You guys, has that cloning thing happened yet? Does a Time-Turner exist outside of the pages of Harry Potter? What about a TARDIS?
No, huh?
My dear friend, Rachel, ran her second (and she swears LAST) marathon this weekend: the Marine Corps Marathon. As soon as she told me she was tackling the distance again, I was hoping that I’d be able to be there to cheer for her. Once I realized what weekend it was (Victoria and family were coming to visit – YAY), I realized that I’d be cheering from afar.
Thankfully, I’ve had practice in cheering for people running races from a distance!
I signed up for text message alerts for her race and anxiously awaited that first text telling me that she started the race.
BUT IT NEVER CAME.
So, I just started inundating her with my cheering “signs” and hoping for the best (because I’m persistent!).
This was “our song” during the Shenandoah half.
Around this time, she texted to let me know that she was running but not getting alerts either. I did a little sleuthing and found the MCM app for my phone. From there I was able to see her location (although not reliably) and I knew she was at the 10k mark.
As she got further along in the course, she had to hit certain cut off points and times and she did it. I knew that it was getting more challenging for her and she had to deal with a setback when she had an asthma attack. Still she pushed onward!
Rachel really, really likes cats.
Made this one while I was in the parking lot at the dollar store.
Finally the alerts decided to work (near the end, which worked out well). When I knew she crossed the finish line, I bombarded her with GIFs! Like this one:
And this one:
I was just listening to the most recent BibRave podcast and Bart Yasso relayed a story in which Sarah Reinertsen said “Never take a finish line for granted” and I know that Rachel gave this race everything she had yesterday. Rock star status!
This weekend was a huge racing weekend so to all of you who got it done yesterday: I’m proud of you, my friends! Whether it a training run or a race, I’m always cheering for you.
Disclaimer: I received a free entry to the Run Inspired 10k race as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!
You know the song from Grease that goes: “I’ve got chills, they’re multiplyin'”?
I’ve decided to change that lyric to “I’ve got hills, they’re multiplyin'” in honor of the Run Inspired 10k!
Eating hills for breakfast, indeed.
The 2nd annual Run Inspired 10k in Winterthur, Delaware was held on October 15, 2017. The race benefits Operation Warm, which provides winter coats for children living in poverty. It’s a great cause and one that I was happy to support.
The start and finish were in the same location, and surrounded by the “race village”, which is where the Finishers Party was held. Bib Pickup could be done on Friday or Saturday at the Delaware Running Company or (as I opted to do) day of at the Registration tent for no additional fee.
At the bib pickup I was given my race bib, a long sleeved poly-blend women’s cut shirt, and a drawstring bag.
Cute women's cut long-sleeved shirts! The volunteer told me this is a change from the unisex ones last year. #bibchatpic.twitter.com/rHyXZ9XNZr
Parking was in a field, on a hill, overlooking the race village. There was also premium parking available a bit closer to the race village. The only issue was this year’s weather was rainy prior to the race, leaving the grass wet… which made for wet socks and shoes. Not ideal, but thankfully I prepared ahead of time by slathering my feet with 2 Toms Foot Shield.
There were 747 runners/walkers during this race (the 2016 inaugural race hosted 1,397 participants) and the management encourages both runners and walkers to participate.
Corrals are self-seeded with paces up to 10 minutes and then a “walkers” corral. A suggestion would be to extent the running corrals even further, as I know many (such as myself) employ the run/walk/run technique. The course was a bit tight at the beginning of the race and spreading paces out a bit further might assist with that.
As for the course, it was absolutely gorgeous! Hosted at the Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library, there was beautiful fall foliage and many things to look at along the way. From reading a previous review on BibRave, I knew that the course would be hilly (something that those from the area wouldn’t automatically assume because most of Delaware is flat as a pancake).
It was definitely a challenging course! I took advantage of the flat portions and the downhills as much as possible.
The volunteers stationed along the course and at the water stations were fantastic and encouraging. There were smiling faces everywhere. A portion of the course (1.5 miles) is along the road and it was clearly marked off with police officers directing traffic. I felt very safe.
The last push of the race was, unsurprisingly, uphill. It would have been very easy to be disheartened but my family was waiting for me and I could see them cheering. I usually don’t bring my family along to races because I fear they’ll be bored but with the knowledge of the Finishers Party, I knew there would be activities to keep them busy.
I returned to find my younger son’s face painted and my older son “tattooed”. They also loved winning prizes at the Operation Warm tent and were encouraged to keep playing, which is something I appreciate. And something my husband appreciated even more while trying to keep them entertained!
My older son saw me coming during the last stretch and ran on the grass beside me for the last two tenths of a mile. He was so excited and it was so great to have him there! As I crossed the finish line, I was given very cute medal. This race was not even close to my PR from last fall, but it was such a challenge, I was proud that I got it done.
Took my Eagle Creek Duffel along to carry the family’s stuff! Review to come soon.
There was a long chute in which I was able to grab a bottle of water immediately and get a good amount of snacks! They had popcorn, chips, soft pretzels, cheese curls, lemonade, and iced tea. It was a great spread, especially for a 10k. My kids had their eyes on my snacks immediately (and naturally, I shared with the kiddos).
Each finisher also got a drink ticket on their bib with their choice of either beer or wine. I opted for the Dogfish Head Namaste (and naturally, I shared with my husband).
The Finishers Party had food trucks, a musician, beer garden, vendors, and more. It’s unfortunate that the weather was overcast. Had it not been, I think we would have stayed longer. After sipping my beer and enjoying a few songs from the musician, we decided to pack it up and head back to the car.
Overall, it was a great morning and a race I’d consider returning to in the future. It was most certainly inspiring and Operation Warm is a worthy cause!
Unless another race comes along that really inspires me to sign up, the Run Inspired 10k was my last of 2017. Never say never, of course, but I’m looking forward to maintaining for a few months rather than training.
The Run the Vineyards series, put on by a Good Day for a Run, is a favorite of mine. You might have noticed that I talk about them… A LOT. That’s because they are probably the most local to me race company and also, and this is important, because they are awesome.
I often volunteer for their events; it’s a great way to give back to the running community. I’ve also done the Heritage Vineyards 5 miler, twice. After volunteering through the summer and early fall – I decided that it was time to run and the 5k at Auburn Road Vineyards (Enoteca is explained here) worked out well with timing in my schedule.
With over twenty Run the Vineyards events, this race series has their races down to a science when it comes to preparing and having everything covered for their runners.
They keep the races manageable for the locations in terms of field size and parking. Packet pickup is either at the local running store (Mullica Hill Running Company) or race morning. And they always have FREE photos!
The weather wasn’t looking fantastic for race morning and for a brief moment, as I listened to a downpour of rain on the roof of my house, I even considered skipping the event. However, I had a friend that I was meeting up with and I’m not really one to let a little (or a lot of) rain scare me away. While overcast, the rain showers moved out for the actual race.
Thankful for Erin meeting up with me!
This is the third year this race has been run and it begins running through the vineyard (vines on both sides/grass) which leads to a dirt road. From what I understand the course was slightly different than the previous two years. I asked a few people who had run the race before and they liked this course better. We had the opportunity to run through two sections of vineyards, which was neat! There was a water station in the middle of the race, which we passed twice in case more water was necessary.
The t-shirts were long sleeves tech shirts although this series has a variety of options when it comes to shirts. I’ve gotten tech t-shirts, tanks, and long sleeves from them – depending on what race and what season I’m running.
Thanks to photographer Chad for this shot!
As you cross the finish line there’s a bottle of water offered to each runner, a KIND bar, and the Run the Vineyards wineglass. The results are immediately emailed to you, as you cross the finish line.
On each race bib there’s a tear-away ticket for wine from the host vineyard, putting the wineglass to good use right away! I went with the Good Karma red blend from Auburn Road vineyard. Erin and I grabbed seats inside near the musician, ordered a cheese plate, and enjoyed the morning after the run.
Run the Vineyards is always an occasion – it’s never rushed, it’s really easy-going and relaxed, after the running portion, of course. We got to watch the awards given out to overall winners (a bottle of wine and a medal), and age group awards (medals).
Overall, a great time, as usual. I’m already signed up for the 5 miler in the spring and I’m scouting out the races that fit into my schedule to volunteer at!
Tell me about your favorite local races. Have you ever run at a vineyard? What do races offer that make you return time and time again?
Disclaimer: I received the Fun Run Box Oktoberfest review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!
Anyone that knows me knows that I’ve become a huge subscription box fan over the past few years. I love being surprised by the goodies included in the box and trying lots of new products.
The Fun Run Box takes the subscription box to a whole other level! Integrating the idea of a subscription box with an online social media challenge team, the Fun Run Box is an innovative way to inspire and motivate runners (and walkers) throughout the month.
So how does it work? The Fun Run Box (FRB) has a series of different challenges. The Oktoberfest 5 Mile Dachs Challenge box had $75 worth of products for $45. There’s also a subscription option; you can sign up for month to month service at $35/month, 3 months at $34/month, 6 months at $33/month, or a year at $32/month.
As a BibRave Pro, I got to try the September box challenge aka the 2nd annual Octoberfest 5 Mile Dachs.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYLvw9Wlf0D/
Click on the picture to watch the box dance!
My FRB arrived toward the end of August and everyone is very careful not to post the contents of the box before the start date of the first of the month, as to not spoil it for anyone participating who is waiting to receive the box. The box comes with a challenge rules list and also lets you know what team you’re “competing” on.
Oh yes, did I mention that the challenge is a competition? For the 5 Mile Dachs, the teams were Doxie (woot woot!), Dashie, and Diggity – each with its own hashtag so you could track your team and cheer on everyone!
There are 6 categories for the challenge and through Instagram and the challenge specific Facebook page, you’re able to post and share your pictures throughout the month. The photos with the most votes actually win a prize of a $50 gift card for the Fun Run Box Shop and all members of the winning team with at least 1 photo submitted receive a $5 gift card.
The posting pictures and voting on a separate page was a bit confusing for me. From what I understand, you can post on Instagram or the Facebook page and the go to a separate webpage to vote. Personally I was more focused on taking pictures and having fun with the challenge rather than winning so that’s what I chose to focus on.
I got to work immediately, wearing my FRB 5 Mile Dachs Trucker Hat to my first race expo on September 1st in Virginia at the Vacation Races Shenandoah Half.
From there I used the rest of my challenge items throughout the month – all of which are things I’ll be using for a long time to come (well, except the food items because those are long gone).
Roll & Go Massager in action after the Rock ‘n Roll Philly half marathon.
What I really liked about the FRB Challenge was that they included a training plan for each week. Honestly, I wasn’t able to follow it exactly with my training for other races happening but I did try to incorporate it as much as I could.
Finally a “running” challenge that my husband was all about participating in…
Toward the end of the month, I ran my 5 Mile Dachs. Since the day I decided to run was during that string of extremely warm temps, it was accomplished on the treadmill. Thankfully I got to get some speed-work done while watching my guilty pleasure, The Challenge on MTV.
Can you spot the bib on my board?
Want to get in on the fun of the Fun Run Box? Code BIBRAVE will save you 15% off any subscription box at https://funrunbox.com/bibrave
Mark your calendars, the Fun Run Box #BibChat is happening on Tuesday, October 17th at 9pm EST. And if you want to see how my fellow BibRavePros fared with the Oktoberfest challenge, swing by and visit:
Disclaimer: I received OOFOS Project Pink to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!
I turned 40 years old this year.
Not too much has changed in my daily grind. 40 feels much like 39 did. However, I was told during my annual well visit that it was time for a routine mammogram, along with colonoscopy due to family history. I scheduled the mammography soon after (I’m still working up the nerve for my colonoscopy prep)(I’ll get there, I promise).
I asked friends about their experiences during a mammography and most told me that while it was not the most pleasant life experience, remembering that it would over quickly seemed to help. I figured I’d be in and out of the women’s center with minimal discomfort.
Which I was.
Until they called me the next day to let me know that I had “asymmetric dense breast tissue” and I needed to come in for more images. After a 3-D mammography and an ultrasound, I was informed that I’m absolutely fine.
But I have to tell you, those five days between the phone call and when the doctor came in the room to speak to me were some of the most stressful of my life.
Attempting not to think about it didn’t work. Reassuring myself that it was probably “nothing” didn’t work. At the age of 40, I’ve already lost a friend to breast cancer. I have a dear friend who is living with Stage 4 breast cancer. There are friends, family members, acquaintances and people I haven’t yet met that are battling every day.
Cancer sucks, there’s no two ways about it.
Which is why we need to fight. And if there’s something I can do to help, in any way, I will do it.
OOFOS Recovery Footwear’s head of Marketing, Duncan Finigan, is personally affected by cancer; she was diagnosed with Stage 4 advanced breast cancer in 2014.
Once Duncan received her diagnosis, OOFOS chose the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute as the cause that the company wanted to support. For over 70 years, the Dana-Farber team has worked toward finding a cure through research and patient care.
Through the Project Pink collection, OOFOS donates $10 of every pair sold to breast cancer treatment research at Dana-Farber all year long!
OOFOS is currently almost halfway to their $100k goal
The Project Pink Collection is made up of the Men’s and Women’s OOAHH Sandal, the Men’s and Women’s OOcloog Clog, the Men’s and Women’s OOriginal Sandal, the Women’s OOcloog Luxe Clog, and the Woman’s OOlala Sandal.
All are nearly identical to the regular line of shoes, however the Project Pink Collection has a special pink touch to every shoe, whether it be the logo (along the outside sole) or the awareness ribbon on the Ooriginal Sandal.
OOlala Project Pink Sandal
It’s hard to describe just how amazing the OOFOS shoes are on your feet, but trust me when I say that I’ve heard about them for awhile before having the opportunity to try them.
They are magical!
From the moment I first slipped my feet into the Oolala Sandal I realized that I’d been missing out. The way the shoe cradles the foot is perfection. I can feel how the shoe moves with my foot and against the ground in a rocking, flexible motion.
Of course, OOFOS explains this way better than I can with this video!
I’ve been wearing OOFOS everywhere since I got them. If I don’t have running shoes on, these have been my go-to shoes, with a few exceptions (a baby shower, for example).
https://www.instagram.com/p/BY_UYi5lm4W/
The only thing that I have to say is that I wish I had gotten OOFOS a heck of a lot sooner! When I was dealing with my plantar fasciitis, they would have been helpful in relieving the pain and in recovery. I pray every day that I never have to deal with foot issues again, but if I do, I know that I’ll be relying on OOFOS!
OOFOS Project Pink Twitter #BibChat is happening on tomorrow, Tuesday, October 3rd at 9pm EST. Join us there!
Please remember that breast health is so very important. To share words I wrote two years ago that are still just as relevant:
Now a word to cancer. Cancer, I’ve got to say, you suck. You’ve messed with my friends, my mom, my dad, my friend’s families, children… and I’m sick on your shit. I will gladly walk, run, and shout from rooftops if it will bring awareness and funds for research to finally find a cure.
Won’t it be an amazing day when we kick your ass to the curb for good?
Disclaimer: I received a free entry to the Rock ‘n Roll Philadelphia 2017 race as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews! All opinions are my own.
Way back, when I first started running and doing fitness related activities and prior to Scoot a Doot, I had a blog on tumblr. It was there that I blogged about my third half marathon, the Rock ‘n Roll Philly race back in 2012.
2012 RnR Philly
I haven’t been able to work it into my schedule since and to be honest, I had a tough race so I think I was a bit gun-shy. However, the stars aligned and I was excited to return this year, especially as it was my first race representing BibRave!
Rock ‘n Roll weekends always start with the expo experience, followed by the race. The Philly Rock ‘n Roll Health and Fitness Expo was held at the PA Convention Center in Center City on both Friday and Saturday. Runners are able to pick up their bibs, t-shirts, and other assorted race goodies. If you want to read more about the expo, swing by my last post.
This is the 40th year that this race has been run, having been known prior as the Philadelphia Distance Run.
Saturday morning were the 5k and 10k races. The 10k distance was newly introduced this year; I had friends who ran and had a positive experience.
Sunday morning it was half marathon time. Philadelphia is about a half hour drive from my house/nearby train ride. I chose to take the train and walk a mile to the start line, which is my standard mode of transportation for Philly races.
I always aim to get into the city about an hour before the start of the race and this one started at 7:30, so I made sure to get the train that arrived at 6:30. I knew I would have plenty of time, given that I was in corral 21 (I think there were 24 total).
Once I arrived I tracked down where I needed to go to get my race shirt after the snafu on Friday. Since I had a hydration pack, I decided to stuff it in there, rather than check a bag.
Rock ‘n Roll’s race village is huge and there’s plenty of things to do and see both pre and post race.
I wandered around a bit, chatting with plenty of random people aka new friends and seeing fellow BibRave Pros. Philadelphia’s Rocky Steps, aka the Art Museum, is always the backdrop of big races in Philly and this was no exception.
The race began on time and I casually wandered into my corral, knowing that I wouldn’t be starting for awhile. The announcers were enthusiastic (honestly, if I yelled as much as they do, I would have absolutely no voice!) and they were playing great music to get everyone pumped up.
The first 5 miles of the half course have to be my absolute favorite. I love running in Center City and the energy is always terrific.
From about mile 3.5 to 5 is an out and back stretch along Fairmount Avenue, which I love because you can see the other runners and the cheering from people along this stretch is fantastic. Very motivating and so much fun.
The second part of the course leads you along the Schuykill River on Kelly Drive, across Falls Bridge, and back the other side of the river on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. The miles seem to stretch here and while the scenery is picturesque, this is where I wish they would stack the bands and entertainment.
I appreciate everyone who was out there so much, especially the band who changed the lyrics to The Indigo Girls “Closer to Fine” to “Closer to the Finish Line.”
I knew I wasn’t going to break any personal records during this race so I enjoyed, took my time, and had my phone out nearly the entire time to take pictures and videos along the route.
I made a friend during the last mile that I had been leapfrogging with since mile 10 and we finished the race together, which was really nice!
The medals for this year were money, baby! The half marathon medal was Ben Franklin with a sweatband on his head 13.1 bill. Too funny!
Immediately after the finish line, they were handing out water and a sports drink. Directly after that there was ice cold chocolate milk, which hit the spot! They were also giving out ice cold RnR towels, which was perfect on my neck. There were snacks directly after but unfortunately, juggling everything became a bit of a challenge!
Post-race celebration included the band Big Head Todd and the Monsters (never heard of them before but they were entertaining). There was also a beer garden but I completely forgot about it until I was walking back to the train station. Whomp, whomp.
Disclaimer: I received a free entry to the Rock ‘n Roll Philadelphia 2017 race as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews! All opinions are my own.
The 2017 Philadelphia Rock ‘n Roll half marathon is tomorrow; the 5k/10k are happening this morning in mere moments. While thousands of runners will be pounding the pavement today and tomorrow, they’ll also visit the Health and Fitness Expo at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
The expo is free and open to the public so I was able to bring my parents along for the ride into Philadelphia with me. Besides visiting the expo, we also went to Reading Terminal (which is a must do if you’re visiting Philly!).
If you’ve never been to a Rock ‘n Roll expo before, here’s a small taste of what you can expect.
Signs, signs, everywhere signs. Rock ‘n Roll is great with expo signage.
Ready. Set. Rock.
Check in is first. With waiver in hand, you’re able to quickly find the line that matches your corral/bib number. Make sure to bring your identification with you because they will be checking!
If you aren’t able to make it to the expo, you can have a friend pick it up. The friend is able to pick up two packets for “free”, after that there is a $20 charge per packet. There is no mail option, but with more race series having that option, it’s something I know many would appreciate.
Within this section you’re able to visit the corral change area if you feel like you might be able to run faster than the time you originally estimated. I swung by there to move up one corral. I didn’t need to provide any type of proof of time, it was easy.
Mullet crew – party in the back! Holla!
Section 2 was supposed to hold the t-shirts, bags, and runner tracking.
Unfortunately, the t-shirts got held up on their way to the expo and weren’t there when I arrived when the doors opened. That took me by surprised and we stopped to chat with a volunteer to get the scoop.
She offered a few options: stay until 2pm when the shirts were expected to arrive (no dice, had to be home for the kids), come back to the expo tomorrow (a pricey venture from NJ), OR we could pick it up after the race on Sunday. Winner, winner, chicken dinner!
The Rock ‘n Roll series is usually terrific with communications, but the email regarding this was sent at 11:15 am so we were already in Philadelphia. I know that they aren’t set up for separate shirt distribution at the race so it will be interesting to see how they pull that together. I’ll keep you posted after tomorrow.
What am I doing here? “Running” for chocolate milk and beer and a medal (and my shirt too).
Rock ‘n Roll Marathon Series sets up huge black curtains, so you have to follow their pattern throughout the room and their sponsored vendors area. It’s a good flow and if you’re looking to buy additional race merchandise, you have ample opportunity.
Buy it here, buy it there, you can buy it everywhere!
I stopped by here to grab a pace bracelet. I probably won’t stick with a team since I do intervals but I’m always grateful not to have to do running math.
The Rock ‘n Roll expos are bigger than most and there’s many booths and information along the way. Some pertain to me, some do not… but I love looking around and browsing.
Bringing my parents with me means lots of pictures OF me. I took a moment to write my name on the large signing wall.
I am pumped for running through Philly tomorrow morning. Not so much for the early wake up time but I’m hoping it stays cool and I’m planning on wearing my hydration pack so that I don’t melt. I’m running solo so I’m ready to run by feel – if I feel great, I’ll push it. But if not, I’ll just enjoy the sights and sounds that the Rock ‘n Roll course has to offer!
However, that doesn’t mean that I wasn’t at a race! I always love volunteering at races whenever possible and the series that I love returning to time after time (I hope you’re singing with me) is the Run the Vineyards events, hosted by Good Day For A Run.
This year I’ve volunteered at three of their races and at each one I’m reminded of how much I love our running community. Most recently, Rachel and I were stationed at the mile 6 water stop of the 15k at the Bellview Winery Good Day For A Run 5k/15k Festival.
We brought along a cheering playlist (made especially for the occasion), a speaker, and a lot of sassy spirit!
It was SO MUCH FUN volunteering. Honestly and truly, if you have the opportunity to get out there and help out a race, you should embrace it fully! We danced, served up many, many cups of water, and cheered for the 250 participants.
So what’s up next for me? This coming weekend is the Rock ‘n Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon.
Disclaimer: I received a free entry to the Rock ‘n Roll Philly race as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!
And I’m really freaking excited! Because of these medals…
I’ll be getting the one in the middle.
And this shirt…
And running in Philadelphia! I haven’t done a race in Philly since the spring so I’m looking forward to returning and having a rocking time. I don’t think that I’ll be PRing this race but that’s not really the goal this time around for me. The goal is to get out there and have FUN!
Music, after party, beer: it’s like they know me.
Online registration is closed but you are still able to register at the Health and Fitness expo prior to the event.
Then in October I’ll be returning to the Run the Vineyards races, this time as a participant!
A 5k through 2 neighboring vineyards, free pictures, a wineglass award (with a glass of wine), long-sleeved tech shirts, and an after-party with music and food. Um, I feel like I should do this every weekend.
I registered for this race with a group of friends and I know that we’ll have fun because it’s always a party when we’re together.
The weekend following that I’ll be heading down to Winterthur, Delaware for the Run Inspired 10k.
Disclaimer: I received a free entry to the Run Inspired 10k race as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!
This is a new to me race that benefits Operation Warm which distributes coats to local children living in poverty. I’ve heard that this course is hilly but I’m looking forward to my favorite distance and also to the after party. Are you sensing a theme here?
I have friends that will be running this race too and it’s always great to see familiar faces along the route. If you want to be one of them, you can register now with the code BIBRAVE to save 10% on a race entry. (And then let me know so I can look for you!)
Fall racing, it’s your turn to shine! Let’s do this.
Disclaimer: I received a Stunt Puppy Go Dog Glo Collar to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews! All opinions are my own.
In February my best friend, Gemma, and I were able to test out the Stunt Puppy Leash, which we absolutely love. In fact, we love it so much that we recently gifted one to Jenn as a housewarming present. (I’m all about practical housewarming gifts.)
When I caught wind of another opportunity to try a Stunt Puppy item through BibRave, I was definitely interested. Although, when I saw it was a collar, I wasn’t sure that we’d be the right fit. Gemma needs to be on a harness when she’s walking or running; the harness gives me more control over her and she isn’t able to pull. She’s a small but mighty girl!
Once I was able to confirm that we could test it without hooking the leash directly on it, we were in!
There were quite a few colors I could pick from when it came to the Go Dog Glo Dry Collar but I knew immediately that the Orange Reflective would really stand out on Gemma. And it does! They also have Yellow Reflective, Pink Reflective, Royal Reflective, Ocean Reflective and Red Reflective; there’s a good variety to choose from.
Orange is one of my favorite colors and it really stands out against her dark coat. Her visibility is important because we are often out in our neighborhood in the early morning hours. It has a 3M Reflective Edgeguard trim along the middle that catches the light at any angle. I use Brilliant Reflective on my clothing, it only makes sense that she has prime visibility as well.
Durability wise, she’s been wearing this collar for a little over a month and the reflective trim has started flecking off a bit near the adjustable buckle.
Not a big deal, but worth noting.
Stunt Puppy designed the Go Dog Glo Dry Collar with flat, quick release buckle collars.
Personally, I’m a fan of buckle collars for dogs because they aren’t able to slip them easily and if for any reason they get caught up on something like a fence or branch, I’m able to quickly and easily open the buckle and release her. It hasn’t happened yet, but better safe than sorry.
The overall feel of the collar is flexible plastic, which is how the collar is stink-proof and waterproof. Miss Gemma has a tendency to roll in disgusting things so this is a great feature for her.
If something smells like death, you can bet that girlfriend is going to drop to the ground and get that death smell all over her. It’s one of her less endearing qualities.
Exhausted after a hard morning of running and playing.
The collar also comes with two D rings. One is for a leash and the other is for tags so they don’t get tangled and reduces jingle noise. You might notice that I have neither on Gemma’s collar at the moment. Her tag’s O ring that I use to attach it to a collar broke and as I mentioned earlier, I don’t use the leash directly on the neck collar. Even still, I’ve been happy with the Go Dog Glo Dry Collar and how it’s worked for Gemma.
Gemma and I are in agreement, the Stunt Puppy Go Dog Glo Dry Collar gets two thumbs and 4 paws up from us!
The collar retails for $26.00 If you’re interested in getting it, code BIBRAVE917 will save you 20% off your purchase at https://www.stuntpuppy.com/.
Tonight’s Twitter #BibChat is with Brilliant Reflective (doing my best to be a there!). Stunt Puppy’s #BibChat is happening on Tuesday, September 19th at 9pm EST and I can’t wait because I’m sure that there will be many, many dog pictures. You should join us, Gem and I’ll be snuggling and chatting.
Want to hear more about the Stunt Puppy Go Dog Glo Dry Collar? Swing by BibRavePro’s blogs:
I’ve had my radar focused on Vacation Races for quite some time. Jenn is our resident Vacation Races ambassador and she swoons about their races.
Seriously.
She’s done multiple challenges, including their Rocky Mountain race and Yellowstone race. My plan is to eventually get out to Colorado to run with her. But in the meanwhile…
My local pal, Rachel, received a race entry for herself and a friend after a registration mix-up at the 2016 Yellowstone race. She reached out to me in February with a “What do you typically do over Labor Day weekend” message.
I responded with “Not a whole heck of a lot!”
So then she said, “Let’s take a road trip to Virginia, do this half marathon together, and have a blast!” Well, how could I say no to that? I was in!
Except the code they provided didn’t work! Agh, maybe I wasn’t in?
There was about a week of back and forth emails with a few people being looped in along the way. I’ll be honest, it was frustrating and we even questioned if it would be worth the time and effort (this was after a registration snafu for Rachel the first time around, so you can see why we were disappointed). I was given a few different codes to try before finally being manually entered into the system.
THEN I was officially in. Rachel and I were able to breathe easy once more and looked forward to our September trip.
As our trip grew closer, we ironed out travel details and of course, kept our eyes on the weather. Which wasn’t looking great. Rainy. However, the temperature was cooling considerably and I’d much rather run in 55 degrees than 80. We had high hopes that the rain wouldn’t be too bad.
Rachel drove to NJ from PA and our road trip, which we affectionately called “Meatball Road Trip 2k17” (if you watch Big Brother this season, you’ll understand where this originated) officially commenced.
We talked, sang and car danced all the way down through Delaware, Maryland, and into Virginia. The ride was about 4 hours and we went straight to the expo to grab our shirts and bibs.
Of course, it started to rain, which we were less than impressed with… but it was expected.
Rachel’s face accurately captures our unimpressedness. Why do I look so happy?
The shirt reminds me of St. Patrick’s Day, which is probably when I’ll wear it. Sadly, green is not my color.
The expo was small but fun. I think we would have spent more time there had it not been raining but we decided to save up our rain time for the half.
After learning how to turn a t-shirt into a bag (totally going to do this activity with our Cub Scout den), making s’mores, and finding our names on the inaugural Shenandoah design, we took some time to ask a few questions to announcer/race coordinator, Kaelee. She’d run the course in the morning so she was able to give us some pointers and let us know what to look forward to the next day.
We took the time to be tourists and visited Luray Caverns, which was pretty amazing (and of course we commented how cool it would be if we could run through it).
From the get-go we knew we wouldn’t be racing this half. Our mantra was “have fun and get it done.” This was going to be a “mullet crew” experience – as in, a party in the back! No shame! After a delicious dinner we decided to hit the sack, knowing we’d be waking up at 5am.
The race began at 7am and was a point to point race and almost entirely on road, save the first and last 10th of a mile. You could park at either the start or finish and they had school buses to shuttle runners from one point to the other. We decided we’d rather shuttle before the race than after; we parked at the finish and shuttled to the start.
As we made our way from the parking lot to where the shuttles were, it was before sunrise and I found myself wish that I had brought my Knuckle Lights, just to see where we were going. We shuffled to the shuttles and were able to grab the last two seats on the bus heading toward the starting area.
At the start, there was coffee and hot chocolate. They also offered bananas and things like Vaseline and thoughtful touches that runners might find useful.
Just as we got our beverages, huge raindrops started plopping on us. At first, neither of us could comprehend what was happening, our brains weren’t full awake yet! We quickly found shelter nearby and chatted with other runners as we did our best to stay dry. We both had plastic rain ponchos yet neither of us had them on when the rain had started. It caught us all by surprise!
It’s raining, it’s pouring.
The rain tapered off just in time for the National Anthem and I really loved that this guy got to stand on top of the box truck and hold the flag.
Mother Nature couldn’t decide what she wanted to do – one minute it was drizzling, the next it wasn’t. Rachel and I kept muttering to each other “this is stupid” as we lined up near our pace sign. Seriously, sometimes I question my sanity. My socks were already wet and it was cold! I knew once I started moving I’d be fine, it’s just getting to that point.
There was a guy near the start that was telling us, “It’s just a really long 5k” which made us chuckle.
Sure enough, once we started moving, we were good to go. Actually, really good. Actually, really, really good. As in, we hit the mile marker and were shocked that we were already at a mile.
You guys, this continued for miles 2-8. We would come to a mile marker and be amazed that we got there as quickly as we did. Which, for the record, wasn’t quick; we were having conversational miles. But we were feeling good and powering up the uphills/taking advantage of the downhills.
Virginia was lovely, with lots of local flair that we northerns aren’t accustom to seeing on a daily basis.
We saw llamas (or were they alpaca?), plenty of cows, and were graced with the presence of a kitten in the middle of the road near mile 7. This kitten sat smack in the middle of the road and got attention for each and every single runner that came through. He had life all figured out for such a little guy.
If the kitten didn’t have a collar on, I’m pretty sure that Rachel would have a third cat right now.
The aid stations were perfectly placed. Vacation Races is a cup free race, so they offer hydropouches or you can bring your own hydration system. I opted to get a pack (I’ve been considering it for awhile and this was the perfect reason) and ended up not needing to fill the bladder of it at all – it was the perfect amount for the half distance. They had Honey Stingers available at every aid station, as well as cut up bananas and orange slices at the later stations.
At the mile 3 aid station they even had a bin where runners could drop clothes that they’d then drive to the finish line of the race! I didn’t need to take advantage of that but they really seemed to think of everything.
The course was quiet, although it was on an open road so cars were allowed to drive along the course. In the early morning, there was not much traffic. We all looked out for each other, calling “CAR!” when there was a car either behind or coming toward us. Some runners had their earbuds in and couldn’t hear the warning until the cars were right behind them and honking. Yikes!
Locals sat on their porches, watching the spectacle. It was an endless parade of over 1,100 people streaming by. We waved to people as we passed.
I think this was around the time we started singing “HandClap” by Fitz and The Tantrums. The first time. There were multiple times.
Mile 10 onward felt like a continuous uphill. I know that there was some downhill too but I don’t really remember much of that. It just felt like we were constantly climbing. Having looked at the elevation map ahead of time, we knew that it was coming but, whew, my hamstrings and glutes acted like they weren’t made aware of the situation!
You better believe we flew down that last hill!
We turned into Lake Arrowhead Park for the last stretch of the race. The support here was incredible with lots of finishers cheering us. Volunteers pointed us in the right direction since it was along grass and gravel. We turned for the last 10th of a mile and crossed the finish line with huge smiles on our faces!
We did it! Check out those AH-MAZING medals!
Immediately after crossing the finish line we were able to get our medals and our snack boxes that were filled with lots of delicious treats.
From start to finish, this getaway was an awesome! Despite some reservations at the beginning with registration, everything else was absolutely flawless. Vacation Races knows about hosting a quality event and they’ve zeroed in on the things that stand out to runners. I’m grateful to Rachel for inviting me to join her and I’m definitely impressed by Vacation Races!
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