Great Alaskan Maritime Marathon cruise report

[WDWFAN9]

Jim and I just returned from our Great Alaskan Maritime Marathon (GAMM) cruise. To say it was fabulous is a gross understatement. Here is my trip report:

Pre-cruise: Seattle

Jim and I flew into Seattle the day before the cruise started. Fortunately we flew SWA and were able to bring two checked bags each without incurring any extra cost since we were loaded for bear! Between formal clothes and shoes, smart casual clothes (?), race clothes and shoes, plus all the miscellaneous items we had a lot of stuff. I have never traveled with so much!

On the recommendation of the GAMM travel agent we stayed in the historic Pioneer Square area, which was really cool. As an interesting side note, our cab driver had a little difficulty getting to our hotel because roads were closed – due to a race! We of course were very understanding. Our hotel was a short walk from the famous Pikes Market and we loved wandering past the different vendors displaying their goodies. We got to see the fish-throwing vendor, and let me tell you they are tossing huge fish! The flower displays were amazing, and very inexpensive. We had chowder soup for lunch from a place off an alley, with a street musician playing nearby. A cool experience for sure. We also took an underground tour of the tunnel system in the area. What a hoot! It was 90 minute irreverent historical tour and we had a blast.

Day One – Sunday

The pier was a short cab ride from our hotel and the check in process with Holland America on the Westerdam was very smooth. I had my GAMM cruise info booklet out and bumped into a couple also doing GAMM, so we had a great time exchanging stories until it was time to board. Jim and I had an inside cabin on the main deck, which turned out to be especially nice since some people with verandas complained about the sun waking them up (sunrise was about 3:30AM, sunset was about 10:30PM).

After eating lunch and getting settled in our cabin we headed to the GAMM check-in to pick up our race info and goodies, which were very nice. We each got a small GAMM duffle bag that contained our race tech shirt, a fleece vest, hat, and a stuffed penguin. Very cool.

We also got to chat with John and Coach Jenny, and they signed my often read copy of MfM. John got a big kick out of seeing a well-used book since he is usually signing brand new ones.

Before dinner John and Jenny hosted a very nice cocktail party and we had an opportunity to meet some of our fellow participants.

That night and every night we dined with people from GAMM. Each night our table assignments changed so that we had the opportunity to eat with different GAMM participants. There were people from all across the country, and from as far away as Australia and Thailand. The very first night we sat with someone I had chatted with on cruisecritic.com, it was great to finally meet her and her husband.

Soon though we were ready for bed, it had been a long day and we were anxious to get started early the next morning.

 

[WDWFAN9]

Day Two – Monday


The day began with a quick breakfast and our first GAMM meeting. John was his usual entertaining self as he welcomed us. There were a little over 80 participants and a couple non-competing spouses. A handful of 20-somethings, a few more 30-somethings, and the majority of folks were a little bit older, with the oldest competitor being 77! And, I recognized him from WDW! He lives near Atlanta and regularly participates in Disney events.

Coach Jenny explained how the competition would work – since only a very few could expect to be fastest, and in keeping with the Penguin philosophy, the ultimate winner is not the fastest, but the one who comes closest their average mpm pace established during a 2 mile deck run to be held later that morning. Coach explained that it would take a combination of strategy and luck to win, and to take into account that our last day would be a 10K trail run when setting out on the deck run. Ultimately the male winner came within 5 seconds of his average pace and the female winner within 2 seconds!

Everyone paired up and headed to the deck to time ourselves. It took 6 laps around the deck to do 2 miles. I went first while Jim got himself comfy on a deck lounger to time me. The deck was wet, and the ship was moving, so I went slower than normal. My usual pace is between 15 and 16 minutes, but I knew that we would be taking lots of pictures during our events, so I slowed up a bit, ending up with a 17:45 average pace. Then I timed Jim and he ended up at 17:05, which was good since the ship was really starting to rock and it was really bothering him. In fact after we turned in our times he headed to our cabin and pretty much spent the rest of the day til dinner in bed.

Here's Jim nice and comfy keeping track of my deck time:

While he spent the afternoon resting I attended Coach Jenny's Strength and Flexibility Training for Runners clinic, which was great. After another nice supper we were ready to head back to our room.


Day Three – Tuesday
Fortunately things had settled down and Jim was feeling better in the morning since this was Glacier Bay day. We had a GAMM meeting in the morning where John basically told his story; if you’ve heard him speak at an expo or read MfM you have a good sense of what he spoke about.

Then it was time to head outside for a day at sea. Words just aren’t adequate to describe how beautiful the scenery was….snow-capped mountains, blue glaciers, absolutely amazing. We saw whales spouting water into the air, several whale fins, and a few whale tails – darn things just never gave notice when they were going to visible and there was a lot of water to watch! We also saw two seals floating by on an ice chunk. We got to see a glacier “calving”, which is when a piece of ice falls off into the water. It sounds like thunder or maybe a gun shot, and then a chunk falls into the sea. Very, very cool.

After a very nice supper with fellow GAMM participants we headed to bed – tomorrow was going to be a big day – the half marathon in Juneau.

 

[WDWFAN9]

Day Four – Wednesday

I never sleep well the night before a half, and this was no exception, so I was mostly awake when the alarm went off at 4:30AM. Jim got ready first, then me, and then we headed to our GAMM meeting room to wait for disembarkation in Juneau (John had made arrangements so that GAMM could be first off the ship since we had time restraints). It was about a 25 minute bus ride to the start of our half. The local running club organized and was the support for the race, which was held just for GAMM. The mayor of Juneau came out and gave a welcome speech before he officially started the race.

The course was along a beautiful and secluded road – and out-and-back 5 miles in one direction, and then 1.5ish out-and-back in the other. The road was marked every two miles, but no time – remember the competition was to come closest to your established mpm deck run pace, so John and Jenny asked everyone not to use garmins. There was water on one side for most of the race and a beautiful view of Mendenhall (?) glacier. Jim and I were with a great group at the back and we enjoyed talking with our fellow participants about events that they recommended. A few people stopped out at the 10 mile mark when we passed by the start/finish line – the last 1.5 mile out and then back was all uphill/downhill and not fun. When we got to the end of the road to turn around we stopped for pictures with our fellow back-of-the-packers. Then it was time for the last few ups and downs. Jim and I crossed the finish line at 3:28:28, well ahead of our base pace, but no worries – we weren’t here for the competition anyway. Once everyone had finished we boarded buses and headed back to Juneau. We shopped for a little bit (naturally!) and then headed back to our cabin to clean up and have a late lunch, followed by a well-deserved nap, and then a very nice supper with our GAMM friends.

Here are a few race pictures:

 

[WDWFAN9]

Day Five – Thursday

We met in our GAMM meeting room before the 5-miler in Sitka. The male and female from the half marathon who came closest to their deck mpm pace each received a coveted yellow GAMM hat with a rare purple penguin pin.

Then it was time to get down to business. This day would be a little different. No strolling off the ship, we had to take small boats to get to the pier. We walked to the race start, an area under a bridge! Oh, the course wasn’t marked! We were given maps and directions and told to have fun! A race volunteer would be at each mile to mark your bib as proof you passed by. Jim and I always walk together, but you better believe I planned on sticking to him like glue for this one since I am so directionally challenged.

Actually, it wasn’t difficult at all – very simple, even I probably wouldn’t have gotten lost on my own. This course was mostly residential and the landscaping was gorgeous. I didn’t expect to see blooming flowers everywhere. It was amazing. We finished in 1:28 and actually walked the last mile or so with Coach Jenny. I tried to convince her to organize a Hawaiian cruise, but she said they are considering Caribbean or Mexico for 2009. Darn, I need a HI medal!! I spoke to a guy who did the Maui Sept event that Anne and I have talked about doing in 2009 (keep it in mind!!), so if JBR (John Bingham Racing) doesn’t come through with a HI cruise I might have to do Maui!

After the race Jim dragged me all over Sitka…..we had passed a National Cemetery on the course, so we went back to that, stopped in a fish hatchery museum, another native museum, a few shops, and just walked along the water. We saw so many bald eagles that it almost (just almost) got to the point of – hmm, oh, another bald eagle (yawn!). Well, maybe not that blasé, but we certainly saw many eagles.

We headed back to the ship for a nap (got to love cruising!) and then our dinner. GAMM had the late dinner seating so it was usually 9:30 before we got finished with dessert. After that we headed to our room to get organized for our next day.

 

[WDWFAN9]

Day Six – Friday

We met in the GAMM meeting room to go over the details for the day, but first the rare and coveted yellow GAMM hats with purple penguin pins were given to the male and female average pace winners from the 5-miler.

It was pretty gloomy as we walked off the Westerdam and headed to buses for our 10K trail run, which took place in the Tongass National Forest in Ketchican. The mayor of Ketchican not only came out to give us a welcome speech, he actually participated in the race! The course included some roads and lots of trails, all with beautiful scenery. To make it more interesting there were no mile markers on the course and even watches weren’t allowed – just to make the competition a little more challenging!

It rained a little bit before the race start but fortunately stopped before the start. The course turns were marked with flour, so there was a lot of joking about the early runners “accidentally” messing the turns, but they were very easy to spot and follow. Jim and I took our usual place at the back and took off slow but sure. We got tons of pictures! The course was beautiful but tough. Hills are not my friend! Did I mention that we are from the very flat Midwest?? Oh ya, hills are definitely not my friend!

We were pretty sure we were dead last, but loved the scenery and just enjoyed the process. A little more than half way we passed the 77 year old guy on the road and then headed up a steep incline. We hadn’t gone far when we head the guy call out. I yelled to the people ahead of us (fortunately just within earshot) and we all rushed back….Jim was sure the guy had a heart attack from the way he was slumped over on the ground and clutching his chest. Fortunately he had “just” slipped in the mud as he made the turn from pavement to trail. We slowly helped him to his feet and he insisted that he was able to continue. Jim and I told the other couple that had come back to go on ahead, that we would stay with Charles the rest of the way, and that is what we did. He’s a very interesting fellow and has done lots events so we just went slowly, one step at a time. I’m not sure of our finish time, I think it was 2:18 (maybe). Time didn’t matter, we finished!

There wasn’t much time in Ketchican before we had to get on the ship, which was ok since it started to rain pretty good. In fact once the ship left port it rained pretty hard. I had a nice nap while Jim headed to the pool and then we went to the final GAMM cocktail party before dinner. After dinner we joined several of our new friends in enjoying a bit of the ship’s nightlife (finally I could stay up late since we didn’t have to get up early the next day!). One of the GAMM couples participated in the Marriage Game (think Newlywed Game) and won. So that was a hoot.

Some pictures from Ketchikan:

 

[WDWFAN9]

Day Seven – Saturday

Hoorah! We could sleep in as late as we wanted!! After a late breakfast/early lunch we headed to the top deck to just sit and watch the beautiful scenery go by. The day was sunny and warm and it was amazing to just sit there and look. We saw a couple of porpoise (or maybe dolphins) go by. How cool is that?

Soon it was time for the GAMM award ceremony. The average pace winners for the 10K each received their yellow hats with penguin pins. Then each participant got a beautiful GAMM medal.

In one of their recent books John and Jenny talk about the winner’s circle – Inspiration, Perspiration, Dedication, and Celebration. They gave out larger stuffed Penguins to people the JBR team felt embodied the first three categories: the oldest competitor got the Inspiration penguin, the person who won all three races got the Perspiration penguin, and a TnT couple who backtracked on every race to encourage the folks still on the course got the Dedication penguin. All the GAMM participants voted for their choice for the winner of the Spirit (Celebration) penguin. The winner was originally from Scotland, and currently lives in Canada. Jim said she reminded him of Granny from the Beverly Hillbillys – small but feisty, with a wonderful brogue. She could really light up the room with her enthusiasm!

Then it was time to count down to the top female and male winners. The top female, with an average pace on the half, 5-miler, and 10K only two seconds off her deck average mpm pace is pictured below with the special yellow GAMM hat (with rare purple penguin pin) and a very nice plaque is pictured below:

Un-be-lievable!! You could have knocked me over with that proverbial feather. Yes, with a deck time pace of 17:45 and an average pace over 3 events of 17:47 I was the top female finisher. If Jim and I hadn't stuck with Charles after he slipped I wouldn't have won - so I guess it does prove that no good deed goes unnoticed!

Here are a few more pictures from the awards ceremony:

Well, if you've stuck with me this whole time - thanks! It was an amazing experience for sure!

Something to keep in mind - the next GAMM cruise will be in 2010! Cruising Alaska is awesome, just think how amazing it could be to combine cruising Alaska with a staged marathon (remember the longest one-time distance is a half) especially if it is shared with a bunch of WISHers.....just a thought!!

 

[chimera]

Pat that is soooo cool!

Congratulations!!! You won...that's fabulous!
Looks like you had a wonderful trip! The pictures are stunning.

 

[Tiger Lily 03]

Pat and Jim, I thought of your adventure all week. Congratulations on your event and having all kinds of fun! I loved reading your report.

Well done Pat! Way cool!

 

[Big Vic]

Very cool, Pat. Very, very cool.

Congrats to you, and Jim.

 

[windwalker]

I am so Jealous, we have to do a cruise sometime. Maybe next year.

Thanks for sharing your adventure with us Pat. The Pics were awesome.

Jealous Panda

 

[escape]

YAY PAT!!!!! Way to GO!

Yes, it pays to be kind!

I've been thinking about you all week, too! I love your reports and the pictures. I'm so jealous.

2010, eh? I may just have to go on that cruise if other WISHers go. That will give me some time to start saving those $$$.

Glad you and Jim had a great time. Welcome back!

 

[Jen117]

PAT!!! I am so happy for you! I was wondering why it was a picture of you and then I realized... WAIT, YOU WON! THAT IS SO AWESOME! I am glad you and Jim had a great time! Here's a BIG for you and Jim!

 

[WDWFAN9]

Thanks everybody, it really was a wonderful experience. John and Coach Jenny are great, and our fellow GAMM participants were awesome! We truly had a blast.

 

[escape]

Pat,

What was the average temperature on most days? I noticed you guys have several layers of clothing on. I know you mentioned that the last day was warm.

 

[TEK224]

Congrats Pat! And you too, Jim. So cool!

I'm glad you're planning my vacations for the next couple of years - Hawaii in 09, Alaska in 2010

Seriously, I think that night be doable.

I loved your pics, too. I did a cruise to Alaska about 8 years ago. Your pics brought back lots of memories.

Terri

 

[getnthinr]

Wow, Pat, what an awesome expereince for you two! Loved all the great photos and the daily reports -- Too cool! Thanks so much for sharing all that!

 

[mkymsehi]

Pat & Jim,

Excellent race report and photos. I felt like I was there with you both, because I've been on two Alaskan cruises, and been pretty much the same places that you ventured to on foot.

Thanks for sharing!

If you decide on Honolulu for a December marathon, keep me posted. I'll be happy to be a tour guide. If I get over to Maui or the Big Island for a race, maybe we'll have to do a Aloha WISH meet!

 

[wfloyd]

Pat -

Great report. Sounds like you had a blast. Congrats on winning the pace race as well..

Bill

 

[bridgetgabbie]

Thank you for your review and pictures. I loved reading it! Congrats on your trophy!

Robin

 

[scoolover]

That may be the best race report that I have seen. Awesome job on the trip!