What a thrill to have run the Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas ½ Marathon for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America! The whole weekend was great and was capped off Sunday night, December 4th, when I joined 44,000 others for the race under the bright, shining lights of the Las Vegas Strip. The short story is: I finished with my personal best time in a half marathon – J it was my first – and loved the whole experience. The long story is. . .
Vegas has its own, unique energy, always, but this weekend was different – not only for me but for the city. Waiting in line at the airport for a shuttle to Mandalay Bay I noticed a sign that said, “Plan ahead. Expect delays Sunday, December 4th. Road closures. . .”
“Crap!” I thought, “of all weekends. . . what’s going on?”
Then I finished reading the sign.
They were going to close the roads for me! – and 44,000 others.
Everywhere I went I found runners or people talking about the race. The local news even featured the race-time weather forecasts. It was a perfect atmosphere to mentally prep for the race. It seemed that everybody was there for the race. And as a participant, I felt a sense of pride, nervousness, and excitement that kept building throughout the weekend. But I arrived Friday night, so it would be a long wait for the gun to go off Sunday night at 5:30.
Saturday morning our DC Team Challenge scheduled a fun run to warm up the legs and work out the butterflies. We ran ¾ of a mile in 40 degree weather to the “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign, took some pictures, and ran back to the hotel.
At the sign we ran into some of the 10, 000 participants in the morning’s Great Santa Run – about a dozen runners in identical Santa suits.
I thought I might have time to rest a little that day, but I didn’t stop moving until after 9PM. After the run, I went in search of food and found brunch and a dining companion in the form of a fellow runner who was about to dine alone, too. From there I went to the race expo to pick up my packet and walk through the gauntlet of displays of all the race sponsors. That was more tiring and took more time than I anticipated. I was really hungry when I returned to Mandalay Bay. Never mind that I had just eaten brunch four hours before and would be eating at the pre-race pasta dinner in about three. I found a huge plate of baked ziti and took it back to my room where I found a big fruit plate my family had sent me. It was yummy, so I had to eat some of that, too. Before I knew it, it was time to time to head to the “Inspirational Past Dinner.”
The dinner is a tradition for CCFA. All 2,000 participants from Team Challenge chapters around the country are invited to attend. Aside from carb loading, it’s an opportunity to recognize accomplishments during the fund raising campaign and pump up morale for the race. The inspiration started right away. To get to the ballroom, participants walked down the long hallway lined with the coaches and mentors from the 40+ chapters who were clapping, cheering, and congratulating participants for getting this far. A local high school cheerleading squad also cheered us on down the hallway. The hallway was packed, festive and LOUD! I couldn’t help but smile, return high fives, and get pumped up.
Incidentally, at the same time, two doors down from the pasta dinner there was some press event for the premiere of “Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour by Cirque du Soleil” opening that night. As we rowdy Team Challenge participants made our way down the hallway as a slow-moving human river, security would part the “waters” to allow VIPs to enter their own ballroom. This link has some pictures of the event and some of the celebrities there. I didn’t see any of those people, but I did see Allison Janney! That was exciting!
Once inside the ballroom, I loaded up on pasta again – making it the third full meal I’d had in a span of 7 hours – uuufff!
The speakers at the dinner included: Mike McCready, Pearl Jam guitarist, Crohn’s patient and fellow half marathon participant; a very well-spoken, 10-year-old, UC patient, who bravely told us about her disease and what this event and CCFA meant to her; and the director of CCFA who thanked us, recognized outstanding fundraising achievements, and highlighted some key areas where the money we raised would go. It was a great way to end the day.
And it did, indeed end my day. Because after a day of running around, I was tired and wanted to make sure I was well rested for the race the following day. I went back to my room and got into bed.
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