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| Brooks tech tee, cotton long sleeve finisher's shirt, tech hat, race bag, and medal |
This
was our first half marathon so we were excited and nervous. We arrived at the race super early and found
plenty of volunteers pointing out directions to parking areas. The temperature was in the 50s so it was a
little chilly hanging out by the port o potties waiting for the sun to come
up. The race start is set up in corrals
depending on what you put down as your anticipated finish time when you
registered. With the race weekend
capping out around 24,000 participants the corrals were a bit packed so we just
squeezed in where we thought we should be!
The sun slowly rose and before we knew it we were off and running! There were a lot of people on the course but
there was plenty of room. The entire
road was shut down as we made our way away from the strip and headed out toward
Joint Expeditionary Base, Fort Story.
While running through Fort Story you pass the midway point and get a
great view of the Atlantic Ocean and Cape Henry light house. The course loops around and finishes on the
world famous boardwalk just past the majestic figure of King Neptune. There are hydration stations every 1.5 miles
along the course offering water and Gatorade and some gels at the half way
point. J & A Racing is a huge race
organization so the support for this race was amazing. Volunteers and supporters were out on the
course cheering us on the whole way!
Weather: A
It was chilly when we first arrived but we are talking
Virginia Beach in March. It’s chilly but
once the sun came up and we got out there it was great. The post-race party was also great because it
was right on the beach with the sun shining and warming everything up!
Organization: A
J & A Racing is awesome and they do a great job putting
on events. If you travel to Virginia
Beach on a regular basis check out the Live, Love, Run VB Challenge that J
& A puts on. Run their four races
throughout the year and you get a commemorative item! On a side note…unfortunately for us we have
not been able to pull this challenge off yet.
We originally missed the Shamrock registration so we had to buy our bibs
from some other people. During the race
I wore a bib with the name Colleen on it while my good natured hubby wore a bib
with the name Amanda!
Course: B
The course is great as far as plenty of room goes. It is very flat and the finish on the
boardwalk and beach is awesome (make sure you check out the huge sand sculpture
created special every year for this race).
Our only complaint was that running out to Fort Story is pretty boring
and then running back to the beach is boring.
Not really sure how they could change this, maybe we are just picky!
Medal: A
This was my first medal and my hubby’s second. I was pretty darn impressed with it and after
accumulating more I am still pretty impressed with it. It is not your average circle or square
medal. It is shaped like a Shamrock and
is pretty hefty! They change the design
every year so for a race that is 40 years old that is saying something!
Schwag: A
Schwag: A
For this race we received a long sleeve everyday tee shirt,
a Brooks technical short sleeve, a running hat,
a cloth bag that we got at the expo with our bibs and lots of little
treats (gels, beans, coupons), and finally the awesome medal.
Post-Race: A
The post-race party was great. There was plenty or Yuengling Beer, Murphy’s
Irish stew, and great music. The party
was on the beach which was nice because if the tent area felt like it was
getting crowded you could just step outside and relax in the sand.
Our Performance: B-
This was our first half and I am by no means upset about our
B-. We came in around 2:18. I do realize now that I should have put in
more training (I only did the long runs while hubby and his buddies were out
there five to six days a week). We did
awesome until around mile 11 then I really started slowing us down. We never walked though so that I am proud
of! We don’t always run our races
together so I am pretty glad that we did run our first half together…how
awesome is that?!!!
Overall Grade: A
We will run this race again.
Not sure if we will do the half or try the marathon but we will conquer
that VB Challenge and get that commemorative item someday!!!
For more info, or to register, go to: http://www.shamrockmarathon.com/ |
| my scrapbook page (we had to buy bibs off other runners since we missed registration) |
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