This year the shirt was an Under Armour Twist Tech Hoodie in cobalt with the race logo printed on the back. It actually ended up being a little heavy for the race itself since it was kind of warm that morning. I ended up wearing this Charm City Run tech t-shirt I found while out thrifting a few weeks ago along with my usual Athleta Be Free Knickers. (I also had a sweatshirt that I tossed to my husband before I made my way to the starting area.) As usual my pre-race breakfast consisted of cherry limeade nuun and a peanut butter dark chocolate chunk luna bar.
I always love when the national anthem is sung at Maryland races. Why so oddly specific? For those of you who have never raced in Maryland, this is the fun part...
This happens at every single race in Maryland as a shout out to the Orioles. Another cool thing about this race in particular is that it takes place just a mile from where the song was written at Fort McHenry. (The Charm City Run in Baltimore frequently has fun runs that go to Fort McHenry too!)
The race itself was great. The course was a little hilly, but not horrible. The wind began to pick up as the race went on, but the timing was perfect since it felt great as I approached the finishing line. I found the race was a little crowded at first, but after about the first mile or so the crowd thinned out a little bit. (I still take walk breaks so I would hop over to the sidewalk for them which made things a little easier.)
One of the big complaints that I heard from other runners is the cobblestones on the course. Sure, they're pretty to look at...but to run on? Kinda scary. The cement between each stone is pretty well worn down so it can be a little scary and the possibility of tripping and falling is a little too high for my comfort. So my strategy for avoiding them was rather than walking I hopped onto the sidewalk and joined the small crowd of runners who did the same. The stretches with cobblestones really aren't that long (probably less than 100 feet in total) but still long enough to cause some anxiety.
Despite all of that I couldn't believe my finishing time. Last year I finished in 1:11:54 and this year I finished in 1:05:17!!! My pace was a full minute faster than last year too! (When I told one of my trainers this morning he was so proud!)
Here are what my splits looked like:
The course support is great--quite a few people are along the course cheering on runners and thankfully the ones who were saying "You're almost there!" were actually right. There were also 2 water stops on the course at about the 2 mile and 4 mile marks.
Post-race support is also fantastic. Plenty of water (although they were in those tiny bottles), and the snacks were great! They had the usual bananas and granola bars, but there were also potato chips and three different kinds of wraps (chicken, ham and veggie.) There was also some coors light and a shandy available for runners, but I decided against it and woofed down a chicken wrap, potato chips and my banana.
This year there was a bit of a snafu with the timing mats. For some reason, they didn't catch everyone who finished. Thankfully though CCR usually has at least one backup for timing and mine popped up 48 hours after the race as promised. All I had to do was send the events director, Kelly, an email with my name, bib number and approximate finishing time.
Despite it being a great race (and a great day for it) with a fantastic premium I'm not sure if I would do this race again. I love Charm City Run's races and HIGHLY recommend Sole of the City, but next year I might try another race. This time of year is full of so many different races that I'm a little eager to see what else is out there. But this is definitely one race that every Marylander should do at least once!
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