On Sunday, December 8, 2024, local runners Martin Arredondo and Fabian Ochoa competed in the “Santa to the Sea Half Marathon” in Oxnard, finishing 42nd and 27th with plans to run in the 129th Boston Marathon. Photo credit Martin Arredondo.

By Epi Torres

On Sunday, December 8th, former Fillmore athletes, Martin Arredondo, and Fabian Ochoa competed in the Santa to the Sea Half Marathon, a 13.1 mile run. The Half Marathon starts at the giant Santa located along Interstate Highway 101 and continues through the strawberry fields of Oxnard before heading to historic downtown Oxnard and ending at Marine Emporium Landing.
Martin finished 27th overall and captured first place in his division. In spite of taking a wrong turn and running an extra 200 meters, he ran a 3 minute personal best of 1:23:31. Fabian finished in 42nd in 1:28:18 and finished 7th in his division.
After the holidays, and a few days to recover, Martin plans to race the full Marathon in Ventura. That race is held on February 23rd with a 6:30 a.m. start time. Following the Ventura Marathon, Martin will then travel to Boston, Massachusetts and run the 129th Boston Marathon. This race is run on Patriots Day, Monday, April 21, 2025.