Leg 4

Kings Beach to Tahoe City

9.6 miles

Running through Kings Beach along the North Shore, you’ll encounter mostly flat terrain until you reach Dollar Hill. This region used to be called “Old Lousy” because in 1872 a bedraggled, land squatting cordwood cutter named Griffin helped himself to a patch of land on the promontory, where he built a shack. It was his custom to wander into Tahoe City and drink at J. B. Campbell’s over water Custom House, where he liked to sit by the stove and warm himself while picking crawling vermin off his person. This practice revolted the hard-drinking mountain men of that time, who encouraged “Old Lousy” to return to his shack and stay there. Or another possible origin of the name is attributed to Robert Watson, who said the waters surrounding the point were “lousy with trout”, and Captain J. A. Todman, who had difficulty navigating his boat around “the lousy point.” No matter what, it was in 1927 when Mrs. Knight sold the property to Stanley Dollar Sr., the San Francisco shipping magnate that the name evolved into what it is today. Dollar Hill. Don’t worry about the size of the hill though. It’s only about a 1/2 mile in length and once summited, the course will follow a long descent just outside of Tahoe City.

Count those fannies on Fanny Bridge

Running through town, you’ll run across the historic Fanny Bridge. It received its name from all of the fannies that can be seen from the road as gawkers stare over the edge into the cool waters. Located over the only outlet of Lake Tahoe (into the Truckee River), Fanny Bridge is a historical spot. Be sure to count the fannies as you run over the bridge ending up at the Transit Center where your next teammate will be waiting.