Supporting running in the metro Richmond area
James River Scramble Thoughts
Anyone else disapointed with the evening strat time for the Scramble this year? 83 degrees at the start time just about killed me! I had decided not to run because of the late start time, but a younger brother was running this as his first 10K so I decided to run with him. I would do it again if a family member was running it with me, but I think that is the only way I would run it again. It was also disapointing to have no powerade or gatorade at the water stops in that kind of heat. Lesson learned: even though I don't like to use my fuel belt in shorter races, I would use it if I ran another hot weather race, even if it was a short race.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Ray Reed on -
I had a few comments on what was said here. There appeared to be Powerade at one of the waterstops. I believe it was at the third stop in the park system before the turnaround. It was at the last table only, and the volunteers weren't passing it out (I guess they didn't have a lot. I got water from a volunteer and then looked over at the last table as I passed and they had cups of blue drink sitting there. I didn't stop to get it, but I assumed it was the Powerade I had heard about.
Personally, I liked the later start time. This isn't your typical race, as anyone who ran it can attest. Plus, summer's coming and we all have to get used to the heat. A later start time allowed me to bring the family down. They enjoyed the festivities while I ran.
Also, somebody has got to do something about the last 200 yards of that race. At the end, people were milling about on the course while the last few runners were trying to finish. I know we yelled at quite a few people to get their butts out of the way. I guess that's the down side to having the race finish while there are lots of people on the island. Putting the beer truck and bathrooms on the other side of the course from everything else didn't work out. Changing the finish on the island is certainly an easy fix.
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Permalink Reply by maxfield shea on -
The lack of bananas/bagels at the end seems really odd to me, since I have never seen a race without it and have come to expect it, and especially from such a large publicized race. I appreciate the beer, but was not prepared with my own food. Of course the site did not say, "hey, bring your own food because we aren't providing any"- which reminds me of another question: Why was I not allowed to carry my half filled gallon jug of water on to the island? 30 minutes before the race? Is that actually a rule? No bringing water on the island?
Otherwise, I have no problem with the start time. It might be very pleasant next year, and the party was fun afterward. Hot is just another variable that runners deal with.
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Permalink Reply by Joseph Ryan on -
Yes, this was a unique race and yes runners should get acclimated to the heat, and hot temps are a variable runners have to deal with, and its good prep for another race, yada yada yada, etc. None of these reasons or any others mentioned will hold any validity if one runner dies on the course or is seriously stricken with a heat related illness. Yes those things can happen in any race but the odds go up when the race occurs in the hot part of the day. I run in the early to mid mornings and at 6pm in an attempt to acclimate myself to the temps. But I'm running at an easy pace. This is a competitive race and although I ran an easy pace, I'm sure many others ran a race pace. Please change the start to 8am or 6-7pm. Safety should come first.
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Permalink Reply by Jon Lugbill on -
This is all great feedback about the James River Scramble. Much like the cul-de-sac race series, evening races are hotter than morning races. But, it doesn't mean they don't have a place in the race calendar. Not everyone is a morning person.
The late start did allow for the race to be mixed in with the rest of the events. Rather than have the James River Scramble all by itself in the morning it was mixed in with all of the other events. We believe this was a plus.
We tried lots of new things this year and some worked and some didn't. Our waves were too crowded in the middle and too sparse in the front and the back. We can fix that. We can have powerade at all of the water stops. That was just some bad operations. We had every intention of having powerade. It just didn't get to the runners.
The late start caused more problems with drunken people out and around on Belle Isle. This caused problems and back ups in a number of places. It also stressed/freaked out some of our volunteers. We will probably have to hire police officers if we are going for the evening hours.
Overall the idea of having the scramble right in the middle of everything is a good one. But, we have some tweaking to do with the start times, wave times and course logistics. Keep the feedback coming. We love to here ideas on how to make things better for next year.
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Permalink Reply by Janelynn Testerman on -
Is there a survey going out to Scramble participants?- hint, hint.
You may wish to load such a survey with voting buttons on issues such as start time, packet pick up, fee appropriation, etc.
Likert scale questions (i.e. scaling items 1-5) are nice for some things but don’t give direction on what is preferred.
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Permalink Reply by Chris Harnish on -
Putting it at 5 or 6 pm will make little difference in the "heat" factor. If you're really concerned about the temps, move it to 6 am! Seriously, I have raced (run) in near 100 degree heat and raced my bike in 110 degree heat carrying my own bottles. We all need to realize that PR's won't be set in weather like this; anyone recall the last time the marathon record was set at the Olympics? Pre-cool, skip your warm-up, start and then run slower, train some in the heat, and don't give blood a week before the event are all good strategies to utilize.
As for drunken people, that's more of a Richmond thing. I wasn't overly hampered, but Belle is notorious for this issue. What about skipping the run down the stairs and heading further west on the trail towards Reedy Creek? Any plans to repair the steep side of the ruins? I'd be happy to pitch in with that effort.
Having been a promoter, I know the fine line we walk with events, so I'm less picky about things. Safety first, then course quality, then all the other stuff. If you're interested in some help, drop me a line.
Chris
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Permalink Reply by Run Happy on -
While the time of 5pm is considered an odd start for most road runners, it is not the only evening race. For example, Moonlight 4 mile, Cul-de-Sac series, Black Jack 5K....
As a trail and road runner I've done races with the following start times:
6pm
9pm
Midnight
4am
5am
6am
Heat - Well, you have to get used to it some time, and lets face it, even morning races can be darn hot and humid.
Fluid/food - yes really need sports drink and post race food, I am a bit surprised this was overlooked by Sportsbackers, but I suspect they will fix this for next year.
I think what made the time difficult is for those doing both the RiverRock 10K and the Carytown 10K, but what is a challenge if it is not a challenge?
Run Happy - morning, afternoon, evening...
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Permalink Reply by Chris Harnish on
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I suspect the late start was for increased exposure and easier logistics with the whole Festival. If that gets more people down and watching, I'm all for it. I'm all for challenges, so whatever time they start, I'll run. And yes, if heat's an issue, Richmond's a bad place to live.
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Permalink Reply by Joseph Ryan on
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Run Happy: I bet that 4am race was a bummer for you. Not only can you not count the number of creek crossings in the race.......you couldn't see them either!!! What a surprise, especially on a cold winter morning........yeow!!!
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Permalink Reply by Run Happy on
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Creeks?! What Creeks?! Where there creeks at Vermont?! I have no idea. I only recall one creek and I saw it during the day. Oh wait, maybe that was one of the hoses local farmers left out for the 100 horse race? Heck knows. All I know is hosing off after 16 hours of running felt soooooooo good!
Run Happy
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Permalink Reply by Manuel Timbreza on -
As a James River Challenge participant, I had no choice but to be very cautious about the scramble's heat and terrain. Not having the full day of recovery definitely affected my Carytown run the following morning. All in all, they do call it a "challenge" which is a good learning experience that we all can use. Always expect the unexpected and always keep in mind that running is quite enjoyable.
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Permalink Reply by Sarah Oxenham Allen on -
In addition to the other comments about the later start time, I will just add one thing: I didn't realize the race started at 5 pm when I signed up for it, and almost every other person I spoke with at the race didn't realize that either. If it were just me, I would say I simply overlooked the change in start time from last year, but since it took so many people by surprise, the time change wasn't well-publicized enough. I think there would have been fewer Challenge participants if it had been fully understood that there was only 15 hours, instead of 24 hours, between the start times of the two races.
Add me to the people who expected more food at the end, and a better layout on Brown's Island for the start/finish. Not enough volunteers either, since I had to wait for water at two of the stops. Other than that, though, I thought it was fun, and the later start time wouldn't have bothered me as much if I had known from the beginning what I was in for!
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