Gasparilla Distance Festival : Official Thread

I haven't paid yet but i'm definately in for the Half...  I have 2 coworkers who have a bet on who will finish first.  One has run a few half marathons and the other has never ran more that 1.5 miles in his whole entire life.  Our whole office is making side bets on who will finish first.  I bet on the "Non-Runner" guy so i will be there to scream at him throughout the race.  Got 50 Chicken wings riding on this race!  The "Runner" has been bragging about how he's such a great runner so the office finally pulled up his official run time and found out, he's not as fast as he tells people he is....  Infact a few guys who don't run think they can actually beat him....so someone decided to step up and challenge him....  hence the bet!  Peer Pressure is alive and well in the military!  anywho.... I'm definately in...

There you are Renee.... What's the event's date?  I am dying to do a half (officially).

February 28, 2010

Sounds meant to happen.  I'll look for the regitration at RacePlace mag.

Thx!

Im in for the half.  My fee from last year was carried over due to a military deployment.

Assuming I solve my arch pain problem, I'm in for the full!

I am in for the 1/2.  Will be a great check on fitness.  I have a HIM about 2.5 months later.

I am in for the full - it is the last year they are doing the full marathon!

I'll probably be doing the 15K - did it last year for the first time.  Sort depends on childcare - my wife's been top five the past two years, so if we don't get childcare, she gets the nod to do the race!

I have the opportunity to grab a free entry for the marathon.  Don't know if I'll take it, as I would have to pay the rest of the costs of a trip to Florida, but definitely thinking about it...

Im in for the Ultra Challenge, 5K and 15K on Sat and the full on Sun!

Hi,

I'm from snowy, cold Wisconsin and will be visiting inlaws in Tampa at the end of February so I decided to run in the Gasparilla Half.  Does anyone know the course as to its hilliniess or difficulty?  I am just kind of curious to know what to expect.  From what I can tell, it looks like a nice course with some scenic views along the water.  Of course, anything will look great after 3 months of pure white in Wisconsin.

Also, after reading the various posts in this thread, I think I am most impressed withBoom808's PR of 6 minutes and 91 seconds for the Buffalo Wild Wing Blazin' Challenge.  Quite impressive.

Thanks for any info.

The course is flat, windy and fun. In 2007 it was kinda cool at the start.

I'm in for the full.  Last chance for my sub-3 at Gaspy.

Oh...and to add to course conditions...
Out of the 5 years I've run the race, 3 of them have been rainy and 4 have been chilly at the start...all 5 have been very windy for the last 3.5 miles of the full, so plan accordingly.  But yeah...it's pancake flat, other than a few little bridges here and there.  Nothing difficult at all.

Edited by Q 2009-12-22 1:28 PM

I did the half last year, my first half. It was a hoot, even with the drizzle. Very flat. I'd be doing it again this year, but I'll be deployed.

I'm in for the half this year. Was going to do the full mary for sentimental reasons as it will be the last one but just had a strong marathon in mid october in san fran and just don't have the right frame of mind to start doing long runs again...slightly burned out on the run right now so the half will be perfect.  happy training to all who are doing the full or half!

My wife and I will be doing the half.  I did the 5K last year as my first ever race of any kind. I would have laughed at anyone that said I'll be doing a half marathon next year.

Did my first half marathon earlier this month in Orlando. How times have changed...

Good luck to everyone. Happy training!

Edited by up2thechallenge? 2009-12-22 8:45 PM

In-store registration at Sports Authority on Jan 23/24 and Jan 30/31 - pickup your race shirts and packet then!

I'm getting excited.

Anyone interested in pre-race dinner on Saturday evening? Pizzaiolo Bavaro is a few blocks from the race site; authentic, wood-fired stone oven Italian pizza and a few pasta dishes. Chef was imported from Palermo, food is delish. Nice but little restaurant, so we should see about reserving tables if enough people are interested. I'll be there, regardless.

Edited by Renee 2010-01-15 3:07 PM

Ultra Challenge for me!!!! 15K and 5K on Saturday, the the full 26.2 on Sunday!!!!  Whooo hoooo!!!!  (Wheelchair will be waiting for me on Monday!) 

My husband is doing the half -- last year's  was his first ever half.  He toyed with doing the full for sentimental reasons, but coming off of his first full at Disney last weekend,  has decided it would be too much.

I am doing the 5K.  (Lame).  I just started running in September and I toyed with doing the 15K but I don't think I can build the volume fast enough, safely, and still manage to bike and swim (hi KC!).  So my plan is to train like it is a 10K in hopes of improving my 5K time by about 5 minutes.  But, I will be there on Sunday, too, cheering away!