Oh, cool! We’re talking about the Flying Pig! Go figure—I have a busy afternoon of meetings and I come back to find two pages of Minnie vs Flying Pig.
Ok, I can definitely attest to the fun of the Flying Pig if anyone is contemplating doing it. Of course, I’ve done the half and not the full, but I’m sure the full course is great as well. As Krista said, the course isn’t flat, so be ready for a few hills, even on the half course. The crowd support is great. The magnitude of the event isn’t near on a “Disney-esque scale,” but then again, most marathons aren’t. I think they had about 9,000 people do it last year, probably over 10,000 will do it this year. Definitely professionally run and supported, I didn’t feel there was any lack of food/water/medical support throughout the course. The medal is definitely a cool one to have.
And if Krista is serious about us all going to Montgomery Inn BBQ afterwards, I’m excited already!
Dave (or anyone else interested)—ok, as far as hotels, there are a lot of options. There are some really good hotels on the Kentucky side of the river (less than a mile from the start line, although I wouldn’t recommend walking to the start). Check hotels in Convington, KY and Newport, KY. The expo is held at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center, which is right in Covington. You probably don’t want to stay in any hotels that are on the Ohio side of the river from about 2 miles north of downtown through about 10 miles north of downtown (along I-75), because they could be hit or miss, and there’s a couple of not-so-good areas through there. Anything north of the 10 mile mark on I-75 is just fine. If you guys have a hotel in question, let Krista or I know and we can tell you if it’s a good area or not.
Oh, I’m so excited that we might get a WISH group for the race! If we do indeed get a decent size group, Krista and I can figure out places we can meet before, during, after the marathon, especially for dinner, etc.
I guess I know what Krista and I will be planning tonight…
Steve