Sunday, April 6, 2014

Best Damn Race Orlando Race Recap


About a month ago (yes I'm super behind in race recaps), my husband and I completed the Best Damn Race in Orlando.  We had participated in the Best Damn Race 5k in Safety Harbor and were so impressed with the race experience, we wanted to partake in the Orlando race.  This time we signed up for the 10k.  It was my husband's first 10k.


The morning started early as we left the house before 5am to drive to Lake Eola in Orlando.  Parking was easy in one of the designated garages.  The morning was a bit chilly.  Packet pick up was quick and organized.  Before long we were directed to the start line.  The course started at the southeast corner of Lake Eola and ran through downtown Orlando and some residential areas,


The course was scenic with lots of support.  There were 5 water stations for the 10k and they passed out GU at mile 3.  There were some streets that were cobblestone so you had to be careful with your footing.  


I normally run intervals for races but I could not get my RunKeeper to start correctly at the start so this was the first race where I just ran when I could and walked when I had to.  About half way through the race, I realized I was making great time and had a chance at a PR.  Before I knew it, we had reached mile 5 and were headed towards the finish line.


The last mile seemed to go on forever but quick runner's math confirmed that I not only had a chance for a PR but I could take a full five minutes from my Turkey Trot time.  


One last right turn back towards Lake Eola and soon the finish line was there.


I finished with a new PR taking 5 minutes off my previous 10k time.  I was at the bottom of the results for my age group but was proud of my finish time and improvement.



My husband finish in under an hour so we both went to ring the PR Bell.


It was a beautiful day in Orlando so we hung around to enjoy the festivities to a while.  They food (typical after race fare), free beer, and a small expo of vendors.




My husband and I really enjoy the Best Damn Race series.  They really put on a wonderful race!  We enjoy them so much that we are looking forward to participating in the recently announced Best Damn Race Cape Coral in December.  It will be my husband's first half marathon and my third.  If you are looking for a well run race series, I highly recommend Best Damn Race!

What's your favorite race series?

7 comments:

  1. There's an organization here in CA that put on a wonderful half last Halloween. I'm doing a second race with them next weekend. I'm hoping the quality is there. It was small, but supported and fun. There's also a group called Renegade Racing out here that puts on some great 5K runs. I love finding a good race organization that isn't outlandish like Competitor or Disney. Those huge ones are fun, but they're somewhat draining.

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    1. I completely agree! Sometimes the local races are the best!

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  2. Congratulations!!! I'm glad that you two enjoyed the race!

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  3. Shaving 5 minutes off your last 10K time is amazing! Congrats to the both of you. Although i've read somewhere about another race having a PR bell, i've actually never seen one at any of the races i've done. That's pretty cool! -Meranda

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  4. Looks like a fun race and congratulations on the PR! I love that they had a PR bell, I've never seen that!

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  5. Thank you ladies!! I really like this race series. I believe the race director is a runner so he thinks of all of the details for us runners to enjoy the race. Makes the experience so much better.

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