A half marathon relay? Yes please!

 

A half-marathon relay? They do exist!  In October 2019, the running family (sans Ricky) completed the Steam Train half marathon relay.  

Race day packet pick-up felt a bit disorganized.  Packet pickup signs were limited and there was a lot of inquiry: is this where we go to pick up our bibs?  Not only that, the lines moved a bit slow and caused Mo to worry about Angie missing the start and him to think we would not make it on the train.  Apparently the race coordinators did not expect a large race-day crowd.  Needless to say, we picked up the packets close but not super close to the start of the race.

I'm guessing I need to take a step back here to describe the relay.  The race starts at in Essex at the station for the steam train (this is a touristy thing and also where you can catch the Polar Express), with the first half of the race and relay point at the Landing in Deep River, CT.  This portion of the race is roughly 8 miles and the least hilly.  The back portion of the course is hilly and traverses through neighborhoods surrounding the landing area and circling back to the track.

Course Map for the half marathon and relay.

Mo, Brent (support crew) and I took the train up to the landing an waited for our team members to meet at the relay point.  Mo and angie took off - taking first place for the mixed gender team.

Mo and Angie are faster than a train!

Tracy was not too far behind.  She carried the weight of the run since she is also fast.  We came in 6th with the female-only teams.

Great pace thanks to Tracy!

This race was significant and was the impetus which made me see a doctor about breathing issues.  Angie and Tracy wanted to run over 13 miles, to the three of us ran together for the end of the race.  The humidity was not unexpected for the day and life on the east coast, but bad enough for me to have upper airway wheezing.  And this wasn't just I can hear it myself wheezing - some of the runners asked if I was okay.  I felt no worse than usual and stopped when I felt I could not breathe and had an elevated pulse. I just took a walk break like I would normally do.  No big deal, except this time I was running with a medical professional and the group matriarch.  Both Angie and Tracy: you need to see a doctor, you're wheezing.  This was the race that made me accept that I might have exercise-induced asthma. 

The purple people eaters (Jenn and Tracy) finished the half marathon before the train made it back to Essex. Woot!!!  But not only that, my friends helped me see why I feel so winded when running.  Overall, it was a great fall day and I look forward to running the race in-person after the pandemic restrictions are eased.

Bird in Hand: An amazing experience

I wish times were simpler before COVID.  I ran the Bird in Hand half marathon in September 2018.  And of course, I met Caroline in Lancaster, PA for the experience.  I heard a lot about this race from other runners: "the medal is a real horse shoe" "it is something you have to experience" "the Amish can run" "some run in their filed boots."  All of those statements are true but cannot help you feel the experience that is the Bird in Hand half marathon.

The race takes place in Lancaster county, PA as a series over a weekend, starting with packet pickup and other race expo festivities on Friday afternoon and a 5K on Friday evening.  This 5K was a PR for me: 28:53.  Don't forget, this was pre-exercise induced asthma diagnosis.  My goal was to beat a young little boy who ran quite well.  

Caroline and I headed toward the race the next morning. The weather wasn't so great as it was a little muggy, wet, and we were not sure how long the rain would last. Thankfully, the rain stopped prior to the race start.  Port-a-potties were ample at the start and each had a motivational phrase inside.  I thought it was a great start to a race and what a smart idea.  Trapped in the 3x3 plastic portable toilet with a motivational phrase.  

The race course takes you through rolling hill farmland in Bird in Hand, Pa. There were plenty of corn fields throughout the race course as well as many of the community members providing support at the water stops.  Many of the community members participate in the run, too.  And wow!  They can run!  Some are in running shoes, field gear.  Women are wearing dresses and men are in their field gear.  This race is something to experience.

The entry fee for the race helps to support the Bird in Hand volunteer fire company.  5K participant race swag includes a t-shirt; half marathon race swag includes a t-shirt and medal; firehouse challenge participants receive a bonus item: race hat.

Staying in the area is affordable and more so when the cost of the hotel stay is split.  Parking on race day is ample - just make sure to go early to make it to the starting line in a timely manner and enjoy the race day. 

Post Race Selfie. Check out that medal!

5K Time (a new PR): 28:53

13.1 Time: 2:22:15

Travel Expenses:

Gas:  two tanks full with the six hour drive.

Lodging: Shared, Roughly $100 per person.

Dining: $200-ish over two days of travel.

Fire Company Challenge Race Fee: $110

Miscellaneous Expenses: I bought a pair of Louboutin heels.  Just happened to be near King of Prussia. Oops. Amount not disclosed here.

Estimated cost sans fancy red bottom shoes: $500.  Much less than previous travel since I drove to the destination. 

Curious about the gear, pros and cons? Here is a readers digest synopsis of my experience with this race:

Shoes: Topo Flylite 2

Compression: None

Pros: Rolling hills, easy to follow course, supportive community, great race medal, chill crowd, firehouse challenge

Cons: Humidity

Race injuries: None :)

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 running shoes.  I would travel to participate with friends.

This race is not like pizza: Mystic Half Marathon 2018

The mystic half marathon is an HMF race, and is generally every spring.  COVID put those plans on halt, though.  But... there are some things of note for this race.  The course was updated for 2019.  Apparently, there were too many hills for runners according to post-run survey  results.  Fun fact: it is not unknown that the back half of the race course is hilly.  Also a fact: hills are a part of many road races.

I decided to sign up for this race and a race prep offered through Kelley's Pace.  I missed a few sessions - no big deal, right?  I also did not keep up with my training, and skipped many planned runs in preparation for the distance.  Half marathons are considered and endurance race for anyone new to the distance.  Training is recommended to minimize injuries, feel successful, and to tolerate things like hills.  Pros to signing up for the race preparation with a running coach included training on the course itself to experience the renowned hilly back half of the course.  No big deal, right?  Those hills? No problem, right?  Mostly.

The first half of the course takes you from the Olde Mystick Village area through downtown and along River Road.  Not too bad - it is fairly flat-ish with sparse vehicular traffic on most non-tourist season days.  This will get you through most of the 10K course if you were interested in a shorter distance or training was not quite up to par.

Fast forward to race day.  I embraced the @teamnotraining mentality of not properly training for reasons I do not remember (writing this post a few years after the race).  I remember the muggy start to the morning and thought this was not good.  There was no diagnosis of exercise-induced asthma at this point, so I was pretty sure that race day speed was going to be close to that of turtle.  My intended race goal was between 2:00 and 2:15.  I knew 2 hours would be a stretch but why not!  I should be capable of the achievement.

I believe I did okay for the first half of the race.  Again, I am trying to recall events from a few years ago.  There were some run-walk intervals in there, passing a few runners, and then the start of the hills at the back half.  Layer that with humidity and YIKES!  I did not reach my race day goal but did manage a PR.  So overall, not too shabby of a finish on race day.

At the time I did not think I would do this race again. It was Mystic and an HMF event.  HMF events are a bit pricey yet well-organized.  Looking forward: maybe I will give this one another shot since I know why breathing was such an issue and I know what to expect from a race course.

Finish: 2:21:16 with an average pace of 10:47 per mile.

Swag: Medal was not as cool as the 2017 lobster. It encompassed the mentality of Mystic.