Mar 13, 2011
DTCSP Courses
Here are my Excellent courses from this weekend's trial in Florida. Note to anyone who sees this opening sequence in the future: if you are not ahead of your dog, do not try to beat them to the table from the right side of the triple. They'll take take the chute every time.
Mar 6, 2011
Saturday's Courses
I loved how many different ways people came up with to run this FAST course. Several different strategies and paths all produced the full 80 points.
For all the bitching and moaning about 11-12-13, it was bars coming down at 17 and dogs running past 3 that caused most of the NQs. Even with the strong wind blowing the chute open and making it a straight tunnel, very few dogs actually went into 19 after 11.
Mar 4, 2011
Austin Marathon 2011
Race #4 of 5 for the Texas Marathon Challenge is done! Only one more to go in April and I can finally get my jacket!
My alarm went off at 6am, and after meeting up with Stephanie and Florencia at 630, we set off to find Sandy and Tim before the start. Sandy and I had agreed at lunch on Saturday to meet at one of the east corners of 15th street at 645. Unfortunately, I got there a few minutes late and couldn't find them anywhere. Rather than walk back from where we had come to get in line with the 4:30 pace group, we just hung out on the corner knowing the race would come to us and we could jump in at the right time. After some short remarks by Lance Armstrong and Joan Benoit Samuelson (from my hometown of Cape Elizabeth, ME!), the fireworks went off and the race was underway. Stephanie and I waited about 10 more minutes trying to see if we could find Sandy, and when we didn't, we walked towards the starting line just in front of the 4:15 pace group. Not the group I wanted to be with, but we were both getting anxious and tired of standing around.
The course starts out heading north away from downtown, and after a quick series of right turns, we found ourselves going south on San Jacinto heading up our first real hill of the day. It's a pretty short and steep hill, and the "800 meters to go" sign was a reminder that we'd see it again just before the finish. As we descended the other side of the hill and ran past the capitol building, we passed the finish line just a block to our left, so close and yet so far. After that, we wound our way through downtown before ending up on South Congress going south over the lake.
This next part of the course was fairly steadily uphill for three miles or so. While it's not a very scenic part of the city, there was still plenty to look at. The funky Bohemian clothing stores, multiple yoga studios, and off-beat record stores reminded me of Ann Arbor, and I enjoyed checking them out as I ran by. One thing that really caught my eye was the collection of food trucks offering everything from cupcakes to Pad Thai. I violated the long-standing rule of my In Flight training group - no talking about breakfast until we're back to the park during our early morning long runs - and started daydreaming over what I was going to have for dinner, never mind the fact that I'm not usually very hungry after a marathon. Somewhere along this stretch is where I first noticed problems with the aid stations being unprepared for the number of runners, the warm temperatures, or both. There were no stacks of pre-poured cups waiting to be handed out. Instead, much like at Houston a few weeks ago, the volunteers were trying to fill cups on the fly by pouring from pitchers or scooping out of large jugs as dozens of thirsty runners jostled each other trying to grab one. Having the tables set back from the street didn't help much either because it forced everyone into a small area instead of spreading them out along the course. It was quite chaotic and not what you'd expect from a big marathon with a title sponsor like Livestrong. The Livestrong aid station several miles later was very well run, as you'd expect. Maybe next year they can share some of their organizational skills with the other ones.
Shortly after mile five, we made two right turns and began our long descent back towards downtown. I liked this part of the course because it was in a residential area and there were a lot of people out cheering us on. Not huge crowds, but almost every house had a group in the front yard clapping, offering orange slices, or even a cold beer. We had this kind of support throughout most of the rest of the race, which I found to be a nice change from most races where there are pockets of large numbers of people and stretches between them without anyone at all. Along this section was also where I noticed how dog-crazy Austin is. It seemed like nearly everyone who was out watching the race had a dog or two with them. Eventually, it started to seem strange when you saw people in front of a house without a dog.
A few miles later, we crossed back over the lake and started out trip to the west of downtown. While there was a park area to our left that was pretty to look at, the other side of this road seemed to be pretty dull and industrial. Livestrong had claimed mile nine as their section of the course, so in addition to the very well run aid station mentioned earlier, there were hundreds of messages to and from cancer patients chalked on the street. About this time is when the sun started to really break through the clouds, so reading the messages was a good excuse to keep my head down. This was also the last flat road we'd run on for the next ten miles or so. As much as I wanted to stretch my legs out and go, I knew the big hills were still in front of me.
Right before mile eleven, the half marathoners turned right to head back towards the finish and the course got really quiet. Not that people weren't still chatting around me (I did get to meet Meredith, running the marathon on her 30th birthday) but when you take that many people off the course, the background noise noticeably decreases. Still, there was plenty happening to keep me entertained. One of my favorites was watching a guy named Jake approach his cheering fans. From the looks of it, they are all students and fraternity brothers at UT. They would pop up on the side of the road every 2-3 miles, let out a huge roar for Jake, and then jump in and run with him for a few minutes. Watching guys in boat shoes run up hills faster than I, and Jake, were running was annoying; watching them pull up heaving and out of breath very shortly thereafter made up for it.
Sandy blew past me between mile 13 and 14. She was having a great race, looked really strong, and kept on charging after we chatted for a few minutes. Other than that, not much of interest happened until I saw Tim at mile 19. The course was much prettier than it had been earlier, Meredith and her friend kept yo-yoing around me before and after aid stations, and two guys complained they were getting dizzy staring at my shirt for miles on end. That about sums up those five miles. Seeing Tim was a huge boost for me. I hadn't hit the wall, but my legs were dead from 10 miles of climbing hills and my brain was fried from trying to keep myself entertained. Tim told me Sandy was doing well about five minutes in front of me, snapped my picture, and sent me on my way. Sufficiently distracted, I got back into my groove and kept on chugging. I was expecting some sort of nice view of the city since this was supposed to be the highest portion of the course, but none appeared. I think I misread the course description one of Austin's papers posted on their web site. Bummer.
Just before mile 20, we finally made the right-hand turn back towards downtown. There were still six miles to go, but I got a nice mental boost from knowing that I was on my way back. Unfortunately, the wind was now right in our faces and was more of a "tough to run against" wind than a "cool you off" breeze. I mention this because it explains why I picked up a shadow that stuck with me all the way to the finish. I heard someone mention something about following the guy with the tie-dye shirt and turned around to see this woman tucked in behind me. By tucked in, I mean she was no more than a foot directly behind me. I smiled and asked her if she was drafting, and she said "As a matter of fact I am and I'm not going to try to deny it." Some runners might have been annoyed or upset by this and sped up to get away from her, but I actually liked it. Knowing that I was pulling her along gave me something to focus on for the last part of the race other than myself. There's no way I was stopping to walk or relax any when I had a runner depending on me to get them to the finish line. Having her there really helped me get through what I thought was the worst part of the race - the hill at mile 23. You make a turn at 22.5 to run parallel to the soccer fields, and after you check them out, you look ahead and see a water stop with a steep hill beginning just a few hundred feet further along. It's a pretty brutal stretch of roadway coming this late in the race and one I was definitely not expecting. Even with my draftee, I wasn't really feeling like tackling the hill with gusto until who should appear but Tim! He was pretty close to the top, so posing for pictures and talking while he ran with me was all I needed to get distracted enough to get through it.
After that, it was pretty much downhill for three miles all the way to the finish. I put my game face on, as they say, and started trucking. It was time to stop holding back, start running strong, and pass as many people as I could. As we got closer to the UT campus, I saw a familiar pair of green shorts up ahead of me. I'm not sure how it happened, but now I had Sandy to chase down. I caught up to her a mile or so from the finish and we ran the rest of the way together. Tim popped up at the hill on San Jacinto to offer up his best version of a drill sergeant to get us up the hill and down to the finish. Having a hill after mile 26 is certainly not fun, but unlike San Antonio, at least you've known since the first mile that it's coming. Tim peeled off as Sandy and I turned towards the finish line, and after a fast sprint down the hill for a block, the race was over. Several of our In Flight friends were standing on the finishing stretch cheering for us, but I didn't see or hear them. Florencia got a really good picture of me though. Apparently, I had a problem all day long with not hearing my friends along the course. Jenny was at the race cheering on a friend of hers from law school running her first marathon, and when I finally heard her scream "John Senger!" some time after mile 20, she told me she'd been yelling at me all day. Oops. I did see Shelley, though. She spotted my shirt and ran with me for a few blocks near mile 24.
Before I left the finish area, I made sure to wait and find my draftee. All my hard work paid off as she ran a new PR by over two minutes. That's pretty impressive on a tough, hilly course like this one. She was quite thankful and appreciative, but not so much so that she'd buy me a beer. Oh well, it's the satisfaction of a job well done that counts, right?
My alarm went off at 6am, and after meeting up with Stephanie and Florencia at 630, we set off to find Sandy and Tim before the start. Sandy and I had agreed at lunch on Saturday to meet at one of the east corners of 15th street at 645. Unfortunately, I got there a few minutes late and couldn't find them anywhere. Rather than walk back from where we had come to get in line with the 4:30 pace group, we just hung out on the corner knowing the race would come to us and we could jump in at the right time. After some short remarks by Lance Armstrong and Joan Benoit Samuelson (from my hometown of Cape Elizabeth, ME!), the fireworks went off and the race was underway. Stephanie and I waited about 10 more minutes trying to see if we could find Sandy, and when we didn't, we walked towards the starting line just in front of the 4:15 pace group. Not the group I wanted to be with, but we were both getting anxious and tired of standing around.
The course starts out heading north away from downtown, and after a quick series of right turns, we found ourselves going south on San Jacinto heading up our first real hill of the day. It's a pretty short and steep hill, and the "800 meters to go" sign was a reminder that we'd see it again just before the finish. As we descended the other side of the hill and ran past the capitol building, we passed the finish line just a block to our left, so close and yet so far. After that, we wound our way through downtown before ending up on South Congress going south over the lake.
This next part of the course was fairly steadily uphill for three miles or so. While it's not a very scenic part of the city, there was still plenty to look at. The funky Bohemian clothing stores, multiple yoga studios, and off-beat record stores reminded me of Ann Arbor, and I enjoyed checking them out as I ran by. One thing that really caught my eye was the collection of food trucks offering everything from cupcakes to Pad Thai. I violated the long-standing rule of my In Flight training group - no talking about breakfast until we're back to the park during our early morning long runs - and started daydreaming over what I was going to have for dinner, never mind the fact that I'm not usually very hungry after a marathon. Somewhere along this stretch is where I first noticed problems with the aid stations being unprepared for the number of runners, the warm temperatures, or both. There were no stacks of pre-poured cups waiting to be handed out. Instead, much like at Houston a few weeks ago, the volunteers were trying to fill cups on the fly by pouring from pitchers or scooping out of large jugs as dozens of thirsty runners jostled each other trying to grab one. Having the tables set back from the street didn't help much either because it forced everyone into a small area instead of spreading them out along the course. It was quite chaotic and not what you'd expect from a big marathon with a title sponsor like Livestrong. The Livestrong aid station several miles later was very well run, as you'd expect. Maybe next year they can share some of their organizational skills with the other ones.
Shortly after mile five, we made two right turns and began our long descent back towards downtown. I liked this part of the course because it was in a residential area and there were a lot of people out cheering us on. Not huge crowds, but almost every house had a group in the front yard clapping, offering orange slices, or even a cold beer. We had this kind of support throughout most of the rest of the race, which I found to be a nice change from most races where there are pockets of large numbers of people and stretches between them without anyone at all. Along this section was also where I noticed how dog-crazy Austin is. It seemed like nearly everyone who was out watching the race had a dog or two with them. Eventually, it started to seem strange when you saw people in front of a house without a dog.
A few miles later, we crossed back over the lake and started out trip to the west of downtown. While there was a park area to our left that was pretty to look at, the other side of this road seemed to be pretty dull and industrial. Livestrong had claimed mile nine as their section of the course, so in addition to the very well run aid station mentioned earlier, there were hundreds of messages to and from cancer patients chalked on the street. About this time is when the sun started to really break through the clouds, so reading the messages was a good excuse to keep my head down. This was also the last flat road we'd run on for the next ten miles or so. As much as I wanted to stretch my legs out and go, I knew the big hills were still in front of me.
Right before mile eleven, the half marathoners turned right to head back towards the finish and the course got really quiet. Not that people weren't still chatting around me (I did get to meet Meredith, running the marathon on her 30th birthday) but when you take that many people off the course, the background noise noticeably decreases. Still, there was plenty happening to keep me entertained. One of my favorites was watching a guy named Jake approach his cheering fans. From the looks of it, they are all students and fraternity brothers at UT. They would pop up on the side of the road every 2-3 miles, let out a huge roar for Jake, and then jump in and run with him for a few minutes. Watching guys in boat shoes run up hills faster than I, and Jake, were running was annoying; watching them pull up heaving and out of breath very shortly thereafter made up for it.
Sandy blew past me between mile 13 and 14. She was having a great race, looked really strong, and kept on charging after we chatted for a few minutes. Other than that, not much of interest happened until I saw Tim at mile 19. The course was much prettier than it had been earlier, Meredith and her friend kept yo-yoing around me before and after aid stations, and two guys complained they were getting dizzy staring at my shirt for miles on end. That about sums up those five miles. Seeing Tim was a huge boost for me. I hadn't hit the wall, but my legs were dead from 10 miles of climbing hills and my brain was fried from trying to keep myself entertained. Tim told me Sandy was doing well about five minutes in front of me, snapped my picture, and sent me on my way. Sufficiently distracted, I got back into my groove and kept on chugging. I was expecting some sort of nice view of the city since this was supposed to be the highest portion of the course, but none appeared. I think I misread the course description one of Austin's papers posted on their web site. Bummer.
Just before mile 20, we finally made the right-hand turn back towards downtown. There were still six miles to go, but I got a nice mental boost from knowing that I was on my way back. Unfortunately, the wind was now right in our faces and was more of a "tough to run against" wind than a "cool you off" breeze. I mention this because it explains why I picked up a shadow that stuck with me all the way to the finish. I heard someone mention something about following the guy with the tie-dye shirt and turned around to see this woman tucked in behind me. By tucked in, I mean she was no more than a foot directly behind me. I smiled and asked her if she was drafting, and she said "As a matter of fact I am and I'm not going to try to deny it." Some runners might have been annoyed or upset by this and sped up to get away from her, but I actually liked it. Knowing that I was pulling her along gave me something to focus on for the last part of the race other than myself. There's no way I was stopping to walk or relax any when I had a runner depending on me to get them to the finish line. Having her there really helped me get through what I thought was the worst part of the race - the hill at mile 23. You make a turn at 22.5 to run parallel to the soccer fields, and after you check them out, you look ahead and see a water stop with a steep hill beginning just a few hundred feet further along. It's a pretty brutal stretch of roadway coming this late in the race and one I was definitely not expecting. Even with my draftee, I wasn't really feeling like tackling the hill with gusto until who should appear but Tim! He was pretty close to the top, so posing for pictures and talking while he ran with me was all I needed to get distracted enough to get through it.
After that, it was pretty much downhill for three miles all the way to the finish. I put my game face on, as they say, and started trucking. It was time to stop holding back, start running strong, and pass as many people as I could. As we got closer to the UT campus, I saw a familiar pair of green shorts up ahead of me. I'm not sure how it happened, but now I had Sandy to chase down. I caught up to her a mile or so from the finish and we ran the rest of the way together. Tim popped up at the hill on San Jacinto to offer up his best version of a drill sergeant to get us up the hill and down to the finish. Having a hill after mile 26 is certainly not fun, but unlike San Antonio, at least you've known since the first mile that it's coming. Tim peeled off as Sandy and I turned towards the finish line, and after a fast sprint down the hill for a block, the race was over. Several of our In Flight friends were standing on the finishing stretch cheering for us, but I didn't see or hear them. Florencia got a really good picture of me though. Apparently, I had a problem all day long with not hearing my friends along the course. Jenny was at the race cheering on a friend of hers from law school running her first marathon, and when I finally heard her scream "John Senger!" some time after mile 20, she told me she'd been yelling at me all day. Oops. I did see Shelley, though. She spotted my shirt and ran with me for a few blocks near mile 24.
Before I left the finish area, I made sure to wait and find my draftee. All my hard work paid off as she ran a new PR by over two minutes. That's pretty impressive on a tough, hilly course like this one. She was quite thankful and appreciative, but not so much so that she'd buy me a beer. Oh well, it's the satisfaction of a job well done that counts, right?
Feb 5, 2011
Houston Marathon
Houston was race number 3 of 5 in my attempt to complete the Texas Marathon Challenge this year. Coming just three weeks after Goofy, I wasn't shooting for a great time. I was hoping for a 4:30 but really just wanted to make sure I finished and crossed it off the list. Given that the forecast was for showers, rain, and thunderstorms,
One really fun tradition of the Houston marathon is the Hash's Marathon Mile. As part of this year's festivities, one of the hashers decided we needed to have an Elite Hasher Fluids table just like the elite runners do. He said he'd set up a table with our names on it and have our beverages waiting for us when we got there. On my way down to the expo Saturday morning, I stopped by to drop off a bottle of Bad King John, my elite fluid of choice. I've never had it, but it caught my eye while I was wandering through Spec's a few days earlier. Not that black, bitter, high-alcohol content beer is a recommended beverage choice during a marathon, but at mile 24 when you're only running to finish, a cup of it probably won't make you feel worse.
After dropping off my beer, I drove over to the expo to pick up my packet and goodie bag. I was very disappointed in the expo's size and selection. Compared to Disney or even San Antonio, the selection was much smaller and the prices not nearly as good. No good deals to be found on shoes or clothes, so I ended up leaving pretty quickly. Like so many other things about this race, the expo needs a lot of work to be considered on the same scale as ones at other nationally significant events. Once I got home, I spent the rest of the day watching the X-Games and getting things ready for Sunday. After a sushi dinner, it was time to pin my bib on my shirt, check the weather one last time (still calling for rain until 11am), and climb into bed.
When I got up on Sunday, I was pleasantly surprised to see the rain hadn't arrived yet. I put in my contacts, exercised the dogs, and was on my way. Since it wasn't raining, I decided to meet everyone at the In Flight tent rather than fight the crowds inside the convention center. I stayed there until 20 minutes before the start, at which point Sarah and her son Zach joined me for the short walk to our starting area. Zach was running the full too, but Sarah hadn't yet decided what to do. She was entered in the full but hadn't been able to train much last fall. We planned on running together until the turn-off for the half at mile 9 where I hoped she'd do the smart thing, make the turn, and run the half instead.
It didn't start raining until after we had started, mostly drizzle for the first few miles. Combined with the warm temperatures, the moisture in the air made for some uncomfortable running. Nothing unbearable, but definitely warmer and more humid than we'd seen in several months. I knew there were going to be a lot of people really suffering later in the race when I got to mile 3 and the aid station was completely out of Gatorade and the volunteers were futilely trying to pour water from a handful of pitchers into paper cups. Missing out on fluids so early in the race is a good way to end up with cramps and dehydration problems later on.
A mile or so later, Tim popped up next to us as we ran through the Heights. Hard to believe we ran into each other in the midst of 22,000 people, but I'm glad we did. He's a fun guy to run with and was good company once Sarah turned off for the half several miles down the road. Tim and I ran together until just after the halfway point. That's when his legs started getting tired and his side started really aching from the injury he received to his ribs while playing soccer earlier in the week. I pushed on alone as he slowed down and started walking. Of course, with a race this size you're never really alone, and I had a great time chatting and joking with the people around me, especially one woman named Mary. Her name was being called out by the spectators along the side of the road so often, it felt like she had paid them off or something. She was fun to talk to and kept my brain occupied until I ran into Michael, our head In Flight coach, around mile 23.
A half mile or so later, Michael turned around to wait for the next In Flighter, and I continued on. After a quick cup of water at the In Flight tent on Allen Parkway and a stop to say hi to Jen, I arrived at the Hash Mile. Much to my disappointment, my beer wasn't there waiting for me. Somehow, it had been misplaced or consumed (knowing the hashers, my money is on consumed) before I arrived. No worries, though, as I was handed a cup of St. Arnold's Elissa from a keg bought just for hashers. The next mile and a half went by pretty quickly as I had some hashers to run with, including my friend Bob who donned a horse costume for the last two miles.
Once I finished, I walked around some to stretch out before heading into the convention center for water and my finisher's shirt. To my surprise, as I was standing by the finish line waiting to see Bob cross the line, I ran into my friend Jackie, an In Flighter who moved here last summer. She was not very pleased with her time, and I'm glad I was able to be there for moral support. Back at the tent after the race, we changed into dry clothes, enjoyed a few beers, and took some pictures to celebrate being done.
One really fun tradition of the Houston marathon is the Hash's Marathon Mile. As part of this year's festivities, one of the hashers decided we needed to have an Elite Hasher Fluids table just like the elite runners do. He said he'd set up a table with our names on it and have our beverages waiting for us when we got there. On my way down to the expo Saturday morning, I stopped by to drop off a bottle of Bad King John, my elite fluid of choice. I've never had it, but it caught my eye while I was wandering through Spec's a few days earlier. Not that black, bitter, high-alcohol content beer is a recommended beverage choice during a marathon, but at mile 24 when you're only running to finish, a cup of it probably won't make you feel worse.
After dropping off my beer, I drove over to the expo to pick up my packet and goodie bag. I was very disappointed in the expo's size and selection. Compared to Disney or even San Antonio, the selection was much smaller and the prices not nearly as good. No good deals to be found on shoes or clothes, so I ended up leaving pretty quickly. Like so many other things about this race, the expo needs a lot of work to be considered on the same scale as ones at other nationally significant events. Once I got home, I spent the rest of the day watching the X-Games and getting things ready for Sunday. After a sushi dinner, it was time to pin my bib on my shirt, check the weather one last time (still calling for rain until 11am), and climb into bed.
When I got up on Sunday, I was pleasantly surprised to see the rain hadn't arrived yet. I put in my contacts, exercised the dogs, and was on my way. Since it wasn't raining, I decided to meet everyone at the In Flight tent rather than fight the crowds inside the convention center. I stayed there until 20 minutes before the start, at which point Sarah and her son Zach joined me for the short walk to our starting area. Zach was running the full too, but Sarah hadn't yet decided what to do. She was entered in the full but hadn't been able to train much last fall. We planned on running together until the turn-off for the half at mile 9 where I hoped she'd do the smart thing, make the turn, and run the half instead.
It didn't start raining until after we had started, mostly drizzle for the first few miles. Combined with the warm temperatures, the moisture in the air made for some uncomfortable running. Nothing unbearable, but definitely warmer and more humid than we'd seen in several months. I knew there were going to be a lot of people really suffering later in the race when I got to mile 3 and the aid station was completely out of Gatorade and the volunteers were futilely trying to pour water from a handful of pitchers into paper cups. Missing out on fluids so early in the race is a good way to end up with cramps and dehydration problems later on.
A mile or so later, Tim popped up next to us as we ran through the Heights. Hard to believe we ran into each other in the midst of 22,000 people, but I'm glad we did. He's a fun guy to run with and was good company once Sarah turned off for the half several miles down the road. Tim and I ran together until just after the halfway point. That's when his legs started getting tired and his side started really aching from the injury he received to his ribs while playing soccer earlier in the week. I pushed on alone as he slowed down and started walking. Of course, with a race this size you're never really alone, and I had a great time chatting and joking with the people around me, especially one woman named Mary. Her name was being called out by the spectators along the side of the road so often, it felt like she had paid them off or something. She was fun to talk to and kept my brain occupied until I ran into Michael, our head In Flight coach, around mile 23.
A half mile or so later, Michael turned around to wait for the next In Flighter, and I continued on. After a quick cup of water at the In Flight tent on Allen Parkway and a stop to say hi to Jen, I arrived at the Hash Mile. Much to my disappointment, my beer wasn't there waiting for me. Somehow, it had been misplaced or consumed (knowing the hashers, my money is on consumed) before I arrived. No worries, though, as I was handed a cup of St. Arnold's Elissa from a keg bought just for hashers. The next mile and a half went by pretty quickly as I had some hashers to run with, including my friend Bob who donned a horse costume for the last two miles.
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| Steve, Jorge, Jackie, me, Robert |
Here are some final thoughts about the good/bad things during the race
- CW-X compression shorts rock
- Having to walk the length of the convention center twice and then go up and down a flight of stairs to get from the finish line to the post-race party is poor race organization
- A race that runs out of fluids at mile 3 has no business comparing itself to Chicago or New York
- Seeing friends along the course sure helps keep you going
- Houston is the only major marathon I've run that doesn't offer any food or fuel along the course. Lots of people stand in their yards with fruit and candy for the runners, but there is no official Clif stop or anything like that. Another sign of how poorly this race is run.
- Drinking beer at at the Hash Mile is a great way to celebrate the closeness of the finish line
- A race with 22,000 runners needs more than two start waves
- Wet shoes and wet clothes make for a long, hard slog of a marathon
Jan 29, 2011
Goofy Challenge 2011 - Part IV
Disney gave everyone who finished the marathon on Sunday free entry in to any park on Monday. All you had to do was show up at the ticket counter, show them your finisher medal and the pass they gave you at packet pick-up, and they'd activate the pass and let you in. We decided to go to Epcot with a bunch of my running friends to Drink Around the World. With 11 countries in Epcot's World Showcase, we figured this was as good a way as any to spend a day.
The plan was to meet up with everyone at Canada at 11am, so we decided to kill some time beforehand by taking a ride on the Test Track. We walked right up the singles line and found only two people in front of us. Things were looking great until the park ride gods looked down and realized Heather was in line. I don't have any other way to explain the fact that anytime she's on or in line for a ride, it's got a very high chance of breaking down. Sure enough, the Test Track ride broke, and after 20 minutes of "temporary closure," Disney finally closed it and sent us all out.
We got to Canada a little after 11, and ran into our second disappointment of the day: they don't start serving beer until 12. We killed time on some kiddy rides that Eva and Steve knew about. They have annual passes even though they live in New York, so yeah, they know their way around the parks. When we returned to Canada, we met a few other runners planning to around the world too. As the day went on, we met more and more people doing the same thing, including one group who started at Mexico and were going the opposite way around. We ran into them in Japan, about halfway around, and they were hurting. Starting with margaritas is not the way to go; much better to end with them.
We had a great time, half of us managed to have a different drink in every country, and we ended the night at England watching the fireworks and listening to the music. A great way to end a fantastic weekend!
The plan was to meet up with everyone at Canada at 11am, so we decided to kill some time beforehand by taking a ride on the Test Track. We walked right up the singles line and found only two people in front of us. Things were looking great until the park ride gods looked down and realized Heather was in line. I don't have any other way to explain the fact that anytime she's on or in line for a ride, it's got a very high chance of breaking down. Sure enough, the Test Track ride broke, and after 20 minutes of "temporary closure," Disney finally closed it and sent us all out.
We got to Canada a little after 11, and ran into our second disappointment of the day: they don't start serving beer until 12. We killed time on some kiddy rides that Eva and Steve knew about. They have annual passes even though they live in New York, so yeah, they know their way around the parks. When we returned to Canada, we met a few other runners planning to around the world too. As the day went on, we met more and more people doing the same thing, including one group who started at Mexico and were going the opposite way around. We ran into them in Japan, about halfway around, and they were hurting. Starting with margaritas is not the way to go; much better to end with them.
We had a great time, half of us managed to have a different drink in every country, and we ended the night at England watching the fireworks and listening to the music. A great way to end a fantastic weekend!
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| Jeff, Matt, Maddy, Eva, me, Gina starting out at Canada |
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| The gang at Italy |
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| Me and Eva |
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| Maddy & Mr. H |
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| Eva, Maddy, Matt, Gina, Heather at Norway |
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| With Senor Donald after our last drink at Mexico |
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| The four of us completed the whole challenge! |
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| A perfect pour at England |
Jan 21, 2011
Goofy Challenge 2011 - Part III
Sunday morning was pretty much a repeat of Saturday: wake up at 330, get dressed, grab bag, walk to bus stop. The only real difference was the lack of traffic heading to the race, meaning we got to Epcot in fifteen minutes instead of an hour. Since it was 40 degrees out at the time, I found myself wishing I'd be spending the next half an hour on a warm bus instead of in a cold parking lot. I had no trouble finding Eva, Maddy, and the rest of the Dailymile/Twitter runners outside the bag check tent. While the rest headed off to the corrals at 430, Eva and I remembered our lesson from Saturday and waited until 5 before beginning our trek to the start. As expected, there were no crowds to be found at the porta-pottys or along the way, and we arrived at the start area with plenty of time to spare. I wished her a good race and wandered off to find my corral. I was tempted to jump into corral D with the 4:30 pace group since that's about the pace I planned on running, but I kept on walking up to corral B. The idea of standing around for any extra time just wasn't that appealing; I was ready to run!
In fact, I was too ready to run. I ditched my pants once the first wave started and pulled off my top just before we started. That turned out to be a mistake. The first mile or so takes the runners past some low-lying areas, and once the masses in the corral spread out, there's not much to block the chilly breeze blowing through there. I wasn't freezing, but I sure would have been a lot more comfortable wearing my cheap top for a while longer.
Unlike last year where there were two courses at the start, this year there was only one. Unfortunately, instead of using the left-hand course that I loved last year because it takes you around almost all of World Showcase in the dark and quiet of the morning, they used the right-hand one. That course runs underneath Spaceship Earth, around past Mexico, and then back out to the start area. It's not a horrible course, but it's not nearly as interesting and fun as the other one.
Around mile 2, I started talking to two women running with outfits similar to mine on Saturday, minus the wig. One had Texas A&M written on the back of her leg, and the other had UT. (Funny side note: when written, A&M's logo reads ATM, which totally confused several people later on. "Why do you have ATM written on your leg? Do you work for a bank?" one guy went so far as to ask her.) Delaney (A&M) and Kristen (UT) are best friends from growing up, are seniors in college, and were running their first Disney marathon together. I hate running alone over long distances and was quite thankful when they said they didn't mind me running and chatting with them for a while.
As we left Epcot and turned towards Magic Kingdom, Delaney's IT band was acting up. It wasn't so painful that she wanted to stop, but we did make sure to keep an easy pace so it didn't cause her any more discomfort. We stopped a few times along the way to take some pictures of Disney landmarks, and before we knew it, we'd covered 10 miles and were running down Main Street. The crowds were loud and cheering and screaming for everyone they ran by. Lots of shout-outs to the "tutu girls" were heard, demonstrating once again that the best way to get extra support from the crowd is to wear a pink tutu.
The lines were too long to stand in to get pictures with the princesses on one side of the castle or in front of the castle on the other side, so we just kept on cruising. Suddenly, just as we left the castle and headed for the rest of the park, a cast member jumped out, grabbed us, and pushed us off to the side for a picture. We didn't know they were taking pictures from there, but at that point, we figured we were already there and went ahead with it. It's not the best picture of the castle, but it's better than not having one at all.
We couldn't resist the Toy Story picture either.
After that, we left Magic Kingdom for the four mile journey over to Animal Kingdom. I really enjoy this part of the course, even if a lot of other people don't. There are woods along the side of the road at the beginning, a golf course for a few miles after that, and quite a few characters and other entertainers to amuse you along the way. They even put up signs with cute little sayings and ironic questions on them during the stretch where the characters can't get to. Kristen started reading the signs aloud to see if Delaney and I knew the answers to the questions. One asked, "why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the bottle?" As we thought about that for a second, this guy running by shouted out "because glue is activated by air." We wondered how he knew that, and he told us he saw the same sign last year and looked up the answer when he got home.
Somewhere between mile 14 and 15, Delaney and Kristen slowed down some. I'm not sure if her leg was hurting again or they just wanted to run slower, but they dropped back a little. I was feeling good with my 10 min/mile pace and kept on trucking. I figured I'd see them at the finish. Not too long after that, I had to make a quick pit stop, so they passed me back, giving me people to look for and keep me focused during the rest of the race.
As I started settling back in to my pace, I overheard the guy from the signs talking to one of the TNT coaches. He was struggling to get into a groove and not really doing too well in keeping his head in the race. I offered to run with him for as long as it was working for both of us, and his mood instantly improved. Over the course of the next few miles, I learned his name is Tim, he works in the theater industry in New York, and has run several races with TNT. I've had some pretty bad experiences with TNT coaches before, so I was pleasantly surprised with what I experienced running with Tim. All of the coaches that came up alongside us, whether they were from his group or a different one, were all very considerate of everyone else on the course. None of them cut another runner off to get to their runner, pushed anyone out of the way at a water stop, or said anything less than positive about anyone on the course. Tim's coaches from his group were terrific. They got cups of water for him, ran with him for a half mile or a mile at a time, and gave him a pep talk and mental boost the whole time. They were also surprisingly complimentary of me helping to pace him along like I was doing. I think they realized it was doing good things for Tim, and with getting him across the finish line in good shape being their primary goal, they didn't want to mess that up.
Unfortunately, Tim and I didn't make it to the finish together. He ended up having to stop at the bathroom outside France in the World Showcase, so I was on my own for the last mile. I felt great at that point and decided to pick up the pace and finish strong. I took the straightest, fastest line I could the entire rest of the race. I even got smart and went to the left-hand side of the finishing chute away from all the people trying to shake hands with Goofy at the end. That strategy worked like a charm. Not only did I have clear running room all the way in, I was visible enough that I got to hear my name called out by the announcer as I crossed the line. Now that's pretty cool in a race with 20,000 people in it.
I stuck around for a while after I finished trying to find Delaney & Kristen and Tim. I didn't have any luck, so once I was done with my post-race snack (mint chocolate mini Clif bars, yum!), I hopped on the bus to head back to the hotel. On the bus, I ran into the running skirt guys from Saturday wearing a different set of them today. They answered the question that everyone wants to know: yes, running skirts really are as comfortable as people say they are.
After an ice bath and a shower, Heather and I drove over to Downtown Disney for some real post-race refreshment. I really think they should start marketing this as the perfect post-race recovery drink. It's much tastier than chocolate milk. We spent the first part of the afternoon at Ragland Road and then moved up the hill to Paradiso, where we moved from stout and cider to tequila. Our bartender did an excellent job of suggesting new anjeo and reposado ones for us, one of which was Partida. Quite tasty, and went very well with our enchiladas and cilantro rice. Once we finished up there, we walked back to Raglan Road to have a few drinks with Eva & Steve before heading back to our room and crashing for the night.
My only real disappointment with this year's marathon was not being able to ride the Expedition Everest roller coaster in Animal Kingdom. We run right past it at mile 17, but unfortunately for me, it doesn't open until 9am. I was 20 minutes too early. Lesson learned for next year: move back a few corrals and start later.
And here's something cool that Disney just sent me. They've got a page set up for each runner with your time, pictures, and race certificate. That's pretty cool. Here's the link to mine. It would've been nice had I been in the middle of the picture instead of that other guy, but my one from the half turned out really well.
Unlike last year where there were two courses at the start, this year there was only one. Unfortunately, instead of using the left-hand course that I loved last year because it takes you around almost all of World Showcase in the dark and quiet of the morning, they used the right-hand one. That course runs underneath Spaceship Earth, around past Mexico, and then back out to the start area. It's not a horrible course, but it's not nearly as interesting and fun as the other one.
Around mile 2, I started talking to two women running with outfits similar to mine on Saturday, minus the wig. One had Texas A&M written on the back of her leg, and the other had UT. (Funny side note: when written, A&M's logo reads ATM, which totally confused several people later on. "Why do you have ATM written on your leg? Do you work for a bank?" one guy went so far as to ask her.) Delaney (A&M) and Kristen (UT) are best friends from growing up, are seniors in college, and were running their first Disney marathon together. I hate running alone over long distances and was quite thankful when they said they didn't mind me running and chatting with them for a while.
As we left Epcot and turned towards Magic Kingdom, Delaney's IT band was acting up. It wasn't so painful that she wanted to stop, but we did make sure to keep an easy pace so it didn't cause her any more discomfort. We stopped a few times along the way to take some pictures of Disney landmarks, and before we knew it, we'd covered 10 miles and were running down Main Street. The crowds were loud and cheering and screaming for everyone they ran by. Lots of shout-outs to the "tutu girls" were heard, demonstrating once again that the best way to get extra support from the crowd is to wear a pink tutu.
The lines were too long to stand in to get pictures with the princesses on one side of the castle or in front of the castle on the other side, so we just kept on cruising. Suddenly, just as we left the castle and headed for the rest of the park, a cast member jumped out, grabbed us, and pushed us off to the side for a picture. We didn't know they were taking pictures from there, but at that point, we figured we were already there and went ahead with it. It's not the best picture of the castle, but it's better than not having one at all.
 |
| Delaney, Kristen, me |
Somewhere between mile 14 and 15, Delaney and Kristen slowed down some. I'm not sure if her leg was hurting again or they just wanted to run slower, but they dropped back a little. I was feeling good with my 10 min/mile pace and kept on trucking. I figured I'd see them at the finish. Not too long after that, I had to make a quick pit stop, so they passed me back, giving me people to look for and keep me focused during the rest of the race.
As I started settling back in to my pace, I overheard the guy from the signs talking to one of the TNT coaches. He was struggling to get into a groove and not really doing too well in keeping his head in the race. I offered to run with him for as long as it was working for both of us, and his mood instantly improved. Over the course of the next few miles, I learned his name is Tim, he works in the theater industry in New York, and has run several races with TNT. I've had some pretty bad experiences with TNT coaches before, so I was pleasantly surprised with what I experienced running with Tim. All of the coaches that came up alongside us, whether they were from his group or a different one, were all very considerate of everyone else on the course. None of them cut another runner off to get to their runner, pushed anyone out of the way at a water stop, or said anything less than positive about anyone on the course. Tim's coaches from his group were terrific. They got cups of water for him, ran with him for a half mile or a mile at a time, and gave him a pep talk and mental boost the whole time. They were also surprisingly complimentary of me helping to pace him along like I was doing. I think they realized it was doing good things for Tim, and with getting him across the finish line in good shape being their primary goal, they didn't want to mess that up.
Unfortunately, Tim and I didn't make it to the finish together. He ended up having to stop at the bathroom outside France in the World Showcase, so I was on my own for the last mile. I felt great at that point and decided to pick up the pace and finish strong. I took the straightest, fastest line I could the entire rest of the race. I even got smart and went to the left-hand side of the finishing chute away from all the people trying to shake hands with Goofy at the end. That strategy worked like a charm. Not only did I have clear running room all the way in, I was visible enough that I got to hear my name called out by the announcer as I crossed the line. Now that's pretty cool in a race with 20,000 people in it.
I stuck around for a while after I finished trying to find Delaney & Kristen and Tim. I didn't have any luck, so once I was done with my post-race snack (mint chocolate mini Clif bars, yum!), I hopped on the bus to head back to the hotel. On the bus, I ran into the running skirt guys from Saturday wearing a different set of them today. They answered the question that everyone wants to know: yes, running skirts really are as comfortable as people say they are.
After an ice bath and a shower, Heather and I drove over to Downtown Disney for some real post-race refreshment. I really think they should start marketing this as the perfect post-race recovery drink. It's much tastier than chocolate milk. We spent the first part of the afternoon at Ragland Road and then moved up the hill to Paradiso, where we moved from stout and cider to tequila. Our bartender did an excellent job of suggesting new anjeo and reposado ones for us, one of which was Partida. Quite tasty, and went very well with our enchiladas and cilantro rice. Once we finished up there, we walked back to Raglan Road to have a few drinks with Eva & Steve before heading back to our room and crashing for the night.My only real disappointment with this year's marathon was not being able to ride the Expedition Everest roller coaster in Animal Kingdom. We run right past it at mile 17, but unfortunately for me, it doesn't open until 9am. I was 20 minutes too early. Lesson learned for next year: move back a few corrals and start later.
And here's something cool that Disney just sent me. They've got a page set up for each runner with your time, pictures, and race certificate. That's pretty cool. Here's the link to mine. It would've been nice had I been in the middle of the picture instead of that other guy, but my one from the half turned out really well.
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