Race Review, Where to Eat, Sights to See!
We just ran the Rock n Roll DC Half Marathon this weekend and it was a blast! This was our first half marathon together, and we had signed up with the idea that Zhenya would help train and pace Janet to a new PR! Since we had achieved a sub-2:00 in the Vegas Half 3 weeks earlier, we set a new goal of sub-1:55 for the DC Half.
The DC RnR Half Marathon is a scenic course that starts in downtown DC on Constitution Ave, crosses the Arlington Memorial Bridge, turns back around, loops along Rock Creek & Potomac Parkway, up Calvert hill, and goes through some residential neighborhoods before it heads back into downtown to finish at the US Capitol. We really enjoyed the variety of scenery in this course – from monuments to waterfront to parks. The roads were wide and never felt crowded.
Getting There
We landed at Reagan National Airport on Friday morning. It was a fast 2-hour flight from Chicago, and the Uber ride to our hotel only took 15 minutes! Logistically, this was super easy, which was great since the race was scheduled for Saturday morning.
The Expo
After some carb-loading at brunch, we headed to the Expo at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. This was also a 10-minute walk from our hotel. The Expo was very low-key, and not crowded at all. We picked up our race bibs within minutes and had time to walk around all the display booths. We stopped by the Corral Change booth, to request that we run together in the same corral. They were fast and efficient, and easily accommodated our request (interestingly, the DC volunteers seemed much more knowledgeable about race times vs Vegas.) There were no lines for the photo ops either! We got in a variety of pics and poses.
Where in the World is Janet’s Bib??
We got back to our hotel room after a delicious dinner at L’Ardente (more on where we carb-loaded below!) We were laying out our race outfits on the bed (runner flat-lay!) when we realized that Janet’s RnR bag from the expo was missing. Had we misplaced it? Left it at the hotel restaurant? Check-in area? We ransacked the room before heading downstairs to ask the hotel staff if anyone had turned in a clear Rock n Roll bag. No luck at the restaurant or Lost and Found. Two bags had turned up at the concierge but neither were Janet’s.
We went back to our room and tried to think of alternate solutions. Zhenya contacted her DC race ambassador friend to see if they might have a contact. Janet reached out to the organizers via email and Instagram. Both of us tried to google and Reddit a solution. Eventually, we decided to just get up early to go to the Info booth at the start area to see if we could possibly get another bib there before the race. Good thing we had so many photos of Janet posing with bib at the Expo!
Race Morning
We woke up on race morning having gotten very little sleep (Janet woke up at 2:30am and could not get back to sleep. Zhenya didn’t sleep until past midnight!) We drank some coffee, ate a bar, mixed our drink mixes for our handhelds and headed out. We decided to check downstairs at the hotel one last time to see if something might have turned up overnight. A nice gentleman let us look in the luggage room and there it was!! (We still have no idea how it ended up there since we never checked the bag.) Bib drama resolved, we headed towards the start village.
Start Village & Corrals
We arrived at 7:30am for an 8:00am start time and the corrals were starting to fill up. There were 20 corrals in total, and after gear check, we entered the corrals. Unlike Vegas, we were not made to stand for a long time in the corrals before start time. However, the porta-potties were located inside each corral, so that led to very long lines that extended outside the pens. Weather was gorgeous – 45 degrees and sunny. Though it was a bit chilly waiting at the start (we had throwaway long sleeves), we knew that once we got moving, it would be perfect running conditions.
The Race
The race started on time at 8:00am, and the corrals moved very quickly. We were through the start line before we knew it!
Miles 1 to 4 felt brisk and open, as we warmed up in the sun, crossed the bridge into Arlington, smiled for photographers on the way back, and were treated to views of DC along the Potomac. We went out a little faster than planned, moved along by the excited runners, but it felt fine…for now.
Miles 5-8 were along Rock Creek & Potomac Parkway, which took us along some gentle inclines and declines, through lighted bridge tunnels, and into tranquil wooded parks. We wondered if the massive hill that everyone talked about would be that bad…runners along the way affirmed that it was! The hill came at around mile 7.5, earlier than anticipated. For Janet, it looked like a monster hill that winded its way up and she realized as she was tearing into a gel that it was probably too late to do any good. For Zhenya, it wasn’t that bad! We enjoyed the drill sergeant yelling at us to go faster midway up the hill!
Among other "As Seen on the Course" notable mentions - a couple dressed like The Incredibles, Uncle Sam and Abe Lincoln impersonators, a sign that read "You are running better than Kate Middleton's PR team" and a few water stops handing out shots of Fire Ball!
Miles 9-11 were through residential neighborhoods and included yet another steep hill and a few rolling hills. It took a while for Janet to get her breathing right after mile 8, but at this point, it was just about hanging on!
Miles 11-13 were a bit of a blur. There was a nice, long straightaway at mile 11 with a view of the US Capitol that we kept our eye towards as we ran back to downtown. At one point, Zhenya turned to Janet and cheerfully suggested “Let’s make these last 2 miles your fastest!”...to which Janet just grunted in reply. There was very little energy leftover to form a full sentence! At Mile 13, we sprinted towards the finish line (with Janet hoping that her legs didn’t buckle or trip!) as a guy running next to us yelled “Get it! Get it!”
We crossed the finish line at 9:55am. We thought we had just made it on or close to the goal of 1:55. However, when we met up with our friends Daisy and Steven afterwards, they told us our times were 1:53! We had forgotten that we started a couple minutes later in corral 2!
Finish Area
After a hug at the finish line, we got our medals, and posed for some race photos with the official photographers. We gathered a variety of goodies they gave out at the finish (chips, popcorn, granola bars, bananas) and made our way to the beer tent to meet our friends.
After some more photo ops, Janet walked back to the hotel and Zhenya went to run another 5 miles! (She had an 18-miles scheduled for Saturday in preparation for Boston Marathon.) Afterwards we met up with friends for a delicious celebratory brunch!
Where We Stayed
We stayed at the Riggs DC hotel, a retro-chic boutique hotel that was conveniently located between the start line and the finish line. The hotel décor was beautifully styled as befitting a building that was formerly the Riggs National Bank (vault doors were a theme throughout the hotel, which was a whimsical touch!) Every staff member we encountered was super nice, from check-in to Café Riggs to the Silver Lyan bar downstairs.
The only critique is that the front desk did not seem to be in communication with the reservations desk. We had requested an early check-in and a one-night extension of our stay via email communications to their reservations desk. While we had multiple email confirmations, when we arrived at the hotel, they had no record of it. We ended up storing our luggage and walking around town.
What We Ate: Carb-loading in DC!
DC turned out to be a great foodie town! We asked our friends for restaurant recommendations before the trip and found plenty of great options for carb-loading. Below are a few of the places we visited.
The Smith
Conveniently located across the street from our hotel, The Smith is a familiar brunch spot with locations in NYC and Chicago. We headed there for brunch after landing in DC. It was warm enough to sit outside, which made us feel like spring was really here! We had some delicious avocado toast and buttermilk pancakes with LOTS of syrup. We were carb-loading after all!
L’Ardente
This is a beautiful Italian restaurant with a bustling atmosphere, delicious food, and perfect service. We had an early 5:30pm dinner here the night before the race and it was packed with both runners and locals. We started with warm puffy focaccia bread, beet salad, and carb-loaded with pizza and pasta. Everything was delicious! We had intentions to return again to get the tiramisu flambe dessert (love anything that flames!) but never got a chance. We would definitely go back next time we’re in town!
Unconventional Diner
This was on multiple recommended lists, and proved to be the perfect post-marathon spot for a bunch of hungry runners! Its large menu featured brunch classics with a twist and had something for everyone, including vegans in our group. We indulged in sweet potato shakshuka with a light curry flavor, double cheeseburger with fries, breakfast biscuit sandwiches, avocado toast, and a French toast dessert with baked apples and ice cream. It was the most delicious post-race refueling!
Zaytinya
This Mediterranean restaurant from Jose Andres features Greek, Turkish and Lebanese cuisines. We loved the warm baskets of puffy pita bread and enjoyed a variety of mezze including falafel, crispy brussel sprouts, hummus, salads, along with flatbreads and grilled chicken skewers. This type of meal was perfect for us on Saturday night, as none of us had that much of an appetite and we were tired from the race.
Pastis
This NYC transplant recently opened in the Union Market area of DC. The vibe and the food were as good as I remembered from when I used to frequent Pastis in NYC’s Meatpacking district (a long time ago!) We went for brunch on a sunny Sunday and it was packed. Delicious coffee, quiche, and crepes in a bustling atmosphere…what’s not to like?
Le Diplomate
This seems to be the restaurant that was on every DC friend’s recommended list. A solid French bistro with classic dishes and good bread, it had a lively atmosphere for a Sunday night, full of groups of friends catching up over dinner. We started out with some bubbly and escargot, then moved on to mussels and steak frites. Fries were crispy and thin, just the way we like them! If this was our neighborhood bistro, we would be here at least several times a week!
We had so much fun on this run-cation! We were lucky to catch the cherry blossoms blooming early during our post-race monument jogging tour. We would definitely return!
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