This race review was provided by my wife, Erin Moore.
The Maine Coast Half Marathon: 600 women and One Lucky Guy
The second annual running of the Maine Coast Half Marathon got under way at 9:00 this morning. The weather was perfect for running and overall the day was as enjoyable as it was challenging. However, this young race has considerable room for improvement. The race drew 601 finishers, 600 women… and One Lucky Guy.
The Course
This 13.1 mile course wound through the beautiful area of York Village and included picturesque landscapes, the sound of the waves hitting the sand and a not insignificant number of hills! The race began with a semi-circle around York High School, but once we turned out of the driveway, the rolling hills began to challenge runners right away. However, having trained for hills thanks to my husband choosing many of my training routes, I found the hills quite manageable.
Right smack dab in the middle of the race there was one quite steep hill, but it was short, so runners who chose to walk or jog slowly did not loose much momentum from it. There was also a hill in the 12th mile that I was not such a fan of, my legs already about to give way at that point. But, there were also some flat portions of the course, particularly along Long Beach Avenue (a/k/a Route 1) which, not surprisingly, ran just along the edge of the ocean. This section, along with a few others, drew some pretty good cheering crowds which helped keep the event upbeat.
The Race
There were water stops approximately every 2–2½ miles, which seemed to be perfect spacing considering the temperature (not too warm, but quite sunny) and the course. I know I took water at each station. Volunteers were also handing out Accelerade at several of the aid stations and it appeared that they were handing out some form of energy gel in the middle of the race, though I had not seen any notice that the gel would be given out.
Since I had been training with GU, I carried two packets with me and took them at miles 4½ and 8½ (at water stations) and did not use whatever they were handing out.
Now for the things I would like to see improved.
- The bathroom problem. There were a few port-a-potties on the course, but it looked like they did not bring any extra port-a-potties to the start/finish of the race. There was one on an athletic field. The apparent rationale was that the high school was open and people were able to use the bathrooms therein. However, the only bathrooms I heard anyone mention were the locker rooms and one other first floor bathroom. There were, not surprisingly, long lines at those first floor bathrooms. After all, it was a race for women. In the future, if the race organizers don’t want to bring in port-a-potties, they should really be sure there is a map of where the bathrooms are or someone directing women to them. They should also list the number of stalls outside the bathrooms, because it can be a real drag to learn after waiting in line for 20 minutes that there was only 1 stall to service that line.
- There was very little in the way of food after the race. I spotted pieces of banana, pieces of bagel and pizza (I saw only pepperoni, but there may have been other kinds). Personally, when I’ve finished running 13.1 miles at what for me was a significant effort, pizza is just not the best of ideas. In the future, I would like to see more post-race food options.
- Finally, I must say that part way through the race, I adopted a new goal – to make it through the race without getting run over. I realize that the area is pretty busy and quite touristy. Shutting down the streets for a few hours is probably not feasible, but there were some points during which I was cringing at how close the cars were coming to some of the runners. If this race is going to expand to the desired cap of 1500 runners, the race organizers and the town will need to find some way to limit the number of cars on the road during the race. One suggestion: advertise the race in town more. After the race, my husband and I went to lunch. Several people mentioned that they knew nothing about the race until they saw the women running by.
One Lucky Guy (OLG)
Though billed as an all women’s race, the race officials conduct a lottery to select one guy to run amongst the women. The men paid a $10 lottery entry fee and the OLG is selected randomly. The proceeds of the lottery help support the York schools’ cross country and track teams. In addition to getting to run in this all-women race, the OLG receives a special race shirt and a prize for his significant other along with “fame and fortune for one day.”
This year’s OLG was Reade Brower from Camden, Maine and a member of the Rock Coast Runners. His story can be read on the race’s website. Reade finished first, of course, for the men, with a time of 1:58:40.
The Stats
So I guess you want to know who won. Sheri Piers of Falmouth, Maine and a member of the Dirigo racing team won with a time of 1:17:29. She was followed by Kaitlin Anelauskas of Medfield, MA and Tara Cardi of Warwick, RI. Yours truly finished 124.
The Significant Others
In addition to the half marathon run, there was a half marathon walker’s division and a “significant other 5K” designed to allow significant others, families and friends participate in the day.
Dorothy Zullo of Wakefield, RI finished first in the walker’s division, with a time of 2:17:06. The 5K was won by John Mentzer of Portsmouth, NH with a time of 17:31 and the first woman was Hannah Hastings of Cambridge, MA with a time of 19:53.
(Full Results – 5k Results – Photos)
I was at this race and I do not agree with all of the commentary in this article. The course was hilly, the beaches were beautiful and the sun was shining. However, there were actually 20 available bathrooms in the high school and a large sign was hanging that said, “York High School has over 20 bathrooms”. Mens rooms were made accessible to women and there were several friendly faces to offer directions.
Also, in addition to bananas, pizza, and bagels, there were large amounts of water, vitamin water, and luna bars.
This race is only in its second year and I thought it was done very well. Other races have been around for decades and have the benefit of huge cities and world fame. I think we should cut a little slack for the race directors of the Maine Coast Half.
Rebecca,
Her point was that she had no idea where the bathrooms were, and obviously neither did enough other people to alleviate the problem. If there are 20 bathrooms in the school, then they need to provide some way of telling people how to find them.
And where was the water? Other than what she was offered at the finish line, she spent 10 minutes looking for more and could only find the vitamin water.
I’ll forward your comment on and make sure that Erin sees it.
Awesome job, Erin! Congrats on finishing a half marathon. Hopefully, one year, I’ll be able to enter the lottery 🙂
CONGRATULATIONS, Erin! You rock, Lady Half Marathoner! WOOOHOOOO!!!
Next year, I hope to run it with you -- well… actually behind you! LOL
The comments are valid, no need to defend the race it was a great day and has room for improvement.
As a significant other that spent the day there it was nice to be able to watch the start and do short walks to mile 2, 10, 12 and the finish with a nice walk along the beach between 2 and 10!
I would suggest starting the walkers much, much earlier. Having to wait for the walkers to come over the finish, and then some, to get to the awards ceremony made for a long wait and disjointed post race.
I would also second the comments regarding the traffic and the community . . . perhaps as the event becomes bigger they can get more community awareness and traffic control.
I’ve run this race both years, and it was nowhere near as hilly as last year. I found this year’s course not at all hilly. I guess it’s what you are used to running and whether you have trained for the type of course. Elevations are posted on the race website.
I find the race a wonderful experience and am so grateful to LOCO for giving us Lucky Women an opportunity to run in such a beautiful setting!!
Bathrooms, food, traffic, etc. are just kinks in the start up of the Maine Coast Half Marathon! My experience running the race yesterday and the entire race weekend put a BIG smile on my face which today’s return to the workaday world cannot wipe off!!!
First Erin, thanks for running our race and sorry you did not have as good a time as you would have liked. But thank you for taking the time to write about our race and run it this past Sunday. We appreciate your comments and are always willing to listen.
A few points of interest that you might note, had you taken the time to wirte us before your article.
Re: Public Notice… I guess there is just too much going on in peoples lives… and they miss things.
Coming Into town before the race there were two HUGE blinking traffic banners telling people that a road race was coming on Sunday
these were up since Friday…a Huge article was written about the race from last year in the local paper about the race and
most of the townspeople I talked to were well aware it was coming..
For this years race and last years race, we announced the race on public TV during the town council meeting and described the course.
Besides that we put several HUNDRED notices up -- one for each home along the route. Besides that we had almost 50 signs
up saying Caution Runners in Road.. There is not much more we can do besides that….and it is significantly more than most race directors do.
Re: Course…
The web site had the exact topography of the course, a PDF of the race course and an online Map my run…. interactive guide.
this is of course Maine,,, and you are from Portland, so I would say that the hills on this course are really not bad.
The times attest to that, just look at the top 20 runners.. agreeing with your comments --
Re: Traffic:::
The course is on the most beautiful, but busiest section of Maine. If there is a warm day.. .and if the Surf is up…
and If there is some other event on, then yes… traffic will be tough. I have raced for 39 years all over New England
and I share your thoughts on traffic. Unfortunately, beach goers are not too kind to runners..
For traffic -- yes too many cars.. Actually I drive this course on Sundays just to see how many cars are out there.. and usually there are not as many…
We had all those three issues… Two are beyond our control. Weather and Surf which brings out lots of cars.
The one that was unplanned was there was a 1600 -- biker race put on by the Granite State wheelmen
this group -- NEVER INFORMED the police they were coming through. A lot of support cars started coming through at the end of our race. We planned our date with the town 10 months in advance..
And we check to see that no other events are happening.
As for our part, the race hired 4 police highly trained and competent Police officers and had 20 volunteers just for the corners of the race.
Each and every corner was well marked with not one by two arros.
Each and every bad corner had a flagger with a vest.. bad corners had a large traffic cone.
We agree there were more cars on the race than we would have wanted to see.
Maybe next year we will get normal cool weather and that would solve the issue.
Or start it later in the fall.
Kathrine Switzer and Andy Schachat who see hundreds of races setup a year and are experts in their field will attest that we do a superb job at setting up a course.
Re: What does a baby runner say for its first word.. Gu…Gu Gu…:)
I guess you missed our very special Gu notice
a specific email to 700 runners went out with a notice about the water stops -- it specifically had listed GU and we also had 400 race maps for people to see.
The GU was clearly identified as being at stop 3 at the Mile 6.5… GU is the leading energy replacement product on the market.
Re Bathroom…plenty..
Women do not like… Porta Potties . . .
There were 43 bathroom stalls available throughout the school -- plenty for 700 runners.
Each bathroom had a nice Yellow flyer plastic thing hanging from the ceiling… so you could spot it coming down any hallway.
I would say that many women used the other bathrooms as I asked the custodians if they had to clean them
there were also large signs in the gym telling women to go into the schools -- and I personally told women in line to walk down the halls to find them.
Out of the 50 or so emails I received after the race, not a single one mentioned lack of facilities
But I guess if you didnt know about them… hate to have you wait..
Re: Food…Not sure what you are expecting… but..
Food was available -- and we had leftovers
On the menu was 4 types of Luna Bars
A large dessert platter -- (this went very fast)
Vitamin Water and Regular Water
Plain and Pepperoni Pizza -- a very good local place Anthony’s that makes their own sauce and uses real cheeze
Banannas
Two types of Bagels..fresh from a local bagelry.
Thanks again, we will try even harder next year…
Mike and LInda
Thanks for all of the great responses, everybody. Erin did have a good time in the race, she just wanted to mention the areas she felt there could be some improvement. Looking forward to hearing more responses on the race!
Hello fellow racers, friends, supporter’s,
I’ve been racing for over 25 years and this was my first York 1/2 marathon…and I WILL be back. First and foremost, the volunteers and organizers were fabulous!! Friendly, accessible and well organized! The course was beautifully laid out and well marked and the traffic control was wonderful. I loved meeting Kathrine and hearing her story. I WILL be back with my group of “20” Vermonters and hopefully another “20” for 2009! You rock mid Maine 1/2 Marathon! Hats off to you….(I know the amount of work to organize an event of this magnitude and I appreciate all that you’ve done..no race is perfect)
Hi! This was my very first HM, and I had a great time. Thanks to Mike, Linda, and all the other folks who made the race happen.
I particularly loved the tech shirt and the medal (cool that the medal’s ribbon matched the shirt!). The course was beautiful, and there was lots of good info on the web.
I do agree with Erin on several points. It WAS hilly. She has run for awhile. I am a newer runner (2 years), but I live in North Yarmouth and do run in hilly areas. I think what misled me was the comparison of this year’s course to last year’s. “30% less hilly” sounded encouraging, and the graphic comparison between the two courses really seemed to emphasize the idea that this year would be fairly easy. Fortunately, my running partner and I decided to try the course out ahead of time. Wow! We were a little taken aback. The hills in the middle of the course, as well as the one towards the very end, were considerable.
I’m not saying that hills are bad, but it’s good for folks to know about ahead of time. On Saturday, I overheard a woman asking an official-looking person if the course was hilly, and he said, “Oh, no, not at all! We took out a lot of hills from last year.” I bit my tongue and wondered what she would think later.
During the actual race, we had fun occasionally saying, “Hey, remember we’re on a non-hilly course!” as we trudged up a hill.
The bathroom situation worked out OK for us, although we did have to hunt around to find one without a long line. A map would be a great idea!
The food was disappointing. We finished in 2:30, so we’re not speed demons, but we were still hungry! The pizza was gone by that point. Perhaps some pizza could be set aside and put out towards the end. All we saw were two boxes -- one with bananas, and one with bagels. Cream cheese and yogurt would be welcome additions, also. When we needed another drink, we had to ask the guy at the finish line -- he had to hand us a drink while passing others out to finishers, so we felt bad.
The traffic WAS a problem, even when there were no bikes around. Even at the back of the pack, which was pretty thin, we had a hard time. Whenever we wanted to pass someone, or a runner needed to pass us, it was awkward. “Sorry!” we would squeak as we manueuvered up onto the sidewalk or dared to dart out into the street. I don’t see how you could get 1,500 runners on that course the way it is now.
Again, we had a wonderful time. I thought you mike like the experience of a middle-aged, back-of-the-packer who loves to run. We’re not all top 20 finishers!
PS -- I didn’t see the Gu notice, either.
I have one thing to say as far as the GU, I ran the race last year and the Gu station was just Gu- the young girls were yelling GU and holding out the packets. This year knowing of the Gu stops that were supose to be at mile 6.5 as I was told- were not there. I purposely did not bring any because it was going to be offered again- no one was with me at 6.5 and no one was offering Gu, not once did I ever hear or see Gu. This became a big problem for my body. Greatly disapointed. This should be a station just for Gu, then followed by a water station. As the directions state right on the package- follow with water.
Hi all -- I enjoyed the half marathon last Sunday and I understand comments made by all. Personally, I thought the course was perfect -- beautiful scenery and a nice variation in the elevation.
I did find the Gu… however, I never rely on the event to provide that. I didn’t find the Accelerade tho until mile 8 and I prefer that something like that is available at every stop. And yes, I read that it was to be offered at two different rest stops.
I agree with the comment to have the walkers start earlier. In fact, I think the runners should start at least an hour earlier as well.
As for the food… well, it’s always a problem. Runners are hungry and thirsty and when the after event provisions are where there are a lot of spectators… it can be a problem.
Thanks for a great half marathon -- it was fast and fun!
I want to thank Erin for her detailed summary of the race. The weather was perfect! I loved the new course! Hilly but not as hilly as last year’s!(I took almost 12 minutes off my time from last year!)
Mike and Linda do an awesome job with all their races.
Thanks for everything,guys!
I’ll be back next year!
Dot
The 6 of us came from Central New York for this race and want to thank whomever ordered up the weather and scenery! I thought the water stops were set up at good spots (even the one young man that offered Accelerate and a kiss!). To the Significant Other — comment #5 -- we are walkers -- wait, let me tell you what Katherine told us to say at the start of the race WE ARE WALKERS — you had to wait for us to finish to start the ceremonies? Hmm, I may not be Dot -- fast but there were still a couple of runners coming in behind me — and isn’t waiting for the finish of the race fair to everyone that might want to attend the ceremony? Walkers are here to stay — Dot proved that as well as all the other walkers. So while we appreciate the earlier starting time, to say that we need to start really early is just silly. Thanks for a great race.
Thank you to everyone for your comments about the Maine Coast Half Marathon and the article I wrote.
It’s great to have so many people interested.
Many of you feel that I was too harsh on this young race, so I would like to clarify my opinion.
I did not mean to imply that it wasn’t an enjoyable race. Aside from the three elements that I pointed out where I feel the race can improve over the next several years, I felt that overall the race was a very good time and I encourage women to train for and run it next year.
As I pointed out, the course was beautiful and I actually thought it was well laid out. Though I felt it more hilly than some people, I didn’t find it too hilly, but hilly enough to encourage future runners to make sure to get some hill training in, particularly for runners participating in their first half-marathon. I certainly wouldn’t advocate for a different course.
Also, I want to reiterate that the water stops were super-well-run and perfectly placed. As for the traffic, it looks like that problem will be alleviated some what if that big pack of bikers and their support vehicles don’t choose to come through town in the middle of the race again next year and I can appreciate that the race directors, the volunteers and the town were as surprised as the runners to see them.
Again, I encourage women to train for and run this race next year.