Panic in the Dark 2015

This is my second year running Panic, and I was greatly looking forward to this run. Its a non-competitve fun scare run with zombies. Think running through a haunted trail versus being chased. Within two weeks of the event, we were informed via e-mail and facebook that the venue for the “festival” was changed from the Lowell Memorial to the Holy Ghost Society. It was well communicated and easy to get to, but the change also brought a $10 parking fee, which had been a find your own, probably free, situation in the past. It is a catch 22 to me, on the one hand, parking was a cinch and I was within steps of the festival/after party, but on the other hand, I have to pay. A few locals did park 0.25mi away at the Hannafords and solved that problem (if at the same venue next year, I’ll surely do the same).

As far as getting to the Holy Ghost Society, it was mostly very easy. It is within a mile of coming off of 495, however the street the building is on is dark and signage was not on the corner of rt38, which would have been much appreciated. Parking was not regulated, and unfortunately I noticed in a few places where 3 cars parked in line, blocking in the middle guy. I didn’t envy him. Its a very dark parking lot and the lines were not well marked, so while I’m sure people were doing their best, a volunteer directing parking would have eradicated this problem. Thankfully, the parking lot is right in front of the Holy Ghost Society, mere steps from the parking.

Upon entering the building, the party was more or less easy enough to find. Check in was directly on the left upon entering the hall. Things weren't overly clear here. I saw check-in was separated by last name, however, we needed to sign a waiver, which was not obvious, and I actually went to check-in and was redirected to the waiver table.The waiver table was on the other side of the hall entrance. As you can imagine, this created a bit of a bottle neck situation for those trying to get in out of the hall. All in all, I checked-in and got my bib in about 5 minutes. However, your shirt came from another table, which was on the far side of the hall, and was not overly obvious. I had to ask fellow teammates where they got their t-shirts, and was asked multiple times myself.

As the biggest team for this event, the NE Spahtens had their owned taped off area in the far left corner of the room with plenty of tables and seats for the group, as well as t-shirts with the NES logo on the back, which is pretty phenomenal. The hall was plenty large enough for all of the patrons attending, however, signage was seriously lacking. Also, comparing to last year, the team had their own fruit and snack tray to share in our biggest team area, which was not there this year. It is certainly not a deal breaker, but was noted. Finally, it was not overly obvious where to go when they called your heat time, nor was it always obvious that the heat time was being called. Due to a band, a DJ, and general noise, the “emcee” wasn’t overly loud while on the microphone. Easy to tune out, unfortunately.

When the time came for my heat, I followed fellow teammates to a small side room where the bar was located, wondering if we were in the right place. Eventually, a soldier dressed “emcee” (I use this word as he was the guy who set us off on our way, so while playing a role, he was essentially what other races would call the emcee), pointed us to another room off the bar and told us to pack in and grab headlamps (I had brought mine). It was a small room and got cramped fast, and thankfully he brought us outside to give us the overview. He did a decent job on his own. Last year, there were 2-3 guys doing the pre-run chat, and were more intimidating, making the whole feel of the race more effective. He gave us the talk while walking us on the bus to leave the “safe zone” and run through the zombie apocalypse.

It was a very short bus ride to the start of the race. As soon as we arrived, a guy with a V for Vendetta mask ran on the bus told us to get off and run. Last year there was way more theatrics with this. I didn’t mind, but it felt a hair confusing. We started running on an obviously altered course from last year. We went about a 1/4 mile before arriving to the first obstacle; a wall, and ran even longer before we met the first zombie.

I’m not going to break down the race, as this is a fun run, and the obstacles are meant for all athletic levels. However, I will note that in comparison to last year, the race was significantly shorter (last year being just shy of 3 miles), tapping somewhere around 2.25, and the amount of obstacles and zombies were also significantly reduced. Also, last year, the school was meant to be a maze, but other than figuring out how to get into the school, the path we're supposed to take was incredibly obvious, with almost no opportunity to go the wrong way, which I found an extremely entertaining part of last year. There were a very small handful of zombies in the school, as well, taking much of the fear factor out, where one could argue it was the scariest section of last year’s race.

Had I never run this race before, I could easily say it was a lot of fun, being exactly what it advertised itself to be. However, I did run this race last year, and this year was very obviously a diminished version of the run. I was really looking forward to more fun and zombies with such better weather this year, and it didn’t deliver.

The medals were very similar to last year, however tinged red. I still like them. The after-party did delivery your choice of chili (vegetarian or beef) or tortilla soup. There was a very reasonably priced cash bar, which was enjoyed by most attendees. The band was awesome this year! They sang well and had a lot of stage presence. There were a few sponsors; align bank (which gave you a bunch of goodies with your race t-shirt), shock top beer (which offered free t-shirts, as well as free beer and apps at the after after party at a bar a quarter mile down the road), and a local radio station that DJ’d when the band rested, as well as offered a bunch of goodies like koozies and sunglasses. Finally, there was also a race store area where you could purchase Panic in the Dark goods.

Overall, I’d rate this race as a 6 out of 10. It was incredibly affordable, and a great Halloween themed run, that is fun for anyone who enjoys to be a little scared. However, I’d really like to see the race get back to a true 5k (we know the park can do this), and see a lot more zombies, or even just change it up to be a haunted trail run (incorporating other themes with the zombies). There is so much potential that I hope to see come back next year.

Run the Gauntlet 2015

The second race that Denali New Haven put on this year for charity was Run the Gauntlet at Hammonasett Beach in Madison, Ct. All proceeds from the race goes directly to charity, this race supporting the local YMCA.

Finding Hammonasett Beach was a breeze. Right off of I-95, and clearly signed. There was not a lot of signs for the race once you got into the park, but when you made it to the first rotary, signs were clear and plentiful. Parking was free! It was also within walking distance to the start line. There was no bag check, however, the race director was willing to stash bags for the Spahtens, and with reasonable time management, you could easily go drop off extra gear back at the car.

From the parking lot, you head to a pavilion where you had check-in. This was a bit messy as there was not any signage or a simple move-through process. A bunch of picnic tables made an L to make the registration. As you walk in, the conjunction of the L was in front of you, and that was where you could look up your bib number. Then you had to proceed to your left to check-in table to get your bib. From there you were to go get your timing chip, so you had to go back to your right, past the bib number table to the other side of the L to get your timing chip. You were given the chip only, told how to put it on, and then sent to a table behind you to get the straps for the chips. However, next to the chip table, on the opposite end of the L from the bib table, is the table to pick up your race shirt. I got a little side tracked here and headed to get my strap for my timing chip and almost forgot my shirt. There were no long lines at any table, but it could have been more streamlined.

From the pavilion, you headed to the beach where the festival was, as well as the start/finish line. The festival was hopping. A live (and good) band playing all day. An emcee getting runners excited. Plenty of vendors for the size of the race. It was a very well done festival. Spectators were free and were enjoying all the festival had to offer. The pizza truck started their wood ovens early and it smelled amazing!

This timing company is a bit different than what you’re used to. There is no clear starting line, and you lined up next to the finish line (which had mats), and I wasn’t really sure where exactly the start line was. The emcee counts down and when he sounded the starting horn, that is when they turn the heat’s time on. It is not a very competitive event (although there are prizes for placing), so the exact time of when you cross this start line is not important, but I’m not used to the system and I’m not sure I like it. Even if they’re going to start the clock with the horn, I would still like a clear starting line.

From the start line, we headed straight down the beach for just over 1 mile. Running on the sand is hands down the hardest part of this race. The sand was loose, the wet sand became loose, the sand in the water ate your feet. There was no easy place to run, but with a race like this, the challenge of the sand makes the race worth it to a veteran like me. For all the challenge the sand gave, the obstacles were the exact opposite. This is a family friendly race, and meant to have obstacles that can be completed by kids as young as 8. There was not a single man-made obstacle that I found to be even mildly difficult. It is also very obstacle light. For this reason, I’ll give a quick recap of the obstacles present:

-Charlottes’ Web aka a low net crawl (about 15′ long with thick netting keeping you down)
-The Black Hole aka a wide hole in the sand lined and covered with a black liner and partially filled with water, which is to be crawled through
-Alligator Alley aka a balance beam over a hole filled with water with blow-up alligator floats in the water (I found this obstacle incredibly amusing)
-Hammonesett Hurdles aka 3 plastic (road) water-filled barrier walls
-Into the Drink aka go into the ocean to about hip/waste level for 15-20′
-(Not listed) roped slip wall, but with climbing kick boards
– The First Ascent aka cargo A-frame
– (Not listed) Tire jump, which was simply jump onto a large truck tire and jump off the other side
– Prairie Dog aka crawl through plastic sewer tube
– Tired? aka run through tires (football style), with a need to climb over a stack of tires in the middle
– (Not listed) a lifted 4′ wall with kickboards
– Get Over Yourself aka 2 5′ ladder walls to a 4′ platform, and a jump down.
– Dodging Ramen aka another balance beam with a frame above holding tied-on pool noodles, which you have to move through
– Trek to Base Camp aka grab a ruck and do a 50′ ruck
– (Not listed) A 50ft log hop

Just before 1.5mi we came off the beach to our one and only water stop (between the slip wall and the A-frame) to a packed dirt bike path. Around 2.25mi we crossed a driveway, to a sidewalk, crossed the road, jumped a guard rail, which put us on a short dirt trail that brought us to a very shelly beach where the ruck was. Just after the completion of the ruck, you go back to dirt trail, which was much like the typical OCR trail, rocky and a little hilly. We hit up another foot path, where we climbed some stairs, headed back down to the beach to the log hop, and then the finish line was back on the sandy beach within a 100′ of the last log.

This race does not offer a finishers medal in lieu of donating that money to charity. We do, however, get 3 well sized slices of some amazing pizza from Old World Pizza, and 2 beers, a red ale, from a local brewery. There is also a wine sampling table for those who don’t care for beer. The pizza is phenomenal and the beer was good. Also at the finish line was plenty of water and a free baguette of olive oil ciabatta bread from a local bakery. A free bottle of a protein water was also available to all finishers by visiting their tent.

Overall, I enjoyed this race. The obstacles are all as beginner as you can get, but the terrain will challenge even the most hardy racer. The t-shirt is a nice light blue tech t-shirt, but it is as far from my style as it can get, being a sleeved men’s style shirt. It fits my small frame incredibly poorly. It’s easily an above average race, and I recommend it for all fitness levels. Plus, the pizza is amazing! And it’s all for charity.