We runners are a bunch of nutbars. Even though we’re in the throes of winter, that doesn’t mean we can’t get our race on, right? Well that's my attitude when it comes to the Manasquan Mid-Winter Beach Run!
It's a very low-key race - no timing mat or chips or anything, just good frozen fun. It's to benefit the local first aid squad, and filled with locals who just want to have fun (and an excuse to party at the beach bar in February after the race is over)! The start is a bit slow - between snow and ice on the road and a ton of people trying to squeeze through a narrow street, it can be frustrating.
For the first mile you wind around a few streets in town, and the second mile take you up on the beach. Not the boardwalk, but the ACTUAL beach, as in you're running in sand. This is a totally weird experience, especially when the sand is covered in a layer of snow like it was this year! This turned already tough sand-running into an ankle-twisting nightmare when I had to bob and weave around everyone!
In all honesty, while it was frustrating, this is where I feel like I gained the most ground in the race. As a solid back-of-the-packer, I so rarely get to experience the awesome feeling of picking people off in a race. Since I was feeling good and only had another mile to go, I made it a point to pass as many people as I could, and I loved it! I lost count after 10 or 20, and just kept going. I was actually “racing”, and it felt awesome!
After a quarter mile of sand, we turned slightly onto the boardwalk for the next quarter mile, then turned back onto the street in a straight line for the home stretch for an uneventful finish.
The overall experience is great - the race "shirt" is a cool hoodie that changes designs each year, so that's fun, and the party at Legetts is great. There's something fun about jamming into a beach bar on a weekend morning with a bunch of other runners that just makes me smile. Overall it was another great race!