Marathon #17 - Nevada

The movie Titanic came out when I was in high school.  My friend saw it before me and told me how amazing it was.  She built it up to be this fabulous movie, the best ever made.  I think at the time it had the highest revenue in an opening weekend or something like that.  Anyway, I went to see the movie and was extremely disappointed.  It wasn't as amazing as my friend had made it out to be.  Sure, it was good.  But I didn't think it was some amazing movie that deserved the hype it was getting.

My last stop on the 2013 Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series tour was Las Vegas.  I had very high expectations.  I had just run two Rock 'n' Roll marathons, which were fairly well organized.  The Rock 'n' Roll series has a good reputation.  I went into the race expecting good things from the organization.

The Las Vegas marathon was the Titanic of marathons for me.  I expected great things, but was hugely disappointed.

The Race:  Las Vegas Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, November 17, 2013

My Training Plan:  There was really no time for a training plan for this race.  My last long run before this race was the St. Louis Marathon three weeks before, so between races I pretty much just tapered with some easy running.  I did no speed work in between.

Weather:  With the race being in the evening, the weather was different than I had ever experienced.  Normally, you start cooler and end warmer, so you can wear throw-away clothes at the beginning.  This time it started out at 65 degrees and ended up in the mid-50s.  The sun went down instead of coming up, so you couldn't count on the heat of the sun to keep you warm.  It was extremely windy the day before, but luckily the wind had died down and it was negligible during the race.

Running Attire:  Since the weather was predicted between 55 and 65 degrees, I wore my short sleeved LIZ shirt, purple and pink running shorts, iFitness running belt, and Delaware marathon bright yellow running hat.  I wore Brooks shoes for the first time in a race (I usually wear Asics).

Who I ran with:  I ran with absolutely nobody, and everybody, at the same time.  Usually I pick up some runners along the way, but this was not the kind of race where you talk to anyone.  There were way too many people to strike up a conversation, and when you're dodging runners or concentrating on not falling in the dark, it's hard to talk.

The Course:  The was probably the straightest marathon I've ever run so far.  It started heading south at the bottom of the strip and turned north to run up the strip.  Eventually (maybe around mile 8 or so), we turned off the strip into some very dark roads.  At this point, it was so dark, you couldn't see the people around you or where your foot was about to land.  (I really wished I had my headlamp!)

There were way too many people for this course.  On the strip, we were forced onto a two lane section of the road, and there were so many people that I was still weaving through people until around mile 8.  (Usually by mile 2 or 3 people have settled into their pace.)  I'm sure I wasted more energy than necessary weaving through so many people in the beginning.

Shortly after the marathon and half marathon split, the marathon went through Old Vegas, which was the best part of the course!  The lights and music were so inspiring, and there were crowds lining both sides of the road, high-fiving and cheering the runners along.

Then we turned onto MLK Blvd.  I hate to say it, but just about every MLK Blvd that I've been to in any city is pretty much the ghetto.  I will say that it was well lit, there were plenty of cops, and I never felt unsafe.  But it was definitely not the best part of town.

The course is very flat.  The hills are so gradual that you don't realize you're running up them until you turn around and run back down.  There were a lot of out-and-back spots, and even one spot where you ran down a short road and around a cul-de-sac off the main road.

Organization:  I expected much better organization from a Rock 'n' Roll than I experienced.  I would only give them a 3 out of 5 stars, and that is probably being generous.

The best part was that the Expo was well organized.  They had a lot of good vendors with samples (although they were more the "eat-them-there" samples rather than the "take-them-with-you" samples that runners like).  They had three fun photo opportunities:  a picture where you could pretend you were running across the finish line tape (at 2:04), a picture where you could dress up in rock and roll gear and pose with a Las Vegas show girl, and a picture at the Mazda booth where it made you look like you were going really fast (they blew air in your face).

Another somewhat decent thing about the organization was the website and the mobile apps.  They had a lot of information, although I never got an email with my final race information.  I had to actually go onto the website to know I had to print out my confirmation to pick up my race number.

Getting to the start and from the finish was another thing that they didn't do so well.  The start and finish were about 4 or 5 miles apart, and there were no shuttle services.  When going to the website to find out about "getting to the start" the only thing they had as an option was to take the train.  The problem is that the train is so limited in where it goes.  From the last train station to the start line was another mile or so anyway.

The course organization was poor.  See Starting Line for more information about the starting line.  At the first hydration stop that was supposed to have Gatorade, the Gatorade was only on one side of the road (which happened to be on the other side from where I was), and the volunteers were pouring water instead of handing it out (i.e. there weren't enough volunteers).

After the race turned off the strip, it got extremely dark.  There were a few generated lights set up, but not enough.  There were plenty of times where I couldn't see in front of me and some extra lights would have greatly helped.  The roads had a lot of reflectors and water ditches, so it was a little dangerous (potential sprained ankle hazards) to not be well lit.

Swag:  The race had the normal Rock 'n' Roll swag:  a technical shirt, medal, and bumper sticker.  The shirt said both marathon and half and didn't distinguish between the two, but they did have both women's and men's sizes.  They also had some pretty good pre-race and post-race party incentives (although I was too tired to take advantage of them).

Starting Line:  The first thing I noticed about the starting area was how hard it was to get in.  As I approached the entrance, there were lines of people waiting to get in.  Once I got to the entrance, I found out why - they were checking all the bags that were coming in with the people.  It makes sense, with the heightened security since the Boston marathon bombing.  But they needed more people to be checking the bags if they were going to block up traffic to do so.  Again, this points to the fact that they allowed way too many people to register for this race.

The second thing I noticed, once I finally got into the starting area, was that the gear check seemed very well marked.  Unlike the past Rock 'n' Roll marathons where there were no signs to find the gear check, this one had the gear check right as you were entering the starting area.  Very convenient.

After checking my bag, I went to find a bagel and banana - my typical pre-race food, which were supposed to be provided per the website.  Since this was an evening race (starting at 4:30pm), I hadn't had much to eat since brunch, so I was ready for something to take me through the race.  The bagels were available, but the fruit was completely gone.  Empty boxes from bananas sat in the tent where the bananas were supposed to be.  Even worse than that, I saw people who were obviously spectators and not runners eating the runners' food!

When I went to walk to my corral, the directions to get to the front corrals were not very good.  There were multiple times where I had to walk through flowers on a median to get around the other people in the higher numbered corrals to weave my way down to my corral #6.  And they were not really paroling the corrals.  There were people from much higher numbered corrals inside my corral, which no doubt contributed to the massive amounts of people I had to weave around at the beginning.  When you start in corral 6 and you almost run into people walking at mile 2 or 3, they were obviously not in the right corral to begin with.

Fans:  The fans were pretty good in this race.  With the bands and the strip and Old Vegas, most of the race had some people cheering you on.  Once you got out onto MLK Blvd, there was much less fan-base.  But the bands did help a little.

Finish Line:  The finish line took forever to get through.  I felt like I walked another mile after I crossed the finish line just to get to my checked bag.  Again, they didn't have bananas, but had apples instead.  (Who eats apples after a marathon?!?  And what race has absolutely no bananas?!?)

Other than the lack of bananas issue, they did have some good hydration and nutrition options at the finish.  For hydration, they had bottles of water and Gatorade.  They also had chocolate milk (love that!).  For nutrition, they had pretzels, bagels, and of course the apples.  They may have had more, but I don't remember getting anything else.  It would have been helpful if they had just packaged it all up into a bag and handed the bags to the runners.  It is very hard to carry everything when you've just run 26 miles.

They also had the mylar blankets, as usual.

Results:  When I crossed the finish line and pulled out my phone to stop my MapMyRun app, it said 4:00:13.  I was so disappointed in myself, because I was sure I had done just barely over 4 hours, and I knew I could have gone a few seconds faster if I had known that.   I couldn't believe it when I saw my official time:  3:59:59.  I had broken 4 hours by ONE SECOND!!  I'll take it.  Nevada, check!

How I felt:  This was definitely not my best race.  I guess I shouldn't expect too much when I try to run three marathons in a months time.  I started off feeling pretty good, although I was frustrated that I was having to weave through all the people constantly.   For those who haven't been following me prior to this, I get tendinitis or something in the back side of my left knee when I run fast that causes my left leg to want to lock up and makes me land on my left foot funny (actually breaking my foot back in May).  At mile six or so, my left leg started acting up.  I was able to control it, and once I got to the marathon split, it felt okay.  Around mile fifteen or so, the tendons on the back of my right knee started hurting.  I don't know if I had been over compensating because of the left one bothering me or what, but when I would bring my leg forward, behind my right knee would hurt.  This lasted most of the last part of the race.  It wasn't enough to sideline me, but it was enough to slow me down.  Then around mile 19, I got a sharp pain in my stomach, like someone had stabbed me (most women reading this probably know what that feels like - pretty much like period cramps).  I had to stop, so I moved over to the side and stretched my right leg while I was waiting for it to pass.

The last six miles, I pushed myself and tried to pick off runners, one at a time.  I followed one girl for two miles before I was able to pull ahead of her.  I saw one other girl who had passed me around mile 20 that I was able to pass back around mile 24.  I just kept focusing on getting faster and passing the people in front of me as I got closer to the finish line.  By the time I finished, I didn't have anything left in me, just how it should be.

Travel/tourism:  You always hear such good things about Vegas.  I hadn't been there since I was 20, so I was expecting to have a good time.  The problem with going for a marathon, though, is that you can't do anything in that city that doesn't involve walking.

The first thing I would recommend is to get a rental car.  I thought that I could just use the train the whole time, and I'd be fine.  However, there are a lot of things to see that are off the beaten path away from the strip, and the train doesn't go there, including the airport.  The bus from the airport to the closest train stop is $2 and not included in the train day pass.  I had to use cabs several times, and if I added up the cost of the cabs and the train pass, it likely would have been comparable to a rental.

I stayed at the Desert Rose Resort, which is a timeshare condo place between the MGM hotel and the Mandalay Bay hotel.  It was a short walk to the closest train station at MGM, although the walk was a little scary by myself at night, passing the Hooters Resort and Casino.

When I arrived and dropped my bags off at the condo, I headed to the Venetian, which is where my sister was.  I ate lunch at a burger place at the food court at the Venetian.  The avocado burger and fries that I got was extremely expensive for a food court place ($15), although it was pretty good.  I found that would not be the only expensive meal that I would get - in fact most of the meals I got were expensive.  Amy and I walked around and saw a candy place that sold caramel apples and cupcakes, and didn't post their prices.  We quickly found out that they didn't post the prices because the candy apple was $10, and more people probably buy it without knowing how much it is ahead of time.

The mall at the Venetian was really cool, and I found out that most malls on the strip (between the casinos) were very similar.  The ceiling was painted in a way that it made it look like you were outside - blue skies and clouds.  There was a little canal, just like Italy, with Gondola rides through the mall.  The mall had very high class stores like Coach and Louis Vuitton.

After the Venetian we went to the Expo to pick up our race number.  When we were done at the Expo (we stayed until closing time), I was so tired that I took the train back to my hotel.  I stopped by Bonanno's New York Pizza in the MGM food court on the way to my hotel to grab something for dinner.  I got the baked ziti with meatballs.  There was enough for two meals, but the pasta was only mediocre (Olive Garden is way better).

On race day, I took a cab to the original Las Vegas Hard Rock Cafe, located outside of the Hard Rock Cafe Hotel and Casino.  It was also about halfway between my hotel and the Blueberry Hill pancake place, which was where I planned to have brunch.  

As is tradition, I wanted to get some pancakes for my pre-race meal (normally the night before a morning race).  I googled "blueberry pancakes Las Vegas" and found this local chain called Blueberry Hill Family Restaurant.  It said they made their pancakes from scratch and not from some mix.  After getting my Hard Rock shirt, I walked the rest of the way to the pancake place, which was about a mile and a half.

The food was very good.  The toast was thick, and I've never tasted such delicious hash browns.  The pancakes were thick and good also, although some of the blueberries from the topping were a little sour.  It was worth the walk, although it was a little tough to get a cab back to the strip from that far out of the city.

After the pancake house, Amy said she was going to be at Caesar's Palace, so I headed there.  This place was the biggest disappointment.  It looked so big and nice from the outside, but the inside wasn't as nice as some of the other places.  And there was absolutely no place to sit unless you were gambling.  After my mile and a half walk to the pancake place, I didn't want to do any more walking or standing until the race.  We ended up sitting on the floor.

After the race, we went to Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville.  They were about the only place still open that late, although they had a very limited menu.  I had a Cheeseburger in Paradise, which was ok (not as good as Cheeseburger Bobby's, but better than most other places).  They had a live band playing and a little dance floor where all the drunk people danced.

The day after the race, I went through the south side of the strip.  I started at Mandalay Bay and walked all the casinos (Luxor and Excalibur) inside through the malls that connect them.  Then I went across the bridge to New York New York and through that casino to MGM before going back to the hotel to rest.

After my nap, I went up one train stop to Paris Las Vegas, the Bellagio, and Aria.  




The Bellagio was by far my favorite of all the hotels and casinos.  I stopped to see the Bellagio fountains and the conservatory (which is a breath of fresh air, literally, among all the smoke-filled casinos).

I stopped at the Napoleon's piano bar to see some dueling pianos.  I love piano bars, but this one did not live up to my expectations.  The drinks were expensive and the guys didn't play anything good (in my opinion).  But they did know how to work the audience for more tips.

I flew back the next day.  The airport was big enough and easy to get through (although getting to and from there from the hotel was more difficult).

Overall, Las Vegas was a disappointment.  They have some great architecture and some interesting places, but Sin City is not the place for me.  Thankfully I have my sub-4 hour marathon, so I don't have to go back.

Marathon #16 - Missouri

When I bought the Tour Pass, I thought Denver and St. Louis Rock 'n' Roll Marathons were a month apart.  They were in 2012.  But in 2013, they changed them to be only a week apart.  So my next marathon was St. Louis, a mere eight days after completing the Denver marathon.

Because they were only a week away, I flew with Alan to Springfield, MO.  I dropped him off for the weekend with my sister and her family (she has three kids) so he could spend some time with his cousins.  Then I flew to Denver for the marathon.  Once finished, I flew back to Springfield to stay with Stephanie for the week leading up to St. Louis.

The Race:  St. Louis Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, October 27, 2013

My Training Plan:  For a majority of this training, you can see the plan for the Denver Marathon.  Because I was training for back-to-back weekends, I ran several long runs on back-to-back days to try to simulate running on fatigued muscles.  Most notably, I did an 18/13 and a 20/15 on consecutive Saturday/Sundays.  Between the two races, I did one easy 2 miler and an easy 3 miler.

Weather:  It was COLD to start off.  I think it was in the upper 30s, but both of my feet were frozen to numbness by the time we started.  It took a good 2 miles before I could feel them normally.  But by the end of the race, it was in the upper 50s and sunny.  I was getting a little hot toward the end.

Running Attire:  I wore the exact same outfit as I wore in the Denver marathon.  I had my black running tights, long-sleeved purple running shirt, Liz shirt, iFitness belt, and Delaware marathon running hat.

Who I ran with:  This time I had a running partner, my sister Stephanie.  This was her third marathon, and I had run with her during her first last year.  It was great running with her again!

The Course:  The course had some rolling hills, but none that were so steep they were unmanageable.  There was a lot of concrete and slanted roads, which didn't make for the best running surface.  There were some pretty views as we went through several parks (most notably Forest Park), including a lake, some fall colors, and buildings in the background.  There were not as many fall colors as I would have expected, but there were some really nice looking bright red and yellow trees here and there.

Organization:  The organization was great, as usual for Rock 'n' Roll marathons.  The water stations were well stocked with both hydration and volunteers.  The GUs were a little far apart for my taste (mile 7 and 19).  The race started on time and the corrals were well spaced.  It wasn't too crowded even with the half and full marathons starting at the same time.  Everyone was well placed in the corrals based on their expected pace.

The expo had a lot of great stuff for kids.  This was especially important, since we were dragging four kids with us.  They had a Brooks area that had a mountain climbing game for the kids, a gait analysis, a shoe ride that was supposed to be similar to one of those bull machines that you have to try to hold on as long as you can before it knocks you off, and a passport game that the kids could do to get a free prize.  There was a Geico booth with the gecko mascot that the kids could get their picture with.  There were a lot of good samples and vendors, but I was a little disappointed that LaraBar wasn't there.

Swag:  They had the normal Rock 'n' Roll swag, with nothing special.  Just a shirt, medal, and bumper sticker.  The shirt was a tech shirt and specific for men and women, which is nice.  And this one actually had a pretty cool design on the back.

Starting Line:  There were lots of porta potties at the starting line.  They also had water and bananas (I actually looked for them this time).  They also had all the tents set up already so you could scope out where they would be after the finish.  Again, there wasn't a lot of signage as to how to get to the gear check, but there were signs once you got there.  I loved that we were able to find a couple of heaters to stand next to as we waited for the start of the race.  One of the vendors even had a little bon fire set up in their tent that runners could gather around.  The corrals were also well marked.

Fans:  The fans in St. Louis were very good, and there were a lot of them.  There were a lot of spots for fans to congregate, and the bands helped a lot too.  I loved that there were speakers set up along a long, boring stretch right after the half split to keep the music within ear shot the whole way.  They also had a lot of DJs, which I actually prefer because they don't take breaks when I'm running by like the bands always seem to do.  I did notice that some of the bands here were set up to play music while they were on break, so the runners would always have something to listen to as they ran.  That should be a requirement for all the bands!

Finish Line:  There were lots of goodies at the finish line.  I got a banana, pretzels, and PowerBar.  They also had clementines/tangerines and fruit cups.  For hydration, they had water, Gatorade, chocolate milk, and one beer per runner.  Outside of the runner area they also had Jamba Juice energy drinks that both runners and their families could take.

As usual for the Rock 'n' Roll marathons, a band was playing on a big stage at the finish line for all to enjoy.  They also had a tent where you were supposed to be able to get your finisher time, but the site was down when we got there.  I'm not sure how long it was down or if it ever came back up for the later runners.

Results: Official chip results were 4:12:42.  Pretty good for the second marathon in eight days.

How I felt:  I felt good for the first 10 miles (after my the feeling came back to my feet).  I had to stop at the porta potty around mile 8 though, which took about two extra minutes.  Around mile 15, my tendinitis started acting up, and we had to slow down a lot.  I'm sure I slowed my sister down at this point.  She could have kept going and possibly set a PR, but she stuck with me.  I had to stop to stretch, hoping this would help.  My leg kept wanting to lock up, and I didn't want to end up breaking my foot again.  I tried to ensure my gait remained consistent and that I wasn't over compensating on the right side due to the irritation in my left leg.

By mile 22, I was feeling good again.  This part of the course had a lot of the concrete, though, so it wasn't the best running surface.  But I put on a smile and powered ahead, although at that point "powering through" really meant maintaining a 10 minute per mile pace.  Stephanie said her feet were hurting.  I could feel the second toe on my own right foot (which is annoyingly longer than my first toe) was hurting a little as well.  I put on my best encouraging attitude and pushed us forward.  I probably could have gone a little faster than we did on those last miles, since my tendinitis seemed to have let up.

Travel/Tourism:  We arrived in St. Louis on Saturday morning around 11am.  I had a room booked at the Embassy Suites at the airport, but it was so booked solid (the World Series was going on in St. Louis that weekend also) that we couldn't check in early.  We fit seven of us in one hotel room.  The room had two queen beds in a separate room with the bathroom off that room (I would have preferred if the bathroom was outside the suite room, but it still worked out fine).  The couch was a pull-out couch, so we were able to fit six in beds and one on the couch cushions on the floor.  The room wasn't a big room overall, but it was worth it if you have a lot of people staying in one room.  There was a mini fridge in the room, so I was able to bring my breakfast stuff for the race, since the hotel breakfast didn't start until 7 on weekends.  The breakfast at Embassy Suites almost can't be beat for a free breakfast.  Hot, some made-to-order (think omelets) breakfast.  They had the usual breads/pastries, cereals, juice, yogurt, fruit, etc. that you get at a free breakfast also, but they had breakfast potatoes, eggs, and bacon too.  They were very accommodating when we asked for extra towels and sheet and blanket for the person on the floor.  They also had a promotion code that allowed you to get free wifi, and parking was free.  The hotel offered a shuttle to the airport and Metrolink, which we used to get us down to the race start line.  

Metrolink took about 30 minutes to get downtown from the airport (which was our closest stop).  We looked up the fare ahead of time on their website, and they said it would cost us $2.25 to get downtown.  When we got to the station, however, the cheapest option was a 2-hr pass for $4 each.  It's a good thing I had my credit card and that they accepted it.

On Saturday, after picking up our race packets and going through the expo, we are lunch near the hotel at a place called Lion's Choice.  Lion's Choice is a roast beef restaurant that also has hot dogs, barbecue, some other sandwiches, and frozen custard for dessert.  Their roast beef is amazing.  It is seasoned in a way that makes your mouth water for more.  The kids' menu gives you the option of a entree, two sides, and a drink.  Beware that the roast beef sandwiches in the kid's meals are very small - much too small for a kid over maybe 5.  The kid's cones are also pretty small.  But Alan had a hot dog, carrot sticks, and applesauce and had plenty of food.

After lunch, we headed downtown for some sightseeing.  We went to the Arch first, which was very cool.  It Costs $10 for adults and $5 for kids 3-15 and takes about an hour to get up and back down (between standing in line and looking and the tram up and down).  There are some beautiful views and interesting architecture.  Get there early to make sure you get a spot.  The place stops doing tours at 5, but tickets will sell out by 3:45 on a busy day.  There is also a museum that you can go through while you're waiting for your tram trip time. 

After the Arch, we went to Union Station.  It is an old train station that has been converted into a shopping area.  It looks like it used to be really busy and cool, but that most of the good shops had moved out and there isn't much left.  It is really anchored now by the Hard Rock Cafe and Landry's Seafood restaurants.  There is a Train museum on the top level that supposedly tells the story of union station, but the rest of the place looked so empty and a little run down, that we decided to leave without going there.  The museum looked pretty small anyway.  Outside Union Station, between Hard Rock and Landry's was a fish pond where you can feed the fish.  The shops inside Union Station close at 9pm, but of course the big restaurants stay open later.

We left Union Station, after I got my Hard Rock shirt of course, and headed back toward the hotel.  We ate at my traditional pre-race place, IHOP, for dinner.  Kids eat free on weekends with each adult purchase.  It was a perfect place to get a good carb dinner with a large group.

Following the race on Sunday, we stayed back at the hotel to let Alan take a nap.  After the nap, we went back out to explore another part of the city, Forest Park.  Forest Park is a public park located in western part of St. Louis, and is apparently the seventh largest urban park in the U. S.  It is home to the St. Louis zoo, art museum, science center, history museum, and The Mury (which is some sort of outdoor theater).  Unfortunately for us, the Zoo closes at 5 on Sunday, and by the time we got there it was about 4.  The zoo was nice, and mostly free.  Some exhibits are pay, like the petting zoo and seal show, but admission to the actual zoo and the parking was free.   It was easy to get too.  Some of the animals weren't there, and not to return until 2015, some to return in the summer.  The Science center closes early on Sundays too, at 4:30.  The older males in our group went to an IMAX show in the Science Center that started at 4 and lasted 45 mins, while the rest of us walked around the zoo.

After the zoo and Science Center closed, we decided to check out the local pizza at Imo's pizza.  Imo's has original St Louis style pizza, which is basically crust as thin as paper, cut into squares.  It was good, but I prefer thicker crust.

We then headed to Ted Drewes to try out the local custard. It was delicious, and they had so many options.

I'm sure there are a lot of other places we could have visited in this great city while we were there.  There's so much to do and so little time.

Marathon #15 - Colorado

As you may remember, I purchased the 2013 Tour Pass for the Rock 'n' Roll series, which allows me to participate in as many Rock 'n' Roll events throughout the year.  My first race was the New Orleans marathon in February.  I was going to do the Seattle marathon in June, but couldn't due to my broken foot.  The next race on my list was the Denver Rock 'n' Roll marathon.

The Race:  Denver Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, October 20, 2013.

My Training Plan:  Since this was the first race since my broken foot (broken during the Delaware Marathon), my training plan was modified.  I started training in July with a 7-week recovery plan for people who have suffered from stress fractures.  While my injury wasn't a stress fracture, but it was the closest I could find online to something that would work for me.  It was a run/walk program to get me back into running slowly as to allow the foot enough time to fully heal.  After that training plan was complete, I basically had another 8 weeks to get up to marathon mileage.  I had to increase my mileage pretty quickly over those weeks, especially since I was training for back-to-back marathon weekends.

Weather:  The weather was perfect marathon running weather.  We started off in the upper 40s and ended in the lower to mid 50s.  The sky was cloudy so the sun wasn't beating down on us.  It wasn't too windy until the very end when we were coming back into the city and the wind picked up.

Running Attire:  I wore my black running tights, a long-sleeved purple running shirt, my Liz shirt, the hat I got at the Delaware marathon, and my running belt.

Who I ran with:  I came to Denver alone and wasn't planning on running with anyone specific.  I met a very nice guy at the start line who had two pre-teen/teen kids that were running the half marathon (in corral 1, so they were pretty fast!).  I lost him when we started, but caught up to him around mile 4 or so.  He had recently moved to the Denver area from Mississippi and apparently had something to do with producing the movie October Baby.  We chatted for several miles until I lost him at a water station around mile 11.  After that, I didn't really stick with anyone during the race.

The Course:  The course has some rolling hills that are very minor, and one fairly big hill toward the end of the downtown portion.  Most of the course would be considered to most runners as flat.  There were some nice parks with rivers or lakes.  The leaves were changing, so that added to the beauty.  The course also went through some very nice neighborhoods and started and ended downtown.  It was a nice way to see the city.

Organization:  As to be expected with the Rock 'n' Roll marathons, the organization was very good.  The expo had a lot of good vendors and free samples.  The water stops were well stocked and had enough volunteers, even when there were large crowds toward the beginning before the half marathon split.  The race facebook page and the marathon website kept you in the loop about the weekend activities, although I don't recall getting any emails with information.

Swag:  The Rock 'n' Roll series never has much to offer as far as SWAG.  They pretty much only have the typical medal, race shirt, and a bumper sticker.  I did like that they have separate Men's and Women's cuts for race shirts.  However, the shirt design was rather boring and they don't have different shirts for the half and the full marathons.

Starting Line:  When I arrived at the starting line, there were plenty of porta potties with reasonable lines (first thing I look for!)  There wasn't a lot of signage to know how to get to the gear check.  I had someone ask me where it was, and I had no idea.  There was supposedly a place you could get pre-race water and bananas, but I didn't look around to find it.

The corrals seemed well organized and there was adequate signage to see where you were supposed to go.  However, the volunteers didn't enforce runners to line up in the correct corrals.

The race did not start on time.  It was supposed to start at 7:15, and the first corral didn't leave until 7:25.  To catch up, they let corrals 1 and 2 go together, 3 and 4 together, etc.  Even though there was a delay and the corrals went together, it didn't seem overly crowded when we started running, so the corrals going together was not a problem.

Fans:  The fans were very good.  The bands were spread out well along the course and fans tended to group around the band areas.  Most of the fans cheered for all the runners and not just the one or two they came to see.  I had a lot of people calling my name and cheering me on as I went.  Denver seems to be a very friendly city.

I also had my personal fans there.  My husband's sister's in-laws came to cheer me on around mile 21 and took pictures of me coming and going.

Finish Line:  There were plenty of goodies at the finish line.  For hydration, they had water, Gatorade, smoothies, chocolate milk and one free beer per runner.  For food, they had PowerBars, pretzels, bananas, and fruit cups.  As usual for the Rock 'n' Rolls, they had a post race concert.  They also had plenty of porta potties.

Results:  For a first race back from injury and a race at an altitude I'm not used to, I was very pleased with my results.  My time was 3:57.

How I felt:  I felt very good during the first 11 miles.  I started feeling very sluggish around mile 12, and that lasted through about mile 19.  My tendon on the back of my knee started to bother me a little bit, so I slowed down.  Around mile 20, though, I got my second wind and sped up.  The last 6 miles were my best miles of the race.

Travel/Tourism:  I flew into the Denver airport, which was easy and convenient.  The airport is a pretty good size with a lot of flight options, even from smaller cities.  I can't comment on hotels or rental cars in the area because I stayed with my husband's sister's in-laws, so I didn't have to look for a hotel, and they took me around so I didn't need a rental car.

While I was in town, we went to Red Rocks amphitheater and walked around Golden, CO.  The Red Rocks area was very pretty, and you could see downtown Denver in the distance.  We also went to Golden, CO and saw where the Coors factory and the flat rock on the Coors bottles.

We also went to the 16th Street Outdoor mall in downtown Denver, where I got my Hard Rock shirt.  The outdoor mall has just about everything you need, with restaurants of all different levels, clothing stores, etc.  There are buses that will take you to each block for free.  Other than buses and emergency vehicles, it is pedestrian traffic only down the street.

In Golden we ate at the Old Capital Grill, which is a historic building where the capital of Colorado was almost located.  I had a delicious buffalo burger and fries.  In the Denver outdoor mall, we ate at a seafood restaurant called Willie G's.  I had the Red Snapper Charlie meal, which was phenomenal.  I would definitely recommend both of these places.

The day before the race, I did a short, easy run on the Cherry Creek trail.  This is an 11-mile side-walked trail along a creek with some very nice views.  I could see the mountains in the distance.  The trees were turning their fall colors, and looked beautiful next to the creek.

Foot update

It's official.  I won't be going to Seattle this weekend.

I went to the doctor for a check up on my foot today.  I got good news and bad news, but more bad news than good.

It looks like the bone is not healed yet.  I didn't really expect it to be.  It's only been five weeks from the time of the break, and four weeks from the time I stopped walking/running on it.  So it hasn't even been the traditional "six to eight weeks" of healing time for a broken bone.  The new piece of information I gained was that the piece of bone that broke free and is sticking into the inside of my foot is never going away.  It's like a permanent splinter.  But the bones around where it broke free are supposed to heal back together.

The foot is still swollen from what the doctor calls "turf toe."  He said this kind of injury will normally keep football players out for the season because it keeps flaring up and they need that part of the foot to push off in what they do.  He mentioned doing some injections, and I quickly changed the subject. 

The good news is that he said he didn't think I could do anything that would cause permanent damage to the foot or any other part of my body.  It's just about managing the pain and swelling right now and working toward regaining all range of motion in the foot.  If I stay off it for another couple of weeks, I should still be able to do the Peachtree.

Next stop - the neurologist appointment on Wednesday.

MRI Results

For those of you who did not see how I broke my foot, you can read about it in my previous blog.  Last Wednesday, I went for an MRI of both my left foot and my left knee.  Today I went for my follow-up appointment to find out the results of the MRI.  I received good news and bad news.  The good news is that the MRI on my knee came back clean. There were no problems indicated by the MRI. Now I await the neurology appointment to see if they can figure out why my leg stops working.  The bad news is that the MRI did reveal problems with my foot.


Here are the official results for my foot:

There is significantly increased T2 signal involving the medial sesamoid of the 1st MPJ.  A transverse defect is best appreciated on sagittal T2 image I6, very probably representing a bipartite sesamoid, although fracture cannot be excluded.  There is some increased T2 signal in the closely surrounding soft tissues.  The lateral sesamoid is without definite deformity or abnormal signal intensity.  The tarsals, metatarsals, and MPJs are otherwise within normal limits.  Moderate degree of edema involving the medial sesamoid of the 1st MPJ.  The represents at least residual contusion and inflammation.  Subacute fracture is less likely.  Mild inflammation in the closely surrounding soft tissues.  No evidence of stress fracture or other deformity is seen on this exam.

I'm not a doctor, so I don't exactly know what all that says, but here was the doctor's interpretation to me.  I have an "avulsion fracture of the bilateral bipartite sesamoids," which is the break he saw on the x-ray at the last appointment.  The other piece he was worried about (and the reason for the MRI, which is apparently called the medial sesamoid) is "not happy with me." 

He is still not ruling out me completing the Seattle marathon on the 22nd, but is not overly hopeful.  He said that if it isn't healing as fast as we want it to, he could give me a shot that would allow me to run the marathon, but the healing process then would restart from the date of the marathon (i.e. 6-8 weeks after the Seattle race before I could really start training again).  He said he's gotten those shots before when he wasn't healing as fast as he needed to in the past, but would like to leave that as a last resort. (There is no way I would do this anyway, since I'm afraid of needles.)

His instructions to me are to stay off it as much as possible.  Continue to bike.  Ice two to three times a day.  Wear my running shoes as much as possible, and try not to walk/stand on it in socks or barefoot.  He also prescribed me some sort of anti-inflammatory drug to take and recommends physical therapy.

I have a follow up appointment the Monday before the race to confirm whether or not I will be able to race.  In the meantime, he said I should check with the airline to see when the latest cancellation date is in case I can't run.  It's not looking good for racing in Seattle this year.

How I broke my foot

Several people have asked just exactly how I broke my foot.  So I thought I'd spell out the background.

New Orleans Marathon training and race
I didn't do any specific speedwork or track workouts during the New Orleans marathon training. Instead, I just tried to run two or three of my runs each week at a "faster than easy" pace. My easy pace is around 9:30 minute miles, so I ran many of my training runs at around 8:30 minute miles. This is still slower than my Boston Qualifying goal of 8:00 minute miles, but close to my Personal Record pace.  And most of these runs were shorter distances - maybe 8 miles or so.  So it wasn't like I was really pushing myself.

As New Orleans approached, during my faster runs I started getting a little irritation in the hamstring tendon that runs along the back side of my left knee. Every once in awhile, it would irritate me enough to make my knee want to lock up. This only happened when I was running faster. If I slowed my pace down, then it would stop bothering me.  And it never bothered me during my slower runs.

During the New Orleans race, around mile 14, I met a guy named Bill from Oklahoma City.  He was going a much faster pace than I would have been able to keep up for the duration of the race, but talking to him did help me go a little faster than usual.  Toward the end of our 4-5 miles together, the tendon in the back of my knee started to bother me.  At the next water stop, I slowed down to get some water, and let Bill take off ahead of me.  I didn't try to catch up with him this time.  Instead I slowed down a little, back to about an 8:45 pace, in hopes that my tendon would stop bothering me.  It did stop bothering me, and I was able to finish the race without incident.  I also has a great time - without the two porta potty stops, I would have set a new PR for sure.

After New Orleans, I went to a new massage therapist.  His methods were different than what I was used to.  He was very knowledgeable about how the body works, but he didn't use any massage lotion.  His massage methods was all pressure-based.  I told him about the irritation in my tendon, and he worked on that leg.  When he got to my left foot, he said that something was out of place, so he "popped it back in place."  This caused a mild amount of pain in my foot as he did it, but it seemed fine afterwards.

Delaware Marathon training
For my next race, which was the Delaware marathon, I decided that I was going to try to set a new PR and possibly even qualify for Boston.  I had almost three full months between New Orleans and Delaware.  I pulled out the Runner's World app and started seriously training.

My first couple of runs were uncomfortable.  The foot that the massage therapist had "popped back in place" started hurting.  It hurt on the very top side of my foot, where the laces of my shoes were.  In addition to the pain in my foot, the tendon in my left knee still flared up during my track workouts.  Any time I would try to go fast, both my foot and my tendon would start bothering me.  My knee would want to lock up. I would have to slow down.  Once I slowed down, my foot still hurt, but my tendon in my knee would go back to normal.

During my first 14 mile run after the New Orleans marathon, my leg did something strange that it had never done before.  When I got to about mile 10, the tendon thing started to happen and my knee wanted to lock up.  In addition to that, my entire leg seemed to go numb.  It didn't want to move correctly.  It felt like it forgot how to run.  I was almost trying to force my brain to tell my leg how to run.  My leg had completely lost all coordination.  I slowed my pace and hobbled along like that for two miles.  Then my leg went back to normal, and I finished the last two miles with no problems.

The following week's 16 mile long run brought along the same thing.  Around mile 12, my tendon started acting up and my leg lost all coordination.  Again, after I slowed down and ran the next two uncoordinated miles, it went back to normal and I was able to finish just fine.

After a few weeks, the pain in the top of my foot went away completely.  But the tendon thing and the knee locking up did not go away.  Every time I tried to run fast during my track workouts, my tendon would bother me, my knee would lock up, and sometimes my leg would lose all coordination.  For the most part, I was still able to hit my splits, although I was slightly faster toward the beginning and slower once my leg started bothering me.

The Delaware Marathon
Going into the marathon, I was very hopeful.  I was excited, and I had hit (at least overall) all my speed goals during training.  I was hopeful for at least a PR and possibly even a Boston Qualifying time.  The first half of the race went very well.  I was on track for around 8 minute miles.  My BQ time is about 8:15 minute miles.  So I was doing well.  Even the hills didn't slow me down.  I felt good.

Around mile 18, my tendon started bothering me.  My body wasn't tired.  My breathing was good.  I was still feeling good.  But my knee wanted to lock up, and I started to lose coordination of my entire leg.  I slowed my pace a little, but it didn't help much.  It was almost as if my leg was dead.  I was practically dragging it along, prodding it to work properly.  I thought to myself, "come on, leg!  You know how to run!  You just ran 18 miles, for goodness sakes!"

By mile 22, I felt as if I should just give up.  My leg still wasn't working.  I could tell my gait had changed, and I wasn't running normal because of the leg.  I told myself, "just keep running.  Don't stop."  Normally at the end of a race like this, I have a little more energy than I did that day.  But all my energy was being spent trying to get my leg to work properly and trying my best to keep my gait even.  I could tell I was favoring my right leg since my left wasn't working, but I tried my hardest to keep them even.

At the end of the race, when I stopped, my leg went back to normal.  I could walk on it just fine.  My leg wasn't numb or uncoordinated when I walked.  However, the inside of my left foot, on the side right near where the big toe connects to the foot, was hurting.

Beyond Delaware

My foot continued to hurt slightly after returning to Atlanta the day following the race.  The pain wasn't unbearable, but I started to walk on the outside of my foot trying to avoid putting pressure on the big toe area of the ball of my foot.  On Wednesday, my old running partner was in town, so I went running with him.  I ran 6 miles, mostly on the outside of my foot, but by the end my foot was hurting pretty bad.  My running partner suggested looking at some of the podiatrists that the Runners World forum recommended.  He said there were some good ones in the Sandy Springs area, so I decided to look up a podiatrist to see if I could get in to find out what was going on with my foot.  I found one that looked like they specialized in runners and called to make an appointment.  They were booked until June 6th.

I didn't do any running or exercising Thursday or Friday, and iced my foot a little both days.  When I woke up on Friday, it actually didn't feel bad, but by the end of the day, it was hurting. 

On Saturday, my best friend was running his first 5k.  I had promised I would run with him, so I got up and laced up my running shoes.  My foot didn't hurt too bad, but I was still walking on the outside of it to avoid putting pressure on the tender area.  I ran with him the full 5k and then stood around with everyone waiting for them to announce the winners and raffles.  (He won second in his age group, my sister-in-law won first overall female, and my brother one first place in his age group!)  By the end of the day, my foot was swollen and hurting.  I iced it before going to bed.

On Sunday, I took Alan to a birthday party at Catch Air.  I was standing most of the time with the other parents, and by the end of the day, my foot was throbbing and swollen.  That's when I decided I needed to find a doctor sooner than June 6th.

Doctor's Visit
Monday morning, I called Aetna to find some orthopaedic doctors in my network.  They gave me three possibilities.  I called the first one, and they were booked out until June also.  The second one said they could get me in on Thursday.  The last one said they would "squeeze me in" later that day.  Bingo.  So I scheduled my appointment with Dr. Sutlive of Dominion Orthopaedic Clinic.

I went to the doctor, and they took three x-rays right away.  Then the doctor came in and talked to me about how it happened, did a little analysis on my legs and knees, poked and prodded my foot, and told the assistant guy (sorry, I don't know what they are called at orthopaedic clinics) to take two more x-rays.  He also asked me if my handwriting had gotten worse recently.  I had actually just commented recently about how bad my handwriting has become now that I type all the time.  I hadn't connected that with my leg until he asked the question.

After the x-rays, and some waiting, the doctor came in and asked me to follow him to look at the x-rays.  There is a little piece of bone that has broken away from my foot and is sticking down into the fleshy part of the ball of my foot near my big toe - the exact place that was tender.  There is also another bone that he couldn't tell if it was affected.  He said as long as this other bone (I don't remember what it is called) isn't affected, I could run the Seattle marathon (provided I didn't run before it and only crosstrained by biking or swimming).  If that other bone is affected, he would not recommend that I do any kind of running until the entire thing heals (6-8 weeks).

So, I'm scheduled to get an MRI of my foot on Wednesday of next week.  He also wanted to do an MRI of my knee to see if there was something in my knee that was causing the tendon issue. 

The doctor then told me that he has neuropothy in his feet.  He can walk on them just fine on flat surfaces and in comfortable shoes, but he cannot run on them.  He said when he tries to run, he feels completely uncoordinated, as if his brain isn't telling his feet what to do.  He also said that if he walks on uneven surfaces, like grass, his feet feel like they are in pain.  He can look down at them and see that they're not in pain, but his brain is telling him they are in pain.  Because of his experience with this, and because of how I described my leg losing coordination and my handwriting change, he wants me to see a neurologist.  He said they may do an MRI of my head and also possibly a spinal tap (ugh!!!).

So now I'm stuck doing crosstraining as my training for the Seattle marathon and hoping that my foot will survive a marathon in four weeks.  I am going to be keeping off of it, keeping it up, and icing it as much as I can to hopefully speed up the healing process.

Marathon #14 - Delaware

I picked the Delaware Marathon as my 14th race for a couple of reasons.  After my 10th state, I applied for the 50 states marathon club.  In the first quarterly newsletter that I got from them, it said that Delaware would be a reunion run.  And the race also happened to be on my birthday.  As soon as I saw that, I checked my schedule and found that it fit well sandwiched between New Orleans in February and Seattle in June.  So i signed up.  Delaware would be the only non-Rock 'n' Roll marathon I would do this year.

The 50 States Marathon Club has quarterly reunion runs.  This quarter it was in Delaware, where 136 members came to run the race.  They also gave out finisher tropheys for those who had finished the 50 states since the last reunion run.  It was fun to meet others who have a similar goal and interest as I do.

The Race:  Delaware Marathon, Wilmington, DE, May 12, 2013.

My Training Plan:  I used the Runner's World app training plan.  Since Delaware and Seattle are only a month apart, I actually set the training plan up to train for Seattle, with Delaware being a long run along the way.

Weather:  The weather was kind to us.  It rained the day/night before, but the day of the race was clear and cool.  It was a little windy for my taste, which made part of the course harder than it should have been.  And the humidity was a little high, but being from Hotlanta, I'm used to that.  The race started at 7:00 with a 56 degree temperature, and ended with a temp around 62 and windy.  I remember being a little warm running at the beginning, but after I crossed the finish line and cooled down, I was cold.

Running Attire:  I wore my typical running clothes:  my Liz running shirt, purple and pink running shorts, pink Nike visor, and iFitness belt.  I had my Balega socks and Asics Cumulus shoes.

Who I ran with:  I didn't start out running with anyone, and didn't stick with many people.  I met a few people in passing, but we really only chatted for a short while before one of us changed pace.  I met a woman that had been at the Boston marathon and was able to finish before the bomb went off.  I met a guy from the area that suggested some places to eat.  Around mile 25, I picked up a relay runner who was running his first race ever.  We ran the rest of the way together.

The Course:  The course started out flat by the river, and then went into town where all the hills are.  We ran near the zoo (could definitely smell the animals), and through a park with a swing bridge and some narrow paths.  The course is a loop course, so once you got back to the finish line the first time, you knew what to expect.  There were at least three very large, long hills.  One was near the park/zoo, one was on one of the roads through some neighborhoods, and the other was coming back toward the finish line through town.  Luckily (sarcasm) we got to run them twice!  In reality, the course was very beautiful, and it really showed off the good parts of the city:  the river, nice neighborhoods, the park, downtown, and an area where we ended eating dinner that night.

Organization:  I wasn't really sure what to expect in the organization category when I signed up for this race.  I knew the race was small, and it wasn't associated with any big organization, like Zulu or Competitor or anything.  I was pleasantly surprised at how well organized the race was.  From the responsiveness of the race directors to the amount of information we received to the expo and course, everything exceeded expectations.  A facebook page was set up for the race, and questions were answered promptly.  The participants really became a community.  We received plenty of information in the emails months and days before the race.  The race website was very well put together. 

The expo was easy to get to and through.  Although it wasn't a huge expo, they had some very good vendors attend, vendors that I have seen at much bigger races in the past.  I didn't have to wait in line to pick up my race number, shirt, and other swag.  The volunteers were very helpful and nice.  And the race was the same weekend as the 375th anniversary of the city, so the King and Queen of Sweden were in town to celebrate.

The race itself was well organized as well.  I was a little concerned with the number of water stops, because on the map they seemed far apart.  But there was really only one time that I wished there was an extra stop.  The water stops were well stocked and had plenty of volunteers throughout the course.

This is the first race that I've ever been to where they cater specifically to the marathoners and not to the half marathoners.  Being a marathoner, I really appreciate that.  We always seem to get lost in the shuffle, since there are generally a lot fewer of us than half marathoners.  I never felt that way in this race.

The two things I would say that could have been better:  the race map and race marshalls.  The race map is very confusing.  That could be just because the course is a little confusing.  I think it would be helpful to have more road names on the race map.

Additionally, with the many turns in the course, it can get a little confusing if you are running by yourself and there isn't anyone to follow.  At one turn, I had to get the police officer's attention to ask him which way to go.  He was nice enough to point me in the right direction, but it would have been nice if the turn was more obvious.

Swag:  The swag for this race was amazing.  Technical shirt (specific for men and ladies) and medal were the typical swag items.  This race also added a very nice running hat, magnet, notepad, and pint glass to the mix.  They also supplied a GU in a (very nice) cinch bag that was handed out with the race number.

Starting Line:  Because the race expo was right next to the start/finish line, it was easy to get there on race day.  The expo really did serve as a sort of dress rehearsal for finding parking and getting to the start.  There were balloons and large signs denoting the start line.  It would have been difficult to miss.

One thing I can't forget to mention is that they had a little table at the start with Vaseline and Q-tips.  Love that!  As the race is pretty small (750 marathon participants), there was no need for corrals or a wave start.  They did, however, allow anyone who thought they would finish in over 6 hours start 45 minutes early so that they could finish the race before the roads reopened.  As I said before, this race catered to the marathoners.  You might expect, that since the half marathoners would have a faster pace, that they would start first.  Not in this race.  The marathoners started at 7:00 and the half didn't start until 7:20 (I think), which allowed us to get ahead of the crowd I normally have to weave through.  It also made the water stops less congested.

Fans:  The fans, what little there were, were great.  There were a lot of fans around the start/finish line and along the river.  Other than that, you were pretty much on your own.  There were a few neighborhoods that had some people scattered here and there.  There was one corner in a neighborhood near the park where some kids were passing out cut bananas and Dixie cups of water (too cute!).

My own personal fan was great!  My dad came to cheer me on this time.  I saw him at least four different times along the course, mostly near the start/finish line.  He recorded me running and took some pictures.

Finish Line:  The finish line was confusing.  Not the finish line itself, but the food and hydration items afterwards.  They seemed to be hidden.  After finishing and getting my medal and bottled water, I walked around for a couple minutes before I was told that the food was in the tent that the expo had been in.  They had a lot of food (once I finally found it):  cheese pizza, pretzels, bananas, oranges, apples, fruit cups, ice cream, chocolate milk.  I never did find the electrolyte drink, although I saw some runners walking with it, so it had to be somewhere.

There were no Mylar blankets at this race.  The wind was pretty strong afterwards, and I was freezing once I had stopped running and stretched.

Results: I was hoping for a really good time, and ended up with 3:53.  Not my best, but still sub-4.  Delaware, check.  I'll take it.

How I felt:  While training for this race, I've developed some tendonitis (self-diagnosed) in the backside of my left knee.  During my speedwork, I would be running normal, and then the tendonitis would act up, and it would cause my knee to want to lock up and cause me to lose coordination in my left leg.  It had definitely been concerning.  However, in my last speed session, it didn't act up at all, so I was hopeful.

Going into the race, I felt great.  I was sure I was going to at least PR.  I was hoping for a BQ, or at least closer to one than I've been in the past.  And I was on track for that at the beginning of the race.  Around 8 minute miles.  Until around mile 18 when the tendonitis flaired up.  I slowed down a little, but that didn't seem to help.  By mile 22, I felt like I had lost all coordination in my left leg. I was basically telling my brain to tell my leg to move forward with every step.  Needless to say, my pace dropped drastically.  I probably went from around an 8 minute mile to an 11 minute mile.  But I refused to stop.  I made it to the end, but it was a sad sight indeed when I saw the clock was at 3:53 - 5 minutes slower than my PR and another 18 minutes slower than a BQ.  Oh, well.  Maybe next time.

Travel/Tourism:  For this trip, I flew from Atlanta to DC.  My dad picked me up in DC, and we drove to Wilmington, DE from there.  We stayed in one of the marathon hotels - the Doubletree Downtown.  It was a very nice hotel.  I'd give it four out of five stars.  Nice towels and separate shampoo and conditioner.  The beds were soft and cozy.

Delaware isn't a big state.  Wilmington is the biggest city in Delaware.  After the race, I asked the lady at the front desk "if there was one thing that someone who visits Delaware must see, what is it?"  She looked at me like I was from Mars and didn't have an answer.  That just tells me that there isn't too much to do in the state.

What we ended up doing was going to Winterthur Gardens and Estate.  This was the estate of the founder of the DuPont company, which was passed down through his family and is now a tourist place.  The mansion is huge and the gardens take up over a hundred acres.  One of the DuPonts was a collector of Americana furniture, so we saw pieces from the 1600s.  It was pretty amazing, and worth the trip.

While in Delaware, we ate at several local restaurants.  When I'm on vacation, I try not to eat at too many chain restaurants, but try to get some of the "local faire," something I couldn't get at home.  With my goal of running in all 50 states, this gives me a chance to try some new places across the country.

The night we arrived, we went to Deep Blue Bar and Grill.  They call themselves a Modern American Fish House.  This is a high-class restaurant on one side (white tableclothes, fancy place settings and $$$ meals) attached to a bar.  The bar is on the other side of a wall, but the wall has windows in it, so I had a view of the bar TV from where I was sitting.  It seems like they try to have the nice atmosphere on the restaurant side, but the bar almost ruins it.   As is typical for a nice restaurant, the plates are very well presented, but the food may not fill you up.  Since it was a fishhouse, we both got fish:  salmon and halibut.  The food was very good.

Between getting my race number at the expo and going back to meet with the 50 states marathon club for the reunion, we ate lunch at Extreme Pizza.  Extreme pizza is a gourmet pizza place, which we found out is a chain (but only has about 39 total restaurants nationwide - and mostly in California).  You order at the counter, and they bring it out to you when it's ready (similar to Mellow Mushroom).  They offered wheat crust, which we got.  Dad likes thick crust, so he asked for that.  The "thick" crust wasn't very thick - almost more like a New York style pizza.  But the pizza itself was very good.  We also had a delicious chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream for dessert.

The only chain place we went to was IHOP.  IHOP is my traditional pre-race dinner, so we found one that wasn't too far away and ate dinner there the night before the race.

After the race on Sunday, dad wanted to eat someplace that wasn't so expensive, so we looked up fast food in the Garmin.  It took us to a Burger King outside of town.  When we pulled into the parking lot, we noticed a diner next door, Cosmos Diner.  We decided to see if they were open and go there instead.  The place was packed with the after-church crowd.  The diner is owned by a Greek family, and the menu had a Greek feel to it.  I ordered a Gyro with sweet potato fries and dad had a club.  The meal was very good.  I would definitely recommend this place.  It's a little outside of town, but it was reasonably priced and had good food.

We went to Rita's custard place for dessert after lunch.  Dad was able to get some sugar-free Italian Ice and I got some chocolate custard.  Very yummy.

For dinner that night, dad wanted some "normal food" and suggested a steak place.  We plugged "Steak and Grill" into the Garmin and found Walter's Steakhouse.  When we got there, I realized that we had run right past the restaurant during the race that morning.  This was another pricey meal, but it was so very good.  I have to admit that a good filet is one of my favorite foods, so it was appropriate that I got one on my birthday (which also happened to be Mother's Day).  And their filet was good!  Dad had the cheeseburger, which he seemed to enjoy also.