Bay to Breakers 2026!

For the first time in forever, I took part in a marathon!

My husband used to tell me that he wanted to run with me someday back when we were dating. But at that time, I wasn’t interested in running—or exercising in general. I was literally a couch potato.

After getting married, a lot of things changed. I started going to the gym regularly with my hubby and even began running. So this year, I made up my mind to participate in a marathon as part of my New Year’s resolution.

Originally, we planned to run in February, but we failed to register for the 8K. Eventually, we signed up for Bay to Breakers 2026!

Practicing

While browsing information about B2B, I realized it must be one of the most unique marathons in the world. People wear costumes, put on crazy makeup, and do their absolute best to enjoy the event. We were so excited to become part of the most festival-like marathon ever!

There were two options for runners: 12K and 15K.
12K for me, 15K for him!

Since I’m a beginner, we were supposed to practice for months. But somehow, we couldn’t make it happen. We decided to start practicing after our April trip to Yosemite, which meant we only had about 2–3 weeks to prepare. Our longest practice run was just 10K—and that was only a week before the race!

D-Day & Prep

We woke up at 5 a.m., left home at 6:15, and arrived at the designated parking lot near the pier. We were ready!

We had been assigned to different starting sections: my husband was in Section B, and I was in Section D. However, the staff said runners from earlier sections could move to later sections, but not the other way around. So we decided to run together in Section D.

Section D was supposed to start at 8:15, but even after so many starting signals, all I could do was take a few tiny steps forward. After what felt like 30 minutes, we finally began walking toward the actual starting line.

While waiting, I saw tortillas flying through the air. At first, I thought they were pieces of paper. But after getting hit by one, I realized they were definitely heavier than paper—and it actually hurt a little. Apparently, throwing tortillas is one of the race traditions!

START

My husband and I saw so many cute, weird, and extraordinary people. Honestly, I still cannot imagine wearing a huge costume while running more than 9 miles.

Up until around 8K, we stayed together—well, more accurately, we alternated between walking and running. Once we reached the hills, though, I simply couldn’t keep running. The hills were way too steep for me! But my husband kept saying, “Run!”

We stayed together until around mile 3 or 4, then eventually split up because of our different running speeds and time goals.

Our goal times were 1 hour 30 minutes for the 12K and 15K.

I managed to cross the finish line in 1 hour and 36 minutes, and my husband finished in 1 hour and 45 minutes—almost a 10-minute difference between us!

Finish Line

At the finish line, there were long lines for water, bananas, fruit bars, chips, and medals for the 12K runners. I made the rookie mistake of standing in the very front line, which was insanely crowded, while the lines farther back were much shorter.

After getting our free snacks, we walked a little farther so my husband could receive his bonus 15K medal. I thought it was such a cute idea that the 15K medal was stackable with the regular 12K medal since the 15K was considered a bonus challenge.

We enjoyed our free beer, refreshments, and water for a little while before heading straight to the shuttle bus.

And honestly… I have to admit that I can’t enjoy festival party energy the same way I did in my 20s anymore. I felt like such an old lady because all I wanted to do was sleep on the bus ride.