Today’s post is a fabulous race report from BAMRbassador Jackie Ayers, who bet on her winning attitude and managed to have a fun 13.1 with her best running friend.

Does “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” apply to two Mother Runners who cross multiple states to see each other? Definitely not when they meet up to do the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon! Runners will talk about a race to anyone, at any time!

With the best-laid plans, in July of 2023, my best friend/best running friend, Francie, and I signed up to take on the Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon that occurred on February 25th, 2024. However, between the two of us, in the months before we lined up in our corral, we had a few upper respiratory infections, a round of plantar fasciitis, and play practice for a 6-year-old thespian turtle.

All that to say, our goal changed from PR’ing to dancing down the Strip instead. We’re both highly competitive, goal-oriented women, and this shift didn’t feel automatically comfortable to either of us. Nevertheless, I’m here to report that creating an alternate goal of FUN during a race is genuinely just as rewarding. 

We hadn’t seen each other in person for a few years, I flew in from Oregon, and Francie drove in from Arizona. We met at the Expo, and from there, we went back to my hotel to change and head up to Fremont Street so I could run the Rock ‘n’ Roll 5K. By racing twice in the weekend, I earned a 3rd ‘remix’ medal. 

Jackie (left) and Francie focus on fun as they run the Vegas Strip

At destination races, I use public transportation as much as possible. However, it soon became impossible in Vegas based on the distance between all the weekend events. My carefully crafted “things to do in Vegas” wish list slipped away as we spent most of our time coordinating, traveling, or finding food. Additionally, every location blasted music, and I have never felt more like the middle-aged lady I’m becoming than when I started complaining about how loud everything was.  

Francie didn’t run the 5K, but she came with me to Fremont Street and enjoyed the before and after entertainment. The after-party was especially fun—neither of us had been out dancing in years. The Rock ‘n’ Roll organization had a nice area with a DJ and food trucks. Neither of us drink alcohol, so we had a great time dancing and people-watching until we left to find our beds. 

Sunday had a flow to the day that would likely make many runners antsy. The start village for the 10K/Half Marathon didn’t open until 2pm, and our corral loaded around 4. We didn’t cross the start line until just before 5pm. This likely felt very late for many of my fellow runners; however, as I recently extolled the virtues of evening workouts for AMR, I was excited to run during my peak time for a change.

We walked over from my hotel to the start village and then stood in the corral for an hour – which meant we’d already had A LOT of time on our feet before the race even began. Even though the Rock ‘n’ Roll group did their best to hype up the crowd, I think we both started the race with our energy a little flat. 

Francie is all smiles as she runs under the Vegas sign

One of the most impressive features of this race is the closure of the Strip right through the heart of Las Vegas, exclusively for the runners. Watching the sunset over the desert with the neon lights of Vegas was breathtaking at times. Several stages were set up throughout the 13.1 miles for entertainment and encouragement, and there was good crowd support around the newer Casinos. On the north end, around Old Vegas and Fremont Street, we got more than a few looks of confusion as folks went on with their evening festivities; the juxtaposition between activities each group would consider fun gave me the giggles at a few points.  

I would alternate between listening to my own music and enjoying the course entertainment. I frequently started singing and dancing around with Francie as we ticked away the miles under our feet. No matter how much fun we had, the back half gave us a few challenging miles; during those moments, we would enjoy one of the many photo ops set up along the course or share a few “whoop whoops” with our fellow runners. Every time we passed a mile marker, we high-fived.  

Getting to the race was half the battle for BAMR Jackie

We crossed the finish line holding hands, and I was so happy to have danced down the Vegas Strip with my best friend! We both started long-distance running in the last few years, not having done any endurance athletics prior in our lives. This race was so much more than our splits; it was a celebration, together, of everything a Mother Runner can accomplish when surrounded by friends who lift them up.  

Have you changed a race goal from fast to fun? Tell us about it.