Workout: 5 miles, 10:50 average, Pace Gloves
I'm pretty sure I'm the only person in the U.S. not watching the basketball game right now. In fact, I didn't even know there was a basketball game on until I heard about it on the radio while on my way to the expo. I did hear some yelling and screaming coming from, like, all my neighbors when I was walking Bailey, though. SPOILER ALERT: something exciting obviously happened.
Going to the expo during the game was a really good choice. I'm pretty anti-expo (too much squealing and jazz hands for this gal), but I was able to get in and out of there in roughly five minutes. I even bought a t-shirt!
It says 40th Mayor's Marathon. And it's got a picture of the sun for the solstice. And a mountain because, duh. We really need to talk about those shorts sometime because I lurrrve them. Moving Comfort momentum shorts. They should probably give me money for saying that.
I'm pretty sure runners get a cotton shirt at the race finish, but I read somewhere that by the time middle-to-back-of-the-pack marathoners finish, they're usually out of all the normal sizes (lame!). Plus, my mom picked up a long-sleeve tech shirt for me my first time around and we've been inseparable ever since.
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An excuse to post hiking pictures?! Don't mind if I do! Hanging Valley, summer 2009.
The shirt says ALASKA: Land of the Midnight Run. O'Malley Peak, summer 2009.
They were selling a short-sleeve neon green version of my ALASKA shirt, but that was just a bit much for me. I settled on what ended up being a shirt almost the exact same color as the one I already have. But hey, at least it's not purple!
As for my free swag, here's the first picture:
And the second picture:
...
Oh, wait, there isn't another picture because that's it. It was definitely less than I was expecting, but I don't race for the swag anyway. I just thought it was funny.
As you can see, I'm runner 638. I'll probably end up posting a quick "OMG I FINISHED/FAILED/DIED" blurb before the results go up, but if not and you've got nothing better to do on a Saturday night, by all means, look me up! You can also use it to figure out my super awesome last name.
Fortunately, the chip timer thing is IN the bib this year so I don't have to worry about forgetting it again. I ALSO found out that they use gun times and not chip times as official times DESPITE THE FACT THAT WE'RE ALL USING CHIP TIMERS. That makes no sense and also makes me a little mad. But whatever. I'll just pretend I didn't cross the starting line until an hour after the gun goes off.
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Tomorrow is my very last run (3 miles) before the race! I think I'm going to wear my new shirt. Is that bad juju? I've seen TONS of people wear race shirts on race day, which I think is really bizarre, so I'm going to go ahead and say this is okay. Send a runner emergency squad if I'm wrong about this.
Question:
- Can I wear my new shirt before the race? Do you ever do this?
- What kind of swag usually comes with a race entry? I can't remember.
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I'm kinda superstitious (although the scientist in me knows that's dumb) so I don't wear race gear before I've crossed the finish line. I've heard it's bad luck so I don't mess with that. I think the amount of swag depends on how big the race is; it's been my experience that you often get better stuff at bigger races. Good luck at the marathon! You've worked so hard, now reap the rewards! Really looking forward to reading your recap. :)
ReplyDeleteI think it's fine. I don't wear mine on race day, but that's more of an "I don't want any surprises" kind of thing than a superstition.
ReplyDeleteAny excuse to post hiking photos is a good excuse!
I actually like races that give less swag, ha. For the NF50k, it was my bib, a pair of socks, and my t-shirt (which I picked up after the race). No bag, no flyers about other races, nothing. It was simple.
Also..I had no idea there was a basketball game on either. Oops.
SOOO EXCITED to hear about your race!!! Good luck!!! I just KNOW you are going to dominate it!
GOOD LUCK GOOD LUCK GOOD LUCK!!!! Please post results immediately. Followed by the race recap of a lifetime (after of course you recover with a big beer and extra large burrito). Is it weird that I want to be there cheering you on and helping you through the hard parts? I would wear a race shirt before the race but not for the race. According to some runners and bloggers I have read, wearing a race shirt for that race calls out newbie. But if you want to rock it, by all means go out and rock it. You've got this, Ms. Jogging Jeano!
ReplyDeleteYou're so kind, Amy. Your comment totally helped me this morning!! I may spew sarcasm 99% of the time, but I genuine appreciate all your support.
DeleteI don't wear the gear before I finish the run. To be totally honest, I (might) even judge those that do, just a little bit. (whooops!) I also don't wear the shirt to the race.
ReplyDeleteIn the US, I'd agree with Amy and say this calls you out as a newbie - although in Singapore, 90% of participants wear the race shirts for the race. [On the plus side, since race photography is in its infancy and they don't use programs to sort by bib number, your race photos don't get automatically tagged. Therefore, it's pretty easy to find photos of me, since I never wear the race shirt (and generally choose a contrasting color!).] I always instruct clients to NOT try anything new on race day - including wearing the new gear. What if it chafes?
Swag in Singapore is actually pretty sweet. We often get shoe bags and towels, plus a few random energy bars, chews, and once we got a whole box of cereal! :)
They use gun time as the official time when they have chip timing? Then what the heck is the point of having the chips!? Seems like money wasted. I guess they're expecting the race contenders to be starting right up front.
ReplyDeleteI know this is beside the point now, since your race has been run, but thought I'd share my opinion :) I don't see any issue with you wearing your shirt before the race if it doesn't bother you. However, I think it's really weird for people to wear their shirts on race day. For one, it's usually a "finisher's" shirt, so wearing it during the race is like jinxing yourself, to meat least. But my main reason for not wearing it is that in longer races (and sometimes even in short ones) you really don't want to wear something new. You have no idea how that shirt fits, if it'll chafe you, or if it'll randomly start driving you nuts at mile 10.