By RHEA-FRANCES TETLEY
Staff Writer

The longest running footrace in Southern California, the annual Run Through the Pines, is racing into Crestline on Aug. 10. For this year’s 40th anniversary run, the Rim of the World Recreation and Park District (Rim Rec) already has more runners registered than in previous years.

Registration is only $45 in advance, or $50 the day of the event. Each registrant will receive a distinctive 40th anniversary event T-shirt with a custom design.

This year, the race will begin and end at the Lake Gregory Education and Community Center (LGECC), located at 24740 San Moritz Way in Crestline. The course will circle the lake, with those running the 10K going around twice. The race walk event is the 5K distance.

The runners will be traveling clockwise around the lake, beginning from the LGECC, going the same direction as traffic along the San Moritz Way from the school and onto San Moritz Drive. They will enter the San Moritz parking lot and run to the senior center and back and then continue on San Moritz Drive, transferring to Lake Gregory Drive between Goodwin’s Market and the lake.

It is essential that morning that drivers be on the lookout for the racers running along the lake side of the road.

The runners will then turn onto Lake Drive and continue to run along the lake side of the street, over the dam and up to San Moritz Drive and back to the school. Those running the 10K will then repeat the loop.

There are several factors to consider: Be aware when registering that the elevation for the run is 4,554 feet above sea level. The 5K, which is 3.1 miles long, begins at 7 a.m. and the 10K, which as 6.2 miles long, begins at 7:30 a.m.

“Help us celebrate 40 years as one of the longest running runs in Southern California,” said Karen Reams, Rim Rec general manager. Amenities include water stations, chip timing and computerized race results, plus the course will be patrolled by emergency communications officials.

New this year is a selfie wall featuring the Run Through the Pines logo, recently painted at the LGECC by local students under the direction of Wes Abarca. There will be custom trophies for first-place winners, custom event medals, post-race refreshments and music.

There will be a Crazy Sock Contest which will benefit the Mountain Homeless Coalition. Each person who donates a package of socks will receive a raffle ticket to win a prize. The socks will be donated to the Mountain Homeless Coalition. Or enter your socks into the Crazy Sock Contest, with first place receiving a trophy and other winners receiving gift cards and prizes to be announced.

There will be chip timing for each individual runner, with computerized race results. The chip devices will not start counting the time until the runner crosses the start line, no matter how far in the back of the pack they are when the starting whistle blows.

Rim Rec is offering limited free parking onsite and the Lake Gregory Recreation Company is providing more parking at the San Moritz Lodge parking lots. Because the Crest Forest Senior Citizens parking area near their building is being used as part of the race course, do not park there; cars will be towed since they will impede upon the race course.

Participants can register online at www.racewire.com; through the Rim
Rec website, www.rim-rec.org/2019-08-10-run-through-the-pines-40th-annual ;
or runthroughthepineslakegregory.racewire.com.