****. She's onto us.


Actually, it's AccelerAde. Nasty stuff. Unless you like chalk. Uck. Ptui.

Okay, let's think 1 or 2 half marathons in the fall (plus shorter races) and spring for your first marathon... I'll come up with some ideas, as I'm sure others will, but at the moment dinner's ready!

But you'll love our Kool Aid! It'll make you faster and more physically fit and mentally tougher and happier and...!

Wow! It didn't take much to swing her over to our side! You guys are good. It only took 4 pages of posts to do it!

Well coming up with a few early candidates for you is pretty much already done by you, Pam.

Nov 27 - Atlanta Half Marathon (Thanksgiving)
Dec 13 - Thunder Road Half Marathon

As for a spring marathon, yeah, look into your hometown race to start, ING Georgia. If you want flatter, a trip out to Shamrock will do the trick. They're not "very" low key, but if you go too low key, you're going to lose a lot of other first timers. They're certainly not mega events. Shamrock is probably a better fit for you, lower key and much flatter, but ING Georgia's good too and you'll have hometown support.

Anyway that's all of the Kool Aid I have for tonight. I have to stir up a new batch. What's your favorite flavor?

Pittsburgh does have the advantage of better timing for training (spring vs winter). You could do the ING GA Half as part of your training. Of course it's a total coincidence that a bunch of us will just happen to be there...

The timing for Big Sur is excellent for you, late April. It fits the plan of a half or two in the fall and your first marathon in the spring. While I haven't run it, it's high on my list. The main questions are travel expense and vacation time. Most marathon trips are a weekend extended by a day; with Big Sur, you'll want more time. Registration opens in September and I believe closes in a couple of months. Race day logistically, it's not an easy one. The shuttle leaves at 3 am (but Pacific time). If you want minor cost, easy logistics, and an easy back-out, this isn't it. If you want beautiful scenery and a great vacation, then it's an excellent choice.

I would definitely discourage training as if you're aiming at a fall marathon. It would be too much, too quick and injury would be too likely. Slowly build up your miles during the summer and having fun with your 5Ks & 10Ks. Perhaps around September, start thinking of it as training for your first half. You'll really be well on the road to that already, but you need more base miles first.

Thunder Road Half

There were 1,700 in the half and 840 in the full last year. The races begin together. Crowding isn't a problem. Crowd support is on the light side, but it's not bad for a fairly low key event. Weather-wise, well the first year I ran it was freezing - literally, the volunteers were yelling "ice" at the water stops because the spilled fluids were freezing. Last year, the weather was perfect for a half. As I mentioned yesterday, the course is rolling, no huge or steep hills, but you're always going up or down to some degree. It's not a PR course, but it's not bad. And if you're primarily thinking of it as early practice for a spring marathon, the rolling hills are a bonus.

The expo is pretty low key, no lines or stress, fairly small but still pleasant. The medal last year was very nice.

Charlotte hotels aren't too expensive. Last year, I got the Westin via Priceline for $70/night, but to keep things simple and flexible, I'd recommend a cancellable reservation. I just checked - the Westin's current rate is too high ($199). The Hilton at $127 would be my choice. It works well logistically for the start, expo, and exploring Uptown. The half's finish is in a somewhat strange spot, but only a mile or so away. You should absolutely walk a mile or two after your half no matter where you stay.

I can't provide any insight into Chickamauga, but if you do run it, I kind of like the timing of it combined with doing the Thunder Road Half as well. Also if you're training doesn't make you feel ready for early November, you'll still have another half in your pocket for mid-December.

I think the thread's fine here; it is a secret plot after all. Besides, our threads just go wherever they go.

Edit after seeing this message posted - holy **** that was way longer than I thought I wrote!