I have joined the 21st century form of communications. I am starting a blog. And, with my first blog, I will not bore you with name, age, and purpose in blog life (actually, the purpose is to have a running blog but the other information will come later). Nope. I will dive in head first and give you a first-hand account of the 3rd Annual Ocean City Factory Outlets Marathon/Half-marathon/5k. (I participated in the half-marathon).
When I was growing up in the Philadelphia area, my family did not go down to the Jersey Shore (blasphemy!) but instead headed down to the Eastern Shore of Maryland where my aunt lived. So, back in December when I first thought of doing this race, the idea of running from Ocean City, Md to Assateague Island brought back memories of pleasant times in the sun and surf.
But now I have a new memory which will surely not get mixed in with the sun and surf ones. As this memory involved cold, snow and wind gusts from 30-40 mph! (Picture is the marathon finish line)
There were about 600 hearty souls lined up in the Parking Lot at the end of the Boardwalk in Ocean City at 7a Saturday (April 8). The marathoners and half-marathoners were all together. The halfies would run to Assateague, the full ones would run back. My goal was to use this as a long-run for the Broad Street Race in Philadelphia on May 6.
Game time temps were in the 30's with snow coming at you vertically. Any flag that you saw was standing straight out at attention. The gun went off and we did a loop in the parking lot before heading down the boardwalk. We were only on the boardwalk for a short while before making a left onto First Avenue and over the Assawoman Bay bridge. This would have been a great opportunity to look at the beauty of the inlet and shoreline. But, I never looked up to take in the view. The wind was so fierce, I was just looking at the heels of the running shoes in front of me to guide me over. My eyes were stinging from the snow blowing in my face.
Once we crossed the bridge, the winds died down to 10-20 mph but the snow was still coming down. I was at the pace I wanted to be and was feeling physically strong (though fighting an upset stomach). For the next 10 miles, the course would take us south either on Route 611 or parallel to it. I was layered, wearing (2) thin long-sleeved shirts with a throwaway jacket on top. I also ran with Cool-Max pants, which was a first for me in a race. It was one of those days where I was constantly taking my gloves on and off as, around each corner, there would be a change of temperature.
The last two miles brought us over the bridge into Assateague Island. Luckily for us halfies, the wind was at our back and helped us propel us to the finish line. But, the full marathoners were now running back over the bridge and into the wind. Points must be given somewhere for running part of your marathon backwards as some wound up doing as it was the only chance of cutting through the wind.
In the end, I finished 2:11:02, or a 10:00/mi pace. I was happy with the result, considering the weather and the fact that I was not feeling my best for the previous two days. Before heading back to the bus to take me back to the after-party, I was walking around the beach that I was so familar with as a kid. But, I was so friggin' cold and sweaty that I knew this was not a good day for nostalgia.
The organization of the race was very good. The volunteers were incredible! Only minor complaints (no Gatorade on the course, only one port-a-pottie per watering station, and no big "Finish' sign at the end. Just a chipmat.) On paper, it really is a fast course if you have good weather. There were enough people on the course that you never felt alone out there (at least for the half). If you are contemplating running a half or full marathon, in the future, I would suggest you run this race.
When I was growing up in the Philadelphia area, my family did not go down to the Jersey Shore (blasphemy!) but instead headed down to the Eastern Shore of Maryland where my aunt lived. So, back in December when I first thought of doing this race, the idea of running from Ocean City, Md to Assateague Island brought back memories of pleasant times in the sun and surf.
But now I have a new memory which will surely not get mixed in with the sun and surf ones. As this memory involved cold, snow and wind gusts from 30-40 mph! (Picture is the marathon finish line)
There were about 600 hearty souls lined up in the Parking Lot at the end of the Boardwalk in Ocean City at 7a Saturday (April 8). The marathoners and half-marathoners were all together. The halfies would run to Assateague, the full ones would run back. My goal was to use this as a long-run for the Broad Street Race in Philadelphia on May 6.
Game time temps were in the 30's with snow coming at you vertically. Any flag that you saw was standing straight out at attention. The gun went off and we did a loop in the parking lot before heading down the boardwalk. We were only on the boardwalk for a short while before making a left onto First Avenue and over the Assawoman Bay bridge. This would have been a great opportunity to look at the beauty of the inlet and shoreline. But, I never looked up to take in the view. The wind was so fierce, I was just looking at the heels of the running shoes in front of me to guide me over. My eyes were stinging from the snow blowing in my face.
Once we crossed the bridge, the winds died down to 10-20 mph but the snow was still coming down. I was at the pace I wanted to be and was feeling physically strong (though fighting an upset stomach). For the next 10 miles, the course would take us south either on Route 611 or parallel to it. I was layered, wearing (2) thin long-sleeved shirts with a throwaway jacket on top. I also ran with Cool-Max pants, which was a first for me in a race. It was one of those days where I was constantly taking my gloves on and off as, around each corner, there would be a change of temperature.
The last two miles brought us over the bridge into Assateague Island. Luckily for us halfies, the wind was at our back and helped us propel us to the finish line. But, the full marathoners were now running back over the bridge and into the wind. Points must be given somewhere for running part of your marathon backwards as some wound up doing as it was the only chance of cutting through the wind.
In the end, I finished 2:11:02, or a 10:00/mi pace. I was happy with the result, considering the weather and the fact that I was not feeling my best for the previous two days. Before heading back to the bus to take me back to the after-party, I was walking around the beach that I was so familar with as a kid. But, I was so friggin' cold and sweaty that I knew this was not a good day for nostalgia.
The organization of the race was very good. The volunteers were incredible! Only minor complaints (no Gatorade on the course, only one port-a-pottie per watering station, and no big "Finish' sign at the end. Just a chipmat.) On paper, it really is a fast course if you have good weather. There were enough people on the course that you never felt alone out there (at least for the half). If you are contemplating running a half or full marathon, in the future, I would suggest you run this race.
The Results! http://www.runwashington.com/results/searchable.html
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