Frisco Fridays: SFM Representative In Charge

One of the perks of being a San Francisco Marathon Ambassador is representing the San Francisco Marathon.

Most of the time, this representation is virtual - I tweet about the race (follow me @RunnerLuis), I'll post and share things on Facebook and right here on this trusty blog. The personal representation is mostly informal - I have nothing but good things to say when fellow runners talk to or aske me about the San Francisco Marathon (and I say those good things because I mean them).

But there have been a few times where I'm on official SFM business, serving in an official SFM capacity. Friday will be one of those days.

I'm going to be the person in charge of the San Francisco Marathon's booth at the San Diego Half Marathon Expo. For nearly five hours I'll be manning the booth, will help people sign up for the race, will answer questions about it, will show off my medals and the LA/SF Challenge medal as well and will spread the love of my favorite marathon.

I've done it twice before, but there were differences.

I was at the LA Marathon Expo last year and hung out for about 5-6 hours, got to talk to a few people... well, more than a few people I suppose... and spread the love for SFM. Also, at the San Francisco Marathon Expo itself I was there for most of Saturday doing the same.

The difference of course was that I was not alone. I was not in charge save for about an hour when the staffer at last year's LA expo booth went on her lunch.

Ugh.

Alone. In charge. The man.

Nerves.

I'll do well. I think. I hope.

Either way, I'll come back here and report on how it went.

Frisco Fridays: A Glorious San Francisco Shot

It was a great moment.

When I approached the finish line of the 2010 San Francisco Marathon, I felt proud. I felt kind of grown up.

I'd run one marathon before, but this one, the San Francisco Marathon was different. My first marathon - Surf City earlier in the year - was special, so special, and nothing could have taken away from that. But this one was me proving that Surf City was no fluke.

I'd trained for San Francisco by myself, had chosen to run the race, had devised a training plan and executed it by myself. This was my coming-out party. This was me proving that I was indeed a marathoner.

And so when I got close to the finish line, I had to express myself.

I struck what is perhaps my favorite pose of any race picture I've had taken of me.

It was epic.

Glory.

Me saying "I did it!"

Or me saying "Look at me now!"

If you don't know, I plan my poses. I think one of the best things to do in a marathon is to pose at the finish, so you can have a great picture of a great moment. What better moment to show yourself off a little than when you are crossing the finish line (!) of a marathon? So, I plan my poses, before and during the race. At some point, it helps me kind of hang on, keeps me mentally engaged. And then before I know it, the finish line is fastly.... well, maybe not that fast... but it is coming up. Then, time for a pose.

I'd played around with this arms-extended pose, so when I came upon the finish I made sure there wasn't anyone around me (can't have people photobombing my glory), thrust my arms out to the side and... well, there you go.

I just happened to look up at the camera. I remember that vividly. I scanned the ground, off to the side and then just as I was about to step over the finish line I looked up and there was the camera, and it had caught me.

So, ultimately this picture was a series of events that led to a great moment for me. This is it. This pose is it. I haven't repeated it in a finish line shot yet. I mean, I'd be kind of ripping myself off a little bit. So I've left the extended-arms pose alone.

In some ways, that's appropriate. Surf City 2010 was my first marathon, but San Francisco 2010 was my moment to show that I was indeed a bona fide marathoner.

Frisco Fridays: No Thrills Without Hills

Among other things, San Francisco is famous for its hills. The city is as hilly as they come; the locals have places like Russian Hill and Nob Hill named as such in order to differentiate between the sizable behemoths.

Thus, it would be difficult for the San Francisco Marathon to avoid said hills. And it doesn't. Whether you are running the First Half, Second Half or the full marathon, the San Francisco Marathon offers a difficult and challenging course made so by the city's notorious natural feature.

Are the hills enough to scare you away? Are the hills monstrous enough to make the race one to avoid?

Certainly not.

The hills add to the race's allure and mystique. Finishing whichever course you decide to run will really make you feel like you've earned your medal. It's not just any runner, after all, that can take on a challenging course and live to tell about it.

But what exactly are the hills like?

The folks who put on the marathon did us all a favor and took the route away from the city's truly frightening hills. But hills are a prevalent component of the course.

That's the elevation chart for the full marathon. While the First and Second half each stray a bit off the full's course, the elevation for each race is essentially the same as splitting the races in half. With that being said, then, you can see that the course is hilly but not one gigantic hill. The first five miles and the last five miles are, for the most part, flat. So, that's 10 of the 26.2 miles right there. And no, the other 16 is not just one giant hill.

There is in fact no one gigantic straightaway. It's more of a wave of hills, a manageable wave.

The toughest hill is early in the full and more than halfway through the First Half. Once you get off the Golden Gate Bridge, you run a bit further and then start climbing. According to the elevation chart, it's more than 100 feet of elevation gain in less than one mile. That stands out though as the longest single hill on the course.

If you're running the half marathon, the hills might make a difference in which one you choose. If you want to run a faster time, I'd suggest the second half. There are a lot of downhills on the latter part of the course and the finish is flat. If you're unconcerned about time and want to experience the sights, the First Half is a better option. Aside from that monster hill, you have hills at the finish which could impede your time.

There is perhaps one caveat for the full marathon. It would be wise to train downhill. Once you get out of Golden Gate Park - around Mile 19-20 - then you will immediately hit Haight Street, which is a long straightaway of hills. Uphill for a stretch, downhill for another, and so fort and so on. Towards the bottom of some of the downhills in 2012, I was grunting audibly. After a steady diet of hills, the downhills can really do a number on your weakened muscles. At least, they did to mine. So training for downhills would be wise. (As a quick aside, I plan on writing another blog post on how best to tackle your training for this challenging course)

Anyway, the hills are certainly part of the San Francisco Marathon's races but certainly not enough to scare any potential runner away. The hills are tough, yest, but they are also manageable and getting past them is a major part of what makes the race so fulfilling.

Trust me, you won't regret having conquered those hills.

Ambassador Once More

I never thought it was in the bag. Having been part of the San Francisco Marathon's Ambassador team for the 2012 event, I did not feel as if I was going to be picked once more based solely on the basis of that.

So when Monday came and with it the pending announcement that the 2012-13 Ambassador team, I was nervous.

Maybe I hadn't done enough as an Ambassador to merit selection. Maybe there were many more worthy candidates. Perhaps I wasn't Ambassador material this time around. Or maybe they just wanted fresh blood.

Nerves turned into doubt, and eventually I got the email I'd been waiting for.

All those doubts were for nothing. I was indeed chosen to represent the San Francisco Marathon once more.

Exciting!

Here's the official announcement. You'll see my name among the masses. There were 40 Ambassadors selected - 40! - as there were apparently quite a few applicants who were fighting to be involved in the program. I honestly feel humbled and quite proud that my application and my accomplishments stood out from the crowd.

I'm quite looking forward for the event. Yes, it's a ways away but it's not as far away as it could have been. Next year's race will be on June 16, which means my last long run will be on Memorial Day weekend. As of now, I plan on the San Francisco Marathon being my fourth marathon of 2013 which would make it my 12th marathon overall. Wow, how exciting is that??

Anyway, before I get ahead of myself, wanted to let this moment soak in. Gonna revel in this excitement for a little bit before the reality of Sunday hits me. This weekend I will run marathon no. 8, the Long Beach Marathon.

And the best part of that is that I will do so as an official San Francisco Marathon Ambassador.