Race Report: Finish on the Fifty Half Marathon [New York: State #7]

This is going to be short and sweet... mostly because there is little good I can say about my experience with the Rapid Running Buffalo Half Marathon.

"But, wait, Russ. This says you ran the Finish on the Fifty Half Marathon."

Exactly.

I registered for the June 30 race about two months prior to the date, willing to pay the high entry fee ($85) since I happened to be in the area during my road trip. Since the time of my arrival in the city was questionable, I opted to pay an additional $20 (seriously?) for race-morning pick-up. Total rip off.

Well, on June 21st - the day before I left on my drive and only 9 days before the race - Rapid Running sent out an email postponing the race to an unspecified fall date. I was miffed because there was no way I'd make it up there in the fall. They offered to transfer registrations to another RR event, but none fit my schedule or were anywhere near me. I emailed asking (politely) for a refund knowing it was a lost cause. I've come to find out thousands of others did the same (some not so politely). Apparently, RR's excuse was that they hadn't prepared for so many entrants. Well, how about you cap the entry number then, geniuses? STOP TAKING ENTRIES.

Rumors swirled that they didn't have a sponsor and that was the problem. Regardless, I was annoyed with the lack of customer support (a constant diatribe I have about America in all industries). So, I was prepared to adjust my drive accordingly when visitbuffalo.com went WAY out of their way to put on a comparable event.

Visit Buffalo recognized the smear that RR placed on the city and in 8 DAYS got sponsors, community approval (including cops), and Buffalo Bills front office concurrence to run the race. In 8 days. Now, it wasn't perfect, but I give them total credit for pulling this off.

About 500 people showed up to race. Where were these thousands that RR claimed? Admittedly, the experience left bitter tastes in the mouths of many, but only 500? Visit Buffalo was able to get t-shirts for us (sweet!) but no medals (a disappointment to many... especially those that had signed up with RR for this event as their FIRST race).

We met early in the morning at the Bills clubhouse for packet picket. The indoor practice facility was impressive, but I've seen much better facilities on college campuses. Oh, and the Bills play in Orchard Park, NY. It's a nice area with rolling hills and... cows. But there is absolutely nothing out there but the stadium. Why Buffalo chose to build their stadium in BFE is beyond me. Why a professional football player would choose to play for Buffalo is similarly confusing.

The bare-bones organization made for a hectic start, but we were quickly off and running through the pastures of eastern New York. it was actually a nice run but not at all what I expected. The field was minimal, so long stretches would go by where I would be near no one. A few overpasses and culverts produced hills, and it began to rival those I saw in Tennessee. I started fast (something unusual for me), and I felt it as I toured the marshes and cattle fields of miles 10 and 11. But, I fought forward because of what was coming.

RR had promised a finish on the 50 yard line of Ralph Wilson stadium, and Visit Buffalo had matached the promise. We turned into the tunnels and emerged under the goalposts for a mad dash through the dozens of spectators to the 50 yard line. It wasn't as grandiose as I had imagined weeks earlier, but it was certainly a memorable experience. Even better? I set another PR (my second for the trip) in 1:54:17.

Rapid Running's complete disregard for its customers made a large hill for Visit Buffalo to climb, but they did it well considering their resources. And, the Finish on the Fifty was certainly one I will remember.

I can't post a picture of a non-existent medal, and my distance from Buffalo makes it unlikely I'll run another race there. So, I can't recommend this race. But, given what they pulled off, I'm sure that next year (Visit Buffalo enjoyed the 8 days of confusion and was considering making it an annual, better-organized-with-more-time event) it will be an improvement.

However, I won't be running another Rapid Running race (they aren't a fly-by-night operation... they have a somewhat large presence in racing) again.

Twit on a Road Trip [Part 7 : Day 11 and part of 12]

Have you read the previous posts? You should... they're moderately entertaining...

Day 11 - also known as Monday, July 2nd - started off with something I've never done on any vacation or road trip I've ever been on. I had to get my oil changed. It seems that I had been on the road so long that it became necessary to get some maintenance done. So, I changed my car's oil and transmission fluid in Buffalo, NY. While I waited, I walked across the street and got a haircut.

This was apparently a looooong road trip.

Thankfully, I had a short drive on the 2nd, so I took my time getting out of Buffalo. It was nearly noon before I got back in my car, and I still had a quick stop at Home Depot to buy bricks and duct tape. Ordinarily, a statement like that will get me put on some predator website, but I had an reason for such a strange purchase: I was going to Washington, DC the next day to carry bricks around the city, following a Force Recon Marine for my third GORUCK Challenge.

Ok, so maybe the 'predator list' thing is less strange.

Since I was driving into DC and several of my fellow participants were flying, I volunteered to supply the bricks. Thankfully, I didn't have to explain my purchase to the HD employees, as they are used to seeing people buy bricks. Still, the image of me pulling the little red basket behind me through the store drew some fascinated looks.

Get in the trunk, and no one gets hurt!

Who cares if they suck?
Awesome stadium.

Eventually, my car loaded down in the back end, I jumped on the toll roads (are you freaking kidding me?) and headed southwest and back the way I'd come. This time, though, my destination was Cleveland. I took my time as I skirted Lake Erie and arrived at the city around 4PM. I had several hours of free time, so I wandered the downtown area, snapping pictures and eating at PotBelly Sandwich Works. Tasty. With my free time, I braved the scalding temperatures to walk out to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (this brings the HoF number to 3 on the trip) and past Cleveland Browns Stadium. I loved the waterfront area, and the city's passion for sports is impressive. This is especially true given their teams' less-than-stellar success in recent years. Still, they are behind them. I decided then and there that I could easily make the city my home. I was warned about cold temperatures... Yankee, please! I lived in the north until I was 10. Back the truck up.

I ended my wanderings back at Progressive Field. Not being a huge Indians fan, I hadn't realized that the name had changed from Jacobs Field in 2008 and was slightly miffed. This corporate sponsorship crap is really getting out of hand. Admittedly, "Progressive Field" isn't too bad a name, but c'mon. At least choose something related to sports. "Coca-Cola Field" was ok. "Miller Park" is great. "US Cellular Field Home of the Chicago White Sox" is unacceptable.

Let's see this fixed, people.

And, while I'm on it, can we get away from these ankle-length baseball pants? You look like a moron. Baseball is meant to be played in 3/4 pants that stop at the calf so that you can flash those bad-ass stirrups. It's in the Bible. I read it. You can't tell me Jesus would approve of full-length baseball pants. Similarly, he would denounce the Designated Hitter Rule as idolatry and/or totally lame as Hell.

"If thou desireth to pitch, thou must wield thine own mace and striketh true."

The "Jake": Most impressive

What the hell was I talking about? Oh, the Indians. So, this team royally sucks. It's true. But, I love a loser and found myself really getting behind them. Listening to Cleveland sports talk that night and the next day, I came to sympathize with the wait-till-next-year love for the team. And, the stadium is really, REALLY nice. It's top 5 for me.. possible top 3. Great atmosphere and fans. They were promoting a 4-miler race that started at the football stadium, ran through the Cavaliers' arena, and finished on the track at the Jake (Progressive Field? Bah!). I wish I lived in a city that did this kind of stuff.

Alas, I jumped in my car and drove down to Akron in an attempt to get a clean start on the next day's drive, a long one that took me through the Pennsylvania woods and past Pittsburgh. Fortunately, it was all on toll roads. (We wouldn't want to break tradition and drive on roads my tax dollars are already charging me for, would we?)

The 12th day went by in a blur as I hauled literal and metaphorical ass to DC so that I could meet up with my buddies at the hotel. As this entry is already getting long, I'll hold off till the next for GORUCK DC. Be warned, the next one will be long, strongly censored, and make liberal use of my keyboard's characters to intimate the naughty words.

It was epic. Illegally... Amorally... Alcoholically... EPIC. I hate that word. It's overused. But, oh so true.
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Twit on a Road Trip [Part 6 : Day 10]

Ok, I know. Another post that only covers 1 of the 15 days on the trip. Trust me... it was a long day and deserved its own entry. As Day 10 started, I was starting to run on fumes. Up to this point, I had stuck pretty close to my rather non-existent plan. This whole thing started as an attempt to hit five baseball stadiums, though random wanderlust and nation-wide zigzagging would imply otherwise. Still, I wasn't going to hit Milwaukee because the Brewers ignored my repeated emails instructing them to stage a home game for my benefit. As I saw the days coming, I realized I was going to be unable to get to Detroit, also.

This had the added effect of me planning ANOTHER trip to the Midwest that involved drinking in Milwaukee and Madison and then taking the ferry over to Michigan and hitting up Detroit. I eventually came to the realization that I should end this trip (and the other ten that I have planned) before putting thoughts down about the next one (or, the 11th one).

This fell out largely due to my goal for Day 10, Sunday July 1st: Cooperstown, NY. There was no way I was going to get this close to the Baseball Hall of Fame and not check it out. This was especially true seeing as though it was in the middle of nowhere. It was unlikely I'd be in this neck of the woods again anytime soon.

I should point out here that I damn near planned a 12th future trip after I got to Cooperstown. But first... It was a more than a three hour drive to Cooperstown, so I hit the road early. Toll roads (sonuvabitch) stretched out before me, and it was hours before I slipped off into the central New York hills. I cut through some of the saddest little towns you've never heard of - Mohawk, Richfield Springs, Exeter - and became convinced that the baseball HoF was contained in a cave under a bridge. The Hall is located in this god forsaken area on the (completely incorrect) understanding that noted Civil War nobody Abner Doubleday invented the game in the region. I don't understand why he would choose this location for such inspiration other than he was hoping someone would hit him in the head with a rock. Instead, he swung a branch at the rock and hit a soft liner to left field (all corn by the way). This is the mythological and completely untrue birth of baseball (I'd stake my completely unworthy reputation on it).

Thus, I had mixed emotions as I crossed through a cut in the hill and found Cooperstown spread out below me. It. Was. Awesome. Respectably sized and all about baseball, Cooperstown is heaven for lovers of the game. The downtown area is like the set of a '50s television show. Cafes and diners mark the main road. Shops with baseball gear and equipment are on every corner. Pubs and restaurants line the side streets. Kids play stick-ball everywhere, and all the talk is of baseball.

I'll be honest, I thought I had hit a cow in Exeter and died. It was the only explanation.

Dodger great
Jackie Robinson

People were everywhere. They sat on the benches eating ice cream. They tossed baseballs. I thought, "How will I even park?!" Why... right here is fine. Right next to the baseball Hall of Fame would be perfect. It was like I was standing next to James Earl Jones in Field of Dreams as he explained what the sport means and what the field would mean to the lovers of the sport.

"People will came, Ray. People will most definitely come."

The front door to my personal religious institution

Sorry... I lost myself there for a second. Anyway, I ducked into Copperstown's Baseball Hall of Fame. So very cool. They had hundreds of artifacts on the history of the game. Each team had a locker with notable accomplishments recorded. Stadiums were highlighted including Ebbets Field, which will always be one of the great regrets I have. Nothing I can do, but I would give anything to watch a game in Flatbush.

Records were highlighted... Rickey Henderson, Cy Young, Christy Mathewson, Cal Ripken. An entire section was devoted to the works of Hank Aaron (a truly great individual, in baseball and life). Then, plaques for those honored in the Hall. A humongous apse filled with legends of the game. Some are well-known to the average person. Many are unknown except to the most ardent of fans. It was great. I could have spent days in this building. Alas, I only had four hours (they went by shockingly fast).

And, this is how I ended up planning ANOTHER trip (in addition to the aforementioned Milwaukee-Detroit sojourn) that would put me coming up to Cooperstown and staying for a weekend. Yes, there is that much to do and, yes, even someone that isn't as diehard a fan as I am would love it. The town itself is fascinating and home to a few thousand people. There's certainly enough to keep someone busy for a couple days, and - so - I will be returning eventually. I made myself a promise.

But, I had to get back on the road to Buffalo. I had another obligation. This time... a concert. When I checked on things to do in and around the 5000+ mile track I drove, I paired it off with some of my favorite bands. Sadly, most aren't touring right now. But, one was. And, damn if it wasn't one of the best ones out there today.

Lzzy.... Sxxy

So, I went to the Town Ballroom in Buffalo - a venue that had seen better days but was clawing its way back - to see Halestorm. Fronted by Lzzy Hale, the band had become a rousing success, especially with its latest offering that made it the first female fronted rock band ever to take the No. 1 spot on the Active Rock airplay chart. The music is great, but I hadn't ever seen them live. But, Lzzy is hot and I couldn't pass it up. Turns out that Lzzy isn't necessarily the most talented (in my humble opinion) of the Hale siblings. Her brother, Arejay, plays drums, and he put on as impressive a performance as I have ever seen in a live show. Totally unstoppable.

The crowd was diverse and devoted. It was quite the audience as I saw kids in their teens and adults in there 50s (60s?). Even the bartender pulled me aside during one of my (frequent) trips for libations to ask more info about the band. Even he was fascinated by the cross section of society in attendance. But, when they started rocking, Halestorm brought us all together. Town Ballroom was a great place to watch them, intimate and awesome. Orlando may have a glut of live music venues, but I have never been overly impressed with them (Hard Rock Live is the closest to 'good' in the area). Not only did the TB have a nice set-up, the history of the place was palpable. Well done, Buffalo. Below are some face-melting videos for your enjoyment. Trust me, they don't do the experience justice.

"Rock Show"

"Here's to Us"

"I Get Off"

"It's Not You"

 

 

Twit on a Road Trip [Part 5 : Day 8 and 9]

First, I apologize for my slacking. I was a few days behind, and then my laptop died on me. I had fully expected to get behind in my blog once I hit Washington, DC solely based on the fact that I would be exhausted and/or drunk with my GORUCK family. But, the loss of my laptop was unexpected.

Mea Culpa.

Anywho... I left Akron with the goal of Buffalo. I knew I was going to be spending a few days in the city, but organizing the to-do list while there was a bit overwhelming. This all revolved around a half marathon *supposedly* scheduled for Saturday, June 30th (Day 9 of the trip). But, the organizers of said race, Rapid Running (Don't EVER run one of their races), had their heads so far up their backsides that they couldn't organize a trip to the grocer. The day before I left on my trip, they canceled the half marathon. Knowing I was screwed, I still sent them an email asking for a refund. The 'we had too many people sign up for the race' excuse seemed flimsy to me, but getting my $85 appeared to be a longshot. So, I planned on not racing and planned my trip around a Blue Jays game. Well, visitbuffaloniagara.com realized that this would piss off people visiting the city, and they pulled together a race in EIGHT DAYS. It wasn't great, but I give them credit. More on that on my upcoming race report, here (I'll post link when it's done).

American Falls from the overlook

I drove up to Buffalo (short trip from Ohio) across the unnecessarily-expensive toll roads and arrived around 2PM... plenty of time to head up to the falls and see Niagara. They were most impressive. I went out on the overlook and even rode the Maid of the Mist into the falls themselves. It was amazing. I also came to understand that the Canadians have a much better view than we Americans do. They've capitalized in this by allowing what amounts to the combined efforts of DisneyWorld-wannabes throw up on their side of the bridge. It's quite the display. The American side? Parks and preserves.... I know, right?!

Horseshoe Falls from Canada

I took some pictures from 'our' side and then walked over to Canada. It was my first time in the country, though I doubt those 1000 yards of Canada should really count. It was mostly Americans and Swedes. Beautiful views, though. I ate an early dinner there and then returned to the States. I would imagine my 'singles' trip to Niagara puts me in the minority, as I wasn't on a honeymoon or couple's retreat.

I left there in a hurry, though, anxious to make the Buffalo Bisons AAA game that night. I had been to MANY games on my trip and thought I might pass on the Bisons. But, I drove near the stadium on the way to the Falls and couldn't pass up a game. Right downtown, Coca-Cola Field is a great place to watch a game. I made it to my hotel late and hit the bed hard. But, I had a long day ahead of me on Day 9, as I headed back into Canada.. this time by car....

Oh, but first I ran a half marathon. A PR in 1:54:11. But, check the race report for that. And, CHECK it. The finish was amazing... even if the organization (understandably) left something to be desired.

The end was worth the rest of the headache

So, I pulled out my passport and headed to Canada. The border crossing was s-l-o-w. The fact that my Florida plates drew interest and that Canadian customs seemed perplexed by the fact that I "drove all the way from Florida for a Blue Jays game, eh?" didn't slow me down. They didn't seem to understand I was doing a dozen other things on this trip... but whatever. I crossed into traffic-filled Canada, armed with photos of my route on the iMaps application to limit my data needs on my phone. Though I extended some coverage to Canada, why take the chance?

Getting used to kilometers took a second, as the 'Toronto 130' sign threw me for a loop. WTF? That's two hours! Oh, wait... kilometers. Silly Canadians. It should be noted that I accepted kms by the end of the day and wondered why Americans didn't just stop being obnoxious and embraced what the rest of the world already has.

Traffic made me late for the Blue Jays - Angels game, but I parked and walked the downtown area for a bit. CN Tower. The Rogers Centre (yea... that 're' at the end of 'centre'? I don't get that either. Silly Canadians). Oh, and the people? Yea, I wasn't impressed. Canadians are NOT friendly in their native habitat. The nice ones? They were all AMERICANS. So, turns out Canadians are only polite when they travel to foreign countries. Yea, you read that here first.

On the flip side, the burning atmosphere at roughly 170 degrees Celsius (I'm not converting, but I'm pretty sure that's accurate) couldn't deny that the Blue Jays have a nice set-up. The roof was open and CN tower loomed over the field... a sickly, AstroTurf concoction that looked like Green Giant vomited on Canadian top soil. But, it was nice nonetheless.

I watched the game and ducked back on the Queen's Expressway to return to America. Traffic was grande (note the 'e' at the end). I crossed back at Niagara ("Wait, you drove up from Florida for a Blue Jays game?!" in an American accent this time...) and plunged into my bed at midnight.

It was a great day that saw me straddling two countries and sharing with our neighbors to the north. I understand my experience is somewhat unique in that it was scalding hot in Canada. But, that just means I need to get up there again. Vancouver next time, though. I hear good things...

But, Day 10... day 10 was to be a great one...
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