Back in the saddle--State #28 Little Rock Marathon, AR, Part One

I can't believe it is March and my next run is here already! Where did February go, and more importantly, why didn't I get more blogging done? Life is busy, that's for sure, and I'm happy to say my mileage for February climbed closer to where I like it. 

Gorgeous views of the sunset while in flight on March 4, 2016.

I arrived in Little Rock, AR late last night after a flight delay at my layover in Dallas. I was so completely exhausted by the time I landed. After a free cab ride to my hotel (I shared a cab with a ex-military general who was anxious to get home and offered to pay for my fare...thanks!), I collapsed in my room and slept in until 9 am Little Rock time. 

I made my way down to the hotel lobby for a light breakfast and coffee at the hotel Starbucks where I met an amazing woman named Millicent. She was from Jackson, Mississippi and was here in Little Rock to run her 8th full marathon. She has competed in over 45 races so far in her recent life of running, and we had a lovely chat about our running goals and life in general. Millicent told me she used to be very overweight and suffered from depression. Tired of taking medication that didn't do anything but mask the issues, she started running and hasn't looked back. She is a person with such a positive outlook, I couldn't help but be inspired by her. She came to Little Rock to run this marathon for the 4th time because it takes place on her birthday (tomorrow). She wanted to have a t-shirt and medal with her birthday on it! So cute.

Race shirt and bib number.

After our chat, I made my way to the race expo which was located in the convention center connected to the hotel. I picked up my number along with a whole bunch of race advertisements/discounts for races in states I still have to run. I picked up a few other goodies for the kids, too. 

Banner at riverfront park.

Then I was off to explore downtown Little Rock. A beautiful riverfront park extends along the Arkansas River right behind my hotel, so I decided to follow that route. There was a big banner near the main entrance to the park welcoming runners. 

One of the sculptures in the park photobombing my selfie.

The park was filled with all kinds of sculptures as well as a pavilion amphitheater and the Junction Bridge, a pedestrian footbridge that spans the river. It was a gorgeous warm springlike day with sunshine and temps in the 70's, so I soaked up the sun as I enjoyed the sights. The view from atop the bridge provided a nice perspective of the city skyline as well as the river and surrounding area. 

Bridge information plaque.

Up on the bridge. 

Cityscape view from the bridge.

I stopped in to the River Market where I thought I'd be able to buy my water, blueberries and other pre-race necessities, but it was actually an eatery filled with various food stations. I asked some really nice ladies there if there was a nearby grocery store, and after a discussion and directions to the local bus station, I planned to hop the bus to shop. 

Once at the bus station, I changed my mind, as the wait for the bus was about 30 minutes, and the bus was in a rather seedy area, and I didn't think it would be very smart of me to hang out there by myself. Plus, I wanted to see some other things in the city, not just spend my time getting out to the grocery store and back! I ended up walking back to the market where I bought a veggie wrap for lunch and stocked up on bottled water. It was delightful to sit at a picnic table outside near the river and have lunch.

Photo I took of the bridge as viewed through a billboard postcard frame.

Next, I was off to the Clinton Presidential Museum & Library. The museum is located along the riverwalk and is impressive upon approach. The exhibits ranged from Clinton's early life being raised by his grandparents as a boy to his governorship in Arkansas and to his election as President. It is an impressive collection of Clinton's tenure in office, highlighting many of the positive contributions he made in the areas of peace negotiations, education, health care reform, and humanitarian efforts. 

Walking up the street leading to the Clinton Library. 

Front facade of the Clinton Library.

The museum included replicas of the Cabinet Room and Oval Office during Clinton's time and collections of letters and all kinds of memorabilia from the White House (like some of his saxophones). It was a terrific stop while here in the city, and I couldn't help but feel the uplifting spirit that permeated his Presidency while touring the beautiful archive. 

Dinner table set with White House china. 

Chihuly white and gold glass Christmas Tree.

View of gardens from the library upper floor window.

I also would have liked to have visited the Central High School historical site while here, but I just didn't have enough time today. The Clinton Museum offered a very moving tribute to the Little Rock Nine, as they showed true bravery in a time of such division and hatred. It was mind-boggling to see footage of President Eisenhower ordering the local government to allow for desegregation of schools. And the fact that the local governor issued the military to keep the students out is utterly disgusting. Thank goodness Eisenhower countered that action with his own. 

After the museum, I walked to the closest Starbucks which was probably a good 20 blocks or so away to stock up on my morning java. The weather was amazing so I didn't mind the extra walk, plus it is not such a bad thing to keep the legs moving after sitting on an airplane so long yesterday.

Gorgeous day!

Dinner was at a local pizza/pasta restaurant called Damgoode Pies where I ordered up my usual plate of spaghetti and meatballs, angel hair variety this time. I reconnected with Craig and the girls via text and talk while there. We traded stories of our days, mine exploring Little Rock and theirs skiing at Mt. Southington.

The vibe in the city was terrific today. The people here are super friendly, and the Little Rock Marathon race organizers had lots of fun events going on. Today was a 5K, 10K and kids' last mile marathon race. There were runners everywhere enjoying the sunshine and their success. I'm looking forward to the race tomorrow. It will be great to explore more of this city on foot. 

Spied the city library in my travels today. Note the carved names of authors around the top .

Quick snapshot of the historical area preserved downtown.

'Snow Joke

It snowed here on Friday (Feb. 5th). Mother Nature provided the first REAL snowstorm of the year. School canceled for both my kids and myself, so we had a terrific "found" day of extra time. I generally prefer to power through the school schedule without any snow days, and particularly with this winter being so mild, I was really looking forward to getting finished with school in early June. Now, one snow day isn't going to mess that up too much, but hopefully this isn't a trend that will net many more days off and longer lessons in June.
That being said, the snow day was both relaxing and busy. Relaxing in the fact that I didn't have to rush my gang out the door at a frantic pace to get to school and work. Relaxing in the fact that I could take my time going from project to project at home that I've put off for months. Relaxing in the fact that I was able to log in to my work Google account and correct student work while watching the snow pile up outside. I managed to get many little things accomplished which was great. It was a relief to get a jump start on weekend chores so that I didn't have to spend my entire weekend cleaning the house and doing laundry and other mundane stuff. 

Post-snowstorm view looking down my driveway.

We ventured out in to the snow in the afternoon when the storm was over. We received a good 6 inches or so, a bit more than what was forecasted for our region. It was a bit of a surprise to see so much of the white stuff, since it has been so mild all winter. I didn't end up running on this snow day, even though I woke up early enough to get to the gym, as the snowfall was already under way, and it seemed like it might not be the best decision.
We pretty much just hunkered down for the day, aside from some outdoor play and shoveling. The nice thing about the storm is that it warmed up a bit after and the sun came out. Perfect for being outside in the white stuff.

Day after the storm, LEGO headquarters in my town.

Still feeling the effects of the storm on Saturday, I figured a trip to the gym was in order to get in some treadmill time. Most of the morning was spent cleaning, and the early afternoon brought trips to the sporting good store (for ski paraphernalia) and Costco. In my Facebook feed earlier in the day, I saw that my running buddies from Michigan, the famous Cass River Runners, were gearing up for their town's winter race, the Winterlauffe. When I was in Michigan in October hanging out with these delightful folks, they invited me to return for the winter race (a 5K, I think it is). It was super sweet of them to ask me to join them for another run, but I knew I probably couldn't swing it, with all the other races still to conquer in my 50 states quest. So while I was going about my chores and errands, Riley, one of the gang, messaged me to let me know that they were thinking about me and that I was missed at the event. It was really nice to know that they remembered me and still considered me part of the crew. My back and forth messages with Riley throughout the afternoon inspired me to run my miles outside instead of in, and I rushed home after the Costco trip to bundle up and bang out a 5.5 miler on one of my regular routes.

Winterlauffe selfie!

It was glorious! I adore outdoor running so much more than the treadmill variety (who doesn't?), and the weather was just perfect for it! Despite the snow all around, the sun was out and the temps were in the low 40's with light winds. Not bad for February. I ran in my lightweight hiking shoes to better help navigate any snow covered sidewalks (there weren't many, but it was a good decision for the areas that were). The cool fresh air was exhilarating and my legs felt happy to be out moving. My own private Winterlauffe, I joked with my Michigan friends. Just what I needed!
I don't know what the rest of the winter will bring, but I do know that if the temperatures cooperate, I'm happy to get out there and get those miles in! Little Rock is only one month away, and I'd actually like to train for this race after not being able to train so much for the last one in Austin. May the groundhog's prediction be accurate, and may the sunny days ahead continue.

State #27, 3M Half Marathon, Austin, TX, January 24, 2016, Part 2

My body woke up about ten minutes before my scheduled 5 am alarm, which was fine. I slept soundly, but still felt tired when I awoke, most likely a result of the travel and continued recovery from my sickness earlier in the month. I just needed a little while to wake up. Going through my regular routine helped…coffee, yoga sun salutations, breakfast, gearing up, etc. By 6:30 am I was ready. The temperature on race morning was only 39 degrees. Not exactly the warmth I was expecting in Austin, so I was somewhat unprepared, and by race end the temps were only expected to be in the 40's. Hazel and Marshall gave me a heavy duty garbage bag the night before, so donning my garbage bag, I went out to brave the cold. 

Race t-shirt and bib number.

3M sanding attachment for vacuum cleaner...from the goodie bag.

One last stop in the hotel lobby bathroom before stepping out was a necessity. As I was washing my hands, the song “The Long Run” by the Eagles came on…good omen or haphazard foreboding? Hard to tell. 

View of the starting line. Lots of cold runners in 39 degree temps!

The gear bag check and starting line were steps from my hotel much to my relief. I couldn’t get a clear sense from the marathon map exactly where all the starting line action would be, so it was great to have it so nearby. I handed in my finish line clothes in their bag and went off to find my place in the starting corral. This race was a point to point race, starting the Arboretum area of Austin and cruising to the downtown area near the University of Texas campus.

Me and my garbage bag in the starting corral.

Knowing I’d most likely run a bit slow this time, I decided to play it safe and line up near the 1:55 finish line sign. With only ten minutes to the starting gun, I was set. 

The starting horn went off promptly at 7 am and we were off. It took a minute or so to cross the starting line, as the crowd was some 6,500 people strong. But once we got up there, we were off. The first several miles paraded through corporate/industrial/retail complexes on roads that most likely aren’t heavily traveled on Sunday mornings. I tried to just focus on keeping a fairly steady but comfortable pace and breathing properly. I felt very good through mile 6. At mile 6 the 1:55 pace group caught me, which was no big deal, in fact, I expected that to happen, but whenever I get passed by a pacing group, it always messes with my mental position. After that, I felt like every mile got slower. (After reviewing my final splits post-race, that is exactly what happened. I slowed with each quarter of the race, but less than I thought.) 

I was just happy to be feeling good at the halfway mark. The slogan of this race was “Down Hill to Downtown,” which I kind of think is a misnomer. Most of the race felt flat to me, and quite honestly, the second half of the race had its share of modest uphills. The hills weren’t horrible, but when you already feel yourself slowing, it makes things seem even slower. 

The second half of the race boasted many more spectators than the first part, so that made things more interesting. One of my favorite signs said something like, "Blisters are braille for "AWESOME!"" Also, we entered some residential areas. The houses were mostly brick or stone bungalow or ranch style homes. I really like the trees in Austin, too. They aren’t really tall like the oaks back home, and they are shrubby but tree-like. I have no idea what kind they are, but they are pretty. We ran along these tree lined streets, and as we got closer to downtown, we passed some mighty delicious smelling restaurants and cafes. I was getting anxious for the finish line.

At mile 11 the time clock read 1:38, so I pretty much knew if I could keep up with my pace, I’d finish in just under my two hour goal. The last bit of the race was through the University of Texas campus. What an impressive school. The buildings were massive, and the stadium was completely intimidating! I could imagine being from the opposing football team and showing up there on the bus. Talk about feeling small. Right near the stadium I spied a guy on the sidewalk spectating and wearing a UConn sweatshirt. I shouted to him UConn! He yelled back Go Huskies! It was fun. 

Also during this stretch of the race, I passed my favorite musical act along the route: a Mariachi band just inside the UT campus. As I ran past, they broke in to a rocking version of "La Cucaracha" which was just the boost I needed at this late point in the race. I couldn't help but chuckle that all the runners must have looked like a bunch of cockroaches skittering through the streets. Too funny! 

A couple of more turns and I was downtown nearly in the shadow of the Capitol building. As I ran toward the finish line and through the finishing chute, I scanned from side to side for Hazel. I had no idea if she made it in time or exactly where she’d be. Just a few feet before the final push, I spied her and her twins. We saw each other and shouted with glee. I crossed the finish line with a respectable net time of 1:56:52. Not bad for not much training. Needless to say, I was pleased.

Hazel and her kids caught up with me while I was stretching. They had all kinds of great questions about the race, and we chatted while I stretched. I made a quick trip to the porta potty to freshen up, and she graciously drove me back to my hotel. After a quick shower, we headed out for a quick lunch.

Austin breakfast tacos.

We ended up at a busy, fun place called Tacodeli. Breakfast tacos at last! I had a black bean, egg, avocado and pico de gallo taco, and it was spectacular! I’m a fan and can’t wait to make some at home for my kids. A little bit of Texas in CT.

The breakfast club having final goodbyes and selfies.

After our lunch, we said our final goodbyes for this trip, but this clearly was just the beginning of us really knowing each other again. I’m so grateful for that. As Hazel and her kids drove away, and I prepared to navigate back to the airport, tears welled up in my eyes for having the pleasure of seeing an old friend and for it being such a special time. Talk about a powerful moment in life. I hope she and her family can come out our way sometime so I can give them the royal treatment, too. What a trip!

My trip back to the airport was without incident and both my flights were fine, so I was home in no time. This race will be a meaningful one for me for a long time to come. Thank you Austin, TX for a well organized race, and thank you Hazel and family for my full heart. 

Texas card.

Race shirt and finisher's medal.

State #27, 3M Half Marathon, Austin, TX, January 24, 2016, Part 1

I left Friday, January 22nd for Texas right after work. I drove directly to the airport, and luckily got out with just a slight delay. A major winter storm was heading up the east cost, and even though Connecticut wasn’t expected to see the bulk of the snow, flights (due to connections) were canceling and getting delayed. I squeaked out and made my connection through Detroit without a problem on my way to Austin. 

I chose Austin this time around because of the good reviews I’d read about the 3M Half Marathon. In addition, I was hoping to run in Austin because an old childhood friend of mine lives there, and I was hoping I could sneak in a visit while in the area. I reached out to her well in advance, and even though we haven’t seen each other in roughly 30 years, she was excited and open to meeting up. Yay!

My cousin Andrew registered for the race as well, so it would be a grand old time in Texas! I arrived late Friday night and discovered a text from Andrew that his flight was canceled for the night. He rebooked for the next day around noon and would keep me posted. Bummer.

Saturday morning, I allowed myself to sleep in a bit. Shortly thereafter, I heard from Andrew that his noon flight was already delayed, and he wasn’t feeling optimistic about things. In the end, he decided not to come, feeling that if he arrived very late, he’d be too exhausted to deal with the run the next day. Totally understandable, but disappointing none the less. 

Visitor's Center guitar pick sign.

I headed out to downtown Austin to pick up my bib number at the Convention Center. 3M provided a huge bag of goodies along with the bib, including sticky notes, a vacuum cleaner attachment for sandpaper dust, food treats, some car wheel polish, and other things. I brought all that back to the car and headed out on foot. 

Painted murals just off 6th St.

After a stop in the Austin Visitors Center with a recommendation for a taco place for lunch, I was off. I had heard from my friend that 6th Street was a place to see, so I walked in that direction on my way to the Capitol area. Wow! What a scene it was! 6th Street is filled with bars, tattoo parlors, music shops, The Museum of the Weird, and all kinds of colorful characters. One local described it to me as the Bourbon Street of Austin. I didn’t have much desire to visit any bars (although I was tempted by the Museum of the Weird), so I just meandered through and turned up Congress Street toward the state Capitol building. 

Austin Capitol building.

The Capitol building is enormous and gorgeous! It is taller than the national Capitol in Washington, D.C. and reminded me of a palace. I wasn’t really expecting that in Texas, but boy was it impressive. 

I made my way past the Capitol area over to Lavaca Street where the restaurant was, when I was stopped by a (seemingly) homeless man. He was clearly intoxicated, and asked me directions to 6th Street. Having just walked from there, I was happy to help. Of course, next he took to telling me many of his life stories. He was carrying a guitar case (not sure if there was actually a guitar in it), but he told me he had played music with Miles Davis, Ray Charles and the Pointer Sisters. He was from Oregon originally, but had just rolled in to Austin by way of (I think) Mexico, where he said he was beat up by some guys there and had his teeth knocked out and ribs broken. He really was a mess. I listened as politely as I could, but when he asked me if I had time to sit down and chat, I made tracks. The Austin slogan, “Keep Austin Weird,” was making sense to me now. :)

Lunch restaurant.

I found the restaurant a few blocks later. El Mercado it was called, and after a chat with my waitress, Sam, I settled on the brisket tacos. And ohhhhh my, were they delicious! I had never tasted a more delicious taco before. They served it with sides of barbecue sauce, guacamole, fresh cilantro, spicy brown beans with chiles, chopped onion and a generous basket of tortilla chips with salsa. I was in heaven! After having my fill, I hiked back to the Capitol building for a tour. 

Lunch.

Lunch.

The building houses the state senate and house of representatives, both chambers we toured. The state court is also there, and many historical items, including paintings depicting the battles at the Alamo and San Jacinto. The rotunda area and dome are especially stunning. We also were able to walk down to the extension underneath the capitol building which was added later to house additional office space. It was a fun and interesting way to pass the afternoon. 

Back side of Capitol building.

Interior of rotunda dome, looking up. Beautiful!

Austin Capitol Building Senate chambers.

Dawn at the Alamo painting.

Battle of San Jacinto painting.

Austin Capitol Building House of Representatives chamber.

I headed back to my hotel later in the afternoon, stopping at Target and Whole Foods on the way to pick up some necessities. I changed and headed out to visit my friend for dinner. 

My friend Hazel and I were best friends in our early childhood. I have such fond memories of her and her family from those days. She grew up in a family of 6 kids, so something fun was always happening at her house. All of the kids were creative and funny, so going to her house as a kid was always a blast. She now has a large family of her own (7 children!) and a wonderful man to share her life. 

Hazel's kids. One amazing bunch!

As I arrived at her house, I wasn’t sure I was in the right place, as everything was completely silent. How could a house with seven kids be so quiet?!! When she opened the door, it was as if the last 30 years of not seeing each other was erased, and there we were. I hugged her and then had to hug all her beautiful kids (ranging from age 15 to 14 months!). Through the magic of Facebook, we were able to glimpse in to each other’s lives these last several years, so although we knew some details, we had loads of catching up to do. 

Old friends together again!

Her kids were right there with us, listening to all the old stories and life events (college, jobs, homes, marriage, kids, running, etc.). I was so struck at how well-mannered they all were and how entirely sweet and lovely. Every single one of them is smart and polite and engaged and all were connecting with the conversation. 

Hazel and her partner, Marshall, offered to host me for a pre-race spaghetti and meatball dinner, and it was just the most wonderful part of the trip. My heart was bursting with emotions, and I was nearly a water-works when I first arrived, seeing and hugging Hazel after all these years. 

Crazy shot with the full group.What an incredible night!

I left on the early side, hugging everyone again. Hazel was going to try to meet me at the finish line. What a trooper! I got back to the hotel, organized all my things for the morning and went off to bed. A good night sleep followed after such a wonderful, heart-warming evening.

Off to a slow start...

I feel remiss that I haven’t written a blog post for all of January so far, and now it is nearly the end of the month. January has been a rough month for me with the running. Just after the holidays I came down with strep throat. That was bummer enough, but three days in to the antibiotics, feeling a bit better, I decided with only 2 days of December remaining, I should attempt to finish the last 12 miles I needed to make it a 100 mile month. Stupid move. I made it to the gym on December 30th and ran a rough 6 miler on the treadmill. The next day I felt worse than I had on day one of strep. Ugh. One step forward, three steps back. After that, I decided I better take it easy, rest, hydrate and just try to get healthy. As luck would have it, the next day (New Year’s Eve), I came down with pink eye in both eyes! Quarantined, I was, and feeling like an absolute mess. Needless to say, I have rested for most of the month. Coming in to my latest race this past weekend I only had a mere 13.5 miles under my belt for the month. Talk about a pre-race taper! (More on the latest race in the next blog post.)

So the really fun thing about January 2016 is that I volunteered to display my first 25 half marathon states finisher medals at our local library. I signed up for it over a year ago, setting the goal that I’d have to be at 25 completed states. Also, I chose January thinking that it is a popular time for folks to set fitness goals for themselves, and if someone viewed my display and found it a motivating factor, well alright. 

Last weekend we had some close friends of ours visit us for a few days, and they wanted to see my medals. So we drove to the library for a peek. Along with the medals, I included my ongoing half marathon scrapbook and copies of all the state postcards I’ve made so far to correspond with each medal. My library friend, Erika, put the display together for me, and I thought it looked great! It is very colorful with all the various medals, ribbons and postcards. A nice lift for the grey doldrums of winter. 

I tried to snap a few photos of the display, but because of the size of the case they are in and the tight location near book stacks, I couldn’t get a super great shot. These photos at least give a general idea of it. 

So although I haven’t been at my best running-wise this month, it has been rewarding looking back on the accomplishments I’ve made so far. I’m so glad I had the chance to share them with others, too.

Another year complete, a new one to conquer!

Here we are at the end of 2015. Amazing that this year is gone and another one is about to whisk us away! Looking back at my running year, I am very pleased. This year was the first year that I decided to keep a mileage log, thanks to my friend Scott here in town who often posts his mileage milestones on Facebook. Although my first couple of months (January and February, 2015) were less than what I had hoped, I will end the year over 1200 miles logged, approximately 100 miles a month. Having not kept stats on my mileage before, I'm happy with this. And I'm looking forward to what next year will bring. 
As far as this year's running travels go, what a fun journey it was! I ran in Birmingham, AL; Olathe, KS; Rexburg, ID; Spearfish, SD; Fargo, ND; Frankenmuth, MI; Boulder City, NV. Thinking back, I have such fond memories of each place and each race, with the standouts being the Dakotas with our friends Pat and Patti and Michigan with the terrific running group I met and had the privilege to hang with. I am still, of course, grateful and amazed at the folks in Kansas who bought me dinner! Thank you again, Land of Oz friends! And I am still soaking up the beauty of Lake Mead and the canyons in Nevada, just a stone's throw from Las Vegas if you are ever out there. The beauty in our country, both in landscape and humanity, is bountiful and staggering. I feel so incredibly fortunate to be able to experience these wonderful people and places along the way. 

Birmingham, AL

Olathe, KS

Rexburg, ID

South Dakota

North Dakota

Frankenmuth, MI

Lake Mead, NV

Having mentioned the positives of the past year, unfortunately this last week (my holiday vacation from work) hasn't been so great. I came down with strep throat and have been laying low for the last few days, plus with the Christmas hustle and bustle I missed a couple of running days, so I still have 12 miles to churn out before year's end two days from now. I'm hoping my body will cooperate, and I can end the year with another 100 mile month. Even though I hate being sick, at least it has forced me to rest, and it has killed my holiday (sweets & bad stuff) appetite. Time to get back to the real food, slim down, eat right diet again. Needless to say, I'm happy all the Christmas cookies are gone and that  Weight Watchers has announced its new plan changes. I'm ready for action!
Looking ahead, I'm excited to head to Austin, TX. I've never been to Texas before, and I'm especially excited about going to Austin because my childhood best friend lives there. I will get to see her and meet her 7 children! We haven't seen each other in years, but thanks to Facebook, we've been in touch for quite some time. I can't wait! Cousin Andrew will be there with me, too, which is great, as we can check out the city together. I've heard such great things about it, and I can't wait to visit. It will be a great start to my running/travel year, I'm sure! 
I hope my running friends and readers had a wonderful holiday season. I wish you all a peaceful new year and success in all your running challenges! It is a blank slate, so get out there and fill it up! Happy 2016!

State #26, Nevada, Hoover Dam Half Marathon, December 12, 2015

I took Friday off from work to fly out to Las Vegas for this marathon. I spent a busy morning getting the girls off to school, fitting in a frenzied bit of Christmas shopping, dashing in for my monthly Weight Watchers weigh in, purchasing my preferred GU, packing, and taking care of some banking before getting to the airport. Whew! What a whirlwind!

The flight out was fine. I sat with two men, who were cousins, heading to Las Vegas for a fun weekend of gambling. They were entertaining, and we discussed our families, my running, healthy eating and Las Vegas. The flight was very long (more than an hour longer than normal) due to extremely strong headwinds. Needless to say, we were all relieved to finally arrive in our destination and be able to deplane.

I picked up my rental car and just barely made it in time to the bike shop where I needed to pick up my number. Thank goodness the plane wasn’t any later in arriving, as I made it to the number pick up with only 20 minutes to spare. The bike shop was in a suburb of Las Vegas called Henderson, and I quickly found a grocery store nearby where I grabbed my last few necessities for race day. Conveniently, I spied a pizza restaurant across the street from the grocery store and decided to give it a try for dinner. Metro Pizza served up a delicious plate of spaghetti and meatballs. Just the perfect thing after a long flight and before a long race.

I then made my way out to Boulder City to retire for the night. It was dark outside at this point, so the views on the drive out were lost to the darkness. The historic district of Boulder City was super cute to drive through. It had just the perfect combination of kitschy 1950’s architecture and feel, alongside some cute restaurants, shops and homes, all decorated with Christmas lights. I knew I probably wouldn’t have time to explore it on this trip, unfortunately, due to the quick out and back travel plans, but it is on my list for the next venture out to Las Vegas for sure.

I couldn’t easily find my hotel, as my GPS didn’t recognize its street address, but I knew the hotel was near the Hoover Dam, so I just went according to that landmark. I made it to the Hoover Dam Lodge eventually, thoroughly exhausted.

Upon entering the hotel, I was reminded why Vegas isn’t my favorite place. The hotel had an attached casino (a requirement in the area), and the smell of stale cigarette smoke greeted me. Almost instantly I felt like I had a headache, and the smoke only made breathing the dry air even worse. I got my room keys, but when I got up to my door, it wouldn’t open. Long story short, a security guard had to come and forcefully open the door for me. Lovely. If you are ever headed out to the Hoover Dam, I do not recommend the Hoover Dam Lodge. I won’t go in to tons of details about it, but it wasn’t so lovely. I chose the hotel because it was the main sponsor of the race was close to the starting line. But for friends who run on location, I'd recommend looking for a more standard chain hotel maybe in Henderson, which is a short drive away. Also, the race offered a shuttle bus from the strip if you wanted to check out that scene on race weekend. 

Thankfully, I managed to sleep pretty well, and due to the time difference and late race start time (9 am), I was able to sleep for a good long time. The redeeming thing about the hotel was that it was very close to the race start. I drove there in minutes, and as I made my way to the entrance to the Lake Mead recreation area, I was blown away by the incredible view.

View of Lake Mead from the entrance to the Lake Mead Recreation Area.

This is the view I didn’t see the night before as I drove in. It is just magnificent! I drove down to the Boulder Beach area with about 30 minutes to spare before the race start time. I chatted with a few folks as we waited, and met a woman from Edmonton who had run the race before. She gave me a run-down of the race topography. It was hillier than I expected. The weather was good (about 50 degrees at race start time), but the winds were very strong. It wasn’t going to be an easy run.

Lake views from parking area near Boulder Beach.

Panoramic view of Lake Mead from Boulder Beach area.

Starting arch and finish line with lake in the background.

More gorgeous views of Lake Mead.

Heading to the starting line near Boulder Beach.

The starting command was given and we were off exactly on time, uphill. The first 3 miles of the race led uphill, mostly in a gradual grade, but definitely in a noticeable way. The route at this point was a paved path, fairly wide that led along the lake and up in to the rocky hills. The wind seemed to die down for this portion of the run, but the uphill nature made for slower than usual pacing. The landscape was just gorgeous though. We were surrounded by large canyonesque rock formations, desert flora, blue skies and abundant sunshine, and of course, the vista of Lake Mead. 

Approaching first railroad tunnel.

View of Lake Mead from Railroad Trail. 

After mile three, we progressed on to a gravel path/hiking trail. Things flattened out a bit here and an amazing view of the lake appeared on my left. This path was called the Railroad Trail, as it had apparently been an old railroad route. The tracks are long gone at this point, but the railroad tunnels carved through the rocks were a marvel to experience. All I could think about as I ran through them was John Henry and his hammer smashing through the mountains. Exiting each tunnel was like stepping in to a framed photograph of a gorgeous landscape. It was truly breathtaking.

This flat gravel path lasted until about mile 4 and a half or five, and then we started to head downhill a bit. This was a nice change of pace for my legs, but  I knew I’d have to run back up on the return trip after the turn around. This part of the path was a bit more serpentine, winding this way and that and mixing some uphills with downhills. But mostly this portion was downhill. As we got closer to the dam, power lines became more prevalent. It looked pretty industrial in the hills at this point, and then we came to the part of the path where we had to run in single file. It was paved again at this part, a sharp downward ramp of a sidewalk that zigzagged in switchback fashion down to the observation area near the dam. It was really fun to run down, and I grabbed at the railing alongside the path as I whipped around each u-turn of the corners. At the bottom was the incredible Hoover Dam. Wow! What a wonder. I stopped along with some other runners to snap a photo. I wish I’d had a chance to tour it this trip, but I’ll have to put that on the list for next time, too.

Me and the Hoover Dam!

Steep switchback path leading to and from the  dam.

As expected, the climb back out was steep and difficult, and I needed to take a couple of short walk brakes. I didn’t mind, as I knew that this wasn’t a PR kind of race. It was a challenging race, but not so challenging that it felt discouraging. On the contrary, all the unique aspects of this race kept it fun, exciting and very memorable. The uphills back from the dam were tough, but luckily the wind wasn’t too much of an issue. Yet. Once we got back to the flatter portion through the train tunnels that all changed. 

The phrase “wind tunnel” has taken on a whole new meaning to me. As I started on the flat gravel  path on the return trip, the wind kicked in…right in my face. I felt about as battered by the headwind as my flight had been the night before. Up ahead, as I approached the first tunnel, I figured I’d get a little break, thinking the tunnel would protect me; rather the wind came whipping through that tunnel like nothing I’ve ever encountered before. Holy crumb! I could barely move my body forward. It was killer, but somehow I made it through. Luckily, the remaining tunnels weren’t as bad, but the wind stayed in my face from basically mile 8 through 12 and a half. Bleh.

What should have been a nice, easy downhill path toward the finish was instead a difficult push against the wind. I kept on as best I could, until around mile 10 when I had to remove the ankle strap timing device, as it was killing my left ankle. I stopped at a water station to switch it to my right side, and although it helped a bit, my left ankle sustained the pain for the rest of the run. Ouch, ouch, ouch!

I could see the parking area near the beach and finish line, but as the woman I met before the race warned me, the race runs past the turn where the finish line is for one more out and back (uphill) stretch. Still pushing against the wind, this was the greatest challenge for me. When you are this far along in the race, you just want to be finished. It is such a mental blow to have to run an extra mile beyond where your eyes know the finish line is. I swear, it felt like that last turn-around was never going to come, but eventually it did and I powered on with the wind finally at my back.

I crossed the finish line with no fanfare, but happy to be finished, collect my medal, ditch my ankle timer and drink a nice cold chocolate milk. Mmmmm. I walked a bit to let my legs shake out and then headed to the results board. My official time was 2:07:17—disappointing on some levels, as I always try to beat the 2 hour mark, but considering the terrain and conditions, I felt ok about it. Then I saw the finish line stats…I finished 6th in my age category, 19th for the women overall and 56th for the whole half marathon field. That cheered me right up! 

Race number, t-shirt and finishers medal.

I had to high-tail it out of there after a bit of stretching to get back to the hotel to shower up and catch a 3:15 pm flight back home. As I drove out, I soaked in the magnificent view one last time. It would be great to come out here as a family and bring the girls hiking here. They would love it. Plus, apparently you can kayak and paddle board and enjoy the lake in the warmer weather. That would be a blast, too.

I made it to the airport with about an hour to spare, so I grabbed lunch before the flight home. The tailwind on the return trip made for a faster flight which was a welcome end to all that other wind. Nevada is in the books. I’m officially more than halfway done, and that feels DAM amazing. 

My Strava app record of the 1500+ ft race elevation. It was no joke!

P.S. The next morning I reviewed the information from my Strava app that tracks my runs, and the official distance was 13.5 miles, so I guess I fared a little better than I thought. (I knew that last turn-around sign felt farther away than it should have!!!)