Friday
Friday afternoon I hopped on a train to Philly and got there with plenty of time to check in to the hotel, wander around the city, and grab a snack before I headed to Lloyd Hall for packet pick-up. I had no idea what to expect. I knew that, as a Lone Ranger, I would need to get my vitals taken, but I didn't know if there would be a lot of people there, if I would have a long wait, or if I would have a lot of paperwork to fill out.
I had no reason to be apprehensive about packet pick-up. I was in and out of there in less than 30 minutes. The packet pick-up tables were clearly labeled and I was able to walk right up and grab my gear. After that, I filled out a quick form which asked for emergency contact information and basic medical history, then weighed in and got my temperature, blood pressure, and pulse taken. While the area where medics were taking vitals looked a bit crowded, I got through there very quickly and got a chance to chat with some volunteers and fellow Lone Rangers while I was hanging out.
You can't tell from the photo above, but there were as many volunteers (in light blue shirts) and medics (in dark blue shirts) as runners!
After finishing up at Lloyd Hall I headed back to the hotel to clean up before having my last "real" meal for a while. My stepmother and I had dinner at D'Angelo's, an amazing Italian restaurant a block from Rittenhouse Square. Our server was a marathon runner; once he heard what I was doing he asked me about my race strategy. I felt like an idiot telling him I didn't have a plan other than "run the first two laps, then listen to my body," but it was the truth.
Saturday
20in24 doesn't start until 10am, but I'd learned through various blogs that I should get to Lloyd Hall early to stake out a spot. With that in mind, I got up at 7am (still sleeping in by my race day standards), grabbed a quick breakfast, and got going. We got to Lloyd Hall around 8am and got lucky finding a really close parking spot on the street. Street parking in that area is really tough, so 20in24 sets up a "loading zone" for Lone Rangers and relay teams to drop their stuff off. After that, you're on your own regarding parking. Our luck continued and we found a great spot to camp out right near the start/finish line.
That's about where our luck ended. It started raining.
I'm not averse to running in the rain; however, my family is not big on camping and we don't own any tents, tarps, or other gear designed to keep people and their stuff dry in inclement weather. I'd borrowed a tent from my friend Matt, but it was a backpacking tent meant for one person to sleep in. While that would keep my gear dry, it wouldn't keep me and my family out of the rain. There was a Dick's Sporting Goods about 20 minutes away, so my stepmother bought a 10'x10' canopy and a tarp. If you are going to run this race, rain or shine, buy a canopy. It will keep you, your gear, and your crew dry when it's raining and shaded when it's sunny. I'd also recommend bringing some camp chairs (which can double as racks to air out stinky running gear when no one is sitting in them) and a sleeping bag. I didn't end up using my sleeping bag, but had the conditions been different I would have used it to at least take a nap.
Making use of a camp chair to change my shoes. Our canopy is behind me.
While my stepmom was handling how to keep my gear dry, I headed off to a pre-race info meeting. Anne Mahlum, the Founder and CEO of Back on My Feet, welcomed us and ran us through everything we would need to know.
Once she was done, Stroehmann, the title sponsor of 20in24, presented a check for $75,000 to BoMF. It was a great reminder of why we were all there and got things started on a positive note.
After the meeting wrapped up, we headed to the start line...
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