I was so impressed with the organization and great value of this race today, I must review.
The Big Cottonwood Marathon and Half does a phenomenal job with this event. This is by far the most organized, friendly, and perk filled race, I have attended in Utah. I have yet to run STG, however.) I was so impressed with everything from the web page to the finish. They really didn't skip a beat anywhere.
The goody bags have the usual, but also include a pair of gloves and an emergency blanket for the cooler start. The drop bags are shoe backpacks already labeled with your name and bib number, so easy to find at the finish. The shirts are a great fit, design and color- the best I've seen so far (too bad I ordered a size for my husband. I'm too good to him.)
The volunteers were friendly. The aid stations were spread out every 2 miles with drinks, candy and aid.
The course is beautiful, but very steep. Steepest I've ran. However, I hear Drop 13 is steeper.
Most of the buses were Le Bus's (how to make that plural, I don't know. Ask the French.)
Exiting off the bus, the POP's were plenty. I never did see the end of them. There were also portable sinks to wash your hands afterwards.
The race started seamlessly on time. They had a flying helicopter camera capturing a birds eye view of the race that snapped pics. Did I mention all the pics taken are free and sent to FB?
The pacers were great (of course:) because Walter does a good job with American Flyers Race Pacesetters.
The finish had tons of massage therapists waiting to help. There must have been around 25 of them. Whole foods sponsored the food, so it was great.
Individualized printed results were made available as soon as you finish, even on a fancy card.
The metals are especially BIG and heavy. I guess it would have been ironic to have a small metal, considering the name. If it were solid silver, that might have been overkill, but that is something for them to work on for next year:)
They really didn't miss the mark anywhere today, as far as I could tell. Josh Rohatinsky is part of the team who puts on this event. He was an an elite athlete for Nike, so he's been to some big races himself. It seems he took the best of those races and put it into a "BIG" event here in Salt Lake City. I'd love to do it each year.
Okay, review done.
Jed Burton helped me pace the 1:30 group. We had a group with us until the last mile, they fell behind or pushed ahead. My watch said 1:30 exactly, official results said 1:29:55. After the finish I got a massage, then realized I had a couple of hours to stop at every expo table and take something away. I was excited to see how Telly and Becky finished, as well as a few women from my morning running group. I ran back and found Telly and Becky. I ran with them in. It's always emotional to see others reach their goals and fight so hard. I ran a bit more to find the others. Altogether, I got another 10 miles in, perfect for a long run day. Legs are tired.
Oh yeah, there were a ton of bloody nipples today. A ton.
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