Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays & Happy Running!

(My apologies to our Jewish friends- I searched all over for a pic of running menorahs and could find none! If you have a good pic to celebrate Hanukkah, please send it in and I will post it!)

Running Heroes: Back on My Feet

Congratulations to Anne Mahlum of Back on My Feet for becoming one CNN's 2008 Heroes.

Back on My Feet (BOMF) is a non-profit organization committed to helping the homeless through running. Based in Philadelphia, marathoner Anne Mahlum organizes group runs with volunteers and those who are homeless.

From the BOMF website:

Philosophy: Back on My Feet does not provide food nor does it provide shelter, but instead provides a community that embraces equality, respect, discipline, teamwork and leadership. There are no labels, no stigmas and no stereotypes. At Back on My Feet, all members - regardless of race, education or socioeconomic status - join together to move their own lives forward as well as the lives of their teammates. Back on My Feet is much more than just running - it is a comprehensive program that offers connections to job training, educational scholarships and housing assistance. The benefits of Back on My Feet are earned through the currency of attitude, commitment, teamwork, respect, dedication and leadership.

Our Vision - Back on My Feet envisions a community where all members have the support and motivation required to move towards self –sufficiency. Every major city has a homeless problem and while providing food and shelter are very important basic needs, something is missing. We work to rebuild, revive and re-energize individuals. It is only when we have the self-respect, self-confidence that we are truly able to move forward. Back on My Feet focuses on helping our members find a road of happiness, hope and opportunity, which includes a stable job and a place to live. This is our goal and we will get there one step at a time

I had the privilege of meeting volunteers from BOMF last year at the Philadelphia Marathon (I must admit I don't remember if I spoke with Anne, or other volunteers at the BOMF booth). My friend J bought a headband from the group. We were both really impressed by the program and enjoyed speaking with the volunteers who spoke very passionately about the program.

It made me so happy to hear that Anne won a CNN Hero award this year. It's heart-warming to know that small efforts like Anne's don't go unnoticed. And with this publicity, hopefully support will increase for the program and more people can be helped.

From a CNN report back in October:

PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- At 5 a.m. on any given day, Anne Mahlum could be found running the dark streets of Philadelphia -- with homeless men cheering her on as she passed their shelter. But one morning last spring, she stopped in her tracks.

"Why am I running past these guys?" recalls Mahlum, 27. "I'm moving my life forward every day -- and these guys are standing in the same spot."

Instead of continuing to pass them by, the veteran marathoner sprang into action so they could join her.

She contacted the shelter, got donations of running gear, and in July 2007 the "Back On My Feet" running club hit the streets.

The first day, Mahlum led nine shelter residents in a mile-long run. Today, Back on My Feet has teams in three Philadelphia shelters, including 54 homeless members and more than 250 volunteers. The group has logged more than 5,000 miles.

Requirements for shelter residents to join are simple -- they must live in an affiliated facility and be clean and sober for 30 days. Members receive new shoes and running clothes, and teams run together three times a week between 5:30 and 6 a.m.

The runners are diverse -- doctors, janitors, students and shelter residents -- but such distinctions aren't apparent.

"All you can tell is who's the fastest," says Mahlum. "You can't tell who's homeless and who's not."

For Mahlum and others, Back On My Feet is more than a running club.

"We're a community of support, love, respect," she says.

Read the whole thing.

Interested in giving to BOMF?

Currently there are only programs in Philadelphia, with a pilot program beginning in Baltimore this coming March. If you are in either of these cities and would like to volunteer, go to the BOMF website and click on "How Can I Help."

Alternatively, you can give a donation, become a "fundraiser" with your next race, or simply purchase BOMF merchandise. Again, just go to the website and click "How Can I Help."

Pasadena Marathon Cancellation

We were so sorry to hear about today's cancellation of the first Pasadena Marathon.

CBS reports:

Pasadena's first marathon has been canceled due to heavy smoke and ash from a destructive wildfire burning in Los Angeles County.

Race organizers said Sunday that they decided at the last minute to scrap the event out of concern for the health and safety of the 8,000 people who registered to participate.

The announcement at 4 a.m. came two hours before the marathon and bike tour was set to begin.

John Parks, a member of the race management team, says organizers will meet over the next several days to reschedule the event.

We can't imagine how frustrating it must be to train for months towards the goal of a marathon, just to have it canceled 2 hours before it was supposed to start. But we also can't image the horror of having your house burn down, especially at this time of the year as we approach the holiday season.

Our hearts go out to all of the runners who were unable to race this morning, and even more to those who have had their lives intruded upon by the fires.

Facebooking it

Races in Places would like to give a shout out to a new running community that is picking up a lot of activity on Facebook. Simply called "Running," this page as of posting today has almost 300 members and an active discussion board with threads relating to gear, places to run, shoe recommendations, and many other relevant topics.

If you are a member of Facebook, I suggest you check out the page and become a "fan," and post the link to your profile (click here). Running is often so much easier with the support and inspiration of others, be it strangers or friends!

Of course while you're logged on, check out the Races in Places fan page (click here). Become a "fan," post it to your profile, and start a discussion!

Together, we can explore the world (and the internet) one mile at a time!

Passport to Race: ING NYC Marathon

New York City.

For many artists and intellectuals, the Holy Grail of Cities.

For many runners, NYC's marathon is no different. Especially to back-of-the-packers like myself who will only see Boston as a spectator or bandit.

For Races in Places, the ING NYC Marathon was not just a Holy Grail, it was our Nemesis. One that has finally been conquered.

We have been trying to run this race for 4 years now. After many mishaps and failed lotteries, 2008 was our year. With much excitement and anticipation we prepared for the race, logging mile after mile and planning with precision the details of our long awaited NYC race weekend. Unfortunately, research of the logistics of the race went undone and we suffered the worse for it.

I realized with this race that I have fallen into a complete state of trust in race directors. I assume everything will be taken care of and I will be entertained for those unaccounted hours between arriving at and starting the race. With races so trendy and big these days, they tend to be spectacles within themselves with bands, fund-raising, even weddings before and after the race. It is quite easy to arrive and be herded around cattle style until the very end when you finally meet, tired but triumphant, with your family and friends. It has gotten to the point that everything is so organized and clearly marked, you really don't have to think about anything other than your pace, and even then you can opt to just follow a pacer.

While I found the ING NYC Marathon to follow suit, there were some noticeable holes in it's organization both in the start and finish of the race. Holes that wouldn't have been a big deal had I done some race research or even used my brain ahead of time.

Fortune seemed in our favor as race morning followed the end of daylight time, granting us an extra hour of sleep. That combined with the late start of the marathon made this race seem immediately more casual and sleep friendly than so many races with start times of 7 AM (or 5 AM in Honolulu). But after a brief discussion with the transportation people at the expo, we were told we were required to take the 6 AM ferry to Staten Island.

That seemed incredibly early considering we were part of the third start wave and weren't designated to cross the start line until 10:20. Plus, as the Staten Island Ferry is a free service, it didn't seem necessary for us to ride at a specified time (it wasn't as if we had to take one of the buses that had a limited number of seats and small window of time to get onto the island before the roads would close). But we complied with the request and drowsily awoke at 4:00 AM in order to get dressed, eat and make our way to the 1 train in order to get to South Ferry in time for the 6 AM ferry ride.

This was fine; our excitement kept us awake for the hour and half commute to the starting area. But our enthusiasm was quickly extinguished as we found ourselves at 7 AM hydrated, fed, and raring to go with more than 3 hours before our start time. I had already been to the bathroom twice but there weren't even any port-a-potty lines to pass the time in as is my usual pre-race ritual.

And it was cold. COLD. Lower 40s and windy. Thank goodness for the sun that was slowly rising. We had thought ourselves ahead of the game for bringing throw-away sweatshirts so that we would not have to check a bag. But this was certainly folly as my capri-length running pants were no match against the chill and my hands and ears craved gloves and a hat.

We certainly felt foolish as we huddled together on the cold pavement with our luke warm Dunkin' Donuts coffee staring at those who were the wiser in heavy coats, pants, even sleeping bags. Idle and bored, I mused on the race hubris that allowed me to believe that after running 5 marathons (NYC was my 6th) I "knew how things worked" and did not put 2 and 2 together that a 6 AM ferry and a 10:20 start time would result in a lot of dead time in between. How foolish of me to not consider that when the weather read 39 degrees as I walked out the door that morning, that I might possibly be cold for all that downtime.

I guess I had assumed it would be taken care of. I'm not sure what I expected but sitting there shivering at 8 AM, I would have given anything for a heat lamp, a tent, and an amateur band covering "Brown Eyed Girl" to help pass the time. I was, however, impressed by the free breakfast of bagels, PowerBars, and coffee or tea. Chalk one up for the race organizers for the food, but minus 10 for no gentle reminder of the downtime and cold to be expected while waiting to run. Though of course, had I exercised some brainpower, I could have come to that conclusion myself.

After many grumbles and walks around the green start to regain feeling in my feet, the announcement finally came that the green start corrals were open. The announcements at the race were pretty cool. They were loud, clear, and in many, many languages.

J and I trudged our way through the crowds to the start passing a stage (was there live music that we missed?) along the way. We prematurely shed our throw-away sweatshirts, which we regretted as soon as we stepped foot on the Verrazano Bridge. The bridge was another unexpected disappointment; while the blue and orange starts ran on top of the bridge, the green starters were forced onto the lower part of the bridge, which was drafty, cold, and completely non picturesque. However, I was so grateful to finally be running that I didn't care. A mile and some change later we descended the bridge into Bay Bridge, Brooklyn, warmed-up and excited to finally be running the marathon.

The NYC Marathon would be more appropriately titled the Brooklyn and Other Boroughs Marathon; literally half of the course cuts through Brooklyn, and the fans seemed to know it. The first 13 miles by far had the most spectators and cheering spots out of the entire race. The course also passed through vastly different neighborhoods giving out-of-towners a pretty good cross section of the city, including the more suburban Bay Ridge, the grittier Sunset Park, trendy Park Slope and hipster Williamsburg. My favorite part was the mile or so on Lafayette Avenue between beautiful Boerum Hill and Clinton Hill.

We entered Queens in mile 13 and I was starting to feel the dreaded marathon fatigue. There were many spirited spectators in Long Island before we crossed the Queensboro Bridge into Manhattan.

Once on 1st Avenue, the energy increased by the sheer number of people that could crowd the sidewalks. Police had to guard the taped off street and the road widened allowing more breathing room. Personally, I was a bit defeated noticing that we were arriving on 59th Street, but had to travel above 125th Street before we could cross into the Bronx. But with the loud, supportive cheering and unending water stops, the blocks flew by and we were soon crossing into the Bronx.

Just like Queens, we were only in the Bronx for about a mile before we we curved back around and headed back into Manhattan, passing through Harlem to get to the park.

Again my lack of research snuck up on me. Throughout my training I had it in my mind that we would run south through Harlem and into Central Park from 110th Street in order to run up the big hill that sits at the top of the park next to Lasker Rink. I then assumed the rest of the race would follow the big loop through the park before ending at Tavern on the Green.

While I was happy not to face a big hill at that point in the race, I was disappointed not to be in the park. But at 90th Street, just one block shy of the famous Guggenheim Museum, my desires were granted as we entered the park and were able to bask in the beauty of New York City in the fall.

The course twisted and turned back out of the park where we returned to 59th Street and approached Columbus Circle before finally heading back into the park and up a slight hill to the finish line.

We gratefully crossed the finish line with the clock over 45 minutes off our chip time, tears in our eyes, muscles praying that this was not just another 1 minute walk break. The entire course was well marked, and the last few miles heavily guarded against non-runners intruding upon the finishers, so I was quite surprised when upon crossing the finish line I had to dodge men with cameras and other random people who cut across the way of the finishers. Any runner knows that when you cross the finish line it is important not to stop right away, but with all the people in the way, I was jerked side to side as if in Times Square on a weekend. Finally I made my way to the volunteers passing out heat blankets and medals, where I had to interrupt a conversation in order to ask for my medal. Tired, hungry and delirious, I was then unsure of where to go next. The road was no longer taped off and in many of NYRR's races the finisher's food is further down in the park.

I eventually found the volunteers who where giving out bags full of water, gatorade and food. This was great, but I then found myself again in an inescapable herd of people. Forced to pass by the baggage trucks (guess not checking a bag was not going to save me time in getting out of the crowd), we were then herded about a half a mile through the park before we were able to exit at 77th Street. Half a mile is not at all a long distance to marathoners, except for when you have just finished a marathon! Having to walk that unending distance before finally being able to cross Central Park West and sit down on a bench was almost as much torture as having to wait 3 hours in the cold before being able to run!

While the start and finish of the race lacked the finesse of other races, particularly the Rock-N-Roll Half Marathon at Virginia Beach who has it's finish down to a convenient science, I found this race to be overall well planned and enjoyable. The course is for the most part flat and affords the runner many different views of the city. There's plenty of entertainment along the way from school bands, to rock bands, to rappers, to cute old men playing accordion. The hydration stops were plentiful and they served Gatorade which is my preferred running drink. The weather was great, and the runners were polite.

I am happy to have finally run my current home town's marathon and while I have never repeated a marathon, I have already entertained thoughts of doing this one again now that I have an insider's knowledge of the ING NYC Marathon.

For more pictures of this year's NYC Marathon, click the slide show in the right hand column.

Do you have a race you'd like to review? Email us at racesinplaces@gmail.com

Movie Recovery

Training for the ING New York City Marathon has entered the hardest stage for us back-of-the-packers here at Races in Places; last weekend's 16 miler kicked our good-up-to-13-miles-only butts!

For inspiration, we turn to our favorite running movies:

St. Ralph

We love Ralph's enthusiasm for running hills!

Run For Your Life

We loved this film at this year's Tribeca Film Festival and eagerly await it's DVD release. Sign up at their website for notification- you don't want to miss this inspiring film about Fred Lebow and the inception of the NYC Marathon!

Running the Sahara

We haven't actually seen this one yet, but according to IMDB, it will release to DVD next month. Chronicling 3 runners as they cross the Sahara desert to bring awareness to the water crisis in Africa, this film is sure to be an inspiration strong enough to get us through our dreaded 20 miler!

A Call for Contributors

Races in Places wants to hear from you!

We are currently looking for readers interested in participating in the following columns:

Passport to Race- review your favorite local or out-of-town race
Passport to Run- promote your hometown, or write about a favorite far-way running destination
Mixtape- what's on your iPod? Share your favorite running playlist

If you are interested in having your fav race, running destination (or hometown), or playlist featured, please email: racesinplaces@gmail.com.

Passport to Race: Sydney's City 2 Surf Fun Run

Fun if you like hills.

Hills that really aren’t too bad if you can keep your eye on the prize.The prize being Sydney’s beautiful, sprawling Bondi Beach.

Starting in the center of the city in Sydney’s CBD (Central Business District) and meandering up and down through various outer districts including Edgecliff and Kings Cross before concluding on the promenade at Bondi Beach, this 14k (roughly 8.7 miles) boasts 70,000 runners, and the honor of being the world’s largest fun run. Be prepared to never break free of the pack as this run stays jam-packed the entire course.

Highlights include 4 color-coded starts, good old Gatorade at the plentiful drink stops (no gross Accelerade or Ultima on this course), heartbreak hill- a twisty-turning never-ending gradual accent between the 7^th and 8^th kilometer, and a breathtaking view of Bondi as you descend the final few kilometers. Be prepared for a crowded course of walkers and baby strollers, lots of hills, and no food (only water) at the finish line. And US runners beware- there are no mile markers on this course so plan your race strategy accordingly; just remember, there may be more kilometers, but they go by much quicker! Luckily this race is held in the winter, which for Sydney, means temps around 15-17 C (which is around high 50s/low 60s F) and perfect running weather. Despite running with 69,999 of your closest friends, this is a race every intercontinental runner should experience at least once!

I ran this year’s race on Sunday, August 10 with good friend Nadje and her sister S. This was my second international race and it was fun to play the compare and contrast game. The first noticeable difference occurred at bag check. Many races use elaborate systems for collecting your bags with long lines according to race number or last name initial. This bag check did require use of a special bag with your race number, but there were no volunteers to collect the bags; you literally tossed your bag onto the truck! Luckily, and much to my surprise, it was very easy to get our bag at the end of the race as distribution of the bags was much more organized than the collection.

The second most noticeable difference came while in line for the port-a-potty, or port-a-loo as they are referred to here. The line moved at the usual pace, which was surprising as there were two men going from loo to loo cleaning! And what a good job they did! This port-a-john was by far the cleanest bathroom I’ve ever seen at a race- complete with a handle to flush and running water to wash up with!

As previously mentioned, and shown above, there were four different starts.We were in the blue, which was rumored to be the back of the pack, though we went on the third gun shot; the yellow group starting on the fourth and last gunshot. There was no national anthem sung or band playing at the start, but I did get a kick out of the vast number of discarded clothing everywhere.

As we fought our way past the start line, I expected the pack to loosen up with runners edging ahead of the walkers. Sadly, this never happened. I don’t know if perhaps the blue start was code for walkers, but it may as well have been. It was a constant game of dodging in, out, around, and through the multitude of casual walkers, who were taking the idea of a “Sunday Stroll” a little too literally.

The zig-zagging aside, the rest of the race ran like any other.There were the occasional bands…

And some interesting costumes…

Let’s get a close-up of the painted dude:

The water stations were plentiful and with my favored Gatorade, though I am still puzzled as to why the race coordinators chose to use plastic cups, which broke to pieces beneath the runners’ feet causing dangerously slippery surfaces and ridiculously loud crunching noises, instead of the usual paper.

Finishing the race was, like most races, the best part of the race! But c’mon, who wouldn’t love a race that ended next to super blue water and white sandy beaches?

Do you have a race you'd like to review? Email us at racesinplaces@gmail.com

Races in Places Mission Statement

Races in Places* is an informal collective of likeminded people who share a passion for discovering the world through running. Ranging from back-of-the-packers to seeded runners, we share a passion for discovering new places and meeting new people through the commonality of running. Through Races in Places, runners from around the world can exchange thoughts, experiences and resources relating to running in their part of the world. It is the goal of Races in Place to spread goodwill and global awareness through the shared love of running.

The Races in Places (RiP) blog is designed to be an interactive resource for runners looking for inspiration and information on running in new destinations. While topics concerning training and nutrition will not be avoided, this blog will focus more on the peripherals of running, including the comradery and overall experience of running, especially as it relates to different parts of the world. Regular columns will include:

• Passport to Run A detailed account of how to navigate running in various large and small cities around the world.
• Passport to Race A detailed account of various races around the world.
• BackTrack A place to share your favorite, or worst, racing experiences.
• Faces in Places A profiling of different runners from around the globe.
• Mixtape Runners can share their favorite playlist to run to.
• Race Fuel A recipe swap of favorite pre- or post- race meals & snacks.
• Around the Waterstop An informal list of links or news bites relating to running.
• Race Expo A highlighting and discussion of various pieces of running gear.

The RiP blog is meant to be interactive and will rely on the submissions of its readers. Our goal is to share thoughts and information from multiple viewpoints, not just that of the administrator.

If you would like to contribute to any of the above columns, or have ideas for other blog entries, email: racesinplaces@gmail.com.

*trademark pending