutter Home, the renowned St. Helena winery, has been the title sponsor for the past six years and awards the open male and female winners their weight in wine. Napa participants receive a 10 percent discount on all wine and merchandise purchased at the historic winery by showing their official race number.

Over the past three years, the SHNVM has served as a championship race for the Road Runners Club of America(RRCA)— in 1996, as the RRCA California Marathon Championships; in 1997, as the RRCA Western Regional Championships; and in

© KEN LEE

September/October 1998

SUTTER HOME NAPA VALLEY MARATHON @

1998, as the National Marathon Championships, a distinction it will repeat in 1999. The ever-popular Don Kardong, president of the RRCA and past Olympic marathoner, chose the 20″ Napa as his 40″ marathon and broke 3:00 for the first time in the °90s. After attending the race last year as the keynote speaker, Kardong commented, “I thought Napa was the most beautiful route I had ever seen.” Napa is definitely a destination marathon. Whatever you do, don’t fly in, race, and then fly out. Pad your trip on either end—or on both ends— with several days to sample the sights

PHONE: 707/255-2609

FAX: 707/257-6515

©-\4). SHNVM@napanet.net

\WEB SITE www.napa-marathon.com/

RACE DIRECTORS. Richard Benyo, David Hill, and Gard Leighton CERTIHED, USATF

START TIME: 7:00 a.m.

RACE RECORD HOLDERS: Open men: Dick Beardsley, United States, 2:16:20 (1987) Open women: _ Diana Fitzpatrick, United States, 2:39:42 (1992) Masters men: Richard Flores, United States, 2:26:04 (1996) Masters women: Marilyn Harbin, United States, 2:54:46 (1981)

pplz MONEY. None, but the overall male and female winners win their weight in Sutter Home wine, while both open and masters winners also receive seven-liter bottles of Sutter Home Winery Zinfandel etched in gold with their winning accomplishments.

TIEN EVENTS: Three Rs 5K Run, 8:00 a.m. Begins and ends at the marathon finish line.

NO, VOLUNTEERS: 750

MARATHON FINISHERS IN 98: 1,532

PROPORTION MALE/FEMALE FINISHERS: 59% male; 41% female COURSE MARKING. _ Every mile

NO. AID STATIONS: 12

FUTURE RACE DATES: 7March99; SHNVM is always the first Sunday in March

ENTRY COST FOR 1999 EDITION: $45 before 6Feb99; $50 until 5March99; $60 on 6March 99; no raceday registration.

FOR INFO ON THE NAPA VALLEY: Contact the Napa Valley Conference & Visitors’ Bureau, 707/226-7459.

GETTING THERE: All the major airlines fly into the four largest cities near Napa—San Francisco, Santa Jose, Sacramento, and Oakland. If you fly into San Francisco and then drive to Napa, take the scenic Highway 101 north across the Golden Gate Bridge and through the wine country. Travel north on 101 to Novato, take the Highway 37 exit toward Napa and Sonoma, and then turn left onto Route 121 at Sears Point Raceway. Route 121 will connect with Highway 12, and both later connect with Highway 29. Turn north on Highway 29 and you’re there.

and tastes of Napa Valley: its famous wineries, spas, mud baths, hot air balloon and glider flights, Wine Train, quaint shops, and world-class restaurants. On some years the Napa Valley Mustard Festival coincides with the SHNVM.

THE COURSE

The splendor of the SHNVM course is unparalleled. The race starts at the corner of Rosedale Road and the historic Silverado Trail, just south of Calistoga, and runs the length of the Napa Valley along Silverado, progressing on a fully paved, point-topoint, rolling course through St. Helena, Rutherford, Oakville, and Yountville, before ending at Vintage High School in Napa. The first 13 miles and the last 3 miles are closed to

September/October 1998

traffic, and except for the last halfmile, the entire course is rural. Runners are treated to panoramic views of the valley, flowering fruit trees, and vineyards carpeted with golden mustard flowers. Keep an eye out for the hot air balloons that come popping over the fogged horizon during the race. And at mile 22, the eucalyptustree-filled air will clear your nostrils better than the best antihistamine money can buy.

There are three minor hills in the first 6 miles, and miles 7 to 19 are flat torolling and gently downhill. There’s adecent hill between miles 19 and 20, and the biggest downhill comes right after the 20-mile mark. The final 5 miles are flat. Runners share the road with cars during miles 14 to 23, but there is a wide shoulder and the road is fully coned for safety. The course

SUTTER HOME NAPA VALLEY MARATHON f 109

Sutter Home Napa Valley Marathon Course Map

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NAPA VALLEY COLLEGE

has been the same for the race’s entire history.

There are 12 aid stations on the course offering Gatorade, Calistoga water, Ripped Force Fruit Punch, and Clif’s Chocolate Peanut Shot. There is also fruit at some of the later aid stations. At Napa a nonelite runner can feel elite for a day by taking advantage of the personalized water bottle service offered. Runners who prepare and label special drinks can put them in premarked boxes, which are carried to the various aid stations along the route.

RACEDAY 1998

Weather-wise, Napa has lived a charmed life, having suffered through only one bad weather year—the 13″ running. It has rained during the second half of the race only that once in 19 years. But with El Nifio pounding northern California this spring, entrants were worried. Leading up to raceday, the troika of directors squelched rumors left and right that a) the race was cancelled due to excessive rains; b) part of the course had been washed away; c) boats would be used to ferry runners over certain sections of the course; and d) galoshes would be issued to every runner at mile 15.

The weather gods blessed the event again this year with ideal racing conditions. A record field shivered a bit at the start as they sang along with masters phenom John Keston, who belted out the “Star

September/October 1998

Spangled Banner” in 40-degree temperatures.

For the first half of the race, fog hovered over the course-bordering vineyards, which were carpeted in extra thick golden mustard flowers because of the spring rains. There was no wind to speak of, and two hours into the race, the sun was shining brightly. Runners take note: wear sunglasses or a hat, or both. The race may start out foggy, but it’s going to get sunny and beat full-blast on the your face all the way to Napa.

Irishman Eoin (pronounced Owen) Fahy, now of San Diego, took the lead at two miles and never looked back, winning his sixth marathon and his second straight Napa crown in a time of 2:28:53. “It’s not too often in the heat of a race that I look at the scenery,” said Fahy after the race; “but this is just awesome.”

German native Miriam Schmidt of Soquel, California, running her first U.S. marathon, won the women’s race ina PR time of 2:52:08. Schmidt, whose twin sister Uta finished 6″ in the women’s field, took the lead just after mile 23, enroute to placing 31° overall.

Two other participants also achieved an enviable milestone: Harry Cadelago, Jr., and Steve Radigan became the only runners to complete all 20 Napa Valley Marathons. Cadelago, 50, a middle school teacher and band leader at Napa High School, ran with his now-deceased father every year until Cadelago, Sr., died in 1992. Harry now runs the event each year to

SUTTER HOME NAPA VALLEY MARATHON ® 111

Must See/Must Avoid

Rex MAJOR city in the world features an array of attractions that make it unique and that enlighten and entertain visitors. And, because of its very size, every major city is saddled with areas it would rather have vanish in a puff of smoke. But since this race is nowhere near a city, we’ll consider other sights.

GO SEE IT

The Valley From Above. Unlike most of the temperate world, winter in Northern California means not bleakness but rain and verdant grasslands carpeted with acres of golden mustard flowers. The best way to get a feel for the Napa Valley is to see it from above. There are numerous hot air balloon companies in the valley that will be happy to get you high on nature. Those involved with the marathon include Above the Valley Hot Air Ballooning, Bonaventura Balloon Company, Napa Valley Balloon Inc., and Balloons Above the Valley. it would be best to call a few weeks in advance to check on availability.

The Calistoga Resorts. More than a century ago renegade Mormon bishop Sam Brannan (who orchestrated the California Gold Rush once he had cornered the market on mining equipment) purchased most of what is Calistoga today with an eye toward turning it into a hot springs resort area to rival Saratoga, New York. Unfortunately, there was a distillery on the premises, and on the day Brannan dedicated Calistoga, the story goes, he wove his way to the speakers’ platform and declared he was opening “the Calistoga of Sarafornia.” The name supposedly stuck. Brannan was promoting the natural hot springs and the restorative powers of Calistoga. If you long for the ultimate in pampering, schedule “The Works” at one of the Calistoga resorts after the race. The Works includes steam baths, mud baths, massage, andso on. Try any of the following: Calistoga Spa Hot Springs, Golden Haven Spa/Hot Springs, Indian Springs, or Dr. Wilkinson’s Hot Springs Resort.

Museums. Two of the most interesting museums in the valley are upvalley. The Silverado Museum (707/9633757)in the St. Helena Library is dedicated to the works of Robert Louis Stevenson. The author came to Napa Valley in 1880 with his new wife and took up residence in an abandoned miners’ dormitory on the side of Mt. St. Helena above Calistoga, where his health improved. Stevenson’s The Silverado Squatters gives a wonderful profile of Napa Valley a century ago. Legend has it that Stevenson used Mt. St. Helena as the model for Spyglass Hill in Treasure Island. Another artist who made his home in Napa Valley (between his employment with Walt Disney Studios) was Ben Sharpsteen, who produced the

September/October 1998

Disney animated feature Fantasia. A number of his nature shorts won Oscars. When he retired to Calistoga, Ben turned his artist’s hand to painting fanciful scenes of life in the valley, several of which are on exhibit at the Sharpsteen Museum (1311 Washington, Calistoga, 707/9425911), as is one of his Oscars.

Hiking. To burn off excess energy build-up before the marathon or to help the legs recover afterward, consider going on one of several beautiful hiking trails in the valley. One site is the Bothe-Napa State Park (along Highway 29 between St. Helenaand Calistoga). Much of the park is built on property once owned by Reason Tucker, one of the first rescue party leaders to go into the Sierra after the stranded Donner Party. There is an historical plaque to Tucker at the park entrance. At the northern end of the Silverado Trail (less than half a mile north of the marathon start line) is the head of the Oat Hill Mine Road trail, a longabandoned mining road that winds its way up to and through the palisades that form the eastern wall of Napa Valley above Calistoga. If you go up far enough, you’ll encounter the marks of mine wagon wheels cut into the solid rock from the days when they hauled flasks of quicksilver out of the mountain.

Napa Valley Wine Train. An elegant way to see the lower half of

September/October 1998

the Napa Valley is to travel from Napa to St. Helena and back on the Napa Valley Wine Train (707/253-2111). The meticulously restored coaches are comfortable, there are several trips available each day, the food on the trips is very good, and you can wine-taste while the vineyards roll past.

Sutter Home Winery. The train runs past the Sutter Home Winery on the opposite side of the highway. The Sutter Home Winery is one of the largest in California and put itself on the wine map when CEO Bob Trinchero created white zinfandel. The Sutter Home Winery tasting room is large, warm, and inviting, and besides offering their wines, it also offers excellent olive oils, pasta sauces, and much more. The winery has been the marathon sponsor for six years. Winery president Roger Trinchero ran in the marathon the first year the winery sponsored the race. Runners who bring their race number by the tasting room receive a 10 percent discount. Their Web address is http:/www.sutterhome.com.

AVOID IT

Terminal Mellowness. There really are no sections of the Napa Valley you need to avoid. Spend too much time in the valley sampling wine and enjoying mud baths, however, and you may suffer from near fatal relaxation.

SUTTER HOME NAPA VALLEY MARATHON 113

honor his father’s memory. Radigan, 46, took third in his age group with a 2:55:29.

MARATHON COLLEGE AND AUTHORS’ BREAKFAST

One of the unique prerace activities at Napa is the Marathon College, which features legends of the sport who speak throughout the day on Saturday. The 20″ anniversary race offered an expanded speaker/seminar program with Dick Beardsley, Amby Burfoot, Jeff Galloway, Joe Henderson, Don Kardong, John Keston, and Kathrine Switzer. Sessions this year included a roundtable discussion, “Whither the Marathon,” and “Secrets of Running the Napa Valley Marathon Course.” Switzer delivered the keynote address, which included the unabridged version of her famous encounter with Jock Semple in the 1967 Boston Marathon. Another big reason to get into town early is the chance to rub elbows with the Marathon College luminaries at the Napa Valley Marriott Hotel on Friday evening from 5:00 to 6:30 at an informal wine reception hosted by Sutter Home. Saturday morning’s Author’s Breakfast is another best bet. Enjoy a delightful breakfast spread and hear informal presentations from running authors such as Amby Burfoot, Jeff Galloway, Joe Henderson, and Don Kardong. These authors’ books are

also available for purchase and autographing.

OTHER AMENITIES

Napa offers two pasta feeds, one upvalley at the Community Center in Calistoga, where the race starts, and the other at race headquarters at the Napa Valley Marriott Hotel. You can dine on a variety of pastas, salads, sauces, and wines.

The Napa Valley Marriott Hotel is the official hotel of the SHNVM and race headquarters for the weekend. The host hotel tends to fill up early, so make reservations as early as possible.

A Sports and Fitness Expo is held all day Saturday, featuring more than 30 quality clothing, book, software, wine, pasta, and running shoe exhibitors. This year’s expo was a little too crowded, so plans are underway for next year to move it across the hotel parking lot to the conference center, where it will have double the space.

THE START, FINISH, AND POSTRACE

Buses leave Vintage High School (a 10-minute walk from the host hotel) between 5:15 and 5:30 a.m. Parking near the start in Calistoga is limited, so taking the bus from Vintage High School is the better choice for getting to the start. There’s plenty of parking at Vintage High School, and your car will be waiting for you after you finish. If you must drive to the start, you’ll

September/October 1998

Runner’s High/Runner’s Low

HIGHS

Ideal destination marathon

History of near-perfect raceday weather

Majestic, rolling, and rural pointto-point course

Meticulously organized race

The race puts runners first

Big-time race with small-time race intimacy

Plentiful hot soup and sourdough bread after the race

need to use Highway 29 on the west side of the valley because the Silverado Trail will be closed off for the race. If you park in Calistoga, you must provide your own transportation back to the start after the race.

The prerace staging area is very low key. Basically, it’s the middle of awine field: There’s you, the fog, other runners, porta-johns, and the buses. This year, in keeping with the Passport to Napa theme, all runners received a souvenir nylon-zippered travel bag, which doubled as a goody bag/sweatbag and includeda luggage tag with yourrace number. At the staging area, after shedding unnecessary clothes, participants passed their sweatbags through the bus windows for safekeeping. The bags were transported to the finish area for easy retrieval.

Afternearly a 25-mile straight shot from Calistoga to Napa, four turns in

September/October 1998

Four turns in the last half-mile of the race

Parts of the race course are on canted roads

Not-so-spectacular T-shirt design

Not many spectators on the course

the last half-mile pose a challenge for some runners. While there are only pockets of spectators along the rest of the course, the finish area is jampacked. The community really comes out for this event in full force.

The last 100 yards along the east side of Vintage High School enhances that down-home, small-town race feel that so many participants love. Dipsea-Man Barry Spitz does a great job as finish line announcer. Every finisher is personally escorted through and out the finish chute by one of dozens of volunteers. Your personal volunteer will take you by the elbow, lead you out of the chute, put your finishers’ medal around your neck, and lead you to medical assistance should you need any or direct you to the food and drinks that lie in the Quad at the heart of the Vintage High School campus. There, you can eat and drink to your heart’s content:

SUTTER HOME NAPA VALLEY MARATHON gm 115

water and other beverages, fruit, yogurt, hot soup, and sourdough rolls. Showers are also available (bring your own soap and towel). Napa veterans know just where to go for the soup, but some of the newcomers stumble around a bit until a “Soup Here” sign is posted outside the high school cafeteria doors.

The greater-than-usual number of finishers throws a kink into the sweatbag retrieval system, which is organized meticulously but gets backed up because of volume. Delays

into the Quad somewhat but don’t create any real problems.

The Napa directors cap a wonderful event with a humorous awards ceremony, same-day race results on their Web site, and an impressive 32page results book that arrives about a month after the race. The Sutter Home Napa Valley Marathon is a fixture on the race schedules of many Northern Californian long-distance runners and a “must” event for any serious marathoner witha hankering for travel. But

remember, you didn’t hear it i

at the sweatbag area clog traffic flow _ here.

The Bott )

We have weighed various aspects of a marathon within a 1,000-point scoring grid. Besides the author of the article, a dozen runners at the race were randomly chosen to score the race for us. (SHNVM = Sutter Home Napa Valley Marathon.) The results follow:

1. HISTORY/TRADITION

Evaluate the race’s sense of history and tradition.

[Possible points: 30 SHNVM score: 28]

2. ENTRY FORM |

Is the race entry form clear, concise, attractive, complete, and easy to fill out? [Possible points: 20 SHNVM score: 20]

3. ENTRY COST

For most races, the entry fee covers between 30 and 50 percent of the cost of putting on the event. Rate the value of your dollar relative to this race. [Possible points: 30 SHNVM score: 23]

4. LOCALE/SCENICS

Is the race held in an area that is easy to get to and scenic, offers adequate food and housing services, and nonrace activities for family and friends?

[Possible points: 50 SHNVM score: 50]

5. REGISTRATION

Is registration well-organized and efficient? Does it bog down unnecessarily? {Possible points: 20 SHNVM score: 17]

6. PRERACE ACTIVITIES

Evaluate activities such as pasta feeds, parties, and so on, during the days before the race.

[Possible points: 50 SHNVM score: 40]

7. EXPO

Does the expo offer a fair number and variety of booths relative to the race’s size? Are there quality exhibitors and good guest speaker(s)?

[Possible points: 50 SHNVM score: 40]

8. COURSE

Take into consideration the following: degree of difficulty, certified, sanctioned, quality of road or trail surface, adequate mileage and directional markers, aid stations, medical coverage, race communications, accessibility to course for friends and family, typical weather, and so on.

[Possible points: 400 SHNVM score: 375]

9. RACE AMENITIES

This category includes race T-shirt, finisher’s medal, finisher’s certificate, adequate and efficient finish area, ease of sweatbag retrieval, showers, postrace refreshments, awards ceremony, raffles, results postcard, results book, and so on.

[Possible points: 250 SHNVM score: 230]

10. VOLUNTEERS Are the volunteers experienced and adequate in number? [Possible points: 100 SHNVM score: 90]

TOTAL SCORE FOR NAPA VALLEY MARATHON: 913 points (out of 1,000)

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September/October 1998 SUTTER HOME NAPA VALLEY MARATHON @& 117