The 2012 San Jose Rock ‘n’ Roll Half-marathon took place on Sunday, 7 October 2012. This is the fourth time that I’ve run this race and, as has become my tradition, I signed up for the 2013 race while at the expo on Friday.
The lack of communication from the race organizers troubled me this year. For this event, I didn’t get a single email, not even a reminder to print my confirmation before going to the expo. This may be typical for a Rock ‘n’ Roll Race Series (RnR) event but since I’ve been getting emails from Nike about the Nike Women’s Marathon (NWM), I can’t help but compare the two events and NWM has definitely gone the extra mile to create buzz and excitement about its event. Perhaps the RnR is getting so big that they are starting to lose their grip on the details. That’s just speculation, of course. But anyone looking at the menu of events will agree – the RnR is expanding rapidly both here and around the world.
As I was running the race, I decided that my race reports needed some structure and came up with some headings that I usually include in a race report. Let me know what you think about the more structured format.
Expo and Race Swag
The expo seems to get bigger every year but this year could have just been an illusion because of the construction going on in the Convention Center. I felt like a rat in a maze going from one part of check in to the next and then finally to the RnR store and then into the expo.
The volunteers at the packet pick-up area were friendly, which always helps to set the right tone before entering the expo. When I moved on to the t-shirt area, I got a volunteer who didn’t speak or smile. He didn’t return my greeting, simply held up a t-shirt as if to say, “Is this the right size?” and then just handed it to me. A little disconcerting but not the end of the world.
In retrospect, I should have gone for a unisex shirt instead of the gender-specific shirt because the unisex shirts are roomier.
There were a lot of vendors at the expo. It was exciting to see the booths for other upcoming races as well as the snack and product booths. P.F. Changs, Jamba Juice, and the Sports Authority had teams of volunteers at work trying to get people to sign up for the loyalty programs. I guess I’m a sucker because I signed up for both the P.F. Changs Warrior program and the Sports Authority program.
I managed to get out of the expo with only the things I intended to get – my race bag, my RnR t-shirt, my race registration for the 2013 event, and a hat for race day.
Gear Check
As in prior years, the gear check area was uncrowded and well-organized. This may be because a lot of people stayed in hotels very close to the start/finish area and chose not to check their gear. Or it could just be that the RnR has gear check down to a science. I’m hoping that the NWM will have learned some lessons from last year’s horrific gear check scenario and will have made some improvements.
Race Start
The start corrals were clearly marked as usual and easy to get into. As with prior years – and most races – people are pretty clueless when the national anthem is being sung. The people in my corral kept talking, no one removed their hats or put their hands over their hearts. And of course, there were the obligatory cheers and whoo-hoos at the crescendo of the national anthem, which also annoys me.
But I still always get chills when I hear the national anthem despite the rudeness of others.
Race Course: Bands and Cheer Teams
The Cheer Teams were enthusiastic and loud but not too loud. They seemed more focused on cheering for the runners this year, which was nice.
I had a problem with the bands on the course, though. I didn’t pack my headphones, which meant that I couldn’t listen to music on the run. That made the bands that much more important to me. Some of the bands didn’t seem to realize that it’s called the “Rock ‘n’ Roll” race series and were playing slow ballads. Needless to say, I am going to make sure to put a spare pair of headphones in my vehicle so that I am never again caught without music and dependent on the on-course bands.
Most of the volunteers on the race course were fantastic – cheering and clapping or smiling and clapping. At some of the later water stops, however, the kids manning the water stops seemed more interested in splashing each other with water instead of handing it out to the runners.
Post-Race: Goodies and Medals
I missed the blonde lady at the finish line who usually announces, encourages, and congratulates runners as they approach the finish line. The finish line energy seemed flat without her.
I’ve commented on this before but the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Jose organizers really need to provide a little bag or something for runners to put the post-race food into. As we walk through the finish area, we’re given water, Gatorade, bananas, Snickers Marathon bars, bagels, bags of pretzels, coupons if we beat the P.F. Chang’s dragon, chocolate milk, and other goodies. It’s awkward trying to hold all of that stuff and eat and drink at the same time. I think that the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Jose organizers ought to take a page from the Big Sur Half-Marathon organizers and bag everything up in a little brown paper bag and hand that to runners as they go through the finish area.
The finisher’s medal was great – it was designed to look like a cassette tape, something that a lot of the younger runners probably have never seen before!
Thumbs Up and Thumbs Down
Thumbs UP: Even without the pre-race communication, the organization of this event was impeccable.
Thumbs DOWN: Calling a 5-miler a “mini-marathon” is denigrating to those of us who run the half-marathon distance and to those of us who have run a full marathon. What’s wrong with calling it a 5-miler?
Thumbs UP: Not running out of gels or Gatorade on the course and having plenty of goodies in the finish area for race participants.
I’m looking forward to running this race again next year. Happy running!
Confessions of a Treadmill Runner 