MCM 50th Review – Patriotic Heart, Crowded Start, Epic Finish

Lea Reyes(HF16015, DA2891, MM13731)– State #27, marathon #122. MCM review. A little late because I was traveling for work this week.
Waited for two years to run this race for its 50th anniversary. I knew it was going to be crazy and packed. I believe 42,000 registered runners but only 30K + crossed the finish line. It was an amazing race for sure. I ran this in honor of my family, and my aunts and uncles who have served, my cousins and their children who are serving and for those who have fallen. It was very patriotic and an honor to run.
I stayed in downtown Washington DC and the Metro was right across the street. Metro was absolutely packed as you can see in my photos. Everyone was a little frustrated with the first stop for the porta potties because there weren’t very many only to find out that if we kept walking there were way more with no lines and also along the corrals. I waited an hour in line. It was crazy. It was cool to be by the Pentagon. I appreciated the Marines who were constantly helping and guiding everybody to where they needed to go.
The crowds were so packed we were routed to the other side to get in. From there, it was shoulder to shoulder. Many runners were frustrated with the walkers because they kept blocking a lot of the course and runners had to dodge everything around them. I felt like I was on the 405 freeway passing cars who were going 65 in a 75 mile zone. I definitely had to watch my footing because I almost stepped on a dead raccoon. The weather was absolutely perfect. I carried my 2L because I avoided all aid stations. Way too many people. The crowds were great in many areas, and you saw marines along the entire course rooting us on, giving us high fives.
I stopped by the run to remember booth at the expo and chose a sergeant to run for. I couldn’t get past that booth without bawling my eyes out. It was so sad. The blue mile was very emotional. Many families were there by their loved one. It was so sad to see the ages of many that have fallen, and I could not imagine what their families have gone through.
The sticky mile. LOL! Everyone talked about this because they were passing out some syrup electrolyte type product which I didn’t take, but we ran for about a mile with our shoes sticking to the ground. It was a funny sound for a mile or longer.
The finishers village was crazy and that took about an hour and a half to get through. I did enjoy the Marines giving out medals. I absolutely loved the swag, but it was a very long walk and we had to go down a hill to get out of the finishers village. I saw many people taking two blankets, which was not cool because many runners left without getting one.
It was about a 10 minute walk to the metro after exiting the finishers village. I waited in line for an hour. And then you saw a bunch of people cutting in line and that pissed off people. 10 minute Metro ride to my hotel stop. I was definitely tired after this race because I haven’t been able to get my miles in. Plus I had major stomach issues and had to stop a lot.
Overall, I did really enjoy this race, but I probably won’t do it again until I finish all my other goals. I think it was just crazy packed because it was the 50th but when you look at past race results, it’s not as crowded.