1,600 runners expected for 4th annual Rock Tahoe Half Marathon in Lake Tahoe

Epic Tahoe Adventure's fourth annual Rock Tahoe Half Marathon returns to Lake Tahoe on Saturday, June 16, 2018. Over 1,600 participants will enjoy the beautiful lake while running from the top of Spooner Summit to the Hard Rock Hotel at Stateline.

In order to keep the runners safe, the lakeside lane of westbound Highway 50 will be closed from the top of Spooner Summit to the bike trail at Round Hill Pines from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on June 16. Additionally, vehicle traffic at Logan Creek will be intermittently stopped, allowing one-way traffic through the slide area. Delays in this area will be from 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.

Kingsbury Grade is highly recommended as the preferred route for traffic between Carson City and South Lake Tahoe during these hours. Additionally, access into or out of the peripheral streets and driveways may be prolonged at times. Residents and visitors should be cautious and vigilant when crossing the closed lane to enter or exit the highway.

New this year, race weekend will kick off with a “Rock the Plaza” Packet Pick-up and Pre-Race Expo on Friday, June 15 from 2:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on the Guitar Plaza in front of Alpine Union at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Lake Tahoe. The event is open to the public and will feature booths from both local and national sponsors including samples from Lake Tahoe AleWorX, Rocket Vodka, Nuun, Honey Stinger, plus many more vendors and music from the RunMC.

Racers will be able to pick up their race packets, snap photos in the digital photo booth, and shop all of the official Rock Tahoe Half Marathon merchandise.
Race day begins bright and early at Spooner Summit on Saturday, June 16 with the high-energy Run MC and Kaia Fit getting runners warmed up and pumped up at the start line. The race features two start times – 7:00 a.m. for walkers/joggers and 8:00 a.m. for runners. With seven aid stations on course, the event is fully prepared to meet racers’ hydration and nutritional needs. The aid stations are all hosted by local organizations and also serve as rally points along the 13.1 mile course.

“The volunteers at the aid stations do so much more than hand out water
and food,” says Jason Collin, ETA’s Chief Officer of Awesomeness. “They create the vibe and keep the energy high out on the course. We couldn’t put on a race like this without the amazing support of our volunteers.”

While runners finish their 13.1 mile adventure at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Lake Tahoe, the fun is actually just getting started with the finish line festivities in the Rock Tahoe Recovery Zone & Post-Race Pool Party. Runners receive a free can of Cali Common from Lake Tahoe AleWorX, chocolate milk from TruMoo, samples from Rocket Vodka, a complimentary massage from Bodhi Tree Massage School and guided stretching from Lake Tahoe Yoga to work out those muscles!

The finish line festival features several other vendors plus the return of food trucks including local favorites The Oven, Pretty Odd Wieners, Tacos Por Favor, and Jamba Juice.

The high energy continues at the Rock Tahoe Post-Race Pool Party with a live performance from Soulcirque. Straight out of LA, Soulcirque is an interactive DJ band that blends live drums, sax, guitar, keys, and visuals into sets and will keep the party rocking all afternoon! Tahoe Recovery Zone is open to the public as well as participants and is a great place to celebrate with runners at the finish line. The festivities kick off at 8:00 a.m. and the first race finisher is expected around 9:15 a.m.

Winning times for 2017 were 1:25:58 by Jason Gortari and 1:36:36 by Holly O’Brien. Both will be returning this year to defend their titles. Awards are given to the top three men and women, along with the 1st-3rd spots in each age/gender group.
This year’s field features runners from 30 states and six countries with 80 percent of the participants traveling more than 30 miles to participate, with an average distance of over 150 miles. 60 percent of participants are between the ages of 30-49 years old and 71 percet are women. Currently, the youngest competitor is an 11-year-old from Antelope, CA and the youngest at heart will be 78-year-old local Ute Luyties from Stateline, NV, who will be returning for her fourth time to Rock Tahoe.

The Rock Tahoe Half Marathon will also be bringing back the popular Pic2Go photography package. Thanks to a partnership with Tahoe South, the photo package is completely free for runners and allows them to have their on-course and finish line photos automatically uploaded to Facebook. In the past three years using Pic2Go, Rock Tahoe race photos have generated almost 2 million impressions.

“We couldn’t be happier with the response we’ve continued to have to this event.” said Jessica Schnoll, ETA’s Queen of Everything Epic. “We are proud to be able to offer a world class event in Tahoe each year that continues to grow and get better and better each year. We are so grateful to all the racers, the volunteers, and the community for the support and making Rock Tahoe such a success!”

Registration is still open for this year’s race. Visit epictahoe.com for more details.