I have a marathon coming up this Saturday. I added it in last minute, but I'm half nervous, half excited for it. I put myself on the waitlist for the REVEL, Mt. Charleston full marathon. A bunch of people in the work running group signed up for the half, and I honestly didn't even think there would be a vacancy, but when I got the email, I gave myself a full 24 hours to contemplate, and then decided the night before deadline, why not? I paid the entry fee, and here I am, about 35 hours before start time just wondering if I had made a bad decision. Not to mention I got a damn blister on my right ankle from my work shoes! That may cause a little trouble.
On the bright side, I was able to trade into a trip that ended earlier tomorrow so I wouldn't have to rush to the packet pick up, and struggle trying to get to sleep. I was also able to drop my trip the next day after the marathon just in case I ended up limping at the end of it all. I'm getting pre-race jitters already!
Now, I wasn't exactly familiar with REVEL until a co-worker of mine mentioned it to me one day at work. I didn't think much of it until she mentioned that it was an all downhill marathon. This intrigued me. I started to look it up, and then soon found out it was a USATF certified Boston-qualifying marathon course. Even with that, I still wrote it off as one of those "Okay.. maybe one day, that sounds fun," but it was not high up on my priority list of must-do runs. Prior to this downhill race, I had only heard of the Berlin Marathon in Germany, which is supposed to be the world's fastest marathon.
Lo and behold I get selected to fill a vacancy and here I am trying to mentally prepare myself for what's ahead.
Also, I had entered myself and my James into the Marine Corps Marathon lottery after missing out on the rush entry (which I had set an alarm for, but somehow it did not go off) and thought chances were slim to none. BUT! We both got selected and I'm actually pretty excited to run through all the monuments and sites in DC. That's not until October, though, so plenty of time to prepare for that.
ANYWAY, so back to REVEL. This is the elevation profile.
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| photo courtesy of |
You can see that it drops over 5,000 ft throughout the course of the run.
The site gives the following description regarding the full marathon course:
"The REVEL Mt Charleston marathon course offers the best of Kyle Canyon, including breathtaking views of the forests and cliffs of the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area. Runners will enjoy the fresh scent of towering pines, glimpses of mountain wildlife, and the charm of the Mt Charleston community as they run through the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. If that were not enough, the course is entirely downhill on a paved highway and is a Boston Marathon qualifier!
The marathon begins roughly 21 miles up Kyle Canyon Rd near the original Mt Charleston Lodge. Standing at 7,600 ft above sea level surrounded by snowcapped peaks and fresh mountain air, runners will feel a world away from nearby downtown Las Vegas. The course meanders through the Cathedral Rock area for the first mile before reaching the main stretch of Kyle Canyon Rd.
Once on the main highway, the route begins a 20-mile stretch of pure running bliss as the course heads downhill towards Las Vegas at a nearly steady 4% grade. Along the way runners will enjoy stunning views of the sun rising over nearby Gass Peak to the East and the Las Vegas Strip to the South.
The final five miles take runners through the beautiful palm-lined roads of the Centennial Hills neighborhood. Continuing its downhill slope the course ends at the Thunderbird Family Sports Complex, where finish festivities await. REVEL Mt Charleston is the fastest and most beautiful marathon in Nevada!"
It starts at 6:00 am and there is a course time limit of 6.5 hours. That's equivalent to about a 15 minute/mile pace. They want all runners to be finished by 1:00pm. I will definitely be done before then.
It's funny because I just turned 30 earlier this month and I keep joking about how "it's all downhill from here" and the first marathon I'm doing after turning 30 is REVEL. 🤣
