Race to Robie Creek Half-Marathon

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Race to Robie Creek Half-Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Boise, ID
United States
70F / 21C
Sunny
 		Total Time = 3h 06m 16s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group =
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Had a peanut butter bagel and coffee. Mom, Bethany, Dad, and I drove to the race start at Fort Boise Park.
Event warmup:

We listened to the band, I took a few pitstops, then we were off!
Run
  • 00m
  • 13.1 miles
  •  min/mile
Comments:

I was so excited for this event. It was my first Robie Creek and my Dad's umpteenth. I hadn't had the courage to take on Robie Creek until this year. It's a crazy race, that has quite a following. In fact, the race registration fills in under two hours. My plan for this run was to spend the whole time with my dad and I did and we had a good time :)

Each water station is staffed by different community groups. My favorite was staffed by a Native American group. They played drums and gave runners lots of encouragement.

The water station just before the summit is staffed by the Boise Hashhouse Harriers. They offered up whiskey, beer, Ding Dongs, HoHos, chocolates. I had a beer! It tasted great in the heat and the dust!

At the summit, about 8.4 miles into the race, our time was 2:12:13. Dad took off on the downhill. My knees can't do the downhill as fast as him, so I lost sight of him but we got back together on the flats. At the finish, my husband and sons were there to cheer us!
What would you do differently?:

Not a thing. This was a day to be with my Dad and it was one of my happiest days.
Post race
Warm down:

We had baked potatos, chili, brownies, and BEER when we reached Robie Creek.




Last updated: 2005-02-15 12:00 AM
Running
00:00:00 | 13.1 miles |  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Course: The Race to Robie Creek is a half-marathon and covers 13.1 miles while climbing up and over the mountain pass that the stagecoach used to cross to get to Idaho City. It begins in Boise, Idaho (about 2700’ elevation) and ends at Robie Creek State Picnic Area (about 3100’) about two miles off Highway 21 between Boise and Idaho City. The first 3.4 miles of road are asphalt; the remaining 9.7 miles are dirt. The highest point on the course (about 4800’) is about 8.4 miles into the race. 1st Mile You begin the course in a northwesterly direction for about 75 yards and then turn left on to Garrison Street as you pass the Parks & Recreation building on your right. You then run about 400 yards before turning left on to Fort Street. Run about 35 yards to State Street and turn left and run the 200 yards to Reserve Street. Turn left there and stay on that road. You begin climbing a half-mile later just as the road bends right and becomes Shaw Mountain Road. You run past the 1 Mile mark shortly after beginning the climb. This first mile climbs about 25 feet. 2nd Mile You run the second mile entirely on Shaw Mountain Road which winds through residences as you steadily climb about 250 feet. You run past the 2 Mile mark just as the course finally, but briefly flattens. 3rd Mile You continue past Table Rock Road (on your right) and up a short incline where the road becomes Cottonwood Creek Road and you then drop about 150 feet over the next half-mile. At the low point here, you cross a cattle guard and then a concrete dip at Cottonwood Creek. The next section rolls up and down (up mostly) until the end of the asphalt at 3.4 miles. About 0.4 miles into this rolling section you run past the 3 Mile mark. This mile is one of the few that both climbs and drops and is the only net downhill one before Aldape Summit. The net drop is about only 25 feet. 4th Mile The complexion of the course changes dramatically during this mile. You finish that rolling section that began during the previous mile as you get on to the gravel surface for the remainder of the race. At about 3.5 miles, you run down a very short section and begin the ascent in earnest, climbing about 1700 feet to the summit over the next five miles. The second half of this mile takes you up through Rocky Canyon. Shortly after exiting the canyon you run past the 4 Mile mark. You climb about 325 feet during this mile (most of it during the second half-mile through the canyon). 5th Mile The climbing continues as you follow the creek on your immediate right. As you approach the end of this mile you can spot the colored balls suspended overhead that are there to signal the presence of what must be a power transmission line. You run past the 5 Mile mark at about the same time you pass under the power line. You climb about 275 feet during this mile. 6th Mile Just after the 5 Mile mark, you run across the second and final cattle guard as the grade steepens briefly and find you are now well above the creek. You get a short break from climbing at about 5.5 miles. About 0.2 miles after you begin climbing again in earnest, you run past the 6 Mile mark. During this mile, you climb about 375 feet. 7th Mile This mile gives you a taste of what’s to come right off the bat, climbing rapidly for the first 1/3 of a mile. The grade then slackens considerably, even leveling off completely on occasion as you approach and run past the 7 Mile mark. During this mile you climb about 225 feet with the majority of it in that difficult first third of the mile. Enjoy the flatter, latter parts of this mile! 8th Mile The mild grade continues for about the first half of this mile. Enjoy it also while you can. The second half of it starts you up the difficult final climb to the summit. You make a subtle right-hand turn about the 7.6-mile mark and should easily notice the increased grade before you. Take comfort in knowing you only have about 0.8 miles to go to the summit. 4 tenths of a mile later you grind past the 8 Mile mark. You climb about 375 feet his mile, nearly all of it during the second half. 9th Mile The grade just at the 8 Mile mark slackens a bit, but only briefly and then steepens again for the remaining 0.4 miles to Aldape Summit. About an eighth of a mile before the summit, you finally can see it. Thanks be to God, you made it to the top climbing about 250 feet in just under a half mile. You crest the summit and immediately begin plunging downward rather rapidly. One thing you surely notice is how much cooler it is on the descent as you run through this tree-laden section. You may encounter mud and even some snow and ice as this is the last place on the course that melts each spring. The first six-tenths of mile down to the 9 Mile mark drops about 300 feet resulting in an approximate net minus 50-foot elevation change for the mile. Obviously, this mile is anything but flat. You make several left and right turns and one hairpin turn as you rapidly approach and rush by the 9 Mile mark. 10th Mile The grade downward eases some just past the 9 Mile mark and briefly flattens as you round a big, slow turn to the right and then steepens again as you break out of the cover of the trees. Shortly after a hard right turn at about 9.75 miles, the grade becomes its steepest (maybe 12 or 13%) for about 0.1 miles as you approach the first home you will see (it’s on the left). The 10 Mile mark is shortly after this first home. You drop about 500 feet this mile. Ouch! 11th Mile The grade begins to alternate here between near flat to steep as it winds downhill and reminds me of the stair-like burlap-bag slides you see at the Western Idaho Fair every August. This mile drops only about 400 feet. 12th Mile The downgrade evens out for most of this mile at about 7% until the road tees into Robie Creek Road at the 11.8 mile mark. As you turn right here, you pass the Robie Creek Volunteer Fire Station on your right and will notice that the course flattens out for the next 0.1 miles before mercifully, but only marginally beginning to drop again. At this point the runners become acutely aware of just how tired and beat up they are now that gravity isn’t helping much anymore. This mile drops about 350 feet with nearly all of it coming in the first 0.8. 13th Mile This often has been referred to as the longest mile most of the Robie Creekers have ever run. Whereas the downgrade over this last full mile in to the finish averages only 2.8 percent while dropping about 150 feet, it feels like it is flat after all the steep downhill earlier. This mile zigzags left and right over the last two-thirds of it and even has a couple of small rises in it, the last of which is right before the 13 Mile mark. 13.1 Miles The finish is deceiving if you are not familiar with it. You are running flat at the 13 Mile mark and the road makes a hard left and with only about 100 yards remaining, you can finally see the finish line. Mercifully, it is downhill around that last corner which helps launch those willing and still able into their final sprint to the finish.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5

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2006-12-29 3:49 PM

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Subject: Race to Robie Creek Half-Marathon
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