Musings on Island's First Half Marathon

by David Glidden

The Nantucket Half Marathon is a new race for runners organized by the year-old Nantucket Triathlon Club.  The half marathon distance is the fastest growing segment of running, with aging marathoners tapering down and those accomplished at the 5k looking for a new challenge.

I sat down with Jason Bridges, president of the club and entrepreneurial founder of Nantucket Bike Tours recently.  Jason related that runners who live on-island require extra time and must pay extra costs to participate in mainland competitions.  This has enhanced the need for this 13.1 mile foot race that starts at the Lighthouse School at Rugged Rd.  He added that the race date of Sun. Oct. 9, smack in the middle of Columbus Day weekend, surely enticed most of the 125 runners already committed.

The scenic course will take runners west on Fairgrounds Road to Surfside Road, flanks left on the Boulevard, then to the Nobadeer Beach just south of the airport, where the most dramatic sea-side vistas lie.  The runners will surely be challenged by soft sand on the dunes.  At Madequecham the race tracks a dirt road east for a couple of miles.

I myself ran out there recently, and eagerly agreed with Jason that the glacial outwash plain is reminiscent of Scotland or Ireland.  That means it could be breezy or foggy during the half-marathon.  One might spot another lone runner's footprints, with many of the island's deer tracks crisscrossing the roads.

At Tom Nevers Field, the sight of an old Navy base is the halfway point where there will be toilets, water, and a food gel.  As the runners wind around the ball field, the beauty of Tom Never's enfolds, one might even see a seal in search of a bluefish breakfast.  Then it is a nice flat pavement, where runners will encounter vehicles.  Reaching the Milestone bike path, it's a 4-mile straight shot to the Rotary, and from there it is only about 8/10  mile to the school on Rugged Road and the finish line.
Jason and I concurred the half marathon distance might seem daunting, but finding partners to train with will push and pull you along, hence another valued resource of belonging to a club or group. The web sights runnersworld.com  and marathonrookie.com have training tips,and training schedules.  One can go  to coolrunning.com, logging on to get a wristband with times for each mile of any race. Some even check out other runners times by simply entering the friends name on a search bar.
MapMyRun.com  is another sight I frequently use to chronicle my island runs. It is like Mapquest, except you trace your route on a map anywhere in the U.S.

The triathlon club will have volunteers manning water stations, and police at the major road intersections.  There will be a Juniors run of 3/4 mile at 7:30 a.m. followed by the official start at 8 a.m. For those who wish to compete as a team, there is a relay division.  Cost to participate is $50 for an individual. You can register at Active.com using a major credit card, and sign a waiver too. Since it's an early start, this inaugural race has a limit of 250  maximum racers.  There is some parking at Beach Plum Village, a block away on Rugged Road.  The start is 2 miles from the boat docks and from the airport. There will be some food and drink, a finisher's medal, as well as a tech shirt.

May these musings inspire those moms with strollers, light joggers, casual walkers, and anybody else wanting to experience all the joys and pains of running this beautiful little island. Happy running to y'all!