A Change of Pace

We just ran the Rock the 80’s race in Elk Grove and had a blast. We couldn’t make the Saturday bib/​packet pick-​up, so we went in early on Sunday before the race. We walked right up to the table and were handed our bibs & t-​shirts. Parking was free and plentiful. They were playing popular 80s tunes before the race. We were one big giant sea of stretching neon green & pink. There was a pretty long line for the port-​o-​potties but someone pointed out 3 others on the other side of the lot and that seemed to ease up the congestion a bit.
I have never seen a more empty starting line. We were just all spread out chatting and suddenly they asked us to move up, get ready and bam! Off we went. There was just the right amount of people that you could easily move into your own space and find your groove. The route was clearly marked and I couldn’t help but smile as Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde directed traffic and cheered us on throughout the ultra flat course.
Hearing your name being called out as your cross the finish line was oober cool. They had plenty of water, gatorade & goo stops. After the race, they had bananas, oranges & bagels.
You will not find a more radical medal.
Did I have a totally awesome time? Yes. Will I be back next year, heck yes I will.

We participated in the Hot Pink Run in Roseville unfortunately this year the race results system was HORRIBLE. Out of the 7 of us who ran, my daughter and her friend should have placed in 1^st and 2^nd and received medals, but did not. It wasn’t until official actual true results came out on the website the next day that our suspicions were confirmed. Our girls are 9 and 10 and they run to support breast cancer awareness but also for accurate time keeping. We have participated in this event 4 years now and promote it within our community; I feel that starting at such a young age showing them a let down is unacceptable. I spoke to the results computer person at the race when I suspected a problem and she said basically too bad… I would not be writing a review but after posting on the race Facebook page because I received no reply to my calls or emails regarding the lack of attention to my concerns my post was bombarded with a slurry of negative responses from both Jeannine Henderson and Silvia Aguirre-​Barr claiming to be the head time keeper and assistant at Change of Pace, insulting me and advising me on how to parent my child. They offered no legitimate apologies only insults to us and the race community in Roseville. I hope to NOT participate in future races where they are the involved in. I understand that mistakes happen but there was such a different way this could have been handled. Their excuses were condescending and lacked an effort to make things right for our young runners. We paid to run in this event and yes it is about participating but it is also about competence and follow-​up in the appropriate manner. *FAIL for Change of Pace*

I ran 3 races under A Change of Pace so far: Lucky Run, Capital City Classic, and Davis Moonlight Race.
My main motivation to run didn’t start out as wanting to do more physical exercise. It was for the Tour de Fit medal. If you run 3 of the 4 races, you get a medal. I guess you can say it’s a glorified participation medal. Even so, I earned it! I mean I’m not going to get any half marathon/​marathon medals anytime soon, so I aimed to earn this one.
There are two series for the Tour de Fit. I finished part one and I’m now looking forward to part two, where I will run 3 more races to earn another medal!

Last year I started running road races in the Sacramento and Davis areas. I had an issue with a training tech shirt for the Davis Moonlight Race earned by signing up for Summerfest (wrong size) and Jeannine from Change of Pace was a huge help in exchanging my adult S for a youth L. The resolution took only about a week of e-​mail correspondence and finding the office suite wasn’t too difficult. I might try volunteering this year when I’m not participating in the races.