Great American Run Stays Off Beaten Paths

Ask Oscar Rosales about the idea behind the Great American Adventure Run, to be held Saturday in Huntington Central Park, and he’s liable to get a bit metaphysical.

“The idea is to get off the street and get back with the earth and back with the spirit,” Rosales, race director for the ninth annual event, explained.

The run is held within the confines of the Huntington Beach park, best known as a haven for bird-watchers and also probably the finest city park in Orange County: big, lushly wooded, dotted with ponds and crossed by numerous trails.

There are two distances in the event, 2.8 miles and 4.8 miles. Dictated by the size of the park, the distances are slightly shorter than the standard 5- and 10-kilometer runs, respectively. The hardiest competitors will run both races, with barely any time for rest in between. There’s a special prize category, the “Eagle,” honoring the fastest combined times for the two races.

Starting on grass, the runs include stretches on dirt, asphalt and equestrian trails before finishing back on grass. Rosales characterizes it as a friendly, community-oriented competition, with only one hill of any consequence.

“It’s not a torture run or anything like that,” he said. “It’s just so great to get off the street and get on the dirt and run through this beautiful, beautiful park.”

Course records at the 2.8-mile distance are 14:36 for the men (held by Matt Messner) and 16:37 for women (by Beth Metcalf). At 4.8 miles, the top times are 23:27 for male runners (Alfredo Rosas) and 28 minutes for females (Metcalf again). The best combined times are 40:02 for men (Messner again) and 54:28 for women (Annette Barnett).

Rosales cautions that it is difficult to compare times in the Great American Adventure Run to other races because it is run off-road. Grass, particularly, can be slow going because of the poor traction. “You cannot compare it to a road course,” Rosales said. “Cross country is very tactical. You have to know how to run it.”

In conjunction with the race, a free sports medicine clinic for runners will be held tonight from 7 to 9 at the Pacifica Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation Center, 18800 Delaware St., Huntington Beach. Ther apists will discuss the prevention and treatment of common running injuries. It will be possible to register for Saturday’s run at the clinic.

You can also register at the run from 6:30 to 7:45 a.m.