Slick's Fabulous Rock 'n Roll Half-Marathon Adventure!

Race Day T-Shirt

Pre-Marathon

On Thursday, March 15, 2012 my family and I jumped on the D.C. Metro and took it to the D.C. Armory to pick up our half-marathon bibs.  I should say that my husband and I picked up our half-marathon bibs, my daughter is only up to about a mile.   We took the metro because we wanted to make sure we knew how to get there the day of the race, because they warned everyone that with 20,000 plus participants, parking would be limited.  Fortunately there is a metro stop right in front of the armory making it very easy to get to.   

The two days before the race there was a Health and Fitness Expo.  There were so many vendors, with so many cool things.  Brooks was out there selling various running apparel, shoes and other race souvenirs.  They also had a couple of little games that were entertaining for my daughter and made her feel included.  Other vendors included Gu, the protein packet people, and P.F. Chang's was also there giving away coupons for their lettuce wrap appetizer.  Safeway was out there with a free sample of Macaroni and Cheese, which my daughter assured me was very tasty.  Florida grapefruit growers were out there with samples of grapefruit juice which my daughter assured me was not tasty. ( I thought it was pretty good.) There were companies out there selling gear and other memorabilia for runners.  I could go on and on.  We had full goody bags by the time we left to catch the train back home.

 Not including the official race t-shirt or items we ate on the way home

 The night before the run we carbed up with spaghetti and meatballs, being careful not to overdo it.  Then we got our stuff ready and went to bed early.  At midnight the person I had arranged to watch my daughter on race day called and said she was too sick to baby-sit.  I was very discombobulated and it took me several seconds to process what she was saying.  After hanging up, I quickly dialed Tillie and prayed she would answer her phone…she keeps pretty late hours.  She answered and she agreed…so a big shout-out to her!  (By the way my normal babysitter is feeling much better)

Saturday morning at "0’dark-hundred" we grabbed our stuff and headed to Tillie’s house -- which is in the opposite direction from D.C. -- to drop our wild child off with reminders to be good, go back to sleep, and to play nice.  From a sleeping Tillie household we made our way to the metro station and jumped on the first train into D.C.

Apparently one of the unique things about having a race here is that they allow participants into the old gymnasium before the race.  Not only is the place where you check your issued gear bag, but they also have real bathrooms, a place to sit and stretch, and it is out of the elements.  Since we arrived about an hour and half before the race was due to start, my hubby and I sat down and did our pre-race checks.  We attached our chips to our running shoes, ate some almonds and checked our ipods.  It was at this point that my husband realized he forgot his ear buds.  We frantically checked our bags, but to no avail.  The ear buds were back in the truck in Maryland.  I (begrudgingly) offered him mine, but was very relieved when he declined.  It was a Rock n Roll marathon, there were to be bands at every mile.  He would have plenty of music.  And if you ever met my husband, you would quickly realize there is always music playing in his head.  After this bit of disappointment and another quick trip to the loo, we decided to go and find our corral.

Part II to Follow!