Ta Ta Trot (Sunbury, PA)

Over 300 runners took part in the 2nd Annual Ta Ta Trot 5K in Sunbury, PA on Saturday, July 9th at 9:15AM. The event raised money for the PA Breast Cancer Coalition.

Here is our race review:

Registration & Packet Pick-Up

David: Packet pick-up was somewhat disorganized. It took a while to find my race number (because they did not put the bibs in the race bag ahead of time) and because they had you fill out a raffle ticket. This led to long lines. I should have run bandit.

Liz: I want to point out that David's bib number was 1. Before the race, a bystander pointed out his bib no. and made a comment about him living up to his number and coming in 1st. I think David humbly brushed it off.


Starting

David: The race started promptly at 9:15AM to the race director yelling "ready, set, GO!" rather than the bang of a starter's gun or the siren of a blow horn. This caused some confusion for runners who were not in the front of the race. There was plenty of room to warm-up since streets were blocked off ahead of time. In addition, there was a lot of pre-race excitement, e.g. a ceremony, a group stretch, dancing, and yoga. I did my usual warm-up, 7-10 minutes of easy running, followed by some strides, and no stretching.

Liz: People were warming up for the race, but the best dude was the Geico caveman. He was hurdling over the barricade for his warm-up routine. He also left his hair down for the race. I think I might try that next time.

Course & Timing

David: The race was timed using disposable chips by PA runners. The course was two loops with no mile markers. While intersections were blocked off by volunteers, the course was not clearly marked. There were faint, pinkish-purple ribbons spray-painted on the road, but they were difficult to see, and volunteers at crucial turns did not direct runners. This led to some confusion for those of us in the front of the pack. At one point, I asked for directions on a turn and the person blocking off traffic shrugged his shoulders. At another, I was running beside a guy and he went the wrong way. I went the right way but thought it would be unfair to take advantage of this, so I waited for him to catch up.

The second lap posed a different set of challenges. The race consisted of 2laps for the 5k and 1lap for the walk. On the second lap, many walkers took up the whole road, so I was forced to (i) weave through groups of walkers, (ii) run around walkers, or (iii) call out ahead.

In the end, the race was accurately timed.

Liz: I thought that running two loops would be daunting, but it was actually pretty nice. I liked knowing what to expect for the second half of the race. I passed 15 people during the second loop and I think only 2 people ended up passing me. The old me (1 year ago) would've been passed by 50 people in the second loop because I didn't quite understand how to pace myself at that point.

Post-Race Food, Festivities, & Prizes

David: If there was any food, I didn't see it. I won a medal but it was nondescript since it did not indicate what place I came in. No delicious cash prize for winning. The race was also part of the Sunbury Festival, but that was a bust too. After the race, I bought 6 cookies from a little girl for $1. They were tasty.

Liz: Although there was plenty of water at the end of the race, there was no food! :( I resorted to buying a 50 cent brownie from a street vendor. I learned to always pack a cooler of food, just in case. The festival was ok, but the best parts were seeing all the happy little doggies running around and seeing all the bright colors (mostly pink of course). Oh, and a little girl who was telling us about her last name, Schrek. She owns all of the Shrek movies.

After the race, the door prizes and awards started exactly when they said they would: 10:45 am. They gave away 60 door prizes, including $50 gift cards to Giant, and gift cards to Dick's Sporting Goods. Neither of us won. David did, however, win a nice medal adorned with the pink breast cancer logo.

The Verdict
David: 6/10
Liz: 8/10