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View Full Version : Best XC Course in CA

name
04-20-2005, 10:49 PM
What do you think is the best XC course in California?
xcrnr
04-20-2005, 10:55 PM
1. Woodward Park
2. Mt. Sac
3. Sierra (God Bless her soul)
4. Crystal Springs
5. Stanford
Saint Ashlar
04-20-2005, 11:03 PM
1. Woodward Park
2. Mt. Sac
3. Sierra (God Bless her soul)
4. Crystal Springs
5. Stanford

I've only ran 2 of those courses. I'd have to say your off to a strong start with Woodward and SAC. But I've never ran the others so I wouldn't know.
speedy11
04-20-2005, 11:09 PM
Stanford
:)
Dev-Dawg-Dude
04-20-2005, 11:16 PM
1. Mt. Sac - Love all da hills
2. Redwood - Prolly most of you have never run it, but a beautiful course that goes on a single track through some pretty awesome terrain.
3. Woodward - Just because.... such an awesome course!
justdidit
04-20-2005, 11:35 PM
Woodward has to be probably the best all around course in California, but I have to go with Mt. SAC because of its uniqueness. Seeing how well those signature 3 hills are known all throughout CA make it the most intimidating, or loved, course in the state. I mean, who doesn't love hills. :D
1. Mt. SAC
2. Woodward
3. Irvine Regional Park (OC Champs)
FAF4LIFE
04-20-2005, 11:42 PM
woodbridge for sure then stanford
scrunner11
04-21-2005, 12:19 AM
most people may not have heard of it/run on it, but I really like Griffith Park. It has a killer hill in it, far harder than anything Mt. SAC has to dish out, and to me it is exactly what an x-c course should be.
socalrunner6
04-21-2005, 12:50 AM
Griffith park, there are two of them. are you talking about THE griffith park with the hill that is like 1 mile long or something. This course is so hard no joke its like a minute and a half slower than mt sac. It is the one by the old zoo and in the park right so crazy.
Saint Ashlar
04-21-2005, 12:52 AM
I can't believe I forgot about these courses. Bonelli Park course in San Dimas is great. Kinda similar in terrain to Woodward and has one nasty hill at the beginning of the last mile. The course that Kenny Staub Invite is at is great. I think it is Crescenta Valley Park or something like that. That course is good, all downhill the way out and uphill the way back. You can really see who are the strongest guys and who wants it the most.
cory
04-21-2005, 01:11 AM
Waverly Park!!!!!!
sdhsRunner4Life
04-21-2005, 01:16 AM
I can't believe I forgot about these courses. Bonelli Park course in San Dimas is great. Kinda similar in terrain to Woodward and has one nasty hill at the beginning of the last mile. The course that Kenny Staub Invite is at is great. I think it is Crescenta Valley Park or something like that. That course is good, all downhill the way out and uphill the way back. You can really see who are the strongest guys and who wants it the most.


i have to agree with you.....Bonelli Park is awesome....much of it is lake side and just an awesome course to run.

ps san dimas is a real place.....not just from bill and teds excellent adventure
SDHS football rules lol
kilroydynasty
04-21-2005, 01:17 AM
Griffith Park has got some tough hills, but it aint a minute and a half slower than mt sac. Your just saying that cause you want your time to look better. Woodward Park and Mt sac are both great courses and both have their own identities. Id have to say Stanford, Woodbridge, and Griffith Park also have some good courses. Im not a big Kenny Staub fan, i ran well there but still I believe it is not a well made course.
Sum_Bum
04-21-2005, 01:59 AM
Nevada Union.

You get to run through the forest, ok.
calirunnergrl
04-21-2005, 02:07 AM
I'm really surprised at how many people are even mentioning Stanford as one of the top XC courses on here... I mean, with the likes of Crystal and Sac, how could Stanford top them??? It's on a golf course with minimal hills and no tough terrain. I'd have to say it's one of the easiest courses I've ever run and it's on one of the least cross country-ish courses I've ever seen...
xcrnr
04-21-2005, 08:07 AM
I'm really surprised at how many people are even mentioning Stanford as one of the top XC courses on here... I mean, with the likes of Crystal and Sac, how could Stanford top them??? It's on a golf course with minimal hills and no tough terrain. I'd have to say it's one of the easiest courses I've ever run and it's on one of the least cross country-ish courses I've ever seen...

I somewhat agree. That's why it's my #5. However, it's usually the first big invite of the year and for many high school varsity runners the first big time meet of their HS career. Also the crowds at Stanford are huge and enthusiastic. Nothing is more Cross countryish than that!
harrier12
04-21-2005, 12:07 PM
1. Challenger Park-best home course ever
2. Mt. SAC-hated this course in hs, but after racing FLW, changed my mind
3. Arroyo Verde-shows who the real cross runners are, brutal course
('Burnsie' knows exactly what I'm talking about :D )
delicious
04-21-2005, 02:10 PM
the rim of thw world course that one year when they were doing construction on the camp ground. We got to run through the street of the town, run thrught the forest and everything. When i was on the streets i felt like i was playing mario kart for nintendo 64. Just zig zaggin inbetween cars and running all over the place.
runnerd
04-21-2005, 03:26 PM
I'm really surprised at how many people are even mentioning Stanford as one of the top XC courses on here... I mean, with the likes of Crystal and Sac, how could Stanford top them??? It's on a golf course with minimal hills and no tough terrain. I'd have to say it's one of the easiest courses I've ever run and it's on one of the least cross country-ish courses I've ever seen...

Are you kidding? That hill after you leave the chute is HUGE . The rest of the course is flatish with a bit of terrain but after that hill, it's ridiculously hard. :eek:
LALkrGrl
04-21-2005, 05:26 PM
What do you think is the best XC course in California?
Doesn't it depend on what you mean by best? Best how? I think out of Mt. SAC, Woodward and Stanford, the three most commonly mentioned, Mt. SAC is by far the most challenging. But I ran the 800, I think they ALL suck.
ARAGON FroBoy
04-21-2005, 10:27 PM
jouquine miller in oakland end of discussion


yea sorry, but I have to restart it. Crystal Springs is tough, with the huge hills in the first mile loop, then, of course, once you think you are home free the little cardiac hill burns up your legs so bad you can only stumble to the finish.
XCdude24
04-22-2005, 12:05 AM
The dipsea: havn't ran it(was gonna this year, but vacation conflicts), but it wins just because of it's reputation and history.
name
04-22-2005, 02:18 AM
crystal springs is a pretty good course, with come challenging hills
GoPre
04-22-2005, 02:33 AM
Toughest or best out there? Well down in the SS of course there's always Mt. Sac, but so far no one has mentioned the Peninsula course. Who could ever forget it's brutal Agony hill right after the 2M marker.
wannabpre
04-22-2005, 02:36 AM
jaoquin miller is VERY hard, and is like in the middle of a foresty place
xcountrylvoe
04-22-2005, 02:40 AM
Depends on what you mean by best. Toughest is probably Mt. Sac. Especially the switchbacks.Woodward is good. Favorite is Crystal Springs cause we train on it all the time.
XCFrosh3200
04-22-2005, 06:01 PM
has anyone ran Schabarum Park? My PR is a 90 seconds slower then SAC. It feels like on looong hill :D
bad hammy
04-22-2005, 07:42 PM
jaoquin miller is VERY hard, and is like in the middle of a foresty place

My XC days are long gone, but I loved running on Joaquin Miller. Great forested trails (it is, as wannabpre says, in the middle of a foresty place) and great for hill runners. Nice views of SF if you have time to look.
xdderrty04x
04-22-2005, 08:01 PM
Anybody here ran at Temecula Valleys course... i think last season was the last season that we're ever racing it.... but that course sucked.... it was so hard... theres just really one huge hill that you run up three different ways.... i remember it being crazy hard.... which is why i love it even more :p
surfboylwc
04-22-2005, 09:21 PM
The dipsea: havn't ran it(was gonna this year, but vacation conflicts), but it wins just because of it's reputation and history.

The dipsea, hands down.
hockeypenguin9
04-22-2005, 10:36 PM
logan, what is the dipsea? we never ran that, how can you vote for it?
wannabpre
04-23-2005, 12:01 AM
the dipsea isnt a high school xc course, but no doubt still a great course that goes from the bay side of mt. tamalpais (in sf bay area) over the mountain to stinson beach, there are also variations (double and quadruple dipsea)
xc3200
04-23-2005, 12:12 PM
I think Mt. SAC is the best course. I love that course! All those hills... we have our league finals over there. I think it's been there since like the 1940s or something. Bonelli Park is cool too. We have our league meets over there. Lot of grass and a lot of shade. But, Mt. SAC is my favorite course hands down. I'm so glad we have West Regionals over there.
name
04-25-2005, 10:21 PM
toro park is a fairly challenging course
ilive2run
04-27-2005, 11:18 PM
I would deffinitely go with mt sac being my #1 coarse and then woodward, mostly b/c sac is so different from most coarses and it's so fun to run on. woodward is also an awesome course especially in the rain :D (like at the state meet this year).
CMB #1
04-27-2005, 11:22 PM
Its all about Mt. Sac, almost if not everyone has run there or so it seems lol and it has everything. Fans, Hills, Crazy Weather, Competition... it rocks
fafcaptain
04-28-2005, 12:19 AM
The temecula course stays for atleast next year.. Could'nt take it down if you didnt know it is home to an Indangered animal like some type of butterfly. Yea the hills are horrable you can tell by some of the names.
wannabpre
04-28-2005, 12:38 AM
i REALLY thought it was fun to run woodward in the rain, all the mud and everything was awesome.
xcracer07
04-28-2005, 05:34 PM
yeah everything cept the rain in your eyes so you can't see specially with contacts or glasses.
anyway Garin is one of the best course in cali, great view of the bay at the top of the hills.
sprinter
04-28-2005, 08:04 PM
best course of all time = mt. sac. hands down. that course is freaken awesome. i hated it freshman year, but then sophomore year it was fun lol and now im like in love with it
statrack
04-29-2005, 01:24 AM
Morley Field has to be up somewhere on that list.... it is the national championship course (and also happens to be about a mile from my school) ;)
allcompetition
05-08-2005, 11:56 PM
Ohh man.
Mt. Sac hands down.
I flew the first time I ran that course. I love it because you can break it down in sections: the first mile, switchbacks, poop-out hill, that last hill (can't remember the name) and then the final stretch.
Seriously took 3 minutes off my time the first time I ran that course.
It's soo cool. haha. :D
Oakmont_XC
05-09-2005, 08:21 PM
Mt.SAC is first in my mind, and second is my home course Sierra College. Which coincidently is comming back as a course this year. I can't wait!!! Hopefully our section will run sections there in stead of Willow creek.(the worse course ever!!!!!)
calixcrunner
05-11-2005, 07:34 PM
I would probably have to go w/ Mt. Sac as the most fun to run. There is nothing better then some nice hills to get the quads burning. With knee problems, I was never too fond of large downhills. lol. Woodward is a pretty fun course but it's a little too easy for my taste. The Huntington Beach East course is an awesome course too. NO concrete, all grass, dirt, trails, and uneven ground. Hard, but VERY xc. OC Champs is easy, but its also pretty fun.
Mikerunner
05-11-2005, 08:01 PM
I would also have to agree that mt sac is the best course. What about some really fast courses. I know that Bell Gardens and the Dana Hills course are fast. Also, woodbrige is probobly one of the fastest in the state, the course itself, and the nearly perfect weather and overall atmosphere. (especially at night with the huge crowds!). Any others?
calixcrunner
05-12-2005, 11:20 PM
I would have to say Dana Hills is the fastest. I mean the course is downhill most of the way. You end much lower then where the start is. Woodbridge is fast too and times are great because of the high class compeitition. However, I find both courses kind of boring because they are around the respective schools instead of in a park or something.
Jumpin Jack
05-14-2005, 12:01 AM
Mt. SAC and the Yankee Doodle course in Long Beach in the 70's. Also the Palos Verdes HS course in the 70's!
so0p
05-14-2005, 01:35 AM
Crystal Springs and Mt. Sac for me. :)
wannabpre
05-14-2005, 01:39 AM
good ol' garin park in Hayward California, it's not very well known, but its in a great setting with great views of the whole bay area.
CoachB03
05-14-2005, 03:16 PM
SAC and Woodward get lots of votes because so many people from all over the state get to run on them.

I really like the Sierra course. It's all through the woods, rolling the whole way. There are a couple of sizable hills (not on the same scale as SAC), but that is not what makes the couse tough. It is tough because the only flat portion is the last 100 meters. I'm glad to hear that it will be back in operation next year (not that the Folsom course is that bad) because it is a Nor-Cal Classic.