Baltimore Half Marathon 2016 Race Review!

Since the first time I ran the Baltimore Half Marathon in 2013, I've been curious to find out how I could do if I weren't injured.  (I had IT Band Syndrome that first time, and it was my first half marathon too!)  This year I signed up for the King Crab Challenge, which is a total of three races:  The Frederick Half Marathon (my review), the Baltimore 10 Miler (or B10, my review), and the Baltimore Half Marathon (or Full Marathon) in the same calendar year.  In addition to entry into the three races, you get an extra medal (for doing the Maryland Double) and an extra premium after you finish the Baltimore race.  This year they started giving out medals at all of the races (the medal being new for the B10) so when you finish the series you end up with 2 shirts, a jacket (the usual premium for the B10), 4 medals and the King Crab premium.

Anyways.  The Baltimore half.

So naturally it started with the expo which is at the Baltimore Convention Center.  Parking for it is free in the F, G, and H lots and they even had a free shuttle to the expo.  I thought the bus took too long and it was a gorgeous day so I opted to take the short 3/4 of a mile walk to the convention center. You start out by showing your e-card to volunteers at the bib tables in the lobby of the building.  Then after grabbing a clear plastic bag to be used for bag check you get your race shirt.

After working your way through all of the race merch sold by race organizers you are then let loose in the rest of the expo to visit the different exhibitors.  Quite a few of them have some great swag, but this year it seemed like a lot of the space was taken up by some very random companies--like one wanted to draw blood (I walked away when they said they wanted to do that), a leaf gutter company, Geico, and BGE (the main Maryland gas and electric company.)  I would've rather seen the space taken up by other running related companies that were definitely missing--Sweaty Bands and Nuun came to mind almost immediately on my way out.  (I really enjoyed seeing Sweaty Bands at the Cherry Blossom expo in the spring, and Nuun is at just about ALL the big expos.)  I didn't end up buying much, but I definitely had to get some new Bondi Bands (they've started using sublimation techniques to print some of their headbands rather than screen printing and the results are amazing!) and a new shirt from Charm City Run.

(If you don't know about the Baltimore Hon, here's a great explanation on Wikipedia!)
As far as swag goes, I came home with a little bit.

(In less than a month I'll be running the Richmond Half marathon, so when they were giving away 13.1 stickers for the race I had to grab a couple for my Dad and I!)  I ended up with the stickers for the Richmond half marathon, sunglasses from Medstar Health, a cup with race brochures from J&A Racing, a sample of Sweat-X detergent, a personalized shoe tag, a scratch and win card for the Corrigan tent sale in December and a headband from Pandora.  The first freebie I got was from the Mazda booth since they were making personalized shoe tags.  When I got to the expo the line wasn't very long at all so I took advantage of it.

Since the line was so short, I was a little under the gun to figure out how to personalize the tag.  They had some suggestions, but I looked down at my Momentum wrap bracelet that I had custom made and thought it would make a good shoe tag too.

So fast forward to Saturday morning.  A bunch of the ladies in one of my running groups decided to take the light rail into Baltimore for the race.  (After having to deal with Baltimore traffic more often than I'd like to admit, I was totally fine with paying $3.40 to avoid it.)  I got on a train a little after 8am and arrived in PLENTY of time.  In fact, I saw some of the 5k runners finish.  And I had a chance to go to a hotel bathroom that I used the last time I ran the Baltimore half marathon.  And something magical happened.  I had to get photographic evidence.

A huge empty bathroom.  All to myself.  Had to get an obligatory bathroom selfie as well.

After getting to use that bathroom all by myself I was feeling pretty psyched.   (Seriously, I almost started spinning in there because of how awesome it was and knowing that soon I would have to keep close tabs on my elbows.)

Then I trekked over to a meeting area a couple of my running groups had agreed on for pre-race pictures and so we could walk to the starting area together.  Okay, and get in one last bathroom stop.  (The hotel bathroom was just far enough away that we wouldn't be able to get to the starting line in time even if we ran.)

At this point I was feeling pretty psyched.  I couldn't believe I was doing this race again!  I was still a little nervous since this is also the race where I was injured 3 years ago.  Thankfully a pep talk from some of the ladies in my running group helped with any final pre-race jitters.

The race was a bit of a blur, but it was fun doing the race again now that I'm more familiar with Baltimore.  There were definitely more people offering beer than I remember, but I still didn't grab any.  (I did notice that some people grabbed it thinking it was water--what an unpleasant surprise!)  I also enjoyed seeing the eye of the tiger people, and all the different creative signs.  (There were lots of political ones this year.)

After finishing, I got my awesome 13.1 medal, visited the snack tables and loaded up a space blanket with various chips, granola bars two bottles of water, and my beer tickets. After leaving the runner's village, I got my King Crab premium (a wonderful, plush blanket with the race series logo), my Maryland double medal and a free beer.  The line for the beer went surprisingly fast since they had pre-filled the cups and another person was taking the tickets and handing out the beer.

After finishing most of my beer I ran into a couple friends and then we began the journey back on the light rail.  After I got back to my car and started taking off my spibelt and putting away everything for the journey home I heard a low rumble coming from above so I looked up.  It was the Sky Typers from World War II writing "Salute Our Military" in the air!!!  Definitely cool to see and it reminded me of the old dot matrix printers that I grew up using.

Since my arms were now empty (the blanket was so big, and along with the space blanket filled with snacks it was tough to be able to get many pictures.)  I could FINALLY take a selfie in my car with my medals.

I couldn't wait to get home and get a good look at the plush blanket King Crabbers got for participating in all three races.  When I finally unfolded it and got a good look at it, I was not disappointed!  After taking a shower, I wrapped myself up in it and took a nice long nap.

My cats also approve.  Lots of biscuits have been made on this blanket already!

Did anybody else run a race in the Baltimore Running Festival?? What did you think of it?

Friday Fives: Five Things I Bring to Every Race!

I'm very methodical when I prepare for a race, from training all the way to race morning.  After forgetting a few different items for race day, I've started putting what I need aside the night before into a drawstring bag that I end up leaving in my car during the race itself.  These are a few of the things that I cannot leave the house without on race morning!

1.  Road ID
It's so simple.  Mine is just a little rubber bracelet with my name, birthday, a couple important phone numbers, notable allergies and "PAUSE MY GARMIN"  There are a few different options for where to wear your Road ID, and I definitely wear this on every run outside of my house.  You never know when you might need it!  For race day, all I need to do is write "See left wrist" so if something happens a paramedic can see that and check my wrist for all the info they need.  Use the above link for $5 off your order!  Road IDs typically cost around $20.

2.  Spibelt
I don't like carrying absolutely everything in my pockets if I can help it.  My spibelt is the perfect size for a phone, car key, my Blue Q coin purse and still have space to spare.  They've started releasing some really fun prints too!  It's super comfortable and it doesn't even bounce during a run.  Spibelts start at $20.

3.  Garmin
Like I tell a lot of people:  I'm a stickler for accountability.  I use my Vivosmart HR to track daily activity and distance during boot camp classes, but my Forerunner 230 (with heart rate strap) to track my runs.  I upgrade to the Forerunner 230 this past December from the Forerunner 10 and it has been amazing.  The heart rate strap helps me see how much effort I'm putting into my runs, and there are lots of extras you can install to expand the abilities of the great little watch.  I have an Accuweather app that tells you the weather outlook for your run, various watch faces (including some that I've made with the Garmin Face-It app for my phone) and a pacer to help with race day.  Garmin has lots of GPS watches for various price points, beginning at $120 for the Forerunner 15.

4.  Throwaway water bottle with cherry limeade Nuun and a Picky Bar
The night before a race I always grab a throwaway water bottle and put in a tab of cherry limeade Nuun.  It has just a little caffeine to wake me up and helps me hydrate for the race ahead.  I also like to eat a Picky Bar before a race for a small breakfast.  They were created by athletes (Lauren Fleshman, Jesse Thomas and Stephanie Bruce) and they're pretty nutrient dense with minimal processing.  They can be found at Trader Joe's and REI and are absolutely delicious.  (I also enjoy eating them for an easy post-run snack.)  My favorite flavors are Ahh Fudge Nuts (chocolate fudge brownie with peanuts), Smooth Caffeinator (chocolate hazelnut with caffeine) and Cookie Doughpness (cinnamon raisin.)  However before a race I tend to grab the Smooth Caffeinator for a little more caffeine.  A tube of Nuun will set you back about $7, and Picky Bars retail for about $3.  (You can get bottled water really inexpensively at Trader Joe's where a whole case is less than $5.)

5.  Blue Q coin purse

This one is a little more unique, but hear me out.  Last May when I ran the St. Michael's Half Marathon it was probably some of the worst weather conditions that I've had to run in ever.  It rained the whole entire time.  I was completely soaked within the first mile.  When I was emptying my pockets in the car after the race, one thing was dry and it was this little coin purse.  I use it to carry my driver's license (you'll be ID'd for that post-race beer!), some cash and a credit card.  It's small enough that it's easy to get everything out and can still fit into that pocket in the waistband of your running pants.  These cost about $2-4 depending on the print.

What are some things that you can't leave the house without on race morning?

Thrifty Thursday for October (and Ugg Authentication!)

So you may have noticed that I haven't posted any thrift store finds posts in awhile.  I've decided to consolidate my weekly posts into one monthly post on the first Thursday of every month.  So here are some of the items I found in September!

I had never tried anything from Fabletics before since I've heard some horror stories about the subscription athletic wear service.  However when I tried these on and they were brand new with the tags?  I had to buy them.  

Fabletics Labaree Jogger Pants:  Originally $59.95 ($39.95 for members), paid $11.00!

Love this shirt since it's a gorgeous purple.  But the back is basically what sold me.

Love the drama and ventilation of the lacy back!  Athleta Wick It Good Long Sleeve Shirt:  Originally $49.00, paid $6.00

Love the pink and lightweight feel of this sweatshirt.  Probably won't wear it to workout since it has cotton, but it'll be great for a chilly morning to and from the gym or running errands!  Athleta Heavenly Hail Hoodie: Originally $89.00, paid $7.00

With the cooler weather arriving before we know it, I was SUPER excited about this lucky find.  

With just a little bit of cleaning they should be looking even better in no time.  

Uggs Bailey Button Boots:  Originally $170, paid $13.

So, how did I know with 100% certainty before walking up to the register that these were real?

1.  The holographic tag in the side seam of the left boot.  These were added because of all the counterfeits on the market.  

Check.

For added assurance, I also looked up the model number on the printed tag underneath the hologram tag and the exact style of boots popped right up on multiple reliable sources.  (It showed up on the Ugg website along with multiple department store websites as well.)

2.  The button.  Was it wood?  Yup.

 But was it solid wood?

Yup!  I've come across fakes of this exact shoe a few times.  Many of them were just cheap plastic pieces that were glued on top of a blank button.  

This is something to look for in purses too.  Many fakes will come into the country blank without any logos and the fake logos will be added on once they've reached their destination.  I have personally seen this with Michael Kors bags all the time.  It's literally a logo they just screw onto the base.  

Case in point...

No Michael Kors logo should be able to have that kind of a gap when you press on one side of it.  Ever.

...Moving on!

3.  Does the color of the background of the tag on the back of the shoe match the rest of the shoe?

Yup!!

4.  Last but not least.  The soles--this is how they SHOULD look.  The Ugg logo dead center with the sun logo around it and up by the toes.  The sole is also somewhat heavy duty, but still flexible.

Check.

 After going through all of that, I was more than happy to take these to the cashier.  If you're on the hunt for legit Ugg brand boots while you're shopping, definitely bookmark the Ugg Counterfeit webpage on your phone.  It can definitely be helpful!  Not everything will apply (like the bags and the boxes) but there are little non-invasive tests you can do in store to be sure you end up with the real deal.

Now that fall racing season is in full swing, anybody racing this weekend?  I've started tapering for the Baltimore half and I cannot wait!!!

Volunteering on the DC Ragnar SWAT

I love experiencing races through volunteering.  In some cases it can be a great way to get a feel for what to expect when you do the race yourself.  Last month I volunteered for DC Ragnar for their SWAT program.  It was a fantastic experience and I really enjoyed it despite being absolutely exhausted by the end of all of it.

Ragnar is a series of trail and road relay races.  In the road relays, teams of 12 pile into 2 vans and run approximately 200 miles (which for the DC race is from Cumberland, MD to Southeast DC.)  Teams start early Friday morning and finish the race sometime Saturday afternoon.  And yes, runners have to run their legs throughout the night.  Teams within a certain distance of the race have to provide 3 volunteers or pay a penalty.  A friend put out a call for volunteers in one of my running groups, and after thinking about it and doing some research, I decided to do it!  This is part of where SWAT (Sweaty, Wet And Tired) volunteering comes in.

As a SWAT volunteer you manage an exchange point (where 2 runners on a team exchange a slap bracelet instead of a baton) and it can count for either 2 or 3 shifts.  The positions were mostly for minor exchange managers or major exchange managers.  This means that these people try to keep things running (pun intended) and helping runners find their teams and with any potential issues that may arise.  As a minor exchange manager, I had 2 shifts overnight at exchange 20 in Frederick, MD in front of a tractor store.  In return for my shifts, I received a SWAT jacket and a t-shirt in addition to the orange hat all volunteers receive.

Ragnar supplied everything we would possibly need during the night from the basics (like clipboards, pens, flashlights, extra toilet paper for the portajohns, batteries, water and safety vests) to some nice little extras (like kind bars for snacks, and lightsaber flashlights for directing traffic.)

At my exchange point, there were essentially two stations:  The runner chute and the parking entry.  At the runner chute one of us wrote down the team numbers and time they exchanged the slap bracelet, and the other called out team numbers and made sure everybody was following safety protocols.  At the parking entry, one person directed traffic to park in the field and the other radioed team numbers as runners came by so those of us at the chute would be on the lookout and start calling out the numbers.  I ended up working both parts of the exchange point, and for the most part I really enjoyed it.  (The worst of it was reminding runners that they needed to be wearing their reflective vests when they're outside of the van.  As an exchange manager, I was supposed to text the team number to race command and tell them what happened.  If a team gets 3 infractions, they are removed from the race.)

The first part of the night in the runner chute I was on my feet the whole time, and this shift included the peak time for all the runners to arrive.  (As an exchange manager, they give us an idea of when this would happen and how many people to expect.)  I was definitely lucky in that my volunteers were willing to stay a few extra minutes since the peak time was right as the first shift was supposed to leave.  I found the second part of the night entertaining since I sat in a small John Deere tractor on a post so I could see runners coming from a little further away.  This was my view of it basically all night with my water bottle sitting on top and my glow necklace behind it.

It wasn't until the next morning that I realized what it was that I was actually sitting in.  It was definitely a tractor...but its purpose?  (Hint:  Look at the front of the tractor.)

It was a mailbox.

And I must say:  That was one comfy mailbox.

Part of my reasoning for taking the exchange manager position in Frederick is that an amazing donut place is in town.  (The Fractured Prune)   The week of the race I checked the restaurant's hours, and unfortunately they opened just a little too late for me to be willing to wait around for it to open at 8am.  So I drove home, showered (being in a field for a good part of the night made me feel a little gross) and promptly collapsed into bed.

Overall I would definitely do it again, however, while volunteering I was bitten by more than just mosquitoes.  I was bitten by the dreaded Ragnar bug, which caused me to sign up for a trail Ragnar in the spring and I can't wait to run it!  It's a little less intensive than a road Ragnar since you basically camp in one spot and everybody ends up running the same 3 loops by the end of the race, just in a different order.  Am I nuts?  Potentially.  But at least with a trail Ragnar, there's an increased chance of sleep.