Marathon State #14 Manitowoc, Wisconsin

HFM Maritime Marathon

June 22, 2014

Thankfully this small race allows for morning packet pick-up.  We even get there early enough to make it into the Maniac photo~a rarity for us!!  It is nice to see so many happy runners ready to take on the challenge!!  It truly is a challenge for me today.  I feel the pain from the beginning.  I start out with a twelve minute pace and I think that is being generous. It is probably closer to fourteen minute miles. Running is the last thing I want to do.  My joints are screaming at me...it isn't soreness or fatigue...it is ligament and tendon type pain.  It will be a "suck it up buttercup" kind of day!!  The thing that really gets me through this particular race is the other runners.  

I run and chat with so many nice people, it takes my mind off of my discomfort.  Some runners are locals and can't imagine living anywhere else in the world...others are here only for work and can't wait to move.  It is a beautiful place during the summer even though it is foggy and cold today.  The winters are brutal...but if it is all you know your whole life you embrace the weather. The

locals are proud of their city and they have activities for each of the four seasons like ice fishing and snowmobiling. The winter snow can last for up to eight months of the year.  

My first few miles are about enduring.  I try to convince my body that it is not so bad, but it is passionately disagreeing with my mind.  It isn't until I strike up a conversation with a young girl who reminds me of my daughter that the running gets more tolerable.  She is running her very first marathon.  Her mother runs marathons all the time, but she wants to do her first one on her own.  We talk for about five miles and it helps the time pass.  I get the chance to see her mother on the sidelines cheering for her.  I can't even image myself wanting to run a marathon at seventeen let alone train for it and actually do it!  She tells me about losing her brother and how hard it is for her family. She is very brave and strong.  Running has a way of helping us run through our pain, no matter what kind of pain we are experiencing.  There is something very healing in running.

I decide, or rather my body decides, that today's run is going to be just to finish, hopefully in under five hours.  I do whatever I can to distract myself and take lots of pictures of things along the course.  I need to keep moving until I see that finish line.  

When I finally make it to the turnaround, another runner starts talking to me.  He is from the area and a prolific runner who distracts me for another five miles.  My final runner friend, who I spend the most miles with, is a father of five and soon to be six.  He and his wife are about to have another baby.  He does not train much due to his busy life, so we struggle along together.  The closer I get to the finish, the faster my pace gets in order to be done.  The people of Wisconsin are beyond nice.  They have a cute distinctive dialect that is sweet sounding with a welcoming quality. 

The finish is a downhill, and I run as fast as I can to cross the finish line in 4:42:42!! I am happy to see my husband come charging down the final stretch as well.  We spend some time in the picnic type finish area eating burgers and hot dogs.  They have plenty of food for runners to refuel. It is a challenging journey to run all three marathons in nine days.  We are thankful we are able to accomplish what we set out to do.  We will definitely continue running doubles, but in the future, we will fly home in between weekends.  As a slow learner I seem to need to learn things the hard way through trial and error. 

Maybe by the time we get to number fifty, we will have it figured out, but I seriously doubt it!!  The best part of the trip is coming home.  It means a quick visit with our daughter who still thinks we are slightly crazy or maybe even the full crazy.  It is all the same isn't it??

It is always good to be back in California with our feet in the sand. Maybe, we will start losing a few pounds and eating better or maybe not! My husband wants to stop at Mac's for fish and chips before we head  for home. Dieting is not as much fun!! It leads to so much false hope...

Kitty greets us with the same expression as our daughter!! She knows we are the full crazy too!!

Marathon State #13 Charlevoix, Michigan

Charlevoix Marathon

June 21, 2014

look at that belly!!

The strategy for the week is to do and see as much as possible without having to RUN...our run free week includes a few hiking trails, some bike rides and I even get my husband to go horseback riding.  Hey...not running...is fun!  Growing up I had a horse and now I am the horse and do all the running.  Riding is a lot more fun~by the way!

Even with the crazy amount of driving miles, on my not so well planned out trip, we end up having a really good time exploring. We see things we would never have discovered otherwise!  Actually having time to stop in Ohio and explore makes the extended time more enjoyable and less stressful which is a nice change!

The opportunity to spend time in a new state without having to hurry up allows for an in depth look! Ohio, it turns out, has some amazing state parks. Hocking Hills is a~must see! A good chunk of one of our travel days is spent exploring the park, walking countless trails and seeing tons of amazing waterfalls.  There is beauty to be found around every bend and places to cool off. It is definitely a surprise to find neat  adventures as we travel through the fifty states!

Once we make it to Michigan, we spend two nights at a cute affordable place in Traverse City, a beautiful place on Lake Michigan. It gives us time to relax without the stress of driving. We tour an old asylum~yes we are that kind of crazy~now a place to shop with artisans, peddling their wares, boutiques and eateries. 

The lake is so large and vast it looks like an ocean. Never mind the fact that our lives flash before our eyes as we are relishing the beauty of the setting sun after our dinner at the local pizza~ice cream parlor. It came close to being our last day on earth when a speeding car narrowly misses hitting us as we turned onto the roadway. Definitely a harrowing experience. Our time for rest and relaxation ends abruptly driving home the point that life needs to be cherished. You never know when your time to up! It is a good reminder for me to make things right with loved ones because you just never know.

Thankfully this was not my last view on earth although, a good one!

Beautiful finish line area!

Is it really time to run again already? Ready or not, the double marathon weekend is upon us as we drive to packet pick up. Hopefully, it will be a less disastrous outcome than our first attempt at a double. Extreme food poisoning on day two was great fun, but we got through it in spite of the misery. As long as I can finish both marathons upright and under five hours, it will be a success in my book. Since becoming a Maniac and increasing the number of marathons we run each year my waistline has grown. I become less fit and healthy as our marathon volume increases. Running combined with travel

leads to more eating and less disciplined training. It may just be the reason my pants keep getting tighter and tighter! There is also too much tapering, too much recovering and way too much eating...especially the wrong types of foods. I am starting the double marathon weekend with twenty extra pounds~damn Gina. It will be a struggle, but once we get home I must commit to better eating or my 600 lb  inner self may take over. No matter how hard I try... I can't outrun my bad diet! The darling pup has the best sign of the day. I see him on the course and at the finish and it definitely needs to be "my new motto" for getting into better shape.

The course is great along portions of Lake Michigan and through town. It is a very small race, but is well organized and supported with lots of delicious pizza at the finish just what I need! There is no time to hang around. Someone signed us up for a double with a six hour drive to get to the next run in the state of Wisconsin! Who does that!

finished in 4:06!

We do and with little time to celebrate we say, "Yay...we did it! Now let's get in the car."  Who~the bleep~gets to drive first! It is one long a** drive all the way around Lake Michigan to get to Manitowoc, Wisconsin!!

Maciknac Bridge

On the way out of Michigan my husband wants to stop and look at the Mackinac Lighthouse, but as we start to open the car door thousands of mosquitoes, the biggest mosquitoes I have ever seen, cover the car. It is like a scene from the movie,  The Birds, but with mosquitoes.  They swarm the car and the railing and suddenly all I want to do is hit the road...I will even drive!   

Marathon State #12 Belfry, Kentucky

Hatfield-McCoy Marathon

June 14, 2014

I guess we will hit the road and keep running until we make it through all fifty states. I am still slow to learn...once I tell my husband about a marathon, he wants to do it no holds barred.  Never mind the fact it is in the middle of nowhere and there isn't another state to double it with to make it

a strategic and economical choice.  Now that he has read about the "Hatfield and McCoy Marathon," it is a must do for him. We  registered to run it in June of 2013, but it is the same weekend as our daughter's college graduation. Even though she graduated in March she does the graduation ceremony in June. I have to see my baby in her cap and gown as she receives her degree! Can't believe she finished college in two years and two quarters.  All her hard work pays off and lucky for us the Hatfield and McCoy Marathon allows deferrals...

The lone marathon bordering West Virginia and Kentucky becomes our summer 2014 destination trip. I come up with a foolhardy idea to spend eleven days travelling to knock out three marathons within nine days and they are not even close to one another, but it is supposed to give us more spinning Maniac stars!
Let's just say it is one of the worst logistically planned marathon trips ever...but it appears to be the way we do things. Once it is put out in the universe the plan gets steam rolled even if it should be given more careful consideration. If I don't get better at planning states closer and easier to get to our little hobby is going to be a costly endeavor in every way physically, mentally and financially. Who flies into  Milwaukee, Wisconsin to run a marathon in Kentucky, WE DO!

But there is a method to my madness, I think! Planning it (in my mind anyway) it is a big loop back to where we started...racking up three states in the process. It is easy to sign up for races and make reservations~even easier with my credit card number committed to memory!  Plotting out a route appears to be "no problem" sitting at my computer screen, but actually executing the plan is slightly more challenging. We spend the first night in Indiana and drive through Louisville with~of course a stop for some pizza~before taking a tour of Churchill Downs.

Unfortunately I back the rental car into a sign post! (well isn't that sweet)  Not off to a great start, we get caught in a severe downpour trying to make it to the tiny town of Belfry for the 50 States Club meeting! Hydroplaning is a real fear as water rapidly floods the highway! We arrive just after the

meeting, but in time to buy 50 stater hats. We wait in a long line with lots of other runners for packet pick up and enjoy some camaraderie with our fellow runners at the spaghetti dinner which is followed by a skit detailing the history behind the Hatfield and McCoy Feud. It is very informative and entertaining.  The marathon is a highlight for the community. The local firehouse even provides cots for runners willing to rough it and sleep in the firehouse for the night. With limited motels we elect to stay in Logan, a small town about 30 miles away.

Green trees are a focal point as we drive we see hill upon hill covered in trees.  After some restful sleep, we make our way back to "Food City" the start line is located in the parking lot of the grocery store.  Runners stay warm inside while utilizing the bathroom facilities. I am really glad we choose the race after all...we are lucky enough to run down the main street of Hardy, the tiny town, where my grandma lived as a small child. It is an opportunity to see my family origins on my mom's side of the family. My great 

grandmother was one tough lady who lived until she was 97.  She was determined to give her family a better life as the wife of a coal miner, she did not want that life for her six children. As the years passed she moved her family from Kentucky to Oklahoma and finally to Los Angeles, California. The first six miles are for my grandma as I run through her childhood hometown.

As we depart Hardy we hit "Blackberry Hill" a whopper of a climb followed by a steep descent. It is a charming place to run on a beautiful course with lots of local enthusiasm. There are "hillbillies" along the course. It's fun to see the community embrace the stereotype with offerings of moonshine to anyone brave enough to stop and try some. There are even adorable miniature horses along the route~some runners~stop to pet them. Homeowners yell out to the runners, "Where are you from?"  They cheer when runners yell back. When I yell California...I only hear an "oh!"  Apparently, Kentuckians have a negative feeling towards Californians. It is interesting how we all have our bias and perceptions. I don't like a lot of policies in California either. 

I reach the half-way point in two hours and two minutes. My face pained~it appears~by the first half, but it gets even tougher in the second half. All the rain makes for a muddy trail section that is wet

and rocky. Even though it is tough, it is a fun challenging course with differing terrain to keep it interesting. There are varying surfaces including a rickety suspension bridge near the golf course. A Maniac even falls and breaks her elbow on the trail section!

I happily finish the race without any falls or injuries and enjoy the festive finish line fun which includes music and food at the street fair. Sandwiches and drinks are a nice reward for all the runners.  

Happy to finish in 4:14

As my husband comes across the finish line he is elated to make it though another tough hot run as he is handed a cold towel to wash his face. After celebrating the joy of finishing a fun and challenging marathon, we take a closer look around the area and take pictures of "Hardy" for my grandmother...

We spend some time looking around the area before heading back to our hotel to recuperate. We have a week to explore the Appalachia region and I have lots of things on the itinerary to keep us busy during our week long visit as we meander our way to Michigan for the second marathon in our little running Odyssey.

  

The next day we visit a former coal mine in the town of Beckley and tour the Exhibition Coal  Mine. The mine is no longer operational, but serves as an educational museum. It is an informative tour depicting the life of a coal miner with actual living quarters. It gives me a taste of how hard life was for my great grandma and great grandpa and a greater appreciation for them.

Canyon Rim Visitor Center is the next stop. A short hike out to the vista outlook provides a spectacular beautiful view of the New River Gorge. 

The river looks inviting and we decide to spend some time in the water, but that will be after some zip lining at "Adventures on the Gorge".  We pay for our tickets for the following day and finish the evening with "a little hike" at the Kaymoor Coal Mine Trail and by little...I mean 821 steep steps. We are the only ones out there

as the sun starts sets and I ponder my crazy ideas! Not the best thing to do
after a marathon, but again if I suggest something my husband is always up for the challenge. Who cares that we have two more marathon in our immediate future!

As we follow the long winding trail just to reach the steps, I question my thought process and mental stability...is this really a good idea? It is rather creepy and isolated and I keep waiting for some creature to spring out of the bushes.When we finally reach the wooden stairs, we feel obligated to climb down them without  considering how hard it will be to climb back up...like most of my ideas...it sounds like an exciting adventuresome thing when I researched it online! Now that I have done it, I am glad I did, but never again! 

  Maybe not the best post marathon recovery who cares...  

           embracing "an only live once" motto.  It sounds good anyway!!

Our next fun vacation day involves zip lining the gorge. What a thrill, even if walking after all those stairs leaves us a bit stiff and sore.

The crazy fun in Kentucky and West Virginia comes to an but not before a bite to eat at "Pies and Pints!" 

Who doesn't love pizza and beer!

Now we are talking my language BEER and PIZZA! After indulging in my favorite post marathon activity we are ready to continue the long drive to Michigan in search of more adventures along the way...