Rose Colored Glasses
Hey MikeE. You listed the states you need. Don't know if you know this but, my husband the rocket scientist (mrRCG? or DrBuehrle?) is also on a quest for a marathon in every state. I run a marathon OR the companion race and am not on such a quest.My old man needs 17 more states. Here are the ones he needs:
1. Alaska
2.Hawaii
3.Oregon
4.Nevada
5.Idaho
6.Wyoming
7.North Dakota
8.South Dakota
9.Oklahoma
10. Kansas
11. Louisiana
12. Iowa
13.. Missouri
14. Mississippi
15. Wisconsin
16. Illinois
17. ARKANSAS!
Here are the ones you need that he has:
1. Alabama: We both ran the Rocket City Marathon in Huntsville. Loved it. December race. Great race director.
2. Connecticut: We both ran the Mystic Places Marathon. It was my personal best. But the race no longer exists.3. Delaware: He ran the Delaware marathon in Wilmington. I ran the 10 miler. Find another one unless you like running 5 loops. He said it was hard passing the finish line so many times before you actually finish.
4. Florida: We ran the one in Tampa. Loved it. It was in February and had a 0600 start. Loved the route. Fun times.
5. Kentucky: He ran the full in Louisville and I ran the "mini" (which is the half). We really liked this one, you get to run through that Kentucky Derby track. Nice town.
6. Maine: We both ran Portland Maine this past October. I liked it. He ran a double that weekend. It rained the whole time we were in New England. Our friends have run the Mount Desert Island marathon. Much more beautiful but also more challenging.
7. Maryland: We both ran The Lower Potomac River marathon. My time here was a fraction slower than my personal best. The race director here is fantastic. The post-race meal was incredible. I highly recommend this one.
8. Nebraska: We ran Omaha. We met a ton of folks from Cool Running here. It was not a stellar day for me. I really did not enjoy this race at all but, loved meeting the group.
9. New Hampshire: He ran Bristol NH the day before we ran Portland ME. Again, it was rainy and it was hilly. But the folks were nice. And the scenery was lovely. Very user friendly race.
10. New Jersey: Cape May. The Ocean Drive Marathon. He ran the full and I ran the 10 miler. Point to point marathon. WINDY. But this was great because we met Nono here!
11. New Mexico: He ran the Bataan Memorial Death March. I ran the "Honorary" Bataan Memorial Death March. This one was incredible. A must do. I can send you a copy of my RR if you would like.12. New York: We both ran the 1997 NYC marathon. It was unbelievable. Loved it.
13. North Carolina: He ran the OBX marathon. I spectated. Challenging course and weather can be unpredictable. But if you want to run a double, it is an easy drive from Richmond VA to the OBX. Richmond is Saturday (today) and the OBX is Sunday (tomorrow)
14. Pennsylvania: We both ran Philly. Loved it. This was especially fun because JDmom traveled with us. Oh, and she won the women's masters division. She rocked Philly!
15. Rhode Island: We both ran Newport. It was a disaster for me.
16. South Carolina: We both ran Myrtle Beach. He BQ'd. It was fun. Great beer afterward. Perchcreek BQ'd here, too.
17. Tennessee: He ran the Knoxville full, I ran the half. Knoxville: a must-do because piejones and tomwhite will be there!
18. Vermont: We both ran the Vermont City Marathon in Burlington. Liked this one a lot. Great crowd support. This one was fun because we got to hang out with Skip and PBJ et al and Willrunforbeer and PreDawnRunner. This was such a fun weekend.
19. Virginia: We've run the Marine Corps marathon twice. He has run the Shamrock Marathon. I have run the half. I would recommend either the MCM or the Shamrock. Fun times.
20. Washington State: We ran some dinky marathon in Elma called The Gateway to the Pacific. Do not recommend this. Stinky out and back. And the finish line folks did not even get my finish! They just gave me the same time as lady who finished 4 minutes after me. It was low class. But the weather was nice.
States you both need:Mississippi
Nevada
Oregon
Wyoming
Hawaii
Tell us about the ones you have that we don't!
MTA: Thanks MIkeE! I had Kansas twice and forgot ARK kansas.
"Anytime you see the word "inflation" in the news, replace it with "record-breaking corporate profits" and you'll get what's happening."
OH.And our daughter is running that Washington DC race, she is running the half. We will probably go up and either watch or run. PBJ was the first one to bring this one to the attention of those searching for a spring marathon... wonder if he is still interested?
...rosie//.........you can come see us in Knoxville again and we'll try to talk like we're from Mississippi.......
it might take More Beer however
..nothing takes the place of persistence.....
Great list, Rosie! I can add that for Oregon, it's hard to beat Newport. Very nice town, beautiful area and a PR course (at least it was for me). And for Alaska, you know what I'd recommend... but if you want something less challenging than Equinox, there's always Mayor's (good course but there's a section of rough gravel road in the middle), or the Big Wildlife Run Marathon (formerly Humpy's) in August. Nice course along the coastal trail but the weather can be less than ideal. But if you do those Anchorage runs and don't get out to see at least part of the state, you're really missing something.
Good thought on the Richmond/OBX weekend for a double...
MM#209 / JapanJoyful#803
I have no more planned that the current five states and three countries but agree with Erika about a Great Land one, - don't even bother going all the way up there except for Equinox and Erika. And take a week to see Denali.
no particular reason but do you have any photographs of the Washington one?
The previous year, there was only water at the aid stations. The next year after you it got up to 102 degrees and friend from California who is a trainer and coach kept reminding me to hydrate, hydrate, etc. However, to the contrary, he ended up dehyddrated and delerious at the finish. Unfortunately, someone had told him the wrong starting time (that would be me) so there was nobody at the finish to help after he struggled in. No cell phones in those days but he finally recovered after resting as submerged as possible for about an hour in the adjacent pond.
"Enjoy yourself. Your younger days never come again." 100yo T. Igarashi to me in geta at top of Mt. Fuji (8/2/87)
MM #5615
This is really cool! Thanks for taking the time to do this. There are a few on your list that I had kind of picked as some that I want to do, so It's nice to see that they are good ones. Of course, I'll have to change my Tennessee plans, now.
Okay, so here are the ones that I've done...
1. Alaska: I did Mayor's. My son lives in Anchorage so this one made sense to do. Plus--for some reason, I always thought it was run at midnight--so I always wanted to do it. And, even though it wasn't at midnight, it was still a nice marathon. Very well run. Very pretty--as I'm sure any in Alaska would be. It was not an easy one--but it wasn't so difficult that you can't get a good time in it.
2. Idaho: I did the Bear Lake Idaho Marathon as the first of a double with Utah being the next day. I wrote a RR on this one and, like I said in it--it was probably my must fun marathon ever. But it was because I just took it nice and easy and I met up with a guy at mile 9 and we just talked and laughed and just had a great time together. It wasn't well supported, however, and there were no mile markers, but the scenery was gorgoues and the organizers were fantastic.
3. Illinois: I did Chicago. I did it because it was on my list of marathons that I've always wanted to do. But, it reminded me of why I really don't like big marathons. Ss big as it was, though, I would say that it was very well run--except at the finish--that was a mad house and it took forever to find anybody. But the course was okay, I guess. I wouldn't recommend it to anybody. You can go pretty fast in, though.
4. Iowa: Marathon to Marathon--ugh! This one kicked my butt! Long, straight, long, hot, long roads. Did I mention the roads were long? I know there must have been a couple of turns, but I don't remember them. At least you can't get lost.
5. Kansas: I just mentioned this one the other day--the Eisenhower Marathon. It was windy! This was another one without many turns in it. But, because I was working with another guy fighting the wind, I really didn't notice it. I had a lot of fun at this one.
6. Louisiana: The Baton Rouge Beach Marathon. This was a two loop deal. I remember running with a few people as we came around the first time and, all of a sudden, I was by myself. They were all half marathoners and they were done. I don't the course was anything spectacular. I was ticked at this one because I missed my goal by 4 seconds. I know--dumb.
7. Missouri: The Sprit of St. Louis. This one was on the boarder of being in the "too big" catagory. It was okay, though. I had gotten this idea to drive Route 66. And, instead of driving the whole way, I was just going to do all the marathons that were in the cities that Route 66 went through. So, I drove to Chicago (which I had already done), found the beginning of Route 66 and drove to St. Louis following the "Mother Road" for as much as I could. It made it kind of fun for me but it was a long drive.
8. North Dakota: I did the Bismarck Marathon. I actually liked this one. It was a good size and, believe it or not, it was fairly scenic.
9. Oklahoma: The Route 66 Marathon, of course. I had driven Route 66 from St Loius to Joplin, before, so when I went to Oklahoma, I picked up where I had left off and continued on Route 66 into Oklahoma. I'm trying to remember the course. I guess it was okay, but not all that great. When I left Oklahoma, by the way, I drove west into Texas, thinking I would someday, pick it back up and continue my journey. I never did. (I had done Dallas White Rock already and I wasn't going to repeat Texas)
10. Wisconsin: I did Green Bay and, as much as I hate to admit it, I loved this marathon...except having to go through Lambeau Field. The people were all friendly and it was a very well organized race.
Did you know you have Kansas listed twice? Does that mean that you skipped one or that he only needs 16 more?
Thanks again!
Fixed it! Arkansas!
Hiya Erika! Thanks for the Oregon suggestion! I was leaning toward Eugene because, well, you know, that dear econo lives around there!
Oooh--Arkansas. I did the Hogeye Marathon this past April. I did not like it, to be honest. I didn't think the organizers did enough to make sure the runners had everything they needed. There was very few porta-poties at the start and there weren't enough people on the course to make sure we didn't take wrong turns. Which I did. No, I wouldn't recommend this one, but I had a bad experiance.
Hi Tetsujin!
Ha! I have no idea where those photos are... (I will look and see if I can find the debut of my running skirt)
I've been doing nearby National for a few years but I'm leery of the new (more expensive) Rock'n'Roll format. At a minimum, I figure I'll give them a year to work the kinks out. Instead, TriBee and I are thinking of running this in 2012. Small and inexpensive ($55) and seems to get great reviews. Registration opens in early December, I've been told.
Be safe. Be kind.
Do it Tramps! The Lower Potomac River marathon is wonderful. I think we ran the very first one in 2005. Our friend, John Piggott, won it that year!