Above, Pier 39Below, the first hill. Up, around the corner, then up more.
Below, running by Sports Basement at the Presidio. Keeping an eye on the hill ahead that does not stop till you reach the middle of the GG Bridge.
Above, heading up the hill. About half way up you get a slight break in the incline and a good view of the bridge, someone took a pic for us, then we got back to climbing up this beast of a hill.
There are tons more bridge pictures on the Dropshots site. It is one of my favorite parts of this run, just surreal to run the bridge. Below, I waited for Brian to make a potty stop and got a picture with one of the guys in the band at the aid station.
Off the Bridge now, we continue up the hill that lead to the bridge.
Now we are starting a long, pretty, but brutal downhill
Above and below we are in the unending miles of GG Park.
Above, this is a tough spot because you see and hear all the excitement from the first half finishing, which is confusing because you have run more than 13 miles, yet you are seeing the finish for the first half marathon.I tried to maintain a positive attitude by being a dork.
Heading out of the park and down Haight Street. It is all downhill on Haight, long, and downhill. While it didnt' smell last year, this year was waves of a sweet smelling odor that was pretty sickening.
Heading out of the park and down Haight Street. It is all downhill on Haight, long, and downhill. While it didnt' smell last year, this year was waves of a sweet smelling odor that was pretty sickening.
From Haight to the finish was pretty brutal. There are lots of pictures, but you'll have to care enough to go to our photo site to see them.
Above, 2 pictures up you have Bart Yasso on the mike welcoming us to the finish, pretty cool!
We finished, got our medals, drinks, (they were out of food, not even a bagel or banana in site anywhere), and sat for a bit.
There are more pictures that tell more of the story HERE. The hilly,
weirdos, ugly, tired, why am I still trying pictures. And videos of the entertainment along the course, too.
For those interested in seeing videos taken along the course of us by the professionals, you can go HERE, enter our name, and then click on video.
Wow - great pictures! I loved going through them (I couldn't figure out how to add comments, so I'll put them here). I love the back window drawing. You were brave to stand so close to that guy with the white van (didn't mother teach you anything about guys with vans?). How in the world did Endorphin Dude get ahead of you? That's Frank (the guy in red that you see at so many races) - he truly is amazing; looks like he is on his last legs but looks can be deceiving. And I love that Mad Hatter Fancy Pants had that sign at the end (you should have seen him just after you started with the other side of that sign, saying "Only 26 more miles to go!") - that guy's amazing and a blast.
ReplyDeleteHa, I wondered that about Endorphin Dude myself! Nice to have a name to put to Frank, and yes, I always want to reach out and steady him, but he is clearly an endurance machine and needs no assistance!
ReplyDeleteI watched Endorphin Dudes finish line video and he seemed to be alone. Have you heard how it went and if his gal made it?
Endorphin Dude did great, and his running buddy Alva ("Ultra Woof") finished right along side him. It turns out she lost her timing tag so had to get a new bib and timing tag, so that's why she didn't show up in the results like she should. Ernie (I think you know him - he's an older guy that does a TON of races in the bay area) also finished well, and even managed to talk 6 women that were going to drop at at the half point into continuing on, and they all finished. (All of these were well after the 6 hour limit that is not apparently all that seriously enforced.) I have to say, after reading all these reports and seeing all the pictures, I'm really tempted to do this thing next year.
ReplyDeleteI really think it is a must do for anyone who enjoys running...at least once. It is really unlike any other race we have done. You have amazing endurance when it comes to distance and hills, I bet you'd love it!
ReplyDeleteBoth years I've said I crossed the start line one person and the finish line slightly different. One of those types of courses.
oh, and glad to hear about Endorphin Dude, and that time limit....I know there were quite a few near the 7 hour mark and everything was still set up, finish line, person on the mike welcoming runners to the finish...so yeah, its relaxed I'd say
ReplyDelete