Noggin Roundup 2012 (5k story)

I'm only a week out of Mummers (the most physically taxing and unhealthy time of my year,) but I saw a run and thought I'd take part in it. At Midland College (nice flat, I've run it before,) at 9:30 (almost too late for West Texas,) and only $15 (proceeds benefiting babies' heads.)

I paid my money and was handed a shirt. I asked, "Do I get a number?" and was told, "No, this isn't a timed run." I don't even know what that means.

The start was announced as, "Go down to the road and make a right." So I marched down to the road, asking someone along the way, "Is this the start?" "It is for me," the fellow runner replied. OK then, I guess we're off.

Five minutes in, my pace was just under eight minutes per mile. That's just sad, I do that on my own with no one watching.

I picked up the pace a bit running behind a red-shirt, until he took a stroller from someone along the way and started pushing it along. I passed him and a few others.

The last lap ended with a sprint. When I drove up I noticed a checkered flag at the side of the road. The announcer said something about it being one mile to go, actually I think she said it was the one mile mark. But when I passed it I took off, passing a few more people along the way.

I pulled my phone out to see how far I had to go (via Nike+,) and was informed I had run 3.4 miles. I kept going, even though I didn't see a finish line. I jumped over a low saw horse barrier and tapped my phone again, (I guess I hit the wrong button because a few minutes later the robotic female voice said, "30 minutes...")

I think I did the 3.5 miles in around 26 minutes. I have no idea where I placed, and I'm not even sure if I even finished in the right spot. But it was 60 degrees out, not too tough, and after the race I joked with the red-shirt about, "This guy had time the kidnap a baby along the way."

Not bad for a preseason race. But if they're not going to give us numbers before the race, at least have a finish line at the end with someone saying, "You're 8th, you're 9th, you're 10th..."

It's Not as Easy as it Looks (5k story)

I'm not talking about running in a 5k. My friends who run marathons and half-marathons would laugh me off the internet for that. I'm talking about running a 5k event. The planning, organization, and staging of the race. I found that out this weekend when I participated in the first ever Upward Bound TRiO Day 5k Run and Walk at Midland College.

The Bad
I'll start with the bitches and complaints.
The course was confusing. Around the MC loop is only 1.1 miles so they needed to add some detours. (I just wrote out a complete path description. Way boring. Let's just say...) It was two loops, two times around the Chap center and once to the I Street entrance gate. Not a problem if you have knowledgeable volunteers directing runners. And there's the problem. Some volunteers pointed the right way, some pointed the wrong way, and some just let the sign hang at their side, pointing to the ground. A bit of misguidance added almost half a mile to my run.
The coarse was not closed as suggested. I kinda figured this from the beginning. When you have students living on campus working jobs off campus, you're going to have some weekend traffic. That and there was a tennis tournament going on.

The age groups seemed odd. 17 and under, 18-35, 35 and up. And gender was not taken into account.
They ran out of tees. Personally, I don't see this as a problem (because I pre-register)
But the biggest problem of all, NO NUMBERS!

The Good
Now that that's out of the way, it did have many benefits.
The entry was only $15, in advanced or on race day.
A live DJ provided pre-race entertainment and energy.
Before the race, runners were guided through stretches and warm ups.
After the race, there were a lot of door prizes and hand outs. Everyone in my group went home with something.
The bronze medal I won had the date and event engraved on the back. This was a nice touch. I had to take a Sharpie to the ones I've won in the past.
And there were about a dozen oranges for each runner after the race.

The Future
All that said, would I participate in this run again? Sure.
This was their first year, so they were bound to be mistakes.
One being, the backs of the tee-shirts were not covered in logos or company names. I'm thinking that's a missed opportunity for extra revenue.
And that's what it's really all about, raising money for a good cause.
That, and the numbers. YOU GOTTA GET NUMBERS FOR NEXT YEAR!

First race in my new shoes. (the box is a pedometer door prize I won)

Nike+ GPS put my 5k time at 24:28

And full race time is flipped to 28:24 (that takes into account the extra distance I ran, and the time I stood at the finish table bitching about the extra distance I ran, instead of pushing stop on the timer.)

I'm not sure what time they call out from the stage, I was busy filling up on oranges.