A lot of you might never run a marathon. And I think it’s pretty safe to say a lot of you might never run two freezing marathons in two states in two days, two time zones away from home and still be on time to work the next morning. I figured I’d journal my weekend as my blog for today, so you can see what it’s like to do what I did. I don’t know if you’ll get exhausted reading this, but I got exhausted doing this.
Thursday night:
• I played Benjamin (he’s 8) at chess and beat him. He’s getting better, but I had to put the hammer down. Competition will make him better.
• Ava colored a picture for me for my trip using lots of purple. She knows that’s my favorite color (go K-State!). I brought it with me, of course.
• By the time I was done packing, cutting my hair, playing with the kids and shaving, it was 10:45. That didn’t stop me from relaxing with a bowl of ice cream, though. I’m hardcore like that.
Friday morning:
• I got up at 4 a.m. so I could be out of the house by 4:30. I wrote my daily note for my wife, but then I played around on the computer too much and left at 5. I’m good at running late.
• Talked to the wife and kids before the flight. They had an easy morning and got donuts. NICE. Better than the whole wheat bagel and graham crackers I had.
• First leg of the flight was uneventful, except for the really big dude next to me who invaded my space with his arms and elbows, keeping me from sleeping. Oh well.
Friday afternoon:
• Free wifi in the Houston airport! YEAH! Time flies when you’re connected. I had two peanut butter sandwiches on whole wheat bread. Better than getting a $9 five-dollar footlong at the Subway in the airport.
• Here’s a sign your flight is quick: They take drink orders and give you peanuts before the cabin doors are closed. 49 minutes, no time to waste!
• I had a choice of three rental cars in Jackson and I went with a Kia, because one of my best friends works for them. It was called a Forte. I was pleasantly surprised.
• I went straight to the expo and spent a couple of hours next to a friend of mine, Dane Rauschenberg, who was selling his book. He ran 52 marathons in 2006, so we’re going to talk a lot this year. I talked to folks walking by about Operation Jack and handed out flyers. Throw enough darts and some will hit the board, right?
• After the expo, I headed straight over to a pasta dinner at an Italian restaurant. Nice time with nice people.
• Finally got to where I was going, settled in and chatted for a little bit with the people I was staying with. Oh, and they picked me up some ice cream, which I politely ate. Am I that obvious? I set my stuff out for the morning and went to sleep a little before 11, knowing I had to wake up at 4:40 a.m. (2:40 a.m. body time).
Saturday morning:
• Woke up on five-plus hours of sleep, ate my pre-race meal while writing my wife a note, then got ready for the race. I was late getting out of the house, because I spent an extra 15 minutes looking for a hunting contraption one of my hosts gave me that would keep my head, face and ears warm. I’m good at running late.
• Is it a bad sign when you squint through the ice on your windshield on the way to your marathon and you see a bank marquee indicating a temperature of 18 degrees? I think it’s a bad sign when you’re de-icing that windshield and you see snow flurries.
• I ran the Mississippi Blues Marathon in 3:18. I can sum the race up in one word: COLD.
• In 15 minutes in the WARM finishers tent, I knocked out two pieces of pizza, three sections of turkey sandwiches, two gatorades and about five cookies. I like to eat.
Saturday afternoon:
• Got lost on the way back to where I was staying, but the scenic route was nice. When I got in I did a little bit of work, took a HOT shower, packed, had some chicken noodle soup and hot chocolate then hit the road in a hurry. Had to get to Mobile. Picked up Dane because we were riding together.
• Stopped off at Taco Bell about an hour into the drive (I like to eat). Their chicken burritos might be the best 99-cent creation ever. While there, I ran into a couple of grads of my alma mater I’d never met who knew a running friend of mine and Dane’s. We sang “It’s A Small World” together. Well, not really, but you know what I mean.
• Does it get any better than hearing Iesha by Another Bad Creation on satellite radio on a road trip? Yeah, it does. We heard Song of the South by Alabama while driving to Alabama. Awesome.
• Checked into my hotel and went to take an ice bath (indoors, although I probably could have just sat in the pool outside if it wasn’t heated). My feet were stinging so it took four tries. Mission accomplished, though, just in time for the pasta dinner.
Saturday evening:
• Went to the expo to get my bib, then over to the pasta dinner. It was 4 degrees with wind chill. It never gets like that in Southern California. Loaded up on pasta.
• Had a Snickers ice cream bar for dessert. Good stuff.
• Wrote my race report and posted it, handled some emails, then went went to bed planning on getting at least 7 hours of sleep. Unfortunately, the hotel had a loud nightclub on the 17th floor and I was on the 16th floor. Needless to say, I moved rooms. I got to sleep just in time for 6 1/2 hours of shut-eye.
Sunday morning:
• I felt surprisingly well physically for the day after a marathon. Then I saw that it was 22 degrees outside (11 with wind chill) and I didn’t feel quite so well any more.
• The start line was about 50 yards from the hotel lobby, so I listened to my iPod in my room for a while. Went to the lobby 20 minutes before race time, where some people told me they read about me in the paper Saturday. Sweet!
• I ran the Firstlight Bank Marathon in 3:21. I can sum the race up in three words: WINDY AND COLD.
• Didn’t eat much after the race because I was waiting for lunch. Trekked back to the hotel to get my camera, then back to the finish line to take some pictures. It was still WINDY AND COLD.
• Showered, packed, picked up Dane and went back to the finish area and found out I won an age group award. Picked that up, but passed on lunch, because I needed to get to the airport in time for my 2:45 flight. I got there at 1:55, enough time for my … OOPS … flight’s at 2:20! But I made it.
• That flight was on a really small plane — only 12 rows! And of course, on that small plane, somebody decided to have a gas attack. Awesome.
• Switched planes in Atlanta, but I had to go from the D gates to the A gates. No time to grab food. All I ate on the plane was ginger snaps, peanuts and pretzels.
• The plane had TVs in the headrest. YES! But no Fox, so I couldn’t watch the football game. NO! Saw the highlights on ESPNews, though. Nice pick-six by the Cards to get the win.
• The lady sitting next to me was knitting. How did she get those needles through security?
• Watched No Country For Old Men on my portable DVD player. Well, until the battery died. So far so good … can’t wait to see the rest!
• Landed in Los Angeles and got in the car to head home. Was totally starving and kind of hoped Tiff wouldn’t mind if I drove through In-N-Out. But she made chicken and vegetables for me. No complaints here. I love the baked chicken she cooks. And she’s cooking it tonight, too!
• Wrote my blog, took care of some emails and all of a sudden it was 10:25. I had a critical need for ice cream at that point, and that’s what I ate. Streak is now 82 consecutive days if you’re keeping track. If you are keeping track, you’re crazy.
And that’s it. My weekend in a nutshell. I didn’t write about the spare time, because there was none. Now it’s back to the grind. Busy day at work ahead and I can kind of start thinking about Phoenix this weekend.
Have a great day!
Shelly Overton says
I’m tried after reading, can’t even imagine how you feel. Good going Sam! So proud of just knowing you!
Katie Abdolhosseini says
You are nothing short of amazing! Awesome job on the runs and the AG win! Keep up the good work and this year will just fly by! Happy Monday my friend! 🙂
Chris Stores says
Great job, Sam! If nothing else, I can almost guarantee that it will be warmer than 11 degrees in Phoenix this weekend. Enjoy!
Ben Delaney says
How did you get to the airport at 1:55 for a 2:20 flight AND still get on that flight?! I thought they closed the flight 45 minutes prior to take off? Online check in? Regardless, you got lucky… and home in time for Tiff’s world famous baked chicken.
Ally Phillips says
AH! Cold! Cold! Cold!
Snickers ice cream bars are hands down one of my favorite treats ever.
Way to go on winning your age group–that’s awesome!
I was in Phoenix yesterday it wasn’t cold–I think you’ll have a much more enjoyable weekend, because dang, that was some freaking cold weather!
Kim Bouldin says
Amazing! My legs hurt just reading that! Keep up the good work.
I notice that you are just a small fan of ice cream! LOL! Me too! I don\’t think I can top 82 consecutive days, though.
Kim
Erin Ruff says
Awesome, Sam! But the thing that strikes me the most is that I need Tiff’s baked chicken recipe. Just joking. Well, not really. Can I get it, Tiff?!
Pam M. says
Congrats!! Two marathons back to back, that’s amazing! I love reading hour-by-hour recaps, and this is one of the best! Look forward to reading more of your blog.
Glenn Jones says
Whew. I’m exhausted just reading!
Jen Morgan says
OMG you are insane!!!! Great job on both marathons with the weather! HOLY CRAP!!!
dane rauschenberg says
Welcome to your year.
dane rauschenberg says
Welcome to your year.
Tiffany Felsenfeld says
Holy crap! I was starting to feel cold just by reading this. I’m sure running the freezing cold is extremely touch and painful. But, what would you rather have. Freezing cold or Death Valley type heat?
Tiffany Felsenfeld says
BTW, I did think the part about not writing about what you did in your spare time because you didn’t have any, was actually funny. There, I said it. You made me laugh.