2018 Turkey Trot to Benefit LARS

My husband is the one who started our Thanksgiving Turkey Trot tradition right after I started running.  Since then I've been interested in trying little turkey trots especially if they benefit food banks, social service or other non-profit organizations, which is where LARS comes in.  They're a group based in Laurel, MD that helps homeless and low-income citizens of the Prince Georges County portion of the city.  (The city is huge--it encompasses Howard, Prince Georges and part of Anne Arundel counties.)  I heard about this race from a few people in a local running group and was interested because it was in a part of the city I had never run in, and since it was through neighborhoods I probably wouldn't have explored otherwise.  (Generally I stick to trails or familiar neighborhoods since too many turns gets confusing.  Anyways.)

Packet pickup at Jailbreak Brewing was a little bit of a mess.  Apparently some people before us had some issues with the registration process and all of the volunteers at the table had to get involved. When it was our turn to get our packets and shirts, the brewery was super crowded so rather than getting a pint, we went home.  Once we got home I looked through our bags, I realized I received the wrong size shirt.  (This is the first time this has happened, and admittedly I should've checked before I left the brewery but I wanted to get out of there.)  No big deal, I could try to exchange it in the morning.

 

I set out my clothes for the next morning and it was going to be the first cold morning run for me for the season.  I opted for my flyout jacket, flyout tights, a lux funnel neck shirt, an icebreaker knit cap and my Thanksgiving themed Goodr sunglasses.  I was really nervous about being cold, and it was pretty justified, because spoiler alert:  I ended up being really cold.

The next morning, my husband and I arrived at the race at my usual hour early so there would be enough time to go to the bathroom and exchange my shirt.  There was still plenty of parking in the Boys and Girls club lot.  When we got in line to exchange my shirt, a volunteer who was directing everyone to the correct line noticed I just wanted to trade out my shirt.  She approached me, asked what size I needed, walked to the boxes and traded it out for me immediately.  I thanked her profusely because the lines were getting long, and we headed back to the car to drop off the shirt and keep warm for a few minutes before checking out the bathroom situation then went back to the car for a little while longer.

About 5 minutes before the gun was scheduled to go off, we lined up for the start.  I was determined to make this into a fast training run, potentially finally hitting my sub-30 5k.  The course was fairly hilly--there was one pretty much immediately after the first turn, but after that it was mostly smaller, less intimidating hills.  Just before the halfway point the road came to a paved trail and right where the course turned there was a water stop.  If you blinked you would've missed it because it was one person with a cup of water in each hand.  By the time I realized it was the water stop, it wasn't worth turning around so I kept going.  The trail seemed like it would be nice under different circumstances because for the race, it was pretty crowded.  There was another hill going up from the trail into a neighborhood and from there to the finish it was gently going uphill.  (It looked mostly flat as you were running it.)

Once I crossed the finish and stopped my Garmin I looked at my time--30:20.  So close to a sub-30, so initially I was frustrated.  But after getting my medal, catching up with some running friends I hadn't seen for awhile, having some water, post-race snacks, and watching my husband cross the finish I started feeling a little better.  That race was surprisingly hilly.  Finishing in the time that I did was pretty good, and I still had another chance to get my sub-30 in a couple weeks.

Overall, I'm torn about this race.  Packet pickup did not go well and the water stop on the course was bizarre.  But the race benefits a great cause (social services for the underserved in Laurel) and it was really close to home which doesn't happen often.  However with Thanksgiving being one of the biggest running days of the year, I'm willing to keep my options open for 2019.

It feels like this race was forever ago! (Mid-week race’s are weird.) Set a new PR for the 5k of 30:20. Sub-30 I’m coming for you! Next race is the Jingle All the Way 5k on 12/9 by @runpacers . . #medalmonday #medalmonday🏅 #turkeytrot #laureladvocacy #laureladvocacyreferralservices #balegaimpi #balegaimpi2018 #balegabestsocksever #hshive #nuunlife #teamzensah #oiselleteamdmv

A post shared by The Thrifty Runner (@thethriftyrunner) on Nov 26, 2018 at 4:51pm PST

2017 Turkey Strut 5k Race Review

Running last year's Thanksgiving day Turkey Strut 5k in Winston-Salem was kind of a last minute decision.  I had no idea that I would be able to get to my sister's for Thanksgiving, and when I could be there I jumped at the chance.  The last time I ran this race was in 2015, and enjoyed it so why not do it again?

I was really glad to have packed a lot of warm clothing, because this year it was a little extra chilly. 

As in previous years, the race was held at the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds.  It was super easy to find a parking space again, and there was a decent crowd, but nothing terribly overwhelming.  I ended up lining up with the rest of my family who were all walking the race.  This was a HUGE mistake. 

Gun goes off.

I get stuck behind rows and rows of strollers.  And dogs.  SO many dogs.  Like I get it, it's a holiday, there are families from out of town visiting.  (I myself am out of town family at this race.)  But it was frustrating getting stuck behind so many strollers right at the start.  I basically had to run on the grass alongside the course because it was so packed with people.  Fortunately after about a quarter mile, the crowds broke up quite a bit.  The course was the same as last time where it was basically a rolling hill down from the start, mostly flat then having to go back up the hill to the finish. 

My finish time wasn't the best (33:13, I blame the strollers and dogs) but I was happy to finish. 

After getting my medal, I went over and grabbed my post-race snacks and water.  Once again there was a HUGE variety of snacks so I grabbed a banana, a bag of goldfish, and a bag of fruit snacks along with a bottle of water. 

Overall, I would do the race again. It's super convenient, not terribly crowded, and some of your race fee goes towards a local food bank!  (Participants are also encouraged to bring 3 canned goods with them to the race too.)

Quantico Turkey Trot 10k Race Review

My first race was the Drumstick Dash in Roanoke, VA four years ago.  Since my husband encouraged all of us to run that race together, running a Thanksgiving race has become a family tradition.  This year however since I started working for a local racing events company for race day support, I ended up being on the operations side of the race rather than running it.  That also meant that a Thanksgiving day race would be out of the question, so I suggested to my Dad that he and I go down to Quantico Marine Base and try out their Turkey Trot since it was the weekend before the holiday.

The day before the race my Dad picked up our packets--the usual bib and race shirt along with a few snacks and samples that we've kind of come to expect with any of the Marine Corps' races.  (This time it was more Curate bars and some Tom's of Maine toothpaste!)

Definitely an interesting race shirt! 

(Unlike the MCM10k and marathon, this was just a long sleeved tech shirt.)

For once, I-95 traffic was a dream.  It took my Dad and I only 30 minutes to do a 40 minute drive (also because we took the HOT lanes so the speed limit was slightly increased.)  

Parking was a short walk from the starting area (maybe about 5-10 minutes) and we got there just as the lines for the portajohns were starting to grow.  By the time we got out, they had started the opening ceremony for the kids one mile race.  (It started half an hour before the 10k.)  We then walked over and looked at the various vendors.  They also had a petting zoo with a pony, llama, goat, sheep, duck, a couple chickens and turkeys!  (Seriously!!  How often do you see a live turkey at a turkey trot??)

After that we started watching the kids finish, and I randomly met one of my Oiselle Volee teammates!  (I haven't gotten out with that running group very much, but every time I've worn my Oiselle singlets I run into somebody and have an instant friend.  So cool!!)  

Excited for the start!

The race course was definitely challenging, but doable.  Very hilly similar to this year's MCM10k, but like I said:  Doable.  The first couple of miles were on the road but then miles 2-3 were on trail.  It was fairly narrow at that point so I avoided walking as much as I could.  But I literally felt like I was flying, especially once I started going down the hills.  It reminded me how much I really love trail running.  The rest of the race was through the streets of Quantico Marine Base, which was really interesting to get to see.  (I grew up near Fort Belvoir and since my Father-In-Law is now retired Air Force, I've seen a fair share of military bases as a civilian.)  ...Okay, and because I'm a total nerd and watch the show Quantico.  

This race was kind of a 180 in terms of crowds and course compared to the Richmond Half Marathon I had run the previous weekend.  There were 2 water stops, but not many crowds of people cheering along the course.  (There were some Marines who volunteered as course marshalls cheering on runners.)  Despite that, it was still a fun race.

 The starting line was the same as the Marine Corps Marathon--I love seeing it!  At this point I can only assume that this is the default arch that they use at all of their races.

The timing for the race was just perfect since the wind had not picked up yet and it was chilly but the sun helped keep us runners warm before the race.  (Later that day the high winds triggered a wind advisory for the area.)  It was great getting to see the vivid colors of the trees before the winds destroyed them.

At the end of the race, all the runners received bottled water, gatorade, cheese, a Wegmans fruit twist, a box of snacks (the same from the MCM10k with a curate bar, cup of fruit, breadsticks and cheese dip, and fig bar), and a cup of apple cider.  (No medal for this one.)  After getting some more free lip balm from the Brooks Running booth (I always grab a tube whenever I see them!) my Dad and I headed home.  

Winston Salem Turkey Strut 5k Race Recap

In 2012 my husband started a family tradition of doing a Thanksgiving race.  We started with the Drumstick Dash in Roanoke, then the Pilgrim Run in Kansas City, the Turkey Chase the Sunday before and this year just the two of us did the Turkey Strut in Winston-Salem, NC.  

Considering how I knew going into the race it would be small, I didn't have very high expectations for it.  I was excited to do it though since there was a finisher medal involved and I'm a sucker for race swag!  I also had never run in this part of North Carolina before, so I had no idea what to expect.

The race started at the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds.  I had been there once before several years ago for the Dixie Classic Fair, but didn't remember much of it other than cake decorating competitions, looking at a lot of livestock, and being surprised that they had tractor pulls.  

It was the perfect morning for a race.  Kind of chilly, but not too much so (it was in the upper 40s when the race started) and standing in the sun was all you needed to feel comfortably warm before the race.   I was wearing a light long-sleeved quarter zip jacket with a long sleeve shirt underneath, leggings and my usual Bondi Band headband.  It was a little much, but felt nice to have the layers before and after the race since a 5k is quick enough that I can deal with being a little extra warm.

My outfit laid out the night before the race

We got a great parking space close to the starting and finishing area, and right next to some nice, clean portajohns.  (And there wasn't even a line!!)  We scoped out the food area for when we finished, 

The race course itself was really nice--it started out downhill, and then afterwards it had mostly rolling hills (except for when you had to come back up that initial hill.)  I enjoyed seeing another part of Winston-Salem that I had never seen through running.  There was one water stop on the course after the one mile marker and it was hard to see when it was coming up.

So proud of this medal!

After finishing (my time was 31:17--even closer to the elusive sub-30 5k) volunteers handed out the medals and then I was super impressed with the post-race snacks!  They had goldfish crackers, several kinds of pretzels, fruit snacks, cookies, water and a wide variety of soda as well so there was a little something for everybody.  My only other complaint about this race would be the bananas--they were so green they were impossible to peel and I saw several people picking the peel away far longer than my own patience would allow.  

Some of the snacks offered.  I grabbed an extra fruit snack for my husband since they're his favorite!

Overall I would recommend this race if you're looking for one in the area.  It was well run and small enough that parking was great and there were plenty of portajohns for a pre or post race bathroom break.  The shirt is a nice wicking material and the logo for the race is also pretty cute!

After the race driving back to the hotel I insisted we stop at a Krispy Kreme.  I grew up about 10 minutes from one of the DC area factories, so whenever I see the "HOT DONUTS NOW" sign lit up I immediately start salivating.  (And we were in the area where Krispy Kreme started, and home of the Krispy Kreme challenge!)  I got my usual glazed and chocolate iced with sprinkles and I was SO happy for the treat.  

Had to get the hat too.

It was a fantastic way to start Thanksgiving--with a race on a great course, a new PR, and melt in your mouth DONUTS!

Quick Race Catchup

Holy cow.  I looked over my race spreadsheet (I use it to keep track of finishing times, and when and where I've raced) and there are SO many I haven't talked about!  At this point, it's been so long I really don't remember much.  I'm just going to talk about the major things I remember.

Baltimore Running Festival Half
My first half marathon.  The hills.  Goodness!  The hills.  They were plentiful and painful.  Afterwards I could hardly walk.  My husband and I had tickets to see Nick Offerman (Ron Swanson from Parks and Rec) that evening, and I hobbled the whole way from the car to the gym to watch him.  (Totally worth it.)  The whole race experience itself was wonderful.  It was my first big expo, and it was great.  So many vendors, so little time!  The race was great.  The crowd support is like nothing else.  Anybody who's run the longer distance races in the festival knows what I'm talking about.  The Eye of the Tiger dancers (people in tiger costumes dancing to Eye of the Tiger for the entire race), the Natty Boh (people offered cups of it which I declined), the gummy bears and candy corn (germaphobe so I declined), people playing a "Good Morning, Baltimore" remix from Hairspray, and the fantastic feeling of running through the gates of Camden Yards to the finish line.  I think this picture says it all...

Okay, I was also super psyched to see my parents and husband near the finish line.
Despite the post-race pain and running this with IT Band Syndrome...I would totally do it again.  I love my newly adopted city.  I loved being able to see parts of the city that I hadn't seen yet and wouldn't dare run on a normal day.  

Columbia Turkey Chase 10k 2013
This race was so. incredibly.  cold.  The race had wind chill in the single digits.  They handed out the aluminum blankets before the race because people were jumping around trying to stay warm.  I was still injured from the Baltimore Half at this point (and had been during the MCM 10k too) but I had signed up for it so I had to do it.  It was not my greatest time, but I was determined to do it again in 2014 since I knew the time would be better.  The post-race food was great.  It was the usual bananas, bagels and water, but they also had a chili cook-off from local restaurants.  I don't usually go for something hearty after a race, but the warmth of the chili was greatly appreciated.

Pilgrim Run Kansas City 2013
My family has a tradition of running a race together on (or around) Thanksgiving.  We like it as a way of burning some calories and spending time doing something healthy before eating a huge meal.  This year we ran it in Kansas City since we were there to visit my Missouri family (an aunt, uncle, couple cousins and Grandmother.)  It was a lot of fun.  I was still injured, but the race was great and I finished behind my brother-in-law who finished third in his age group!  The scenery was great since there were lots of gorgeous houses and the race started and ended downhill.  (The middle was uphill, but not horrible.)

I don't want to overload each post with races, so I'll add more in my next post until I'm all caught up :)

Catching up on Races!

So I'll admit it:  I took an extended break from blogging.  I didn't think I had a lot to say at the time because it was the off-season for racing.  Since my Across the Bay 10k post, I ran 6 more races:  Columbia Turkey Chase 10k, Jingle All the Way 5k, Kelly St. Patrick's Day 5k, Sole of the City 10k, and the Cinco de Miler!  So I'm going to start to get caught up with race reports.  Promise. I remember quite a bit about races.  It's something about the movement of running that helps me remember a lot.  (I think it's called kinetic learning.  I used this to my advantage in graduate school when I had to study for classes and used flash cards while running on the treadmill.)

Columbia Turkey Chase 10k
It was significantly warmer in 2014 than in 2013.  (For one thing, it wasn't in the single digits when the race started!)  But I felt like the race was not as well organized.  For one thing, they ran out of medals so if you registered after a certain point you would be sent one later on and they marked your bib accordingly.  My husband and I ran the full 10k while my parents opted for the relay because my Mom wanted to get involved, and she was left behind by everybody because she's a walker.  (So this race isn't walker friendly.)  I remember passing her after the halfway point and feeling HORRIBLE for her because she was all by herself.  It turns out she had made one last bathroom stop because there weren't any portajohns on the route or at the relay pass off area.  When she came out of the portajohns, everyone was gone so she started a few moments after everyone else.  (The organizers told her that portajohns weren't allowed in Columbia neighborhoods, when during their half marathon they had them along the course at water stops in neighborhoods.)  Then she got upset because she didn't get a finisher medal.  It turns out that they had marked my Dad's bib showing that he should've gotten two and the people handing out the medals didn't notice.  
The first year I ran this race (2013), they had a chili cook-off at the finisher's area that was lovely along with water, bagels and bananas just because it was so cold.  In 2014 though they had some chips, bagels, cookies and bananas.  Not very many races offer sweets like this after races, so I stuck with the usual half a bagel (split with my husband) and banana.

I don't know if I'll run the Turkey Chase again this year, especially because of a race I ran with them on October 12th (the Let's go Hoco 5k.)  The races have progressively become less and less organized, and they haven't done anything to pass along basic etiquette to new runners.  For the 5k I ran with them in October, it was horrendous.  Packet pickup was a nightmare because the line was out the door the whole time I was there, and the volunteers took a long time to find everything for a packet.  Although I will give them this--There was very nice swag for the race.  We got a long sleeved shirt, reusable shopping bag, and a stainless steel water bottle!  Pre-race there were basic warm up exercises.  The race itself left a lot to be desired though.  This was a community race and there were a LOT of kids.  Most of them didn't know basic race etiquette so I was nearly tripped by many of them.  And there were plenty of adults too who planned on walking the entire race and started right up front. 
Needless to say, the Let's Go Hoco 5k was my worst race time yet.  At one point I put more effort just avoiding people who would just start walking in the middle of the course or kids weaving through the crowds than actually worrying about my time.  
 (Don't worry, if this means nothing to you I plan on covering basic race etiquette in a separate post soon!)

My First Race Ever!

I started running in April 2012 when I was in graduate school to get my masters in education, and wanted to stop going to a gym.  (I had been going to an all women's gym, but I was frustrated with the hours and the management to be quite honest.)  Soon afterwards, I was hooked and my husband and I invested in a treadmill.  My first race was the Roanoke Drumstick Dash that Thanksgiving (which started a tradition of running a race Thanksgiving morning.)  

It was a lot of fun, and it benefited the local rescue mission ministry.  The course itself went through downtown Roanoke, along some of the scenic parts including the local art museum and finished at Center in the Square.   I managed to finish the race in 35:42, which still isn't bad for me!
After the race, we were all ravenous since we only had a light breakfast before the race to avoid gastro distress.  My husband and I suggested we all go to Thelma's Chicken and Waffles (a Roanoke institution) and had one of the best meals ever leading into a delicious Thanksgiving dinner.  (We only managed to get back there once when we were in the process of moving out of our house in Blacksburg.)  
My next race?  Jingle all the Way 8k in Washington, D.C.