SMMA Gear Up 10 Miler review

This is my quick review of the 2nd Annual San Marcos Manufacturer's Association (SMMA) Gear Up 10 Mile Run.  I decided on this race because while reviewing my 1/2 Marathon training plan I noticed the 15K race on the schedule.  I decided to search the web for a race that was local that day and this popped up.  Having done a 10 miler before, I was pretty excited to do another.  Here is a quick rundown of the full race details and my thoughts on the event overall.

Registration:  Early online registration was done through www.athleteguild.com and was quick and easy.  Early sign-up fee was a very affordable $40, race-day registration would've been $50.  We received numerous e-mail updates with all of the race day details including course map and profile.  There were only 62 runners signed up when online registration closed and grew to 70 on race day.

Packet Pickup:  Since the race was an hour away, we opted to pick up our packet on race day; there was no line and the volunteers were great.  Most people were hanging out in their vehicles since it was still chilly and foggy out.

"Swag" Bag:  The race bag was a reusable tote bag that included various coupons and flyers.  It also included a long sleeve tech shirt and the race gift, which was a small pad folio.  The race bib also had a small timing chip taped to the back.  It was a good swag bag for a race of this size.

Event Organization:  The start/finish area was held in the parking lot of the Tanger Outlet Center and was very well organized.  They had coffee, doughnuts, and runners were able to use the outlet center restrooms.  That's right, no porta potties!  The only thing they need to consider having is bananas and bagels instead of doughnuts.

The Race:  The race itself was pretty good.  After the national anthem the horn sounded just after 0700.  Start temperature was around 45° with a slight breeze and some fog.  The course immediately went out of the outlet center parking lot and out in to the country.  They had the side of the road coned off, but there wasn't any traffic to deal with.  It was a 5 mile out and back that had 2 water tables, which meant one every two miles.  The course had a good amount of rolling hills, but nothing so steep to dramatically affect pace.  Since it was such a small race, it did get lonely out there around mile 6.  There was probably a 1/4 mile gap in front of and behind me for the final 2.5 miles.  I crossed the finish in 1:21:19, good enough to knock a minute off my PR.

Post-race:  Volunteers were handing out water to finishers just after the finish line.  They had a table set up with granola bars, fruit cups, and various other snacks.  I went for coffee to try and warm up before my wife finished.  Most people were finished for the awards ceremony, which was surprisingly 3 deep in each age category (10 year increments).  Unfortunately, I was in the most competitive AG and finished 6/8.  Overall I was 18/70 and 15/37 males.  There were also plenty of door prizes donated by local businesses, almost enough for every participant.  My wife ended up with a $25 prepaid Visa card.

Results and Photos:  The results were online at athleteguild.com within hours of the race.  They did not use a photography company, but pictures were taken and should be uploaded to their Facebook page soon.

Final Thoughts:  I would definitely run this race again.  It was very well organized and you can't beat the value at $40.  Hopefully it will grow to a bigger field in its 3rd year and continue to grow.  Check out their Facebook page if you are interested in them for next year.  https://www.facebook.com/smmagearup10milerun

USA Fit 1/2 Marathon review

I was going to do this recap in 2 sections, recapping the race and venting about the Houston metro.  I have decided against that for this recap.  I have plenty of other social media outlets to do that on.

        We left San Antonio Saturday morning after dropping the dog off.  Packet pick-up was done during the 4 days prior to the event at 4 different location.  The Saturday pick-up had the shortest hours, 10-4.  I could tell right then that this wasn't a race with a lot of out of towners.  Our pick up spot was in the lobby of the title sponsor's hospital.   The race bag was a tiny reusable drawstring sack that had a bunch of flyers for local events, safety pins, bib, and one of those horrible timings chips that has to be attached with twist ties.  The tech t-shirt was to be picked up after completing the race.  Shortly after that, we headed over to our Hotel in Houston to get settled.  We had the typical pre-race night but didn't fall asleep until after midnight.

        The alarms went off at 0400 and it was time to drive over to the University of Houston at Sugar Land.  They wanted everyone in the parking lot by 0530 so we made sure that happened.  The race didn't start until 0630 so we just sat in the car relaxing until 6.  The temperature was almost perfect, 45 with barely any wind.  The humidity was high but hardly noticeable.  The start area was a little cramped, but it had all of the necessities.  It was around 0615 when a lady started shouting and yelling at people to get to the start line, repeatedly.  Look lady, the people who are serious are going to be at the line on time.  The race is chip timed, no need to run around yelling at people and stressing them out.  Once the national anthem and their "prayer", the horn sounded and we were off.

        The first half a mile was spent doing the usual bobbing and weaving to get around walkers that started near the front and lack etiquette.  The course was nothing spectacular, it ran through a few neighborhoods, cul-de-sacs, and a long stretch of the University Drive.  There were a few spectators out and most were encouraging, but quite a few had signs that weren't funny and bordering on crude.  No, I didn't just fart and no I don't think I will crap my shorts, but thanks for taking interest in my bodily functions.  As far as pace goes, I was partially using this as a training run for the next half on March 2.  The plan called for a 1:45 (3/1) run today and since I knew my time would likely be higher, I just took the first 10 miles at around the same pace and then picked it up for the final 3.1.  As you can see by the splits below, I was pretty consistent for the first 10 and the only reason mile 1 was over 9:00 was because of the logjam start and waiting for the crowd to separate.  The course was almost completely flat, the only elevation changes being a couple of small bridges.  The final 1.5 miles were on a jogging path parallel to the road which made sense when it was time to turn towards the finish.  Racers doing the full did a turnaround prior to the finish timing mat and ran the course a second time.  I crossed the line in 1:55:25, finally under the 2 hour mark!  After receiving what is a really nice medal, I had to stop dead in my tracks so this poor volunteer could try to cut the twist ties off of my shoe to get the timing chip.  This is the my only major gripe about this event.  It's 2014, a race of this distance should not be using these chips when there are so many disposable chip options available.

        The finish area was really nice and that is where finisher shirt pickup was.  They also had bottled water, coffee, kolaches, BurgerFi, Muscle Milk, and a My Fit Foods stand,.  They didn't have beer, but I wasn't surprised considering the town we were in.  After grabbing a coffee I walked back towards the turn at mile 13 to give Amy a final push to the finish.  Once she got her medal and shirt we went to check out the food vendors, but most had run out.  We ended up with a smoked sausage in a tortilla, it is Texas after all.  The results were finalized today and I was 134 of 750 overall and 34 of 76 in my age group .  It was a decent race and a good training run for the next race in a month where I hope to finish in 1:45.  If it was in any other city we would consider doing it again, but our personal experience with the attitude and arrogance of the locals will keep us from returning. 

       

Surf-n-Santa 10 Miler Recap

It's been a few days since the race, so I've had time to reflect enough to recap it properly. I signed up for this race because I was returning from my deployment to Africa and upon learning my return date, I had to stay in the Hampton Roads a few extra days to handle some personal matters and visit family. The race was scheduled the day after our flight landed in Norfolk and having done one other J&A race in the past, it was a no-brainer to sign up.

I started following a Hal Higdon training plan in conjunction with a marathon plan back in October after signing up, never done a 10-miler before so I was pretty excited. The training conditions were no where near what race day would feel like, Djibouti was always over 85° and the heat index put it near 100° up until mid-November. Everything with the return trip went smoothly, the flight left Djibouti early Thursday morning East Africa Time and arrived in Norfolk at 0200 on Friday EST. That day was the first since July 1^st that I didn't get to run at least a mile, which turned out to be a good thing. After getting through customs and getting to the airport, I waited around until Hertz opened and got out of there. I needed to take care a few things after getting the rental: a haircut, holiday shopping, lunch, and a real beer were all in order.

The expo was at the Virginia Beach Convention Center, it was small but very well organized. They handed out the customized bibs with built in timer, a reusable tote bag, a santa hat, and a long-sleeved hooded shirt for the 10-milers, 5Kers got a short sleeve tech T. I didn't stick around long, the hotel was right next to the convention center and I needed to get a shower. Afterwards, I just relaxed, had a few beers, got everything race ready, and went to bed around 10:30.

That was best night of sleep in 6 months, was up around 0630 to have a bite to eat and get ready. Here's the fun part, the day before it was around 75° and all I had as far a running gear was meant for hot weather, this race wasn't on my radar when packing for Africa. Needless to say, the race day temperature was 45°, rainy, and winds gusting up to 25 mph. I did have the foresight to order some arm warmers before leaving Africa, but they were useless with the rain. The race kicked off in front of the convention center and headed down 19^th street towards the Oceanfront. The course turned on Atlantic Ave with a brief stint on the Boardwalk. The course headed back towards the convention center where the 10 mile and 5K course split off, we headed back down 19^th towards the beach again, but this time we ran Atlantic Ave all the way down to Rudee Inlet. This was at the 5.25 mile point and where the suck began. The next 2.5+ miles were on the Boardwalk in the rain with a 20 mph head wind, which you can see reflected in the lap splits below. I was having abdominal cramps a good portion of the race and this didn't help. The route turned back to Atlantic shortly after passing the King Neptune statue on the beach then turned back down Atlantic until finally running back to 19^th towards the convention center, where the finish line was inside.

I finished in 1:22:18, which is by far the best pace I've had for a longer distance, it's amazing how much easier it was to run after training in horrid conditions for months. Unfortunately, my entire body was numb when I stopped, could barely open the bottle of Gatorade they handed me. They also had water, fruit, and some other snacks. My first goal was to find a place to sit and thaw out a little. They had Sam Adams as the beer sponsor and we were allowed three, barely got one down because it was so cold. After that, back in to the cold to head back to the hotel and get cleaned up and ready for lunch with family. The results were posted in real time and I finished 232 out of 1893. No complaints from me, looking forward to getting even faster for the next one. It was a great race, just wish the weather had been a little nicer. Now it's time to get ready for the ½ Marathon on January 26^th!

This 1/2 Marathon was not like the others

Today marked the first ever Air Force ½ Marathon and 10K shadow event held at Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, Africa.  We were unable to meet the deadline to become a sanctioned deployed event, but the pieces are in place for it to be one next year.  Since it was held entirely on a deployed base, registration was limited to military members, government civilians, and government contractors.  We had amazing volunteer support from all over camp as well as the Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) office, so registration was free! 

                I volunteered to come up with the course map, which was a pain in the butt since this base isn’t very big and we couldn’t shut down all of the roads or use the runway, it is shared with the local airport.  Therefore, the bulk of the race was limited to the 2 mile stretch of running trail as you can see below.  I was able to run the route last month to check it out and to give everyone an interactive look at the turnarounds, so it was only natural that road construction would cause us to move our start line.  Luckily it didn’t affect the total distance for the ½ and barely affected the 10K. 

                Packet pickup was held at the camp MWR center on Thursday and Friday.   They handed out Sports Authority bags with random items in them that were donated.  The shirts are a dri-fit material and were paid for by MWR.  Race volunteers received a yellow cotton shirt.  I didn't get my volunteer shirt since I was running, hoping they have some left over so I can take it home to my wife.  The race start time was scheduled for 0400 due to the extreme weather conditions here, so I attempted to get to bed early last night.  Bad idea, I may have slept 3 hours total.  I think my brain was worried I would sleep through the alarm since it was going off so early.

                I finally crawled out of bed around 0310 and got dressed, everything was already laid out and ready to go like always.  I jogged a little bit to get warmed up and made the short walk over to the start area and did my dynamic stretching and put down some Gatorade chews.  The weather at this point is already 88 degrees and 75% humidity, miserable as usual.  Our race director made a few comments, gave the safety brief, national anthem was played, and we were on our way.  There really isn’t much to say about the course, it’s a military base in the middle of Africa.  There is no scenery, there were no spectators, and it was still dark outside.  The ½ and 10K course were the same right up until the 5.8 mile mark, that’s when the 10K runners exited the running trail and headed to the finish line.   The ½ runners stayed on the trail for 6 more miles and exited the running trail on the opposite end and did another 1.1 mi around the area of camp where we all live.  My pace was pretty consistent the entire race, the only real hiccup was at the mile 8 turnaround when I stopped to use my GU and gather myself and make some clothing adjustments, I think I walked for about a minute.  The only other issue was my first ever bloody nipple and the other one almost joined in, which didn't surprise me due to the humidity.  I missed the email yesterday stating that the medics had Vaseline.  I once again barely missed hitting that elusive sub 2 hour finish, but it was a PR and in these conditions, I’ll take it.  It was awesome to be a part of the first event like this on the camp.  Hopefully next year they get to put on a sanctioned event.

This also doubled as a virtual 1/2 marathon I signed up for about a month ago, that is what the bib and medal in the last picture are for.

Quick Public Affairs YouTube Feature

Deployment Running Streak and a lack of decent beer.

Well, today marks one month since I arrived to my deployed location in Djibouti, Africa.  When people use the term "Africa hot" they are referring to this place.  Daily high temperatures are constantly over 105° with a heat index of around 120°, the low only gets around 90° with a heat index of 100°.  I never realized the effect the dew point has on running until I got here, it's almost always over 75°.  I only got out to run twice in the first 2 weeks since I was adjusting my sleep schedule and stuck in a tent waiting on my permanent living quarters.  Once the calendar hit July, I made the decision to run every single day until I leave this place, or until marathon training starts.  I am currently at 20 days in a row and up to 87 miles for the month.  At this rate, I will easily run more miles in this month than any other month, ever.  Some days are easier than others, if the wind is blowing from the desert it's tolerable.  The days it's coming off the water, breathing takes some serious effort.  The other bad part is the scenery, as in there is none.  We have a short running trail on camp, about 2 miles long.  It's the only place headphones are authorized and it runs directly beside the trash incinerator.  On those days the wind is coming off the water it is also blowing the trash smoke directly on to the trail.  Needless to say, on long run days I just have to suck it up and run around other parts of the camp sans music.  Below are a few pics of the camp and the trail.  Oh, the beer selection here is pretty sad.  I haven't had many since I got here, between that and the constant running, I've dropped 20 pounds!