I considered giving up on my goal of running a half every month for a year before running my January half. A mix of frustration, sadness, sickness, and winter weather blues had me almost convinced that it was time to throw in the towel. But then I realized it's only three more months, and I didn't spend all the time, energy, and (let's be honest) money on nine months of running only to quit in the fourth quarter. So I signed up for the Brokeman's series Winter Warmup in Columbus and bugged a close runner friend of mine to join me, and we took the trip down to my old neighborhood to tackle another course.
We stayed overnight in a cheap hotel so we could sleep in on race morning, and were a little surprised to find ourselves less than a mile from the starting line! By far one of the easiest race mornings I've ever had, complete with Tim Horton's and some excellent pump up jams in the car while we waited for the starting time. The course was all within a metro park which made for a very pretty run, especially passing some of the park's water features and going under or over some very cool bridges. Unfortunately the iciness of the cold morning (which thankfully stayed dry, despite super low temps) made some of those bridges dangerous, but otherwise it was an easy course. I wasn't expected to run as much as I did, and was very proud to find myself at the 10k mark in almost record time! But then the lack of training settled in and the second half of the race was a little more stop-and-go, bringing me to the finish in about average time.
The most notable thing I remember about the experience of the run was the "cup-free" course, which was thankfully explained in detail on the Brokeman's website so I knew to run with my own bottles. Water stops only had big jugs of water and Gatorade for people to refill their personal bottles; no cups or other trash items were used. While this policy is very green and good for the park, I honestly don't think I would ever emulate it in one of the races I manage, for a few reasons. From the runner's perspective, running 13 miles with a water bottle isn't natural for everyone. Many runners prefer to race unencumbered; this type of police messes with their typical race MO. It can be a difficult adjustment. Even though some people would say "but it's just water and they can still drink on their own schedule" - try getting a set-in-their-ways runner to change any aspect of their race routine and see how it goes! On the other side of the policy, the literless aspect, I don't really think that's a major problem in most races. Volunteers who hand out water also do an exceptional job of cleaning up afterwards at just about every race I've ever run, worked, or spectated. I think I, personally, will continue to arrange races with the convenience of disposable cups on the course. What do you think?
Brokeman's Winter Warmup Half Marathon Breakdown
Organization: For a small company they were pretty well organized. We walked right up to the table for packet pickup, there were plenty of volunteers who were very cheery and vocal, and communication was pretty solid! Brokeman's Running Company puts on a handful of cost-efficient races across Ohio, most of which are full marathons, so they're no strangers to races. I'm pretty sure they do their own timing too, making them a pretty self-sufficient company. This race offered a few different distances so runners of all abilities could participate, and interestingly, each bib was marked with not only the distance but a map of the race course, printed up-side down for runners to read properly when they pull up their shirts to look! Very clever, I've definitely never seen that before but it's a great way to help your runners stay on course!
The Course: The Warmup was fully contained in a large metropark about a half hour outside of Columbus. I loved the scenery but hated crossing the wooden bridges throughout the park. On such a cold day, they were pretty iced up and there was little hope of the buildup melting. The very long bridge we crossed twice (right before and right after the turnaround) was treacherous and many participants grabbed the handrails to inch along the curved bridge, afraid the ice and incline would lead to injury. I carefully tried to pick my way across at a run, but had to slow up a few times for obvious ice patches. In the spring and fall, I bet this course is stunning! BIG points for the Swedish fish aid station, too...
The Swag: Here's the thing about Brokeman's races: they're supposed to be cost-effective, with minimal frills to help keep the cost low. As you can see, it's the smallest race bib I've ever seen (and I get a kick out of the late signups receiving bibs that say "procrastinator" instead of their chosen distance) but it's pretty cool that I could look at the route map during the race. My "medal" is just a block of wood with a stamped-on image and a piece of twine as the ribbon; no one receives a shirt unless you want to buy one from their gear store. This wouldn't be an awful setup, if the race were actually lower cost, but even the earlier entry fees weren't all that cheap! While writing this, I've tried to look up the fee schedule for the race but this event's webpage doesn't want to load for me, so I can't give you an exact cost but I remember being shocked at how expensive this "cheap, no frills" race actually was. With no police or city costs on such a well-contained course, and very economical swag, I'd expect a race called "Brokeman's" to be far less expensive. This was one of the worst values for my money, of all the many races I have run!
The Bottom Line: I'm glad I got a January half in, and the course was picturesque, but I wouldn't pay for this race again. There are other races that give you more for your money, and I'm not sure I'm the biggest fan of the no-cup water stops. I get the environmental impact, but it makes a lot of people have to run a different race than they maybe trained to run. I'll pass for next year and look for something in a warmer climate with better value for next January.
How much emphasis do you put on a race's "bang for the buck"? Will a nice or challenging course outweigh a lack of swag if you're debating between races at a similar cost? Would you prefer a cup-free course or would you rather be able to grab your cup as you pass the stations?
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