My Profile
@activeappealblog
Raving since 2022 Active 2 years, 2 months agoAbout Me
My Races
Organize, track & review your races and personal bests here.
50 States Map
Half Marathon
Marathon
Ultramarathon
(Marathon or Ultra) + Half
Marathon + Ultra
Other
Future Races
Personal Bests (2)
| Race | Distance | Location | Date | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Celebration Marathon & Half Marathon | Marathon | Celebration, FL | Jan 30, 2022 | 4:25:54 |
| Salem Lake 30K and 7 Mile Trail Runs | 30K | Winston-Salem, NC | Sep 25, 2021 | 3:11:37 |
Future Races (0)
| Race | Distance | Location | Date | Paid |
|---|
Past Races (2)
| Race | Distance | Location | Date | Result | My Raves | My Performance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Celebration Marathon & Half Marathon | Marathon | Celebration, FL | Jan 30, 2022 | 4:25:54 |
|
|
| Salem Lake 30K and 7 Mile Trail Runs | 30K | Winston-Salem, NC | Sep 25, 2021 | 3:11:37 |
|
|
Town of Celebration Marathon & Half Marathon 🏆
Flat, Good support, Awesome after-party
Town of Celebration Marathon & Half Marathon 🏆
PR! The 2022 race was unexpectedly cold weather - 33 at the start. thankfully, it wasn't windy and the day warmed up to a pleasant high 40s on a sunny, … MORE
PR!
The 2022 race was unexpectedly cold weather – 33 at the start. thankfully, it wasn’t windy and the day warmed up to a pleasant high 40s on a sunny, clear day
Mid-sized event, extremely well organized and a lot of attention to detail
Pancake flat course, my garmin registered under 100 ft of total elevation on the entire race!
Frequent support stations with lots of helpful volunteers. Gel and bananas at 3 points for the full marathon
Scenic course, along the golf course, along woods, nice tree-lined residential neighborhoods
Quirks like a loop on a high school track, and a couple of segments on boardwalks just added to the charm
The only somewhat dull segment had lots and lots of witty placards along the side, so provided plenty of entertainment there as well
Absolutely fantastic food at the after party, a lot of local restaurants set up tents and provide samples. While it’s called samples, we were able to get a full meal out of this! Paella and pancakes were my favorite.
Awesome swag – tech Tshirt and a soft blanket
Big bling medal – lovely colors and definitely heavy
I would love to go back and run this race!
Salem Lake 30K and 7 Mile Trail Runs
Good trail race for first-timer
Salem Lake 30K and 7 Mile Trail Runs
Salem lake is a beautiful, serene lake adjacent to the town of Winston Salem. The local running club hosts a few races that use the trail around the lake and … MORE
Salem lake is a beautiful, serene lake adjacent to the town of Winston Salem. The local running club hosts a few races that use the trail around the lake and the adjacent walk/bike way for events.
Background
I signed up for the 30K trail race. I’ve been running 12 miles on weekends, and having completed a half marathon distances, I still felt apprehensive about jumping directly to a full marathon. I found this race which was 30K/18.3 miles, and that fits nicely between a half and a full marathon.
Shoes
Since this was going to be a trail run, I was concerned about my shoes. I have a selection of road running shoes, but did not have any trail running shoes. I deliberated a lot whether I should buy new trail running shoes or stick to ones I’ve worn in the past. I even went to Academy sports and bought myself a pair, but there seemed something wrong about that specific pair, so I felt uncomfortable wearing them when I tried them on for a bit at home. In the end, I decided to stick to my time tested Asic Gel Kayano 26s.
Although it is a trail run, most of the run is along the lake which is packed dirt. There are no roots or annoyances so it is mostly level ground. My road running shoes were fine for the loop around the lake. The spur is paved roads, so the kayano felt at home on that part of the route.
If you are debating whether to use trail shoes or not, fret not on this trail. You can certainly use regualr shoes without much of an issue on the salem lake loop.
Water
There were a couple of places where the creek overflowed on the road. While most of the regulars ran straight through it, I can only assume they were better prepared or had shoes that could deal with getting wet and dry out relatively quickly. I did not think I wanted to run in wet shoes, and so decided to take off my socks and shoes and walk barefoot on that part. Since I use compression socks, it took a bit of time to peel those off and put them on my damp feet, and I lost approximately 4 minutes each time (twice).
This was the first time I encountered such a situation, and I definitely would like to think and plan better the next time. If that means trying to get the right footwear that will dry off quickly, then I simply need to get that sorted so I can do similar trail runs going forward.
Weather
Couldn’t have planned a better day than today. 49 when it started and not windy. It warmed up as the day went by, but go no hotter than 67 by the time I was done with the race.
Swag
A finisher medal and an absolutely fantastic fitting full sleeves tech t-shirt. I had planned to wear a hoodie shirt, but since the day was warmer than I anticipated, I ran in the race t-shirt. That worked well for me.
There was Radar Brewing company pouring three different draft beers on the Marina porch after the race. The Oktoberfest was just what I needed to cool off, and the tangerine wit bier was good too.