Charleston Marathon: mixed review

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As you can tell from the title of this post, I have some mixed feelings on this one so here it goes.

First, this was my first attempt at pacing a half marathon.  I loved it!

My running partner CSR and I paced the 2:30 group for TrySports.  We got to wear some cool bright yellow pacer shirts and hold “2:30” signs the whole race (that was the hardest part of the race – the signs, not the shirts).  

CSR and I had just run the Goofy Challenge last weekend, but the 39.3 miles did not bother either of us at all.  CSR came up with a new name for what we were doing, “Marathon Sandwich”.  That’s a half marathon, full marathon, and another half marathon within a week.  I think the name will stick!

I was so inspired by the people I met on this run.  Some people were either running their first half marathon or were going for a PR in this distance.  I met a guy who had lost over 100 pounds (like me!) and a woman who just had a baby ten weeks ago (not like me)!  I ran with locals, people from other parts of the state and several people from out of state.  I absolutely loved hearing their stories, I loved crossing the finish line with all of them and I loved being part of their amazing journeys.

Here is what I did not love…

There were only 14 port-a-lets at the start of the race (there were over 3,000 people registered for the race).  There was very little signage at the start to direct people and I cannot even remember if there was an emcee at the start. 

I don’t really have much to say about the route.  It’s a long race - some parts are nice, some parts are not.  What I did not like was that at mile four there were no cups!  In fact, there were no cups after this point until the table at mile twelve!  

Luckily, the weather was cool enough that this did not become a safety issue.  But I could tell that the people around me, who had never run this far, were starting to panic.  People were even picking up used cups from the ground to get some water or PowerAde.  The volunteers were so apologetic and I could see they were really upset that the race organizers had not given them enough cups for the runners.

The finish was not much better.  There was food, but no water bottles.  We did manage to find some volunteers who were filling up cups with water toward the back of the finish area.  

I later found out that the race had run out of medals for the finishers after our pace group (almost as bad as not having cups).

The finish festival was nice.  It was inside a tent (although it was a little cramped) and they had shrimp and grits (every race should have this at the end), but there was no water!  Plenty of sweet tea, but again no water…

I do want to end this post on a positive note.  My son ran the Youth Marathon the day before and had a blast!  He received an awesome shirt and his medal was over the top!

I really hope this race gets better.  

Charleston is an amazing place to run and I want people to come here and enjoy this place I call home.

Disney Recap – It’s not about your time, it’s about the time that you have...

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What an awesome weekend! I had such a good time running this race…

Our group (Jen, Cathy, Annie, and I) left Charleston (SC) at around 8:00am (we were shooting for closer to 7:00am, but coffee and pickle juice called our names - more about the pickle juice later).

Oh - one thing about driving to a race with a bunch of runners is that everyone is trying to stay hydrated,
so everyone has to pee all the time (including me)!

We drove to Orlando and got in pretty early (I think it took us about seven hours). We stayed at
Disney’s Pop Century (they put us in the 80’s building - nice). Not much to say about the hotel, it was inexpensive compared to the others so it was fine with me.

Perfect hat for Jen!

As soon as we checked in we went over to the expo at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports. The expo had a ton of people, but was really well organized. We were actually looking for some Hammer Gel, but it looked like GU had the monopoly on the gel market so no luck (we had enough, just wanted an extra one or two for emergencies)…

Cathy, Annie and I were doing the Goofy Challenge (Half Saturday and Full Sunday) so we actually got three shirts in our bag (sweet)!!! Not much else in the bags, but the shirts rock! Jen, my wife, picked up her bag and I could see a little nervousness in her smile (this was going to be her first Full Marathon!).

FYI - the real challenge of the “Goofy Challenge” is trying to get enough sleep. The races start at 5:30am each day! Not only that, but we had to be on the bus to the starting line no later than 4:00am! I woke up at 3:00am on Saturday and 2:45am Sunday! Crazy, I mean Goofy!!!

Oh! As we were leaving the expo to get dinner, Cathy was interviewed by ESPN Latino! The best part was when the reporter asked her what she thought of the race “curse”. She looked shocked and asked “what curse?!” In fact, we all looked at each other trying to figure out what curse he was talking about. Finally, the reporter noticed her confusion and said “what do you think of the race COURSE?”.  We had a lot of fun with Cathy after that!

After we finally pulled Cathy away from the cameras, we headed out for dinner. We ate at a nice Asian place in Celebration, FL, and then headed back to our rooms to try to go to sleep. "Try" is the key word. I tossed and turned all night thinking that I was going to oversleep and miss the race (and I had to get up a million times to go pee!).

Fortunately Jen did get a chance to sleep in while we were running, but she woke up when I was getting dressed. She looked at me, half awake, and said “I have been running all night! I’m done!”
It was too funny!

Good thing we picked up throwaway sweat shirts!

Anyway, after I got dressed I walked with Cathy and Annie to the lobby to catch the bus. The line was crazy long, but went fast and the bus trip was pretty uneventful.

We stopped at a port-a-let and then dropped off our bags (very well organized). Then we walked for about 20 minutes in the dark to the start!

This part was really strange, you are basically following a bunch of people who you hope know where they are going. Luckily they did and when we got to the start it was well worth the walk.

The start was so cool (oh, it was a little cold out too, but not cool that way, the other cool way)…

We got settled into our coral and then waited for Donald Duck to count us down. Fireworks went off for each wave start (who does that?!) - it was awesome!

It was a good thing we decided to take it easy on this race (our pace would be slower than our training long runs). It was so packed that there was no way to get a fast pace going anyway.  Luckily, this race was about finishing the challenge not setting a new PR.

The course took us around Epcot and then the Magic Kingdom (did I mention this was my first time
at Disney?). I was like a little kid looking at everything. We stopped a few times to take pictures
(something I had never done in a race before this one).

We really just kept an even pace and took it easy (until the end)…

With about 2 miles left, I jokingly said we should race the last .1 miles. We laughed about it and decided
we would be "Goofy" and hold hands as we went through the finish (I really think this was to keep us all honest). Anyway, as we came through the finish line we held hands and raised our arms in victory!

And then it happened…

I could see Annie start to make her move! We were about to cross the actual finish line and she was
going to try to beat us! I took off at full sprint! Cathy started to sprint ahead as well and I cut her off (that’s right – I cut her off at the finish line…).

Cathy almost ran into the photographer! We were laughing like crazy as we made our way to get our medals (can’t wait to see those pictures from Disney)…

The ride back to our hotel was super fast and easy. Disney knows how to move people!

That day we walked around Disney Downtown and had a late lunch. We were all trying to stay awake for the whole day. We tried to stay hydrated and fueled and then we were back in bed (after peeing a million times)!

I slept a little better, but decided to get up at 2:45am (we cut it a little close the day before). As soon as
I saw the smaller line for the bus, I knew we could have slept in longer…

We all peed in the woods this time and then headed to the corals (Jen was only starting two back from
us). I kissed Jen goodbye and wished her luck. I was really excited for her, but nervous too.

I remember my first race and how hard it felt. I also remember the emotions I went through as I made it to the finish. I actually thought about running this race with her, but everyone I talked to said it would be harder on her. I get the reasoning (it was her race, she might try to run at a faster pace than she should, etc…), but if I had it to do over again I would have run with her...

The start of the Full Marathon was just like the Half (other than it was Mickey counting us down this time). I was still really excited though! I had no idea I would be such a kid about this stuff .

Oh! We ran with another runner this time. Stephanie of See Mom Run. Cathy actually ran with her during her amazing Rock n’ Roll Savannah Marathon (PR). Stephanie fit right in with our group (although we actually lost her for a few miles when we stopped (to pee!), but somehow among all those people we found her again!

When we got to the Magic Kingdom we stopped to take pictures (we were testing pickle juice on this race so we made a toast!). I know, you should never try new things on race day, but we were really taking it easy.

The Full was a lot like the Half, but we did get to go through Animal Kingdom and Disney Hollywood (both very cool, but Animal Kingdom was kind of a letdown – not many animals out - I guess they had better things to do).

The support on this race was nothing like I have ever seen! The volunteers were amazing (I know people say that to be nice, but I mean it! They were incredible). There was water and PowerAde at every aid station. They had bananas and even chocolate! There was a GU station. And there were more medical stations than I have ever seen!

I really wanted to pick up the pace, but I was still worried about my calves cramping as we got to mile 20. If you have followed my blog you know I have a problem with my calves cramping around this point.

We kept the pace even until mile 24. That’s when Annie got super excited and decided we needed to drop the hammer on the pace!

I was still worried about my calves cramping, but they actually felt great!

The one thing I was thinking about was an article I had read about what doctors thought could be causing men to die at the finish line of marathons. One of the things they were looking at was the sudden increase of speed or adrenaline at the end of marathons.

So, knowing that Jen would kill me if I died during this race, I backed off a little and ran through the finish right after Annie, Stephanie and Cathy (next time I'm cutting them off).

After we finished, we picked up or medals and bags.  I knew Jen was a little ways behind us so I checked my phone for the Disney Tracker (another very cool thing about this race - and it was free!).  She was about an hour back, but I could tell her pace had slowed after the 20 mile mark.  I had a feeling she might be hitting the wall.

I found a spot at the finish line and waited (Annie and Cathy stayed near the bag check so they could find her as she came through - they are so awesome!).

A few minutes later my phone rings (it was Jen!).  She said, "It's going to be a little while, you guys go ahead  and go back to the hotel and I'll see you later".  Now I knew she was bonking!

I said "Shut up! We're not going anywhere!  We'll be right here when you finish. Put one foot in front of the other and keep going forward!"  I told her I loved her and was so proud of her and said to call me as much as she wanted.  She never called back, but she finished!!!

It was awesome to be there as she ran through the finish line!

I could tell she was hurting and dehydrated (later I found out that she was only drinking about 2 oz of fluid every other mile).  I gave her a kiss and she walked over to get her medal (her Marathon Medal!).

There was another medical tent at the end and they iced Jen's knees (love that picture).

I still can't believe the race is over...  It was such an incredible weekend.

People have asked me about my time for the race and all I can say is I had a great time!  This race has nothing to do with your time, it's about the time that you have...

Big Amazing Weekend at Disney!

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My wife ran a marathon!!!

If you have read my blog in the past this is a big deal.  If you have not read my blog in the past, well it’s still a big deal!!!

What most people don’t know is that my wife had pretty major back surgery a few years ago and the fact that she is even walking is a miracle.  To finish a marathon is just unbelievable!  (Can you tell I’m a little proud of her?)

I was able to watch her come through the finish line and even got a picture of her getting her medal!  (Do you think I could use more exclamation marks in this post or what?!  I’m excited, shoot me!!!!!)

Her race was not easy and she pushed through some pretty tough times to finish.  I hope at some point she will be up to writing her thoughts down and sharing them here.  

Until then, I will be working on my race recap of the Goofy Challenge (wait until you hear about the sprint finish) that my amazing running partners (CRS and LA) ran with me at Disney!

Checkout my Facebook page for more pictures from the race (www.facebook.com/mooreonrunning)

Awesome Start to a New Year

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A couple of weeks ago I decided I wanted to run 12 miles on New Year’s Day. There were no races in my area so I figured I would just get up that morning and run.

I ended up sending out an invitation to run on Facebook (because telling a bunch of people you are going to do something is the best way to ensure you do it!).

I figured a couple of people might show up and if not I would just run the 12 miles on my own.

To my surprise, people started to reply to the invitation!

I showed up Sunday morning to find fifteen people waiting to run. How crazy is that?!

I knew two or three of the people that showed up, but the rest were complete strangers to me. It was so cool to not only start off the year with a run, but to do it with a bunch of people I had never met. There was even a boy my son’s age riding his bike with us!

We ran one of my favorite routes from Alhambra Hall to Sullivan’s Island over Breach Inlet to Isle of Palms and then back to the start. 

One of the runners (Lisa) had even gone to the 

turnaround spot earlier and set up a table with 

water bottles – so cool…

After the run I asked some random guy to take our picture (because that's what you do when you meet a bunch of people you don't know and go for a group run). A few runners had taken a detour so they were not in the picture, but the picture turned out great.

I thanked everyone for coming out (they all thanked me for organizing it). To be honest with you, there was not much to organize. I just asked people to come join me for a run and they did. I am so going to do this again!

Later that day, my son and I went back out to Sullivan’s Island and participated in the Polar Bear Plunge. Don’t freak out. It was like 70 degrees!

It was still cool to see all the people in their costumes acting crazy and jumping into the ocean. We had a blast in the water and then hung out on the streets (blocked off) and ate lunch with one of my running partners (CSR), her son (who is the same age as my boy), and another bunch of strangers.

What an awesome way to start off a new year…

New Years Day Run (an invitation)

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I am inviting anyone who wants to run on New Year’s Day to meet at Alhambra Hall (Mount Pleasant, SC) at 8:00am on January 1, 2012.

I noticed that there are no races scheduled for January 1^st in the Charleston area.  There used to be a race called the Resolution Run and it was awesome!  It was held on New Year’s Day and it was at the River Dogs stadium in Charleston.  The organization that ran it was Trident Untied Way and they were starting to build a really good race. 

Unfortunately, they decided to start having the race on the first Saturday of January and then decided to hand the race over to another nonprofit which ran it for one year and then gave up on it…

It’s too bad because this is a great way to start off the New Year.  Not everyone gets hammered New Years Eve.  Even the ones who do can still run the next day (plenty of people puke during races).

So I am just going to run that day and I am inviting anyone who wants to run to come out and do it at the same time!  I put this out on Facebook (www.facebook.com\mooreonrunning) and there are already a few people who have responded that they will be there (cool!).

 

I am going to run 12 miles that morning (to bring in 2012), but anyone who shows up can run whatever distance they want.  

The route is easy: start at Alhambra Hall (there's a restroom in the park), run up Center Street, turn right on Ben Sawyer Blvd to Sullivan’s Island (turn left on Middle Street if you want to go further) and then go back.  

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No pace groups, no t-shirts, no pressure, just a bunch of people getting together to run!

Hope to see you there!

Noah