2013 Savannah Rock N Roll Marathon (Garden City, Forsyth: credit card, hotels, home)

[Newsboy]

Coming up on Saturday. 20,000 runners expected. Here's the route; what do y'all think?

http://cdn.runrocknroll.competitor.c...Map_full11.pdf

They started closing some streets today:

Rock 'n' Roll Savannah Marathon to affect parking, traffic Saturday | Savannahnow.com Mobile

[Robynn]

I think it's going to be awesome! Some of my friends and I are coming down from Charleston to run it. Do you have any recommendations on what to see down there (I've never been - just moved to Charleston a little bit ago)?

[Newsboy]

Originally Posted by Robynn

I think it's going to be awesome! Some of my friends and I are coming down from Charleston to run it. Do you have any recommendations on what to see down there (I've never been - just moved to Charleston a little bit ago)?

There are MANY events going on this weekend in relation to the race, including a runner's expo in the Convention Center on Hutchinson Island (where you go to pick up your registration and bib), as well as the festivals and stuff that go on in Savannah every weekend. It's a fun town.

Check these two sites for a list of weekend activities:

| dosavannah

Connect Savannah - The free weekly newspaper for news , arts, music , food and drink in Savannah, Georgia

[Newsboy]

WTOC's live "coverage" of the race was pretty messed up, but it beat having to get out of bed and go stand in the cold to watch it in person.

[gastech]

...of Forsyth Park.

Volumn = World Class

Music = Not so much.

Wearing earplugs inside with the doors and windows closed helps.

We went out and joined the festivities and it appears a good time is being had by all.

[ellie]

How about those motels jacking their rates up to $400 and $500/night?

Personally, I detest the annual mess because it's inconvenient. But I'm happy other folks enjoy it.

Does that even make sense?

[Newsboy]

Originally Posted by ellie

How about those motels jacking their rates up to $400 and $500/night?

Personally, I detest the annual mess because it's inconvenient. But I'm happy other folks enjoy it.

Does that even make sense?

I know, right? They had a big story about it on WJCL News last night (they're doing good stuff!)

Of course, the tourism and hotel people tried to dismiss it as "supply and demand." But I don't know HOW a motel iln Garden City of all places can get away with charging $450 a night! That's highway robbery.

Several racegoers interviewed said they won't be back because of the exorbitant room rates, and I don't blame them. Savannah's hospitality industry may have already cooked this golden goose.

[DanielAvery]

I don't know HOW a motel iln Garden City of all places can get away
with charging $450 a night! That's highway robbery.

Playing devil's advocate here...

Let's say this hotel, we'll call it the Casa De Cucaracha, has seventy rooms, but typically only has six to eight guests on premises this time of year. To keep this level of clientele happy, they have two maids, two desk clerks, a day manager and a night manager, and maybe a morning person who comes in to set up a quick, continental breakfast and a two-day-per week pool boy. But when all seventy rooms are booked at once, this level of staffing and amenities isn't going to cut it. To cater to this level of bookings, they'll have to call a temp agency for extra maids, extra desk staff, extra laundry staff, perhaps call in the manager's husband to answer phones, and have the breakfast-time lady work extra hours to buy, prepare, and serve all that extra food (using the hotel credit card, obviously). They'll have to lay in a larger supply of basics to prepare the rooms (itty-bitty shampoos, TP, maybe even towels and sheets), as well. They may even have to hire an off-duty police officer to work security if it's in a sketchier part of Garden City. It won't help that a lot of other hotels will be needing the same type of help, so the rates they have to pay for the temps will be higher than normal, and there won't be a lot of off-duty cops to be had when so many of them will be working the marathon (which will make them more expensive, too).

That is the type of temporary expense that they may have to pay for up front, so charging more for the rooms is the only way to do it. Expecting a hotel (even a seedy dive like Casa de Cucaracha) to perform ten times the work using the same amount of resources isn't realistic. Now while I'm not sure the higher rates are totally realistic, either, the folks in charge really have no frame of reference in a situation like this, because the R&RM is a fairly new enterprise and is growing in unpredictable ways. If they price themselves out of the market, they will obviously know better next time, but if they end up losing a lot of money on the event, there might end up going out of business.

[ellie]

Believe it or not, we went downtown for dinner after the race with friends who were visiting from out of town. I was fairly concerned it would be harder than usual to find parking, so we got there early in case we had to walk a long way.

The parking garage that we like to use had a $10 flat rate sign up (grrrr), but there were several empty parking spaces right on the street next to it. You never see that on a Saturday night -- or anytime these days. Looks like a lot of tired runners left and went home after the race. The tourist zone was lively, but not unusually so.

Maybe that's the good side of expensive motel rooms. People go ahead and clear out instead of staying for the entire weekend.

[CoastalGAGuy]

Maybe that's the good side of expensive motel rooms. People go ahead and clear out instead of staying for the entire weekend.

I guess that depends on your perspective. Businesses in the historic district might see it a different way - hotel prices driving their business down.