An elite field of distance runners will be racing at the fore front of the prestigious and long-sold-out 11th annual Napa-to-Sonoma Wine Country Half Marathon, which takes place Sunday, July 20.
The Wine Country Half Marathon will start at 7 a.m. at Cuvaison Estate Winery in Napa, with the scenic 13.1-mile, certified course winding its way into the Valley – with traffic detours at Burndale Road, Denmark and MacArthur streets, and Broadway – and ending in front of Sonoma City Hall on the Plaza.
Headlining the talented field of world-class runners competing Sunday is four-time defending champion Tesfaye Alemayehu of Antioch and Ethiopia – holder of the Napa-to-Sonoma course record of 1 hour, 2 minutes, 38 seconds – who will be challenged in his quest for a fifth straight title by two former Olympians.
Meb Keflezighi, sponsored by Krave Jerky of Sonoma, is an Olympic Silver Medalist and champion of both the 2014 Boston Marathon and 2009 New York City Marathon.
Ryan Hall is the current American Half Marathon course record holder (59 minutes, 43 seconds), who was also a United States Olympian in the marathon in the 2008 and 2012 games.
Highlighting the women’s elite Wine Country Half Marathon field is two-time USA 5,000-meter champion Lauren Fleshman.
Running along with the half marathon is the sold-out GunBun FunRun – presented by Parkpoint Health Club – a 5K race that starts at Gundlach Bundschu Winery and also ends in the Sonoma Plaza.
Following the running events will be the popular Wine and Music Festival in the Plaza from 9:30 a.m. until noon, with the awards ceremony being held at 10:30 a.m.
The race Expo takes place tomorrow, Saturday, July 19, at Hanna Boys Center, and is open to the public with informational seminars, exhibits, product sampling, packet pickup, food, wine tasting and music. For more information visit the event website at http://destinationraces.com/runn2s.
National charity partners for the Napa-to-Sonoma Wine Country Half Marathon include the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America, One Team One Fight, and City of Hope.
The Hanna Boys Center will again provide the bulk of the volunteers and serves as the primary beneficiary of the event. Sponsors for the 2014 Napa-to-Sonoma Wine Country Half Marathon include Newton Running, Rabobank, TomTom, Amy’s Kitchen, Cliff Bar, Accelerade, Krave Jerky, Taylor Made Farms, Touring & Tasting magazine, Redfox, Calistoga Olive Oil Co., Honest Tea, Jog Tog, Elliptigo, World Centric, Riedel, Nuun, Harvest Snaps, Zico, Foley Food & Wine Society, IPS, Lagunitas Brewing Co., Napa Running Co., Gundlach Bundschu Winery, Parkpoint Health Clubs, Embassy Flags, Max-Freeze and Sahale Snacks.
The Napa-to-Sonoma Wine Country Half Marathon is the flagship event in the series produced by Destination Races, which partners with national and local charities and nonprofit organizations. For more information on the series, visit destinationraces.com.
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