On Saturday, February 29, Curly Guillen and Addi Zerrenner will be racing on the road to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games: Atlanta’s Peachtree Street. The road will end for all but the top three men and women competing in the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, but just to be in that fast company is to be branded as an elite American distance runner.
Guillen and Zerrenner developed their running chops in Santa Barbara and Goleta, as did their coach, Terry Howell. The two marathoners graduated from Dos Pueblos High 14 years apart — Guillen in 2000 and Zerrenner in 2014 — and Howell is a San Marcos grad. After a workout last weekend, Howell reminded them how far they’ve come.