How to Run the Relay for the #HOFMarathon

Because I've never run a relay before, and because I am a WEE BIT neurotic, I am starting to worry about the how-to's of running as a relay team.  What time should I arrive?  Where do I go?  Where do my team mates go?  What happens after my leg is over?  What do I do to pass the time while I'm waiting for my team?  How do I get my medal?

Before I could make myself crazy, I had a meeting with Jim Chaney, Race Director of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Marathon, and I made him crazy instead.  I have the answers I need, and now I'm going to explain the details to you, Dear Runner, using my own relay team, Beast Mode 5.  Does our name frighten you?  No?!

The relay covers the whole marathon course, and it's divided into five legs.  Runners will pass a slap bracelet, which has an embedded timing chip, at each exchange.  That sounds very James Bond-ish, doesn't it?

I am Leg #1, 10k or 6.2 miles:

Hello, Friends!

All team runners should be at the start of the race (specifically to cheer for me, of course).  The roads will be closed, and the last shuttle will leave Belden Village Mall at around 6:30 am, so all runners must be present at the beginning.  When the gun goes off, so do I, and I plan to run my little heart out until I get to the first exchange, 6.2 miles later.  When the race starts, the other team members can get into position; of course, some will have more time than others.  Runner #2 will need to take a shuttle to the first exchange.

Runner #2, 5k or 3.1 miles,  is Brad:

As you can see, Brad took his picture from his spread at GQ.

Brad will take the shuttle (which is about a ten minute ride) to meet up with me.  Since I am the slowest runner on our team, he may need to wait a while.  Sorry, Brad!  If the weather is a bit chilly, as it can be in April in Ohio, Brad can wear his cast-off clothing (He can even rent it for a buck at the Expo!) and discard it when I pass the bracelet.  Volunteers from Refuge of Hope will collect the donated clothing, so Brad doesn't have to worry about littering.

When I arrive at the exchange point, there will be water, Port-o-Potties, and my Finisher's Blanket, for which I will be super-grateful when my core temperature starts rapidly dropping.  I will then take the shuttle back to the stadium to wait for the other members of our relay team.  I'll have to do it quickly, though, because Brad's a speedy runner.


Runner #3, 5k or 3.1 miles, is Michael:

If you see this runner coming up behind you, GET OUT OF THE WAY!  He WILL mow you down.

Michael will walk a block or so from the stadium to the exchange point where Brad will pass him the bracelet.  I will have sufficiently recovered by then (I hope), so I will welcome the opportunity to stretch my legs a bit and cheer on Brad and Michael.  Brad will get some water and collect his Finisher's Blanket when he arrives at the exchange point, and we will have just enough time to complain about the weather and then walk to the next exchange point to witness Michael passing the bracelet to our next runner.

Runner #4, 12.2k or 7.6 miles, is Mandy:

I LOVE this pic.  This is Mandy as a badass trail runner.

Mandy will only need to walk a block or so from the Stadium  to meet up with Michael, and he will be there lickety-split because 5k's are HIS THING.  We will all be there to cheer him in and send off Mandy.  Mandy's course will take her to Perry High School, so our Runner #5 will have to take the shuttle to the exchange point to meet her.  When Mandy arrives at Perry High School, she can get some water and she will receive her Finisher's Blanket.  Then she needs to take the shuttle back to the stadium for our Grand Finish.

Runner #5, 10k or 6.2 miles, is Joy:

In this picture, Joy is high-fiving a ghost.

Joy will take the shuttle to Perry High School and then tear up the road on the way back to the stadium, where we will all be waiting for her.  Run, Joy, run!

Something new this year, and something I really appreciate, is that Relay Teams will be allowed to finish together.  This way we can join Joy as she crosses the finish line.  Maybe we can hold hands and sing "Kumbaya"  or something.

When we finish the race, Joy gets her Finisher's Blanket, we all collect our medals, we grab some food and water, and we bask in the glow of a collective runner's high.

Some things to remember:

Get to the parking lot in plenty of time.

There will be water and Port-o-Potties at all the exchanges.  Do not worry.

You will collect your Finisher's Blanket at each exchange.

You will collect your medal at the end of the race (26.2 miles).  If you choose not to run in with your team, the last runner receives all the medals to distribute to the team.

Hello, Beautiful!

I'd like to thank Jim Chaney for explaining all of this to me.  He was so patient, especially when he would pause so I could type this info into my phone using only my index finger.  I have Fred Flinstone thumbs.  Don't judge.

What would you like to know about the Pro Football Hall of Fame race events?  Leave your questions in the comments, and I'll be glad to find the answers for you.

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[Don't] Throw It Away!

You stamp the ground nervously in the starting corral of your race.  The temperature is more than chilly, but you are warm from a combination of adrenaline and the oversized hoodie you are wearing.  The gun goes off; you peel off the hoodie and throw it to the side of the road. . . What happens to the hoodie?

The Akron Half Marathon was my first half marathon.  It was such a special occasion; you always remember your first, right?  I had spent eight months training, learning about running, and learning about myself, and it all came down to that one moment.  My coach, Sheila Avsec of the Towpath Turtles, had advised us to bring a piece of throwaway clothing because in late September Ohio temperatures can be a bit cool, especially at 6:00 am when you're waiting for the start.

This is the starting line of an Ohio race in September.  Just kidding.

For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about (because you live in Hawaii or something), runners need to dress as if the temperature is at least twenty degrees warmer than what it is because of rising body heat from exertion.  Waiting around at the starting corral can get very chilly if you are dressed in a racing singlet and shorts in forty degree weather, so runners wear clothing they can peel off at the start of the race.  Sometimes if they don't have clothing, they wear trash bags.

This is EXACTLY how I look waiting at the start of a race.

I didn't want to wear a trash bag on the day of my big race, and I wanted everything about my first half marathon to be meaningful, so I searched through my old clothes to see if there was something I wanted to throw on the side of the street.  Then I spotted it:  an old, oversized button-down shirt from my days as a server at a chain steakhouse.  I was so glad to leave that job, and I knew that this was the best way to throw off that part of my life.  When the fireworks went off at the start of the race, I peeled off the shirt and threw it to the side of the street with a loud "HA!"  It felt awesome.

Since then, I have run many races, and I have never had another emotional moment when it came to the throwaway.  In fact, I usually forget to go to a thrift shop to buy a shirt, so I end up huddling under grungy towels I have to dig out from the trunk of my car, cursing myself for my lack of planning.

So, what does happen to all the clothing we throw to the side of the street at the beginning of a race?  The story I've heard is that volunteers pick it all up and donate it to a local charity, but I've always wondered about the specifics of the throwaway.  Who picks up the clothing, and what do they do with it?

This year the Pro Football Hall of Fame Marathon is working with Refuge of Hope Ministries in Canton, Ohio, which supplies shelter and hot meals to the homeless.

From their webpage: Through our Meal Ministry, we provide well balanced, hot, nutritious meals for the hungry and hurting. We serve six meals per week, the most of any such social service agency in the county. The number of meals we serve has increased dramatically, from 14,500 in 2008 to 73,322 in 2013.

The volunteers from Refuge of Hope are going to make runners' starting-line planning much easier by offering to Rent a Throwaway at the Expo on Friday and Saturday, April 24-25.  For a dollar, you can "rent" clean, donated clothing for the starting line shivers, and Refuge of Hope will even pick up the dropped clothing in the first mile and a half of the race.  Think about how great that is:  Most of us are still warming up for the first five minutes of a race.  Now you can shed the clothing a little later than the starting line.

The Rent a Throwaway program is a way to give to the community while including all members of the community.  For runners throwaways are a temporary convenience; for Refuge of Hope, throwaways are an opportunity to help those less fortunate.

Baby, it's cold outside!  Don't bother agonizing over the weather and your starting line warm ups:  Let the Pro Football Hall of Fame Marathon and Refuge of Hope Ministries take care of it for you!

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