In May 2014, I ran the wonderful Whiskey Row Marathon. I know it's been a while since I've run it, so I will try my best to recall memories from the race. I do have photos, so that always helps me remember!
I had planned to run the half with my sister. I bought her a race entry (as well as one for myself) for her 32nd birthday. A few months later, she decided it was too much and decided to drop out. I was pretty bummed, but decided to make the best of it and upgrade to the marathon.
Chance and I arrived at the Hotel St. Michael in Prescott on Friday night after a long drive up from Tucson. There had been an accident just North of Phoenix and it stopped traffic for two hours on the highway. I was planning to card load in Prescott for dinner and now that was out of the question since we ended up arriving around 10pm. I grabbed some food at the grocery store and went straight to bed.
The alarm went off around 5AM but I was in no hurry because the hotel was literally a few steps away from the start line. I didn't know this when I booked the rooms. Chance and I have stayed at this hotel at least 2 times in the past. When we were both in school for archaeology, our field school surveyed in the wilderness surrounding Prescott and we would come into town for supplies once in awhile. They always chose this hotel. And since I already knew about it, I went ahead and booked it. Glad the start line was right next to it! :)
There were 2 start times. If I remember correctly, one was at 6AM and the other was at 7AM. And this is becuase the race promptly cuts off at 1pm. And I mean PROMPTLY. One of my friends finished after 1pm, and they literally left her medal in a pile on the ground where the finishline used to be. I'm not sure why they have to end so abruptly. Maybe the city is cutting them off early, but it sure is annoying. I was nervous about not being able to finish in the alotted time (there is a TON of elevation change in this race) and I was considering the early start time. But, since we got in late the night before, I just decided to sleep an extra hour and start at 7AM.
The 7AM Whiskey Row Marathon start line. |