Chick-fil-a Half Marathon
Athens, Georgia
April 18. 2015
This was my first time running in Athens, and my first CFA Race Series half marathon. Last March I ran a CFA Race Series 5k in Lawrenceville, and I was not disappointed. Of course, I am a huge Chick-fil-a fan, so I knew they would put on a great run. The "expo" packet pickup was at the Classic Center the night before the race. After winding around corridors through other events we finally located the correct expo room. There was little signage or direction on where to go. The expo was minimal with only a couple of booths, packet pickup, photo opps, children's game zone, and of course an opportunity to spin for a free frosted lemonade from Chick-fil-a. Overall, it was nothing special, but it gave us an excuse to eat in Downtown Athens and we did "win" a frosted lemonade.
Athens, Georgia
April 18. 2015
This was my first time running in Athens, and my first CFA Race Series half marathon. Last March I ran a CFA Race Series 5k in Lawrenceville, and I was not disappointed. Of course, I am a huge Chick-fil-a fan, so I knew they would put on a great run. The "expo" packet pickup was at the Classic Center the night before the race. After winding around corridors through other events we finally located the correct expo room. There was little signage or direction on where to go. The expo was minimal with only a couple of booths, packet pickup, photo opps, children's game zone, and of course an opportunity to spin for a free frosted lemonade from Chick-fil-a. Overall, it was nothing special, but it gave us an excuse to eat in Downtown Athens and we did "win" a frosted lemonade.
The race, as indicated in the elevation map above, was full of hills!! This was my brother's first half marathon (GO JUSTIN #mybrotherisawesome #proudsister), and we decided to drive the course after packet pickup. BIG mistake! I was fully prepared for running hills, and knew they would be tough in the middle, but I underestimated the other "smaller" hills. Besides hills, which are just about inevitable running in the South, the race was hot, sticky, and humid, but it was a good day! Definitely not my best, but also not my worst. It was awesome to run through Sanford Stadium. The finish line was a bit hazardous as we actually ran just inside the classic center; however, since it was wet from rain the floor was slick. I got a lovely finisher picture because I made a face when my foot slipped between timing mats...
I give the race a thumbs up. Bonus: CFA provides chicken biscuits for finishers!!!
I give the race a thumbs up. Bonus: CFA provides chicken biscuits for finishers!!!
Gateway to the Smokies Half Marathon
Waynesville, North Carolina
May 2, 2015
Two weeks after the CFA Half, Whitney and I ran the Gateway to the Smokies Half in Waynesville, North Carolina. We chose this race because:
1. It is within driving distance. - Waynesville is about a 2 hour drive, so we didn't HAVE to spend the night. It did make for an EARLY morning, though.
2. Same day packet pickup. - Most races require runners to pick up packets at an expo in the days before the race. This is not always feasible unless you live fairly close to the race. Expo packet pickups prevent us from being able to run all the races.
3. May is not a great month for half marathons. - I don't understand why, but there are not many options (locally) for half marathons in May. It's a lovely month; however, the choices are slim pickings.
After registering, I started doing some research and found out that this was the inaugural year for the half marathon and they only had about 250 likes on their Facebook page. Now, I am a middle of the pack runner. I'm not fast, but I'm not closing down the race course. This has been my experience in races with 1,000 plus runners. The week of the race we got an email indicating that there were about 150 people registered for the race. Nerves, anxiety, and fear set in. In a crowd of 150, there was a GOOD chance I would be dead last.
My 2 goals for the race were:
1. Don't get lost.
2. Don't finish last.
Waynesville, North Carolina
May 2, 2015
Two weeks after the CFA Half, Whitney and I ran the Gateway to the Smokies Half in Waynesville, North Carolina. We chose this race because:
1. It is within driving distance. - Waynesville is about a 2 hour drive, so we didn't HAVE to spend the night. It did make for an EARLY morning, though.
2. Same day packet pickup. - Most races require runners to pick up packets at an expo in the days before the race. This is not always feasible unless you live fairly close to the race. Expo packet pickups prevent us from being able to run all the races.
3. May is not a great month for half marathons. - I don't understand why, but there are not many options (locally) for half marathons in May. It's a lovely month; however, the choices are slim pickings.
After registering, I started doing some research and found out that this was the inaugural year for the half marathon and they only had about 250 likes on their Facebook page. Now, I am a middle of the pack runner. I'm not fast, but I'm not closing down the race course. This has been my experience in races with 1,000 plus runners. The week of the race we got an email indicating that there were about 150 people registered for the race. Nerves, anxiety, and fear set in. In a crowd of 150, there was a GOOD chance I would be dead last.
My 2 goals for the race were:
1. Don't get lost.
2. Don't finish last.
Once again our elevation map served to add to the nerves, fear, and anxiety. I LOATHE running hills. They are mentally and physically impairing. Whitney and I decided (afterwards) that the amount of hills wasn't as bad as Athens, but the severity of the hills was much worse. I could sum up this race as feeling like a long training run with a few extra people running with me. I had about 3 people around me at any given time either up ahead or behind. There were few water stops, so I carried my water bottle with me for the first time ever at a race. Thank goodness!
Not a PR, but my 2 goals were crushed:
1. I did NOT get lost!! - The course switched back on itself a lot, so I got confused a few times thinking I had already been here, done that. The course was, however, marked well enough to make it difficult to get lost.
2. I did NOT finish last!! - Around the beginning of the race we switched back on ourselves, and I counted how many people were behind me. (There were at least 20) So I then counted how many people passed me from that point, and knew that as long as 20 people didn't pass me I wouldn't be last. Officially, I finished 145th out of 157!!
I liked the race, small as it was. My favorite part was at the finish line everyone cheered for whoever was finishing! At the CFA Athens Half, there were a lot of people at the finish line, but only my family was cheering for me when I rounded the finish curve. In Paynesville, when I rounded the finish curve I was welcomed by cheers from more than just my family! Finishing a half marathon, first or last, is a major accomplishment, and it is awesome for that accomplishment to be acknowledged!
Also, bonus points for finishing in a downhill portion of the course!!
Not a PR, but my 2 goals were crushed:
1. I did NOT get lost!! - The course switched back on itself a lot, so I got confused a few times thinking I had already been here, done that. The course was, however, marked well enough to make it difficult to get lost.
2. I did NOT finish last!! - Around the beginning of the race we switched back on ourselves, and I counted how many people were behind me. (There were at least 20) So I then counted how many people passed me from that point, and knew that as long as 20 people didn't pass me I wouldn't be last. Officially, I finished 145th out of 157!!
I liked the race, small as it was. My favorite part was at the finish line everyone cheered for whoever was finishing! At the CFA Athens Half, there were a lot of people at the finish line, but only my family was cheering for me when I rounded the finish curve. In Paynesville, when I rounded the finish curve I was welcomed by cheers from more than just my family! Finishing a half marathon, first or last, is a major accomplishment, and it is awesome for that accomplishment to be acknowledged!
Also, bonus points for finishing in a downhill portion of the course!!
Asheville Half Marathon
Asheville, North Carolina
June 6, 2015
We gave ourselves a month between Waynesville and Asheville, but we returned to North Carolina for our last half before the summer heat overtakes the South. This race had a packet mail-out option, so even though there was an expo for packet pickup, we were able to have our packets mailed to us!
*note to race directors: packet mail out and same day packet pickup options will open up your race to so many more runners than expo only options.
After realizing that we needed to be at the start line at 6:30 am with a two and a half hour drive, I found us a reasonable option for lodging on Friday night. Being teachers, Whitney and I are out for the summer, and Justin, as an administrator, had an early day Friday, so we were able to make it work. I got us a 2 bedroom suite at the Residences at Biltmore for the price of one hotel room downtown. The Residences are 1.5 miles from downtown Asheville, and turned out to be a straight shot to the race start. The place was very nice, and I didn't even mind (too much) the pull out sofa. It definitely beats getting up at 2 am the morning of a big race.
Asheville, North Carolina
June 6, 2015
We gave ourselves a month between Waynesville and Asheville, but we returned to North Carolina for our last half before the summer heat overtakes the South. This race had a packet mail-out option, so even though there was an expo for packet pickup, we were able to have our packets mailed to us!
*note to race directors: packet mail out and same day packet pickup options will open up your race to so many more runners than expo only options.
After realizing that we needed to be at the start line at 6:30 am with a two and a half hour drive, I found us a reasonable option for lodging on Friday night. Being teachers, Whitney and I are out for the summer, and Justin, as an administrator, had an early day Friday, so we were able to make it work. I got us a 2 bedroom suite at the Residences at Biltmore for the price of one hotel room downtown. The Residences are 1.5 miles from downtown Asheville, and turned out to be a straight shot to the race start. The place was very nice, and I didn't even mind (too much) the pull out sofa. It definitely beats getting up at 2 am the morning of a big race.
The Asheville Half Marathon made a list of one of the best half marathons to run. It was described as an exciting event with bands playing throughout, crowds, and a finish festival. I can't speak to races prior to 2015; however, this race was not up to par to its description. There were some bands on the course. Some were playing, some were on break, and some areas were set up for a band/musician with no one in sight. There were not many spectators on the course (you guys can make the experience and give runners the push they need to finish strong #runnerlovespectators).
Judging from the elevation map above, we knew we were in for a monster hill around mile 9.5/10. Again, I focused on the big one and underestimated the smaller, terrible hills at the beginning of the course. The long, flat stretch of the course ran along the French Broad River. One would think that would make it rather scenic, right? Wrong. It was an industrial type of road, and we saw the train tracks and buildings. I love the city of Asheville, and I think North Carolina in general is a beautiful state. I was disappointed the race director didn't show of the city like he/she could have. We did see a lot of parking lots of the community college.
I dubbed the climb the "mountain." It was almost laughable how ridiculously steep this mile long portion of the course was. I walked the entire thing. Seriously. The name of the road is Lookout Drive. Unfortunately, we didn't see any scenic part of it. I did have a moment of kismet, however, when Maroon 5 started crooning "This summer's gonna hurt like a mother**" as I was ascending the mountain!! Truly, Adam Levine, truly.
The course was the toughest I've ever run, so the (uphill) finish was made that much sweeter! It made me appreciate our Atlanta hills, for sure. (Remind me of that this Fall...) The finisher bling was pretty sweet, too!
Judging from the elevation map above, we knew we were in for a monster hill around mile 9.5/10. Again, I focused on the big one and underestimated the smaller, terrible hills at the beginning of the course. The long, flat stretch of the course ran along the French Broad River. One would think that would make it rather scenic, right? Wrong. It was an industrial type of road, and we saw the train tracks and buildings. I love the city of Asheville, and I think North Carolina in general is a beautiful state. I was disappointed the race director didn't show of the city like he/she could have. We did see a lot of parking lots of the community college.
I dubbed the climb the "mountain." It was almost laughable how ridiculously steep this mile long portion of the course was. I walked the entire thing. Seriously. The name of the road is Lookout Drive. Unfortunately, we didn't see any scenic part of it. I did have a moment of kismet, however, when Maroon 5 started crooning "This summer's gonna hurt like a mother**" as I was ascending the mountain!! Truly, Adam Levine, truly.
The course was the toughest I've ever run, so the (uphill) finish was made that much sweeter! It made me appreciate our Atlanta hills, for sure. (Remind me of that this Fall...) The finisher bling was pretty sweet, too!