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@jdhunt

Louisville, CO Raving since 2018 Boston Marathon finisher, 50 States hopeful/finisher Active 6 months ago

About Me

  • Running club(s):
  • Rave race:
  • Race that's calling my name:

    Big Sur

  • I run because:

My Races

Organize, track & review your races and personal bests here.

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Half Marathon

Marathon

Ultramarathon

(Marathon or Ultra) + Half

Marathon + Ultra

Other

Future Races

Personal Bests (10)

Race Distance Location Date Result
50 Miler Leadville, CO Jul 8, 2023 11:11:30
Marathon Minneapolis, MN Oct 2, 2022 3:06:50
3-Way Challenge (22.4 Miles) Cincinnati, OH May 7, 2017 2:36:21
25K Pine, CO Oct 14, 2023 2:37:37
14.5 Miler Idaho Springs, CO Jun 26, 2022 2:51:19
Half Marathon Fort Collins, CO Apr 16, 2023 1:30:39
14K Cincinnati, OH Sep 16, 2017 59:58
10K Evergreen, CO Aug 7, 2022 38:49
5K Morrison, CO Jan 24, 2021 20:35
1 Miler Superior, CO 2023 5:25

Future Races (16)

Race Distance Location Date Paid
Marathon Baltimore, MD TBD
Marathon Big Sur, CA TBD
Marathon Coeur d'Alene, ID TBD
Marathon Deadwood, SD TBD
Marathon Des Moines, IA TBD
Marathon Eugene, OR TBD
Marathon Fargo, ND TBD
Marathon Kansas City, MO TBD
Marathon Waitsfield, VT TBD
Marathon Frenchtown, MT TBD
Marathon Bar Harbor, ME TBD
Marathon Las Vegas, NV TBD
Marathon Rehoboth Beach, DE TBD
Marathon Huntsville, AL TBD
Marathon Cocoa, FL TBD
Marathon Apache Junction, AZ TBD

Past Races (29)

Race Distance Location Date Result My Raves My Performance
25K Pine, CO Oct 14, 2023 2:37:37
50 Miler Leadville, CO Jul 8, 2023 11:11:30
Half Marathon Fort Collins, CO Apr 16, 2023 1:30:39
Marathon Houston, TX Jan 15, 2023 3:26:23
1 Miler Superior, CO 2023 5:25
Marathon Minneapolis, MN Oct 2, 2022 3:06:50
10K Evergreen, CO Aug 7, 2022 38:49
14.5 Miler Idaho Springs, CO Jun 26, 2022 2:51:19
Marathon Salt Lake City, UT Apr 23, 2022 3:19:48
Half Marathon Arvada, CO Feb 20, 2022 1:31:33
Marathon Hopkinton, MA Oct 11, 2021 3:07:33
Marathon Estes Park, CO Jun 19, 2021 3:26:12
Half Marathon Denver, CO Apr 3, 2021 1:32:31
5K Morrison, CO Jan 24, 2021 20:35
Marathon Gering, NE Sep 26, 2020 3:44:02
Marathon Tulsa, OK Nov 23, 2019 3:24:43
Marathon Chicago, IL Oct 13, 2019 3:12:16
Marathon Fort Collins, CO May 5, 2019 3:17:18
Marathon Philadelphia, PA Nov 18, 2018 3:17:04
Marathon Cincinnati, OH May 6, 2018 3:18:29
Marathon Arlington, VA Oct 22, 2017 3:18:54
14K Cincinnati, OH Sep 16, 2017 59:58
3-Way Challenge (22.4 Miles) Cincinnati, OH May 7, 2017 2:36:21
Half Marathon Indianapolis, IN Nov 5, 2016 1:32:46
Marathon Cincinnati, OH May 1, 2016 3:24:18
Marathon Cincinnati, OH May 3, 2015 3:19:35
Half Marathon Columbus, OH Oct 19, 2014 1:36:09
Half Marathon Cincinnati, OH 2014 1:39:51
Half Marathon Cincinnati, OH 2013 1:45:14

My Raves

For those of us who missed the "fun" of running Boston 2018, I present to you the 2022 Salt Lake City Marathon! Rain while we were waiting before the race … MORE

For those of us who missed the “fun” of running Boston 2018, I present to you the 2022 Salt Lake City Marathon! Rain while we were waiting before the race transitioned to snow just in time for the gun to go off! But no, we couldn’t stick with snow, we had to transition to rain and even a bit of hail (or frozen ice pellets, I’m not a meteorologist, so it was something like that) off and on throughout the race. With that being said, the race organizers cannot control the weather, it is just important to realize that spring weather in the Rocky Mountain region really is a crapshoot – so if you are considering this race, you have to know that weather could be a factor.

So yes, the weather wasn’t ideal, how was the event?

Expo – easy to pick up the bib and packet, but unremarkable otherwise. Pretty small, looked like there was some decent stuff from the local running store (gear and nutrition), but not much else.

Getting to the start line – free rides on the public train system (called Trax) the day of the race, and it worked out quite well. There was a station that was within a 1/2 mile from the start line, which works out great for those of us who were staying downtown.

The race – there were corrals, but they weren’t really enforced too much. I just meandered into my corral without being checked, but they were self-assigned anyway so it didn’t matter too much. We started in waves, and maybe because everyone around me was honest with their time placement we were able to start at a pace that felt right. I didn’t have to weave in and out of runners who were up way in front of where they should be, so that’s a big plus in my book!

Even without the advertised great scenery (all the mountains were obscured by clouds), I actually enjoyed the course quite a lot. It was not easy, but not overly hard either. There were some good sizable downhills paired with some good uphills, but after the first few miles it transitioned to a rolling course. Since the race was mostly in the city and close by suburbs / neighborhoods, we did get a nice tour of a lot of the Salt Lake City area. Course support was top-notch, even with the poor weather the volunteers were upbeat and cheerful, and there were plenty of aid stations (maybe averaged out to one about every two miles). Crowd support was pretty light. Not sure if that was due to the poor weather, but if crowds are your thing SLC *may* not be what you want in a race.

After the race – the finish was well organized, we got our medals, a bottle of water, and a drink of gatorade if we wanted it. The runners-only area of the finish actually wasn’t very large, so really once you collect those items, you move on out to the after-party area. Included on your bib was a ticket for food and a beer – kind of standard fare these days, but I ALWAYS enjoy the after race beer. I’ve had better after race events, but it was nice.

Swag – the medal was very nice, happy to add that to my medals hanger. The shirt was not customized to your race, so everyone from the 5k to the marathon got the same cotton-blend shirt. Honestly, as someone who has done a fair amount of races – these two items are all I really want for a race.

Overall, I thought the SLC Marathon was a great event, even with the less than ideal weather. Once it cleared up later in the day I was able to see how beautiful the city was, I can imagine the course would be even nicer on a sunny day! The race was well-organized, communication was just about perfect (some races send TOO many messages), and support was everything we needed. I felt welcome to the race and definitely am glad that I chose SLC as my Utah race.

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What can I say that hasn't been said before? This is THE Boston Marathon - quite possibly the most well-known marathon in the world! Despite the fact that the 125th … MORE

What can I say that hasn’t been said before? This is THE Boston Marathon – quite possibly the most well-known marathon in the world!

Despite the fact that the 125th Boston was a bit unique in that it was still operating under pandemic precautions AND it was the only Boston in history held in October (thus far), it felt like the organization was as professional as ever. As this was my first in-person Boston I can’t comment on past races, but it felt like everything was planned to a T and volunteers and organizers were very much aware of everything that needed to be done for a successful race.

I felt the pre-race logistics went off without a hitch for me personally, although I have heard that not everyone was as lucky. But I will speak to my experience. Good and timely communication via email and social media. The Covid vaccine / test confirmation was easy to get to close by the expo. It was also efficient, as I only waited about a minute for my verification. I was able to get my packet right away at the expo and it was not very crowded at all (with the exception of the Adidas booth). With that being said, the expo was a bit underwhelming since there were so few booths. I am chalking this up to pandemic precautions. Normally I enjoy seeing all the vendors, other races, etc. If I am lucky enough to go again I do hope that expo is a bit more “normal”. There was no athlete’s village this year, we had a wave start that was determined by when we were supposed to load onto the busses. I felt this worked quite well, I only had to wait in line 10 minutes or so before I was able to get onto the bus, and after warming up a bit at the start I was cleared to go in short order.

I personally loved the actual course! It isn’t the most scenic that I have run, but it had an “aura” and an enjoyability that not all races have. The first 16 miles or so is primed for fast running since it is mostly downhill / flat with only a few small bumps. Naturally that changes once you get to Newton when the infamous hills come in to play. I felt the hills themselves are not that bad (compared to some races that are actually considered hilly). However, if you went too hard on the downhills and trashed your legs or used up your glycogen reserves, you may find yourself hurting in Newton. Once you have crested heartbreak hill the course is net downhill, with some unremarkable rollers and flat running. If your legs are not hurting too badly and you haven’t hit the wall, finishing strong on this course is a strong possibility!

Some other great things other than the actual course. The crowds – wow, the crowds! I’ve never had anything like it! Chicago was close, but there’s nothing like the Boston crowds! Sure, there are a few dead areas, but that is made up by the infectious enthusiasm felt in numerous places on the course. Course support was great, plenty of water stops, 3 Maurten gel stops, and other various aid stations if needed. Swag was maybe on par with other races with some coupons, a nice Boston Marathon long-sleeved technical shirt, and that sweet sweet unicorn medal!

Boston has shot to the top of my list of favorite races, and I am thrilled that I qualified again with my best race ever since I would love to experience the race in the spring!

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First thing that comes to mind when I think of the Estes Park Marathon - oh how beautiful it is! What a gorgeous course! Sure, I imagine there are prettier … MORE

First thing that comes to mind when I think of the Estes Park Marathon – oh how beautiful it is! What a gorgeous course! Sure, I imagine there are prettier trail race courses, but I don’t know how many road races are going to be prettier than Estes! Of course, since Estes is a small mountain town, you can’t expect much in the way of cheering crowds that you would get for a big city race. But who runs Estes for crowds? You are going to come to this race for Rocky Mountain views!

Estes is not a big race (as expected) and they don’t communicate much beforehand (maybe an email or two plus a couple social media posts). However, they got the needed information across, particularly with the wave start, bus loading, etc. There was no expo to speak of, but I was very happy that they provided the option to pick up the race packet the day of the race. That was very convenient for those of us who live relatively close, but not close enough where we want to drive back and forth just for packet pickup.

As for the actual course – it starts off with a pretty big downhill. You drop 2000 feet over the first 6 miles, so you have to be careful here so you don’t trash your legs. I took it easy and it paid off for me the rest of the race, where it is flattish in parts with some rollers and one decent climb over a mile. With this strategy, I felt pretty strong the entire way (not my fastest race, bug good enough to win the Masters division – woot!). Honestly the prettiest part of the course is during those first 6 miles, but there are parts of the rest of the race where you get some outstanding views as well. I don’t remember what mile it is, but I do remember seeing a great view of Long’s Peak and Mount Meeker, and not to mention you run right by the famous Stanley Hotel. Course support was good – kind volunteers and just enough water stops.

The post race party was pretty nice – held out in a field on a beautiful day, although the food was a bit underwhelming (I believe the race let us know that one of their vendors was unable to make it, so it may be better in other years). The swag was the usual – fairly nice short-sleeved tech shirt, and a beautiful medal!

I would highly recommend the Estes Park Marathon for anyone who prefers road running and is looking for a Colorado race. In Colorado, you really want a pretty course, and Estes delivers big time! Add in a nice medal and and efficient logistics, you have a winner.

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Monument Marathon is a small race that packs a punch! The course was really quite enjoyable, starting out with a big 2 mile downhill run from the Wildcat Hills State … MORE

Monument Marathon is a small race that packs a punch! The course was really quite enjoyable, starting out with a big 2 mile downhill run from the Wildcat Hills State Recreation Area (some nice views here!). After that big downhill, you get flat country roads with some rolling hills and scenic view of buttes and bluffs. Lots of people think of flat cornfields when they think of Nebraska (sure was some of that), but there is a quiet beauty in this part of the country, particularly running close to and within Scotts Bluff National Monument. The park is like the badlands of western Nebraska and was a prominent landmark on the Oregon Trail. I personally found the course itself to be easy, although the race was hard this year because of things outside of the organizers control (wind!!!! and lower air quality due to wildfires in Colorado and Wyoming).

One thing that really stuck out for me was the enthusiastic support for the race by the local community. Of course there there aren’t a lot of spectators in a small race like this, but the volunteers and spectators who were out there were extremely friendly and enthusiastic! I was thanked for being out there running by more than a few people – it was I who should be thanking them! I really appreciated their enthusiasm and appreciation!

Not a ton of swag from this race, but I frankly don’t need any of that after racing more than a few races. These days, the only thing I really want from a race that I haven’t done is the medal – and it was a nice hefty one shaped like Nebraska with a graphic of runners and the bluffs. Overall, Monument Marathon was a great race and I definitely recommend it for a Nebraska race for those who like some nice scenery and great supporters!

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We were lucky to enjoy a beautiful day on somewhat of a tough course. Oklahoma does not necessarily mean flat, as there were rolling hills throughout a lot of the … MORE

We were lucky to enjoy a beautiful day on somewhat of a tough course. Oklahoma does not necessarily mean flat, as there were rolling hills throughout a lot of the race. Nothing too extreme, but definitely enough to keep things interesting. Like most city marathons, you get a nice tour of the city with the race, which I always appreciate. I also took the “Center of the Universe” detour so I could claim I ran “the World’s shortest ultramarathon” – was a bit gimmicky but I did get an extra token from it.

Tulsa put on a good party along the route, and it was well supported for a smaller city! I think I had more offers for beer from supporters along this route than I had on any other race I had run (yes I had a few, why do you ask?).

As for the swag – I really appreciated getting a zip up instead of the usual shirt (I wear it often in cooler weather), and the medal is a nice nostalgic call-out to the halcyon days of driving on Route 66.

Overall, I rather enjoyed the Williams Route 66 Marathon, and I highly recommend it for an Oklahoma race.

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Going into the Chicago Marathon, I was confident that this would be a quintessential "big city" marathon experience. And I was right, as the race went off exactly as I … MORE

Going into the Chicago Marathon, I was confident that this would be a quintessential “big city” marathon experience. And I was right, as the race went off exactly as I expected. It was very organized and polished – the race felt like it was very professionally done. Of course, being one of the “6 majors” where some of the best runners in the world compete for fame and fortune, one would expect that the organizers have all of their ducks in a row.

I had a wonderful time in Chicago, and am thrilled that I was able to run it for my Illinois race AND complete my first major.

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You can almost say the Colorado Marathon is a story of two races. The first half is an incredibly beautiful downhill race through the gorgeous Poudre Canyon. It was shaded, … MORE

You can almost say the Colorado Marathon is a story of two races. The first half is an incredibly beautiful downhill race through the gorgeous Poudre Canyon. It was shaded, peaceful, and fairly easy going (of course, the downhills eventually get ya!). Constant glances of the national scenic Poudre River and the surrounding canyon will make those miles go by in a flash. Yes, it does start around 6000 feet – so if you aren’t used to the altitude it may affect you a bit. I live at 5400 so it didn’t affect me at all, but altitude adjustment is pretty personal. The second half, on the other hand, is when things get a bit more difficult. After a few more canyon miles, the course flattens out a bit and the sun shows up (most years, anyway – Colorado is a sunny state). By the time you get to mile 20 your legs are probably tired from the downhills, and the sun adds into the beat down that you so richly deserve for deciding to show-off and run a marathon. You do follow the Poudre River a lot of the way and run through a park on the Poudre Trail, but it was a bit odd since you were sharing the trail with recreational bikers and non-race runners. But again, by this point you could be running by yourself and there weren’t *that* many people on the trail, so I didn’t find it to be a big problem. And finally, you do end the race in Fort Collins, which is a very nice city in its own right.

This is not a race that thrives on crowd support. In the canyon the only non-runners you will see are pretty much course support and the people working the aid stations. Out of the canyon it doesn’t improve a great deal. There are a few groups of people once you get into Fort Collins, but even then this ain’t the Boston Marathon!

The logistics of the race seemed to go off without a hitch. Since this is a point-to-point race, we needed to take buses from Fort Collins to the start-line. The buses were lined up right outside of my hotel, so I just followed the line to the first one. They loaded the buses from 4:15 AM to 5:00 AM, which is ungodly early, but at least they were comfortable and convenient. There were no starting corrals, but it wasn’t needed with the size of this race. I just lined up close to one of the race pacers who was close to my target time, and I was able to go at my own comfortable pace without dodging and weaving people who were too far up. Communications leading up to the race were minimal, but they were enough (probably the race’s Facebook page was the best way to keep up to date). The expo was small but easy to navigate.

You don’t get a lot for completing the race – we got a very bright neon short-sleeved Brooks tech shirt (picked up at the expo), plus the medal. The shirt has a nice logo, and even though it is super bright I will have no problem wearing it on runs. There was only one shirt for all races (the 5k runners got the same shirt as the marathon), but whatever – still a pretty nice shirt. And of course we got the medal, which I really liked. It was a pretty nice view of mountains with the Colorado state flag on top. Plus, it has a bottle opener! So, not a lot of swag – but who runs this gorgeous race for the swag?

Overall, this was a fantastic race. Since I do travel for races, I really like a race to reflect where they are held. If it’s a big city race I like to get a feel for the city. In Colorado – you want scenic beauty, and the Colorado Marathon delivered!

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I really enjoyed the tour through the city of Philadelphia that this marathon offered. The best sites of the city are in the first half, but the second half did … MORE

I really enjoyed the tour through the city of Philadelphia that this marathon offered. The best sites of the city are in the first half, but the second half did have the serenity of running along the Schuylkill river corridor. Honestly, I would have preferred a bit more of the race to be around the city and other sites – the Schuylkill section could have been a training run as far as I am concerned. However, I do understand that sometimes races have to do what they have to do. I found that the course was built for speed. Yes, there were some rolling hills, but some would say that this may help performance more than a pancake flat course might.

The starting line / corrals were setup great. I was in maroon (right behind the “elite” corral), and I didn’t have to dodge and weave around slower runners who were misplaced. Everyone up there was going the right pace, and it just seemed like a really good starting line experience!

Crowd support was terrific, even though there were some “dead zones”, I found that when I needed a jolt of energy there was a lot of support. I definitely appreciated the big party atmosphere in Manayunk at the turnaround on Main Street!

Communication from the race wasn’t as good as I have had with other races (Flying Pig still is tops from races I have run), but it was adequate. It seems the race wanted you to focus on following them on social media or through their website.

The finishing area was fine – some decent selection of food and drinks at the end. The hot chicken broth was a very nice touch on a colder race day – I think I appreciated that more than anything else offered at the end! The pretzel was good, and I actually appreciated the apple juice that they offered as well.

The swag was terrific – the medal may very well be my favorite medal to date. The Liberty Bell on the medal is exactly what I would expect from a Philadelphia Race, and the shirt is a nice tech shirt with some iconic Philly scenes on the front (the Rocky statue – YES!).

Overall, I am thrilled with the Philadelphia Marathon! It was a fun race where I felt like I got to know the city a bit better plus get a PR. Thanks Philadelphia for a first-class event! I don’t know if it is the best race in Pennsylvania, but I am very happy I chose Philly for my Pennsylvania race!

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The Flying Pig puts on a first class event. 2018 was my 6th straight year of running a Flying Pig event (half marathon or full marathon), and I can honestly … MORE

The Flying Pig puts on a first class event. 2018 was my 6th straight year of running a Flying Pig event (half marathon or full marathon), and I can honestly say that this was the best yet. They take care to plan every detail, and the course support is top-notch. The Pig offers enough of a challenge for veteran racers, but it is also set up perfectly for first-timers. And as bonus, the new finish area at Smale Park was fantastic – I liked it much better than the previous finish area!

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