AJC Peachtree Road Race 2016 Recap

Under normal circumstances I would be in no hurry to talk about my slowest 10K ever.  However, considering this race is anything but normal I think the entertainment value will be higher while things are still fresh on my mind.  So for anyone that doesn't know, on Monday I ran the 47th annual Peachtree 10K held every year on July 4th in Atlanta, GA.

While you can't beat the 'flavor' of a local 5K and being surrounded by familiar faces it's also nice to soak up the experience of events that are steeped in tradition.  These are the races that take you places you thought you'd never go and that make up bucket lists for weekend warriors and hobby joggers from coast to coast.  Despite being on a holiday when you'd think some runners would opt for vacationing as opposed to racing in the notoriously hot and humid Atlanta during the month of July the race still attracts well over 60,000 would be runners.  There is a lottery system with several entries turned away every year but the Atlanta Track Club offers guaranteed entry with a membership which is $30 and includes a free ATC t-shirt.  That seemed like money well spent not to have to deal with the potential admission rejection.

As race day grew closer my plan to drive 4 hours on a holiday to one of the biggest cities in the country which happens to be a July 4th destination for many to run one of the largest races in the world seemed like maybe not the greatest idea in the world.  Throw in the fact that I was a month removed from running one of my slowest half marathons on a hot summer morning and was heading to hotter weather and higher humidity to run my least favorite distance and I was thrilled.  No really, I was.

I left Sunday morning in the middle of the sermon to ensure that I made to the expo in time to pick up my bib.  I did say a quick prayer on the way out just to make sure God wasn't totally offended by my early exit and he was cool with it.  A little over 4 hours later and I could see the expo but patiently waited in a long line of traffic that wasn't moving -- most certainly because I was behind other runners.  As I helplessly watched other cars cruise by I decided there had a be a better way -- just had to be.  Then I darted out to find route B and realized I had been waiting in line to go to the aquarium.  About 45 seconds later I was out $15 but I was parked directly across the street from the expo.

The Georgia Congress Center is huge and so it really didn't seem all that crowded.  Of course I was showing up the last day and a couple hours before they shut down but it was an easy in and out.  One thing I really liked was the kid zone which included several stations where kids could participate in various sporting drills.  There was a batting cage, football accuracy throws, a high jump, 40 yard dash, and basketball to name a few.  Each station had a leader board with the top performers which was pretty cool.  This was a solo trip for me so the boys weren't there to enjoy the kid zone but maybe next time.  Otherwise I didn't really see anything I couldn't live without so I headed to the hotel to check in.

I had gotten a room across the street from the start because I absolutely hate planning for transportation to the start line.  I hate waiting in line for buses, navigating public transportation, reading maps - like on paper, checking bags, and waking up extra early to deal with the aforementioned mess.  I checked in and requested a late check-out for 1:00p so I was all set.  The 7:30a start meant I could sleep until about 6:00a, enjoy a bowl of hotel oatmeal and some toast, get dressed, and stroll across the street to warm up then race.  Since I was traveling alone I thought there was a real chance I would be back at the hotel, showered, and in bed by 9:00a for a solid nap before heading home.  To say I was wrong about that would be like saying the start of the race was a little congested.

I went to a movie and was in bed by 9:30 Sunday night.  Of course I didn't fall asleep until 2:00 in the morning but that seems to be the magic hour for me the night before an out of town race.  Getting up wasn't a problem and breakfast went off without a hitch.  I made my way across the street following the masses to the starting area.  I stretched a little.....ok, that's a lie - I just ran around the parking lot until I got a mile in to wake my legs up and confirm the obvious.  It was hot.  It was near 80 degrees at the start and the humidity was right at 90% without a shred of cloud cover in the sky.  Fortunately this was only 6.2 so at least I had that going for me. 

We were a good 45 minutes from the start and a slow jog-it-out mile had sweat running down my back like a waterfall so I decided that people watching would be a much better use of my time.  I saw several elites warming up and hordes of guys much faster than I am so I was intent on not getting out too fast chasing guys out of my league.  I still see myself as a fat kid that just runs a lot to keep from gaining weight.  I guess I'm easily intimidated by thin guys in short shorts but I prefer discounting my ability to being a prick that looks and acts fast but really is just pedestrian.  Historically runners were assigned to corrals that follow the elites beginning with seeded men, women, and masters followed by sub-seeded groups of each then corrals A through whatever it takes to accommodate 60,000 runners.  In 2016 they eliminated the sub-seed groups and simply went elites, seeded runners, group A.  I just missed a seeded bib by submitting a 15K time that I felt like was my best recent time.  Seed times are released after registration and you can't improve or resubmit a time for placement so even though I had a seeded 5K my 15K time put me in the A group.

I decided to head to my start wave but not before making some impromptu wardrobe changes.  I decided to ditch the race belt and pin my bib to my singlet.  That just seemed like the cool thing to do.  Then I realized it was crooked and off center and looked like a 3 year old pinned it on so I opted for pinning it to my shorts.  I made one last potty stop and they weren't too crowded but the standard quasi-lines were in effect.  The ones where you sort of stand in front of 3 or 4 and make a mental note as to who was there before you and offer up the open one to folks you know were there before you.  As I was on my way to one I was clearly entitled to some chick in a sparkly tutu came out of nowhere and took the door out of my hand.  Maybe she had a better read on how late we were to the start but whatever.

Finally I was headed to the start behind a guy wearing a shirt with the course map on the back.  Upon further review what I already knew started to sink in.... this is a point to point course and doesn't finish anywhere near the start.  So I proceeded with the question of the day, "Hey man, how do you get back to the start?"  Being the nice gentleman he was he resisted the urge to make me feel like an idiot and said most runners just hop on the Marta back to Lenox Square.  Well that's all fine and dandy if you've got a few bucks tucked away, or if you checked a bag that might include.....maybe a phone to call an uber or a cab.  But not this guy.  I mentioned my poor planning and he said, "Well I guess there are worse stretches of Atlanta to walk than coming back up the course backwards."  Good to know....

I was now 4 minutes from the start but hadn't made it to my wave yet.  They were gearing up for the national anthem which really was something I was looking forward to so the sense of urgency kicked in.  Waves A-D when through the same gate with A-B going left towards the start and C-D going right.  Then I realized that with it being so close to the start A and B were just one big jumbled mess and the B group was less than anxious to let me through.  Honestly I wasn't even sure if I was headed towards the start line or if I had taken a wrong turn and ended up at a Halloween party in July.  It was a great atmosphere but I got the impression that I was not surrounded by folks that were about to fire out of the gate.

I found myself looking straight up at the American flag during the national anthem as a huge military plane flew over.  Just being at the start of this race on this day was a little bit surreal.  The countdown was on and finally the gun went off.....and then.......nothing.  I mean we weren't even walking.  Finally a slow walk ensued, then a walk with a lean, then a shuffle.  Then I could actually see the timing mats just behind a wall of people that still seemed to be barely moving.  So much that I didn't even want to cross the mats but there was no turning back and it certainly wasn't getting less crowded.

I tried to be patient though.  I zigged and I zagged.  I went through people, around people, on sidewalks, on and off curbs.  There was even a quasi buddy system where faster runners would see and share a gap to move up amongst the masses only to be stopped by a wall of runners talking about lunch or plans later that day.  I mean even the slowest B groupers should have been 50 minute 10Kers which is about an 8:00 mile, so logically in a wave with faster runners going downhill in the first mile of a race this size you'd think we'd at least be moving along a little faster than we were plodding along.

About 200 meters into the race I heard my watch beep courtesy of some flying elbows which probably came as I tried to slither between runners.  I'm not a Mack truck coming through but I'm also not exactly a petite runner either.  I glanced at my watch to see the time wasn't running so I hit the start/stop button assuming that I was restarting the time after a few second pause.  A few minutes later I checked to see just how slow I was running and how far into the race we were and my watch was stopped on .15 miles.  That's right, elbow number 1 hit my lap button which didn't stop my watch, it just froze the lap time but yours truly did the honor of stopping my watch instead of restarting it.  So now my distance was all out of whack and so were my splits and all that I knew is that I was wasting precious time jogging downhill.  Normally I'm perfectly fine getting out a little slower, conserving energy, and have gotten comfortable knowing that I can make that up on the back half.  But on that day I knew there was likely no making up that time.

My horrendous start aside, Peachtree is a tale of two races.  The first 5K is predominately down hill.  If you put yourself in a good position at the start you really can run these miles quickly and post a good split without killing yourself to do it.  Towards the end of mile 3 starts the ascent which makes for a very difficult mile 4 beginning with what they affectionately refer to as Cardiac Hill.  Mile 5 continues the uphill for another 125 feet of elevation before finally leveling out at about 5.25 miles for the finish which is predominately flat and downhill with one sneaky hill before the finish.  There are also a couple points during the final mile where you think you might be finished only to find out you've got another 1/2 mile or so to go.

It didn't take long to realize that this is Atlanta's race.  There are families, friends, and various groups that come back year after year to make this one of the largest races in the world and their tradition is what makes this race special.  As much as I wanted to be annoyed at times throughout the race I just ran, and smiled, said excuse me, and thank you.  For instance I had a guy dart in front of me from nowhere to grab some water and I literally had to put a hand on each side of his waist to keep from running over him.  I mean it didn't help that he practically stopped to drink the water half way through the water stop but me rear-ending him with hands on hips was every bit as awkward as it sounds.  He seemed a bit delirious so I left him for the volunteers to tend to.  Needless to say I missed out on water at that station.  But as karma would have it there was a row of kids offering small bottles of water which I find much easier to drink from anyway.  I reached out for the first one......and missed it.  In my defense, they were sitting on the curb so not an easy reach!  I reached out for the next one.........and the kid didn't let go of it.  Just keep smiling Jason :)

As I was making the charge up the final hill and actually felt pretty good which is really to say I didn't feel awful.  I still had no idea what my time or pace was because I completely lost track of the slow start time but based on the mile markers I thought I might have missed timing about .10 of the course.  Once it was over I realized I missed more than that because there was a lot of wasted time and distance weaving in and out of runners at the beginning.  As the temperature continued to rise the race went to red flag status about 8:30a which was really just a formal way of letting runners and spectators know that it's hot.  Like really hot.  I didn't get the official memo at the time but even though I overlooked many, many things that would have led to a smoother race, the temperature is something that I was well aware of.

I crossed the finish line and had no idea what my time was.  I had a watch that read 6.14 miles and 40:41 for a 6:37 pace which wasn't right but I assumed I was at the 41:xx.  I proceeded through the chute to get my shirt which is one of the unique aspects of Peachtree.  There are no finisher medals and shirts aren't included with your bib and race packet so you actually have to finish the race to get the shirt.  Pretty cool I thought.  I was also handed a top 1,000 finisher card to pick up my Peachtree mug at various locations which was an unexpected bonus too.  Maybe that motivation to be in the top 1,000 is why the B wave was mean mugging me at the start.  The finish area was a couple large fields that wind around and put you back out on the street just past the finish.  There was plenty of food and drink which is to be expected when 60,000 people are running in the heat of the dirty south.  I doubt it hurts to be home to Coca-Cola when you've got to provide drinks for a lot of thirsty people either.

I wandered around aimlessly for a few minutes soaking up the atmosphere and getting my mind right to jog it back to the start.  I wasn't thrilled about that but I didn't feel too bad so I had pretty much accepted that was going to be the price for poor planning.  Then I saw the first (and only) familiar face of the trip - none other than Bobby Aswell.  And if I had to pick one guy that I might run into, out of state, in a field of 25,000 runners he would be it without a doubt.  We chatted for a bit and agreed this was not ideal 10K weather then took a celebratory post race photo.  Bobby had just completed his 29th consecutive Peachtree (let that sink in for a few minutes) and this was my first so it was really cool to be able to catch up with him afterwards.

I made my way back towards the finish against the grain and since the sidewalks were lined with spectators I saw no issue with hopping over the barricade to start my journey back.  I mean there were plenty of people on the other side so I expected to blend right in.  Unfortunately the Atlanta Police and their dogs quickly put a halt to that so I decided it was in my best interest to move with the flow of runner traffic towards the Marta.  I guess with that many runners you really have to keep everyone going the same way. 

I know runners are a tight knit bunch and good to their own so just about anybody I asked would have given me the $3 to get back to the start but I just didn't have it in me.  I mean what was I going to say - I didn't know the course of the largest 10K in the US didn't circle back?  Or that I forgot to bring money?  Or didn't think to check a bag and bring a phone?  I mean 12 hours ago I was proud of the fact that I didn't have to bring money or check a bag.  And hey, there was Olympic marathon qualifier Jared Ward - right beside of me.  I told him he was incredible at the LA trials and wished him luck in Rio.  Super nice guy, would have been really cool to have a picture but no.... I was so proud of my late checkout and the preceding long nap that I didn't have the common sense to plan for anything like that.

I ducked into a Starbuck's and was going to have them call me a cab.  Surely the driver could just sit in the lobby and give me a few minutes to go to the room and get my wallet.  Then I realized just how crowded a Starbuck's 1/2 mile from 60,000 runners finishing a race can be.  Calling me a cab seemed to be on nobody's radar.  Plan B was to use my charm to convince someone at the Marta station to just open the gates and let me in.  I would have offered to pay via PayPal even though I doubt the Marta is setup for PayPal but my heart was in the right place...

I still wasn't convinced I couldn't just jog back.  The Marta was a mile from the finish and if I was already walking towards the start that just meant 5 more.  I started talking to a guy who was local and using the 10K as training for an Iron Man he was running in Wilmington later this year.  As we talked about our race experience we realized that we had very similar starts in a similar position and as I mentioned my whole lap button / stop time episode he swore he was the one that elbowed me.  Unintentional of course but he said he remembered hearing my watch and saw the star-spangled bandana go by.  I know that sounds incredibly far fetched but who was I to argue.  And in a full twist of fate, the guy that set off the whole watch debacle gladly offered up $3 for a Marta pass before I could even finish asking directions to walk back.   

I went back to the room, looked up my results, shrugged it off, took a shower, and went to bed.  My 41:32 was good enough for 504 out of 56,912 runners and after thinking about it I was actually really happy with how I ran.  With all of the zigging and zagging I ran closer to 6.3-6.4 miles which is consistent with most of the other data out there on Strava.  The first mile was a disaster but there's nothing I could have done differently other than understand the importance of timely wave placement.  Miles 2 and 3 were both in the low 6:20's despite the heavy congestion.  I kept both miles uphill in the low 6:50's and ran just under 6:30 from mile 5 through the finish.  I would have taken those paces all day long on a day like this so I was happy with the race.  My planning -- not so much.

After a bite to eat I loaded up and attempted to pick up my top 1,000 finisher mug.  A few wrong turns later I arrived to find the store closed for the 4th. With 4 more pick-up options I began to call them, only to find out that one after another was closed.  I mean it was a holiday but still sort of a buzz kill.  Just one more thing not exactly working out the way I planned.  I messaged a friend that I knew was in the area also on a quest for a mug and let her know that the one store they hadn't been to was officially closed.  Without knowing just how poorly planned my morning had gone she had the intuition to confirm that I was actually at the right store and believe it or not, I was in the right place.  Fortunately she was staying an extra day and graciously agreed to pick up my mug and mail it to me.  Now Angie Clark is officially my hero.  Because she's got my mug and she was also a top 100 female finisher! 

So that about wraps up my adventure.  I made it home in time to rejoin the family for the annual July 4th firework extravaganza at Duane's and slept like a rock on Monday night.  Went for a nice 7.5 mile run the day after Peachtree with some faster stuff toward the end so if I'm lucky I'll be able to regroup in time for a decent showing at The Bear tomorrow.  And if the stars really lineup maybe I'll bring home another mug that I'm able to pick up all by myself.  Not getting my hopes up though, and as much as I hate the thought of running up Grandfather Mountain the idea of running in that cool air doesn't sound half bad.  But that's much easier to say from the comfort of my living room.

Thank you Atlanta for hosting such a fun event and hats off to the 1,000's of volunteers that made it happen.  They have the setup and teardown to a science and the volunteers were great!  Now that my inaugural Peachtree is behind me hopefully I've got a few more in my future!