Illinois Half Marathon - #41
After returning from the honeymoon sick and missing the GO! St. Louis half marathon as a result, the Illinois Half Marathon ended up being my first race as a married woman. This was my 3rd time running the half marathon in Champaign/Urbana, IL but it never gets old or boring. My step-brother lives in the area, so I always have a place to stay which makes the three hour drive worthwhile. I always stop by the expo early in the afternoon on Friday and I always stop by one of the Za's locations for either lunch or dinner over race weekend.
After miserably running the 2016 half marathon entirely in the rain and in well over three hours, my goal was to redeem myself in 2017 and finish in under three hours. For packet pick-up, I parked in the lot between State Farm Center and Memorial Stadium, which made it an easy walk to the expo at the Activities and Recreation Center (ARC). There was no way to get lost in the ARC because there were signs everywhere, even on the floor. This year we checked in with a scan code and your id and it was such a breeze.
After receiving your bib, you went to the gymnasium for t-shirt pick up and the expo vendors. There were booths from other races as well as all the gear you can imagine plus items you never knew existed. This year's t-shirts were bright neon and we received drawstring bags again too. I had also purchase an ARC Shower Pass for $5.00 just in case my stepbrother was not home when I finished the race. This is a great option for runners who may be driving straight back home and had to check out of their hotel before the start of the race.
On race morning, I parked in the exact same lot because it would be close to the finish line in Memorial Stadium AND most importantly, it was near the FREE coffee and tea tent. I was in my parking spot by 6 a.m. just so that I would have plenty of time for caffeination.
On my way to the start line, I also passed by plenty of porta-potties and I had plenty of time to kill before my corral was released.
I only took a few pictures along the course, but it turned out to be a beautiful day for running! The course winds through campus, commercial areas, residential areas, and parks. In one particular area I remember signs along the route mentioning famous University of Illinois alums which is a nice distraction as your mileage increases.
What I love about this race is the amazing volunteer and local support in addition to finishing on the 50 yard line. You receive your medal on the field and can even stretch in the end zone. But if I were to ever run the marathon here, I would hate having to walk up the stairs to the concession stands for food after the finish, but that hasn't ever been an issue for me after running the half marathon or 5k.
Once you make it up to the concession stands, you are welcomed by volunteers with plenty of food which included bananas, cookies, pizza, pasta, and granola bars. The medals this year celebrated the 150 year anniversary of the University of Illinois.
I will definitely run this race again and will probably park in the exact same parking lot and will visit Za's at least once during my racecation. This is a great Midwestern race to run!
Indy Mini 500 Half Marathon - #42
This past weekend I ran the Indy Mega Mini Challenge in Indianapolis which included a 5k immediately followed by a half marathon. Six months ago, this sounded like a good idea. I had an hour to finish the 5k before my corral was even released, so I didn't think twice when I signed up for the challenge. But as I am typing this, I am still sore. But I actually felt much, much worse at the finish line on Saturday. I guess more training was needed and I was blinded by the potential for additional bling!
This was actually my third time running the Indy Mini 500 Half Marathon. As we came into Indianapolis on Friday for the expo, it was raining and rain was predicted for race day as well. Because I have had one phone fried in the rain before, I decided not to take my phone on the course with me this time but you can click here to see pictures from the 2014 race.
The expo is held at the Indiana Convention Center which was connected to our hotel via a skywalk. Much of downtown Indianapolis is actually connected via skywalks. Our hotel, the Crowne Plaza Union Station, is in the shadow of the Lucas Oil Stadium.
One thing I noticed that was new from the last we stayed at the Crowne Plaza was this handy running route guide for Downtown Indy, conveniently located near the water in the lobby. I really love downtown Indianapolis because it is so clean, pedestrian and bike friendly, and it feels really safe. If I had more time, I would definitely explore these running routes.
Packet pick-up at the expo was a breeze here too. I didn't have to wait at all! Next to the bib pick-up was a t-shirt exchange area. Then you walk through the race merchandise area of course before you enter the main part of the expo. There were many other races represented at this expo as well as a wide-variety of products. I ended up signing up for the Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon again because I just could not beat the price, plus I have a reason to visit Indy again this fall!
The Mega Mini Challenge meant three shirts and three medals. The 5k and the challenge shirts were short sleeved while the mini marathon shirt was long sleeved. I really loved the shirts this year but the women's sizes do run very small!
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| 5k Shirt |
We also received a running cap in our packets.
We spent the rest of Friday in the far northern area of Indianapolis shopping and watching a movie. On Saturday morning, we woke up around 5:50 a.m. but since our hotel was so close to the start line, we didn't leave until 6:35 a.m. We could have taken the skywalk to the Convention Center and then over to a hotel right at the start line, but we walked outside instead. The morning was crisp and cool, so luckily I had packed gloves and a long sleeve tech t-shirt. It was sprinkling a bit as we approached the start line, but it wasn't anything that would prevent us from running. We made it to the start line of the 5k with time to spare and then we were off!
The first part of the course took us past the Indianapolis Zoo and then through parts of the Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis campus. I only ran for a half mile or so at the start of the race just to get around the slower walkers, and then I walked the remainder of the course since I knew that my corral would not even start the half marathon until 8:00 a.m. I ended up talking to a woman for the last mile or so, which made the time fly by. Before I knew it, we were at the finish line.
I proceeded past the medal volunteers who told me there was no sticker placed on challenge participant bibs this year and just to proceed back to the half marathon start. I followed the signs back to the start and got to my corral just as they were preparing to start. Whew! Then I was off again!
It was still misting during the first few miles, but as we approached the Speedway the sun finally made an appearance and stayed out through the finish. This race is one of the larger half marathons that I have done lately and it is nice because you are constantly surrounded by people, no matter what your pace is. Volunteer support at this race rivals Disney races and water and Gatorade seems to always be available. I couldn't even tell you how many water and Gatorade stops there were, but they were plentiful and well-staffed. Another great feature of this race, PLENTY of porta potties. Plenty at the start, some very visible with others tucked in alleys, and plenty along the course.
Do you remember how Rock 'n' Roll races advertised music every mile, well the Indy Mini Marathon had music much more frequently than that. You would barely pass one band before you approached another in some areas, it was great! There were also several dance performance groups which made runners want to dance along, and some actually did. While you are running on the track, music follows you the entire time. I didn't stop to kiss the bricks this time, but plenty of others did and I do recommend stopping to do that if you haven't before. I just knew that I would have difficulty getting back up if I dropped to the ground this time.
So what was predicted to be a miserable race day turned out to be an absolutely beautiful day and I wish I would have had my phone with me to capture more of the course and downtown Indy along the way. Maybe next time, because I will run this race again and hope to drag my husband along next time too.
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