Choose Your Adventure: How to Pick the Perfect First Race

In this episode of the Dogs Per Mile podcast, host Bridget continues her series on entering your Runner Era by guiding listeners through selecting the right race. She shares personal anecdotes, emphasizes the importance of timing and location, and provides essential tips for making a race memorable. Bridget encourages new runners to thoroughly research and consider various factors to ensure a positive race experience.

• Importance of timing for optimal performance
• Evaluating local, destination, and virtual race options
• Significance of organizational quality and race amenities
• Understanding pacing strategies and time cutoffs
• Role of community support in enhancing race experiences
• Creating a personalized race checklist for effective decision-making

Please share this episode with anyone you think might benefit from it!

Chapters

01:55 Bridget's First Race Experience: Lessons Learned
10:00 Timing and Seasonal Considerations for Races
11:35 Local vs. Destination vs. Virtual Races
18:34 Making Your Race Memorable: Key Considerations
24:44 Researching Races: Tips and Resources

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Transcript

Choosing the Right Race for You

Speaker 1 0:00

If you pick a race that you are excited for , you are visualizing , that's going to keep you motivated during the training cycle . That's going to keep your confidence going . Hey , runners , you're listening to Dogs Per Mile , where we're making running work for your life , not the other way around . I'm Bridget , with over 13 years of running experience and approximately 4,892 dogs seen on my run . I'm now here to help you find your own path to running happiness . Ready to run on your own terms . Let's get going . Welcome back , runners , to the Dogs Per Mile podcast . I am your host , bridget .

Speaker 1 0:46

This is part two of Entering your Runner Era series . Last week , we went over how to pick your perfect race distance based on your goals , based on your lifestyle , and so if you have not already listened to that , please pause , go back and pick that out so that way , you can come prepared for this next episode to pick the right race for you . So today we are going to dive into which race you want to do . Do you want to do a local 5k ? Are you doing a destination half marathon ? What are some of the common pitfalls that new runners fall into when they are picking a race ? What things are on race websites that you need to know about that , you need to be prepared for and how can you make sure that you are coming away with a memorable first race ? We're going to go over that today , so that way , you have a race that aligns with your lifestyle , your goals and your budget , because some of these races can get pretty expensive . Let's dive in . So I need to tell you about my very , very , very , very first 5K , or my very first race . Actually , generally , my first race was going to be the Color run , which was a popular I think it's still popular . It may be , I don't know A popular run back in 2012 , 2011 . It was going to be the color run , where they throw bright colors at you , wear a white shirt , this , that and the other thing .

Speaker 1 2:19

But then I found a local 5k at Quassy Amusement Park in Connecticut that was giving back money to a dog rescue and since that was my major driving factor and running I signed up for this race with zero research beyond . They give money to dogs . It is at Quassy . That's all I knew , nothing more . That's all I knew , nothing more . I did approximately zero research into this race and it was a 5k , so and I had been doing the couch to 5k run walk at my local Planet Fitness . So I at least felt moderately confident that I was ready to get over the finish line at this race . And I did not realize that there was no aid stations . Aid station is when they pass out water or gels or band-aids or things like that . So I ended up running three miles with no water , so that's not ideal . And there's no crowd support because you're running at Kwasi Amusement Park so there's no one cheering you on , and so it's a little bit sad and depressing . And I also did not look at the course map and realize how many hills there were .

Speaker 1 3:34

I learned from then on that I might want to do just a little bit more research and read just a little bit more about the races , and I'm not perfect at this . I still sign up for races without reading half of the information . I am known in my family for not reading half of the things on anything . But I want to help you read these race sites and help you pick what race is going to be best for you , because picking the right race will really help inspire your training . If you pick a race that you are excited for , you are visualizing that's going to keep you motivated during the training cycle . That's going to keep your confidence going . That's going to inform your training plan a little bit . So if we know that you have a very hilly race , or we know that that race is going to be in warmer , colder weather , there's a lot of things that will inform your training , based on what race you pick and I always want to try to pick a first race that's going to have some level of excitement for you , so that way , when you are having a bad day in your training cycle which will happen you have that little level of excitement .

Speaker 1 4:51

So we're going to kind of go over a little bit of like kind of a decision making framework . We're going to consider timing of the year . We kind of talked about timing before . We're going to cover location , location , because location , location , location matters the experience that you're looking for and how to research , how to kind of see what other people think of races , because if you buy things on Amazon , you're reading the reviews , so how do you know what other people think of these races ? So let's go in to how we decide what race is best for you .

Speaker 1 5:29

Arguably the most important thing when it comes to picking out a race is timing . Timing is everything . So really we wanted to consider seasonal timing is the biggest thing . We wanted to consider . Seasonal timing is the biggest thing Really .

Speaker 1 5:52

Fall races are one of the most popular , and for good reason . The colder weather that fall brings in is amazing . For beginners it's an amazing speed boost because you have trained most likely through warmer weather and then you drop into a cooler temperature on race day or closer to race day and you can feel your speed come up and you usually have a better race day when you have a fall race . Spring races do require winter training , and so if you live in a climate where , like me , where I'm supposed to get somewhere between 2 and 27 inches according to Apple weather of ice and snow this weekend in Missouri , so I will not be running outside tomorrow I may not even be able to get to a treadmill , and so you may have to change your runs a lot . If you're doing a spring race , you may run in treadmills . You may have to run in really crappy climate . So that's another thing to keep in mind .

Speaker 1 6:54

Summer races are fun . I've done a few summer . I did a summer half marathon , which was one of my other sub two hour half marathons had so much fun . But I've also done Hospital hospital hill half here in Kansas City and it is the worst , worst race performance wise of my entire life . Because why , why running gods , is there a half marathon the first week in June in Kansas City ? That goes up all of the hills , and I mean all of them .

Speaker 1 7:28

So we want to kind of look at that . And then winter . So I like a winter race . I think it's fun . I don't like driving in winter race to winter races , and so the travel to a winter race may be a little bit difficult . So you may be , you know , you could be doing a winter race where it's winter weather , or you may be traveling to a warm climate in winter , so you may be going to Florida or California , you know , that's why the Disney , that's why Disney races are in February is because it's cooler in Florida and it's considered a winter race .

Speaker 1 8:04

So think about the time of year and that goes along with your training time . So when would you need to be training for this race ? And now we also want to think of time of day . So when you're looking at the start time of these races , some of them are starting relatively early Morning races are most common . So you're most likely going to see ones that start at seven , eight , maybe nine o'clock in the morning , so you're not starting crazy early . There may be some like early , early ones like six o'clock , so those are most common and it most likely aligns with your training runs . You're most likely going to be doing morning training runs , or it's easier to align your runs with that , especially if you're a morning runner

Planning Your Race

Speaker 1 8:48

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Speaker 1 8:48

Evening races I know there's a ton in Vegas . Vegas does a lot of evening and nighttime races . They can be fun , but it makes me nervous because you have to figure out how you're eating all day . So that can be a little bit tricky when it comes to planning . So you can still be excited about that Vegas race day , but you also need to figure out how you are going to be eating . And then think about your training season .

Speaker 1 9:16

Think about when your life gets busiest , when your life gets slowest . And my life can be busier than others . My busy time is Valentine's Day . I work in chocolate and the busiest time of year for me is Valentine's Day . So if I were to be starting a training cycle , I wouldn't want the peak of my training to be in the first few weeks of February , because that's crazy to me and when I used to work in higher education , august was a crazy month for us , for move-ins for college students , so I would make sure that that was never my peak time of my race training . So look when you're the busiest and look when that race would be . That's another thing to really kind of take into consideration when you're looking at the race day .

Speaker 1 10:04

Research the average temperature for that time of year for your race . For example , when I did the Kansas City Marathon in October , it's typically a cooler race and I researched that it would be probably in the 50s . Unfortunately it was in the mid 60s , so I got a hotter temperature than expected . But you always want to research what the average temperature is so you can know that going into it , is it normally warm , is it normally cold ? So make sure you research the average temperature for the time of year for the location of the race and then make sure that your training cycle matches your personal schedule . So if you have a vacation going on , that's fine . You can't , you don't need to not train very much because you have a vacation , but you do just want to make sure that you have these things kind of just in the back of your mind .

Speaker 1 11:00

So now , now that you've narrowed down a little bit of your , your timing , we're kind of thinking , basically you've kind of narrowed down , like I'd rather have a spring race or a fall race or a summer race . You have a little bit better idea of that . Decide where . Where are you going to run ? So really there's three options two big ones and one less big one . So there's local , which should be somewhere that you can easily drive to without having to sleep somewhere else , or a destination race . And then our third option is a virtual race .

Speaker 1 11:38

Let's cover what the point , what the advantage is , and why you would pick a local race . Why are you not going to go anywhere ? So what's nice about a local race is it's familiar . If you are a creature of habit like me , you can train on that course , you can run that route . I run the Rock , the Parkway route here on Ward Parkway often . So I know the ups and downs , the hills , the turns , and that's nice for me . You know what the weather is going to feel like because you live there . You know how it's going to be . You know where parking is If you have high parking anxiety when it comes to race day . I don't know who possibly has that Not me . You have all that and there's a lot less of travel logistics . You don't have to worry about sleeping in a hotel . How do I get there by public transit ? How do I get there by driving ? Is there going to be this ? Is there going to be that ? That is a lot of stress .

Speaker 1 12:35

Another advantage of the local race is you can build in a support network to see you on the course , because if you're new to running , believe it or not , the people cheering you on on the course make a huge difference . So if you've ever run a race that had nobody cheering you on is entirely different than when you come around a corner and there are hundreds of people just cheering you on , even if you don't know who they are . If you do a local race , you're more likely to have your spouse or your children or your friends or your coworkers be able to meet you at different stops . I love being able to see my friends at races , my friends at races . I love tracking them , finding them , screaming at them , to cheer them on , because I know how much it touches me when I can see them when I can wave at them . So a local race lets you talk to your friends and tell them like , hey , I'm running this race . I really , really , really love it If you would be able to show up at any of the mile stops . That's going to help you . That's going to keep you inspired to want to keep running and want to show up for them . So a local race is going to help keep you going .

Speaker 1 13:54

A destination race I call it playing the away game . You're traveling . You're traveling to a new location and it could be a location you're familiar with . It could be a location you're not familiar with , but it has an adventure factor to it . You're traveling to somewhere new . You're traveling to some . You're running a different course . You it's kind of like a little mini vacation .

Speaker 1 14:17

You have to run in a different area . You have to pack and travel with your clothes and your shoes . You have to make sure you have your routines dialed in . You need to have your morning food and nutrition and mobility and you can't forget anything . And you have to have all that planned out . You have to know how you're getting to the start line . You need to know how you're getting back from the start line Bag drop off ?

Speaker 1 14:43

Are you traveling alone ?

Speaker 1 14:44

Are you traveling with family ?

Speaker 1 14:46

Are you adjusting to new conditions ?

Speaker 1 14:48

Is it hot there ?

Speaker 1 14:50

Is it cold there ? Are you in the mountains ? There's a lot of things to take into consideration . So it can be quite an adventure and it can throw you for quite a loop , but a lot of my best races have been when I've gone races away from home , because it forces me to have come prepared , it forces me to think about everything else . The thing you do have to keep in mind is sleeping . I become a very nervous sleeper the night before a race , regardless if I am home or away . So dialing in your nighttime routine is really going to make that big difference . But you won't have the family support as much as you will in an away race or away run .

Speaker 1 15:36

But it is exciting to see somewhere new , to try and see some beautiful features . There are races that go through national parks . There's races that go through mountains , that go through ocean well , not go through the oceans , but go by the oceans . There's some gorgeous runs that you can do if you're willing to be adventurous and try something new . And there's ones that go through major cities and you can run on roads that never , ever close except for that one race , and so that's really exciting to do . And so if that's , you seek adventure , and that's the type of person that why you're running is because you're , you want to try something new and you're adventurous consider doing a destination race , and then the last kind of race would be a virtual run , and so these are ones where you sign up and they are flexible with your schedule .

Speaker 1 16:29

So if you have a little bit of anxiety when it comes to race day you're worried about showing up and the weather being shit , it being hot , it being cold , it being snowy or whatever they usually give you a a set amount number of days where you have to do the distance in , and then you just submit your time by submitting your Garmin or your Apple health or whatever to prove that you did that distance , and so what's nice is you pick the route so you can run on your comfortable route . You don't have to travel . There's no stress like that . A lot of them will mail you a medal and a lot of them partner with charities , so you're being able to give back . So they're a really great option if you're wanting to try it out and you have a lot of stress around the crowds of a race , because some races can be very large and can feel very crowded , and if that's something that's really nerve wracking to you but you want to have that sense of accomplishment , this is another really fun and kind of out of the box way to do it , and I think it can be a sense of community that is really not seen as much

"Choosing the Perfect Race Experience"

Speaker 1 17:41

.

Speaker 1 17:41

I want you now to kind of think again . Do you value more convenience and , potentially , community in your race , or are you looking for adventure and excitement in your race ? After this ? I also want you to research local running clubs and see what races they recommend or what races they put on , and look at the travel costs and see what makes the most sense , because you got to think about when it comes to travel costs flights , gas , car hotels , food . So really think about what makes the most sense and weigh those pros and cons , especially if this is your first race . So kind of weigh your pros and cons when it comes to that and go back to that vision of your finish line and how you want to feel and how you want to see yourself over that finish line .

Speaker 1 18:34

Now let's talk about what is essential for a race to be memorable and not a shit experience , and how to avoid disappointment and kind of buyer's remorse on a race , because I know I've done some races where it was a womp womp never sign up again . You really want to look for a race that is well organized and you want to look for races that are put on by big organizations . Honestly . So your local running store or running groups are really great places to look for these sort of things . So if it's a larger organization , they typically have their shit together . They typically are more organized when it comes to making sure the race day logistics go well . They'll have better signs out . They'll make sure everyone has good communication .

Speaker 1 19:24

Packet pickup makes sense . It's not kind of feeling like haphazard and figure it out there . It's a lot more catered or a lot more accepting to new people who this is their first time , because some races that are smaller or put on by small organizations just assume that you're already a runner and you know what's going on and they don't feel it doesn't feel as exciting . And I know . When I did my first race , I remember the feeling of going to the expo , my first half marathon , the expo in DC and how exciting it was to see everything and pick up my bib , and it was just that's what . That's what stuck with me and that's kind of why I keep doing them .

Speaker 1 20:06

Having something exciting like that really will pull you in and you also want to look to see is there good course support , do you see ? So the way you find that out is you can look in the information on the website for the race . You , you can look in the information on the website for the race . You want to look in the map and see how often , if any , do they provide course support ? Do they have aid stations with water , with gel , medical porta potties ? Look at the race map and look do they provide that ? As a new runner , it's definitely something you're going to want .

Speaker 1 20:37

I think it's really helpful to at least have those checkpoints . For me , it's definitely something you're going to want . I think it's really helpful to at least have those checkpoints . For me , it's like a safety net that you know that if something goes wrong , you at least know that in the next one to two miles you can get help . Someone will be there to help you , and then someone will be there to give you water or cheer you on .

Speaker 1 20:59

The next thing , that is really really big , and I don't think a lot of new runners know about time cutoffs , and so , until you know how fast you run , it's not something that you know to look at , and when races have , how long they can keep the roads open . That's basically what it comes down to , and it tells you you have to be able to maintain X pace on this race in order to stay on it , and they usually have a sweeper person at the end , and that's just so they can reopen the roads to traffic and cars , and what you need to do is look to make sure your pace is going to match that . You need to do is look to make sure your pace is going to match that . One fun trick that I have if you are planning on doing the half marathon and you are on the slower side of the pace , look for a race that also has a marathon built in , because usually that means that if the course is planned correctly , you will get some of the time that the marathoners are also running that course , if that makes sense , because a lot of times they'll close the course after two or not two , three , maybe four hours and that may not align with your pace time . So if you pick a race where there's a marathon , they may give it up to six to seven hours to finish , and so that may work better for you . So really make sure that the course time matches with your pace time so that way you don't get your heart broken and have that feeling of just that you're not just that , it's just a sad feeling . So I want to make sure that it's aligned with your pace .

Speaker 1 22:39

Another thing that if you are new to running especially again I don't want to feel like I'm beating a dead horse but if you're running a half and you're scared about going out too fast or not knowing how quick to go how quick to go is look for a race that has pacers . I cannot say how much I love the pacers that run for the Kansas City runs . They are absolutely fantastic . They keep you motivated . The ones that I've had they will walk up certain parts of the hills at the pace that I'm at and then they run and they are inspiring . They are absolutely wonderful .

Speaker 1 23:21

So if you are a new runner , look for a race with a pacer Hands down . It will make your running experience so much better . You can go to the expo and talk to them . You can kind of help figure out . They have like usually have little pacer bands that can show you you're going to run mile one at this time . Two , three , two , three , four , whatever it will make all the difference in the world . Plus , you'll have , you'll feel like you're part of a community , you'll be able to talk with other runners and it's perfect for new runners , absolutely .

Speaker 1 23:52

And also look for races that look like they have really good crowd support , and I know that's really hard to know if it has good crowd support , and this is where we're kind of maybe go over reviews and a little bit you can also tell by where the course is if it goes on like a small trail . I have done one in Chicago and it went on a cute little trail but there's no people on the side of it . Where ones in New York or in Kansas City you have people cheering on the side of the road and so a little bit of people cheering you on it makes a world of a difference . And then make sure any of the races that you're looking at you're reviewing the amenities , you're reviewing the cutoff times , you're looking at the course and you're making sure you're kind of putting these all together in a list . Okay , so we've talked about a lot . Let's put it all together with some effective tips so you can go sit at your computer , your phone this may be a big screen activity , as I like to call it and do some effective race research .

Speaker 1 25:00

So I want you to kind of look at some few places I have mentioned where you can look for different races . Look at different local running stores . Look at they . A lot of them have like a table with a bunch of pamphlets out . You can also look on their sites for what the races in your area are . Online forums will have a lot of great races listed where you can find out information about them . A lot of red flags that you just kind of want to keep your eye out for is a lot of weird hidden fees . I don't see that too much , but it's there Vague details or consistently negative reviews . If you just see a lot of people saying a lot of negative things , it's usually not worth it .

Speaker 1 25:47

If you know a lot of runners in your area , ask other runners . I know me . I love to talk about all of the races I have done , if anyone ever asks me about any of the races I have done , I will tell you every single thing about it Everything I loved , everything I hated . I will tell you everything . So ask them . Ask them what their favorite part about the race was . Ask them what their least favorite part about the race was . Ask them about are there any logistical elements that they should know about ? Ask them was the course as hard as it looks ? Ask them any question you can think of . It's really , really important .

Speaker 1 26:24

And then make sure you create some backup plans . Just have some second options ready , just in case . I know I've had things come up . I've had weather come up and a plan of doing a race and it just snowed it out and I couldn't do it . So make sure you have a couple backup plans , just in case . So take out another piece of paper .

Speaker 1 26:46

We're going to create a little checklist . You're going to get on your computer and you're going to create a list of three to five potential races . I want you to research their pros and their cons , based on all of the information we have gone over before , and I want you to rank them by priority , on which ones are most important , which ones are your number one and which ones are your least ones . And then I need you to . Basically , I want you to DM me on Instagram and tell me which ones are your top three and I want to help you decide . So DM me at dogspermilepod , at Instagram , and I want to help you pick your first race . So , thank you , thank you , thank you , thank you , thank you . I'm so excited for you to sign up for this race , whichever one you chose , and are you so excited for the next , the final part of this , which is going to be how the fuck am I going to train for this race ? So , in the final part of this series , we are going to talk about the different ways that you to train for this race . So , in the final part of this series , we are going to talk about the different ways that you can train for a race , the free ways that you can find the train , the ways that cost money , and we're going to figure out what way is going to be best for you , so that way you can get to the start line , get over the finish line and hopefully only be crying because you're so fucking proud of yourself .

Speaker 1 28:02

So don't forget to please subscribe , to please share this podcast episode with anyone . You want to run a race with you and they would like to think about what race they want , so share it with a friend . Please comment , please rate , please subscribe . Share it with the world . Share it with everyone . If you hate them , you love the world . Share it with everyone . If you hate them , you love them . Share it with everyone . And until next time , keep counting those dogs , keep running and I will see you in the next one . Thanks for sharing another mile

Staying Connected With Running Community

Speaker 1 28:39

with me today .

Speaker 1 28:39

Before you cool down , here are three quick ways to stay connected with our running community . First , hit subscribe wherever you're listening to this right now . It's the best way to make sure you never miss an episode . Second , if today's show helped you or inspired you , please leave a review . Your words help other runners find their way to our community . Lastly , want more running adventures ? Follow at Dogs Per Mile pod on Instagram , where I share daily motivation , behind the scenes moments and plenty of pictures of my two running coaches , yogi and Maple . Be sure to tag me in your run photos and use hashtag Dogs Per Mile to share your own dog spotting stats . I love celebrating your victories , big and small , and thank you for being a part of this journey . Until our next run together , remember every step forward is progress and every dog you see is bonus motivation . Keep running , keep smiling and keep counting those dogs .