The Old Runner

Pros: Loved the race! This is one I'd like to do every year but of course that depends on what else is happening since it's such an active time of the year for races. Sunday morning race! This was originally scheduled for a Saturday but due to bad weather was rescheduled on a Sunday. I'd like to see more Sunday races so keeping it scheduled for Sunday in the future would be great. Pancakes, sausage, and hot coffee for breakfast awaited runners at the end of the race! I've never seen so many pancakes in my life. It wasn't easy to keep the pancakes and sausage warm but it tasted great to me. Pleasant course mostly on the paved greenway. Mostly flat except for the killer hill in the 3rd mile of the 4-mile race. In addition to professional photos by Carolina Snapshot there was a TapSnap photo booth that allowed runners to get a free professional photo that was printed right on the spot. First time I've ever seen it, but it was wildly popular. I didn...

Pros: Well organized small-town race. Close to home (for me anyway)! Cheap -- $20 race-day registration. Race packet contained some pretty good stuff (candy, crackers, lip balm, etc.) Good on-course volunteer support; all turns marked very well with volunteers at all of them. Timing by Queen City Timing (they always do a good job). Cons: Advertised 3-deep age group awards; only gave 1-deep awards.  Additional Comments: This was the first time I've run this race since 2009 (five years ago). That year I ran it in 23:28, which is equivalent to an age-graded time of 19:22 and age-graded score of 66.6%. This year my time of 21:39 is equivalent to an age-graded time of 17:06 and age-graded score of 75.4%. Definitely faster at 62 than I was at 57! Some of the Gaston County Runners who ran the race. Click Here for Race Results My Stats: Time:  21:39 Pace:  6:53 Age Group:  1 of  3 Overall:  10 of  101 Age Graded Equival...

Pros: Well organized. Excellent communication before the race so there were no surprises. Buses to race site were great. Basically no waiting and no lines. Fill a bus up and go! 200' x 60' tent erected the day before the race "just in case it rains." (It was spectacular!) Great food (pizza, hot soup, chocolate milk, lots more). Mostly flat but there were a few inclines. Lots of " Free Race Pics " in addition to professional photography from Capstone Photo . Plenty of volunteers who did a good job with everything I could see. Great finisher medals for both the marathon and half marathon. Lots of porta potties (No long lines). In addition to the technical fabric T-shirt, all runners received a free pair of calf sleeves. Cons: Parking. There were 900 parking spaces on site that sold out for $10 each. Definitely worth it so you could have your car there, but as mentioned above, the buses were handled beautifully both before and after the race...

It was nice to get back to my favorite racing distance after not having run a half marathon since the one in Hawaii back on November 17th. I had run the Corporate Cup half five years ago, back in 2009, when I had been running less than a year and it was only my second half marathon. I don't remember exactly why, but it seems like every year since then I've had my focus on a different race and just haven't been back. Like the Belk Bowl 5k back in December, the staging area for both the pre- and post-race activities was the Wells Fargo Atrium, which is hard to beat on a cold winter day. There's also free parking in the two Wells Fargo parking decks if you show your race bib as you leave, and since the parking decks are connected to the atrium it's not necessary to be outside at all except for the race itself. I'm sure a lot of runners prefer the great outdoors, but as an unabashed cold-weather hater I prefer the toasty confines of a heated area. I've...