Camping Before a Half

Jeff and I have done several half marathons that are located off the beaten path; the North Olympic Discovery Half Marathon, the Ocean Shores Half Marathon, and the San Juan Half Marathon.  In these instances we have decided to make the weekend a car camping weekend combined with the half marathon.  These instances make me oh so happy because these are my two favorite things to do!
But don’t think that we are roughing it before the half….. we need us a good night of sleep before we run 13.1 miles!  We figured out a camping system fit for royalty and hope to do some camping/halfing here in Colorado too.
We have a large roomy tent that you can stand up in.  We love our REI Hobitat Tent.  (They have changed the rain fly since our version and I think the 2011 version is much better than what we have, esp. for the Pacific NW rain.)

Bring a queen sized air mattress and bedding (yes, we also have the coolest zebra print blanket for camping).  Heck, we even bring our feather bed and down comforter and forget we are camping.  And yes, we also bring beds for our dogs (the dogs are good campers), but those little creeps always manage to burrow their way into our warm and cozy bed by the morning.  Oh and for entertainment we bring books, music and a portable DVD player (I told you we don’t rough it).Bring plenty of delicious food.  We always do foil dinners and pre-cut all the meat and veggies and put it in Ziploc bags full of marinade before we leave.  Then when we are at the campsite we just put the food in foil and cook over the camp fire.  Soooo good and soooo easy!
I have a well-organized camp box full of all supplies necessary for camping.  That way I never forget anything (in theory).  Just look at this amazing spread, I even bring a table cloth and plastic wine glasses!  Jeff and his brother love when I take surprise photos of them.
Come race morning I have my Jetboil to heat up water and then drink instant coffee (Starbucks Via is the best).  I eat my banana, oatmeal (using the Jetboil again), protein bar, and GU chomps like I do at home.  Then I just go run my little heart out.  Here are some pictures from past races/camping:

The night before North Olympic Discovery Trail Half, our dogs share a moment watching the sun set over the Straight of Juan de Fuca.  Precious and quite nerdy.

Taking the bus to the start of the NODT Half.  I ended up having a terrible race, I think Jeff did pretty well. The race was fun and had some great views.

This is on the Washington coast after the Ocean Shores Half.  The half ran about 5 miles on the Washington coast beach.  But don’t think that is hardcore, because the sand here is very compact and you can even drive on the beach.  This was the only race I had a DNF.  I was 2nd female at mile 10 when I had an emergency…. I had to poop, but I was on the beach where there was no cover.  People saw, I was embarrassed and had to leave the course and sneak back to the finish.  Terrible memories.  I drank away my sorrows that night, we even played blackjack at the Indian casino.  Classy.
These are photos from the San Juan half.  I took second female, but that isn’t saying much because it was a small race.  The course was gorgeous, but ridiculously hilly and windy.  Hardest course I have ever ran.  Jeff got to drive and see me in several locations and even gave me Elle to run a few miles with me to keep me company, you can see her little body in the first picture.
I totally recommend doing this because it makes for a really awesome experience and you end up saving a ton a money (no hotel!).  And you get to go to some races that are off the beaten path.  LOVE IT!