Race Report: Seattle Rock-N-Roll Marathon and Half Marathon

So my first ever full marathon now lives in hind sight . On Saturday morning of June 26, I and three siblings-in-law took to the streets of Seattle to race in the Rock-N-Roll franchise race series. This franchise has recently been on a buying frenzy, including Seattle and the New Orleans Marathon. I don't know how I feel about local races being swallowed up by a nation wide racing conglomerate, but these guys sure know how to facilitate a good race. In addition to this being my first marathon it was my first big event race, with an Expo and everything. So I'll start with the Expo and then get into 'everything'.

The Expo

Held in the Quest Convention Center in downtown Seattle, it was large, fast and efficient.  Greeters were stationed at the door to direct racers toward registration and non-racers unto the Expo floor.  It took all of 30 seconds for me to get my registration packet. I went on the Thursday before the race so it may have been mayhem for those attending on Friday.  Based on my Thursday experience I have to give the registration a bug thumbs up.  Getting a big, double jointed, thumbs down is the event Tech tee and the schwag bag. The shirt is a horrible lime green and has no sense of style or class. The ugly green monster will be stored away until I collect enough shirts to have a quilt made. Going into the schwag area racers were teased by two smartly dressed mannequins wearing really nice Seattle marathon singlets. These were of course for sale on the Expo floor at full retail value. The schwag bags were little more than a bag full of advertisements. Again, this was my first Expo so I don't know if this is out of the norm or not. What was brilliant is that attached to the bib was a racer identification tag. Inside the schwag bag was a rip cord with which you could attach the racer ID to your bag. On race morning you could stuff whatever you wanted in the bag and hand it off to a UPS worker. The boys in brown then secured the bag with another rip cord so it could sit safe until retrieved at the finish line. This allowed racers to layer clothing for the brisk morning and layer up again after the run, which in Seattle was a must do. Big ups to the event crew and UPS for providing such a fantastic service. The Expo floor was what one would expect to find on any Expo floor, lots of stuff to buy and a few cool give-aways. I don't know what it is about free stuff but I become such a little junkie when its handed out. I collected about 15 packs of Zicam Allergy relief swabs and an equal number of Zicam Cold Sore relief swabs. I don't have allergies to anything other than a couple of antibiotics, nor does Ella. Lisa does have allergies but doesn't use meds to fight them as many are triggers for migraines, which my lovely love sometimes suffers from.  Still, I greedily took what was offered because it was FREE! So if you need some Zicam I'm your man. First one's free. As are all the rest should you want them. One thing that was nice but a little unsettling was the video tour of the Full and Half Marathon course. The vid was sped up and that’s what made it a bit unsettling. I watched the whole video and felt the twenty minute presentation was long. I would need to add another three and half hours. YIKES! All in all I really enjoyed the Expo. I loved being saturated in all things running. It’s wildly convenient when capitalism takes a shine to your own interests.

Everything Else

The course was tough. How’s that for short and sweet? There were several hills, especially on the full marathon course. Some were ascents up the onramps of highways, but most were a part of the natural landscape. Seattle is hilly, the hilliest city I’ve ever been in. In fact the road leading up to my brother-in-law’s house is literally like a roller-coaster drop…with a stop sign at the bottom. The porta-potties and water stations were spread out perfectly and the bands every mile were a nice touch. Medical aid was available at every hydration stand in addition to medics patrolling the course on bikes. You could get into trouble on any part of the course and have full medical attention within minutes, very impressive!

The course was made hard by the many hills, mostly found on the full marathon portion. This coupled well with fantastic Seattle weather. Cool breezes off the waterfront runs, of which there were several, and low temps, helped to whisk away sweat. If you’re an out-of-towner racing in Seattle, do your HILL WORK! In all honesty I don’t know if the course was hard or just the miles. My brother-in-law, who BQ’ed, yeah Andrew!, thought the course tough as well. 

There were a lot of people out supporting the runners. Part of the Rock-N-Roll package is recruiting local high school cheer squads to line the course. The squad with the ‘most spirit’ gets some kind of reward. I don’t have a clue what kind of reward but it was great having them out there. One of the coolest cheering squads was what appeared to be a motor cycle gang of Vets, all of whom were holding American flags, offering up cheers and high-fives. Fan support thinned only along the highway over passes and bridges, but no spot was bereft of at least a few people offering encouragement.

The finish line was all dolled up and offered all the spectacle to be expected of a big event. The exit chute funneled runners past volunteers draped with finisher medals like
ornaments on a Christmas tree, unto medical, and into a large runners only area with plenty of hydration and nourishment. Wrapped around the finishers area was the Family Reunion center, bag pick-up, concert area and Beer Garden. No one in my family had any interest in the bands playing so we didn’t check that area out at all. Unfortunately I wasn’t strong enough to cash in my free MGD 64 card, or even have a seat in the Beer Garden. As we headed toward the water taxi I was walking away from four months of hard training. Would I do it again? Could I? My immediate response was HELL NO! But now, after a week to recoup? Hmmm…

Daddy Legs

Up next...The Pain Report. Reflections on punishing myself for 26 miles.