Race Recap: Ugly Holiday Sweater Run and Walk

Saturday, December 21, 2013

Logo by: Andrea Schwoebel  (http://andreaschwoebel.com)

A friend from Moms RUN This Town posted on Facebook about a free 5k, and before she could say anything else about it.... she had me at "free".

Cost:
The race is free, but asking for donations for the Ladybug CDH Foundation.  Participants could bring 100% cotton receiving blankets, socks or hats.  If it was easier, cutting a check for the foundation was acceptable (and appreciated) too!

The race was a small and intimate affair, but so much fun and highly recommended!!  I am bad at estimates, but I think there may have been about 50 people participating today.

Beneficiary:
As noted above, the Ladybug CDH Foundation was receiving the donations made by participants. Click on their name to go see their webpage what they are all about!  They hope to raise awareness about a birth defect called Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia and raise money for research and treatment.
 
$110 was raised in cash/checks and the charity received 83 pairs of socks, 42 hats and 64 receiving blankets!  I don't know how that compares to last year, but I hope the race is growing and will continue to grow in participants.

Location:
The 5k (or one mile option) was an untimed fun run that was held at Summerlake Park.  The park was very beautiful with the light fog, frozen lakes and streams and water fowl in the area.  There is also a dog park with in the park and a very dog-friendly race for friendly dogs.

The course is pretty flat, with a mild incline at the end of the first mile (or just after starting your second loop of the park).

Atmosphere:
The events started with a costume contest before the actually running or walking... What would an "Ugly Holiday Sweater" theme race be without costumes?

As you can see below, I went all out in my "Ugly Sweater".  I didn't just put on a sweater I found and decorated... I dressed up as a sweater!  

Once again, I forgot to ask people for permission to post their pics on my blog, so you'll have to trust me that there were some really fantastic, fun and festive holiday sweaters there.  One of the participants wore a "top hat" that was a brick design  with black boots on the top like Santa's feet on his way down the chimney.  Then the sweater was green and done up like a tree.

Eggnog was donated by Alpenrose, coffee from Starbucks, bagels from Einstein Bagels and some pastries and holiday cookies that I believe were from a local grocery store.

There was also plenty of door prizes too.  And to get a door prize?  All you had to do was show up, receive your drawing ticket and hold on to half of it while the other half was placed into the basket for the drawing.

While runners and walkers made their journey to finish one loop or three, the race organizers taped the winning ticket to the items and you could check to see if you had a match.

A fresh cut holiday wreath was available, 13 gift certificates to Veggie grill, gift cards to local running stores (Foot Traffic and Pace Setter Athletic), and a free race entry to a local race (The Bald Peak Half).

(Pretty awesome!  My family scored two $10 veggie grill cards and my running partner/sole sister got $20 to the local "candy store"... okay, running store.)

 

In the top right picture, you can see the "bones' of the costume.  My husband constructed a large pvc pipe "hanger to hold the XL sweater coat and with some foam, a belt and suspenders, the contraption somehow stayed on and relatively pain-free.

The next two photos on the right column are me in the first test run.

The bottom, middle picture is my Squeakers and Bugaboo after the race, and heading home.  Squeakers is wearing wool pants made out of a shrunken, felted (and ugly) sweater.

The bottom left picture is my "bling" for my creative masterpiece.  :)  A trophy that has to be more than 3 ft tall.... though I haven't broken out the tape measure for it.


Bibs were also available for fun at the race, as well as a link provided before hand to print out.  I just love the logo of the runner in the detailed sweater she has on.   

Race bib by:  Andrea Schwoebel   (http://andreaschwoebel.com)

So, I hope I've convinced you to give this one a try next year.  If anything, it's untimed, so grab a group of your friends and wrap yourselves up in yarn and Christmas lights ( you could call your team "hot mess") and have some fun while helping out some babies.

You can't go wrong and will be glad you went.  

(Don't expect me to outdo myself on this year's costume.  I'll probably be wearing it until it starts to unravel.  And now I have Weezer "Undone" stuck in my head.)

Recap: Uberthons' Turkeython! My first Turkey Trot... or waddle.

I enjoyed my first turkey trot this year... and if You haven't done one of these yet, you've gotta give them a try.  There are tofurky is your thing, chances are you'll even find a tofurkey trot near you too.

I participated in the Uberthons Turkeython which was held at the local mall.  I'm pretty sure there were no shoppers that morning, and the ample parking was all racers and their friends and family to cheer them on.  

The race charity benefits a program also put on by Uberthons called the UberKids Enrichment program, which you can read more about by clicking here.  They were raising funds for scholarships for kids who would otherwise not be able to participate in that program.  Another aspect to the charity was kids participating in the kids' dash were encouraged to bring a new toy and/or tree ornament and kiddos could dash with the toy/ornament to place under the tree for the Doernbecher Children's Hospital.

The morning was a freezing 30 degrees Fahrenheit as runners did a 2.5K loop to warm up or stand about jumping in place to try to stay warm.  I wore my crazy turkey costume... and though you might think that would help provide some warmth... I started the race with a numb butt.  So., there ya go.  No extra insulation there with 11lbs of pillow fluff inside my fabric turkey.

 The course was a 2.5K lap around the parking perimeter of the local mall.  That was as close to a shopping center I wanted to be on Thanskgiving morning... but not everyone may feel the way i do about that.

There are events for everyone with a 2.5K run or walk, 5k run or walk and 10K run, along with a relay with 2-4 team members (for a 10K total distance).  Each lap was 2.5K, so for a 5K, run around twice and for the 10K I lapped the mall 4 times.  

The course is billed as relatively flat.  Let me tell you about that. My first 2.5K around, I noted one hill.  Okay, not so bad.  There is one uphill portion that is a little bit difficult, but I'm chugging right along... trying not to burn out with this huge turkey costume on.  On the way back to the start/finish to start my second loop, I thought there was a nice down hill portion.  Not too bad.

The second time around the 2.5K loop, I distinctly remember counting 4 hills. 4!  That's not very flat for a 2.5K.... then the third time on the loop, I decided that the whole thing was nothing but uphill.  But to clarify my bias, my suspenders on my turkey had come loose and I had to carry the damn thing.  I stopped and asked two seperate volunteers managing traffic on the road if they'd help me reclip it... but it just wasn't working out.

As I neared the finish line for the final loop, I ditched the turkey at the JC Penny store entrance and ran as fast as I could.  Literally.

I am proud that my 15 minute a mile pace last April has improved to about a 11:30 minute mile... but when my friend who had long finished her 10K saw me about to start my final loop, she asked if she could join me.   I was grateful for the company as my legs were wobbly like a thanksgiving jello mold and I wasn't sure if i was going to make it... Much less stay upright.  I had taken a spill two days before the race and had road rash on my knee, elbow and both palms.  I didn't want to biff it again.

Well, she wasn't going to let me take a leisurely stroll.  She kept just a step ahead of me, hollering back at me how many more minutes I was from the finish at this pace.  Okay.  That was helpful.  I can't keep this up for a lifetime, but i can keep doing this for one more minute and 28 more seconds.  We passed her husband who volunteered to take race photographs.  On that final loop, I didn't even look his way to smile... much less exert any extra energy to wave.  I asked between puffs if I threw up if we could slow down.  My friend said something about waiting to vomit after the finish line.

 She's a beast!  

Well, I ran a 10:52 minute mile for that final loop.  I'll take it.  :D  

As I crossed the finish line, she grabbed my turkey costume for me, so I got to carry him across the finish.  Poor thing missed out on 2.5K of the race, but he finished too.
 
If you are looking to do this event in the future, packet pick up was three days and open for 7 hours.  So it was relatively easy to beat the lines on race day to get your bib.

Uberthons also had a second bib that racers could write what they were thankful for and pin to their backs.  I enjoyed seeing the ones that I could as people passed me.

Race photos (as of this writing) are still being edited but will be offered for a reasonable price of $5.  It's 4 days post race, but it's also important to remember that the photographer is a volunteer with a full time job too.  (After volunteering at three different races, I have a totally new perspective how much a race is held together by volunteers.)

The crowd is HUGE and very friendly.  There were more than 1,200 participants. I did get pushed once by a "very serious" athlete who was probably pissed that this wide turkey butt was blocking his path to a PR... but I didn't stumble to the asphalt and scrape my knees, so no harm done.  My crazy swinging pilgrim's legs kicked a little girl as I passed and I apologized profusely to her... but I don't think she even noticed.  

The bling is not to be messed around with!  1/4" thick and very heavy, the medal is beautiful.  I also won a grey fleece blanket for my turkey getup.  :)

It was a great morning.  (And day 18 of my Holiday running streak!)

What did you do for Thanksgiving?

DIY riding costume... or "How to stuff a turkey costume for your turkey trot"

Eight days before my "Turkey Trot" race on Thanksgiving Morning... I got onto Google.  This is usually bad news for me, because I see some idea that I can't let go of and become obsessed.  

This time, I looked up "Turkey Trot Costumes" and scrolling through the images, it didn't take long to come across this beauty:

Photo Credit:  http://www.kranson.net/events/2011/thanksgiving/parade/default.htm

The website says it was the Turkey Trot from 2011 in Detroit... So, getting more specific in my Google search terms, I found a youtube video with the runner in action (which you can click here to see it, but you might want to fast forward to 4:25.)  and a blog about his costume!

After my detective work was done, I set to sketching and after two hours from the initial Google search, I had the head completed.  

Because I was in such a hurry, I didn't think this through in terms of blogging and didn't take many photos of the process to make this.  So, bare with me as I try to explain it...

I've made 90% of the costume with found objects in my random home.  I have lots of felt for all sorts of projects, so using some felt, some orange-ish 4-way stretch jersey material, a pool noodle, black pants, coat hangers and a pole I use in the garden for bean runners... I have my costume.  And a whole lot of pillow stuffing.  Some I had to pilfer from friends who had some old/extra pillows I could de fluff.  

First thing, my orange material was "tube shaped" like the material was meant to be sewn into a skirt.  So, I took the "waist" of the skirt-like tube and folded it down to the bottom and sewed the two together all the way around, except for a small hole to shove pillow stuffing and the pool noodle in.  

Next I cut an "x" in the crotch of some old black pants and sew the new opening around the doughnut-hole opening in the orange material.  This "x" has to be big enough to fit around the hole in the orange doughnut and big enough for me to jimmy on before a race.  :) 

Getting into this thing is a making for a bad video on youtube or something.  

Then next part, I had my husband place a tennis ball on the end of the "bean pole" so that if/when I tripped and fell over my costume, I wouldn't impale myself on the rod in the head.  Shove it in the turkey head, add stuffing and sew the neck shut and attach the pole through the "chest" of the orange doughnut and secure pole into the pool noodle with just about anything you can get to work...  We have a lot of hot glue, string and maybe even a little duct tape in the mix.  The tail is attached the same way, with some coat hangers within a couple of the feathers so that it didn't just flop down behind me and get dragged behind me on race day.  It did droop a little and I'll want to fix that somehow so I'm not irritating the serious racers around me when i run in it.

That's pretty much it.  Oh!  Except suspenders.  Suspenders are a must.  That is what I did purchase for the costume at the local thrift shop.  Attaching the suspenders to the orange doughnut, I had to be cautious stepping into the doughnut hole... not to get tangled in the suspender straps and hike the turkey butt up over my own.  That was a chore.  Most certainly something I needed help with.

I have very patient friends...

This is me taking the turkey out for a test spin.  It did great for those 2 test miles.

The reactions I got from witnesses of my test run would be a whole other blog entry...

On race day, I'd change how to get the tail to be a little more predictable and not so droopy and after 3 1/2 miles in it, my suspenders came loose.  I pestered two poor race volunteers at separate parts of the course to reach down into the "doughnut hole" and clip my suspenders.

I swear that isn't as naughty as it sounds.

After giving up on it working again,  I carried the turkey to the end/beginning of the race where I had one more loop to do.  I'll go into all of that when i get the race recap up... but for now, I think instead of suspenders that are removable with their clips... I'd sew in something much more permanent and no chance of snapping/breaking/coming undone.

Anyway.  I added some old back socks to the end of the pants for "boots" (with some white material from the old pillow for the "socks"), hot glued some painted cardboard on for buckles and used a black tech shirt and some white material for the pilgrim's shirt.

The hat is black poster board and a little bit of foam inside.  I hot glued a headband to it and it stayed on perfectly.  That's about all I can think of...  :)  I'll get the recap up soon and post a pic of it on race day.  I added a couple embellishments with jingle bells on the reins and black arm sleeves with white cuffs on my arms.

Did you do a "Turkey Trot"?  Do you ever run in costume?  DIY or store bought modified for running?

**I should add that this beast weighed 11lbs, so I'll probably want to figure out ways to lighten it up too**

Uberthons Halloweenathon all day event recap

Race Recap for Uberthons "Halloweenathon" on October 26th, 2013

It's October and this is my third race (in costume) in as many weeks.  I must be either crazy, or crazy for Halloween... or both?  This time, I went for a mermaid theme.  (I'll spare my poor husband of posting any photos of him in his mermaid costume on the world wide web. Last week I did the Labyrinth theme for 13.1 miles and a "sugar skull" the week before that for a zombie 5k.)

This race is the first time I volunteered with a race organization ever (joining in the fun at packet pickup and then in the kids' dash and 2pm race.), first time I ran a 15K race (9.3 miles) and first time I've ran at all since my half marathon last weekend.  

The race event had 4 main events throughout the day, a kids' dash and then an evening BBQ after the final event.  The events were meant to reach all fitness levels with an option to register as a walker or runner and to do a 5k distance, 10k or 15k.  

Being a glutton for punishment, I decided to do the 15k.  I was able to join some members from my Moms RUN This Town club.  

5K lap done... 2 more laps to go!

The course is a pretty little golf course outside of Portland, Or.  The 5k runners and walkers did one loop from start to finish, the 10k two laps and 15k three laps around the course.

Though I really have to admit that golf is not my thing, nor do I find a lot of beauty in short manicured grass, trees off to the edges of the greenway and one lake within view of the course.  Don't get me wrong!  It's a fun race... I just got bored after the first lap.  A friend who also ran the 15k (and took first in her age group!) had a great perspective on the looping race course.  The first lap helped her see how she was pacing herself, the second loop was her signal that she could "up the throttle" on her speed and the third loop was where she could cut loose and let it all go for the finish.   I think I'd have enjoyed it a little more if I had brought music to get lost in, but I really wanted to be able to hear if any runners behind me were trying to pass me on the narrow golf cart sidewalk.  

Besides a few bumbles with runners tripping over each other at the beginning, the 9am race seemed to go without a hitch!  The course was described as flat, but rolling hills is more accurate.  The course also involves some hairpin turns in 3 different "golf cart cul de sacs" and some paths that turn around and run parallel to other parts of the course.  This was a lot of fun to me, because friends whose pace was beyond me would holler and cheer as they saw me passing on the path further behind them.  One friend was doing her first 5k race ever and I was able to give her a high five as I passed her end of the path.  Once the runners behind her saw I was giving out high-fives, I was then cheering them on and others too.  I love that.  A race is a perfect opportunity to make new friends or at least help encourage each other.    

I ran in the 9am race, "Run for your Bones", with about 311 participants.  The next race started at 11am.  This was "The Zombie Shuffle" that was a fitness walkers' race.  Only about 7 participants signed up for that, so the family went home to have some lunch, layer up since we were freezing and then go back out for my volunteer shift and the Kids' Dash at 1pm.

The sun started to peek out behind the clouds, but it was still a chilly (and beautiful) day. 

My Bugaboo was very upset that she didn't get to run with me during my morning 15k, so she very happily joined the "5 yrs and under" kids' race.  This was a very short jaunt through the grass, where the participants would run to one of the race directors dressed as a skeleton and then circle back to me and some of my Moms RUN This Town friends for a ribbon of participation and a goodie bag full of halloween candy. 

Kids' Dash

After that, the older kids did a 1k run on the sidewalk.  Bugaboo watched the kids go past and asked if she could go too.  So, she got in two races in one day.  I think we both might need a lesson in injury prevention and the importance of not over doing it?  ;-) She did great. I'm so glad she had fun and love that this new activity to me is also something that is important to her.  

It is amazing what an impact my choice to exercise can have on my little girls.

Bugaboo finishing up the 1k race and claiming her ribbon.

After the Kids' Dash, the next race "Trick Or Treatathon" was scheduled to start at 2pm.

This race had about 96 participants. Some of them I recognized from past races and then putting their face together with a profile pic on a local race blog.  That's always exciting to make the match up.  But... you know how race day is a good day to make new friends?  I'm so shy I just let it go.  I cheered them on as they passed, and I hoped they raced well... but I didn't chat them up post race.  I did see the Candy Corn Witch from last week's race and she gave me a hug before she dashed off.  :)

After handing out water, directing finishers to get their awesome finisher's medal and dancing to the music at the finish for awhile, my volunteer shift was done.  We enjoyed some nachos at the free nacho bar inside the party tent and then went home to regroup, get a nap in for Squeakers and then enjoy one last race that evening with Uberthons!

Did I mention that besides a free nacho bar, the tent also had three massage beds where professionals could work out our kinks and knots and give us tips for stretches and home care?  

FANTASTIC!  A fast way to my heart, besides sweet race bling, is a massage.  Seriously.

The 6pm race was the "Monster Moon Run" that required a headlamp or flashlight. Glow sticks were available inside the party tent and costumes abounded with the participants in this event.  I love how creative people are!  About 130 participants joined in the final race, which was a 5k distance for runners and walkers.

Monster Moon Run

After this race, (which was MC'd by Miss Oregon,) participants could enjoy the free nacho bar or pay for a BBQ dinner by Famous Dave's.  We all enjoyed some warmth in the party tent and showed off our fantastic new bling.

I wore mine for the entire day.

Finishers are given a large medal casket that opens to reveal a skeleton inside holding a scroll listing the race distances.  The medal has 4 magnets to hold that casket shut, and it takes a little work to open it.  Once you are about to shut it, make sure your fingers are out of the way!  I pinched myself.  I may be a little accident prone...

This medal was fantastic, and as a total bling-chaser... it was the sole reason why I wanted to do this race.  But watching the different races throughout the day and seeing the different environments each race provided, I think it would be something fun worth doing again.  The 9am race seemed to be the biggest to me, with more chances to interact with other costumed runners, a festive environment with giving and getting cheers from each other... but the night run sounds like a lot of fun to me too.  That one has a lot of potential with volunteers on the course with glow sticks or something like that.

Do you join a race for the bling?  Tell me about your cool races, finisher's bling or halloween type runs! I'm a nut for halloween! 

Run Like Hell (and then stop for the train!) half marathon recap (and update 10/21)

Dressing the family up as characters from Jim Henson's "Labyrinth"

October 20th has been a day that I've been looking forward to for a long time... When I started running seriously at the beginning of the year, I set my sights on running the Half at "Run Like Hell".  This race was my very first race experience ever as the 5k in 2011.  

It's a race for letting go of inhibitions and being silly in costume, grab a couple of free beers at the finish and kick back to listen to some local bands... but serious enough that runner's fight for their PRs and take their times seriously.  

Early morning fog giving the camera trouble

The weather had been very warm and favorable the last few days, but it's always a good idea to dress warmly when getting up before the sun.  Besides, we all know that there is ALWAYS a "chance" of rain...

We did escape the rain, but if runner's weren't wet from sweat, they surely were from the moisture in the fog.

Half marathoners getting ready to run in the fog

The course began in downtown Portland and wound it's way through some of the industrial parts and areas that made a small town girl like me feel like I was on the wrong side of the tracks.  When we literally crossed the tracks, we could forget the worries of city life and enjoy not having to worry too much about traffic on such an early Sunday morning.

A very polite Candy Corn Witch zoomed past me and chatted up the runners near her pace before she'd speed off again.  I later found out that she is a contributor on one of the blogs I've been following.  I met a celebrity and didn't know it until after the meeting!

We wound up some inclines, but i didn't think much of it... until I overheard runners asking each other "Is this the hill i keep hearing about?"  "Is this the hill everyone complains about?"  The Candy Corn Witch smiles and says "Nope!  That would be the hill around mile 5."

Mile 5.  No problem.

I was worried though.  I killed my hamstrings last week trying to survive a hoard of zombies...  and though the inclines leading up to this point didn't seem like too much work on my quads and hammys, I was loosing confidence.  

Something else giving me some unease was I felt naked and lost without my garmin.  This is stupid, I know... and a great opportunity for me to just feel my pace and trust the course... but what if I stopped for an injured runner or something... I'd like to... well, pause it to better know my running time.  Stupid and silly, I know.  But with the buildings and fog, it just wasn't gonna sync up.  

Mile 5 came upon us and I traveled up an incline that seemed unending.  And I didn't die.  I didn't have one foul thought or negative banter about it at all.  I just kept on going, concentrating on the sound my feet made when hitting the pavement and watching my surroundings.     

We traveled up Terwilliger under the canopy of trees on the side of the road and a forest below us.  It was beautiful, but the trees were wet from the fog and rained down their moisture on the runners below... reminding me of my costume choice for such an early morning, fall run.  Besides this set back, it really wasn't uncomfortable or cold.  Those arm warmers really did their job! 

Aid stations were about every 2-3 miles and accompanied by live bands playing music for us.  That was fun.  But by mile 7, my heel started to kill me.  I injured it back at a 5k in May and thought it was muscle strain... but with the ongoing pain going on so long and completely unbearable on this race, I've gone ahead and scheduled a dreaded doctor's appointment.  

I started to pay more attention to tired shuffling and making sure my foot was striking at the front and not heel striking.  i suppose it must have helped, because by mile 8 i was cheering the people I was passing and telling them we were on the home stretch.  

My garmin was useless accept to tell me what time it was, and I was certain it was failing me at that, because How could I be nearing mile 10 and still be under 2 hours?   

4 weeks ago I ran my first half marathon and finished well over 3 hours later.  With hornets.  An extra mile and torrential downpours.  How could i be doing this well?  I felt amazing!

And then I saw a large group of people ahead... a cheering section?  No one is cheering... what the...

A train was slowly rambling it's way along the track... blocking our route to finish the race.  I had under a 5k left to get this thing done!  Don't get discouraged... take a deep breath...

"How long have you been here?'  I asked the first runner I saw at the back of the crowd.  

"Me?  30 minutes now."

My heart sank.  At this point, my character in her movie would shrilly holler "It's not fair!"

I wandered up to the volunteer standing on the concrete wall next to the road.  Just me looking up at him had him tell me "This is gonna take about an hour and 10 minutes."  An hour and ten minutes, from this very moment?  Subtracting the 30 minutes from the girl at the back?  Wha-?  I need more info than that... But I wasn't going to get it... so I fought back my tears of frustration as some cramps set in between my shoulder blades and started to use the concrete wall to stretch my quads, hamstrings and calves.

I remember someone asking me the time and I told them "ten o'clock" and then I remember her asking again and it was 10:15am.  Was I still going to be able to finish this before the roads were unblocked and opened to traffic?  

Soon after taking a mental note that it was 10:15 a.m., the train passed and we all took off even before the rail gate was fully extended.  We were told that the timing belt laid down before the train track would stop our timing chip and reactivate again on the other side of the track when we ran over it again.  

The timing mat was unplugged and laid off to the side, mostly out of the course.  I cursed out loud and tried again not to cry.  No garmin working.  Was my chip working?  Would the time be accurate? 

I was flying before this.  It was a PR, but by how much?

I tried to think of how "nice" it was to finish with everyone as one big group effort and see the speedy athletes finish that i would have missed out on since I'm not that speedy gazelle at the front of the pack.   I won't lie.  It was difficult to fight my way through the crowds again and  my muscles were cold and sore.  I can't even imagine what it must have been like for those who had been there longer than me.  

I crossed the finisher's line and was happy to see most of my friends who had ran the 10k still there waiting for me.  Most of the 5k runners were still out... their start time having been delayed by a whole hour.

There are some seriously negative comments on Terrapin Event's facebook page that has me questioning future races with them.  They may have no control over the trains and their schedule... I hear even the Portland Marathon can be stalled by trains... but it seems that they could post something to try and explain that to us or apologize or something.  Anything. 

I got my medal, and I am thrilled.  I know, bling chaser.  Did I mention it glows in the dark?  

Finisher's Medal

How cool is a finisher's medal that glows in the dark?

  

 While the 10k was finishing up, the 5k was free to go.  My husband, "The Goblin King", was asked by "The Dread Pirate Roberts" to take the kids away until "Princess Buttercup" returned from her race.

"The Dread Pirate Roberts" leaves his companions in the care of "The Goblin King"

 When I finished, everyone was already done, except The Dread Pirate Roberts who had such a late start.

We grabbed our grub and tried to warm up with a hot bowl of chill and I redeemed my two cups of free beer.  My "Princess Bride" friends won the group costume contest and a friend who ran the 10K won the "Best Unicorn" contest.

The party wound down pretty quickly, as I'm sure their rent on the square was beginning to end.  The food court started giving away as many bowls of chili as we wanted and having secured a table next to the beer garden, some very friendly unicorns started filling "our" table up with free beers.

All in all, it was fun... but I'm not too terribly sure if I'd do this race again.  It is sentimental because it was my very first race ever.  Since then, I've started taking running seriously, lost 60 lbs and looking at making my body stronger.

The train might not be their fault, and maybe many races deal with the train as an issue.... but now I'm seeing repeated complaints on social media about how Terrapin Events treats their volunteers.
"Happy 10th anniversary" Run Like Hell.  For 10 years, it seems like at least the public relations would be on top of addressing concerns with race hiccups or complaints about being mistreated.

(As of this writing, the results page says I've shaved 47 minutes off my fiasco of a first half last month.  That's amazing!  The chip timing company says I finished in 2 hours, 38 minutes and 5 sec.  My gun time, they claim, is 2 hours, 38 minutes and 43 seconds.  This is an edited lie, since I finished at 2:51:??.  I wish they didn't change the gun time to try and pretend like the train had never really happened.)

What would you do?  Run it again and the risk of trains be damned?  Or forget any seemingly unorganized race that presumably treats their volunteers badly?

(Update:  Terrapin Events issued a statement on their Facebook page and in an e-mail to participants that stated "Thank you all for participating in this year's 10th anniversry of the Run Like Hell half marathon. While a little chilly, overall the weather was great for running! It was so fun to see everyones costumes, especially those dressed up in groups! We will be posting some photos to Facebook over the next few days, so be sure to check to see if we have one of you! Also, feel free to post any photos you might have taken. 

We would like to take a minute to thank our volunteers! We really value their time and efforts in coming out to help. We truly couldn't have done this race without them. We would also like to thank Molly's Fund Fighting Lupus. As the beneficiary of this event they provide us with great support and we are able to donate to their great cause! Last, but not least we would like to thank our sponsors. Lagunitas provided plenty of excellent beer and Madison's Grillprovided that nice, hot soup to enjoy after the race!

We would like to appologize for the train delay. We understand that many of you were stopped for a very long time and how hard that is after already running 11 miles. We truly wish this wouldn't have happened, but there was nothing we could have done to prevent this or shorten the delay. While the City limits which roads we can use (why so many Portland races use Naito) we are going to try to avoid or reduce any rail crossings next year. ..."  

I think it's worth noting, since some races could chose not to address the issue(s) at all or ignoring anyone's complaints.  After sleeping on it and thinking it over, this isn't a race I'd want to miss.  Maybe any future delays by a train would just be part of the adventure of the whole experience.  One thing for sure though, I'm going to have to learn some tricks on getting a garmin to connect on foggy streets containing tall buildings... (If such a trick exists.)