Arkansas - Little Rock Marathon 3/5/2017

I want to do this post while it's still fresh in my (muscle) memory! (ow!)
Background: I've wanted to do this specific marathon for one reason: the giant finisher's medal!  Each year, it gets larger.  I loved the pirate themed medal from a couple years ago, and when I saw this year's theme was a Run-A-Licious, candy-themed event, I knew this was the year for me to do it!  I encouraged a coworker to do this as her first marathon, since the time limit is a generous 8 hours and walkers are definitely welcome.
Spectators:
Marissa's dad and brother came from NY to support her, which was awesome.  Ben ran the half marathon in the morning and then was able to see us just after the marathon and half marathon courses split, and he came out to meet us and support us at mile 23.3-25 before he headed to the finish to cheer us down the home stretch.  Marissa's Dad was able to see us somewhere around mile 7 and again at mile 12, mile 25.5, and the finish.
It was great to have them there because there was not much course support otherwise.  Miles 17-23, the hardest ones, were downright miserable!  Aside from the other runners, there was no one!  There was an aid station and a lone guitar player.  Actually, there weren't many spectators from mile 15-26! Maybe they had all left by the time we got there, but it was surprisingly desolate and that's pretty discouraging on a gloomy, cold, rainy day!  So it was nice having her cheer squad :-)
Hotel:
We stayed at Little Rock Marriott Downtown.  I had two incredible nights of sleep on their bed, which was wonderful and a relief, since these were some early travel days!
Location was perfect ... connected to the Convention Center where the Expo and Finishers Festival was located, and we were a few blocks from the start line.  The finishers chute dumped us into the convention center.

Cons: I was disappointed in their breakfast options for runners, perhaps being permanently spoiled by the Embassy Suites in Philadelphia and Missoula's Staybridge Suites, where they had a nice selection ready/available 2 hours before the race.  There are NO convenience stores or grocery stores within a convenient walking distance of the hotel, so my backup breakfast plan of buying water and a bagel once I got there was foiled.  I wound up ordering toast through room service.

Temperature:

Race day temperatures were not the 58-70F that were forecasted when I packed!  Lesson learned: always take something for rain and colder weather so you don't have to sweet talk a homeless guy out of one of the rain jackets he was picking up along the side of the road!  I later traded my red one for a lime green poncho from a girl at a water stop.  The first three hours in the rain were miserably cold.  It was fairly windy, but no horrible gusts. Bummer!
Plan:
Our race plan was simply to finish in the upright position.  I had an initial goal of 13 min/mile x 10-13 miles and then drop it to 14 min/mile but we wound up doing 13:30-14:30 the first 8-10 and I let Marissa dictate the pace based on what she was feeling.  I think at mile 10 we dropped to 15 seconds running, 30 seconds walking, and around 18 we dropped it to 15 seconds running, 45 seconds walking.  We never changed our beeps from there but we mostly walked the last 4 miles.
Course
Straight over the bridge, a couple turns in N. Little Rock, then back across the surprisingly steep bridge, headed left to stay along the river towards Clinton Library and Heifer International, a few turns and then running by the airport, a right took us back towards town, another turn took us by a cool park and some neat old homes.  We ran past the magnificent and historical Little Rock Central High School, the State Capitol (1/4 scale of the US Capitol), a hilly area, and then 17-23 were an out and back along the river before we headed back into downtown.  The course elevation chart is way off!!!  The hills advertised around mile 18-20 are actually 14-17.

Highlights:
Seeing legendary Larry Macon on his 1874 or 1875th marathon!!  He congratulated my friend on her first marathon and we got a picture with him.

Marissa, Larry Macon, myself

The Oompa-Loompa Dad (green hair and all) and his son with the golden ticket, running the half marathon together.  Later I saw him meeting up with what must have been Mom, dressed like the girl in the red dress from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Overall:
I love my medal, but once was good for this race.  I am so glad we had our own cheer squad and I'm very proud of Marissa for her giant accomplishment.

Flat Janell

Marissa and I, ready to go dark and early.

Good incentive!

Sugar high, runners high, I want them all!

Not as good as the real thing

Enjoying the race

She's going to go for it!

The support of family makes it so much better!

Hitting her Half marathon PR

Thanks... we wouldn't have figured that out...

After the lipstick stop! I went with a color that matched my shirt :-)

Oh yeah, this is what I came for!

At home in Arlington

Virginia: Richmond Marathon - November 15, 2014

Anthem Richmond Marathon, November 15, 2014
Background:
I signed up for this after learning about this club called Marathon Maniacs.  If you run 3 marathons in 90 days or 2 in 15, you can join this club.  Call it peer pressure or drinking the koolaid... I signed up for this one as well...before ever running my first!
Spectators:
My aunt was able to go with me for this one, though she only got to see me finish and didn't get to see me around the course like she had at Marine Corps.  We had talked about her meeting me partway through for me to give her anything I didn't need anymore after warming up but that never happened, so I told her not to bother and just meet me at the finish!
Hotel:
The hotel we stayed at was the race hotel, Omni Richmond, and I loved the little sign they gave us for the door that showed sheep and said "Sssh, runner sleeping!"  It was just a couple blocks uphill to the start.
Temperature:
Race day was COLD!  I had a throw-off robe to keep warm while waiting, thankfully.  I don't think it ever got above 30 degrees and it might be an overshare, but my butt was a block of ICE at the finish!  It never did warm up!
Plan:
My plan was to start slow and stay slow, because I had signed up for a THIRD marathon in December, so I was treating this like a "supported training run."

I wound up wearing both shirts, the windbreaker, the pants, the Smartwool headband and socks

Race recap:
After starting, the mile signs were confusing because I passed 3 different "mile 1" signs, due to the staggered start locations of the 8K, Half Marathon, and Full Marathon.  That was confusing :-(
I was told from the ladies I was running with that from behind, in my robe, I looked like an old lady who had escaped from the Nursing Home and somehow wound up in the middle of a marathon!
I wore the robe until I reluctantly parted with it at mile 3, not wanting to start to sweat and then be wet.  I gave it a proper ceremony, and I hope that whoever received it is enjoying it to this day.  For those unfamiliar with this: the big races collect discarded clothes, launder it, and give it to a local charity.

My throw off robe, plus what were supposed to be throw off gloves, and my layers!  I didn't care how bad I looked!

My favorite part of the course was the portion along the river.  That was just beautiful!  The old home section was great too.  Running down the avenue with all the Confederate Statues is a bit odd, but ... it's Richmond, so whatever.  Worst part of the course: the whistler.  There was one runner whistling.  Not a tune, just a repetitive note over and over.  I couldn't take it - I had to speed up!  I mostly ran just to avoid him!

Along the river, before the bridge

After the bridge, feeling great! 

I was starting to hurt by mile 19 and mile 20-21 were no fun at all.  I was faster than I meant to be, but the banked roads were doing a number on my left knee and hip and thigh.  The finish is 4 blocks or more downhill, which initially seems like a great thing, but by the time you get there, your legs are unreliable jello!  It was actually pretty brutal!  I like the fact they give you a fleece blanket at the end :-)  Overall the course was okay but after the Marine Corps, this was one was a little disappointing and far hillier.  Lots of dead zones.
I beat my MCM time even though I didn't want to, but hey, I'll take it!

Medal:
I loved the medal!  At first I thought the two lines were so you could engrave your name and finish time but then I held it up to the light and realized it was glass!!  Beautiful!

That evening, we went to Old Tobacco Company for dinner and dessert and it was wonderful!  Marathon #2 - DONE!

Why I run.... decadent brownies on top of chocolate sundaes with whipped cream

Specators deserve treats too!