Sunday, August 4, 2013

My Running Bucket List

Part of running (at least for me) to going to races.  Just about any weekend there are hundreds of races across the country.  Here are just a few that I would LOVE to run...one of these days:



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Disney always does everything first class...and that includes their races. Everyone who has done a Disney race will tell you how much fun they are. There is entertainment along the course, including all your favorite Disney characters. You get to run through the Parks, which ones and how many is determined by which race you run.  If you run a half or full marathon you get to run through Cinderella's castle...with your cheering squad there to cheer you on. How cool is that???
Princess Half Marathon
I don't know these Princesses, but they
sure look like they are having fun!
If I had to pick one, I would probably go with the Princess Half Marathon, run each year in February.  Although there are men that run this race, it's primarily women.  The best part is they encourage you to dress up...so there are all kinds of Princesses running the course.  That would be so much fun.  

There are some challenges to running a Disney race.  You have to keep up a minimum pace, or they will pick you up in a bus.  If you get picked up, you don't get your finisher medal.  What a bummer to do all that preparation and not be able to finish.  Also, they sell out FAST.  It's August, and the Princess Half Marathon is already sold out for next February...6 months from now.  There's no waiting until the last minute.  Lastly, these races are expensive.  This is Disney after all!

Once I get to be a more confident, less random runner I'll consider it.  Who knows, maybe I will run with Mickey one of these days.

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This race is completely different...almost backwards. MIBM is a half or full marathon run in Macon, Ga every year in July. Do you know how hot it gets in Georgia in July?  But as I said...this race is different. The goal isn't to be the first to finish.  Your time doesn't even matter. The goal is to finish as close to midnight as you can...without going over. Kinda like the Price is Right of racing. You pick your own start time. Everyone who finishes before midnight gets a tiara (yes, even the guys) and everyone who misses the deadline gets a pumpkin. How could a race like that not be fun?  



This race also fills up fast.  Since it's held in a gated neighborhood there is a strict limit of 125 runners.  Good thing I know the race director!

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The Peachtree is a July 4th tradition in Atlanta. Yes, July 4th in Hotlanta. Crazy...I know. The Peachtree claims to be the world's largest 10k with 60,000 runners. It so popular that registration used to fill up on a matter of hours, so they had to go to a lottery system for registration. (I just realized everything on my list is hard to register for...hmmm)  My sister-in-law has run this race several times and told me its a really fun race to run.  She says the crowds all along the race are awesome...constantly encouraging the racers. 

Most races you get a shirt for running...but the Peachtree has a finisher's shirt.  Each year the design is top secret, and runners can't see it until they cross the finish line. This race is all about the shirt

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My OKCMM Medal
I've run the 5k at the OKCMM, but it's really a 5k walk. There's no timing and no winners...but there is a finisher's medal! I would like to one day participate in one of the other races...the half marathon, full marathon, or more realistically, the marathon relay. The relay consists of 5 legs; a 12k, two 10k and two 5k. Altogether they make a full marathon, and they run on the same route as the rest of the marathoners.  

This race is very moving.  It starts on one side of the Gates of Time (one of the entrances into the memorial where the Murrah building once stood)  with 168 seconds of silence in memory of the 168 people who perished in the Murrah Building on April 19, 1995. The marathon then winds through scenic parts of OKC (including Bricktown, the State Capital, Lake Hefner and beautiful neighborhoods) before finishing near the Memorial back in Downtown. Last years over 23,000 participated. It's a really big deal in Oklahoma City.

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I don't know know if I'll ever get to do any of these...but this is my running bucket list. Over time I'm sure I'll add to it, but I'll be sure to let you know when I get to cross any off my list.




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