Marathon #27 - Arkansas

As we are trying to save money this year, I am doing more back-to-backs to get two states done for the price of one.  The Hogeye was my second marathon of the weekend. 

The Race:  Hogeye Marathon in Fayetteville, AR on March 29, 2015

My training plan:  This was my second race of the weekend, so my training plan consisted of many back-to-back runs (both long on weekends and short during the week).  For more details, see my Kansas blog.

The weather:  The weather was perfect for a race.  It started in 40s, and got into 50s to low 60s by the end.  It was sunny with a few clouds here and there, and slightly windy.

Running attire:  I wore shorts for this race, as it was going to be hotter toward the end.  I also wore my traditional Liz shirt, iFitness belt, and Delaware Marathon hat.  I had my Marathon Maniac arm warmers and gloves, both of which I ended up taking off toward the end.  I also had a throw away long-sleeved shirt that I got rid of by mile 2.

My favorite running partner

Who I ran with:  I was very excited to be able to run with my sister Stephanie for the first 8 miles before the Half Marathon and Marathon split.  During those first 8 miles, we met Jimmy from Tulsa, who happened to be wearing an Atlanta Track Club singlet.  From mile 19 through the end, I ran with the 4 hour pace group.

Course:  The course had some crazy hills at the beginning, but then flattened out by about mile 3 or 4.  At beginning there were some curbs that stuck out into the road.  The road was pretty packed with runners at that point, because all of the races started out together, and it would have been good to have some warning about the road narrowing with the curbs.  Once you got out of the downtown area, it was mostly bike trails, which were paved (although some were concrete).  The marathon course went around a lake, which was very scenic.  There was one tunnel that we had to go through somewhere around mile 22 or so that was wet with some pretty big puddles, but at least there was no wind in tunnel.  Toward the last part of the course there were a few spots where we had to run on the (non-existent) shoulder with cars coming behind you.  Everyone talks about the big hill at the end, but it was nothing compared to the ones at the beginning.  And once you got over that hill, you could see the finish line from two blocks out. 

Organization:  The organization of this race was very good overall.  The roads were well marshaled and the police ensured that the intersections were closed off to traffic when the runners were coming.  They had great emails and a Facebook page to ensure you knew what to do and what to expect.  They had a lot of amenities that you don't usually see at races, such as childcare (which we took advantage of) and a worship service before the race.  I can't comment on the Expo because we weren't able to make it in time, but I loved  that they had race day packet pickup.   The course was very well marked and marshaled with mile markers at every mile and tons of water stops and porta potties.  Volunteers were everywhere, and always very helpful and enthusiastic.

For the most part the water stops were great.  They were extremely frequent and had both water and Gatorade at all of them.  The one around the middle of the race had candy, PB&J, and a bunch of other goodies.  The one at mile 20ish had a wet towel.

Jimmy and me at the finish.  We stuck together to the end.

I only have a few suggestions for improvements.  There was no clock that I could see at the finish line or results posted.  Someone said there was a TV with the time and name of the participant showing, but I never saw it.  During the awards ceremony, people were trying to see their results from the one sheet that the announcer was using to give out the awards, and she got a little snippy.  It would be better if she had one list and another copy was posted for the runners to see.  I actually got third place in my age group, but I had no idea because nothing was posted, so I didn't even stay for the awards ceremony.  We also had no idea we were supposed to turn in our timing chips.  The people at the finish line weren't set up in time for the Half Marathoners to come through, so my sister still has hers.

Some of the water stops were not well manned, and I had to pick up my water/Gatorade cups myself.   I think the direction given to the volunteers was that the water was first and the Gatorade was second, but apparently some didn't follow that.  I never knew what I was going to get at the water stops toward the end.  I would grab a cup and sometimes it would be water and sometimes it would be Gatorade.  Also, the volunteers at the morning packet pickup didn't know the answers to our questions, such as where is childcare and where is the worship service.

Swag:  The swag is your typical shirt (dry fit) and metal.  The shirt is unisex, so it is very big.  I suggest that if you are going to have unisex shirts, you should offer XS for ladies.  The metals were huge for the marathon and it was obvious which race you participated in (marathon, relay, half).  They also gave out pig noses, but they were not set up in time for the Half finishers.

Starting line

Starting line:   The start line was right outside the host hotel, which was great!  There were a lot of people all over the place because the marathon, half marathon, 5k, and relay all started at the same time.  The experience could be improved with either a wave start or different start times for the different races, because was very tight until mile 3 or so.  With all the people everywhere, they could have used some sort of shoot to corral people into the start.  The pace teams seemed to all be at the beginning of the line, and it was hard to get up to them because of all the people.

The race seemed to start abruptly without warning.  The national anthem was sung and then a minute or so later, people just started running.  I didn't even hear a gun or anything that indicated that the race had start.  

Fans:  Fans were well scattered around course, but mostly where half marathon was.  The fans thinned out considerably during the marathon-only portion of the course.  There were no fans on much of the bike paths because there was really no way to get to those spots.  The relay points were great cheering zones.

Ice Bath at the finish while eating a yummy chicken sandwich

Finish line:  Other than the complaint about no clock at the finish and no results posted, the finish line was pretty amazing.  They had ice baths at the medical tent, free massages and plenty of porta potties.  For food they had chicken sandwiches and hot dogs, Gatorade, water, bananas, oranges, bagel quarters with cream cheese, little Debbie's (star crunches and zebra cakes),  granola bars, and peanuts.  I saw some chocolate milk cartons in the trash, but they must have run out by the time we got there.  They had someone calling out the names of some of the finishers, although I think I came in with too big of a group for them to call out my name, because I never heard it.

4 hour pace group

The amenities at finish line were great, but organization was not as great.  It didn't seem like the finish line was set up in time for the half marathon finishers, as there was no one taking off chips or giving out pig noses when my sister finished in 2hrs.  Once you finished you were intermingled with everyone else, runners and spectators.  The runners didn't really know what they were supposed to do next.  To improve this, there should be a shoot with medals, then chip removal, then photos, then food or something like that to guide runners.  They didn't have any Mylar blankets, so as soon as I had cooled down, I was cold and ready to leave to get back to the hotel to get changed and didn't stay around to see the awards ceremony. 

Results: 3:58:40.  The Kansas race was my fastest first race of a back-to-back series, but the Hogeye was my slowest second race.

How I felt:  I was find for the first 17 miles or so, but then all my energy seemed to have drained out of me and I felt miserable.  I think the worst part was the fact that I couldn't catch up to the 3:50 pace group and the 4 hour pace group kept gaining on me.  I felt like death in last few miles and seriously wanted to stop running.  I kept going, with the prodding of the pace group leaders (who were wonderful!).

Travel/tourism:  We stayed at the race host hotel The Chancellor Hotel.  The Chancellor was great!  They were big enough to accommodate all the runners, were nice enough to offer late check-out to everyone, were right next to the start line, and were able to accommodate a roll-away bed in our double queen room.  They offered free Internet and parking, although the parking garage was next door and not attached to the hotel.  The rooms had refrigerators, but no microwaves (refrigerators are way more important during races so we can store our water and Gatorade, so I didn't mind the lack of microwave).  The rooms were nice and modern, but the mattresses were too small for the bed frames.  Both me and my son knocked our shins on the corner of the bed frame because the mattress didn't extend all the way to the end of the frame.  The bathrooms had separate shampoo, body wash and conditioner in pumps in the shower and the towels were big and absorbent.  The first floor common bathrooms were big and accessible to runners prior to the race.  The lobby was nice, although perhaps too small for the number of people waiting for the race.  They had an indoor/outdoor pool that the girls took advantage of and loved.

The University of Arkansas is in Fayetteville, and we drove through the campus on the way out of town.  It looked like nice campus, and may have had other things to do that we didn't know about.

Walton's 5-10

Walmart Museum

We went to the Wal-Mart museum in Bentonville after the race.  The museum is free and shows how Wal-Mart grew through the years.  It is a step back in time to when Sam Walton first opened up the Walton 5-10.  It also has an ice cream shop and a gift shop.  It is located on the Bentonville Square, which is a nice little place with a fountain in the middle for the kids to run around.


Overall, the Hogeye Marathon was a great race that I would definitely recommend.  Although smaller in size, it had a big-race feel when it came to the finish line amenities and accommodations.  Great job to the race organizers!

Marathon #26 - Kansas

This year, we are really watching our money, and are trying to cut back as much as possible due to the  adoption.  For my 26th marathon, I chose Kansas.  I was looking for some back-to-backs to do this year, because I can finish two states for the price of one.  There was a race in Kansas on Saturday and one in Arkansas on Sunday, so I decided to check them out.  The states in the middle of the country also allow me to spend some time with my sister, who lives in Missouri.

The Race:  Wicked Marathon in Wamego, KS on March 28, 2015

My training plan:  Since I knew I was doing back-to-back marathons, I did plenty of back-to-back long runs on the weekend.  I did two 20/15 miles runs, plenty of other back-to-back long runs on weekends, and three back to back shorter training runs each week during the week 6-8 miles each) starting in January.

The weather:  The weather started out cold and sunny.  The start was around 40 degrees, and it got into upper 40s or low 50s by end.  There was a good deal of wind during the second half (it was at our backs during the first half).  The weather was nearly perfect for a marathon (less the wind).

Running attire:  This was the first race that I actually dressed in a costume.  I wore a Dorothy running costume created by the iGlowRunning Etsy shop, which is actually based in Atlanta.  I also wore a long sleeved shirt underneath, white tights, and gloves.  I spray-painted my running shoes red and got LED flashing red laces from NiteBeams,.

Who I ran with:  Because I knew I was running another marathon the next day, I didn't want to go any faster than 4:30.  The race is small, so there are no pace groups.  So I decided to make my own pace group.  I started out running with Sheila from South Dakota.  I had met her in a previous back-to-back race and have seen her in another race between then and now.   Toward the beginning, I asked the people around me what they were planning to run and if they wanted to run a 4:30.  We had as many as 6 people over the course of the race, and finished with 3.  I ran with Rich from Plano, TX the entire way.  Jenn from Lincoln NE started out with us.  Shawn from Virginia came up behind us about a quarter of the way into the race, so I asked if he wanted to join our pace team.  We passed Jackie from Boulder, CO around mile 10 and asked if she wanted to join us.  Jenn and Shawn eventually dropped back slightly, but Rich and Jackie stuck with me to the end.

Course:  The course was an out-and-back course with rolling hills,

and was very well marshaled..  The course was not a closed course.  There wasn't 'a lot of traffic on most of the course, but we did have several cars passing by us.  There was a stretch of road between mile 11 and 13 that was on the shoulder of a major road with 60 mph traffic..  The last 5 miles were on concrete and mostly uphill..  A couple spots along the course were smelly.  There was a skunk smell around mile 6 and a manure smell around mile 14.

Organization:  The race was a very small race, and it was in its second year of running.  With that being said, it had pretty good organization.  There was no expo, and you picked up your race packet at the sponsor's location.  They offered shuttle buses for those who were staying in Manhattan (the closest town with most of the hotels).  They also had shuttle buses from the race-day registration to the start line.  Parking was at the High School, where they had race day packet pickup and bathrooms.  The communication was very good, and the emails that went out prior to the race had all the necessary information.  They had a facebook page that provided information leading up to the race as well.  Their race website was pretty poor, though, with very little information.  It did have a mapmyrun course map, which was nice. 

Water stops were intermittent at best.  There was nothing between 13 and 16 when we were passing through.  It looked like there might have been water stops but they had closed down early and left.   The water stops that were manned had both water and Gatorade throughout the course, which was very nice.  The last two water stops also had food:  Cliff Bars and Skittles.  The Cliff Bar was definitely welcomed at that point in the race.

There were no porta potties at the start line, but that was clearly communicated in the pre-race emails.  They had said that there would be porta potties along the course, but we didn't see any until mile 6.   There were no timing mats or people checking at turn-around, so you could have easily turned around early and no one would have known.  There was supposed to be a costume contest, which I would have entered, but I had no idea how to enter it, as there were no signs or information.  They did post the winner on the facebook page, but it would have been nice to know how to enter.

 

Swag:  The swag at this race was the typical metal and shirt.  The shirt was a nice, soft dry fit material, and I think it was gender specific, because it looked like it would actually fit me.  They also gave us last year's metal.  The metals are a series, and they wanted us to have the first in the series to encourage us to come back next year to finish it out.

Starting line:  There literally was nothing at the start line.  It was in the middle of nowhere.  You had to take a shuttle from the High School to the start.  It was clearly stated in the pre-race emails that there was no parking or bathrooms at the start.  It was actually hard for me to even find something to lean up against to stretch.  I had to use a road sign.  The company that did the race timing was there setting up mats.  They must have brought their stuff in a small U-Haul type truck, because runners were crowded in there trying to stay warm.

Fans:  My favorite fans were my sister Stephanie, her two girls, and my son.  We made race signs, and they parked between mile 10 and 11 on the way out and 15 and 16 on the way back to cheer us on.  There were not many other fans, except at the water stops.  Other than at the water stops, any people I saw didn't really cheer for runners they didn't know.  If you need fan support to get you through a race, this is not the race to choose.  I don't necessarily need fan support, so the support from my sister and the kids were enough for me.

Finish line:  The race finished right in front of the Oz Museum in downtown Wamego.  It was a cute little downtown area, typical of a small town.  They called out your name and where you were from as you crossed the finish line, which is always nice.  They had Wizard of Oz costumed people at end that you could get a picture with.  They had free massages (but the line was long and there was only one masseuse by the time we finished.  Stephanie said they started out with three for the earlier finishers.  For food, they had bananas, apples and oranges.  For hydration, they had Gatorade and water. 

There were no porta potties at the finish.  They were directing runners to either use the bathroom in the museum or go back to the High School, which was several blocks away, if they needed a bathroom.  This is a definite improvement area, since by the time I'm done with a race, I pretty much need a bathroom ASAP.

Results:  4:28:09

How I felt:  I felt pretty good most of the way and enjoyed helping others out to get to their goal of 4:30.  This race gives me the confidence that I could actually be a decent pacer in other future races.  I even made a pit-stop at mile 20 and was able to catch back up to the group.

Travel/tourism:    We stayed at the Hampton Inn in Manhattan, which is the town where Kansas State is located.  They had a free breakfast that included hot items like eggs, bacon, waffles, etc.  They also have free internet, nice bathrooms with separate shampoo and conditioner and big towels, and a refrigerator and microwave.  They have pretty comfortable  beds,  but weren't able to give us a roll-away in the double queen room because there wasn't enough room.  They had a decent sized, indoor pool that the kids took advantage of the night before the race.  They were not able to offer a late checkout though because they were booked the next night.

The night before the race, as is tradition, we ate at the local IHOP.  Manhattan is a college town, and they had an IHOP so I could get my pre-race pancakes.  We also went to Freddy's Frozen Custard and Steakburgers for dessert for the kids.  Unfortunately, I can't eat ice cream the day before a race, so I wasn't able to enjoy it.  But the kids said it was yummy.
 

Wamego is a small town, so there isn't much to do in the way of tourism.  The race did end at the Oz Museum, so that was an option.  The museum costs $5 per child and $8 per adult.  Because of the cost, we didn't go inside, but the gift shop was nice. 

I asked for "local fast food" ideas on the facebook page and was recommended Kreem Kup, We tried it out after the race, and it was pretty good.   They serve hamburgers, chicken, hot ham & cheese, and other fast food options.  I got a 1/3 lb Angus burger and fries.  Their fries were a little crispy, so my dad would have loved them, but I'm more a fan of softer fies.

Kansas people are pretty friendly and nice.  I called the YMCA in Topeka the week before to see if they would let me use their shower, since the hotel didn't offer a late checkout.  They were kind enough to let me do so, free of charge.  Topeka was on our way between Wamego, KS and my next marathon in Arkansas, so it was convenient to stop on the drive after the race.

 Overall, the Wicked Marathon was a great race.  The organization was great (for a second year race), and I'm sure it will only get better.  Great job!

Marathon #25 - New York

Back in 2012, my sister-in-law Mimi and I applied for the New York City Marathon lottery and were accepted.  Then Hurricane Sandy hit the week before the race, and caused the marathon to be cancelled.  The marathon was kind enough to grant the participants several options.  We chose to defer our entry to 2014.  Thus, my 25th marathon was added to my calendar in November 2014.

The Race:  New York City Marathon, November 2, 2014

My Training Plan:  New York was three weeks after my back-to-back marathons in Connecticut and Pennsylvania, so I basically used them as my longest run leading up to NYC and tapered from there.  You can see my full training plan in my Connecticut blog post.

Weather:  The weather was windy and cold.  The temperature may have gotten into the 40s to low 50s, but the wind was crazy.  There were gusts up to 30mph or more, enough to actually blow me across the road.  I heard afterwards that some runners had lost their bibs to the wind during the first bridge, and weren't allowed to finish.  I'm not sure if that is true, but I wouldn't doubt that their bibs got blown off.

Running Attire:  I knew it was going to be windy and cold, so I wore my black running tights, my Liz shirt with arm warmers, gloves, my Delaware Marathon hat, and my iFitness running belt.  Even with all that, I was cold during the race.

Who I Ran With:  As I mentioned before, my sister-in-law and I both got into the NYC Marathon lottery, so we ran together.  About a month before the race, Mimi found out she was pregnant with her second child.  She called me to tell me and ask if I thought it would be okay to still run.  She decided to run anyway, and I told her we could take it as slow as she needed.  On race day, I also found out that the longest run she had done in preparation for the race was 10 miles.  For anyone who knows anything about running a marathon, trying to do 26 miles after only training with a long run of 10 miles is next to impossible.  It wasn't her first marathon, so she knew she could do the distance, but it definitely wasn't under ideal conditions.

The Course:  The best thing about this race is the course itself.  It runs through all the boroughs of the city and is a good mix of rolling hills and flats.  You get to see a lot of the city on foot, and NYC puts its best foot forward.  The race starts out crossing a bridge, which as I mentioned before was super windy.  The course was a closed course, for the most part, so there was very little traffic to deal with, even for the slower runners.  There is a few great photo ops along the course.  It finally ends in Central Park.

Organization:  As to be expected from the largest marathon in the world, it was pretty well organized.  The biggest complaint I have was the expo.  The Expo had a lot of great booths and merchandise, but the line to get in was ridiculous.  The line wrapped around the building when we arrived around 10:30am the day before the race.  We waited a good hour just to get into the expo.  I saw people trying to wait with kids in line.  I'm glad ours weren't with us, as they would have become extremely restless.  Then once we got in, I had to wait in another line that was about 30 minutes long to purchase the official race merchandise.  That line wrapped around the merchandise area.  Other than the lines and the waits, the expo had a lot of goodies and good expo participants.

The water stops were very well manned, even for the slower runners., with both water and Gatorade.  There were porta potties at every water stop.

Swag:  The race had the normal swag:  a technical shirt and metal.  We also got a credit card holder you could put on the back of your phone, ear buds and free ebook.  If you chose the no baggage option, you also got a very nice lined poncho at finish.

Starting Line:  The race starts much later than most races (I think the elites start at 9 or 9:30).   It took us about three hours to get from the hotel to the start.  It is a good thing that the race starts so late in the day, or the participants would never be able to get to the start on time.  We left the hotel around 6 and got to the start around 9.   To get to the start, we had to walk to the subway, take the subway to the ferry, take the ferry to the other side, and then take a bus to the start.  Because you had to get to the start super early, they had a good deal of amenities there.  There was free coffee, some food like power bars and bagels, water, etc.  They did run out of some of the food, I think, because there wasn't as good a selection as I had expected.

Because the race is the largest race in the world, there are several waves and corrals within each wave.  We were in the Orange corral in the 3rd wave, I believe.  There were volunteers to direct you to the different starting areas, but once you got closer to them, it was a little confusing.  I think when we arrived the wave before us was still lined up and hadn't left yet, so we had to figure out where our wave group started.  There were so many people at the start.

Fans:  Fans get an A+ here.  There were definitely fans most of the way, and they were good about cheering for all the runners.  There were a few places, like in the Bronx, where the fans were a little sparse, but for the most part, they were there cheering you on from start to finish, even the slower runners like us.

Finish Line:  At the finish line, they gave us a bag with all our food, drink, etc.  I love it when all the food and hydration are together in one bag.  After we walked about a mile, they split us up into baggage and no baggage participants and gave us our ponchos.  The finish line was so far away from the exit of the park to the spectators, probably about two-three miiles (or at least it seemed that long).  By the time we finished, it was already getting dark, and definitely getting cold.  The family meeting areas were a little confusing, as I think some of the volunteers had already left for the day by the time we got there.  We did come in late, so not sure if they were better for the earlier runners.

Results:  5:54:47

How I felt:  Because I was running much slower than normal, I felt pretty good the entire time.  Toward the end, my back was hurting, because of the long duration of the run, but other than that, I was mostly fine.

Travel/Tourism:  Obviously, NYC is a big city, so there are a lot of transportation options.  I flew into JFK airport and took the Super Shuttle to the hotel.  I also got a multiple day subway pass to get around town while we were there.

We stayed at the Salisbury Hotel.  The hotel was close to the subway, across from grocery store (Morton Williams), and about two blocks from the south side of Central Park.  It's also a short subway ride from the theater district.  The rooms were small and old, but that is to be expected in the city.  They were nice enough.  The lobby was very small, and they did not offer free breakfast or internet, which would have been nice.  But I would still recommend this hotel and would stay again if I was in the area.

We ate at several good places while there.  We got lunch at the Shake Shack.  Shake Shack is a small hamburger joint that also serves ice cream.  It was crowded, with a line out the door (luckily we got in just before the crowds).  We managed to find a table, although  tables are hard to come by, since it is such a small place.  For local fast food, it was pretty good.

For dinner, we tried 44 SW Ristorante Italian.  It was delicious!  I love Italian food - it is probably my favorite kind of food - and this place did not disappoint.  It is a little, family owned restaurant near the theater district.  The atmosphere was very nice, the wait staff was friendly, and the food was yummy.

For lunch the next day, we went to the Il Mare Pizza place.  It was very good.  It is a small place, that is more of a pizza take out place, but had some limited seating.  The line was out the door, which gave us as idea that it must be good before we even went inside.  I had a broccoli roll, which was delicious.  I went up for seconds too, and got a piece of pizza.  I would definitely recommend this place.

The night before the race, we ate at the Park Cafe diner.  I was looking for a place to have my traditional pre-race pancakes, and Park Cafe was on the way between where we were and the hotel.  It was okay food, but the service was typical diner service - slow.  They initially weren't going to allow us to substitute sides from the menu, but eventually did (after asking the manager).  I don't know that I would recommend this place or visit again.

The last place I ate was Angelo's 57th Italian place after the race.  Mimi and my brother had already left to fly back, so I was on my own.  I asked the hotel clerk for a suggestion of a good Italian place, and he suggested Angelo's.  It was right next to the hotel, so it was very convenient for me.   The food was amazing.  I had both dinner and dessert.  The  dining room wasn't big, but the food was delicious.  I would definitely recommend this place.

While we were in NYC, we had time to visit a few different attractions.  We went to FAO Schwartz to get the kids something.  We went to the  M &M World and the Hershey store to satisfy our sweet tooth.  Mimi and I also went to the theater to see Les Miserables.  Being the big city, there is never a want for things to do.

Overall, the race was a great experience, but I likely will never do it again.  Between the cost and the hassle to get to the start and out of the finish, I would rather stick to the smaller races.

Welcome to the World of Paperwork

Rob and I had our first "home study" visit on Friday.  It was an hour long, and the purpose was really to let us know what paperwork we needed to complete.  The stack they gave us of waivers, forms, etc. was at least an inch thick.  We each have to get a medical exam, as does my mother (who lives with us) and Alan.  We and my mother have to be fingerprinted for our criminal background checks.  We had to list every address we lived in since we were 18 years old.  We have to take 10 hours each of training.  Wow!  It's no wonder that the home study process takes six months to finish.  Tracking down everything we need might just take that long.

The next step is to complete all the paperwork.  We will then have two more home study visits at the BCS office in March/April, and then finally they will come out to our home for a safety check.  Hopefully, by then, the house addition will be completed so they won't have to "ding" us for safety issues around the construction site.

The biggest decisions we have to make right now involve the type of child we are willing to accept.  The checklist is three pages long, and covers things from birth parent background to child disabilities (both minor and severe).  Your continued prayers and support are greatly appreciated throughout this process.

Bring Sissy Simon Home

Pershendetje miq! (Hello friends!)

Many of you know by now that the Simon family has decided to follow God's calling to adopt an orphan from Albania.  Since we don't yet have a referral child, we are calling our little girl "Sissy Simon," as she will be Alan's new little Sissy.  The journey will be very long (could be 2-4 years) and expensive ($25k to $45k).  We welcome your prayers, most importantly.  We have also set up a fundraising site to assist us in raising the money for the adoption expenses.  The  sit e can be accessed here: http://www.anython.com/running-for-sissy-simon?participant=6613

Here's how our journey began (spoken from Rob's perspective):  "Even before Alan was born, she and I had given consideration to adopting at some point. After Alan’s birth, the first two years were tough on our family, mostly because of my work schedule and how much of the burden of care that placed on Liz. During this time, we largely never thought about adopting. Then, after my career change to a more regular position close to home, I started to feel God’s pull again. There were times that I felt he was constantly reminding me of the need for forever families for these children that are in the orphanage and foster care systems. Towards the latter part of 2014, Liz and I went to an information session at Bethany Christian Services (BCS). We knew that the road was tough, and when you see the numbers, it is a reality check. Still, we felt this is what God wants for our family."

So, why Albania?  We discussed with BCS both domestic and international options and prayed about our first major decision in this process.  Domestic adoptions are either newborns or older than age five.  This is because the U.S. exhausts all options within the biological family before releasing the child for adoption, which can take anywhere from 3-5 years, making the child five years or older.  We want to maintain birth order, so we don't want a child older than Alan, but I would prefer not to have an infant in my house either.  So we began to explore international options.

We were approved for most of the international programs that BCS works with; however, most of the programs that had a child in our preferred age range (1-4 years of age) were all special needs.  I know my limitations, and I would not be the best parent for a special needs child.  That's where Albania came into the picture.

Children at an Albanian Orphanage

ALBANIA: The Albania program is open to families interested in adopting a waiting child with identified special needs, or non-waiting children with a range of needs, from healthier children to mild/moderate special needs. Profiles of waiting children can be found on the Bethany Portal. Families must be open to an age range of 0-4 years old for a non-waiting child, and children will most likely be a minimum of 12-18 months at the youngest. We cannot guarantee you will referred a young child. For Albania (and for any other country where children have spent significant periods of time in institutional care), it is important to note that all children will probably have some developmental needs (of varying types and degrees, depending upon their particular situation). Two trips are required: 1) 4-6 weeks and 2) 7-10 days with 15-30 days in between trips. Families may choose to take one trip, however it could potentially be a stay of up to 3 months in Albania. One parent may leave after court if necessary.

Albanian children

The most important thing we need from you is prayer.  God is leading us on this journey, and we want to hear his guidance throughout the process.  There will be many decisions to make along the way, and many steps to get us to our final "destination."  We will have to trust God in a number of different areas, particularly in the financial area.  This will stretch us financially, and we will really have to trust God to provide over the next couple of years.

Rob and I have the financial means to support a second child.  However, we don't have all of the upfront money that will be needed for adoption expenses.  Think about trying to pay for a new SUV with cash - that's about how much money it will take to go through the adoption process.  As such, in addition to the fundraising site, we will be hosting several fundraising events.  We will keep you updated as to what those will be, but some possibilities include quarterly dinners at local restaurants where 5% of the sale of your food (before tax and tip) would be donated to our adoption fund and a 5k or 4-mile race,

Alan and I have begun to learn some Albanian in anticipation of his sister knowing that language when he meets her.  I'm learning for that reason, and also so I can feel more comfortable staying in a country for 4-6 weeks where they do not speak English.  Unlike many other European countries, from what I've read anyway, Albanians do not learn English in school.

We have our first Home Study visit at the BCS office on Friday.  From my understanding the Home Study will take about six months to complete, and must be done before we receive any child referrals.  Be praying for us, as we don't really know what to expect from this first visit.

Falemnderit (thank you) for joining us on this journey.  We look forward to sharing our story with you as it unfolds.

Albanian orphans

Marathon #24 - Pennsylvania

The Race:  Steamtown Marathon, Scranton, PA, October 12, 2014

My training plan:  Steamtown was the second marathon of a back-to-back marathon weekend, so my training plan was the same as the Hartford Marathon.

Weather:  The weather was perfect.  It was much colder than expected at the start, but warmed up nicely throughout the run.  When we were packing on Thursday for the trip, it said the lows would be in the 40s.  The lows ended up being mid-30s at the start, but warmed up to about 59 by the end of the race.

Running attire:  I wore my newly purchased arm warmers/sleeves with my short sleeved Liz shirt with the Hebrews 12:1 verse on the back, black running tights, Balega socks and Asics shoes.  I also used my iFitness belt to carry my phone and GUs, my Delaware marathon running hat, and a pair of purple gloves.

Who I ran with:  I didn't start off running with anyone, but did pick up a few people along the way.  I ran with a girl named Meredith for about 8 miles or so.  Toward the end around mile 19, I passed Mike and Kelsey, and they followed close behind me (encouraging each other) almost to the finish line.  They passed me at the last water stop and sped up so much that I couldn't catch them in the end.

The Course:  The course is a point-to-point course.  It is a net downhill race, and goes downhill about 90% of the course.  There are a few uphills scattered throughout, and especially at the end.  The course has a few "packed gravel" trails in the middle.  I say that with quotation marks because some of the trails had some big gravel rocks, and some of it had some unpacked sand (felt like running on the beach).

The views along the course were breathtaking.  The fall colors were spectacular.  Coming down off the mountain toward miles 3-4, we were on a little country road, and you could see ahead of you for miles over the other mountains with all the trees showing their colors.  On the trail portion, we ran next to a river, which was also beautiful, but I couldn't find a good place to take pictures.

The end of the race, as I mentioned, was uphill and a little bit of a teaser.  As you were coming toward the hill, you could see a banner across the road, which looked like the finish line.   But, alas, it was not, and we trudged on.  Again, another banner across the road could be seen, but again it wasn't the finish line.  People were yelling, "just three more blocks."  And finally, at the top of the hill, the finish line banner could be seen.  Relief!

Organization:  The organization was fabulous!  This might be one of the best organized races I have ever been to.  The Assistant Race Director sent race update emails as the race approached, and daily the weeks before the race.  The emails were both fun and informative.  Anyone who actually read them would know almost anything they could want to know about the race.

Unfortunately, I was unable to go to the race expo, as it closed at 6pm and we were still driving from Hartford, so I don't know if it was good, bad, or otherwise.  But they did offer race-day packet pickup at the high school where the starting line was and offered some race attire for sale at the finish line.

The aid stations were fully stocked and had plenty of enthusiastic volunteers.  There was both Gatorade and water at each official water stop.  They also had several medical stations set up with Vaseline, Tylenol, and Advil.  They had porta potties at most of the aid stations, and clearly pointed them out in the race information packet.  They did not offer any GU along the course, but that didn't matter at all, and you will see why when I talk about the fans below.

One recommendation I would pose for the future is to have a printed map of the course in the race information packet.  The interactive map online was hard to use and even harder to transport with you as spectators try to go watch the runners.

Swag:  I typically find that smaller to mid-sized races have good swag.  That wasn't the case for this race.  This is probably the most lacking category I review.  The only swag we got was the long-sleeved dri-fit shirt, medal, and some little green "wind glasses" (as Rob calls them).

Starting line:  The starting line was at the Forest City Regional High School.  The whole school seemed to get involved.  The cheerleaders were there to greet the runners as they got off the bus.  The marching band was there to play songs during the first mile of the race.  There were students handing out ribbons and water bottles.  There were plenty of porta potties lined up outside the school (labeled Men and Women).  The school was open so the runners could stay warm until the starting cannon (yes, I said cannon) went off.  The race was started by one of those old cannons from the Civil War, with men dressed in Civil War attire shooting it off.

Because the starting line and finish line were in different places, they offered bus service from the finish to the start.  I didn't use the service, because my husband was there to drop me off at the start, but I saw the buses of runners coming to the school.

Fans:  The fans were much better than I ever could have expected.  When I looked at the  map online, it looked like there would be several lonely spots along the course with no spectators.  Now, don't get me wrong - it wasn't lined from start to finish with fans, but with the frequency and quality of the fans, you completely forgot about the lonely stretches.  Every town that we ran through had crowds of people cheering us on and handing out goodies.  There were probably more unofficial water stations than official stations.  Along the course I ate a granola bar (the only thing provided at an official station), orange slices (both real and candy), gummy worms, and two bananas (cut in half).  They also had people handing out ice pops, water, and beer at various places along the course.

The fans really showed pride in their town.  They had signs saying "Such-and-Such Town Welcomes Runners." The schools got into it with bands playing and cross country teams manning water stops.

Finish line:  When you crossed the finish line the happy volunteers were there to congratulate you and give you your milar blanket, metal, and a bottle of water.  You were then directed toward the food tent.

The finish line had the best post race food I've seen yet.  They had the usual bananas and bagels, but they also had chicken soup, and every kind of pasta dish you could want (Mac n cheese, penne with marinara, shells and Alfredo).  They also had pizza and Krispy Kreme donuts, granola bars, coffee and juice, cookies, yogurt, and probably other things I'm forgetting.  The one improvement I would mention is that, other than the bottle of water, there were no other rehydrating liquids to take with you.

The finish area was right downtown Scranton in a green area.  They had post race massages (although by the time we went there after we showered and ate, they were closing down).  They also offered showers for the runners a few blocks away.  The parking around the finish was easy to find and free.

Results:  3:44:56.  Pretty good for a second marathon that weekend.  It's actually my second best time ever.

How I felt:  At the start, my calves were tight in the cold, and I was worried that I might have a bad race.  I took the first mile as slowly as I could, with the crowd and steep downhill slope, and ended up running an 8:48 first mile - much faster than I had intended for a warm-up mile.  The second mile, I decided to take advantage of an open porta potty, and still ran a 10 minute mile.  The next two miles I stopped and took pictures so that I could slow my pace down (those miles were under 8:30, even with the picture stops).  By then I was pretty warmed up, and decided to just go with the slopes.  I felt better the second half than I did during the first half and decided to go all out and try to negative split the race.  I felt pretty good the entire race until about the 26th mile when I could dig any deeper to catch up with the two people I had been running with, but I still finished strong.

Travel/tourism:  We were in the Scranton area less than 24 hours, so it's hard to rate this area.  We drove in from Hartford, arriving around 6:30pm on Saturday.  We stayed at Nichols Village Hotel and Spa, in Clark's Summit.  The hotel was nice, but wasn't anything special.  Since we arrived after dark and left in the morning before the sun rose, I didn't get a very good look at the hotel and amenities.

When we arrived, it was dinner time.  We asked the hotel where we could find a sports bar so Rob could watch the games.  The hotel clerk suggested JJ Bridges, which is just a few doors down from the hotel.  The bar was packed as the Penn State game had just started.  We managed to get a table and invited another couple to join us, since they weren't going to get a table otherwise, and ours was big enough for four people.  Rob had two of the local beers, and I had the parmigiana chicken with a baked potato.  The bar had a local group playing live music that started a little while after we sat down.  The food was good, the band was better, and the company was even better.  The people of Scranton seem like great people.

For lunch after the race, someone suggested Pizza by Pappas.  They said anytime they go to downtown Scranton they have to stop there.  It was a nice little pizza joint with 10 inch personal pizzas.  We each had our own, and they were quite delicious.  The outside of the crust was a little crisper than I'm used to, but still good.

After the pizza, we headed back to Hartford.  One more state down, and now I finally have an answer to the question I always get asked: "What was your favorite marathon so far?"  Definitely Steamtown!

Marathon #23 - Connecticut

The Race:  Hartford Marathon, Hartford, CT, October 11, 2014

My training plan:  Because I knew I was going to be running back-to-back days, I started in mid-August running back-to-back long runs on weekends.  I did two 20 milers followed by 15 milers and a 20 miler followed by a 13 miler before race weekend.  I also started running consecutive weekdays:  Tuesday through Thursday.  The mid-week runs ranged from 6-8 miles in length each day.  I took Mondays completely off and cross trained on Fridays.

Weather:  The weather was cold and rainy.  It started in the upper 40s with a drizzly rain. It probably got into the lower 50s at some point, but it felt like it was getting colder as the race went on.  There was also a light wind to factor in.  At the end, it was so cold that I didn't even stretch before we headed to the car.

Running attire:  I bought a pair of arm warmers/sleeves at the expo, so I wore those with my short sleeved Liz Digeez shirt, white running tights, purple and white shorts, Balega socks and Asics shoes.  I also used my iFitness belt to carry my phone and GUs, my Delaware marathon running hat, and a pair of pink gloves.

Who I ran with:  I ran with the 4:45 pace group, headed by a guy named Kim and a girl named Jeanne.  There were also several other people who stayed with us for some or all of the way:  Susan, Megan, Michelle, Cathy, and some others who I didn't catch their names.  From about mile 15 to 19, Rob jumped in and ran with me for about five miles.

The Course:  The course was a rolling hills,

out-and-back course, for the most part.  The beginning takes you around downtown several ways, and then goes out on a long, out-and-back leg from mile 10 to mile 17 and back into town to the end.  There were plenty of places for spectators to stop and cheer for their runners.  It also went by some very pretty views (or they would have been pretty if the rain and clouds weren't around), and ended through the arch.  Very picturesque.

There was one part where we ran along what appeared to be a park bike path.  It was probably a little too early in the course (mile 6 or so), because it was pretty crowded with no room to pass other runners.  But the parks were pretty.  There were several places where we ran along a river.

While there was some fall foliage out, there was also a lot of green left.  I'm not sure if this is typical, or if it was just because of strange weather this year.  For better colors, I would suggest moving the race back a weekend.

Organization:  The organization was good, but there are several suggestions I would make to improve.

The pre race expo was a great size for a mid-sized race (about 19,000 runners total between the marathon, half, and 5k).  They had a lot of local booths with massage, chiropractic services, GI services and other runner-related services.  They also had some national runner gear booths like RunSEEN, Sketchers, Janji, Fleet Feet, The Stick, etc.  They didn't have a lot of free giveaways, though.  Some of the booths had open samples, but no free samples you could take with you.

I got to meet Kathrine Switzer (the first woman to have an official number in the Boston marathon).  This was back when Boston didn't allow women to compete, but she registered as K Switzer.  They didn't know she was a woman, so they accepted her application.  When the race director saw a woman with a number running, he tried to pull her off the course, but her boyfriend knocked him down, and they kept running.  She has started a movement for women called 261 Fearless (261 was her race number in Boston) and had a booth at the expo.

I loved that the Hartford Marathon offered pace teams, and that they had two pacers for each group (just in case one had to stop at the bathroom or something).  They had a wide variety of pace options (4:40, 4:45, 5:00, 5:10 all around the pace I was looking for, and obviously more ahead and behind me).  

There were bands and DJs along the course to motivate you along the way.  They weren't Rock n Roll marathon quality, but they were frequent and effective, even in the cold, rainy weather.

They utilized cutting edge technology.  They had an app that gave you information about the race, parking, maps, expo, etc.  They also had athlete tracking where you can sign up to have your splits posted on Facebook (or another social media site) and texted to up to three phones.  They had real-time results at the finish line where you could look up your time as soon as you got to the post race expo.  They also sent some race update emails, but they were mostly about the sponsors of the race and didn't have much relevant race information.

The hardcopy race information guide had a lot of cool articles to read about some of the runners and how the race was organized.  It did not have enough information on parking.  In fact, I don't think it even mentioned parking at all.  We had to go to the app to find a map of where you can park, which is hard to look at on a phone.  It also didn't talk about where GU/candy/food was located on the course, which is critical to plan race strategy.  The maps of the course weren't drawn to scale, so it was hard to gauge how far some of the roads were before you made a turn.

The water stops could have used more volunteers.  There were several where only one or two people had cups in their hands, or they were frantically filling cups in order to have some to hand out.  The volunteers that were there were very nice and supportive; they just needed more help.

The course had a 6-hour limit, and they were ultra strict about it.  While I made it in well below the time, other people in the 50 States Marathon Club were commenting about getting pushed onto the sidewalk when they had only been running 5 hours and 45 minutes.  When they say 6 hours, apparently Hartford means 6 hours from when the gun goes off, not from when you cross the start line (which most other races mean).

Swag:  The swag was minimal at this race.  Of course we got the shirt and medal, and the shirt was a long-sleeved dri-fit shirt.  They also had a small reusable tote that they put the race information guide and some coupons.  I heard they were also giving away cowbells, but we must have gotten there too late.  In their attempt to be "green," they also gave away water bottles at the finish line filled with hose water.

One of the semi-good things about this race (and necessary since there is NO race day packet pickup), is for a small fee (I think it was $15) they will mail your bib and shirt to you.  Since I was coming from out of town, and I never know if my flight will have issues, I opted for a mailed packet.  It arrived in plenty of time before we had to fly up there, and I got to leave the shirt at home instead of cramming it into my suitcase after the race.

Starting line:  There was plenty of close, free parking at the starting line.  Once we found them (they desperately need to put up more signage), there were plenty of porta potties, in three different places, too.  I think they had a starting line map and a finish line map in the race information packet, but we didn't have it with us when we were looking for the porta potties, and they weren't in an obvious location.  They could have used more signage for gear check and pacers too.  I heard a guy ask a police officer about gear check, and the officer had no idea where to send him.

They did not have any corrals, which I don't necessarily think are needed.  I think they had a self seeded area, but I don't remember seeing the signs.  The large pacer signs were helpful but they didn't necessarily line up in order either.  By the time the pace groups left their meeting area to head to the start, the starting line was crowded, and it was hard for them to get in line with others already there with that pace in mind.

Despite the rain, they had a huge TV or projection screen where they were projecting the crowds and other information to the runners.  That is the first time I have seen something like that at any race (again, cutting edge technology).

Fans:  My personal favorite fan was my sweet husband, Rob.  He came to cheer me on, and I saw him five times along the course.  There were several spots along the course that were easy for fans to get to, so there were a lot of fans scattered along the course.  There were definitely places with no fans, but there were enough fans to get you through.  This is especially surprising due to the weather.  But the towns and neighborhoods got into it, and even tailgated in some places to watch the race.

Finish line:  At the finish line they had a post race expo.  They had a lot of the vendors from the pre-race expo also attend the post race expo, which was nice, although it was too cold to stop to look at them.  The food tent had a lot of good items, and you had to have a ticket to get in, which limited the number of non-runners who could take the runners' food.  They started out by handing you a plate so you could put your stuff on it.  They had granola bars, bagels, bananas and orange slices, apple cobbler, some kind of protein shake, and grilled cheese sandwiches.  I hear they had soup, but by the time the 4:45ers got there, it was gone (plan for more next year so all runner get some!)

Results:  Since I ran with the 4:45 pace group, my finish time was 4:43:23

How I felt:  During the race, running slow is tough.  It wears you out because you're running so much longer than you're used to.  I was getting pretty tired around the 25 mile mark, but I pressed on with the group to finish in the paced time.  We ran pretty even 10:45 minute miles throughout. Running slow is tougher on your body while you're running the race, but easier/quicker to recover from.

Travel/tourism:  We flew into Bradley International Airport in Hartford.  The airport is small (about 22 gates), but services most of the major cities.  It is about 30 minutes away from downtown.

We rented a small SUV from the Budget at the airport (the SUV was actually cheaper than an economy car).  They have several car rental places to choose from (Avis, National, Dollar, Hertz, Budget) that are all a shuttle ride away from the airport.

I traded my timeshare points so we could have a hotel for this race and cut down on some of the expense.  We stayed at the Extended Stay America in Farmington.  There wasn't anything special or amazing about this hotel, but it gave us what we needed.  It is one of those hotels that caters to long-term guests and only services the room once per week, so we had to ask for additional towels and washcloths if we wanted fresh ones.  It had a full kitchen, which was helpful to store my ice packs in the freezer.  The fitness room was pretty small (one of each cardio machine).  They had coin laundry facilities for those who needed it.  They did allow pets, although we didn't bring Nacho with us.  It is located right off the interstate, about 20 minutes from the starting line and downtown.

Anytime I visit the New England area, I have to stop at Friendly's, because we don't have them in the south.  Friendly's is sort of like Steak n Shake, a very casual dining restaurant.  They have delicious ice cream.  We ate there twice, both near the airport (when we first arrived and before we dropped the rental car off to leave).

IHOP is my traditional pre-race dinner place, and CT was no different.  We found an IHOP in Newington, CT.  I'm pretty sure everyone knows how IHOP is, and this one was about the same as all the rest.

After the marathon, we showered and hit the road to Scranton.  On the way out, we stopped at Subway and Tiramisu Italian restaurant in Waterbury, CT.  I had penne with meatballs.  The meatballs were good, but the marinara sauce wasn't my favorite.

We returned to Hartford from Scranton late on  Sunday night.  It was dinner time, so we went to a local restaurant and bar called J Timothy's Tavern in Plainville, CT for a celebration dinner.  I had some delicious New England clam chowder and chicken and waffles for dinner.  Rob had some wings with sweet red chili sauce.  The chicken and waffles were good, but weren't anything to write home about.  Rob said the wings were good, but the sauce really burned his mouth (I guess that's what it's designed to do).  We also had a Rasberry bliss martini (me) and a local beer called Olde Burnside Ten Penny Scottish Ale (Rob).

Downtown Hartford was a typical mid-sized New England city with some older buildings mixed with newer buildings.  There seemed to be enough to do to keep you busy (provided it wasn't a holiday like Columbus Day).  They had the Science Center, art museum, cultural center, capital building, parks, etc.  We stopped at the Bushnell Park and drove around town on Monday before departing for the airport.  Overall great visit to Connecticut, and one more state checked off the list.