Running a marathon in every state is an expensive undertaking, so anything that can be done to save money is worth giving a try. My main money saving strategy so far is to be a pacer. Pacers get free race registrations, usually a special pacer identifying shirt, occasionally a room, and sometimes other little extras. Although race registrations can be pricey, when you are running in a state several hundred miles away travel expenses quickly become a bigger issue. Rooms, gas, airfare, rental cars, and food all add to the total race expense. In general, driving to races is usually cheaper than flying, and then there's no need to rent a car. When traveling by myself I have also been known to sleep in my car to save money. Running clubs like Marathon Maniacs and the 50 State Marathon Club have Facebook groups that can also be a great resource for cost saving tips/tricks as well as getting together to share rides and rooms. An additional strategy to save on travel expenses is to find another race you can do on the same weekend in a nearby state. This is called doing a "double". NY/CT was my first double! Doubles don't have to be in different states, but for 50 staters that makes the most sense.
I think this race came on my radar in December 2016. It had a lot of things going for it that made me choose it for my first double.
- It was in decent proximity to Buffalo (which I had already committed to pace)
- It was inexpensive (they didn't use pacers, so I needed to pay my own way)
- It had a long (9 hour) cut off time, in case I really just felt destroyed after running 26.2 the day before
- It had race day packet pickup (so I didn't have to get there by a specific time the day before)
However, it did also have some potential negative aspects that make it a race that isn't for everybody
- The course was a 1 mile out and back (every time you crossed the timing mat at one end you had finished two more miles)
- Very little crowd support
- A little bit hilly (none were very big, but because of the course you had to keep doing them over and over again)
- Overall a low frills race (cotton t-shirt, "unique" medal)
Race weekend involved a roughly 500 mile drive to Buffalo on Saturday, pacing 4:50 for Buffalo on Sunday and then driving another 400 miles to Waterbury. I slept in the car in Buffalo, but I would need some good rest (and a shower) to be ready for day two so I "splurged" for a hotel room. I was VERY tired! I figured i needed to get up around 5 Monday morning, but as I laid in bed and started to look up what time the packet pickup started I fell asleep before setting an alarm! I woke up about 4:50 and everything worked out great. I arrived at Hamilton Park (the race venue), figured out parking, and picked up my packet at the pavilion.
I had a little bit of time to chat with the other runners before the race started. As we were preparing to line up, we found out that the race was named after the race director's daughter's favorite catch phrase when the race was first put on a few years earlier, "Oh Boy!" A drawing of the daughter's face was also used for the shirt and medal designs. It was also announced that another of the race's founders would be running with us and that it would be his 700th marathon! After the anthem and a prayer the race began. Full marathoners started out running south and half marathoners went north. The full started .2 from the timing mat, and then we needed 13 complete laps of the course to finish. The half had a special first lap turn around that put them across the mat at 1.1 and then they needed 6 more complete laps.
There was a short, steep hill down to the parking lot where the timing mat was. Every time you crossed the mat there was a monitor that would register which lap you were on. As you turned to go out for another lap there was an aid station and then you went back up the hill. After passing the stone pavilion, you turned left on the street that went past the park. There was one small hill on this part of the course. About a half mile in we turn off the street onto a sidewalk. This is the hilly part of the course. It rolls up and down a few times to the far turn around where there is another aid station.
The weather was a refreshing change (50s with occasional light rain) to the hot and humid races I had run in the preceding month. The hills were also a nice change from the relatively flat race in Buffalo the day before. Well, the hills became less enjoyable as the race progressed, but it was nice at the beginning. As things went along, I learned that even though day two of a double is physically challenging, it can be even more mentally challenging. At mile 8 I was feeling pretty good, thinking "8 miles already, not bad!" But my next time across the timing mat it was more like, "Only 10 miles?!?" Around this time I began suffering from nausea that would last for a major portion of the rest of the race. This was affecting me mentally as well as physically because it prevented me from fueling properly. Another mental battle was that I had not managed to connect with anyone running my pace, so I was going it "alone". This was disappointing since you were constantly meeting other runners, and passing or being passed by them.
I had set a goal of 5 hours for this race based on the premise that 5 hours is the time that I pace most frequently, so I wanted to test myself to see if I could run a double and still pace 5 hours on the second day. However, I wasn't running this race with my pacer hat on. I was running by feel, which meant that I'd started out too fast. As I slowed down, I was not only worried about not meeting my goal, but there was all of the mental chatter and negotiations of should I just walk since my chances of meeting my goal were diminishing. I needed to do something about my stomach. I discovered that one of the drink options was Sprite, so I began taking that in the hope that it would help my stomach feel better. Eventually I started taking Gatorade at one end and Sprite at the other and over the course of several laps my stomach began to feel a bit better.
Right around mile 22 my stomach started to feel better, and I caught a second wind energy-wise. (miles 20 and 21 were my slowest of the day) I checked my watch and concluded that if I ran smart and really focused on my pace I could still meet my 5 hour goal. This is where the repetitiveness of the course began to work in my favor. I knew exactly what to expect every bit of the way as I focused mentally on a strong finish. The mental boost of being "almost there" was also a huge help in pushing through the fatigue and the pain of my sore quads. After I made the final turn off of the main street with only .2 miles left to finish the race I pushed the pace to the end and finished in 4:57:45. Not sure that I'm ready to pace on day 2 of a double yet, but I did prove that I can break 5 hours.
After finishing I headed back to the pavilion for some post race food, but there wasn't much to be found when I arrived. They had a couple of ladies there giving massages, so I decided to do that before jumping in the car for another 6 hour drive. I don't usually get the massage at races, because it can hurt more than the pain I'm already experiencing. This was an exception, and I really think it helped how my legs felt as I was cooped up in the car for the next leg of my trip. While I was on the table the pizza arrived, so I did get some food before heading out. I started to get cold and shiver a bit, so I took the opportunity to change into my quarter zip race shirt from Buffalo.
As a testament to my cost saving skills, the entire trip (including gas, meals, hotel room, and race registration for CT) cost about the same as only the registration for the NYC marathon.
