December 13, 2024 • 16 mins
Curious about what it takes to run a half marathon? Join us as we chat with Christian Moore from Bentonville Parks and Recreation about Run Bentonville. Celebrating its 15th year, this event has it all— a half marathon, a 5k, and a two-person relay, fun atmosphere, live music, and a supportive community. Christian shares his journey from Fayetteville to California and back and stories like the 92-year-old who completed the Bentonville Half Marathon. We also offer insights into registration, including early bird pricing and deadlines (February 14), to help you secure your spot. Discover the course in Bentonville, with must-visit spots like Crystal Bridges trails.
Register Today: www.runbentonville.com/half-marathon
A New American Town is here to help you plan your trip to Bentonville, Arkansas. From guides, events, and restaurant highlights. Find all this and more at visitbentonville.com and subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, and LinkedIn.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Beth Bobbitt (00:11):
Welcome to A New American Town presented by Visit
Bentonville.
I'm your host, Beth Bobbitt,broadcasting from Haxton Road
Studio, and today we get to talkto Christian Moore with the
Bentonville Half Marathon.
Christian, thanks so much forbeing here.
Christian Moore (00:24):
Thanks for having me.
Beth Bobbitt (00:26):
Of course.
So you are the Bentonville HalfMarathon, christian, thanks so
much for being here, thanks forhaving me.
Of course, so you are withBentonville Parks and Rec and
you were telling me that theyactually own the half.
Christian Moore (00:33):
We do.
It's owned and operated by theBentonville Parks and Recreation
, and this next year will be our15th year.
Beth Bobbitt (00:41):
Wow, that's hard to believe.
Well, tell us a little bitabout you and how you got sort
of affiliated with.
You.
Know your current job andrunning in the Bentonville Half.
Christian Moore (00:52):
Sure, so I grew up in Fayetteville.
I am a Fayetteville boy atheart.
I now are in Bentonville, but Igrew up in Fayetteville, went
to the U of A, then I left forabout 10 years for California.
So I went to grad school out inCalifornia, worked for HOKA for
about eight years and I was aglobal events manager out there.
(01:15):
But then I wanted to move homeand the Run Bentonville job is
the best job in running innorthwest Arkansas.
And here I am.
Beth Bobbitt (01:27):
Amazing.
Well, we're so glad you cameback.
That's kind of a common story,I feel like.
Christian Moore (01:33):
It is.
Beth Bobbitt (01:34):
They can stay away a little while, but not for
long.
Christian Moore (01:37):
Something about the area just always draws you
back.
That's right.
Beth Bobbitt (01:43):
Well, let's talk about some details for the half.
So for those that don't knowwhat's the distance, where's it
happening, give us sort of the411.
Christian Moore (01:51):
Yeah, so half marathon is 13.1 miles.
We also offer a 5k, which is3.1 miles.
We also offer a relay option aswell, so it's a two person
relay.
The the distance is roughlysplit in half.
It's not exactly split in halfuh, from where we have to uh put
the actual relay exchange point, but it's, it's roughly um,
(02:15):
what like six and a half milesor so.
Beth Bobbitt (02:17):
Which is the better half?
Probably the first one youdon't have the big hill at the
end.
Yes, yeah, true, okay, so hasregistration already opened?
Christian Moore (02:32):
Yeah, registration has been open since
September and it is open untilbasically the last day of packet
pickup, which is April 4th.
Beth Bobbitt (02:40):
Yeah, and I used to do a lot of half marathons
and the you know atmosphere isjust so much fun, especially the
Bentonville half.
I mean there's music, and talka little bit about that
experience.
Christian Moore (02:54):
Yeah, so, uh, one of the great things about
the half marathon is it'sbasically it's, I think,
participation wise.
It's the second largest race inthe whole state as far as I
know, the biggest one beingLittle Rock Marathon, which
Northwest Arkansas big community.
But still to have that secondlargest race is something really
(03:18):
, really special.
And as part of Run Bentonville,we do seven races total
throughout the year.
Uh, each one has kind of aunique theme, uh and atmosphere
and feel to it.
The half marathon is just, it'ssomething totally unique and
different because you have somany people that have trained
(03:39):
for so many months, sometimeseven years to to complete that
half marathon months, sometimeseven years, to to complete that
half marathon, and so it's justthat energy that's there, the
excitement, um, to see peoplecoming across the line and
they're just in tears becausethey've they've accomplished
their goal, uh, it's really justsomething truly special.
It's still fun, still exciting,but it's also just really
(04:03):
really special to see peoplejust, you know, they hit their
fitness goals, their life goals,that sort of thing.
Yeah, and for those that collectthem there is a nice medal,
correct, there's always a nicemedal, yep, and this being our
15th year, it's going to be aslightly larger medal than
normal Amazing, so that'll begood.
Beth Bobbitt (04:25):
Incentive.
Okay, so I see there is atraining program online.
Can you talk a little bit abouthow you might go about training
, especially if it's your firsttime?
Christian Moore (04:35):
Yeah, absolutely so.
The training program we're soldout for this year.
We had 350 spots.
This year, which is up from 300, basically 300 that we had last
year and that's always a reallyexciting program.
It's run by a Rush runningcompany.
(04:56):
Mike Rush is really the coachand takes charge of that.
On my side I handle theregistration, but he's the coach
.
So funny story is, Mike Rushwas my high school coach, so he
and I have known each othersince I was probably 14 years
old.
Beth Bobbitt (05:12):
That's awesome.
Christian Moore (05:13):
But he's a fantastic coach, fantastic
person.
But when it comes to justtraining for a half in general
anyone can run a half it's oneof those things that a marathon
to me is so much harder thanjust running a half.
There's so much more timeinvolved and things like that.
(05:33):
But a lot of people they lookat a half and they just see this
daunting mountain of a of atask.
But really, if you just starttaking your training day by day,
but slowly, you can reach thatgoal of running a half marathon.
What too many people do is theythink, oh, I go run five miles
(05:55):
every day, so they just go runfive miles every day, and then
they're like, oh, I need to geta long run in, so they'll go run
10 miles and there's not a lotof consistency with it.
So just taking it slowly andbeing consistent and working
your way up in those long runson a weekly basis will
definitely help with getting youto the finish line on race day
(06:18):
In a faster way, but also a lessinjured way, right, which is
the most important part.
Beth Bobbitt (06:24):
And I've always heard, incrementally 10%
increase each week is a healthy,safe amount.
Christian Moore (06:35):
I think that's probably a good blanket thing to
follow.
I mean, I follow it myself, butsometimes some people need a
little bit less.
Beth Bobbitt (06:42):
It's kind of a case-by-case basis.
Christian Moore (06:44):
It's really listening to your body, because
you know different strokes fordifferent folks right.
I'm a big believer in that inall walks of life, but
especially with training, and Iknow people that can jump from
10 miles a week to 20 miles aweek and they're fine.
I know other people that canbarely do 10 to 12 miles a week.
(07:05):
It's all about listening toyour body and just seeing what
can get you to that finish line.
Beth Bobbitt (07:11):
Yeah.
Christian Moore (07:12):
That said, there are many, many like couch
to half marathon trainingprograms online.
If you just go on and Google um, you can find some um, and
they're all pretty good.
Yeah, uh, it's literally,they're designed to get you from
the couch being a couch potatodoing nothing to finishing that,
uh, finishing that halfmarathon and it's not too late.
Beth Bobbitt (07:33):
I mean depending on when you listen to this
podcast, but four and a halfmonths away is plenty of time.
Christian Moore (07:41):
Absolutely, absolutely.
Beth Bobbitt (07:43):
Great, well, tell us what we need to know.
Are you looking for pacers orvolunteers?
Christian Moore (07:49):
Yeah, volunteers are always needed.
Any big race or any big eventcan always use volunteers.
You know we need coursemarshals every year.
That's probably where we're themost in need.
Course marshals are basicallythose people that you see on the
course at intersections,guiding runners to make sure
(08:10):
they stay on the course.
Also making sure cars don'tnecessarily drive on the course
when there's runners.
But also this year we'reimplementing a new system at the
start called a corral start.
If you've ever done the halfmarathon before the Bentonville
half marathon, you've probablynoticed that it's kind of just a
mass start and people come fromall directions.
We're kind of too big for thatnow, so we need a little bit
(08:34):
more order to the chaos.
Beth Bobbitt (08:36):
How many people are you expecting?
Christian Moore (08:39):
A total between the half marathon, 5k and relay
, we're expecting over 4,000.
Could be potentially up to4,600.
Beth Bobbitt (08:47):
Wow.
Christian Moore (08:48):
If our trends from year to date hold up.
So we're trying to bring someorder to the chaos at the start.
But, that being said, we willneed more volunteers to help
with that corral system.
Beth Bobbitt (09:03):
Has the course changed?
Christian Moore (09:05):
Remind us where the start and finish is yeah so
the start is going to be bothstart and finish are on the
square.
So the start is going to beboth start and finish are on the
square.
The start is going to bebasically outside the new hotel
that's being built on the square, just what south of the
courthouse, and then the finishis going to be pretty much right
in front of the new Five andDime or, I guess, the existing
(09:27):
Five and Dime but it'll be doneby then.
Yeah, with the construction, sowe're excited about that.
Beth Bobbitt (09:29):
So they're just around the corner from and dime,
but it'll be done by then.
Christian Moore (09:31):
Yeah, with the construction, so we're excited
about that.
So they're just around thecorner from each other, but you
got to run 13 miles to get fromone to the other.
That's right.
Beth Bobbitt (09:39):
But it's a great 13 miles and there are lots of
spectators and support along theway, so it's really a fun one.
Any stories that stick out toyou over the years of doing this
?
Christian Moore (09:53):
So for me, I've only just done my first year of
running all the races, so Idon't have many personal.
My personal story is I ran thefirst two before I moved to
California.
Wow, and my personal record ison this course, which is kind of
strange, because it shouldn'tbe.
Beth Bobbitt (10:14):
Yeah, it's a hard one Because of the big hill.
Christian Moore (10:16):
But that's my personal story.
It's been fun to follow it as Iwas in the event space, you
know, in another world,basically in California.
So it's been fun to come backand see it in person and just
also just watch it grow.
But last year we had agentleman named Gordon Allredge
Um.
He finished the half marathonin four hours 13 minutes and 55
(10:39):
seconds 92 years old.
Um, and it got a lot of coverageas well.
Um, we, we did somethingspecial.
We didn't even I didn't realizehe was in the race or a
92-year-old was in the race.
But then it got.
Word got back to us at thefinish line that a gentleman who
was 92 years old was coming in.
(11:00):
And so Mike Rush and I we gotthe finisher tape that the
winner would normally do and weheld it up for him.
And you know, there's some coolvideo, there's some cool photos
, but it's just really cool thathe's out there doing this at 92
years old.
Beth Bobbitt (11:17):
Yeah, it's inspiring.
Christian Moore (11:19):
I can't imagine that that's.
Beth Bobbitt (11:21):
No excuses.
Christian Moore (11:22):
I'm 37 and I'm thinking 92,.
That's a whole nother lifetime,and he's still doing this.
Beth Bobbitt (11:27):
It's amazing.
Christian Moore (11:29):
So that was pretty special.
But for me the special things,like I said, is seeing those
people come across the line andyou know, a lot of times it's
their first half marathon andit's just so cool to see them
kind of just break down and likethey're tears of happiness, but
also I'm probably reallyhurting.
(11:50):
But, it's really cool just tosee those individuals.
They're like I accomplishedthis.
I put so much work into this.
That's not something that I doevery day.
There's a lot of runners likeat the front of the pack,
runners like myself who that'sall we do.
That's our life.
Right, we run.
There's other people who don't.
They maybe have some healthissues.
(12:12):
They maybe have somethingthat's going on in their life
that they want a distractionfrom.
So I want to put all my energyinto training for this race and
then to see them come across theline and see all that weight
just come off their shoulders issomething really really special
.
Beth Bobbitt (12:29):
Yeah, it's also just.
You know a great feeling toknow that you're.
You know misery loves company.
There's a lot of other peoplewith you and you know it's not.
You're not going to be alone.
And even if you're not able totalk to people along the way.
You feel that support.
Christian Moore (12:47):
Yeah, and the race is growing so much every
year that there's not a wholelot of what I call dead man zone
where you're kind of just outthere by yourself.
I mean, I'm sure there's someinstances where you are, but
with 4,000 people spread acrossthe course, you're around
someone usually.
And people are typically prettyencouraging, the spectators are
(13:09):
encouraging.
We have a number of bands outon the course, so we try to
create this atmosphere to reallyjust push you to that finish
line.
Beth Bobbitt (13:17):
Yeah.
And water stations, you've gotthat covered, yeah water
stations.
Christian Moore (13:21):
We have seven bands sprinkled around the
course, including one at thefinish.
We have 12 aid stations orwater stations, so pretty much
one every mile.
So you're well covered.
Beth Bobbitt (13:37):
Yeah, that's amazing, Come a long way.
Let's see you mentionedregistration is open.
So is there?
What's that next level?
For when the price?
Christian Moore (13:53):
increases?
Yeah, absolutely so.
For the half marathon right now, registration is $85.
As of February 14th, that costwill go up to $105.
Beth Bobbitt (14:08):
Okay.
Christian Moore (14:09):
And then that $105 will go to the packet
pickup.
Beth Bobbitt (14:13):
Okay.
Christian Moore (14:14):
So you've still got about two months of that
$85 range.
So we try to encourage peopleto register as early as possible
.
It just helps us from aplanning standpoint with shirts
and medals and all that Cause.
Beth Bobbitt (14:28):
all of that is due even before that two 14 date,
so earlier the better, okay,well, let's get on it then.
Plus, it saves you money.
Yeah, true, early bird yeah,okay.
So, um, wrap up question we askall our guests yeah.
If you had a dream day inBentonville, what would that
look like?
Maybe not a?
Christian Moore (14:53):
half marathon, but no, because that's still
work.
I love what I do but that'sstill work.
I would say taking my wife andmy two-year-old to the Amazium
and then going for a walk on theCrystal Bridges trails all
through there, maybe grabbing amilkshake from the Spark truck
and then having lunch or dinnerat Oven and Tap.
Just kind of keeping it localto downtown.
(15:17):
But those are kind of myfavorite things to do in
Bentonville.
Beth Bobbitt (15:22):
I love it.
Yeah, amazium is so fun,especially for a two-year-old.
I mean that's like the perfectage to see that wonder he loves
the big truck.
Christian Moore (15:30):
All he wants to do is sit in the big truck.
Beth Bobbitt (15:34):
Well, you can spend some time there, for sure.
Christian Moore (15:37):
Yes, we can.
Beth Bobbitt (15:38):
So what do we need to know about?
Where to find information andhow to keep posted on the half.
Christian Moore (15:45):
Yeah, so everything is on the website, so
runbintonvillecom.
You can also follow us onInstagram, which is just at Run
Bentonville, and same withFacebook as well.
We also do some posts onFriends of Bentonville Facebook
page as well, but our main pagesare those run Bentonville.
Beth Bobbitt (16:07):
Okay, so let's check out the half and as well
as other races you have on thewebsite.
Thank you, christian, forcoming on and sharing your
insights.
Christian Moore (16:16):
Thank you so much for having me.
Beth Bobbitt (16:18):
And don't forget, visit Bentonville is here to
help us navigate things to do,where to eat and stay and what's
going on in our new Americantown.
Give us a follow on socialmedia, sign up for the
newsletter and check out ourwebsite at visitbittenvillecom.
Thanks for listening.
Welcome to A New American Town presented by Visit
Bentonville.
I'm your host, Beth Bobbitt,broadcasting from Haxton Road
Studio, and today we get to talkto Christian Moore with the
Bentonville Half Marathon.
Christian, thanks so much forbeing here.
Christian Moore (00:24):
Thanks for having me.
Beth Bobbitt (00:26):
Of course.
So you are the Bentonville HalfMarathon, christian, thanks so
much for being here, thanks forhaving me.
Of course, so you are withBentonville Parks and Rec and
you were telling me that theyactually own the half.
Christian Moore (00:33):
We do.
It's owned and operated by theBentonville Parks and Recreation
, and this next year will be our15th year.
Beth Bobbitt (00:41):
Wow, that's hard to believe.
Well, tell us a little bitabout you and how you got sort
of affiliated with.
You.
Know your current job andrunning in the Bentonville Half.
Christian Moore (00:52):
Sure, so I grew up in Fayetteville.
I am a Fayetteville boy atheart.
I now are in Bentonville, but Igrew up in Fayetteville, went
to the U of A, then I left forabout 10 years for California.
So I went to grad school out inCalifornia, worked for HOKA for
about eight years and I was aglobal events manager out there.
(01:15):
But then I wanted to move homeand the Run Bentonville job is
the best job in running innorthwest Arkansas.
And here I am.
Beth Bobbitt (01:27):
Amazing.
Well, we're so glad you cameback.
That's kind of a common story,I feel like.
Christian Moore (01:33):
It is.
Beth Bobbitt (01:34):
They can stay away a little while, but not for
long.
Christian Moore (01:37):
Something about the area just always draws you
back.
That's right.
Beth Bobbitt (01:43):
Well, let's talk about some details for the half.
So for those that don't knowwhat's the distance, where's it
happening, give us sort of the411.
Christian Moore (01:51):
Yeah, so half marathon is 13.1 miles.
We also offer a 5k, which is3.1 miles.
We also offer a relay option aswell, so it's a two person
relay.
The the distance is roughlysplit in half.
It's not exactly split in halfuh, from where we have to uh put
the actual relay exchange point, but it's, it's roughly um,
(02:15):
what like six and a half milesor so.
Beth Bobbitt (02:17):
Which is the better half?
Probably the first one youdon't have the big hill at the
end.
Yes, yeah, true, okay, so hasregistration already opened?
Christian Moore (02:32):
Yeah, registration has been open since
September and it is open untilbasically the last day of packet
pickup, which is April 4th.
Beth Bobbitt (02:40):
Yeah, and I used to do a lot of half marathons
and the you know atmosphere isjust so much fun, especially the
Bentonville half.
I mean there's music, and talka little bit about that
experience.
Christian Moore (02:54):
Yeah, so, uh, one of the great things about
the half marathon is it'sbasically it's, I think,
participation wise.
It's the second largest race inthe whole state as far as I
know, the biggest one beingLittle Rock Marathon, which
Northwest Arkansas big community.
But still to have that secondlargest race is something really
(03:18):
, really special.
And as part of Run Bentonville,we do seven races total
throughout the year.
Uh, each one has kind of aunique theme, uh and atmosphere
and feel to it.
The half marathon is just, it'ssomething totally unique and
different because you have somany people that have trained
(03:39):
for so many months, sometimeseven years to to complete that
half marathon months, sometimeseven years, to to complete that
half marathon, and so it's justthat energy that's there, the
excitement, um, to see peoplecoming across the line and
they're just in tears becausethey've they've accomplished
their goal, uh, it's really justsomething truly special.
It's still fun, still exciting,but it's also just really
(04:03):
really special to see peoplejust, you know, they hit their
fitness goals, their life goals,that sort of thing.
Yeah, and for those that collectthem there is a nice medal,
correct, there's always a nicemedal, yep, and this being our
15th year, it's going to be aslightly larger medal than
normal Amazing, so that'll begood.
Beth Bobbitt (04:25):
Incentive.
Okay, so I see there is atraining program online.
Can you talk a little bit abouthow you might go about training
, especially if it's your firsttime?
Christian Moore (04:35):
Yeah, absolutely so.
The training program we're soldout for this year.
We had 350 spots.
This year, which is up from 300, basically 300 that we had last
year and that's always a reallyexciting program.
It's run by a Rush runningcompany.
(04:56):
Mike Rush is really the coachand takes charge of that.
On my side I handle theregistration, but he's the coach
.
So funny story is, Mike Rushwas my high school coach, so he
and I have known each othersince I was probably 14 years
old.
Beth Bobbitt (05:12):
That's awesome.
Christian Moore (05:13):
But he's a fantastic coach, fantastic
person.
But when it comes to justtraining for a half in general
anyone can run a half it's oneof those things that a marathon
to me is so much harder thanjust running a half.
There's so much more timeinvolved and things like that.
(05:33):
But a lot of people they lookat a half and they just see this
daunting mountain of a of atask.
But really, if you just starttaking your training day by day,
but slowly, you can reach thatgoal of running a half marathon.
What too many people do is theythink, oh, I go run five miles
(05:55):
every day, so they just go runfive miles every day, and then
they're like, oh, I need to geta long run in, so they'll go run
10 miles and there's not a lotof consistency with it.
So just taking it slowly andbeing consistent and working
your way up in those long runson a weekly basis will
definitely help with getting youto the finish line on race day
(06:18):
In a faster way, but also a lessinjured way, right, which is
the most important part.
Beth Bobbitt (06:24):
And I've always heard, incrementally 10%
increase each week is a healthy,safe amount.
Christian Moore (06:35):
I think that's probably a good blanket thing to
follow.
I mean, I follow it myself, butsometimes some people need a
little bit less.
Beth Bobbitt (06:42):
It's kind of a case-by-case basis.
Christian Moore (06:44):
It's really listening to your body, because
you know different strokes fordifferent folks right.
I'm a big believer in that inall walks of life, but
especially with training, and Iknow people that can jump from
10 miles a week to 20 miles aweek and they're fine.
I know other people that canbarely do 10 to 12 miles a week.
(07:05):
It's all about listening toyour body and just seeing what
can get you to that finish line.
Beth Bobbitt (07:11):
Yeah.
Christian Moore (07:12):
That said, there are many, many like couch
to half marathon trainingprograms online.
If you just go on and Google um, you can find some um, and
they're all pretty good.
Yeah, uh, it's literally,they're designed to get you from
the couch being a couch potatodoing nothing to finishing that,
uh, finishing that halfmarathon and it's not too late.
Beth Bobbitt (07:33):
I mean depending on when you listen to this
podcast, but four and a halfmonths away is plenty of time.
Christian Moore (07:41):
Absolutely, absolutely.
Beth Bobbitt (07:43):
Great, well, tell us what we need to know.
Are you looking for pacers orvolunteers?
Christian Moore (07:49):
Yeah, volunteers are always needed.
Any big race or any big eventcan always use volunteers.
You know we need coursemarshals every year.
That's probably where we're themost in need.
Course marshals are basicallythose people that you see on the
course at intersections,guiding runners to make sure
(08:10):
they stay on the course.
Also making sure cars don'tnecessarily drive on the course
when there's runners.
But also this year we'reimplementing a new system at the
start called a corral start.
If you've ever done the halfmarathon before the Bentonville
half marathon, you've probablynoticed that it's kind of just a
mass start and people come fromall directions.
We're kind of too big for thatnow, so we need a little bit
(08:34):
more order to the chaos.
Beth Bobbitt (08:36):
How many people are you expecting?
Christian Moore (08:39):
A total between the half marathon, 5k and relay
, we're expecting over 4,000.
Could be potentially up to4,600.
Beth Bobbitt (08:47):
Wow.
Christian Moore (08:48):
If our trends from year to date hold up.
So we're trying to bring someorder to the chaos at the start.
But, that being said, we willneed more volunteers to help
with that corral system.
Beth Bobbitt (09:03):
Has the course changed?
Christian Moore (09:05):
Remind us where the start and finish is yeah so
the start is going to be bothstart and finish are on the
square.
So the start is going to beboth start and finish are on the
square.
The start is going to bebasically outside the new hotel
that's being built on the square, just what south of the
courthouse, and then the finishis going to be pretty much right
in front of the new Five andDime or, I guess, the existing
(09:27):
Five and Dime but it'll be doneby then.
Yeah, with the construction, sowe're excited about that.
Beth Bobbitt (09:29):
So they're just around the corner from and dime,
but it'll be done by then.
Christian Moore (09:31):
Yeah, with the construction, so we're excited
about that.
So they're just around thecorner from each other, but you
got to run 13 miles to get fromone to the other.
That's right.
Beth Bobbitt (09:39):
But it's a great 13 miles and there are lots of
spectators and support along theway, so it's really a fun one.
Any stories that stick out toyou over the years of doing this
?
Christian Moore (09:53):
So for me, I've only just done my first year of
running all the races, so Idon't have many personal.
My personal story is I ran thefirst two before I moved to
California.
Wow, and my personal record ison this course, which is kind of
strange, because it shouldn'tbe.
Beth Bobbitt (10:14):
Yeah, it's a hard one Because of the big hill.
Christian Moore (10:16):
But that's my personal story.
It's been fun to follow it as Iwas in the event space, you
know, in another world,basically in California.
So it's been fun to come backand see it in person and just
also just watch it grow.
But last year we had agentleman named Gordon Allredge
Um.
He finished the half marathonin four hours 13 minutes and 55
(10:39):
seconds 92 years old.
Um, and it got a lot of coverageas well.
Um, we, we did somethingspecial.
We didn't even I didn't realizehe was in the race or a
92-year-old was in the race.
But then it got.
Word got back to us at thefinish line that a gentleman who
was 92 years old was coming in.
(11:00):
And so Mike Rush and I we gotthe finisher tape that the
winner would normally do and weheld it up for him.
And you know, there's some coolvideo, there's some cool photos
, but it's just really cool thathe's out there doing this at 92
years old.
Beth Bobbitt (11:17):
Yeah, it's inspiring.
Christian Moore (11:19):
I can't imagine that that's.
Beth Bobbitt (11:21):
No excuses.
Christian Moore (11:22):
I'm 37 and I'm thinking 92,.
That's a whole nother lifetime,and he's still doing this.
Beth Bobbitt (11:27):
It's amazing.
Christian Moore (11:29):
So that was pretty special.
But for me the special things,like I said, is seeing those
people come across the line andyou know, a lot of times it's
their first half marathon andit's just so cool to see them
kind of just break down and likethey're tears of happiness, but
also I'm probably reallyhurting.
(11:50):
But, it's really cool just tosee those individuals.
They're like I accomplishedthis.
I put so much work into this.
That's not something that I doevery day.
There's a lot of runners likeat the front of the pack,
runners like myself who that'sall we do.
That's our life.
Right, we run.
There's other people who don't.
They maybe have some healthissues.
(12:12):
They maybe have somethingthat's going on in their life
that they want a distractionfrom.
So I want to put all my energyinto training for this race and
then to see them come across theline and see all that weight
just come off their shoulders issomething really really special
.
Beth Bobbitt (12:29):
Yeah, it's also just.
You know a great feeling toknow that you're.
You know misery loves company.
There's a lot of other peoplewith you and you know it's not.
You're not going to be alone.
And even if you're not able totalk to people along the way.
You feel that support.
Christian Moore (12:47):
Yeah, and the race is growing so much every
year that there's not a wholelot of what I call dead man zone
where you're kind of just outthere by yourself.
I mean, I'm sure there's someinstances where you are, but
with 4,000 people spread acrossthe course, you're around
someone usually.
And people are typically prettyencouraging, the spectators are
(13:09):
encouraging.
We have a number of bands outon the course, so we try to
create this atmosphere to reallyjust push you to that finish
line.
Beth Bobbitt (13:17):
Yeah.
And water stations, you've gotthat covered, yeah water
stations.
Christian Moore (13:21):
We have seven bands sprinkled around the
course, including one at thefinish.
We have 12 aid stations orwater stations, so pretty much
one every mile.
So you're well covered.
Beth Bobbitt (13:37):
Yeah, that's amazing, Come a long way.
Let's see you mentionedregistration is open.
So is there?
What's that next level?
For when the price?
Christian Moore (13:53):
increases?
Yeah, absolutely so.
For the half marathon right now, registration is $85.
As of February 14th, that costwill go up to $105.
Beth Bobbitt (14:08):
Okay.
Christian Moore (14:09):
And then that $105 will go to the packet
pickup.
Beth Bobbitt (14:13):
Okay.
Christian Moore (14:14):
So you've still got about two months of that
$85 range.
So we try to encourage peopleto register as early as possible
.
It just helps us from aplanning standpoint with shirts
and medals and all that Cause.
Beth Bobbitt (14:28):
all of that is due even before that two 14 date,
so earlier the better, okay,well, let's get on it then.
Plus, it saves you money.
Yeah, true, early bird yeah,okay.
So, um, wrap up question we askall our guests yeah.
If you had a dream day inBentonville, what would that
look like?
Maybe not a?
Christian Moore (14:53):
half marathon, but no, because that's still
work.
I love what I do but that'sstill work.
I would say taking my wife andmy two-year-old to the Amazium
and then going for a walk on theCrystal Bridges trails all
through there, maybe grabbing amilkshake from the Spark truck
and then having lunch or dinnerat Oven and Tap.
Just kind of keeping it localto downtown.
(15:17):
But those are kind of myfavorite things to do in
Bentonville.
Beth Bobbitt (15:22):
I love it.
Yeah, amazium is so fun,especially for a two-year-old.
I mean that's like the perfectage to see that wonder he loves
the big truck.
Christian Moore (15:30):
All he wants to do is sit in the big truck.
Beth Bobbitt (15:34):
Well, you can spend some time there, for sure.
Christian Moore (15:37):
Yes, we can.
Beth Bobbitt (15:38):
So what do we need to know about?
Where to find information andhow to keep posted on the half.
Christian Moore (15:45):
Yeah, so everything is on the website, so
runbintonvillecom.
You can also follow us onInstagram, which is just at Run
Bentonville, and same withFacebook as well.
We also do some posts onFriends of Bentonville Facebook
page as well, but our main pagesare those run Bentonville.
Beth Bobbitt (16:07):
Okay, so let's check out the half and as well
as other races you have on thewebsite.
Thank you, christian, forcoming on and sharing your
insights.
Christian Moore (16:16):
Thank you so much for having me.
Beth Bobbitt (16:18):
And don't forget, visit Bentonville is here to
help us navigate things to do,where to eat and stay and what's
going on in our new Americantown.
Give us a follow on socialmedia, sign up for the
newsletter and check out ourwebsite at visitbittenvillecom.
Thanks for listening.
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