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SRRC Race Reports
National Marathon : Washington, DC—March 25, 2006
by Phil Holt
I hesitated the first time I saw the announcement for the Inaugural National Marathon. I wondered how anyone would pull this off, especially after the 2003 collapse of the DC Marathon. The District of Columbia has a long and infamous reputation for viciously divisive politics and impenetrable bureaucracy. In 2003, the marathon was canceled just days before the event, and none of the entry fees were refunded. Things in the District can be difficult.
A couple of details caught my attention this time, however. First, entry required runners to present a modest qualifying time on a certified course. The times were fairly relaxed and had to have been achieved in the last several years. Clearly, the organizers were trying to provide a gentle way of keeping large numbers of walkers off the course. Second, the course looked really intriguing. I could see why it would be unfriendly to walkers—while the half-marathon portion of the route looped through the mall, the marathon course headed out into Prince George’s County along several major traffic routes, busy roads no one would want closed for the better part of a day.
I’ve run Marine Corps many times, but the idea of a spring marathon in DC seemed appealing. I liked the look of the course and that it was limited to a maximum of 5,000 runners. I went on line, entered the race, and crossed my fingers that everything would go all right. Two days before the race, the Washington Post ran a story with an ominous title:
City's Race Tab Infuriates Mayor
Organizers Back Off Plan to Cover All Security, Traffic Costs
Oh, oh . . . it might be happening again. The truth, it turned out, was just as strange as the fiction that the Post published. Race organizers and the DC government had agreed on a fee of about $60,000 to cover the cost of race security. About a week before the race, DC sent an invoice for over $200,000. Shocked, the organizers raised the issue of the new price. Mayor Williams, clearly annoyed, stepped in, however, and saved the day—the race was important to the area, and the city would cover the difference.
Whew! My $80 or so was still safe.
It was pretty chilly when we parked in Lot 8 at RFK Stadium on race day, Saturday, March 25. A News4 cameraman came rushing over to film everything we did. He recorded me putting on my "Martha Stewart home imprisonment kit" (the very large timing chip arrangement that wrapped around the ankle—not comfortable) and modeling my Injinji toe socks (more on those later). He filmed my friend Brian modeling his fancy flip-top mittens. (Runners . . . what can I say?) I asked the guy, "You're not going to make me look stupid are you?" He smiled and said, "That's what we do!" (Now you know.)
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| Official photo of the start by Donna Neal |
Mayor Williams welcomed the runners and started the race with an interrupted countdown. Since it was only a couple of thousand runners, the mayor stopping the countdown so a few more people could get up to the starting area. It made the whole thing feel a little more personal.
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| Make the light . . . |
My actual nanosecond of fame was being on News 4 at 7:00 a.m. in the morning for as long as it took to run by the camera near the starting line. The weather gradually warmed, and turned out to be perfect. I was lucky to have made good fashion decisions for the conditions—comfy the whole way.
Course support was excellent and enthusiastic throughout the race, though I've never seen so many police on a course in my life—even at New York—but even some of the cops were clapping and offering encouragement. Most of the people who were stuck in the snarled traffic would smile and wave. I did see one person screaming first into a cell phone, then at a cop, then back into the cell phone because she was late for work. I didn't have the heart to tell her that based on what I'd seen, the fastest way to get anywhere in PG County on that morning was to be running! As I followed the course through a major intersection, a PG County policeman waved and said, "You're looking good!" I waved back and said, "Thanks, but I'm just trying to make it through this light." |
| They look weird, but these are the most comfortable socks ever--Injinji |
The half marathon course is fast and flat and looked like it would be real joy to run, especially for first-timers. When the course splits, the marathoners are rewarded with about 14 miles of hills. Only about 5 or 6 of them were really long and steep. Apart from being somewhat challenging, the course showed me a neighborhood side of DC that I've never seen—this is a city with more charm and personality than I ever knew. The race just seemed to flow right from start to finish. Half an hour after the race, I really didn't feel like I'd done a marathon. (I fell into a complete drooler of a nap when I got home, so I must have been tired.)
Conclusion: The National Marathon is a great race that I really hope expands and thrives. The course is challenging, but I have to admit, traveling through areas of the city where people actually live is more appealing to me than the rather institutional route that Marine Corps follows. Also, Injinji socks absolutely rule. This was my first time wearing them for this distance, and I finished without the slightest hint of a blister or chafe or anything. I am sold. My friend Steve Core gets salesman of the year for putting me on to those.March 2006
The SRRC would love to hear about your running, racing, or crewing experiences! If you would like to submit a race report, to be posted on the SRRC website, please email srrunner@srrunners.org.