RunningAHEAD - Topic: First Marathon - Your thoughts? (page 2)

Buffalo Gal

Buffalo Gal Rides Again

posted: 2/19/2009 at 11:26 PM

Will be very careful not to call it Music City when we are there. What shall I call it?

March: Irish Jig 5K (DONE), Kent City Ridge Run 5K (DONE) April: Iron Girl 5K (DONE), Kentucky Derby Half May: 5/3 (10K) July: Cherry Festival 15K August: Chicago Rock N Roll Half, Crim Festival of Races (10 miler) October: Grand Rapids Marathon (Half-Hometown Gig)

Trent

Good Bad & The Monkey

posted: 2/19/2009 at 11:28 PM
modified: 2/19/2009 at 11:29 PM

Quote from Buffalo Gal on 2/19/2009 at 11:26 PM:

Will be very careful not to call it Music City when we are there. What shall I call it?

The half marathon in April in Nashville is called the Country Music Half Marathon. It is a fun time, but fairly crowded. There are some 25-30k starters in the half and full marathons.

I'm running somewhere tomorrow. It's going to be beautiful. I can't wait.

Poor baby

xor

posted: 2/19/2009 at 11:29 PM
modified: 2/19/2009 at 11:29 PM

Quote from Buffalo Gal on 2/19/2009 at 11:26 PM:

Will be very careful not to call it Music City when we are there. What shall I call it?

The Country Music Marathon and Half Marathon. It is not called the Nashville Half Marathon, nor the Music City Half Marathon. That said, there's a very tightly knit cliquey group here on RA consisting of folks from Nashville. It's kind of fun to poke them with a stick.

Buffalo Gal

Buffalo Gal Rides Again

posted: 2/19/2009 at 11:29 PM

Quote from xor on 2/19/2009 at 11:22 PM:

Aw, man. You just made Trent madder. That isn't the name. And please don't call it Music City. They don't like that either, trust me.

Please notice that I changed my tag line thingy to reflect the correct name of the race.

March: Irish Jig 5K (DONE), Kent City Ridge Run 5K (DONE) April: Iron Girl 5K (DONE), Kentucky Derby Half May: 5/3 (10K) July: Cherry Festival 15K August: Chicago Rock N Roll Half, Crim Festival of Races (10 miler) October: Grand Rapids Marathon (Half-Hometown Gig)

Trent

Good Bad & The Monkey

posted: 2/19/2009 at 11:29 PM

SR, you'd make a great Nashvillian.

I'm running somewhere tomorrow. It's going to be beautiful. I can't wait.

Poor baby

Trent

Good Bad & The Monkey

posted: 2/19/2009 at 11:30 PM

Quote from Buffalo Gal on 2/19/2009 at 11:29 PM:

Please notice that I changed my tag line thingy to reflect the correct name of the race.

You are most spectacular!! Big grin

I'm running somewhere tomorrow. It's going to be beautiful. I can't wait.

Poor baby

xor

posted: 2/19/2009 at 11:31 PM

Quote from Trent on 2/19/2009 at 11:29 PM:

SR, you'd make a great Nashvillian.

I'm a better Vaudevillian and just an all-around good villain. But thanks. I shall now squirt you with a seltzer bottle.

Trent

Good Bad & The Monkey

posted: 2/19/2009 at 11:33 PM

Okay, I think we have hijacked this thread enough...

I'm running somewhere tomorrow. It's going to be beautiful. I can't wait.

Poor baby

Buffalo Gal

Buffalo Gal Rides Again

posted: 2/19/2009 at 11:34 PM

And just to make certain I offend no one in South Bend, I have changed the correct name of the Sunburst as well.

March: Irish Jig 5K (DONE), Kent City Ridge Run 5K (DONE) April: Iron Girl 5K (DONE), Kentucky Derby Half May: 5/3 (10K) July: Cherry Festival 15K August: Chicago Rock N Roll Half, Crim Festival of Races (10 miler) October: Grand Rapids Marathon (Half-Hometown Gig)

xor

posted: 2/19/2009 at 11:35 PM

Quote from Buffalo Gal on 2/19/2009 at 11:34 PM:

And just to make certain I offend no one in South Bend, I have changed the correct name of the Sunburst as well.

Heh, not everybody is as touchy as Nashville. We just call that other one "Sunburst". Incidentally, when it comes to fulls, Sunburst is probably not a great choice. Actually, it'll have a slightly bigger field and you can't beat the finish line... but that race is HOT. You probably don't want HOT for your first. Besides, Bayshore mo bettah.

RickStraughen

posted: 2/20/2009 at 5:44 AM

I think Chicago is a good first marathon. It is very flat and has a lot of spectators. I would not recommend the Martian Marathon unless you like races that feel more like training runs. On a side note, they used to offer a training run along the course at the same time as the race. I have already talked up the Grand Island Trail Marathon in another thread. Even though it is a trail marathon, it is a pretty easy course. There are basically no spectators except for the beginning and end.

Thank you for taking the time to read my signature!

Buffalo Gal

Buffalo Gal Rides Again

posted: 2/25/2009 at 11:14 PM
modified: 2/25/2009 at 11:18 PM

Quote from xor on 2/19/2009 at 11:35 PM:

Heh, not everybody is as touchy as Nashville. We just call that other one "Sunburst". Incidentally, when it comes to fulls, Sunburst is probably not a great choice. Actually, it'll have a slightly bigger field and you can't beat the finish line... but that race is HOT. You probably don't want HOT for your first. Besides, Bayshore mo bettah.

May try to get into Bayshore in 2010 before the cut off cuts us all off. Just broke out of the snow globe here in Michigan to spend a few days in Arizona. Ran in Desert Mountain every day - most hilly. So. I was reminded of the reason I started running in the first place - I like running hills. Not to be fickle but...know a good marathon that is hilly, but not killy?

March: Irish Jig 5K (DONE), Kent City Ridge Run 5K (DONE) April: Iron Girl 5K (DONE), Kentucky Derby Half May: 5/3 (10K) July: Cherry Festival 15K August: Chicago Rock N Roll Half, Crim Festival of Races (10 miler) October: Grand Rapids Marathon (Half-Hometown Gig)

bhearn

posted: 2/26/2009 at 12:53 AM

Quote from xor on 2/19/2009 at 11:19 PM:

I forgot about Martian. Some years it is the same weekend as Glass City and makes for a popular double among those so inclined. Martian is an easy course and kind of fun... but you will spend most of it by yourself and it can be frightfully cold. I'd only suggest it as a first race for those who don't mind solitude .

OK... please explain something to me. What's, ah, the deal with this marathon? From the info page, they make it look like the marathon is timed to line up with Mars opposition:

So you get it now? We lap their sorry Martian asses every two years! In your face! And when *exactly* do we pass them? Bingo! Within 2 hours after the gun sounds on April 1st

OK, that would be kinda cool. Except... it would mean they can only hold it every other year, and the date would always be changing. Hmm. Except that it seems to happen every April. So, we're just lucky this year? No... there is no Mars opposition this year; the next one is Jan. 29, 2010. Confused

heelgrad92

posted: 2/26/2009 at 4:41 AM

Quote from RickStraughen on 2/20/2009 at 5:44 AM:

I think Chicago is a good first marathon. It is very flat and has a lot of spectators.

I agree about Chicago. It's flat, well supported, and there are great restaurants and shopping to keep you occupied before the race. It has the added benefit of being a Fall marathon so you don't have to train through the teeth of Winter. The only downside to Chicago is that it can be a pretty crowded race at the start if you didn't qualify for a corral at the front. Another one to consider is the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon. It's mostly flat but it does have a few reasonable hills at the beginning and end. It's also well supported and run in October.

Buffalo Gal

Buffalo Gal Rides Again

posted: 2/28/2009 at 12:13 AM
modified: 2/28/2009 at 12:14 AM

Quote from heelgrad92 on 2/26/2009 at 4:41 AM:

The only downside to Chicago is that it can be a pretty crowded race at the start if you didn't qualify for a corral at the front. Another one to consider is the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon. It's mostly flat but it does have a few reasonable hills at the beginning and end. It's also well supported and run in October.

Thanks, both of those are reasonable options from here. I have talked to several runners that have run Chicago and they have said the same thing. In fact, talked to someone about it yesterday. Guess that means I'm getting more serious about the whole thing. I like the Milwaukee option and the timing, though I am planning on the hometown gig in October. Heh-heh, pretty sure bet I won't be in one of the first corrals. There's always a lot of traffic in the mid-to-back of the pack.

March: Irish Jig 5K (DONE), Kent City Ridge Run 5K (DONE) April: Iron Girl 5K (DONE), Kentucky Derby Half May: 5/3 (10K) July: Cherry Festival 15K August: Chicago Rock N Roll Half, Crim Festival of Races (10 miler) October: Grand Rapids Marathon (Half-Hometown Gig)

First Marathon - Your thoughts? (Read 814 times)