Ray Miller Insights

1. What do you like best about this course? What inspires you to organize the race year after year?

My favorite parts of this course are the remote and secluded backcountry trails it runs on. It's so peaceful, and just beautiful! Ray Miller is near and dear to my heart as it is one of the very first ultra marathon races of mine I built from the ground up in 2011.We used to do the 50 mile course as a training run for the Angeles Crest 100 mile, and finally I just decided in 2010 to pursue getting the permits, and made into an actual organized race. It only felt fitting to call it Ray Miller as it starts and finishes on the Ray Miller trail.  

2. What is unique about your local running community?

The incredible community of volunteers we have. We are one big trail family, and I feel like the luckiest lady in the world to be part of this amazing community of people. 

3. If the course were a piece of art, would you classify it as a music composition or film? Does it remind you of any specific artistic piece/genre?

Oh definitely a painting. With sweeping ocean and coastal views, vast wilderness areas, and a summit to the highest peak in the Santa Monica mountains only a painting could capture its pure beauty! 

4. Think back over the years...do you have any funny/scary/interesting stories about this race you can share?

A few times we have had mountain lion encounters while course marking! It really is more remote than people think. 

5.  What advice do you have for runners preparing to participate in the Ray Miller 50K (or longer)?

Train on hills. On these courses you are either running up or down. Seldom is it flat, but that's what makes this course so spectacular. The views are insane.