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The Urban Planet - GR Road Race Challenge


GRDadof3

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I wonder how the turn out will be on the 5/3. Last year it was really big because of the 30th anniversary push, but this year they added a 10k, which is likely to draw some people away from the 25k... But as a whole, it seems like more people are interested in running again.
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At classicrace.com, it shows that over 4800 ran the 5/3 5K run last year (more women than men too). :o I wonder if there will be more this year? That's a LOT of runners, although at least downtown GR's streets are wider than EGR.

Are you doing one of the 5/3 races Northender?

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I heard from a few people that last years 5/3 5k had too many people. The entire race was shoulder to shoulder people and it was difficult to run. Some of the streets used for the 5/3 5k (Fulton, Front, Scribner, etc.) aren't that much wider than those used in East (i.e. Lake Drive, Hall, etc), and when you have another ~2000 people and don't split the run into 2 races, you can only imagine how crowded the run would feel.
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  • 2 weeks later...

How goes the training for one of the 5/3 Riverbank runs? Who's doing the 25K? 10K? 5K? A little more than a month to train.

I'm on the fence - will definitely at least do the 5k, but really should do the 10K.

Speaking of running (although not GR related), this was a great story posted on CNN.com today. It would be cool if this program would expand to other cities, including Grand Rapids.

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How goes the training for one of the 5/3 Riverbank runs? Who's doing the 25K? 10K? 5K? A little more than a month to train.

I'm on the fence - will definitely at least do the 5k, but really should do the 10K.

Speaking of running (although not GR related), this was a great story posted on CNN.com today. It would be cool if this program would expand to other cities, including Grand Rapids.

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At classicrace.com, it shows that over 4800 ran the 5/3 5K run last year (more women than men too). :o I wonder if there will be more this year? That's a LOT of runners, although at least downtown GR's streets are wider than EGR.

Are you doing one of the 5/3 races Northender?

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  • 2 weeks later...

I ran the route of the Fifth Third 5K yesterday and boy is it a mess. Potholes everywhere, especially near Pearl and Front Street, all the way down Scribner Ave., the Scribner bridge over I-196, 6th Street, and then Ionia coming back South into downtown (North of I-196) has been pretty much reduced to a dirt road it is so potholed. Yikes.

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I'm in for something, but I don't know what yet. I've run the 25k almost every year since 1999 (5k one year and one year, we had a baby the day before (and I was all trained!)) but with our two little kids, both me and my wife training and the lousy weather, we might opt for the 10k this year. I just started running again two weeks ago after my longest break ever (since I started). It's good to be back running again. Now for some nice weather!

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  • 4 weeks later...

A record year for the Fifth Third Riverbank Run yesterday morning, with over 15,000 runners in the 25K, 10K, 5K run and 5K walk. HUGE turnout of spectators too, lining Monroe Avenue from Lyon to Michigan St at the start, and then along Ottawa Ave from Lyon all the way down and around Monroe Center at the finish.

I personally bested my Irish Jig time by 1.5 minutes. :yahoo:

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A record year for the Fifth Third Riverbank Run yesterday morning, with over 15,000 runners in the 25K, 10K, 5K run and 5K walk. HUGE turnout of spectators too, lining Monroe Avenue from Lyon to Michigan St at the start, and then along Ottawa Ave from Lyon all the way down and around Monroe Center at the finish.

I personally bested my Irish Jig time by 1.5 minutes. :yahoo:

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It was a great race...tons of people running. How was the crowd support on the 25k course? I missed running the long one, but I was so not ready for it! The 5k course had a fair number of spectators at the start and finish, but was quite empty through the run itself. My wife said the same about the 10k. It was fun to run a 5k again after lots of distance the last 5+ years. Plus, I was only 10 seconds slower than the last 5k I ran when I was actually training!

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It was a great race...tons of people running. How was the crowd support on the 25k course? I missed running the long one, but I was so not ready for it! The 5k course had a fair number of spectators at the start and finish, but was quite empty through the run itself. My wife said the same about the 10k. It was fun to run a 5k again after lots of distance the last 5+ years. Plus, I was only 10 seconds slower than the last 5k I ran when I was actually training!
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  • 1 month later...
  • 3 months later...
Thought about it, but I'm making the drive to Detroit to run the Detroit Marathon. IMO, the Detroit course is hard to beat (running by whats left of the old Tiger Stadium, over the Ambassador Bridge into Canada as the sun rises and then back into the US through the tunnel) and it's the only reason I run there instead of here.

Interesting that both GR and Detroit have their marathons on the same weekend.

Congrats, Starrfish, on deciding to run 13.1! It's a boatload lot of training and seems overwhelming at times, but ultimately well worth it. The sense of accomplishment you'll feel running that last 500 feet is impossible to describe!

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They say the 1/2 is a gateway drug - once you do one you'll have to do the full 26.2. Got into the 1/2 by doing my first sprint triathlon in July. It's been a fun/rewarding time! Have a great race this weekend in Detroit, Par75!

*fish

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