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Here is the rather large finisher’s medal from the Dallas White Rock Marathon that took place on December 4, 2011.

The marathon had 6,000 runners with the half marathon capped at 13,000.

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[Medal photo submitted by Beth Lynch. Follow her on Twitter @bethlynch]

Here is the finisher’s medal from The Palm Beaches Marathon Festival. I kind of felt like an NFL player in pre-game introductions listing his school as THE Ohio State University….which I hate.

The medal is from the collection of Navin Sadarangani who ran the Palm Beaches Marathon this past weekend as part of a double-marathon weekend. He finished with a time of 3:50:21.  The previous day he ran Reggae Marathon (bling photo) in 3:50:43.

Additional medal photo (below) submitted by Evan Gilead (@wanderingpenman), who along with Lauren Phipps (@HurricanePhipps), finished their first marathon at Palm Beach. Congrats to both of them as well!

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[Medal photo submitted by Navin Sadarangani. Follow him on Twitter @navin48]

We love it when we receive medals from international races. Here is the finisher’s medal from the 2011 Reggae Marathon that took place on December 3, 2011 in Negril, Jamaica.

The medal is from the collection of Navin Sadarangani who ran the Reggae this past weekend as part of a double-marathon weekend. He finished with a time of 3:50:43.  The following day he ran The Palm Beaches Marathon (PBM Bling Pic) in 3:50:21.

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[Medal photo submitted by Navin Sadarangani. Follow him on Twitter @navin48]

Reality TV star Kate Gosselin who rose to fame on Jon & Kate Plus 8 ran her first marathon on Sunday night in Las Vegas.

She finished the Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon in 4:59:21.

Gosselin ran the first half in 2:15:51 before hitting the massive traffic jam of half marathoners on Las Vegas Boulevard (Full Story HERE).

Kate tweeted earlier today, “Good day, all!2 days post marathon &I’m feeling pretty good..still really tired but focusing on what’s next..&still basking in it all!:)”

Gosselin went on to tweet, “So sore last pm-hard X walking..but today less sore&back in heels!:) Yes, ready to start training for next 1…to beat my X!”

So it seems Kate has the marathon bug.  Congrats to her and the inspiration she likely will become for her many followers on Twitter and television.

Follow Kate Gosselin on Twitter

Cover Image of Going Down Slow

The long-awaited book, Going Down Slow – The Times of an Old Man Who Runs, has been released for sale by Amazon. As of this writing, the book’s image and the Editorial Reviews are not yet included on the Amazon web site. In the meantime I am posting those here for readers who would like to browse the book a bit before ordering.

ORDER Going Down Slow HERE

Synopsis: Going Down Slow

The word “runs” appears in the subtitle of this memoir, and the act of running spans the breadth of it. So it is perhaps fair if some call this a running book. Running, however, is not the main topic. Adventure is. Author Dallas Smith is drawn to the adventure his hobby brings. Running is indeed a constant presence in the stories, but mostly as a current that sweeps him along, the reason he encounters the places he describes, the people he meets, and the adventure he finds. Running connects him to everything and everyone.

Events and episodes vary widely, as do the locales where they play out, stretching from the urbane glamour of Stockholm, Sweden to Spain’s El Camino de Santiago to the tussocks of the Arctic tundra to a flood-scoured gorge in Tennessee—and places in between. A run through Central Park suddenly shifts and takes the reader on a fishing trip where three adolescent boys of a distant time and place pulled sagging carp out of a muddy swamp and lugged their haul home. Smith finds adventures and brings them home.

This sprawling story delights and surprises readers. Smith brings observation, insight, and wit. His narrative flows like the smooth stride of a fast runner and makes the reader feel as if he, too, were there experiencing the color and danger of these episodic adventures.

Editorial Reviews

“A legendary runner and master storyteller has triumphed again…But the real victory belongs to the person who reads Going Down Slow…by Dallas Smith, one of the most remarkable athletes on the planet…Whether you’re an accomplished distance runner, [or] an around-the-block jogger…you won’t be able to put this book down. It’s that good…Much of his writing is pure poetry…” Corky Simpson, Green Valley News, AZ

“If Hemingway had been a runner his name would have been Dallas Smith. In his second book, Dallas shows that he is not a runner pretending to write but rather a gangsta of prose wrapping words smoothly around sweaty sneakers and singlets that make you feel as if you were there with him on his running escapades and tales of human compassion.” Joshua Holmes, CEO of Phoenix Publishing, founder of RunItFast.com

“His M.O. combines the relentlessness of a Terminator with the gregariousness of a yearling Labrador retriever. The people he meets confess, vent, advocate, and otherwise reveal their most cherished convictions and thereby obtain a voice to the world…what Smith learns and imparts to the reader is often surprising.” Stan Lawrence, songwriter, mandolin and vocals, Music City Flyboys

“Competitive running probably satisfies many goals for Dallas Smith, but chief among them must be the opportunity to observe humanity in all of its colors and then tell stories about what he saw. It’s the small observations amid lofty thoughts that reveal the soul of this author. Beset with physical and emotional misery after a disappointing marathon in Stockholm, he finds the smile of a stranger brings joy and tenderness to the moment, an experience he links seamlessly to the writing of Saint-Exupery.” Michael Redding, Ph.D., Professor of Anatomy and Physiology, Tennessee Tech University

“Dallas Smith uses his keen observation ability and his endurance running skill to tell wonderful stories…” Diana Bibeau, president of Nashville Striders

“Pour yourself a big glass of wine, throw a few logs on the fireplace, and snuggle up in a comfortable chair. You are about to be entertained by the tales of a master storyteller… This latest compilation…is honest, poignant, and heartwrenching…” Amy Dodson, ultrarunner, two-time ITU World Paratriathlon Champion

“Dallas Smith is a masterful writer and storyteller, illuminating that whole range of passion that now thrills and now torments the human heart…” Charles Denning, former executive editor of Herald-Citizen, TN

I ran the Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon last night and it was the worst put on marathon that I’ve ever toed the starting line for.  I’ve run 42 marathons/ultras and this one took the cake for futility by a long shot.

8,000 of us full marathoners started at 4:00pm with 36,000 half marathoners starting at 5:30pm.  The full marathoners started and immediately left the strip for about 85 turns in the first 13 miles before we returned to the strip.  When we did we merged with the half marathoners onto 2 and 3 lanes of the road. Most of us merging were relatively fast marathoners. Not superstars but not near the back of the pack either. We were merging with half marathon corrals 30-44….slower half marathoners that were dominating all lanes of the road.  Not all but many of which were walking.

The marathoners were supposed to have the far left lane but it was unenforced and unenforceable.

Bedlam ensued!

Runners were pushing slower runners out of the way. Walkers were hitting runners with their swinging arms. Several runners bit the asphalt. Runners were having to hop the sidewalk, when possible, to get past slow logjams.  Runners were cussing at other runners and walkers.

I overhead a pious marathoner on the plane this morning say this. “I was running and these two walkers were swinging their arms wide leaving me no room. So I pushed their arms out of the way and ran through them.  They called me a ‘f**ing a**hole’ and I yelled back to them, ‘Maybe if you were faster you could speed up and kick my a**.'”

Just horrible!

I’ve read several tweets about runners having to be rushed to the hospital last night because of the conditions and over-crowding.

And you can imagine when a combined 40,000 runners plus would come upon 3 tables of water or Cytomax that the pushing, shoving and slowdown only intensified.

Rumor has it that the RNR people want to have 61,000 at the race next year to set the world record.  If they allow that many runners in next year without extreme improvement then an even bigger disaster awaits them.

I felt bad for runners running their first full or half marathon.  What a bad experience and taste to be left in one’s mouth from this marathon of a disaster. I hope they find a smaller, more organic race in the near future to baptise them anew with how great and fun our sport can be under better circumstances.

Everyone I’ve talked to that ran was upset and outraged in a similar fashion.  Some of the best complaints were on the RNR Las Vegas Marathon/Half Marathon Facebook page.

Comments from Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon & Half Marathon Facebook Page:

Holly Miller – What is the value of a full marathon medal when you hand them out to half marathon participants? Sad and disappointed to hear the bands complaining that their fingers hurt, and the cherry on top- green bananas! I ran California International Marathon in the morning before running Vegas that night and I am blown away that for half the price CIM offered a significantly better experience.

Philip Rupp – This marathon was my 13th marathon that I have done. I have done small races that have less then 1,000 people and large races like NY and Chicago. But I have to say I would not recommend for any to do this marathon. I would recommend the half. The full is not worth it. They might as well just get rid of the marathon and only have the half. 3,766 finishers in the full and 33,123 in the half. Us in the full were treated like second class citizens and we paid more to do the race. Also agreed very unsafe.

Jason Turner – This is one of those rare occasions that a dis like or extemely dislike button would be incredibly useful on facebook. After having to literally run 3 miles from Wynn to the start, because the shuttles abandoned a few hundred people at Wynn, I found the course poorly laid out and cramped. Total crap I want a refund.

Violeta Lopez – Well I know you have been bombarded by ugly comments, its my third year running LV ..planning to go back every year EVEN if it goes UP to $175 which is kind of ridiculous… anyways I ran the full, the cut out for it was 4:30… how can u expect runners to finish in that time if there was so many Half marathoners walking right after we hit the strip, I think you planning this to be a Half marathMaybe poles with a string to divide the side for the half and the full like in the SF marathon at the Golden Bridge, Im not blaming any half marathoners here its just you and your bad organization on this event, we are already tired from running 13.1 to be putting up with this mess, not to mention the price we did PAY for it!!! thank you and i hope in one future you will solve this problem i think is a pretty neat idea but it needs to be planned a little more!

Lisa Miller – I have participated in over 20 marathons/half-marathons and the logistics following this one were the worst ever. I was one of the thousands of people trapped in the Mandalay Bay walkways with no where to go. The crowd wasn’t moving, people were trying to go in opposite directions and people were passing out all around me. It took over 30 minutes for security personnel to arrive and attempt to disperse the crowds. Once the crowds started moving there were over a dozen people on the ground that had to be treated by emergency personnel. This was definitely a nightmare!

Jason Lee Schenck – Ok, I have to get this off my chest. So, I finished the first half in 1:49, so I had a decent pace going…until we merged with the halfers. Many were walking in the marathon lane and slowed my pace to 11:00/mile. When a group of girls were walking in the marathon lane and I couldn’t get around them, I yelled, “Half to the right…please!”. One of the girls turned around got in my face & yelled..

Greta Hanson – Am completely blown away by the overwhelming lack of response by the RNR team and those who support this page. Their lack of communication and acknowledgement of what went down last night puts the final nail in the coffin: I will never run another RNR rave or event put on by Competitor. It’s clear they have no concern for the runners or their experience.

Walt Schneider – Little tired of the “What did you expect?” comments. If you are a runner and you signed up for a “Marathon”, I think you would expect it to be conducted like a Marathon and not just a clever title like the World’s Largest Night Run.

Charlene Ragsdale – You money hungry mongers! U were so ill equipped to handle this event. I spent the night in the hospital because of your lack of willingness to provide medical care. I am a 1:44 half.marathoner and hv run several night races. I am done with RnR. Hope you get sued.

Jenee’ Blundell – I won’t repost all of the previous complaints about the race itself, which are valid in my opinion. But I feel the need to repost to the half marathoners…as said previously us marathoners had a tiny, broke up, slanted, wet part of the road you all had a very large space. I spent my second half jumping up and down curbs and dodging half marathoners that were in our lane. I was pissed every time I had to scurry around a half marathoner that was rudely in our section! Respect the distance of the marathon and respect fellow runners. I love runners because everyone is so positive and encouraging and we support one another in our efforts to reach our goals. I wasn’t feeling that last night.

John Valli – I volunteered in medical at the finish line but I spent most of the time in (attempted) crowd control since it is hard to spot somebody fall when 500 people are jammed into such a small area. I saw lots of bottlenecks at photos and medals but was unable to do anything about it. I know they were well short on volunteers this year but even apart from that as has been stated many times, there just wasn’t enough planning to make a 40,000+ person race run smooth.

Gael Henville – If you want to right all of the wrongs of yesterday; you should consider the power of your bosses: runners. I do hope your PR folks are hard at work with a satisfactory response and a respectful compensation for yesterday’s epic disaster of a race. To not address these issues in a timely manner would be a great injustice to me and my fellow running mates. In advance, thank you.

Karen Schroeder – This race was ridiculous. I can’t believe you all actually CHOSE to put that many people on the strip and START them so that they could run together. That togetherness was an utter nightmare. You cost a lot of people their PRs and caused too many injuries related to over crowding. I’m sorry, Rock and Roll, but you’ve lost many customers. Get your stuff together. I’m leaving extremely frustrated that I invested and actually PAID for this “experience.”

Rachna Sizemore Heizer – And the half marathoners who complained about being asked to leave the 3 feet wide lane allotted to the full marathoners – really?? You all had 90% of the road and you complained about being asked to move into your own lane? The marathoners were given the worst part of the street – the slant of the road, the sticky part next to the water tables AND the widest turns on all the turns and you still complained because you couldn’t have the entire road to your disposal?? Respect the distance we were running and your fellow runners. Shame on you.

Jon Chernila – The crowding at the merge of the full with the half should not have come as a surprise to RnR. I passed on a chance to pace the 3:50 group once I figure out this WAS going to happen. I emailed the RD and posted about it on this page a couple months ago. With a 90 minute start differential, only the fastest marathoners were going to get past the merge without a crowd. Starting the full 30-45 minutes earlier would have solved most of the problem.

Steve Reincke – As a runner that trained for 7 months to do a 3:40 full I was on track until I hit the WALL of people at the 1/2. No control of the Full vs. Half lanes was so disappointing! Ran 8:04 miles for the first 1/2 then over 10 minutes per mile killed my opportunity for PR. TOO many runners for too narrow of a course. GREED rears it’s ugly head on the LV R&R Marathon!

DeAnn Mena – My very first half marathon event so I really don’t have much to compare it too. However what happened inside the mandalay bay was absolutely horrible, unsafe, and totally inexcusable. Running out of water, citomax, was also very unsafe!!! Not having enough medals for people is just downright rediculous. And wtf is up with your sizing chart of the tshirts?

Jennifer Lucas – The actual half course was great! The amount of people on the course that were clueless about race edicate was dangerous. The volunteers needed better information and commitment. With 44,000 people and compact conditions PEOPLE WITH HIKING/WALKING POLES, DOGS ON LEASHES AND BABY STROLLERS SHOULD NEVER BE ALLOWED TO RACE AND REMOVED IMMEDIATELY.

Kelsey Sibanda – I ran the half and felt awful for the marathoners. Bummer that they shoved you all into a sliver of the road and didn’t clearly mark where the line was. And I’m still not sure how so many walkers were in front of me. That is just bad etiquette. Stay with your corral and if you need to walk a little, stay to the right for everyone’s safety.

Raegan Carter – This was my first RnR event and my first half marathon. I started in corral 39 since I knew I’d be slow. First half of the race was fine (except for tying to stay out of the way of the marathoners- why the hell they planned it to merge marathoners with half-ers who planned to finish in 3:30 is beyond me), second half was horrible. Water and cytomax were gone by the time I got to the stations.

Rosie Bava – I’ve never been told to f*ck off or shut up by so many half marathoners who I dodged or politely asked to move out of the way.

Tava Bingham – What happened in Vegas clearly did not stay in Vegas. Surprised neither Rock ‘n’ Roll nor Competitor have made a statement.

Nancy Howard – If participation is anything more than what it was this year (rumor has it in the 60,000 range), TRUST ME, I will NOT be back. While I do appreciate walker participation, to have them walk 4-5 abreast was just too much. This race and the expense of traveling to this event left a very bitter experience. I must say not one person I have spoken with has not had at least one negative comment…the biggest for me…getting stuck at the finish line and unable to cross the mat due to the traffic jam. Thankfully this was not my first nor a race I was trying to PR

Denise Clancy Zack – Lackluster ending to a bitter-sweet journey… RnR 1/2 #10 ROCK IDOL for me. Felt great stopping at marathon mile 25 to help a marathoner in trouble get back on track and get her across the finish line… Only to find out there were no finisher medals left, no-post race fuel, volunteers all gone, photo guys wrapping up… and I wasn’t even last! Before you decide to host an event with this many folks again – you should make sure you have all your “medals” in a row… especially with all the money folks spend to make these events successful.

Bill Egan – First and Last Las Vegas R n R even for my wife, sister and me! Not worth repeating all the fails. Will recommend to all in the Phx area to stay away.

Elizabeth Bittner – the Vegas race chaotic! They had the Full runners meet up with the Halfer around the mid point which made it super crowded. One guy actually pushed me aside and said “get out of the way of the elite runners!”

Tara Boyle – The coordinators should be removed and an apology issued to those of us who participated and a meeting with city officials to coordinate a better route for the race, more blocked off safety for the marathon course to keep it separate from the 1/2 and actual provisions on the race route. Thanks for the pamphlet on safety and hydration – how about you read it before the next event.

Brian Pursel – I felt really bad for the marathoners. I was (on the right side of the cones) near the 3:20 pacer and witnessed a lot of angry and frustrated marathoners getting trapped by half marathoners in the left lane. I blame the organizers for poor communication and enforcement. Many first time half marathoners probably had no idea they were sharing the road with full marathoners until hearing “HALF MARATH

Breanna Rebman – I’m very sad that a good course and a great first half marathon run was overshadowed by the scary chaos at the end…I questioned after last night whether this was my first and last half …luckily many have told me that wasn’t typical…I will probably do another but I really hope I am not disappointed again

Christie Henderson – My running partner and I trained our hearts out for a personal best marathon and ended up smack in the middle of the 2.5hr half marathon crowd back at Mandalay. We ended up at 3:54 vs 3:40 and I have bruised ribs from being elbowed by slower runners in the marathon lane. Great scenery for 12 of the 42k. Mixing marathoners with halfers in that fashion is not good for anyone. Great city – disappointing the race went the way it did.

Jen Lee – Wow where to start? positives: the strip was beautiful. Negatives: what everyone else is saying-I’m too sore to type—first race I’ve been this sore after…since I had to run around everyone, jump curbs, zig zag and try to tread lightly over all the empty gel packs/water cups-eventually I knew there was no hope of recovering my usual pace.

Kate Spencer – I got so sick – nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, that I ended up in the hospital, this marathon is going to cost me a lot more than the entry fee!! Cytomax and bad water???

Dawn Hurley-Trogdon – 4th year running the strip. This year compares to how the race was organized before RnR took over. Sad for Vegas!! And of course all of us 44k runners.

Stephanie Stinson Barras – Just got a “sorry we ran out medals here is $10 off for your next race” email. Seriously?! I can get $10 with any random discount code. EPIC FAIL!!!

Sintasera Sorbetes – This is my 3rd half marathon this year and it was very disorganized. I also saw a lot of runners LITERALLY pushing others out of the way and hitting the volunteers with empty cups of water (some filled with a little water)…I had to stop and apologize on behalf of these people who were very rude. This is my first and definitely my last Rock n’ Roll marathon. It’s a shame since I actually encouraged at least 5 other people to join and some of them were traumatized by this event. NEVER. AGAIN.

Las Vegas Review Journal: Las Vegas Marathon Runners Say They Were Sickened by Bad Water

Did you run it? Leave a comment with your thoughts!

Flat and fast would describe the Mississippi Gulf Coast Marathon. Colorful and unique would describe the finisher’s medal from the 21st anniversary of this 26.2 mile race that took place on November 26, 2011.

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[Medal photo submitted by David Wilson. Follow him on Twitter @DavidRoadRunner]

Here is the finisher’s medal from North Carolina Marathon.

The marathon took place in High Point, North Carolina on November 19, 2011.

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North Carolina Marathon Website

[Medal photo submitted by Nathan Kreeger. Nathan ran a 3:28:38 in his first road marathon.  Follow him on Twitter @KreegSauceRuns]

Kenyan Marko Cheseto, an All-American runner for the University of Alaska-Anchorage, had both of his feet amputated due to severe frostbite, after he disappeared for over 48 hours in Anchorage.  Both feet were amputated above the ankle.

Cheseto disappeared on Sunday evening, Nov. 6, wearing jeans, running shoes and a light jacket — no gloves, no hat, no boots, no cellphone. It snowed more than a foot while he was missing and temperatures dropped into single digits.

Then, at about 3 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 9, he was found wandering outside a hotel near the university. The night manager at the SpringHill Suites said paramedics who responded to the hotel’s 911 call were unable to remove Cheseto’s shoes because they were frozen to his feet.

Cheseto was hospitalized with hypothermia and severe frostbite at Providence Alaska Medical Center, where he remains, the university said.

Marko seemed apologetic for his disappearance and vowed to help pay back the Anchorage community for it’s support of him.

“As some may know, I’ve been going through a lot of personal issues,” Cheseto said. “While I am still recovering — both physically and emotionally — I will do my very best to give back to the community that has helped me so much and to my home country, Kenya.

Cheseto recently had to deal with the suicide death of fellow countryman and teammate, William Ritekwiang, who killed himself back in the Spring.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Marko. Hopefully, he can recover and finish his education at UAA where he has been excelling in the classroom.

2011 Flying Monkey Marathon Winner Ben Schneider

Minneapolis native Ben Schneider won his 4th consecutive Harpeth Hills Flying Monkey Marathon on Sunday with a time of 2:38:38.

Here are his winning times from the past four years (most recent first): 2:38:38, 2:38:27, 2:38:56, and 2:36:25.

Gary ‘Avatar’ Krugger, the 2nd human to run a sub-3 hour marathon in all 50 states, came in second place in 2:55:51.  Feb ‘The Great Memphian’ Boswell rounded out the podium with a fleet 3:00:36.

Side note: John ‘You all know what I had for breakfast’ Ramsay came in fourth place.

Top 10 Flying Monkey Marathon Men

1. Ben Schneider – 2:38:38
2. Gary Krugger – 2:55:51
3. Feb Boswell – 3:00:36
4. John Ramsay – 3:00:45
5. Greg Kyle – 3:04:19
6. Jeff Mires – 3:07:36
7. Doug Boomer – 3:15:00
8. Josh Hite – 3:18:10
9. Jason Chidester – 3:19:49
10. Drew Watson – 3:20:40

Flying Monkey Female Winner Traci Falbo with Fan Club

Traci Falbo repeated as the female winner of The Monkey.  She blistered her competition with a 3:13:49 and finished 7th overall.

She ran a 3:21:43 last year in winning and a 3:44:28 back in 2009.  Congrats to Traci on the repeat!

Meredith Smith was the 2nd female Monkey across in 3:26:51 while Candice Schneider, wife of Ben (overall winner), took third place in 3:31:04

Top 10 Flying Monkey Marathon Women

1. Traci Falbo – 3:13:49
2. Meredith Smith – 3:26:51
3. Candice Schneider – 3:31:04
4. Theresa Saupe – 3:37:56
5. Rachel Randall – 3:43:06
6. Kristen Suvick – 3:43:28
7. Stephanie Spurgat – 3:47:03
8. Ashlee Tidwell – 3:47:23
9. Sonia Mariano – 3:54:17
10. Jessica Vihon – 3:54:25

2011 Harpeth Hills Flying Monkey Marathon Medal

View ALL of the 2011 Flying Monkey Race Results BELOW Read the full story