2023 Cooper River Bridge Run

The 2023 Cooper River Bridge Run was windy and hot but oh so fun! The 10K goes over the Ravenel bridge and finishes in downtown Charleston. After training for 3 months, I felt prepared but still nervous.

Unlike last year’s Bridge Run, I knew what I was getting into this year. Per the usual, I set out my outfit the night before. We had a nice warm-up walk to the shuttle bus that took us to the start line. Timing was a bit of a challenge, we woke up at 5 to leave the apartment by 5:30 for a race that didn’t start until 8.

The extra time allowed us to meet up with the rest of the Fleet Feet crew for some warmups and a photo opportunity. It also made it easier to find each other! I think 27K people ran this race, bigger than many of the marathons I’ve run!

Several of us started in corral D together. Even though we started at the front, we still passed lots of walkers along the route. It did thin out a tiny bit, but because it’s such a big race there was always several people around you.

The Route

The route was the same, and luckily lots of our training runs included the bridge. I knew I could “get over it”, it was just a matter of how fast. My plan was to take the first two miles easy, then slow down going up the bridge, then cruise down the bridge and then give it hell downtown. Which is pretty much what I did. I averaged a 10:11 pace, but as you can see from my splits I was all over the place.

10:04 Started a bit too hot.
10:34 Forced myself to slow down.
10:43 Up the bridge.
9:47 Down the bridge.
10:06 Feeding off the downtown crowds.
10:11 Hot and tired.
8:48 Almost puked.

This time I knew about the little U you have to make at the end. It messed with my head a little bit last year, when I longingly looked at the finish line a block away, and continued running away from it. Especially hitting the 6-mile marker with the finish line no where in sight.

My goal was to beat my last year’s time and I did! By 1:03 to be exact. I’m really happy with his considering this year’s conditions were much harder. The crosswind on the bridge was relentless. Save for the flapping of people’s bibs, it was very quiet up there. As soon as we reached downtown the wind subsided, which allowed the heat and humidity to hit. I used my water bottle to spray my face/chest to avoid overheating.

We all survived and spent the afternoon/evening celebrating our achievements.

The Swag

The race expo was huge and they provide lots of swag. I like the towel and all the freebies at the expo but I am a little disappointed in the shirt, it’s a soft cotton shirt, but I’d prefer a tech shirt that you could workout in.

Upcoming Races

My last two races (this Bridge Run and the Catch the Leprechaun 5K) did not help my 50 States Goal. I was used to doing a half every month or so. My last half was in January, so it’s been nice to train for only a 10K, but I need to jump into half marathon training mode stat!

Friday, May 5th – Warwick, RI Red Island State Half Marathon
This is the first of their 3-day New England Challenge (RI, MA, CT). I’m buzzing in for a day to do just the RI race. I debated doing MA on Saturday but it’s 2 hours away and there are definitely more fun runs to do in MA.
Saturday, May 20th – Fargo, ND Fargo Half Marathon
I love that the tagline is “uff da”. 🙂 Another quick trip with Adrienne and Heidi to knock off North Dakota.
Saturday, June 10th – Jackson Hole, WY Jackson Hole Half
This will be a big trip! The race is at the start of the trip and then we’ll be exploring Yellowstone! I hope I don’t tear up my quads too much so we can do some hiking.

2023 Cooper River Bridge Run