Earlier in the year I originally planned to run the Rock N Roll Las Vegas half or possibly full marathon. I found out a few of my friends were running it and put it down on my calendar as a race I would sign up for. Then in April, Disney announced the Avengers Superhero half marathon and it happened to fall on the same day. Being the comic nerd that I am, there was no way I would miss the inaugural running of an Avengers themed race, so considering one was early in the morning and the other in the evening, I thought to myself, why not? If I could run a marathon, I could run a marathon with a break in the middle right?
That led to November 16th, 2014, the day I ran 2 half marathons in 2 states in 1 day.
The biggest part of the challenge was the logistics. Some of the few people to attempt this challenge chose to fly. I chose to drive. Being a former Vegas resident and having family there, I knew I would be staying a few days and would need my car. This essentially set up the “third” race. The race to get from the finish line of race one to the starting line of race two.
Coming into the day I was debating, push it and attempt to hit sub 2 in both races or enjoy the runs as this would be my first time running a Disney and Rock N Roll race. I let the first race decide how the rest of the day was going to go for me.
Avenger’s Superhero Half Marathon (13.1 #10)
What can I say? I was in heaven. Take comic books and all the costumes and nerdiness that could ensue and throw running in the mix.
This was my first Disney race and I am thoroughly impressed with how efficient they were. From the starting corrals, to the course, support, finish line and exit chute setup, to leaving the parking, it was just so efficient and exactly what I would expect from a company/venue that is used to dealing with thousands of people daily.
The race itself was crowded at the start as expected. From what I know about the other Disneyland races, it followed a similar path running through the Disney back lot, briefly into California Adventure, out and back into Disneyland, and then through the streets of Anaheim.
Some highlights of the course were of course running through Disneyland and California Adventure. I was a bit disappointed that the World of Color Wheel was not lit up. It was nice to see the characters, Disney and Avengers related, scattered through out but I didn’t want to stop to takes photos unless there was no line.
Outside of the Disneyland we ran down around Anaheim and faced some unexpected winds. Gusts up to 50 mph and averaging around 20-30 mph. This made the run much more difficult than expected, especially when running near the Santa Ana river trail where dust and debris was flying everywhere and underpasses became wind tunnels. Fortunately, my costume was very run friendly and aerodynamic unlike some others I saw on the course.
It wasn’t all bad outside of Disneyland though. Being Catholic, it was a huge plus for me to run by Christ Cathedral. The entrance to the dreaded Santa Ana river trail was probably one of the more entertaining areas where a group of cosplayers dressed as various comic book characters were there to encourage and high five the runners. There were some very intricate and realistic costumes which was awesome for the comic book nerd that I am.
After the Santa Ana river trail, we ran in and through Angels stadium where they had local school bands cheering us on. The one thing I noticed and appreciated about this race was how involved the local schools were. There were school bands and cheer teams drawn out all over the course to give runners music and encouragement.
After Angels stadium, there was a stretch up through Anaheim and back into the Downtown Disney finishing area. The finish line was once again lined with school bands and rows of spectators. I finished, received my beautiful medal and water immediately and waited for some friends to cross.
The course itself was flat with minimal hills (a couple over and underpasses), but the kicker was the crazy wind.
In terms of running performance, I felt that I definitely held back on this race. I told myself I would gauge how I felt mid race to see if I really want to push for the sub 2. I started off a bit faster than I wanted and with wanting to enjoy the Disneyland park and course, the head winds, and having some stomach issues mid race I decided that I wouldn’t push it. Plus I had a long drive and another race ahead of me. I finished with an unofficial time of 2:03, but for some reason my tag did not register at the start and I had to e-mail Disney to correct. I am still waiting for an official race time.
On a side note, when I signed up for the race, I knew this would be a race I would actually wear a costume for. I knew everyone would be one of the movie Avengers, and being the comic nerd that I am, I had to be a character recognizable, yet uncommon. I went with none other than Deadpool, the Merc With a Mouth. It was the perfect running costume as I was able to find a running suitable shirt and with Halloween passing, some great accessories like dual swords and Deadpool gloves. Not to mention some red running tights which by the way did not work out very well, but I made it through. It was awesome hearing people call out “Deadpool!” in a sea of Captain Americas, Ironmans and Thors.
Overall, I enjoyed the race and I plan on doing this race again next year. More so for the comic book love than anything else.
After a moment to celebrate with some friends, I took off on my drive to Vegas for race #2
Rock N Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon (13.1 #11)
My experience with this race is going to be quite skewed. The one thing I realized after doing these races back to back was while it was an amazing challenge to complete, I didn’t quite get the full experience from either race. More so for RNR Las Vegas.
I was very fortunate that there was no traffic or accidents, and I was able to arrive in Vegas by 2PM. I immediately went to a 24 hour fitness to shower and change into my RNR Vegas run gear.
Being a former Vegas local, I knew most of the back roads and shortcuts and can usually get around the strip easily. I felt that I could park at a specific location I knew of without problem, but I sure did underestimate how bad the race would make getting around town. I ended up parking about a mile away from the pre race village and start line. I still needed to pick up my bib, so I ended up running to the start area. It was a nice little warm up, and I actually felt good before the race start. I picked my bib and made my way to the starting corrals.
This was my first Rock N Roll race and I was surprised to find 49 corrals along with little to no corral control. From running Disney earlier in the day to my last big race in San Francisco having such strict corral rules it felt very unorganized. It was good in a way as people could run with their friends regardless, but in the sea of people it was hard to find anyone. Luckily I was able to find one of my close friends from Vegas and we were able to hang out before running our separate races. And hang out we did. There was over an hour from the gun start to our corral (32) start, which negated any “warm up” effect my run to the start gave me. Not to mention the temperature kept dropping.
As we finally crossed the start line, a setup just as intricate as Disney’s earlier in the day (Disney had fireworks, Rock N Roll had shooting fire), the race run was on. It was a cold night. Mid 40s for most of the race. We started south on the famed Las Vegas boulevard, made a U-turn just before Town Square and back up the strip. This race being one of only two days the strip is completely closed. New Year’s eve being the second. We ran up the strip past all the casinos and up through the seedy area between the strip and downtown Las Vegas where quick wedding chapels, adult book stores, and one hour motels line the road. The real Las Vegas if you ask me. We took a turn into a dark neighborhood and did a small loop which would bring us back into the downtown Las Vegas area. As a half marathoner, we did not actually run through the Fremont street experience, but I think the full marathoners did, which certainly would have been interesting. We made our way back down the Las Vegas boulevard and finished right in front of the Mirage. I received my medal, which was definitely not as nice as the Avenger medal received earlier, and proceeded to wrap myself up in a mylar blanket to shield myself from the cold temperature which I could feel now that I stopped running.
Performance wise, I ran just as I would have expected considering I ran another half marathon hours before. With a half marathon already on them and the cold weather, my legs were fairly tight to start. After the first initial mile, I felt good until about mile 7 or 8 and then it felt very similar to how I feel during the latter miles of a full marathon. It wasn’t a full on “wall”, but legs were definitely tired and being up for so long (no time to nap when you’re driving) really caught up to me. I was pretty consistent, but didn’t completely push myself as hard as I probably could have, keeping in mind that at this point, finishing the challenge was all that it was about and training for LA Marathon would begin the following week. I finished in about 2:17.
I’m not quite sure how I felt about this race/course. As a former Vegas resident I knew what was in store for me as I’ve been on the strip hundreds of times. I was expecting something different, but I honestly don’t know what I was expecting. I also expected to see more of my friends, but with so many people and getting to the race late, it made that difficult. Add in the fact I was on my second half marathon of the day and it was cold, this experience while good just felt like there could have been more to it. Maybe if I would have been able to experience the Rock N Roll as a whole, going to the expo, hanging with friends at the pre race concert, and not being so tired it would have been a much better experience.
With the being said, the overall challenge of doing two races, in two states, in one day is an experience I won’t forget and somewhat makes up for the individual race experiences themselves.
Nutrition
These races were not my fastest races, but I was happy with the outcome. I completed the first race with my usual pre race MCT oil, BCAAs, and Nuun, only taking in water on the course. Upon completion, I immediately took in coconut water to replenish my glycogen stores. This and a packet of cocolate almond butter during my second race would be my only carbs for the day. Post race I also brought some pepperoni packets in my bag check to eat for protein and fat immediately after the Avengers run. During the 4 hour drive between races I had some espresso with heavy cream and some lechon (roasted pork) I pre packed. Pre second race I took in the same MCT oil, BCAAs, and Nuun with water and the prementioned chocolate almond butter packet taken around mile 7 on the course. I felt my energy levels were good for the most part and didn’t really have any stomach issues even after taking in the almond butter packet.
Conclusion and Other Thoughts
It was definitely a challenge and something I may try to do again or maybe even top. Additionally, this challenge led me to meet some others who participated in the challenge and then some. One in particular has inspired me and has opened my mind to multi race days/weekends. While keeping my eyes on the prize and health, it’s definitely something I could possibly incorporate into future training and definitely provides a new dimension to running.
I’ve never been called “insane”, “crazy”, or “just plain stupid” so much in my life, but each time I did, I felt a little bit of pride. Of the 25000 or so people running these races there was only a handful running both. Maybe 50 or so. It felt great to be among limited company. The reality is running this type of mileage is relatively easy. Anyone that has done a marathon or trained for a marathon could easily do the two races. Just like any other distance race, it wasn’t about the physical aspect of it, it was about how much you wanted to complete the goal you set for yourself.
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