On Saturday, June 6th. I'll be running the 12-hour FANS race in Minneapolis. This year I decided to sign up for the "short" race since I just did a 24-hour race one month ago. No need to press my luck!
The FANS 12 & 24 Hour Run supports the FANS Scholarship Fund. FANS, which stands for Family Advocate Network System, is a program initiated in 1989 with a group of sixth-grade students from North and South Minneapolis. The Project has a vision of sending inner-city kids to college or to another post-secondary institution. FANS works with the youth and their families in a wide variety of activities geared to providing support for the vision.
Besides being a great cause, the race itself is first-rate. The course is a bit of a challenge, about 2 and one-half miles around Lake Nokomis, encompassing pavement, concrete, and grass with "Mount Nokomis" thrown in for good measure.
I plan to run a relaxed race so I can then have some time to visit with my sisters and Mom, all living in the Minneapolis area. They have had little rain this spring but I'm hoping any bad weather will hold off at least for Saturday. In previous years (have done 4 prior FANS), I've only encountered hot and humid weather, no rain. But, no matter what happens, it should be an enjoyable day at the lake.
Looks like it'll be cool this year at FANS for a change - and this year I won't be there (Kettle Moraine instead). Best of luck! The men's 24 hour is going to be a horserace; I'm predicting a new course record (ie 136+).
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised you say the course is a challenge. It's the only 24 hour I've done, so I can't compare. The concrete bridge is hard (literally), but I would think it easier than most.
Maybe because I haven't run super far at FANS, I have it in my head that it's a slow course :) I do think though that the "steep" uphill of Mount Nokomis and the long ascent on the concrete bridge followed by a "steep" descent make the course slighly harder than a typical 24-hour race. Any ups and downs slow me down on a loop course.
ReplyDeleteGood luck at Kettle Morraine! Those "gentle" ups and downs there are deceiving.... If you're looking to run a 24-hour race later this year, check out the Cleveland 24-hour on Oct. 3-4. That will definitely be flat and I'm hoping to see some American records broken!
Good Luck!!! Jill Perry and Coach Ray K will be there too!
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