The Official OGBoards Running (and Cycling) Thread: (Insert Season Here)

[TWDeac]

the Noosa may be one of the least comfortable shoes ever. though this years model is WAY WAY WAY better than last years

Scored them off of Zappos with free next day shipping(my local running shop didn't have them), so if I don't like them, I can return them. On paper, they should be perfect for me, but I've not had much luck with Asics before, so I'd say it is a 50/50 shot that I'll return them.

 

[WakeUp08]

Oooh I thought about getting the women's version of those. Just bought some of the gel-neo 33's though

 

[RollTheQuad06]

TW - I love how colorful those shoes are. It seems like all the fun-colored shoes don't have enough support for me. I get stuck with boring colors.

 

[scooter84]

i don't think the problem was that it was a tough course. i think the problem was that they SAID it was "flat and fast." since it was brand new and nobody knew what to expect, all anybody really had to go off of was what the race director said. we all went into it thinking we'd PR. that's IO's point with the "false advertising" hashtag. and i'm with him...i won't be back because i'm still just so angry over the false advertising of it last year. also, i placed, and i got a wooden star as my prize. like they really look 3 pieces of wood, nailed them together, and called it an award. i still haven't figured out what to do with it.

congrats to everybody that raced this weekend!

Sorry to hear your experience was less than optimal. I thought the description was fair - I thought it mentioned the tough climbs when winding away from the river - but then I knew the area so I knew what to expect.

The awards were a little underwhelming, as were the finisher medals - as handcrafted mementos, I guess they were meant to reflect the area...

The race director is a nice guy and the group appears to be trying to create a series of events to bring people to the area. The Blue Ridge relay goes right through there, there is this race, there is a Mt. Jefferson challenge in Jefferson (up and down a 1500 foot mountain) and a mud-run/Gauntlet run right near the start-finish of the marathon.

Last year was the first year of the marathon/half-marathon so hopefully they learned a few things.

 

[iodeac]

Sorry to hear your experience was less than optimal. I thought the description was fair - I thought it mentioned the tough climbs when winding away from the river - but then I knew the area so I knew what to expect.

The awards were a little underwhelming, as were the finisher medals - as handcrafted mementos, I guess they were meant to reflect the area...

The race director is a nice guy and the group appears to be trying to create a series of events to bring people to the area. The Blue Ridge relay goes right through there, there is this race, there is a Mt. Jefferson challenge in Jefferson (up and down a 1500 foot mountain) and a mud-run/Gauntlet run right near the start-finish of the marathon.

Last year was the first year of the marathon/half-marathon so hopefully they learned a few things.

I think they tripped people up when they advertised "1000 feet of elevation gain". People immediately thought that the course would be mostly flat, instead of realizing that the net gain was only 1000 feet, but in between there were some vicious hills. For example, the incredibly steep dirt road around mile 15 if I remember correctly that was just mean for a marathon. I didn't take issue with the medals as much as Hoops, but the shirts were an unholy shade of blue/purple that I never plan to wear in public, and a few guy friends of mine said the same thing. Also, a tech shirt would have been nice instead of a cotton Tshirt.

 

[CaptainAwesome]

Oooh I thought about getting the women's version of those. Just bought some of the gel-neo 33's though

i work part time at a running shoe store and my boss gave me a pair of the Neo33s. they are pretty nice. i have REALLY REALLY high arches so even they had a little bit too much support for me and caused a little blistering on the inside of my right heel. but overall they are very light and the low heel-to-toe ratio is nice. i just wear them walking around/to work and what not now

 

[Wake4estMike]

My running group is thinking of putting together a 6-man ultra team to run the Colonial 200 from Charlottesville, VA to Williamsburg in late September. Last year was the first year of the race, so its fairly untested. The same group puts on the Palmetto 200. From what I understand, last year was very small. Does anybody happen to know of anyone who ran it? We are also considering Blue Ridge, but none of us really want to try that course as an Ultra--we are all OK runners but not even close to Boston qualifiers and we think BRR will be too tough.

 

[TWDeac]

i work part time at a running shoe store and my boss gave me a pair of the Neo33s. they are pretty nice. i have REALLY REALLY high arches so even they had a little bit too much support for me and caused a little blistering on the inside of my right heel. but overall they are very light and the low heel-to-toe ratio is nice. i just wear them walking around/to walk and what not now

I might have to check these out if the Noosa's don't work out.

 

[DeacHoops]

I think they tripped people up when they advertised "1000 feet of elevation gain". People immediately thought that the course would be mostly flat, instead of realizing that the net gain was only 1000 feet, but in between there were some vicious hills. For example, the incredibly steep dirt road around mile 15 if I remember correctly that was just mean for a marathon. I didn't take issue with the medals as much as Hoops, but the shirts were an unholy shade of blue/purple that I never plan to wear in public, and a few guy friends of mine said the same thing. Also, a tech shirt would have been nice instead of a cotton Tshirt.

i actually didn't have a problem with the medal. i actually thought it was cool just because it was different than anything i'd ever gotten from any other race. it was the award that i had an issue with. that was the first race i had ever placed in (individually...i had placed on a relay team before), and i was just kind of bummed with an award that can't be displayed at all.

 

[TWDeac]

Ok, the more I think about it, the more I think I probably should have asked Bob Ronkers to try to get these shoes in. Zappos return policy is freaking me out. I will have to run on a treadmill for the next two days to see how they function.

 

[CaptainAwesome]

Ok, the more I think about it, the more I think I probably should have asked Bob Ronkers to try to get these shoes in. Zappos return policy is freaking me out. I will have to run on a treadmill for the next two days to see how they function.

i was able to tell almost instantly that i wasn't a fan of the Noosa. the upper in the old model had a lot of plastic which pinched a lot they have fixed this and made it softer on top but it is still really stiff underneath. i think you would know after only a couple miles on a treadmill if you don't like them

 

[TWDeac]

i was able to tell almost instantly that i wasn't a fan of the Noosa. the upper in the old model had a lot of plastic which pinched a lot they have fixed this and made it softer on top but it is still really stiff underneath. i think you would know after only a couple miles on a treadmill if you don't like them

Sounds good. I'm feeling pretty adventurous. In high school, Asics seemed to give me shin splints. Recently, I went back to the 2160s and they gave me blisters on my feet. This will be my 3rd try with Asics. I hope it goes better

I think they have fixed quite a few things in the 7th iteration of this model. We'll see how they work. I'll be sure to post a short review tomorrow.

 

[TWDeac]

Glow in the dark picture. This should be interesting for running at night.

 

[RollTheQuad06]

glow in the dark?? I am even more jealous!

 

[lbE08]

OMG you have to get those.

 

[scooter84]

I think they tripped people up when they advertised "1000 feet of elevation gain". People immediately thought that the course would be mostly flat, instead of realizing that the net gain was only 1000 feet, but in between there were some vicious hills. For example, the incredibly steep dirt road around mile 15 if I remember correctly that was just mean for a marathon. I didn't take issue with the medals as much as Hoops, but the shirts were an unholy shade of blue/purple that I never plan to wear in public, and a few guy friends of mine said the same thing. Also, a tech shirt would have been nice instead of a cotton Tshirt.

Yea, I don't know why he says 1000 ft of climb in the video - the topo map clearly says 1700 ft of climb. I think the latter number is closer to right but even it seems low. The text description of the route is also more honest than his video, mentioning several areas of "aggressive climbs".

The other mistake he makes in the video is repeatedly saying the races are great for beginners - I don't think anyone would think the half or full course up there would be good for your first race at either distance! In both cases I think they were just over-zealous in trying to attract runners - being the first year they were probably afraid no one would sign up. I hope you gave them feedback as they need to correct those impressions.

And I agree with you on the shirt - I actually didn't mind the color or the logo - actually liked it in fact, but, I would much prefer a running shirt to a cotton t-shirt - I depend on free race shirts to supply my running wardrobe.

 

[scooter84]

My running group is thinking of putting together a 6-man ultra team to run the Colonial 200 from Charlottesville, VA to Williamsburg in late September. Last year was the first year of the race, so its fairly untested. The same group puts on the Palmetto 200. From what I understand, last year was very small. Does anybody happen to know of anyone who ran it? We are also considering Blue Ridge, but none of us really want to try that course as an Ultra--we are all OK runners but not even close to Boston qualifiers and we think BRR will be too tough.

These relays seems to be popping up all over. I see there is a new one this fall called the Tuna Run (www.tunarun200.com) that goes from Raleigh to Atlantic Beach. My group is thinking of doing it - it is in October. We were considering the Blue Ridge this year as well... We all think we need to do one of these at least once...

 

[TWDeac]

Moses Mosop(PR Boston 2:03:06) thinks that the Rotterdam Marathon in April could be where the marathon WR is broken. The course is apparently going to be super fast and there will be 5 guys who all have PRs under 2:07.

Definitely going to be keeping tabs on this one.

 

[wakephan09]

I have done a bit of jogging in Rotterdam - weird city, but fantastic for running.

 

[RacerDeac]

Racer, how was your full today?! It was WAY warmer than I was thinking and obviously significantly warmer than any training I had really done.

Good and bad. Hell, I finished and felt better afterwards than either of my previous two half marathons, so it's hard to complain. No injuries, no joint pain...just some sore calves.

I felt GREAT most of the race. Was running with a 3:20 guy who was just racing to help pace his wife to an under 4:00 finish. His wife stayed with the 3:55 pace group because she didn't want to talk to anyone until she started hurting and needed the motivaiton, so he and I went ahead 20-40 seconds where we didn't need to run in a crowd. Got through the first half in 1:57 feeling great and right on pace to stay under 4. I think I was feeling too good, because he and I just kept talking and eventually ended up a few minutes ahead of the pace group running along at a 7:50-8:00 minute pace (a full minute faster than I should have been running). By the time we realized that he needed to drop back to his wife and we were way too far ahead, the sun was out and it was really warming up. We slowed down and let the 3:55 pace group catch back up to us. At around the 20 mile water station (at the bottom of a bridge), I stopped for an extra cup of water and never could catch back up to the group in the uphill. To make matters worse, the bridge had grating that I couldn't "run" in my five fingers, so I had to stop and walk as they pulled away into the disance. Overheated and discouraged, I limped in the last 5 miles at a crappy pace with some walking interspersed to finish with a 4:09.

Already signed up for the MCM in October though, and possibly running the Baltimore in October as well to raise money for a friend who has a child with EB, so I'll be training hard to break under 4:00 later this year. Forget 4:00, I want 3:45 now. I know I can do the distance now, so it will be easier to push myself. Still very proud that I've trained for and finished a marathon without ever putting on anything more supportive than a VFF to run in.

In general I have nothing but positive things to say about the way Rock N Roll ran the race today (Washington, DC). Expo went well, corrals were well spaced, course was good, etc. I have not done all that many races, but I was very happy with the way things went today. My only beef was the slight uphill right at the end and the false finish line (thanks, Snickers Marathon Bars for putting those massive flags a few hundred yards from the finish line).

The race was very well run. Nothing like the nightmare I've read about in Vegas, thankfully.