ETA: OMG...I didn't mean to write a novel below...
Oops!
Awesome! I've heard so many great things about the Rock & Roll series of races. Would love to do one, eventually. Right now, we choose bigger races where we will have babysitters available
. The next half I am angling to do is either Tinkerbell in 2015 or
Disneyland Half in 2014.
I've heard good and bad things...and most of the bad things I have heard were about the inaugural races, and of course the one I am doing is inaugural.
We'll see! I have heard that the medals are excellent so I'm looking forward to that, for sure.
Ariel, thanks for the tips! They will really come in handy. And no sob stories, you were out there and you finished, that is all that counts. Your husband is correct, You did it!
Thank you.
You're totally right!
How was the weather and course? I had heard mixed reviews before but all I could find was old info so I wasn't sure if it was still accurate. I would think it would be fun to run by the lake if u could see it. I was going to run the 10k just to try toget a good time for signing up for princess and tink. I heard the 10k doesn't get a medal- any truth to that?
Did you run any of the races last year? I did the half last year too and there was a heat advisory...this year wasn't as hot but it still wasn't great race weather. Mid-70s when I finished with some humidity. One of the other things that went wrong for me was leaving my sunglasses in the car.
Luckily it was pretty overcast, so that helped a LOT. The buildings downtown blocked out a lot of the sun too.
I like the course. It goes west, so through Edgewater and along the lake. The Edgewater part was nice - lots of nice houses to look at and good spectator support. I really had to remind myself to look around and take it all in since I was so focused on my goal time and was so unhappy with myself. From there it goes through Ohio City and Tremont, then back downtown via the Lorain Avenue bridge. I always forget how hilly it is though! They say it's fast and flat, but there are definitely inclines. I'll have to dump my data into Garmin Connect later and post it for oyu.
Right before the finish the half and full courses split, and the full course heads east...and I was SO glad not to be taking that turn with the full marathoners!
As far as I know the 10k runners didn't get a medal, and I'm pretty sure that's right because if you look at the race information pages they specifically list finisher medals for the half and full, but not for the 10K. 10K runners get t-shirts, where the half and full marathoners get tech shirts - the designs are the same for everyone but they'll say what the race is (mine says "1/2M" and "Half Marathon" on the sleeve) and they are different colors (the half shirt was a white tech shirt, and from what I saw the 10K shirt was a teal cotton t-shirt). I've never done the 10K but I might try it next year just to switch things up.
In terms of tips for longer races, do you guys carry energy gels? For ToT, I only stopped for water. I made sure to hit every station except the first, but was forcing myself to do it. I was pretty depleted at the end and got sick on my post-race snack box. (What I was willing to eat, which wasn't much since I was feeling so tired and sick after running in the heat/humidity.) I'm wondering if I can power through a half without bringing anything with me or should I learn to like the gel snacks to get me through the final miles? Also, I can't stand Gatorade, but I am guessing I should go for that a couple of times during this race?
YES. The first time I ran a longer race was a local 10-miler - it took me about 2 hours and I felt so sick and awful when I was done. This is when I started researching fueling and hydration during races. During that race I didn't eat or drink at all and I think that's what did me in.
I think during your training this is something that you want to experiment with, because it's so different from person to person. Try gels, blocks, gummies, whatever - do you like certain flavors? Do certain textures not agree with you? They'll provide a gel stop during the course but I personally will be bringing my own.
Just to give you an example, when I was trying to figure this out for myself, I came to a few conclusions...
- Hammer gels are too watery...disgustingly watery, yet I can see how others would like them because they may be gentler on the stomach
- Honey Stinger gels get a lot of love from runners because they are all-natural and a good option for people who can't handle caffeine. I really wanted to love them, but for me they are WAY too sweet. Sadness.
- Eventually I decided I liked the consistency of Gu gels. I don't like orange-flavored anything, so that was out. I didn't like the Triple berry flavor. The Mint chocolate flavor tasted good, but it made my stomach burn. Chocolate outrage tasted good but reminded me too much of icing. Vanilla is just right.
- And after that I ended up going with Gu chomps because I like having something solid during the race, especially if I feel hungry. Favorite flavors are strawberry and blueberry pomegranate. In contrast, my brother hates these because they get stuck in his teeth.
Of course these above^^ are all personal preferences...there are tons of folks who love Hammer Gel and Honey Stingers, and tons who can tolerate Chocolate Outrage and Mint Chocolate Gu. I am not one of them!
Now my routine is to drink water every 2 miles and have 1/2 bag of Gu chomps every 4 miles. Some people can get by with more, some can get by with less. It just depends.
This is the kind of stuff you want to figure out during training and practice during your long runs...i.e. BEFORE the race. Not on race day itself.
And just an FYI, in the past they have had Powerade at the stops, not Gatorade. I can handle both but I know some can't handle one but are fine with the other.
I've also heard it's diluted at the water stops. I try to switch - have Powerade, then Gatorade at the next stop, then back to water - just do whatever you do during training and you should be okay.
Just an FYI... this morning I submitted a 10K time from the weekend via e-mail and received a confirmation back with an updated registration just a few hours later. Very prompt! Now I need a half-marathon time to submit for the WDW Marathon in January...
Yeah, they're surprisingly good about that, I think!
Try something else - we do cliff shot blocks as I can't stand consistency of Gu or gels. You can also even do things like small packs of gummy bears or skittles like my hubby does. Find what works for you. But after running out of fuel last year, I would be first to recommend you take some fuel to have during race. I had the shot blocks, but not enough.
AMEN!
I've never tried Shot Bloks but I know tons of people swear by them.
So many things went wrong...some were my fault, some weren't (course crowding, weather). Anyway, after thinking about it for a bit I thought I'd share what I learned here. Don't make the same mistakes I did!
I just get out there and go, no specific training plan, no concern about fueling, etc... I had been thinking of pasta for lunch the day or the race, but that was about all I had thought of. 
But I am also training for a 1/2 in 3 weeks, where for W&D and we are not really there yet.
