Recap: Space Coast Marathon

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Finally got my recap of the Space Coast Marathon in Cocoa, FL on Nov. 30, 2014 complete.

Travel and Expo

We arrived at the expo pretty late in the day.  We had an almost 5 hour drive from Tallahassee to Cocoa - and we left our chilly town (okay chilly for us) to arrive to much warmer Central Florida temps.

On the way, we stopped for lunch at Sinbad's, a little falafel place in Merritt Island that DisneyBride really likes.  DB used to live in this area in the late 90s, and this little family-owned restaurant is still around from those day, so it has become our tradition to go there every time we are in town. Tasty food, so I'm not complaining.

The expo seemed to be better laid out this year.  The packet pickup/expo was moved to a host resort instead of the Kennedy Space Center.  The parking was not so great, but the expo floor itself was larger.  

To the Finish Line and Beyond!!!

Many of the Space Coast Marathon items were already sold out upon our arrival.  Fortunately, I did get a Tervis this year, as a friend of ours was kind enough to buy me one as soon as the expo opened.  DisneyBride also got some 'gaiters' for her trail running. She was pretty excited about them. 

A couple of  #DisneyGroomSelfies

Tony and Stacy from PBRC

The running dynamo, Megan Sullivan

Pasta Dinner

I really enjoyed the dinner and Bart Yasso is an entertaining speaker with lots of great stories.  DisneyBride has something of a little crush on him actually.  She refers to him as The "Real" World's Most Interesting Man.

There was plenty of food and it was quite tasty.  I generally eat really boring food the night before a marathon, but I appreciated having a few pasta options.  And we had a good time catching up with friends.

Blurry Bart Yasso- yeah I take amazing photos

Bart Yasso gives talks all around the country at various marathons. We also heard him speak in February this year, at the Tallahassee Marathon expo. If you have never had the opportunity to hear one of Bart's presentations, do it!  It is a lot of fun to hear about all his running adventures.  I won't give any of the details here; I can't do them justice.  Just know that he probably has about the coolest job any runner could ever have. 

Recommendation: For $25, I thought the pasta dinner was worth it. Last year, we headed to Cocoa Village, and had to fight for parking spot, and we braved a crowded restaurant, only to wait over an hour for pizza.  This year, knowing we already had dinner taken care of - that is one less thing to worry about the night before the race. 

Pre-Race

We opted to drive to the race start.  The night before, we scoped out a couple of parking lots we thought would be empty race morning.  We were wrong, the lots we expected to park in were already full when we arrived.  I lucked into a spot on the street just a couple of blocks from the start.  We need to arrive earlier next year if we decide to drive. 

The pre-race photos always look good!  We all have that "I just woke up" face! From left to right: me, Michelle, DisneyBride, and Patty

Becky from Endurance Sports Connection, dressed as a rocket ship

 Linda from Endurance Sports Connection

I really enjoy the enthusiasm of the race start festival area.  So many runners in one place, all excited to begin their respective races.  We snapped a couple of photos with runner friends and running groups (we missed a few as well) and before we knew it, I was kissing DisneyBride goodbye as she headed to the start area.  Recommendation: take advantage of the real restrooms at the riverfront start park.  Real bathroom beats portapotties everytime. 

Always line up way in the back

Miles 0 - 13

After waiting for the half marathoner's to start, it was our turn.  I would recommend pacers carry slightly bigger pace signs for race morning.  The street is pretty dark at 6:30 am and with so many runners, they were almost invisible.  The countdown to start the race is an experience all to itself.  Completely different than any other race I have attended.  There is the national anthem of course, but there is also a large screen that plays a shuttle launch countdown.  Just in case you forgot this was a Space-themed race.

The Buzz Lightyear water stop! Well done Space Rangers!

I dream of a cold beverage

Ummm. No!

Stephanie looking good while completing her #Marathonapalooza

BRAWNDO!  It's also what runners crave!

I ran this race with two friends from Tallahassee who were concerned about finishing the race.  Helping people cross the finish line is a terrific experience.  We all trained together for several weeks, but we do have different paces. I didn't plan to go for a PR, I ran at their pace for this marathon - so we lined up near the 6 hour group.  We kept just ahead of that pace group the entire first half.  People were pretty honest about where to line up; there was very little passing at the beginning of the race. This makes for a smoother first couple of miles, particularly helpful when you start out running in the dark and the course is already crowded.

The first half of the course runners we all head north for 6.55 miles, then turn around and head south on same road for 6.55, following the street that runs along the Indian River.  Runners head out and back, crossing the halfway point at the starting line.  The first half, I got my runners into a groove, running a 1:1 (run/walk ratio).  Making jokes and cheering for runners along the way.  Side note: the jokes are always free, enjoy them!  I still think my best line went right over the runners head- I yelled out "You're a Machine" to a runner dressed as R2D2.  Take a moment to let that cheesy glory soak in.  Again folks, the jokes are free.

Awesome views!

It was pretty cool to see the leader with such a commanding lead.  I estimate he was about 4 minutes ahead of the 2nd runner at about the 11 mile mark.  He made it look so effortless! 

My only complaint about the 1st half of the course, is that there aren't many spectators along the course.  However, the volunteers monitoring the roads did a good job of cheering runners on. 

Awesome traffic volunteer.

Miles 13.1-26.2

The three of us arrived at the half point feeling pretty good.  My friends didn't want to kill me yet and we headed out to crush the second half of the course.  The second half of the marathon course follows the half marathon course, also an out and back.  And this is just as beautiful as the 1st, as we continue running along the riverfront - south for 6.55 miles then back.  But what made it special was knowing I would catch DisneyBride heading north on the last few miles of her half.

DisneyBride looked great during her race

About mile 16 my left knee started to get annoyed at me.  I need to start running on the road more before my next marathon (Disney) in January.  I spend so much time on trails, I am just not accustomed to the impact from roads. 

The second half required a little more "Drill Sergeant" DisneyGroom.  The pace slowed and my friends were starting to feel the mileage.  Less smiles were seen and more "really Walter???" looks were received upon hearing my cheesy jokes. I was told after the race that they were thankful for the motivation on the course and that I was perhaps, the greatest pacer of all time.

Patty- still talking to me at the half way point.

The volunteers and the spectators were awesome - and there are many more out on the second half.

A special shout out goes to the group that had the bar out in their front yard.  

They also had a hose to help cool runners off, nice touch.  

The Parrot Heads came through again this year with their Hawaiian and tropical music.  The creepy house, yep, still creepy.

The most formal and informal Capt. America I have ever seen. Major props to any dude confident enough to run a marathon in bikini underwear and a bow-tie.

The turnaround point for the half --- that signaled the last 6.55 for us was staffed by these smiling volunteers.

Approaching the last few miles, it is always nice to see other finishers come out to cheer on their fellow runners.  Thank you to the runners that stopped and let me use their medals as a tool to encourage my friends to pick up the pace and finish the race. 

Robyn near the finish line

Festival Area

Completed #2 of 5!

Crossing the finish line - ahh... it just never gets old. It's even better when they announce your name as you cross. After collecting my medal and my awesome finisher towel, I headed to meet DisneyBride and grab some food.  DisneyBride met me with beer at around the 26.1 mark.  

After taking a couple of sips, I headed to get some hot food.  The race director did a great job this year.  Last year, they were out of pizza when I crossed the line.  This year, they had all the hot food, cold beer and soda, snacks, eggs, and pancakes anyone could want.

You'll notice the lack of pictures here.  The beer was cold, the soda was cold, and the food was hot and delicious.  I was too rungry to take a picture.  Just know that it was all delicious. 

Final Thoughts

It really was a great day.  The weather conditions were cool and clear.  Race start was 60 degrees, by late morning it was low 70s.  That is perfect long run conditions in my book.  However a few of the runners from colder parts of the country didn't think so, as we all saw a few suffering from heat exhaustion.  But then again, I probably wouldn't last 10 minutes in a marathon up north this time of year.

It seemed like the volunteers at the water stops really got into the theme.  It appears more of the volunteers dressed up this year. They definitely were far more animated.  Also, with as many water/food stations as there were, I could have left the hydration pack at home.  However, I am pretty partial to my sports drink.   

Run with friends if you can.  DisneyBride had running companions at the beginning and at the end of her half; I ran my entire full with friends. You share some great memories and all the laughter makes the time pass much quicker... even when you are at the back of the pack.  Well, at least we think so.

Patty... so inappropriate - it's why we love you

DisneyBride w/ Shelly and Victoria

Unfortunately this year a few too many drivers were out on the road before they were re-opened.  Also, it seemed like they had no issue flying down the road at an extremely unsafe speed.  I hope organizers can find a way to keep people from the roads before they open.  Luckily I didn't hear of anyone getting hurt.

You may have heard about the medals issue.  Some of the Half Marathoners that finished at the very end got Marathon medals instead because they ran out of Half medals. DisneyBride - much to her relief - was not one of the very last finishers, but her Half Medal did come on a full Marathon ribbon. So we don't know what happened there...

We can't wait to run this race again next year.  I still haven't decided if I am going to run the half or the full.  My running partners have all promised to scale back to the half - so I may be out there alone. Anyway, that decision will have to wait until my #DopeyAintEnuf 2014 - 2015 race season concludes. I do hope the organizers continue to improve the race.  

One last idea for improvement.  The last shuttles for the hotels leave at 1:30.  A marathoner finishing within the time limits could miss the buss while getting their medal and perhaps stopping for a bite to eat and something to drink.  Perhaps, the buses should run until 2:00?

Post Race

Tired but happy, DisneyBride and I headed to one of our favorite places.  

And we had our celebratory dinner at Raglan Road in Downtown Disney.  A good meal, a show, and my partner in crime.  What could be better?  It is only about an hour's drive from the race area, so no surprise, there were a lot of Space Coast runners at WDW that day.

If you didn't read my recap from the 2013 Space Coast marathon, it is here.  In 2015, we both expect to receive 2 medals - one for the race itself, and another for the Milky Way Challenge - completing 3 consecutive years. Yay for more Space Bling!

Have you ever run Space Coast?

What is your favorite themed race?