Run for Her Run & Friendship Walk

http://www.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=478702

Overview: Run for Her is a mega-event that supports ovarian cancer awareness and treatment. Unlike the EIF Revlon Walk or Komen, Run for Her is a homegrown Los Angeles affair that raises money specifically for a major LA hospital, Cedars Sinai. This endears me to Run for Her in a major way. It is efficiently organized, has a very friendly, laid-back vibe, and is extremely enjoyable.

When: November 13, 2011

Where: Pan Pacific Park, near the Grove.

Why: Run for Her raises money for Cedars-Sinai Women's Cancer Program at The Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute--specifically for ovarian cancer research, awareness and treatment.

Course Access: Metro buses that ran along or stopped near Fairfax and Beverly included the local 14, 217 and 218, the Rapid 780 and the DASH Fairfax. The DASH and the Metro local 16/316 also ran along 3rd St. at the bottom of Pan Pacific Park. The bottom line was that even with the street closures in place for the race, there was some accessible mass transit both before and after the event.
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Number of Participants: 1155. Not all participants chose to be timed. They participated in the Friendship Walk. In fact, a majority probably did not.

Pre-Race: In addition to the regular race numbers, Run for Her offered special tribute bibs. Participants could write their loved ones' names on these bibs and carry them through the race.

Course: Surface streets from the Pan Pacific Park (near The Grove) to Cedars-Sinai Hospital and back. Mostly flat, lots of views of urban Los Angeles, and perhaps one of the fun things was being able to cavort down the street without cars!

Runners: This was a huge, huge race with participants of every shape, size, gender and age. As there was a focus on ovarian cancer awareness and treatment with RfH, there were a lot of cancer survivors and patients. There were also many teams, banners, signs and custom shirts on display. Run for Her is called a run, but most participants were in it to walk; not to achieve PRs. There were thousands and thousands of participants, so the course was incredibly crowded. Everyone was good natured and seemed to be having fun.

Shirt: They had two: teal with white lettering and the Run for Her logo; and the reverse--white with teal lettering. The teal shirts seemed to be much more popular, and for good reason.

Swag: There was a lovely drawstring bag full of goodies, including socks. :)

Expo: Run for Her had a very lively finish line festival with vendors, freebies, entertainment (including a flash mob!) and areas to sit and chat. There was a wall where you could write tributes for your loved ones. The finish line festival was so popular that the race offered a special category called "Sleepwalkers" for those who didn't want to walk the 5K but wanted to donate. They got special shirts and goody bags and were able to come to the Festival. I saw many of them walking around!

Would I Do This Race Again? Without a doubt, yes!

EIF Revlon Run/Walk for Women

http://do.eifoundation.org/site/TR/RevlonRunWalk/LARRW?fr_id=1080&pg=entry

Overview: One of the largest walks for women's cancer research and awareness, this event, held in both New York and Los Angeles, draws crowds in the 40,000 range. Despite the hordes of people, it's reasonably smoothly run, friendly, and enjoyable.

When: May 7, 2011.

Where: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, venue for the 1932 and 1984 Olympics.

Why: The walk raises money for the Entertainment Industry Foundation. The EIF is nearly 70 years old and funds major initiatives for cancer and diabetes treatment, awareness and research, among other projects.

Course access: The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum was served by numerous Metro bus lines. Metro 40 and 42 ran along MLK Jr. Boulevard; the local 204, the Rapid 740 and 754 and two different DASH lines traveled along Vermont. When the Expo line opens, the Coliseum will be within walking distance of the Exposition Park stop.
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Number of Participants: About 30,000. Yes, you read that correctly.

Pre-race: EIF had a number of packet pick-up locations off site, so the crunch at the event wasn't severe. One thing I noticed, and thought was ridiculous: the check-in volunteers did not have rosters, so they needed the registration emails before they would issue bibs. I saw a lot of runners and walkers frantically scrambling to find copies of the registration emails on their smart phones.

While it is a really good idea to print out your confirmation email and bring it with you, it's a bad idea to make it the only proof of registration. There should have been a list to check names against, as there has been at every other race I've ever attended. How did they even know who showed up and who didn't, without a list?

Runners: Women of all ages, shapes and sizes were well represented, as were cancer survivors. Men, families and older individuals and friends were also present. There were large contingents of fundraising and company groups, tribute groups, etc. While there are a handful of serious runners, this is really an event for walkers. The course was very crowded and everyone moved at a leisurely pace. It was a day to have fun, not to try to beat the clock.

Chip Timing: None. This was really a fun run/walk, with the majority of participants choosing to do the latter.

Shirt: A white shirt with red EIF/Revlon logo and lettering. Nothing to write home about, in all honesty. They're having a shirt artwork contest this year, so hopefully the 2012 offering will be an improvement.

Swag: A goody bag with some coupons, little giveaways and a full sized pink Revlon lip gloss or lipstick. Every finisher got a gold medal on a red ribbon. Now, being in the Olympic stadium and getting a gold medal...one could enjoy that. :) There were also special gifts for cancer survivors, including colorful hats at the start line, roses at the finish, and a photo tent.

Expo: Lots of health awareness companies, hospitals and cancer foundations came to the Revlon Walk, as well as some other fun and interesting vendors. There was a pink fire truck, too. :)

Would I Run this Race Again? Yes!

Alive & Running 2011

http://events.didihirsch.org/site/PageServer

Overview:

When: September 25, 2011

Where: Near Sepulveda Boulevard and La Tijera Boulevard, a stone's throw from LAX.

Why: Alive & Running raises money for Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services, which runs a leading Suicide Prevention Center and hotline.

Course access: The start/finish area was close to Sepulveda and Manchester Avenue, where several major bus lines were represented. Big Blue Bus 3, Culver CityBus 6 and Metro locals 42 and 115 all stopped on the corner.
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Number of Participants: 912

Pre-race: Fast check-in, but somewhat rude volunteers. They had several special memorials for victims of suicide.

Runners: Lots of families. I think some of the children who disrupted the Race for Success in May returned for this race. This was another event where kids were weaving in and out of the course and generally acting awful.

Course: A flat, fast, out and back run parallel to LAX. Since the airport was literally right next door, there were up close and personal views of landing planes, but there weren't a lot of other things to see.

Chip timing: Yes, with shoe tags. There were clocks at the turnaround and finish.

Shirt: A periwinkle blue short-sleeved T-shirt with the Alive & Running logo. I thought it was very nice looking.

Swag: Alive & Running bracelets.

Expo: Very small, but included free Jamba Juice and snow cones. Quality over quantity? :)

Would I Do This Race Again? Maybe. It was nothing special; it was nothing awful. I really like the idea of supporting Didi Hirsch, but I think I'd do so without participating in this event again. Or maybe I'd volunteer instead of running. It was honestly kind of boring.

How are races judged?

What makes a good race? It's different for everyone. My letter grades can be broken down as such:

A: Practically perfect in every way, to quote Mary Poppins. These are races that are well-run, friendly, and really enjoyable. There might be room for improvement here and there, but I walk away from these races with a smile on my face.

B+: Almost an A, but not quite. These races have room for improvement in one major area, such as failing to feed runners after the race or snippy volunteers, but are overall very good.

B: Not great, not horrible; these races are middle of the road and have more than one area that needs improvement.

C: Major issues with organization, safety, course structure, et al.

D: Almost a complete failure of a race.

F: Just a horrible experience with no redeeming value whatsoever.

When I review races, I consider:

1. Safety. This, above all. Were there water stations at appropriate intervals? Was the course clear of obstructions and traffic? Was it well lit? Did I feel safe? Were any people who were causing disruptions promptly removed? If I had needed help during the race, would I have been able to find a volunteer or medic fairly quickly?

2. Did I have fun? This, of course, is a very subjective criteria. Needless to say, I could (and do) run or walk 5K on my own any day of the week, without fanfare and without registration fees. If I'm doing a race I have expectations for something more than that--and it's all about fun, for me.

3. Organization. Was the race well organized? Was packet pickup smooth and fast? Were volunteers able to answer questions? Was there ample information on how to get to the start line on the website/in the registration email? Were race marshals present along the course?

4. Honesty. Did the promises made by the race organizers match the actual experience?

5. Runners. What were the other runners like? Was there a convivial vibe, or did it feel like the Cornucopia at the Hunger Games? Were unruly kids or unleashed dogs running amok on the course? Did I get run over by a stroller?

6. The course. Aside from safety, addressed in point #1, what was the course like? Were the miles and turns well-marked? Were there unusual or interesting sights to see along the route? Was the course well-designed? Was it accurately measured at 5K?

7. Packet Pickup. Was there packet pickup on the day of the race, or did they inconvenience runners by forcing them to go to an expo a day before? Was packet pickup fast and efficient?

8. Charity Who's getting the proceeds from this race? How much? Is the race doing any outreach?

9. Swag. Greed rears its ugly head. Are the medal and shirt well-designed? Did they run out of specific shirt sizes?

Things I do NOT consider in my reviews:

1. The weather. Yeah, running in a rainstorm or 100-degree weather really sucks. It's not the race director's fault, though.

2. My time. It's not the race director's fault how well I have trained. Some of my favorite races have been those where my time has been especially bad.

3. The registration fee, most of the time. If I feel a race fee is excessive I just won't sign up.

4. Mass transit delays and traffic. The race directors aren't wizards. Again, it's not their fault if the bus is full or the nearest parking lot is ten blocks away. The ONLY time I will take transportation into account is when a race is directly offering some sort of shuttle or other means of transportation.