46:34
30% age group
35% female
Course and Elevation Profile.
Fun race. Lots of goofy costumes and lots of people there to have a good time. They had a local track team in costumes cheering everyone on, which was odd, but they were wonderfully enthusiastic. There was a few kid friendly games at the start line and a fun run that started after most all the runners were in. Panera Bread and Kolache Kitchen provided food at the start which was awesome! I love Kolache Kitchen! I wish Panera would only bring cinnamon crunch (maybe a half box of a couple other flavors would be okay), the other bagels looked untouched when it was all over with but they were out of cinnamon crunch. The asiago bagel also needs to be right beside the cinnamon crunch so that mistakes are not made. It's a bit of a shock to get a sharp cheese when you're expecting sweet. It was a conversation starter though, apparently I was not the only one who made that mistake.
Anyway, the race course was flat, well marked, the shirt was cool, and there was green beer and pizza afterwards!!
Negatives - NEED MORE WATER. In case you didn't notice I'm a big advocate for more water stops. It's better for there to be too much water offered than not enough. I can see why there were so many people with water belts on at this race, apparently other people had clued in. There was one stop you passed twice on the back half of the course. I understand it's more efficient to have one stop that is passed twice, but it makes for off timing of water stops in my opinion.
I wish there were more barefoot runners here. People looked at me like I was crazy. Only caught two stick burrs, was able to shake one off, ran with the other for about a 1/4 mile but it wasn't about to come out on it's own. I stopped fast enough that is didn't really show in the gps data.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/73848825
Battle at the Bird Mountain Bike Course
All I can say is you people are nuts. Seriously? This course was created by college students with no responsibilities and no concern for their physical well being. Good luck to those of you who are doing this race this morning and may your broken bones heal quickly.
I hiked most of this course, there is definately a reason it's labeled expert. I was decieved by draper, the expert course there had a couple of obstacles and easy bypass routes. Grant you maybe it does have easy bypass, but the course was already marked and all bypasses were blocked. From what I could see though it appeared the bypass were far from easy they just weren't quite as difficult. I'm glad I purchased my mountain bike for fun and recreation, a break from trying to break PR while road biking or running, because I will NEVER race a mountain bike.
My friend I was riding with told me the yellow and green (easy course) was used for the lowest category riders last year, woe to the person who comes back this year thinking that's what they will be facing today.
Oh yeah, and I bailed at the end, my chest hurt and I was out of water. I didn't even have enough in me to do the easy part of the course.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/72653181
I hiked most of this course, there is definately a reason it's labeled expert. I was decieved by draper, the expert course there had a couple of obstacles and easy bypass routes. Grant you maybe it does have easy bypass, but the course was already marked and all bypasses were blocked. From what I could see though it appeared the bypass were far from easy they just weren't quite as difficult. I'm glad I purchased my mountain bike for fun and recreation, a break from trying to break PR while road biking or running, because I will NEVER race a mountain bike.
My friend I was riding with told me the yellow and green (easy course) was used for the lowest category riders last year, woe to the person who comes back this year thinking that's what they will be facing today.
Oh yeah, and I bailed at the end, my chest hurt and I was out of water. I didn't even have enough in me to do the easy part of the course.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/72653181
Panera Jack Rector Beacon Run 5K
30:00
28% female
43% age group
Course and Elevation Profile.
Wow, that's a mouthful, say the race name five times fast :p Not much to be said for today's race. My calf still hadn't recovered from last week's 10K. I was really hoping to hit 25:00 minutes, using last year's times as an indicator that would have put me in a possibility for placing. The good news is, even if I'd hit 25:00 I still wouldn't have placed this year. It would have been a shame to push so hard and not got what I was wanting out of it anyway. My calf shut me down just after I hit two miles. I walk/ran the last of it. I can't believe I seriously considered doing the 25K, even to mostly walk it would have been miserable. I'm glad I backed out of that. I wish I could convince myself to stop focusing so much on time and just run, I think my body would be the better for it.
My friend Alice did a great job today. She was only a little over a minute behind placing! And she thought she'd come in last! She had a wonderful race!
Oh yeah, I saw three other vibram runners and a guy in huaraches.
Pros:
#1 MASSAGE! I love races that have massage afterwards!
#2 Course was well marked and flat as can be.
#3 Goodie bag had some coupons and flyers in it and a pair of gloves.
#4 Free Bagels! I wish my stomach had felt like food when I got there. They even had cinnamon crunch... yummmm
Cons:
#1 Swag - The logo printed on my shirt is very light, I think if I wash it, it might disappear. Someone was wearing a shirt from a previous year and it didn't look like that.
#2 Parking - That's just the nature of Stars and Stripes Park.
#3 Chips - Last call for picking up your chip was before the 25K start, 20 minutes before the 5K start. My friend who showed up thinking she had plenty of time nearly didn't get her chip.
#4 Personally I would have put the water stop about a quarter into the course since it's an out and back. For those running it in 30 or under it's not that big of a deal, but some of those people were out there for almost an hour. It probably would have been nice for them to be able to get water twice and it wouldn't have hurt anyone to have that opportunity.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/72653176
28% female
43% age group
Course and Elevation Profile.
Wow, that's a mouthful, say the race name five times fast :p Not much to be said for today's race. My calf still hadn't recovered from last week's 10K. I was really hoping to hit 25:00 minutes, using last year's times as an indicator that would have put me in a possibility for placing. The good news is, even if I'd hit 25:00 I still wouldn't have placed this year. It would have been a shame to push so hard and not got what I was wanting out of it anyway. My calf shut me down just after I hit two miles. I walk/ran the last of it. I can't believe I seriously considered doing the 25K, even to mostly walk it would have been miserable. I'm glad I backed out of that. I wish I could convince myself to stop focusing so much on time and just run, I think my body would be the better for it.
My friend Alice did a great job today. She was only a little over a minute behind placing! And she thought she'd come in last! She had a wonderful race!
Oh yeah, I saw three other vibram runners and a guy in huaraches.
Pros:
#1 MASSAGE! I love races that have massage afterwards!
#2 Course was well marked and flat as can be.
#3 Goodie bag had some coupons and flyers in it and a pair of gloves.
#4 Free Bagels! I wish my stomach had felt like food when I got there. They even had cinnamon crunch... yummmm
Cons:
#1 Swag - The logo printed on my shirt is very light, I think if I wash it, it might disappear. Someone was wearing a shirt from a previous year and it didn't look like that.
#2 Parking - That's just the nature of Stars and Stripes Park.
#3 Chips - Last call for picking up your chip was before the 25K start, 20 minutes before the 5K start. My friend who showed up thinking she had plenty of time nearly didn't get her chip.
#4 Personally I would have put the water stop about a quarter into the course since it's an out and back. For those running it in 30 or under it's not that big of a deal, but some of those people were out there for almost an hour. It probably would have been nice for them to be able to get water twice and it wouldn't have hurt anyone to have that opportunity.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/72653176
Creek Classic 10K
1:02:50
62% female; 87/140
75% age group; 15/20
Course and Elevation Profile.
First impression - there are so many people here! Yes, there were, but most were there for the 5K, there were less than 300 there for the 10K compared to roughly 650 for the 5K. Apparently only the serious runners do the 10K. Serious sunner I am not, I ran backwards and sideways hanging out with the friend that talked me into this race, grooving to my music. I wasn't that concerned with time until we made it to the last kilometer. There had been a woman that refused to let us pass her for the latter half of the race. We would pass, she would pass, we would pass, she would pass. I was wearing my garmin, I knew we were at a very consistant pace. The last K this woman passed us again and picked up pace. I said goodbye to my friend, in pursuit, I passed her with a 1 second lead. And even in chip time I retained my one second lead! Woohoo! Victory.
There was a man who did this during Spin Your Wheels last year. He would pass, I would pass, etc. I lost track of him finally at a water stop. During the last few miles I began chatting with another man and we spoke about this guy in the OU jersey (kind of hard to miss). The man told me he probably sized up my calves.... "He, what??" Apparently real cyclist will look at the calves of the person in front of them, if they deem their calves unworthy in size, they pass. This is why I had to beat this woman. What did she not like about me? Was it my vibrams? My waist size? What? I have to admit I am also guilty of this. During the Tye-Die Tri last fall, there was a woman who passed me, I looked at her calf (for anyone who doesn't know they write your age on your calf during triathlons). She was much older than I. I saw no reason for me to not be able to keep up with her, even though she was obviously in better shape. I stayed on her tail until the last 100 yards and sprinted around her.
Anyway back to the Classic.. Good course, straight mile north, weave through a neighborhood, then three straight miles back to the start. There were a couple of hills in the 5th mile, but nothing too bad, I noticed the downhill in the 5th mile more than anything. (Now that I look at the garmin info I see why.)
Positives:
#1 Parking! Plenty of it! Laugh if you will, but that is a serious issue at a lot of races.
#2 Good Cause! It appears to be a really good school system. There were banners up in the school for a fundraising drive to donate goats to developing nations. That was really nice to see.
#3 The route was pretty straight forward and easy to follow, if you were running alone at the end, getting lost probably wouldn't happen. There was a bit of confusion from some at the start when the 10K and 5K seperated, other than that course was marked well.
#4 Nice shirt!
Complaints
#1 Need bigger water cups, not minis! I get the idea of eco friendly, okay, then give people options, small or big!
#2 Maybe this is typical and I know stuff left at water stops is subject to be lost forever, but I would have thought they'd bring the stuff back to the start to be reclaimed when they load up to head back, not leave it by the side of the road. Especially in a small race with just a few things left behind.
#3 There was a lot of confusion during packet pick up as to which line was for what, I didn't have any problem, but lots of people were trying to figure it out while I was standing in line.
Garmin info, I forgot to start it in the very beginning, then the signal had a few issues, and the two big slow downs in the beginning are when I dropped my phone, then my keys, about the time I lost my license too. Positive #5 good honest people, my license made it back to me :) http://connect.garmin.com/activity/71431353
Race Website: http://deercreekclassic.com/
62% female; 87/140
75% age group; 15/20
Course and Elevation Profile.
First impression - there are so many people here! Yes, there were, but most were there for the 5K, there were less than 300 there for the 10K compared to roughly 650 for the 5K. Apparently only the serious runners do the 10K. Serious sunner I am not, I ran backwards and sideways hanging out with the friend that talked me into this race, grooving to my music. I wasn't that concerned with time until we made it to the last kilometer. There had been a woman that refused to let us pass her for the latter half of the race. We would pass, she would pass, we would pass, she would pass. I was wearing my garmin, I knew we were at a very consistant pace. The last K this woman passed us again and picked up pace. I said goodbye to my friend, in pursuit, I passed her with a 1 second lead. And even in chip time I retained my one second lead! Woohoo! Victory.
There was a man who did this during Spin Your Wheels last year. He would pass, I would pass, etc. I lost track of him finally at a water stop. During the last few miles I began chatting with another man and we spoke about this guy in the OU jersey (kind of hard to miss). The man told me he probably sized up my calves.... "He, what??" Apparently real cyclist will look at the calves of the person in front of them, if they deem their calves unworthy in size, they pass. This is why I had to beat this woman. What did she not like about me? Was it my vibrams? My waist size? What? I have to admit I am also guilty of this. During the Tye-Die Tri last fall, there was a woman who passed me, I looked at her calf (for anyone who doesn't know they write your age on your calf during triathlons). She was much older than I. I saw no reason for me to not be able to keep up with her, even though she was obviously in better shape. I stayed on her tail until the last 100 yards and sprinted around her.
Anyway back to the Classic.. Good course, straight mile north, weave through a neighborhood, then three straight miles back to the start. There were a couple of hills in the 5th mile, but nothing too bad, I noticed the downhill in the 5th mile more than anything. (Now that I look at the garmin info I see why.)
Positives:
#1 Parking! Plenty of it! Laugh if you will, but that is a serious issue at a lot of races.
#2 Good Cause! It appears to be a really good school system. There were banners up in the school for a fundraising drive to donate goats to developing nations. That was really nice to see.
#3 The route was pretty straight forward and easy to follow, if you were running alone at the end, getting lost probably wouldn't happen. There was a bit of confusion from some at the start when the 10K and 5K seperated, other than that course was marked well.
#4 Nice shirt!
Complaints
#1 Need bigger water cups, not minis! I get the idea of eco friendly, okay, then give people options, small or big!
#2 Maybe this is typical and I know stuff left at water stops is subject to be lost forever, but I would have thought they'd bring the stuff back to the start to be reclaimed when they load up to head back, not leave it by the side of the road. Especially in a small race with just a few things left behind.
#3 There was a lot of confusion during packet pick up as to which line was for what, I didn't have any problem, but lots of people were trying to figure it out while I was standing in line.
Garmin info, I forgot to start it in the very beginning, then the signal had a few issues, and the two big slow downs in the beginning are when I dropped my phone, then my keys, about the time I lost my license too. Positive #5 good honest people, my license made it back to me :) http://connect.garmin.com/activity/71431353
Race Website: http://deercreekclassic.com/
2010 Race Results
Williams Route 66 Half Marathon
2:29:30 (10K - 1:05:07) (15K - 1:45:06)
58% female
68% age group
Alfalfa Bill Century Ride.... that wasn't
46 miles 2:50, ride got rained out
Honestly, I don't remember what this was raising money for..... It was an interesting ride with some good cookies at the start..... The half I did had some great scenery. I do remember the roads being very busy with very rude drivers on it. I don't think I will do this one again.
Komen 5K
27:56
25% female
28% age group (gun time, not chip time)
Tye-Die Triathlon (500m,12m,5K)
1:26:13 (11:31, 42:06, 30:21)
30% female
29% age group
Midnight Streak 5K
30:36
24% female
21% age group (gun time, not chip time)
This race is a lot of fun! It is kind of hard to see the road at some points, it has some slopes if I remember right. There is a prerace massage which felt wonderful! I don't remember the water stops or if there was anything to eat after. The tech shirt we got was good quality though.
Spin Your Wheels Metric Century
4:07 not a race, but a great ride for a great cause.
Slightly hilly, but not awful, mostly flat. I'll be doing this one again in the morning, only the 100 mile this time. Subway sandwiches to eat afterwards, lots of food stuffs to fuels up with at the start. Lots of water stops with stuff to drink and eat, but I do remember the pickles being gone at the turn around point by the time I got there.
Red Bud Classic 10K
1:11:28
61% female
63% age group
Okay, you can look at my review from the 2011 redbud for whatever you want to know. I will simply say here, I will not do the redbud run again.
2:29:30 (10K - 1:05:07) (15K - 1:45:06)
58% female
68% age group
Me after my first half marathon. I bonked at 8 miles. I carried the gatorade bottle in my hand the entire race and drank barely any of it. I craved water through the entire race. I wish I had known that was a sign of dehydration. I was not happy with my first half, then I saw the man that was my age die on the course. I was not far behind it and looked up in time to see another runner jump on him to start CPR. At that point I decided it didn't matter what time I finished in, I was thankful to finish. They have food and beer at the finish. A really nice medal. The course is hilly, deceptively hilly. Beware OKC runners that choose to go do it, definitely go run around Arcadia lake to prepare.
Alfalfa Bill Century Ride.... that wasn't
46 miles 2:50, ride got rained out
Honestly, I don't remember what this was raising money for..... It was an interesting ride with some good cookies at the start..... The half I did had some great scenery. I do remember the roads being very busy with very rude drivers on it. I don't think I will do this one again.
Komen 5K
27:56
25% female
28% age group (gun time, not chip time)
This is the Allegiance Credit Union group I ran with, I'm the odd one out in grey toward the back. Joined a little late to get a shirt, which wasn't a big deal to me. Here's the thing about the Cure run, if you want to have a PR or don't like weaving in and out of people you will have to push your way to the front before the start. Most of the people are there to support the cause, so if you are wanting a true race start at the front. It is crowded. If I remember right the water stops were not quite large enough to handle the amount of people going through. So if you want to support a great cause and get some neat goodies afterwards do this run. If you want a race, don't do this run.
Tye-Die Triathlon (500m,12m,5K)
1:26:13 (11:31, 42:06, 30:21)
30% female
29% age group
This is the OCCC triathlon group of 2010. Mike and Marleen are the coaches up front. They came out to support all of us doing the Tie-Dye Tri. This tri was a bit of a mess. They were well organized except when it came to bike course. The leads missed the turn back for the funky second loop and got DQd. So if you choose to do this one, make sure you understand the loops of the bike course BEFORE going out there. The bike and run course is flat. The battle the day we did it was the wind. This was my first triathlon. I would do this one again and I think it is a good one for first timers.
Midnight Streak 5K
30:36
24% female
21% age group (gun time, not chip time)
This race is a lot of fun! It is kind of hard to see the road at some points, it has some slopes if I remember right. There is a prerace massage which felt wonderful! I don't remember the water stops or if there was anything to eat after. The tech shirt we got was good quality though.
Spin Your Wheels Metric Century
4:07 not a race, but a great ride for a great cause.
Slightly hilly, but not awful, mostly flat. I'll be doing this one again in the morning, only the 100 mile this time. Subway sandwiches to eat afterwards, lots of food stuffs to fuels up with at the start. Lots of water stops with stuff to drink and eat, but I do remember the pickles being gone at the turn around point by the time I got there.
Red Bud Classic 10K
1:11:28
61% female
63% age group
Okay, you can look at my review from the 2011 redbud for whatever you want to know. I will simply say here, I will not do the redbud run again.
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