Race Recap

Flowerfest Marathon Recap 2023

March 27, 2023
Jen Bendewish
1 comment
26.2, marathon, race recap, runner, runners

Flowerfest Marathon, Callaway Gardens, GA (3/18/2023)

The Flowerfest Marathon is part of the TriColumbusGa race series. TriColumbusGa is known for providing high quality, family friendly, and unique experiences for athletes of all levels. I have previously participated in their triathlon races at the sprint and olympic distance.

I was considering three marathons in Georgia: Combos Marathon (formerly Snickers Marathon) in Albany on 3/2/2023, the Flowerfest Marathon in Callaway Gardens on 3/18/2023, or the Chasing Jefferson Davis Marathon on 4/15/2023 in Abbeville. The Combos Marathon was the closest to me, but I chose the Flowerfest Marathon because it was the end of my kids spring break, there were no family scheduling conflicts, and I had read positive reviews about running in Callaway Gardens.

Friday – Travel Day

Having been to the area before, I knew there were few places to eat, so I made sure to pack heavy on snacks and meals. I think I packed enough for five days. I stayed at the Mountain Top Inn Lodge, which had a rustic, mountain cabin feel, with a beautiful view of the valley. The weather was cold, windy, and raining when I arrived. Packet pickup was outside in the windy and cold weather. There was no expo, but a few friendly volunteers that helped me with packet pickup.

Later that evening two friends arrived at the lodge. They had decided to race as well. It had been about 7 years since we had all raced together. I was grateful for their company as it took my mind off the race and my nerves.

Continue reading →

O2 Fitness Charleston Marathon Recap 2018

I made the decision to run the Charleston Marathon just six weeks before the race. I have never signed up and decided to run a marathon on this short of timeframe. I had gotten sick just before the St. Jude Marathon in December and wanted some redemption. Maybe that is just the excuse I will stick with. The Charleston Marathon raises money for Engaging Creative Minds (ECM), a non-profit that helps students.

I love and hate January marathons. I always think they are a great idea and the training will help me stay focused through the holidays and keep me away from all the sweets. Never seems to be the case. I tend to be diligent about getting my long runs in but skip the short weekday runs and eat all the tasty treats anyway. Which means I start January off dreading the first marathon of the year.

After running the St. Jude marathon in early December, I did the Spartan Beast in central Florida the following weekend. I was doing none of the following as I counted down the days to Charleston: diligently stretching, taking care of my body, and getting enough rest. On top of traveling 21 days in December, I also had to be mom, work my day job, meet deadlines for my PhD class, and deal with persistent plantar fasciitis in my right foot which has led to tightening in my right hip and IT band pain in my left knee due to compensating… Anyhow…. none of that was going to stop me.

Friday – Travel Day

Woke up Friday morning to rain in Tallahassee. So, had to pack the car in the rain, and drive seven fun hours in the rain. Of course I made horrible gas station food choices all day and did not focus on hydrating. Luckily, the rain came the day before race day. We made it to the Expo about 5:00pm. The Charleston Marathon usually boasts about 5,000 runners every year and this year those numbers were broken down: 800 5k racers, 3,000 half marathoners, and 1,000 marathoners. Though a small race by marathon standards, the Expo was amazing. O2 Fitness printed all the names of the registrants on a fabric wall, which was placed at the entrance of the Expo. My girls had a blast finding my name. The Expo included over 20 vendors, including free apples, a booth for kids to make custom race signs, a picture zone, free coffee, local shoe stores, official race merchandise, local artists, and more food. I would consider this a smaller race by marathon standards, and their Expo was awesome and made it feel like a much bigger race. Continue reading →

Inaugural Youngstown Marathon Recap 2017

Marathon #7. When you tell people that you are running your seventh marathon they seem to think it will be easier for you. They don’t get easier. Running marathon #7 means I know the pain that awaits after mile 18, the grit it takes to get from mile 22 to mile 25, and the balance of nutrition and moving to keep your stomach in check.

Training for the inaugural Youngstown Marathon was going well and my wonderful friend, Maria, helped me get through the last several long runs during training. I cannot thank her enough for logging those miles with me.

Seven days before the marathon I got food poisoning or a stomach bug, the jury is still out. I wasn’t able to eat for two days and then I slowly introduced bread, crackers, and soup back into the regimen. On Friday, I weighed in at Complete Nutrition and the food poisoning left its mark, I had lost two pounds of muscle in the past week. Continue reading →

2017…. Back in the Saddle

February 19, 2017
Jen Bendewish
0 comments
13.1, 26.2, complete nutrition, half marathon, marathon, run, running, TeamRWB

Seems like just yesterday I was racing IRONMAN, Texas, even though that was almost two years ago. Life threw me a few curve balls through 2015 and 2016, but I am excited to be back in a healthy, active lifestyle and racing again.

I kicked off 2017 with the Big Beach Marathon in Alabama on January 29, 2017. The Big Beach Marathon was the first marathon I ever actually considering quitting. Mile 22 was the infamous mile in which I reached into my FlipBelt, grabbed my phone and texted for a pick up. I got no response from the other end so I kept trudging along. By mile 23 I was upset that I still didn’t get a response and bargained with myself that if I made it to mile 24 that I would go ahead and finish. I ended up finishing. The Big Beach Marathon was indeed my slowest finish time ever, but every once in awhile a humbling experience like that reminds us to be grateful that we can even get out there and complete 26.2 miles.

I followed up the Big Beach Marathon with the Tallahassee Half Marathon a week later. The hilly and beautiful winding course was a welcome change of scenery. I ran the Tallahassee Half Marathon with a friend/coach and catching up on life for 13.1 miles always makes those miles go by a little faster.

30?, 438 Jennifer Bendewish, 823 Maria Matheu

A few other exciting notes for 2017…. I am honored to be representing Complete Nutrition as a Complete Nutrition Tallahassee Athlete for 2017 and a social media influencer for Rose City Triathlon Club. Looking forward to sharing training, travels, adventures, and races this year!