Minnesota 1/2 Marathon Weekend

This past weekend found Deb, Nikki, and I in Minnesota to knock another state off the list in our quest to run a 1/2 marathon in all 50 states.  We flew in Friday afternoon and headed straight to the Mall of America where I reluctantly agreed to ride the Fairly Odd Coaster.  Apparantely I provided great entertainment for Deb and Nikki based on my reactions during the ride.

Source

After riding the coaster,doing some shopping, and getting pampered at the nail salon, we headed to the Expo to pick up our packets.  This was a very small race so the expo was just some folding tables and wheels for rollerblades (there was a 1/2 marathon rollerblade race as well) which was fine because we were able to get in and out in just a few minutes.  With race packets in hand we headed to check into our hotel.  After freshening up we headed out for dinner, followed by a drink and then it was back to the hotel to get some sleep.  With the time change and the later race start we knew we would be able to sleep longer than we usually can for a race which was a nice benefit.

Race morning we got everything together and stopped for some breakfast to eat in the car on the way to the start line.  We made it to the start line with plenty of time to spare where we observed the rollerbladers getting ready and got our picture taken before it was time to go.

Craziness!  The winner's time was 36 minutes which is over 20 mph!!

Deb, Nikki, and I ready to cross off Minnesota!!

Within the first half mile of the race my stomach was talking to me so I decided it best to wait in the port-o-potty line before continuing on in the race.  Sadly my stomach would continue to talk to me throughout most of the race but it is what it is and sometimes you have an off day.  The course was an out and back so we were able to see other runners several times during the course of the race.  We were also able to see the rollerbladers which was incredibly interesting to me.  I can't even imagine how hard it was to blade up those hills because I know how hard it was to run up them!  I was very thankful for the course when I was able to see Deb and Nikki when the going was getting tough.  Deb even mentioned that when she saw me at mile eleven I wasn't looking so good.  Yeah, I wasn't feeling so good either!  I crossed the line in 2:14 feeling less than stellar.  I waited for Nikki to finish and then we headed back out on the course to get Deb.  We met her just past the 12 mile mark and finished the race with her.  It was really nice to be able to do that.  We also encouraged a young girl who was running her first 1/2 marathon.  She said she was praying for strength and then we came along.  I would say we were supposed to be there as I firmly believe everything happens for a reason.  After Deb finished we waited for the last people to finish the race.  It was an older couple participating in their 19th state.  Deb said she had talked to them on the course and they had wanted to quit but they didn't....very impressive!!  After all was said and done we headed back to the hotel to shower and then headed to Hell's Kitchen for brunch!  We were all very hungry and the food and atmosphere was very good although I still want to know why our server was wearing her pajamas!!  Feeling much better after eating we headed back to our hotel to rest for the afternoon.  Saturday evening we headed out to Bar La Grassa for a fantastic dinner and great conversation as usual.  After dinner we got everything ready for our flight home early Sunday morning and headed to bed.

As always it was a wonderful girl's running weekend with some great food, lots of laughs, and 13.1 miles sprinkled in!

1/2 marathon in all 50 states status:
#10 completed
Bring on #11 (Savannah, Georgia)

Keep running, you're simply the best, and you inspire me!!