C Code, Run

Ok, finally getting to the last race of 2011…

Aside from the annual Workplace Challenge at Jones Beach, I’ve done this race more than any any other. Here is the progression:

Overall, it’s a nice progression. I set a challenging, but realistic goal for this race every year and I haven’t been disappointed. I think I’m capable of even more improvement, but maybe I’ll talk more about that in another post.

Once again, rather than describe the course, I’ll show you my Garmin Connect activity:

Overall, this is a fun run and I expect it to anchor my running year in 2012 as well.

As with any other race I’ve done, there is a nice spread of food available afterward. Mulchay’s is the site of the awards ceremony and raffle.

This is a 5-mile run with no significant change in elevation. After a short run up Wantagh Ave, the run is entirely within the residential neighborhood referred to as Wantagh Woods. The run as a nice “home stretch” down Beech St. (Even though there is one more turn just before the finish, it feels like the home stretch to me.) Since it is a twisty course with lots of turns, knowing the race is over after that final, long straightaway provides a nice mental boost.  My splits usually show that last mile as one of my fastest, and that was no exception this year.

The Hope Runs Here Breast Cancer Run is another worthy cause that benefits from a 5K Run. Here on Long Island, we have among the highest breast cancer rates in the US, so this is a cause that really hits home.

For an inaugural race, they had a lot of participants with 419 finishers. I think that was because this was a particularly well-publicized event with some really nice raffle prizes donated by the shops in the mall.  The start and finish were just outside the Westfield Sunrise Mall.

Considering it was an inaugural race, it went off with barely a hitch from my perspective. There was a brief moment of confusion as to which direction we were starting in, but that was quickly resolved when Terry Bisogno, calling yet another Long Island race, made his way to the start and got everyone lined up the right way.

I maybe it had been the heat, but I didn’t feel I was running that well in the weeks leading up to this race, so my confidence was pretty low. I just figured I’d do my best and see what happens. I ended up running my best 5K with a 22:11 time (7:09 pace), full results here. This began changing my perspective on racing. I’d been going into these races seriously pumped up and probably pushing too hard, I ran this feeling very relaxed and posted my best time. This is something that was helpful in later races.

Overall this race was on par with the other events I did this year and they probably had the nicest raffle prizes of any of them. I know I say this about every race, but I would definitely do this again. Maybe I’m just really good at picking races.

The Marcum Workplace Challenge is essentially the same event it replaced in 2006, The JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge.  This race is somewhat different from the other races around a number of ways.

First, it has a big event feel. The turnout, to the best of my memory, is around 5,000-6,000 runners. Terry Bisogno, often referred to as the “Voice of Long Island Racing” handles the announcing. The pre-race ceremony includes a warm-up aerobics routine, the singing of the national anthem by a local celebrity, and usually a special guest in the form of a local politician. Despite the corporate-sounding name, it does raise money for local charities, so it’s another win-win proposition for everyone involved.

The biggest difference is in the race itself. They do recognize the top overall finishers, but the race is self-timed, so there is no formal list of finishers or age group awards. Also, despite the sheer number of participants, there is no staged or staggered start. This gives the race more of a “fun and camaraderie” feel than a competitive feel.

Also, it is not open to just anyone; you have to work for a company or organization taking part in it.

For me, this is a special race. In 2005, this was the first race I ever ran. I found out about it at work about 5 weeks beforehand, was already fed up with being out-of-shape and decided to do my best to get in shape for it. Also, until recently, this was the only race I would do throughout the year.

This year’s event took place on July 26, 2011. I started very close to the starting line because I know from experience that you can have a very troublesome and slow start if you start in the middle of the crowd. I figured a good, realistic goal was 26 minutes.

Here is the Garmin workout:

On the westbound leg, we were running into a nice breeze, so even though it was sunny and hot, it was manageable, when we turned back east, it was a very different story. Running with the breeze felt made it feel like the hot, humid air was still. To make matters worse, I had decided to wear the company shirt, which was cotton. It’s been a long time since I ran in cotton and it got soggy and hot. I actually grabbed some water at one of the stops just to throw on myself, but the water was pretty hot too.

So with the heat, I really slowed down about halfway through. As I got closer to the finish, I was able to pick it up a bit.

So, I fell short of my attainable 26 minute goal with a 26:32. Still my best time at a Marcum Run.

They provide plenty of water, sport drinks and fruit at the finish line, but the real good stuff is back in the tents. Pretty much every company there delivers a good meal to their employees and mine is no exception. This is an absolute fixture on my annual race calendar.

The Bellmore Striders Independence Day Run was held (of course) on July 4, 2011. It is a 4-mile race which is a bit of an odd distance for a race, but should have suited me perfectly as 4 miles was my daily run at the time.

This one was well-organized and seemed to go off without a hitch, but I really wasn’t happy with anything I did while I was there.

The had lots of porta-potties available, but there was a long line before the race anyway.  After picking up my shirt and number, I had about 20 minutes to kill, so decided to wait on the line to be sure the bladder was empty for the run. This worked out really well because, by the time I was finished, they were starting to move the runners to the start line. This was the last thing that went right for me at this race.

I peeked at the results from the previous races and noticed there were lots of very impressive times. I figured this was a runner’s race so I’d try and do the right thing and start a little further back to prevent getting in the way of faster runners. This courtesy is a whole different topic so I’ll rant about it another time, but suffice it to say, this was a mistake.

Several seconds after the buzzer went off (which I only barely heard, so I wasn’t even sure the race started) I was still standing there in a crowd. I started off just trotting, boxed in by lots of other runners and it took me a while to find room and get up to my normal race pace. A little frustrated, I probably pushed the first mile a little too hard trying to make up the time. To make things worse, in my confusion at the start, I forgot to hit start on my watch which was even more mentally disconcerting when I realized it almost a half mile in.  As a result, I’ll mention that the start was at the very west-most end of Pettit Ave and takes a turn north on Bedford. That’s where I finally turned on my GPS, so I’ll let Garmin Connect describe the rest of the course.

Despite the rocky start, I hit the first mile marker in a little over 7 minutes, so, at that point, I started feeling better about the race, but that didn’t last long. Toward the end of mile 2, the heat started getting to me. I had been running 4 miles almost every day anyway, but most of my runs are at 6 in the morning. By 9:00, the start time for this race, it was already hotter than I was used to.

In the last mile I was having a hard time just putting one foot in front of the other. If this had been a regular morning run, I might have stopped. In the homestretch down Grand Ave, I was getting passed again and again, the finish line was never so welcome a sight.

Once I finally finished and stopped running, the first thing I noticed was how wet I was. I’d run during many other summers, but I had never been drenched in sweat like that before. Even my shoes and socks were squishy like I had been standing in a deep puddle. They were printing out a results page customized for each runner. I got one, but it just disintegrated because even after I cooled down, I just kept sweating. It got all wet and fell apart.

I sometimes think of a race in terms of whether I won or lost. I don’t mean beating other runners, I mean hitting a certain goal or just feeling good with the effort overall. I consider this race a loss. I should have easily come in under 30 minutes, so my 30:25 (7:37 pace) was pretty disappointing. What really bothered me was how terrible I felt in the second half of the race, but obviously I was having heat and possibly some dehydration issues.

As with any race where I’m unhappy with the result, I want a rematch. This was a great, well-organized race on par any other good racing event I’ve done, so I’ll definitely be back next year.

The 5K AIDS/Cancer Run/Walk took place on June 12, 2011. It is a charity event to benefit the Richard M. Brodsky Foundation. Let me put this in perspective by pointing out that Richard Brodsky is a guy who has been diagnosed with both AIDS and brain cancer.  How did he respond? By continuing to run marathons a starting his foundation. Follow the links above to read about this guy, it’s pretty amazing and inspiring. It is also a reminder of how incredibly lucky I am that myself and my loved ones are healthy.

Upon arriving at the race, it was obvious that a great deal of work went into planning and organizing the event. There were lots of contributions many vendors and even Terry Bisogno, “The Voice of Long Island Racing”, was announcing the race.

The race itself was my first one with my aforementioned Garmin Forerunner 610. This is fortunate, because rather than describing the course, I’ll let Garmin Connect illustrate it:

I did not have the auto-lap feature turned on and I accidentally marked the end of mile 2 early. This race was recorded with an earlier revision of the watch firmware before the accuracy of the GPS was greatly improved, so it measured everything a little short.

I set another personal record at 22:17 (7:11 pace) and took 3rd in my age group, so I took home a little trophy.

Would I run the race again? Yes. This is a good event for a good cause and it was fun too.

Jack’s Run is an autism awareness event where all proceeds benefit NSSA (Nassau Suffolk Services for Autism).  These charity races are great because everyone seems to really enjoy themselves, a positive message is delivered and some money is raised for a good cause — Jack’s Run was no exception.

My primary rule for choosing races is that they be local. By local, I mean within a few minutes drive from my house. (There are a surprising number of road races throughout the year pretty close to my house) Mainly, I don’t want to have to drive too far in sweaty, stinky clothes, or have to factor a long car trip into my pre-race routine. Bar Beach is a little further than I’d normally go for a small 5K, but I grew up near there and spent many days there in my youth. I hadn’t been there in more than 20 years and thought a race through there would be fun.

The first thing I noticed was how well it was organized. There were lots of volunteers, so picking up your number, getting your shirt and getting into the raffle was quick and easy. Even Mr Met was hanging around before the race and motivating everyone with high fives (or fours I suppose).

The race itself was fun. It is two laps with the start in the southernmost parking lot, a run through the park to the north end and back along the beach. The last leg of the lap is along the beach, so it was a great way to end the race.

For me, it was a 5K personal record at 22:28 (7:14 pace) so I ran a good race.  Full results here.

Would I run this race again?  Absolutely yes!  In fact, according to the calendar at on the Start to Finish website (the company the timed the race) it is already scheduled for May 12, 2012.  See you there!