The Running Thread--2024

[xjillianpaige]

I finally started the race part of my race recap! For Boston Marathon miles 1-13.1 click here.

 

[The Expert]

Does anyone else have Blue Cross Blue Shield for their insurance? If so, they have some phenomenal promotions through blue365deals.com. There's a 20% promo code for any Garmin product.

DAMN my state doesn't (yet) participate.

 

[prncssjas]

Good afternoon friends!

QOTD: For those of you who use pacers during a race, what do you find helpful/useful/positive about the experience (or what can get annoying/not helpful), whether you use them at Disney races or elsewhere? I will be pacing a local half marathon through my running club in June that is pretty popular in my hometown and I am SUPER excited! But I would love to hear thoughts from folks who use them. I want to do a great job and help others reach their goals.

 

[LorrieAnn5]

Good afternoon friends!

QOTD: For those of you who use pacers during a race, what do you find helpful/useful/positive about the experience (or what can get annoying/not helpful), whether you use them at Disney races or elsewhere? I will be pacing a local half marathon through my running club in June that is pretty popular in my hometown and I am SUPER excited! But I would love to hear thoughts from folks who use them. I want to do a great job and help others reach their goals.

Noticeable clothing to be seen easily and an open/welcoming personality in the corral or meeting area. I was super intimidated to be sitting near the pacers at the Disneyland Half and then have to admit to them that I was going to try to run with them.
so kind of you to agree to be a pacer. You will make people's dreams come true as they achieve their goals!

 

[GollyGadget]

Good afternoon friends!

QOTD: For those of you who use pacers during a race, what do you find helpful/useful/positive about the experience (or what can get annoying/not helpful), whether you use them at Disney races or elsewhere? I will be pacing a local half marathon through my running club in June that is pretty popular in my hometown and I am SUPER excited! But I would love to hear thoughts from folks who use them. I want to do a great job and help others reach their goals.

I’ve used a pacer once. I liked that he was upbeat and kept giving encouraging words. However, he was pacing too fast and I decided to ditch them about halfway. In my mind, that’s the worst thing you can do. He kept saying we were banking time for later, but that’s not how distance running works…

 

[avondale]

Noticeable clothing to be seen easily and an open/welcoming personality in the corral or meeting area. I was super intimidated to be sitting near the pacers at the Disneyland Half and then have to admit to them that I was going to try to run with them.
so kind of you to agree to be a pacer. You will make people's dreams come true as they achieve their goals!

I've had a couple of good pacers in races. This advice is good.

Let people know what pace you'll be aiming for - perhaps they should've calculated it already for their goal time, but be clear. For example, maybe you'll try to be 5 sec/mi faster than goal pace just to have a little buffer if there's a snag. As you run the course, announce your splits/times and let them know you're on schedule - everyone's GPS will be a tad different.

If the course has hills, let them know if you plan on going a bit slower uphill and faster downhill or keeping a steady pace throughout. Let them know if you'll be walking through the aid stations or running continuously.

Those logistics aside, I've appreciated chatty pacers (even if I'm not participating in the conversation) because that helped keep my mind off the running so I didn't notice the effort so much. Interesting anecdotes, pointing out funny signs, waving to spectators, whatever you can do to keep things interesting and distracting. If people don't want the chatter, they can hang back to the edge of the pace group and won't hear it so much.

Have fun!

 

[flav]

Good afternoon friends!

QOTD: For those of you who use pacers during a race, what do you find helpful/useful/positive about the experience (or what can get annoying/not helpful), whether you use them at Disney races or elsewhere? I will be pacing a local half marathon through my running club in June that is pretty popular in my hometown and I am SUPER excited! But I would love to hear thoughts from folks who use them. I want to do a great job and help others reach their goals.

ATTQOTD pacers: I have used pacers but generally not in order to achieve an overall race goal. Often for a portion of a race to help provide a consistent tempo or to challenge myself for a while. Once to slow me down when injured. Sometimes to have someone interesting and passionate to learn a few tricks or races recommendations from.

Pacers, even unofficial ones, have played an important part of DD journey. The first race she did, the 30 minutes 5k pacer was even talking to her with the tone of a bunny. She laughed, followed him until the turning point and said bye, not wanting to be passed by him again until after the finish line. Talk about taking pressure off a mom/coach/running partner. DD basically learned to make allies while running full speed and often ended with a guy encouraging her until the end.

And yes, one day, DD and/or I will become pacers because it is a great way to give back this passion that you and many share with us.

ETA:
The thing that I appreciate the most of a pacer is when they communicate their plan clearly. Here are some examples from my experience:

• I will be maintaining a constant effort which means that we will go slightly faster than the average pace to account for the hill at km X.
• I will be going straight through/slowing down/ walking the water stops.
• We are 20 seconds too fast after this first km. I will go back to the proper pace but will keep this little advance that we already gained.
• This snow is too deep and you are the only one with me in this wood. I see that you are fading. Do you want me to keep pushing at my assigned pace or do I just keep you company at this point? (thanks Pascale for staying with me that day!)

 

[Mr_Incr3dible]

Good afternoon friends!

QOTD: For those of you who use pacers during a race, what do you find helpful/useful/positive about the experience (or what can get annoying/not helpful), whether you use them at Disney races or elsewhere? I will be pacing a local half marathon through my running club in June that is pretty popular in my hometown and I am SUPER excited! But I would love to hear thoughts from folks who use them. I want to do a great job and help others reach their goals.

During the last MW, when I was near a pace group, I was glad to hear the pacer guy reminding them to move to the right during the walk periods.
OTOH, I was rather annoyed that, while we were in a narrow portion of the course, he was telling the rest of us to give way for the pace group during their run period, as if we weren't trying to maintain a pace and run a race as well. They were doing 30 seconds run/30 seconds walk, and with them moving in and out of the main running lanes that quickly, it got rather frustrating trying to get past them.
So my 2-cents worth would be for the pace group to be mindful of the other runners.

 

[Mr_Incr3dible]

Random comments....

I don't think about the neighbors noticing me and my running, but apparently they do. I've had a couple of them, when out walking, stop and ask me about the magnets on the back of my truck.

I had a food vendor at the Sun n Fun airshow in Lakeland notice one of my MW shirts and start asking questions.
Long and short: she was completely amazed that we run, that 20,000+ of us do so at a time, and that we run through Disney. After confirming all that, her final comment was, "That's crazy".

I was in traffic the other day and saw a car with rD race magnets on it. Cool.

And then tonight:
I've never seen Moana, but I love last year's Princess Half shirt that features her and Maui. The teal color really looks good and is a change from a lot of my other shirts.
Went out to dinner tonight and as we were finishing up, a young lady (maybe 7, 8, or 9 years old) came up and very shyly told me how much she liked my shirt, that her class had done a Moana play and that she had been in it.
Very unexpected, but very sweet and made me smile.

 

[PaDisneyCouple]

Getting ready to depart for a 5k this morning in Harrisburg. Using it as an assessment of my fitness level as I get ready to train for the Wineglass half in October.
The disadvantages of not doing social media, I guess: I missed a post 3 days ago that runners would be getting an email with race information. Stumbled across it when I followed a link from the race website last evening. No email. So I emailed to inquire. Turned out they had my payment but nothing about me on the registered participant list. Glad that got fixed last night instead of as a surprise this morning.
Hoping for under 28 minutes. No speed work in a long time. But I've been getting in at least 20 miles a week for 2 months now.
With any luck, the bridge we cross twice won't be slippery. It has an open-grate style deck.
I'll try to post a race report.

 

[flav]

Getting ready to depart for a 5k this morning in Harrisburg. Using it as an assessment of my fitness level as I get ready to train for the Wineglass half in October.
The disadvantages of not doing social media, I guess: I missed a post 3 days ago that runners would be getting an email with race information. Stumbled across it when I followed a link from the race website last evening. No email. So I emailed to inquire. Turned out they had my payment but nothing about me on the registered participant list. Glad that got fixed last night instead of as a surprise this morning.
Hoping for under 28 minutes. No speed work in a long time. But I've been getting in at least 20 miles a week for 2 months now.
With any luck, the bridge we cross twice won't be slippery. It has an open-grate style deck.
I'll try to post a race report.

Have a good race!

 

[jmasgat]

I've never seen Moana

It's one of my favorites. You have to watch this, and then come back and thank me. To which I will sing the reply "What can I say except you're welcome" (You'll know what this means after you watch the movie)