Ride Recap: Tour de Keuka

On Saturday, July 20th we rode in the Tour de Keuka in Hammondsport, NY. We did the 17.5 mile route near Keuka Lake.

Prerace: we had gotten some emails about the weather (heat) and some other information as the ride got closer.

Ride day: we arrived about an hour before our starting time. Checking in was pretty quick. We had paid our registration fees and had covered the minimum fundraising amount for ourselves; this hadn’t updated on the sign-in sheet so we had to have someone check to make sure that our amounts were covered. They had a typo on the sheet that showed us needing to cover more money than was listed on the website (they had $150 needed, but the registration was $15 and a $65 fundraising minimum). We didn’t want to ask our family and friends for donations for this, but some people did actually do it as a fundraiser. We got a dry bag as a swag bag and a number to put on our bikes or jerseys.

Post-race: at the finish line we got a medal, which was unexpected. We then went to the check-in and food area. There were snacks and water on hand. We were told to stick around for about 20 minutes until lunch was served. It ended up taking about an hour for lunch to be ready. It was poke bowls catered by Wegmans, with the option of roasted beets or sushi salmon. We both enjoyed the beet bowls but thought they were a strange meal option for this type of event. There was also Ben & Jerry’s ice cream with four different flavors to choose from. It turned out that the delay for lunch was because they needed forks for the bowls. There were also other snacks available and plenty of beverages. Volunteers were on hand to help with the event. There was also a tent with a bike mechanic and a physical therapy tent.

Charcoal wore a tank top, shorts, old sneakers (New Balance somethings), Goodr glasses, and a bike helmet.

Violet wore an omni-cool t-shirt, REI Co-op Cycles capris, Tifosi wisp glasses, Sockwell compression quarter-crew socks, and old Asics GT-1000 sneakers. And a Nathan hydration vest.

Race Recap: Gorges Ithaca Half Marathon

Today we did the Gorges Ithaca Half Marathon for the fourth time, making it our most frequently repeated race! This year featured a new course–the slight alteration was due to starting at the Cayuga Medical Center rather than along the side of the road. Thankfully our race started at the hospital instead of ending there!

Prerace: we picked up our packets at the new location for the Finger Lakes Running Company store yesterday. This was easy and we browsed around the store before heading out. We had gotten an email alerting us of the course change and advising all runners that a mandatory bus shuttle would be taking us to the starting point. The bus service was scheduled to start at 6:45am and end at 7:00am for the 7:30am race start time.

Race day: we arrived on the Ithaca Commons at 6:43am after parking in one of the nearby garages. We made our way to the end of the bus line, which spanned several blocks. We didn’t get on a bus until about 7:15am. We were dropped off at the starting area around 7:28am. When we got to the starting corral area, we were told that the race would postpone its start for a little while because some of the buses had taken a scenic route and would be arriving later. We started our watches at about 7:50am when we crossed the starting line.

The new course started out with a couple of small uphill sections that got our blood pumping. Then we went on the road for a couple of miles until we reached the shaded and somewhat scenic Black Diamond Trail. Right before we got to the trail, there was a scenic overlook onto Cayuga Lake as we were running downhill on one of the roads. We got on the trail about 3 miles in to the race and exited at mile 7. The rest of the course went along the Cayuga Waterfront Trail before crossing by Ithaca Falls and finishing in the Ithaca Commons downtown area.

Post-race: at the finish line we were given a medal made of wood that can double as a coaster and a reusable water bottle that was prefilled with chilled water. There was Ithaca Yogurt, watermelon, and homemade energy bars readily available. The other food was catered and included breakfast tacos with eggs, pork, coleslaw, salsa, and fruit as options. Ithaca Beer Company was on hand with beer and ginger beer for runners. There were also massages but we didn’t try those out. We did exchange our race shirts due to sizing preferences.

Charcoal wore a tank top, a Pearl Izumi convertible jacket, compression shorts, Darn Tough 1/4 crew height socks, Brooks Ravenna 9 shoes, a Nathan handheld water bottle, a spibelt, and a running cap.

Violet wore a t-shirt, compression shorts, Pro Compression crew height socks, Altra Duo shoes, a Nathan exoshot handheld water bottle, and a running cap.

Race Recap: Hurts Donut 5K

On May 18, Violet ran in the Hurts Donut 5K in Katy, Texas.

Registration Cost: The decision to do this 5K was made partly due to seeing the race on Groupon. With that voucher, it cost $16 to register (otherwise it would have been $35 + processing fee).

Packet Pick-Up:  This was pretty easy. I got there a bit early on the morning of the race and just had to tell someone who was working at the registration table my name. I then got my number, t-shirt, and a pair of socks.

Pre-Race: Parking definitely could have been problematic at this park. I had gotten there early because I wanted to run a couple of miles before the race so I found a space, but it was the only empty space in the lot when I drove in.

 

Course: The course was an out-and-back at the Terry Hershey Park on the western side of Houston. It’s a paved trail that goes near the Buffalo Bayou park. There are a couple of hills (by Houston standards), but it’s pretty flat overall. The theme was back to the 80s and costumes were encouraged. There were a number of fun outfits seen along the course.

Finish Line: There was an inflatable arch for the finish line with an announcer. The race wasn’t timed.

Post-Race: The big draw for the run was that you got a donut at the end. I got one with frosting, graham crackers, filling, and oreos. It was pretty good, but I probably wouldn’t get that again if I were going to the Hurts location in Katy.

Weather: It was in the 80s and humid that day. I didn’t realize how sweaty I was until I changed, but pretty sweaty! This could have been prevented a bit if the run had started earlier (it didn’t kick off until 10am).

Apparel: I wore a tank top, compression shorts, running shorts, and crew height pro compression socks. For shoes, I wore Altra Provision 2.0s. And I wore Goodr glasses.

Race Recap: Seneca7

For the third consecutive year, we were fortunate to get an entry into the Seneca7, a seven-person relay around a lake.

Registration Cost: This race costs $77 per person to enter. One of our teammates had a van that we were able to use, which allowed us to reduce our overall cost by not renting a van.

Packet Pick-Up: The race organizers mandate attendance by at least one team representative in order to do packet pick-up. Charcoal did this for our team and reports that the building where this is held was really packed. None of our teammates wanted/needed a shirt size exchanged so that wasn’t an issue for this time. This year there were also socks. There were two bags of trail mix for the team to share as well.

Pre-Race: This is a challenge—our team had a 6:30am starting wave (good for meeting time points by the required times, but makes for an early morning!). We met before the race and got everyone in the van and barely had time to drop our first two runners off for their shuttles.

 

Course: The race course goes all the way around Seneca Lake (77.7 miles) in central NY. It’s a beautiful area and the course is well-marked. For the logistical challenges that go with having as many teams going around the course as they do–they do a great job of putting the race together.

Finish Line: There’s a team reunification point where the other six runners meet up with the seventh runner (Violet, this year) to cross the finish line together. The finish line area has an announcer and medals are handed out, followed by a team picture.

Post-Race: We got chili, cornbread, cookies, and Red Jacket juice at the conclusion of the race. They were all good, but it’s pretty much of a non-event at the post-race area. By the time we get there, no one has much energy for that anyway!

Weather: We covered a number of seasons throughout the day. It started out chilly and raining–in the upper 30s. It stayed cold and rainy most of the morning, but warmed up by the afternoon. There was some wind in the afternoon.

Apparel: Charcoal wore running tights, a tutu, a long-sleeved shirt, an Icebreaker short-sleeved shirt, a 1/4 zip fleece top, and a jacket. She wore Brooks Glycerin shoes for the first leg with Darn Tough socks. She also had gloves. Later in the day she wore the same thing, but fewer layers. For the 2nd and 3rd legs, she wore Brooks Ravenna shoes. And a running cap.

Violet wore a tank top, a midweight wool shirt, a 1/4 zip, running jacket, Columbia omniheat tights, a tutu, knee socks, an ankle brace, hat, and gloves. For shoes, she wore Altra Provision 2s. Later in the day, she changed to new OmniHeat tights and a long-sleeved t-shirt. Goodr sunglasses were broken out for the sunny part of the day.

Race Recap: Skunk Cabbage Half Marathon

On April 6, we ran in the Skunk Cabbage classic half marathon. This was the third time we completed the event.

Prerace: we went to packet pickup the day before and got our shirts and bibs without any problems. We didn’t get any extra swag with this race, but that also generates less waste and likely helps with the affordable entry fee ($45 with the shirt?).

Race day: we arrived at the Cornell campus and parked without problems, got some coffee from the starting area, and used the restroom in one of the buildings. The race started on time and had good volunteer support throughout the course. The start just kind of morphed without a lot of ceremony.

There were aid stations every few miles and mile markers along the way. There were volunteers at all of the intersections. We smelled some namesake skunk cabbage partway through. The finish line had an announcer and medals with a movable skunk. They are pretty cute!

Post-race: there was plenty of food, including Ithaca milk chocolate milk, Ithaca yogurt, bagels, bananas, and apples. There was also Gimme! coffee before and after the race. There were bins to collect food scraps for composting so that was nice to see as well.

Charcoal wore t-shirt, jacket, running cap, capris, Brooks glycerin shoes, and darn tough socks. And Goodr sunglasses.

Violet wore a tank top with 1/4 zip, sockwell ankle length compression socks, an iso ankle brace, capris, a running cap, and goodr glasses. She used her Nathan exoshot water bottle.

Race Report: Houston Marathon

This weekend, on Sunday, January 20, we ran in the Houston Marathon. This was the first marathon of the year and our first race in Texas! We were rather sore and hobbling around yesterday, and a bit slow going today but enjoyed the race overall.

Registration Cost: The Texas-sized registration fee almost kept us from entering. But we decided to pony up and run with the big guys… even though this race cost $175 to enter!

Packet Pick-Up: We went to the marathon expo on Saturday to pick up our packets. This was pretty well organized in the convention center. We needed to have ID and our race registration confirmation to check in. From there, we were directed to a counter where a volunteer retrieved our bibs and gave us a course map. We then got to pick up our t-shirts from the expo center.

The expo was pretty big with quite a few giveaways and photo booth types of things. We took several pictures along the way and sampled some food and hydration mixes. On our way out, we filled out a form to receive a Run Hou running cap.

We had used the Metro rail to get to the convention center as a trial for Sunday’s race transportation. This worked pretty well as a trial.

Pre-Race: We barely made it onto a 5:24am train at the stop we were using, but got on without much trouble (aside from Violet mistakenly hitting the emergency call button to make sure that Charcoal could board the train!). We arrived at the convention center at about 6:00am. We had plenty of time to leave our gear drop bags with a volunteer. This was organized based on our bib numbers.

We then hung around inside and ended up waiting in a line to use porta-potties in the convention center before we headed out to our starting corral. We left the convention center at about 6:45 or 6:50 to get out for the race start. We walked a few blocks to get to our starting corral and then waited until it was time to go… the race started at 7:00 and we didn’t actually cross the starting line until about 7:50!

 

Course: The race course goes through several neighborhoods in Houston, including Herman Park, Rice Village (by Rice University), the Galleria shopping district, the Memorial Park area, and some others that don’t stand out in our minds. Overall, this is a flat course in a flat city.

There was a lot of crowd support, especially in the first 10 miles (before the half and full split). There were a lot of volunteers throughout and aid stations placed at regular intervals.

It was interesting because there were both mile and kilometer markers. There were timing mats at about 5km intervals for tracking (this was possible for people who were following athletes’ progress). Some runners were tracking other people’s progress on the course, too…

There were time cut-offs at a few places along the course to make sure everyone finished within the time limit (or got rounded up to the SAG wagon). Thankfully we both made it through those on time!

Finish Line: The finish line was marked and had an announcer. Mostly we were happy to cross it with people still there!

Post-Race: We received our finisher’s medals shortly after crossing the finish line, along with a bottle of water. After getting those, we followed the corral inside to receive a finisher’s t-shirt and mug. There were also bananas and chocolate milk inside. From there, we were able to get our gear drop bags and some snacks. H-E-B sponsored the food and had ice cream sandwiches along with breakfast sandwiches that we got. There was something else outside, but we didn’t find out what it was.

When we left the convention center we got a little turned around looking for the train. This included getting on one going in the wrong direction–but it was only one stop to ride to the end of the line. Then we got off and walked a few blocks (or more?) until we found the one that we wanted. Aside from the extra walking, it was nice to be able to ride the train for free with our bibs. Once we had the one we wanted, it was also easy to ride the train.

Weather: This was a surprise because it started at about 32 degrees and ended up warming up to the 40s to low 50s while we were out. It was fairly sunny throughout the day.

Apparel: Charcoal wore an Icebreaker t-shirt, a quarter-zip shirt, a Pearl Izumi jacket that zips to a vest, leggings, a Nathan water belt, a running cap, Darn Tough socks, Brooks Glycerin shoes, and a pair of freebie gloves that she wore on and off.

Violet wore a tank top, a mid-weight wool shirt, a quarter-zip shirt, a running jacket (like a true Texan?), running tights, a Nathan water vest, Saucony flip gloves-mittens, a running cap, a headband for part of the race to cover ears, Pro Compression marathon socks, a MedSpec ISO ankle brace (for a new ankle injury… whompwhomp), and Brooks PureFlow shoes.

Race Report: It’s a Wonderful Run 5K

On Saturday, December 8, Charcoal ran in the It’s a Wonderful Run 5K in Seneca Falls, NY. We’ve done this race several years in the past. Violet would have liked to participate, but two weekends of traveling for holiday 5Ks would have been a bit too much.

Registration Cost: This race cost about $30 to enter.

Packet Pick-Up: It was easy because Charcoal arrived relatively early to pick up packets for herself along with a couple of other runners. She didn’t have to show ID or anything extra to get these. The only difficulty was that they were out of jingle bells. Also, one of the friends who Charcoal picked up a shirt for was given the wrong size shirt but this was exchanged after the race without problems.

Pre-Race: It was very crowded with lots of people in a variety of holiday outfits. The race area had holiday music playing.

 

Course: The race course goes through the Seneca Falls downtown area. It starts on the bridge from It’s a Wonderful Life (or that resembles it). There are two bridges in the town and both were full with people running from the start. It stayed crowded the whole way through the race–we were always in traffic.

There were good volunteers at all of the intersections, and the streets were closed throughout (or at least had one lane closed). There was one official water stop along the way. The houses in the village were decorated well and had fire pits and other festivities going on along the route.

Finish Line: There was probably an announcer (but Charcoal doesn’t remember for sure). They had water on hand.

Post-Race: It was crowded in the post-race area. Snacks were probably available in the community center, but this is unverified because we didn’t go in to find out.

Weather: It was probably in the 30s–a little cold, and snowing a little bit.

Apparel: Christmas tights, running shorts, maybe elf socks, long-sleeve, quarter-zip, and jacket, a neck warmer, Smartwool headband, Santa hat… and unknown shoes.

Race Recap: Selfless Elf 5K

On Saturday, December 1, we also ran in the Selfless Elf 5K in Horseheads, NY. This was the third time that we have done this race. It is usually the middle stop in our holiday trifecta, but it was the third leg of our 9 miles for this year.

Registration Cost: This one is a little pricey for a 5K and was about $35 to enter.

Packet Pick-Up: We arrived in Horseheads shortly before the start of the race and made our way to the packet pickup tent. We needed to have the confirmation sheet for the registration to pick up our packets. The same was true for picking up a packet for a friend–needed to have her text that to us to get her stuff. Because we were a little late with this and wanted to take our stuff to the car, we were a bit rushed.

Pre-Race: We parked near the high school/park where the race starts and finishes. As mentioned above, we didn’t have a lot of time to do the packet pickup and meet up with friends… in fact, by the time we got back from taking our packets to the car the race had started. We had intended to run the race with a couple of our friends, but we ended up running most of the race looking for them. Ha ha! This would have been really tricky had we gone the opposite way of the course when we were starting… we tried this, but some volunteers turned us around. Soon we were catching up with the walkers and strollers… and eventually found our friends with about half a mile to go in the race.

 

Course: We were actually too occupied with looking for our friends to notice much about the course. But we think it was okay? It was closed to traffic so that was a plus!

Finish Line: The finish line was pretty uneventful. There were volunteers there to hand out finishers’ medals and water.

Post-Race: This is a big event and there was hot cocoa and Christmas cookies (provided by Wegmans) afterward. There was also an announcer for awards, etc. Violet had wanted to change shirt sizes and was told to check back after the race. When she did, she was told it would be about 45 minutes until that could be done so we ended up deciding it wasn’t worth the wait.

Weather: The weather was probably in the 40s and still overcast. It started raining later that night, but may have sprinkled a little toward the end?

Apparel: We both wore Christmas tights and running shorts with about the same other things as we had for the first race.

 

Race Recap: Santa 5K

On Saturday, December 1, we ran in the Ithaca YMCA’s annual Santa 5K. This was the third time we have participated in this race. We were hoping it would be the start of our holiday 5K trifecta, but our usual third 5K of the day wasn’t held this year. To make up for that, we ran an additional 3 miles around the town after this race was over… and enjoyed coffee and bagels afterward from Ithaca Bakery. Yum!

Registration Cost: Charcoal thinks it was $15 (Violet will take her word for it because Charcoal took care of our registrations).

Packet Pick-Up: We picked up our race numbers a few minutes before the start of the race and were ready to go! Good thing because we had only arrived in town overnight.

Pre-Race: This was pretty low-key. We parked on the street and walked to the city park where the race starts and finishes. When we arrived, we did our check in and chatted with a friend.

 

Course: This race goes through the downtown area in Ithaca and is scenic, yet flat. There were volunteers at the intersections and points where we needed to turn so that was helpful.

Finish Line: The finish line featured an inflatable Santa arch to run through, plus Santa was there to congratulate us as we finished. We received homemade medals that can be used as a Christmas ornament when we crossed. There wasn’t an official time for this race, just a timer running. We both used our Garmin watches to time ourselves (except Charcoal didn’t get hers started… oops!).

Post-Race: There was hot cocoa and Christmas cookies at the finish, along with a water cooler with water. Afterward, we talked with our friend and then headed out for our unofficial second 5K of the day. For that, we ran along a section of the Waterfront Trail in Cass Park back to the downtown area.

Weather: The temperature was in the 40s, or somewhere around there. It was a little overcast but nothing that was problematic.

Apparel: Charcoal wore penguin tights, running shorts, a long-sleeve t-shirt, quarter-zip shirt, jacket, Smartwool headband, Santa hat, and probably gloves. She thinks she wore Darn Tough socks, and Brooks Glycerin shoes.

Violet wore a tank top, a lightweight wool long-sleeved shirt, a quarter-zip shirt, a running jacket, fleece-lined tights, knee socks (maybe?), a running hat, Santa hat, and gloves.

Race Recap: Rochester Marathon

Today, Sunday, September 23, we ran in the Genesee Valley region of NY for the Rochester Marathon. This was the first time we had done the race, and our first (and only??) full marathon for 2018. We’re both recovering and hobbling around a little bit, but glad to have gotten a marathon in for the year.

Registration Cost: This race cost about $75 to enter in the middle of the registration window. We don’t remember, but we think there weren’t processing fees for the online registration so that’s a plus.

Packet Pick-Up: We went to the Fleet Feet location in Armory Square on Saturday to pick up our packets. It was a different set up than most pick ups because we were directed into one area to get our bibs and then had to go across the hall to get our t-shirts. I think that was to make people walk through the expo, which was relatively small. Then we had to go through the “official gear corner” in the Fleet Feet store to get to the shirts.

We got our bags for the gear drop, a 1/4 zip shirt that came with the race registration, our bibs, and we picked up a lemonade coupon from Core Life Eatery. We got the coupon at the expo. We also got to try beet lemonade from Core Life at the expo, and had a sample of Nuun at the gear corner. The woman at the gear corner was a little pushy about trying to sell things, so we didn’t buy anything.

Pre-Race: We parked near Frontier Field in downtown Rochester, which is where the race ended. Then we got onto a shuttle (a.k.a., a school bus) that took us to the starting area in the Maplewood Park. There were porta potties, and a couple of tents in the starting area along with an announcer. The grass was a little wet and dewy so our toes got a little damp at the beginning but that was unnoticeable soon.

 

Course: This race uses a two-loop format. We started at Maplewood Park and went down by the Genesee River Trailway, with some portions going by the Genesee River. This included a nice boardwalk bridge over the water that was quite pretty… the first time 😉

There were a number of short, steep hills throughout the course so that made it a bit challenging. But the scenery was nice.

We were both a little surprised that one portion of the course went on a gravel/dirt portion of the trail. This wasn’t a problem, but we weren’t expecting it. We also did a loop through a cemetery–the course guide probably said we were going to do this, but we hadn’t caught that.

It was fairly well marked and most of the intersections had pretty good volunteer support. The roads were closed the whole time so that was nice as well. There were aid stations with water and Gu hydration at about every two miles.

Finish Line: The finish line was on another small hill, but had an announcer and some crowd support. A volunteer was there to hand a cup of water immediately upon crossing and give the medal as well.

Post-Race: We were both a little slower than usual on this course–probably due to the hills and other ailments (i.e., a cold, and long travel, little sleep, etc.)–so the post-race party was mostly wrapping up when we got there. There was food left, mostly bagels, granola bars, bananas, apples, and chips. There was some pizza left, too, and bottled water. All of the pre-race emails had said there would be chocolate milk at the end, but we didn’t find it even after asking.

The rest of the post-race things were getting packed up pretty quickly. We could tell that everyone who was working/volunteering there wanted to get things wrapped up. Along with the chocolate milk, we were a little disappointed that the recovery zone with massages was already put away when we got there–even though we finished before the race/course closed.

Weather: The temperature started in the mid-40s and was relatively comfortable. It was sunny, with some breeze and the course had shaded areas. As the day went on, it got up to the upper 60s though it felt warmer to us while we were running.

Apparel: Charcoal wore a tank top, compression shorts, Darn Tough 1/4 crew socks, Brooks PureCadence 6 shoes, and a running cap. And she used a kangaroo pocket and Nathan water belt. And a throw-away 1/4 zip long-sleeve shirt, though she ended up carrying that.

Violet wore a tank top, compression shorts, Nike running shorts, Pro Compression crew length socks, Brooks Ravenna 8 shoes, and a running cap. She used a Nathan exoshot hand held water bottle. She also had a 1/4 zip long-sleeve shirt.