The forecast is for clear skies with a low of 50 and a high of 69. Sorry ‘bout that. My rain and mud dance didn’t work.
Now for the details you’ve been waiting for:
With a bit of luck, this answers all your questions, though some of you will refuse to read to the bottom and send me questions anyway:
- Start Time: Wave 1 starts with a gunshot at 9 am, unless the musket misfires a couple times and I have to holler “Go!”
If you don’t pick up your packet beforehand, please leave ample time before the race for parking, packet pick up, port-o-potties, bag check and schmoozing. We don’t really care if you schmooze, we just want you to get there early and not frantically running up at the last second demanding attention.
Pace cars from New Rochelle Chevy will once again lead initial waves up Broadview.
- Wave Start: Five waves, with 150-200 in each, leaving at 9:00, 9:03, 9:06, 9:12 and 9:15. All prior races have gone off exactly on time.
The race is electronically timed and we know from your chip where you’re supposed to start. Don’t screw that up. Your bib numbers and wave assignments are now on the website. You need to know your bib number.
Some runners in later waves will be faster than those in earlier ones. This is deliberate, and helps to fill the gaps between the waves, since putting all of the middle-of-the-pack runners in the same wave is counter-productive. We hate congestion on the trails.
- Number Pick-up: We strongly encourage runners to pick up bibs and shirts prior to race day at Westchester Road Runner (our sponsor for all 9 years!) at 179 East Post Road in White Plains:
Friday: 5-8 pm
Saturday: 10 am-4 pm
Please pick up your own number and nobody else’s. Please bring ID. The only exceptions that allow you to pick up for someone else are: (1) they have the same last name or address as you or (2) you show a volunteer an email or text from them with a photo of their license and a note authorizing the pickup.
You will receive a free copy of Trail Runner Magazine.
In addition, Westchester Road Runner is offering 20% off non-sale shoes and clothes, at the time you pick up your numbers.
The store will also recycle old running shoes to charity. Rule of thumb: If you haven’t worn them in a year, make someone else happy with a donation.
- Number transfers are not permitted. Veteran P2Pers will remember that if you transfer a number, a kitten will die. And it will be your fault.
If you transfer a number you foul up the results, and could deprive another person of an award. This is just one of the reasons for the no transfer (and no refund) policy.
This is a fund-raiser to improve the trails you are running on. This is what we have done for the trails and what we hope to do in the future.
- Tech shirts are guaranteed to those who registered before September 1st. If you don’t get a shirt at check-in, you can pick one up after the race on a first come, first serve basis (depending on the number of no-shows). Our shirt policy can be found at this link.
- Late Registration: If you have friends that still haven’t registered, well isn’t that lazy? And kind of pathetic for endurance athletes?
If they come to number pick-up on Friday or Saturday, or to the registration area between 7-8:30 a.m. race day, maybe we’ll squeeze them in, but maybe not. As of Thursday afternoon we were at 96% capacity. We will not oversell the race and swamp the trails with too many runners. Print out the entry blank on the website, fill in the first page, sign the waiver on the second page and bring it with you.
- Parking is available in two parking lots and on the street. The lot in front of the High School will fill up early. The lot behind the High School on Clove Road is quite large, and has a walkway bringing you past the front of the school toward the start.
Don’t even think about parking on Broadview, as that is the racecourse. Click here for a printable map of the parking areas, which you can click again to enlarge. Please consider carpooling to alleviate congestion.
- Public transportation from NYC: Easy-peasy. Click this link.
A taxi from the station should cost about $7. We expect many Manhattan/Brooklyn runners so keep your eyes open to share a taxi with other runners.
Or use our Facebook page to see if you can hook up with another runner. Maybe you’ll get lucky.
- Baggage Drop is available just steps from the start. You can check one bag, which will be brought to the finish line. Your bib will have a numbered pull tag that can be pinned to your bag. Please don’t leave valuables in the bags, as we are not responsible for them.
- Course Markings: Our trail pixies will lay down about 500 bright pink flags with our Colonial Runner logo, placed at trail intersections and occasional intervals. Some people will insist on ignoring the flags and run off course anyway.
- Toilets: Porto-potties at the start (get there early!), the 7.5-mile mark (Saxon Woods golf course) and the High School locker room at the finish.
- Water/Medical: Water and medical attention will be available at only three spots during the race, in addition to the start and finish. These aid stations are at miles 4-ish, 7.5-ish and 10.8-ish. Carry supplemental water if the weather is warm/humid.
- Mid-Race Drop-Out: If you get injured, or are too exhausted to finish, you should check in with a volunteer at an aid station. If you can’t make it to the aid station, tell a volunteer on the course. If you tell the police you are injured they will transport you to the emergency room, not the finish line.
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The 2015 spinner medal The course closes: Sweepers will discharge police and volunteers, starting in Wave 5 and finishing in three hours. Please stay in front of the sweepers! We estimate that middle-of-the-pack finishing times will be your regular 1/2 marathon pace plus an extra 15 minutes to account for the rough terrain. If you’re slower than the sweeper you are on your own, but we will leave the flags in place so you won’t be lost, just lonely.
- Post-Race: We should have lots of good food. Do we know how to treat you well or what? Check it out:
- Got Thyme (New Rochelle)
- AJ’s Burgers (New Rochelle)
- Texas Roadhouse (New Rochelle)
- The Hudson Milk Co. (cold chocolate milk!)
- Decicco’s (Pelham)
- H&R Bialy (New Rochelle)
- Dannon Yogurt
- Half Pops
There will also be a medical tent staffed by Montefiore New Rochelle Hospital and EMTs at aid stations from Empress Emergency Services. We hope you don’t visit them, except to say thanks.
Several physical and massage therapists will be on hand to assist with post-race therapy or massage or stretching, including:
- Symmetry Physical Therapy (Pelham)
- Finish Line PT (NYC)
- ML Strength (White Plains)
- Post-Race Showers! We’ve once again arranged for the high school locker room to be opened so you can shower and change.
- No Dogs. We have dogs. We like their happy, wagging tails and we like scratching their bellies. They are the darlings of social media. Sadly, we don’t get to make the rules for the school grounds. That means Tucker, Princess and Snoopy have to stay home. (The fact that it is a school is also the reason we can’t have beer – so stop asking me! I tried!)
- Volunteers: This event is put on by NewRo Runners. Our entire race committee, race director included, is volunteer. We expect 200+ volunteers on race day. Please be nice to them, they are working hard. Kissing volunteers is enthusiastically permitted. Kissees must be 18 or older to participate.
- Free Photos: This year we once again have free professional photos from the race for you. Your kids, grandma or pet pot-bellied pig can pre-register for them at this link. This is the place you’ll go post-race to see if we got the shot.
Feedback: We started with 50 people in 2008 and are close to 1,000 this year so far. The vast majority of our runners learned of the race by word of mouth. We encourage feedback regarding the event to know what works and what doesn’t as we continue to grow and continue to rely on word of mouth as our main means of marketing.
Good luck out there on Sunday!