After months of planning one of my biggest challenges to date arrived - 7 half marathons in 7 states in 8 days (we needed Saturday to fly). Completing all 50 states in 2013 depended on my ability to complete this series. I managed to sucker Sherry into doing the entire series with me! Denise signed on for the final 6 but couldn't make it to the east coast to start with us in Philly. Marissa started with us in Philly, did the first 6, but then ditched us to do a different one for her 7th (she was always working on her 50 states and already had Wisconsin). So the grand adventure began on Saturday morning, September 14th with a 197 mile drive to Philly for the Rock N Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon. We already had PA, but this is one of our favorite races so we decided to do it anyway - it also counted towards another of my goals for the year, my 3rd Rock Idol.
As much as we love Philly, it was really overshadowed by the rest of the trip. There was the usual meet up with friends and of course the hugs for Joe.
But after a quick startline pic with Sherry to document our week's journey, it was your typical run.
I finished in 2:13:28 (I haven't been training in over a year now).
Then met up with Sherry and Geo for quick hugs, chatting, and off to the hotel to shower. We met up with Hyalker and some friends at the Hard Rock for drinks and he advised us to get going early as the Eagles game was going to be letting out and it was doubtful we'd get through traffic once that happened. Sherry, Marissa, and I didn't fly out until 6PM but based on Hyalker's advice Sherry and I got there very early. We also called Marissa and let her know she should head out. After getting through security, we enjoyed a leisurely meal at a little restaurant, only to have our dinner interrupted by phone calls from Delta - telling us our flights were cancelled!! Shortly thereafter we started getting calls from Marissa, who had just arrived at the airport, and been told the same thing. As we all frantically made phone calls and headed to customer service areas we each got different answers from the people we were talking to. When we finally did make it out of Philly we had no idea what our next step was. But we had called Denise, who luckily was at packet pickup and spoke to Clint, the race director for the next 5 days, and explained our predicament. Upon hearing that if I did not complete Monday's race I would not finish my 50 states in 2013, he agreed to help out as best he could and said we could start late, but we would have to be off the course by 1:00PM to give him time to get to the next location. Over the next few hours as we sat in the Philly airport, we realized that despite Delta's wishy washy promises of getting us on an early morning flight from MSP to RAP it was still highly unlikely we'd make it in time. I'd been told there was room for all three of us on the flight and that we were already booked. Sherry had been told that we were all on standby and the flight was full. Marissa had been told there were two seats left on the flight and a long standby list. If we waited until morning for the final determination we were not making North Dakota in time to allow us to finish by 1:00. The ONLY way to make that would be to all be on that flight....or to drive all night from MSP. So, before boarding the plane in Philly, we booked our rental car in Minneapolis.
We landed in MSP around 11:30PM after a long day, 979 miles of flying, being up early to run a half, having a couple of drinks with friends, and spending chaotic hours in the airport rearranging our plans to make things work. Knowing we had no time to spare, we grabbed our meal vouchers provided by delta, hit the only thing open - Subway, and used all three vouchers buying snacks and drinks for the road to ensure we were fueled before the morning's start. Then we grabbed the rental car and headed out. We'd decided that Marissa would take the first shift driving. I slept in the back seat and Sherry slept in the passenger's seat.
After giving Marissa strict orders to wake me up whenever she needed me to take over, we rolled out of the airport just after midnight, and I dozed off. I awoke to the sounds of the rumble strip and yelled "Marissa!!!" As I darted awake in the back seat. She apologized profusely, but it was already 2AM so it was completely understandable that she needed a break. We pulled over and traded off and she dozed in the back
and Sherry stayed upfront and asleep, I drove the rest of the night.
We arrived at the North Dakota startline 644 miles later; and hour and a half after the race had started. We pulled our suitcases out of the car in a grassy field,
changed into our race gear, and headed to the start. The course was a 1+ mile out and back, and each time you passed the start/support area you were given a rubber band. When you'd completed your designated number of laps and had the appropriate number of rubber bands you went into the finish area. As we approached the startline, Denise was just finishing her third lap (and was halfway done for the day). A quick picture and we were off.
As we began running Sherry and I realized we didn't have a "startline" photo, so we snapped one quickly before we were too far into the race.
I couldn't figure out why I felt like crap during this event and when I saw the pictures I was stunned to see how bad I looked too....until a few friends mentioned that I'd run a half marathon, slept 2 hours in the back of a car, and drove all night to run another half....
I guess a 2:32 finish wasn't so bad afterall!
It's worth noting at this point that we really had low expectations of this event when we saw that the courses were basically each 1 mile out and back with lots of laps with the exception of Friday's 2 mile loop with lots of laps. We literally all cringed at the thought and were worried we'd be bored. On top of worrying that running 7 1/2s in 8 days may kill us! But with 2 days down, we knew that was the least of our worries! The field for the 5 day event was realtively small with around 180 runners for both the half and full, so the short repeating courses gave us the opportunity to really get to know each other - regardless of speed differences! Though I arrived knowing less than a handful of the folks running, by Monday's finish line I knew most everyone by name, and by Tuesday we were all old friends - Friday brought sad goodbyes.
After finishing our North Dakota run and driving 29 miles back to the hotel to shower, we headed to South Dakota (117 miles away) - where we would be homesteading for the next three nights. As we settled into our room we created a recovery section by compiling all of our gadgets, meds, and tools.
Obviously we were ALL concerned about getting through so many miles in a week! Rather than take chances, we took turns with the recovery boots.
Monday was a calm day in the hotel and an early night to bed after our crazy Philly - North Dakota adventure. Tuesday morning we arrived at the startline and began to get aquainted with the Race Director's routine. Each morning he would make announcements and provide a briefing on the course atop a ladder (with a megaphone) near the RV that became our aid station for the week, before sending us on our way for the miles.
Given that we were in South Dakota, we were greeted by the Presidents from Mount Rushmore, who graciously posed for a pic before awkwardly teetering on their way.
Tuesday's race was by far one of my least favorite. It was very scenic, but it was on a concrete bike/walking path. My legs aren't a fan of concrete and with two half marathons in the previous two days on them and facing 4 more half marathons in the next 5 days I decided to take it easy. I'd lightly jog a little here and there, but mostly walked the entire 13.1 miles, finishing in 3:04 even...my slowest half EVER, but the best time ever! The friendship made along the course were well worth taking it slow and enjoying!
And given that Denise and I took this one so slow (and together) we used the time to catch up. (We hadn't had time together for months so there was PLENTY to talk about.) It also ensured we had PLENTY of energy to cheer our fellow runners on!! By the end of Tuesday we had become known as the cheerleaders in the group (those that hadn't learned our names yet simply referred to us as the cheerleaders).
One of the unique features of the series put on by Mainly Marathons is their aid station. Rather than having volunteers set up at various aid stations along the course, runners bring their own water and leave their hydration bottles on a table that they pass at regular intervals (no more than every 2 miles) on the laps. This table is beside the RV where the RD and volunteers set up basically any kind of nourish you could imagine. No GU here...we're talking sandwiches, chips, crackers, rice krispy treats, fruit snacks, watermelon, coffee, hot cocoa, gatorade....you name it!
3:04 and 13.1 miles later on this beautiful day with amazing people we were not ready for the fun to end! Hanging around for a few pictures with friends and cheering on runners still on the course
Quickly turned into a finishline dance party as music poured from the RV aid station and marathoners enjoyed our antics!
As the day wore on we wore out and soon decided to head back for showers and a little rest and recovery. Given that this series was billed as the "Center of the Nation Series" and our South Dakota race was in Belle Fourche (the center of the nation), we took the opportunity for a quick photo at the Center of the Nation before heading back to the hotel.
Back in the room we rotated through showers, electro stim,
and recovery boots!
Then spent a relaxing day visiting, going for ice cream and filling the gas tank (about 10 miles total), and joining the other runners for a spaghetti dinner.
Wednesday morning we headed to WY (26 miles away), for another 13.1 day! After our morning muster and brief, we were on our way!
Sherry and I captured another start line photo.
And we all enjoyed an amazing sunrise run.
The WY course was loose gravel and a bit uneven, and I was feeling a bit beat up (I probably should have trained at least a little before this undertaking!), so I again walked -but this time I walked nearly the entire course!
A great day was had by all...stress of the real world and work weeks were long gone.
My finish time was 3:33:00 - which will truly stand as my longest time in a half ever!! But even with all of the walking, as a runner friend handed me a bracelett...it resonated!
Four half marathons in four days down!! We had reached hump day and were ready to tackle the rest of the week! Before tackling anything though, we had to drive the 26 miles back to the hotel, rotate through showers, ice baths, and any other recovery we needed!
Once we finished that...why not put on some more miles?!?!? We were up for some site seeing, so what's another 196 miles (round trip) after so many?
Mount Rushmore and Crazyhorse were fun, but I don't think everyone in the group appreciated the couple of miles of trails and stairs we put in at Rushmore.
We did find a neat place for dinner in Rapid City though!
After getting back to the hotel (thanks to Beth's awesome driving skills and Denise's incredible screaming skills - the deer didn't stand a chance!), we slept for a few hours before tackling the 50 miles to the MT start line.
Despite another beautiful sunrise
Montana was MISERABLE!!!
There's no way around it, it was COLD. The temps were reading 37 degrees with a windchill of 29. And it was WINDY. According to the weather report on my smart phone the winds were 30+ MPH sustained and gusts up to 45-50 MPH. It was an out and back course like the others and on the way out we were going uphill, but the wind at our backs helped us along. On the downhills coming back with that headwind at times it felt like we were standing still. Of course, as usual, Sherry and I headed up quickly and were down to sports bras, sleeves, and skirts within the first mile.
Apparently this made us freaks of nature as other were bundled in layers and one fella even wore his blue jeans because he didn't have running tights with him.
I swear almost every single person running, watching, cheering, or just breathing near the course offered me a jacket during the run. While I appreciated the concern it got REALLY old REALLY quickly. They'd all SEEN me in a jacket that morning! And many of them offered multiple times. Begin so miserable already I just got crabby quick and the offers started getting annoying.
Making an already miserable race even more fun...the course was a pitted, uneven gravel mess and with my ankles was a sprain waiting to happen! They had at least put plywood over the cattle bridge...that helped a bit.
The wind didn't let up the entire time, if anything it got worse as the race wore on.
There were a few bright spots, other than that camaraderie, such as the silly signs selling the now conveted rubber bands.
After my 2 days of setting PW (Personal Worst) I knew I needed to reel this one in a bit just to stop the suffering. Given that it was also my 5th consecutive half in as many days there was only so much I thought I could do. I finished in 2:49 even, grabbed my stuff, and headed to the car where Denise and Sherry and mercifully finished much sooner than I and had the heat going. When I got in the back seat Sherry bleeped some naughty word because of the cold that was literally radiating off of my body. It wasn't until that moment that I finally felt that cold and nearly immediately got the shakes. I had to peel off my sweating clothes and put on some dry layers and try to warm up.
Once Beth finished and joined us in the car, we added 55 miles f driving so we could see the "nearby" Devil's Tower!
It was beautiful and we really enjoyed it, though we'd probably have enjoyed it more after showers...but they had to wait another 107 miles to Rapid City, SD where we picked up our rental car followed by an additional 102 miles to Chadron, NE were we were staying the night before the next race. We spent our final evening of the series relaxing in the hotel and recovering, then after a good night's sleep, we drove the 22 miles to the race start line.
The final day of the Center of the Nation Series was bitter sweet. It was a 2 mile loop course, so we didn't get to see everyone as often as the other courses, but the course was beautiful. The sunrise over the hills with the moon still visible in the background was amazing.
Everyone stopped for photos.
The trail loop ran through the woods and then through some campsites before coming back to RV for rubberbands and another loop.
We had our choice of direction to run the loops, so I ran my final loop backwards to get in a final goodbye to everyone still on the course.
And in 2:47 I finished Nebraska and the Center of the Nation Series.
This series was beyond my expectations in so many ways and Race Director Clint Burleson was the reason for that. He (and his team) put on a class act event.
After a bit of celebrating with friends and a Half Fanatics photo
Denise, Sherry, and I headed the 22 miles back to the hotel to shower. Then began the 102 mile trip back to Rapid City for the night. Denise had completed 5 1/2s in 5 states in 5 days
and Sherry and I had done 6. It was time for some well deserved relaxing and celebrating prior to our morning flight.
A nice dinner, a few drinks, and we headed back to the hotel for the night.
The following morning, true to form on this trip, Delta gave us some issues and we had delays and flight changes but eventually we managed to get from RAP to MSP to MKE! After getting our rental car and driving the 20 miles to the expo, getting our packets, and then driving the 5 miles to the hotel to check in, we headed to the Olive Garden to fuel for our final race of the trip. We then called it a night early and the next morning headed the 5 miles to the startline on Sherry's birthday.
I was ready to take it easy for the day, as were the others, but the energy at the startline and all of the inspriational stories just took over. Denise, Sherry, and I each ran our own races. I started off slow and struggled with a course of mostly concrete for the first 4 miles, though I enjoyed the views
before finally falling into a rhythm, but then I felt stronger than expected for my 7th in 8 days.
On a short out and back section of the course shortly thereafter I saw Sherry. She was about a mile in front of me and told me she'd slow down for me to catch up. I ran that out and back hard, determined to catch her.
Once I caught her I was ready to catch my breath but having run slow to wait for me she was ready to go. We worked on a happy medium while I recovered and then we covered a few miles comfortably chatting and enjoying our run. She'd mentioned that Denise had been running really well and was likely at least a mile in front of us. Somewhere around mile 10 as the course looped around a big open field Sherry spotted Denise on the other side (about half a mile ahead of us) and asked if I had it in me. I didn't really, but didn't care...we'd come this far together we needed to finish together. We took off to catch her, with me trailing Sherry.
Once we all three had joined back up we enjoyed a couple of miles together, but as we approached the last half mile I started feeling the affects of those two speed sessions of catch up and Sherry found her second wind. Sherry took off in the last quarter of a mile and finished her bday race strong while Denise and I crossed the line a minute or so behind her in 2:12:36.
We celebrated our finishes and enjoyed visiting with Dan and Jackie.
Then it was back to the hotel to shower and enjoy an amazing breakfast before check out. To celebrate Sherry's birthday and acheivements we found a nail salon 25 miles away and treated ourselves to pre-flight pedis.
Another 10 miles to the airport and we went our separate ways. Of course, Delta was determined to make this trip as eventful as possible for me. Upon check in I was told my flight was delayed (insanely so) and that I had been rebooked on another flight. Between airport security and the gate that changed 2 more times. Finally I was on a plane to MSP (though not my intended flight) in hopes of having better luck there. Of course, that was not in the cards. Once in MSP I was switched 2 more times, not just flights but also arrival airports! A frantic call to catch the friend that was picking me up from the airport and I was on a flight to BWI. Once there, it was another 88 miles of driving to get home.
All said the totals for the week were 2,995 miles of flying, 1,984 miles of driving, 91.7 miles of running, countless miles walking around/site seeing and more smiles (and laughs) than one would think possible of fitting in a week.
