Reneé Place-Eron's Staging Area

If you are not a local to Phoenixville, PA this race doesn’t make much sense. However, us locals all know that the 1958 movie “the Blob” was filmed here. The original theater that the Blob busts out of is still in operation. The city hosts a festival each year to commemorate that and raise money for the maintenance of the theater. Ok history aside, race review! I no longer live in PA, so I traveled to this race and stayed with family in town. I picked up my packet the morning before the race and it was very easy and well organized. I received my bib and shirt. The shirt depicts the classic Blob scene and was in my favorite color purple. It is a very soft cotton shirt. There were plenty of porta potties and the starting line was easy to find based on the maps the race organizers had emailed. Parking was very pretty limited near the start/finish line. They did offer parking at the high school with shuttles to the start/finish line but they would be too late to accommodate 1/2 runners who needed to pick up their packets. So I did not use the shuttle. I was dropped off and when my family came back to cheer for the finish they parked in a lot that was several blocks away. The start time was at 7am to try to beat some of the heat, but it could have started at 6am and still been scorching. I am a 2:30 half runner and it was 85 when I finished. I was prepared for the heat and well-hydrated, but it still sucked. The course ran along the Schuylkill River, and it was very pretty and also a lot of the trail was shaded in the first 6 miles. After we came back through town and went over a bridge to the 2nd out and back section there was mostly full sun on the course. There are 2 giant hills on the 2nd half the first was mostly flat. Since it is out and back, yep you got to hit those hills from both directions. That was hard especially since on the way back those hills were like miles 11-12 and it was so hot and I was tired. However, there was more crowd support on this 2nd section and two of the stations featured water sprayers which were so welcomed! They did provide a good number of water stations and I believe even had gels at one station. All the water stations also had some kind of electrolyte drink available and that was perfect for the heat that day. I was hugely disappointed because as I came around the last corner and could see the finish line they were announcing they had run out of medals, and would be recording bib numbers to send the medals out. However, right then my family saw me and started going crazy cheering me on to the finish line, so I found a last bit of energy to crush the finish. The finish line was well stocked with COLD waters, and baby pools filled with ice water. That was amazing! I did receive my medal in the mail and it came a lot faster than I anticipated. It is a pretty cool medal! So overall, I recommend this race, but be prepared for the heat–make sure your hydration game is on point!

This race is a nice small hometown race in the foothills of North Carolina. There might have been 200 people running the half-maybe. The production was sufficient for the size of the event, I didn’t register in time to guarantee my tshirt size, but I was lucky enough to get one after the race. There were plenty of facilities available. They did have an awesome breakfast after the race. The course wound through beautiful scenic countryside. All the fall colors were out and it was gorgeous to take in. There are a lot of hills both steep and long as well as rolling. The worst was probably around mile 9-10. So, yah it kicked my butt. There were volunteers on the course where they were needed. There were a few times where I was unsure which way to go but found someone to show me at just the right time. There is good crowd support at the end, but otherwise it was just me and the road and the occasional runner, so it felt a lot more like a long run than a race, but it sure was beautiful. That is my kind of running right there.

The expo and packet pick up was very well organized and easy to get in and out of. We utilized the shuttles to get to the start line and back and that also was a very smooth operation. It is a VERY early start as we had to be at the shuttle pick up at 4am, but that gave us plenty of time to warm up and use the porta-johns prior to race start at 6am. There were plenty of porta-johns at both the start and along the course. Since we were there so early we were able to use them without waiting. The course itself was nice I did the north course which the race info said went past the NASA assembly building or something like that. I never saw it. The course to me seemed to be out and back on one long residential street that ran along the Indian River. It started out very dark. Once we got out of the starting area and onto the main course it was surprisingly dark. I was surprised by that but there were some street lights etc so it wasn’t pitch black and the sun came up within the fist 30 minutes. The sunrise was on our backs which I couldn’t help but think might have been planned that way. There was plenty to see on the water between the birds, boats, and people. A lot of the homes along the course had people out cheering and some had set up makeshift aid stands with freeze pops water and even one had mimosas! The crowd support was great! The aid stations were frequent and well manned. I did not like the 6am start, but considering it is Flordia and was 70 and 90% humidity at 6am I was grateful that it started early enough to finish before the heat and humidity became too much. The after party was also amazing they had scrambled eggs, mac and cheese, chocolate milk and beer in addition to regular stuff like bananas and water. Overall, I would highly recommend this race. It is run like a well oiled machine, and since the race is Thanksgiving weekend it’s a perfect opportunity for a “Race-cation” lots of stuff to see and do in the area. Oh and I almost forgot the medal is HUGE and awesome and the shirt is very cool.

This is my 2nd time running this race. I liked it so much I came back and brought a friend. We actually ran the double pump which is the 5k and the 10K. They made some changes to the way they run this for those of us doing the double pump. Previously it was like two separate races the 10K started 1 hour after the 5K so plenty of time to run the 5k and get to the 10K start. This year they put the 10K start only 30 minutes after the 5k start enabling people to treat it more like a 15K if you were doing both. I especially liked that they kept the 2 race feel of it by stopping your time on the chip when you crossed the 5k finish line and then restarting it when you crossed the 10k starting line-which is about a block apart and on a different street so you can funnel out to the 10K start line without going through all the finish area crowds. This also enabled those of us who wanted a break between the two to be able to have an area to stretch, porta-potties etc. without it affecting our overall race time. Only thing I would have made different would be to have some water available between the end of the 5k and start of the 10k. Otherwise everything was great and well organized as it was before. The bridge is tough but the vibe is fun and its Savannah plenty of post race fun to be had!! Plan to stay for the whole weekend!

I ran the double pump which is the 5k followed by the 10K so 3 total trips over the Bridge. They claim it is the toughest bridge in the South. I was skeptical before and I still am. It was definitely a challenge. I believe the climb up and around the on ramps to the bridge is steeper than the Cooper River Bridge (in Charleston, SC) but I think the overall climb at Cooper River is longer. But it was a great view and definitely worth it. The double pump medal is massive!! I was so surprised when I saw it at the expo the pictures online did it no justice. I loved that! Everything was very organized. I rolled in to pick up my packet right at 5pm and was able to get it within 5 minutes. There were many vendors and they were giving “samples” of Michelob. The starting line trolleys were perfect and I was able to walk from our hotel to the trolley pick up point in about 10 minutes. Took the Trolley to the starting line for the 5K and there were plenty of porta-potties. The starting line had runners and walkers separated so that was good. The only thing I would improve on was better signage to show where the 10K start line was. After finishing the 5K we had to walk to the 10K Start line which I knew from studying the course maps was only a block or so away. I just didn’t know which way it was and about everyone I asked wasn’t sure either. So an arrow sign at the double pump exit from the 5K would have been really helpful. Overall I loved this race and had such a good time exploring Savannah. I would definitely plan to make this a weekend trip if you come to do the race.

The idea is simple drink a beer run two miles and repeat! You can compete as an 8 mile relay team or you can compete individually and run all 8 miles yourself. You are NOT required to drink beer, but if you do you get a 2 minute deduction off your time. Also, you have the option of drinking a carbonated beverage instead of beer to qualify for the time deduction. The course was a trail around a farm and had several hills and the trail was rough. Lots of roots, stumps, rocks, and ruts to dodge. It was my first trail experience so I’m not sure how good a judge I am of that aspect. There was a nice pond and some horses to look at but I honestly spent most of the time looking at the ground making sure I didn’t trip over something. The race was a smaller event and well organized. I love that they give out running socks instead of t-shirts! I have plenty of t-shirts! Since it was a “beerlay” the swag included a coozie too. It was a fun time overall and I would definitely do it again!