Dear Huntsville,

I’d like to take a moment to write to you about my recent experience in your city. I recently visited Huntsville for a little run through your streets and a bit of a micro-vacation with my family. The little run that I speak of was, of course, the Rocket City Marathon 2010. I’d appreciate your indulgence in listening to my tale, as for me, this previous weekend really stands out in my memory, and I’m confident that it will for a long time.

Now, I understand that many of these reasons are very personal, and aren’t going to mean the same to many.

This race was my first complete marathon. In and of itself, that will cause Huntsville to have a special place in my heart. I’ve ran in several half marathons, as well as a failed attempt at the Country Music Marathon in Nashville, where I live. This event was so much greater than any of the previous I’ve attended.

The course itself is perhaps the least thing that I can comment about. Outside of some rough asphalt patches, I don’t know that I really concentrated much on the course. Obviously I paid attention to it, and was satisfied in it’s layout, but honestly, I expected that and it was delivered. The human elements of Saturday, however, really focused my attention.

The Race Direction and Coordination was simply outstanding. Outside of the ‘No Headphone’ rule (which I don’t like, but definitely understand, especially after running the course), I can find very few faults with how the event was organized. I don’t have a lot of experience in this area, but I will say that I have been to events that should take extreme notes from the Huntsville Track Club. You should be very proud of that group, and rightly so.

Volunteers. I overheard that there was over 1000 volunteers for this event. The official numbers show 1201 runners. A 1:1.2 ratio of Support/Runner is UNBELIEVABLE, and yet, I do believe it, simply because the Volunteers were everywhere, being incredibly helpful. From Boy Scouts at turns, to aid station workers, to support personnel at the finish line, as well as the citizens just outside cheering, I’m in awe of how well the City of Huntsville accorded itself.

Another area that grabbed my attention was the support on the course by your uniformed officers. The traffic was given second priority after the runners, and it was very much appreciated. I know many will say, they were just doing their job. I disagree. To me, they exceeded their job. EVERY single officer I had the privilege of passing was courteous for the few seconds I was there. That sounds like a very simple thing, but it struck me through the race, and I felt it. If any of them had a bad day, I don’t think a runner noticed it. I know I said “Thank you” to many, but it doesn’t seem like that was quite enough.

Personally, I enjoyed running this event for all of those reasons, as well as the ones that were deeply sentimental to myself.

We stayed the evening before and after the event, as we also went to the Huntsville Ballet. After what was already a very enjoyable Saturday, Sunday morning brought even more joy to me. Front page coverage from The Huntsville Times of the Marathon included a picture of my daughter cheering! Thank you, Robin Conn and The Huntsville Times.

I’m mending now from my experience. My legs and body are recovering from the run, and my mind and heart are still trying to fully encapsulate the feelings and emotions from this weekend. The things I’ve said in this note do not begin to fully convey the gratitude I feel.

I have a regret, however. I don’t know if any other event that I attend is going to match the feelings that Huntsville managed. That disappoints me, but I suppose it simply means that return visits are required.

Thank you,

Greg Nicholson