Fargo Marathon

A quick snip-it I left off from the Rockford Marathon:
Knocking on the porta-potty door is not gonna make me go any faster and just might make stay in there a little bit longer
51st Marathon/42nd State/DC
Back to Fargo:
- When most people think of Fargo they probably think of the movie "Fargo" which wasn't filmed in Fargo
- Flying through ORD with weather issues can be just as bad as flying through ATL - they both suck
- I could write an entire about about getting to ORD but bottom line is I finally made it 2.5 hours after I was supposed in to get (12:30am)
- Grabbed a chicken Caesar salad and a mini-bottle of wine and then got to bed somewhere around 1:30am.  - With an 8am start I was able to sleep in a bit more but not much since I had to get there early for parking and my race bib
- The concern leading up to the race was how hot it was gonna be and if the Race Director would stop the race due to a high wet-bulb temperature.  Apparently they didn't look at the real forecast since that was calling for 30% of thunderstorms, high winds and then eventually some sun with a high of 83F.
- Woke up to a downpour
- It rained for about the first 7 miles - not really sure when it stopped - guess that is a good thing if you don't know when it stops must mean you aren't focused on the rain - as usual my mind was elsewhere but not wandering
- As we ran through downtown we ran past the Fargo movie theater which had the marque:
"Fago Marathoners Are Iron Men 2 (with the showtimes)" - pretty creative play on words
- After leaving downtown we crossed over into Minnesota (Moorhead) - sorry don't get credit for two states
- By the time mile 10 hit I was ready to walk - my legs were tiring or so I thought - I knew something wasn't right but I was still producing about 7:20 miles
- Hit the halfway point at 1:37:03nge
- The last few races I have been eating Jolly Ranchers in addition to Gu - some people put a bucket of Jolly Ranchers out around Mile 12 (would hit it again at Mile 14) I loaded up for the remainder of the race and my next three races
- Around Mile 15 what I thought was my legs giving way was actually my abdominal strain - it had been building since Mile 10 - so I tried to slow down but kept producing 7:20 miles and then by Mile 16 the pain was being too much to keep running but the beer at mile 19 it was really really good (not sure what it was but had never seen it before)
- Mile 16 was about the same time the clouds broke and unleashed the sun and wind
- By mile 20 I was running with my hand on my gut and had people asking if I was okay or needed water
- Maybe it is the cold long winters that make the people in Fargo what they are but they are pretty some creative and funny people and I think the porta-potty at Mile 21 summed it up - I wish I had taken the sign but it was better for others to witness: did you have bran for breakfast? Then  another sign had this long tirade about staying in there too long or at the water stop too long....you had to be there to appreciate it

- The official Fargo observation had wind gusts as high as 48mph - we were kinda sheltered with the trees and was probably closer to 25/30mph but still heat/humidity and wind not a good combo if even for the last few miles
- The last few miles were a race against the clock just like last week but this time I wanted to break 3:25 and once again I had to pickup the pace and not walk like I had been doing at each mile marker since Mile 20
- Was able to run the last 1.4 miles w/o walking and "sprinted" to a 3:24:55 finish
- With all my pain issues and the sights to see through Fargo my mind was pretty occupied - Fargo is a surprisingly pretty city- the winter would keep me from moving there and not to mention the small problems they have with the Red River (there is a reason the marathon is run in May as opposed to April) and going to the Washington DC Trapeze School tomorrow (assuming it is not canceled for rain) - should be a lot of fun

Tidbits:
- Ran into Don Kern who I ran Antarctica with in Feb 07 always great to 
see peeps from that trip
- After the race went to see the Roger Maris "museum" at the West Acres mall

- Heard on the radio, "Did you know Fargo is the least populous city in America named Fargo, I saw that on Wikipedia."
- Heard at the coffee shop in the Fargo Airport, "I'll need your John Henry" I'm pretty sure it is John Hancock but John Henry made the Urban Dictionary among other meanings
- Green day songs are awesome to run to heard at least five GD songs on the course
 
Next:
With this marathon I have nine states remaining but only three - maybe four the rest of the year if I decide to run Alaska.  With only nine remaining its kinda like being at mile 17 of a marathon - only single digits remain (if you don't count the Syndey Marathon in Sep 2011 (days after my 40th birthday)

Marathon #50 / Rockford Marathon (State/DC #41)

Slight recap:
Kinda neat that after running the Lincoln Marathon a few weeks earlier I found myself in the Land of Lincoln running the Rockford Marathon. I flew into MKE instead of ORD because it was cheaper and the drive from MKE was nearly the same as the drive from ORD. As with most marathons of late I wasn't too sure on how I was gonna do considering I played goalie on Friday night and I don't do too well after hockey games (even 36 hours removed from the game)

There is just something about driving through the Midwest that I really like but can't put my finger on
On my way to Rockford I stopped at the Pabst Mansion but due to time constraints did not make the tour
After peeking through the window made my way down to Miller Valley and the home of Miller Brewing

Fail:  Don't force people to sample Miller Lite before allowing people to try other Miller branded beers
After a quick bite to eat in Milwaukee it was time to hit the road to Rockford, IL

Some sights along the way:

After settling in and checking out the start location I hit JMK Nippon restaurant and was surprised to find it actually a Japanese style restaurant with "real" Japanese food - found it on facebook.  Once I got back to the hotel - grabbed two glasses of (bad) wine and then called it a night even though there was a wedding reception taking place in the hotel

Race Morning
- Woke up feeling hung over but after some water and a breakfast bar felt like a champ but was still unsure of how I was gonna perform - this race was gonna be different than the ones over the last month or so

- Perfect weather for the race light head/rail wind partly sunny skies 49F at start - maybe mid 60s by the time I finished
- The course was pretty much through Rockford, neighborhoods, parks, along the Rock River and some tributaries of the Rock River - some sights from the course

                       Rock Guardians of Rockford

- After a steep but short uphill around Mile 12 my legs were nearly shot but somehow I kept plugging away and managed to run a 1:37:49 first half - putting me on pace for 3:15/3:16 finish time

- Shortly after Mile 15 I started passing people and when I pass runners it usually means I'm gonna have a good run (and then the bad ab pain made its appearance but not as bad as past races) - I usually feed on those good vibes
- Then shortly after that (maybe it was a mini-runner's high) a thought popped into my head about NOT stopping after 61 marathons....I still want to do an ultra does that count as a marathon?
- In all I passed 15 runners in second half
- The last two miles was a race against the clock as I was closer to a 3:21 expected finish than a sub 3:20 pace -- I really wanted a sub 3:20 pace and I knew it was gonna be close but all you can do is pick-up the pace and try your best
- And pick up the pace I did as I was able to finish in 3:19:43, 28th overall and 6th in my age group
- Why am I not sore following marathons?  Its like I didn't run 26.2 miles
- My favorite marquee sign:  Dirty Bibles lead to Dirty Lives
- My top "award" to creativity goes to a runner who had a sign on his back with pull-tabs soliciting people to run a marathon relay with him - the thing is all but two of his tabs were pulled
- I'm amazed at how many references the bible has to running

Miscellaneous Thoughts:
- Love driving through the Midwest never know what you'll see....like a pickup truck in a tree:
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/tip/9349
- Saw three Myrtle beach sweatshirts at the airport and in Rockford thought that was ominous sign leading up to the race (Myrtle Beach Marathon was canceled due to snow)
- Feel asleep while driving to Rockford, caught myself snoozing for a second or two not a good thing

Personalized license plates spotted:
Mybffpt (on a PT Cruiser)
Pygmy (on a Smart Car)
Big guy
Elct me 1