Race Report: Army Ten Miler

Let’s subtitle this Race Report: Stuck In a Crowd When The Gun Goes Off. And I don’t mean a crowd in my starting corral.

The problem with doing a “bucket list” race is that you have high expectations. And you want to come away exhilarated with all your expectations met. I did not. You want the short version? Here it is:

• Had an amazing time with my friends.
• Total mess getting to the corrals. I was stuck in a mass of runners who couldn’t get through to the starting area as we heard the gun go off for wave after wave.
• Missed my wave. Missed all the waves, and started running at the tail end of the last wave.
• Spent the first part of the race stressed and weaving through crowds. Couldn’t run at my pace other than in isolated stretches.
• That was exhausting and made it hard to enjoy the race.
• Running with so many military personnel and wounded warriors was incredibly motivating and inspiring.

Bam. There you have it. My Army 10-Miler in a nutshell. So… the details?

As I mentioned in my Friday Five post, I had friends coming to town for this race. On Friday I went to the Expo at the Armory to get my race packet and met up three of them. It was so great to see Melissa from I Thought They Said Rum, K, and J.

The Expo was awesome – so many vendors! I was able to restrain myself from Buying All The Things and only bought an Army Ten Miler glass, and stocked up on my favorite socks. I was oh-so-practical.

On Saturday, I worked a concert most of the day, and then the racing friends came over for dinner. Everyone carb-loaded but me, since I’m still doing the Whole 30. Still going really well, but it kinda seems like it’s going on forever…

We called it an early night to get pre-race rest and I got my things together for the morning. After doing my first triathlon – out of town! – getting things together for only running a race I could drive to seemed pretty easy!

On Sunday morning, I thought I left home at a decent time and had a clever plan for not fighting crowds parking at Pentagon City, where the race organizers had said parking was limited. I drove downtown and parked at a meter (free on Sundays) near a Metro stop that was only a few stops away. Waited a few minutes for a train, and thought my timing was perfect.

 

So our Metro doors open up and we unload onto the platform. Not too bad, except that we stand there. And stand there. And can’t get up the escalator. People started running up the down escalator, and eventually we made it to the top. This is blurry, but here’s the view looking down to the downstairs platform.

 

So I’m upstairs finally and more trains unload up there, and we don’t move. For a long time.

 

 

 

 

It was getting worrisome because there wasn’t any more space for more trains to unload. Finally the Metro people turned off the turnstiles and just let everyone go through – cheering ensued and we were able to exit the station!

Because of that, I came out of the Metro station later than planned, and realized that my friends must already be gone from our meeting spot. I looked around, got the lay of the land, and was excited to head towards the start.

 

 

I saw a very long port-a-pottie line and thought I should hop in the line while I had plenty of time (oh the irony now knowing what happens next!). I waited a while until I decided that I should just get into the start area and hit up the potties closer to the corrals. Really, the distance didn’t seem that far, all I had to do was walk from here to there. So I moved towards that area.

And then a dead stop in a giant crowd of people. For at least 45 minutes. Why were we stopped? Why didn’t this mass of people move at all? We had no idea – people kept hopping on shoulders, on a table, trying to figure out what was going on. We figured out they must be funneling a mass of people into a small line, and checking bags or bibs. Every so often we’d move two feet and everyone would cheer. Sometimes people left and we didn’t know if they fared better or were just back in the same line.

We were all getting very stressed and anxious. There were people of all bib colors in this mass, and more just kept flooding into the crowd. And yet we still didn’t move an inch.

We heard the National Anthem. We heard the Wounded Warrior starting gun. Then we heard the first wave starting gun. Then another wave starting gun. I got into this crowd (I won’t call it a “line”) well before 7:30am (maybe at 7:20am?), and it was at least 45 minutes of standing there. I’m not a race newbie, I thought for sure I’d have time to walk the short distance to the corral even with a wait at the potties and get into my corral.

Finally they stopped whatever they were doing and had us all walk through with our arms raised so they could see our bibs, and people ran to the starting corrals – whichever ones were left. But first, I had to wait in yet another line for the port-a-pottie.

 

Staring backwards from the line at my orange starting corral as our gun went off was pretty stressful.

After my pottie stop, I ran towards the start. I heard them calling for stragglers and felt panicked. I wanted to run at a 9:15/mile pace, but here I was behind the last corral. It meant dodging and weaving through slower runners, runners who were walking or jogging while chatting four across.

I finally broke free and made a plan – try to do 9:12/mile until Mile 3 and then drop back a bit in pace until Mile 5, then pick it up for the second half of the race. But then I got stuck in a crowd turning a corner and started to stress again.

Finally, I decided to just relax. To just run. To just enjoy the moment. And to just enjoy the views of DC. I realized that I had barely looked up from the runners’ backs in front of me until this moment.

 

 

Oh, how I love the Lincoln Memorial.

So I started to run with a smile and enjoy myself. I really enjoyed running with all the military personnel, the people running as teams with their coworkers, and was moved by the shirts and tributes on backs for family and friends in the military.

I love running along the river and under the Kennedy Center.

 

Around this point (I can’t remember what mile but it was a point where we’re running back up the street we went down), I started to feel a little tired. But then I encountered Super Happy Guy. Super Happy Guy was chatting with neighboring runners, and was loudly positive, telling people to smile and have fun. I loved him. I really perked up and tried to shout thanks to him – he really helped give me a zip in my step.

 

It was great timing because then there was the bridge. Oh, the dreaded 14th Street Bridge.

 

It never ends.

 

But you know what? As my Garmin beeped Mile 9, I ran past two different Wounded Warriors with prosthetic legs, who were surrounded by other men in uniform running with them. And it was so inspiring that I shed a tear behind my sunglasses. How amazing and inspiring to run with those strong (in more ways than physically strong) individuals.

And the thought that came into my mind was – “Why Cares?” Who cares about my race finish time? Who cares about my stressful race experience? Who cares about any of that? That’s not what matters. So I ran towards the finish.

 

My Garmin had me running more than 10 miles at a 9:41/mile pace.

 

Official results have me at 1:38:34, a 9:51/mile pace. Not exactly what I had hoped for, but fine nonetheless.

So I finished and then – more lines and crowds.

 

They were out of finisher medals/coins when I finally got to the front of the pack and said to email the race organizers and they’d mail it. Fine, whatever – par for the course for this day, I thought to myself.

But then someone brought a handful and I was able to get one.

 

First time with the new Iron Girl arm warmers, and I loved them! At first my hands got tingly until I readjusted the material, then they felt awesome since it was chilly out.

 

Melissa had a great race!

 

After the race we went to an Irish restaurant for brunch. My Whole30 compliant breakfast didn’t have the same effect as a beer and a burger, but it filled me up.

 

All in all, I’m so glad I did the Army Ten Miler. Once. I don’t know that I’d do it again, since there are plenty of other races out there.

The highlights for me were being inspired and strengthened by running with military and their friends & family, and doing the race with friends.

In talking to coworkers and friends who ran the race, my estimation is that getting through the bag/bib check to the starting corrals was only a problem after 7:10am. So my recommendation if you are doing this race next year is to make sure you’re there super early. Like way earlier than you think you need to be there, since there are 36,000 people running it. I have done other big races in DC – like the Marine Corps Marathon and the Cherry Blossom Ten Miler, and thought that being so physically close to my corral more than one hour before my wave start would enable me to start running with them.

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Have you ever missed the starting gun at a race?

Do you prefer larger races or smaller races?

Race Report: Nike Women’s Half Marathon DC 2013

I’ve been MIA a couple of days since I had an incredibly busy weekend. For some reason I thought it would be great timing to have a dinner party the night before a half marathon. It was incredibly lovely to spend time with our dear friends, but another weekend probably would have made more sense. Did I mention I tend to over-commit?

Our cleaning person had canceled on Friday due to illness, so I spent Saturday cleaning the house, vacuuming, mopping floors, chopping and cooking, and barely got in my 2 mile keep-it-loose run. I was a little distracted during the evening dinner party since I was gathering my things for the race, pinning my bib to my shirt, and also needed to excuse myself to get to sleep early.

My alarm was set for 4:45am, but something woke me at 4:30am. Robbed of 15 minutes of sleep! But I was energized for the race so I got moving. My two bigger kids were sooo crazy excited to see me run that they got up and dressed at 5am. I was so excited to have them, my au pair, my friend from California, and my dad driving me down to the race start and watching me run!

I was dropped off near the start at about 6am and felt READY!

I was really happy with the amount of portapotties near the start – there were lines closer to the corrals but I used one right near where I was dropped off = no line. I didn’t need to check a bag but it seemed as though there weren’t any lines at that time and they were well marked.

In the race packets we received a colored wristband indicating which pace corral we were to start in. I thought the corrals were pretty well marked and they had indicated on the map in the packet exactly how the start would be laid out:

At about 6:30am, my pace corral looked pretty empty:

I turned around and behind the crosswalk, the next pace corral was already packed! This was literally taken 20 seconds after the pic above!

Maybe all the 9-9:59’ers were using the potty one last time. Speaking of which, I decided that I should go again so I headed back to the potty area. And whoa, when I came back my corral was PACKED. I squeeezed in and found a spot to wait for the start. I was in front of a bride and her bridesmaids, and next to a woman who was 9 weeks pregnant and had a feverish toddler at home. She was inspiring!

I loved seeing the Capitol in the background of the starting gate:

I couldn’t understand the loudspeakers with the pre-race warmup and other announcements, but we did have a moment of silence for the Boston Marathon bombing. I loved seeing this sign at the start:

Then, of course, the National Anthem. Since I couldn’t understand the announcements, I have no idea who was singing:

And we’re off! The race course was great – I love running through DC! As I was running the race, I really appreciated the sights and had these moments where I thought that it really is the most beautiful city to run around.

Apparently my kids were waiting near the entrance to the first tunnel holding their signs, but I didn’t see them (and they didn’t see me) since there were SO many people! Here come the leaders:

Mommy? Where are you?

So many women – they didn’t see me at this point:

The main thing I loved about this race was the on-course entertainment. We headed into this tunnel and there were drums beating. The energy was amazing! Shaky photo ahead:

I had two issues during the race.

1. Dodging people and avoiding crashing into people who suddenly started walking during the race. I was corralled with the 9:00-9:59 pace, but during the very first half mile, people started walking. Don’t get me wrong, I am supportive of the walk/run combo for anyone who wants or needs to do the race that way, but if you are walking in the first 5 minutes, please, please, PLEASE move off to the side.

2. Portapotties. While they were ample at the start of the race, they were NOT during the course. The sheer number of women running created lines like this at mile 4-5:

That was my first pit stop. I still don’t have a running watch and was trying to avoid messing with my phone during the race, so I’m not sure how many minutes I lost to this and the other portapottie stop, but it was AT LEAST 7-10! AT LEAST!!! I could not believe it as the minutes just ticked away and I stood there watching the crowd run by.

It also meant that after passing tons of people, I just had to pass all the same people again when I resumed running. After having 3 giant babies (they were GIANT, I tell you!), I can’t run for long before I have to stop. I just can’t. And I was NOT going to squat in the bushes in the middle of our Nation’s Capitol.

The good thing is, I felt great throughout the whole race. I felt strong, solid, and my pace was faster than my long runs in training. The course support was excellent and really energized me, and I loved reading all the spectators’ signs. Tons of entertainment that helped the miles tick by faster. And since there were tons of Team In Training people, there were many of the coaches along the course cheering them on – this gave me a huge boost too!

I loved having Nuun AND water at each stop – after the first aid station they were great about explaining where you could grab water vs. Nuun. I totally missed the Cliff Blocks since I didn’t need fluid at that time and didn’t realize they were handing out the blocks, but I had Gu and jellybeans on me so I was set.

There’s one really hard area to get through at DC races, I remember it well from the Marine Corps Marathon. Hains Point. It’s a pretty boring section of any race, but Nike really perked it up with fun signs along the way. I loved this one so I had to snap a pic:

One thing that I noticed along the way was that my Nike+ Android app was calling out the miles before the mile markers. I thought maybe it was because I had veered off to the bathroom and spent some time weaving, but others were chatting as we ran about the same thing. In fact, sometime on Hains Point my phone called out the mile at exactly the same second as another runner – a quarter mile before the mile marker. Maybe we had both taken the outside instead of the inside on turns, but it seemed odd. My app says I ran 13.51 total rather than 13.1.

As we got back into the downtown area, we knew we only had a 5K to go. And I knew my family was waiting near the Capitol. I was so excited to finally see my kids that I barely noticed this section of the race. My legs felt good, but I just started to have some pelvic or public bone pain that has sometimes flared up during the longer training runs (not sure what that’s about?!).

Finally, the kids! High fives all around.

Then it was Hello, US Capitol, I’m running around you!

After the Capitol, the pubic bone pain was starting to really get intense. I had this pain when I first started running after my last pregnancy, it felt like someone took a hammer to that area. Maybe kid #3 broke me. He was 11 pounds, after all.

I tried to ignore it and pick up the pace as I saw the finish line:

At last, the FINISH! I was seriously bummed at my time, the slowest of all my 5 half marathons, because I knew that I had lost tons of time at the bathrooms. But I felt really happy with my running – my pace per mile was decent. And I’m happy to say that I felt stronger than any of my training runs, and felt GREAT until the end of the race and the pubic bone pain.

I came in at 2:29:14 chip time. I know they said not to turn around after going through the finish, but I couldn’t resist:

After the finish, they handed each person a bottle of water:

Scanned our bib for the chip in it:

And then the part that seems to justify the $$$ race fee: A Tiffany Necklace. I had told all my friends and coworkers that I had bought a Tiffany necklace and just had to run 13 miles to pick it up.

They had men in tuxes handing them out (I heard they were firemen but I don’t know if that’s true):

Lots of helpful people handing out the heat sheet thingys:

But after this is when it got a bit crazy for me. Crowds, crowds, lines, lines. It was really congested and hard to get to the food tables. And later we got a bag to carry it all. Remember, we had been handed a bottle of water, a Tiffany “Blue Box”, a bagel, banana, Luna bar, fruit cup, and heat sheet. Then we got a pretty Tiffany bag. One genius lady near me had her own bag since she knew from previous races there’s a lot of stuff to carry. I thought “Aha – I’ll try that next time!”

The finish area seemed to have some neat things, but the lines were really long. I got my Finisher’s Shirt, but then didn’t wait in the lines to purchase anything else. I had already bought a shirt at Fleet Feet and was anxious to see my kids. Here’s the pretty shirt:

Paul Mitchell had haircuts for a $15 donation to charity:

And a Bare Minerals makeup station, but the line looked long and I wasn’t sure if it was free or if there was a fee. Plus, I was sweaty and gross and didn’t really need makeup put on me at that moment:

I really loved the Kaiser Permanente Stretching Lounge. They were leading people through post-race stretches, but again: Very Crowded.

I didn’t get a mat so I did some informal stretching in the corner, but they had little stress balls, smoothies, fruit flavored water, and a few other things they were handing out. Was someone actually riding this bike to power the blender?! Totally cool!

I checked my unofficial race results on computers they had in a Nike+ area, and headed out to meet my family.

I love the Finisher’s shirt and Tiffany necklace – both are things that I will actually use!

It was a fun race, lots of hype and excitement. I felt like I was on track for a decent (for me!) finishing time aside for the bathroom lines. My best half marathon time was my first one: pre-kids, it was 2:05. My other three were in the 2:12-2:20 range, so this was slower overall but I think my pace was similar to those timings, aside from my lengthy pit stops.

Now on to the triathlon training!