Quest for 50 Marathons in 50 States (with 50 unique celebration beers).

	State	Marathon	Date	Time	Celebration Beer
1	VA	Shamrock Marathon	Mar 23, 2009	4:54:31	Yuengling
Notes:		First marathon. Flat but I was not prepared. Goal was to 'not walk'... I didn't but I sure didn't run fast either. I thought my body was breaking, thought my feet were bloody, later learned that was just par for running a marathon and I was fine. Though, had to walk like a duck that night.
2	MI	Run Charlevoix	Jun 27, 2009	4:47:15	Bells
Notes:		Hot and flat - but small and scenic along Lake MI. About 200 runners total? I didn't see anyone (except aid station workers) from miles 14 to 21. Two mistakes on this one. First was having a cream sauce pasta night before. First 12 miles were pretty gastric. Second mistake was over hydrating during the race. Had a side stitch for last eight miles. I'm learning though.
3	NC	Grandfather Marathon	Jul 11, 2009	4:34:25	Fat Tire
Notes:		The Grandfather runs UP Grandfather Mountain. See elevation profile. I paced myself well having learned from the other marathons. This was the first marathon in which I did some walking... time improved a lot. I heard from others that you should subtract 30 minutes from your Grandfather time for a comparison to other races to account for the fact that you're running up a mountain. In other words, I did damn good!
4	IN	Planet Adventure Trail Marathon	Apr 3, 2010	5:00:30	PBR
Notes:		(West Lafayette, IN) It rained (down-poured) during this entire race - a trail run. At times the mud was so thick you almost lost your shoe - completely submerged. A small marathon, it was telling that only eight runners total had finished before 4:00:00.
5	MD	Potomac River Run Marathon	May 2, 2010	4:41:19	Corona
Notes:		Hot. Humid. And Humid. And Hot. Another small race, maybe 250 runners total. 85 degrees and 85 percent humidity. I had just flown in from Ireland the day before... this race, with timing to body and humidity smoked me pretty good. I ran like the wind and then just got killed at mile 22. A lot of walking from there out. Only a slight comfort to finish and learn that everyone else was floored in the early 20's and walked as well.
6	CA	Rock 'n Roll Marathon	Jun 6, 2010	4:17:30	Pacifico
Notes:		Crushed it. Finished first half in 2:00:00 - a big PR. I thought I could hit four hours. I was taken aback by the humidity miles 9-15 above the marine layer. I've always thought of SD as dry (because the water coming off the ocean is). When we got to mission bay the wind was in the face, I had a side stich (over drinking from the humidity - when will I learn?). I kicked it though and kept digging deep for a new PR! After this race, I'm convinced I can break 4:00:00 if I continue to work on my form. My conditioning was fine... as I improve my form I can knock big chunks of time off each mile.
7	OH	Nationwide Better Health Marathon (Columbus)	Oct 17, 2010	3:52:11	Great Lakes Oktoberfest
Notes:		WOW! Crushed it and then some, SMASHING my PR!!! I had planned to go easy and expected 4:20 - 4:30. Focused on form to preserve a tweaked knee. Keeping good form = high efficiency = fast. Realized I had something going around mile 8 - at that point though, I expected a house of cards to come crashing down around mile 18 so I kept running fast to 'bank some time'. I realized I could SMASH my PR around mile 18 when no signs of a wall were in sight and the course ventured into Arlington (my suburb) past friends and family, then through Grandview (adjacent suburb where I grew up). The home-course advantage and crowd support only made me run faster. Started to feel the burn at mile 24 but by then I was so close to the end I could smell smashing 4:00:00. Perfect weather (start 52 end 62) and the course is great. It's the first course I've ever run that didn't have a mental sucker punch hidden somewhere.
8	NH	Manchester City Marathon	Nov 07, 2010	4:00:17	Smuttynose IPA
Notes:		This one's gonna leave a mark. Coldish (38), windy and NOT FLAT on the back side.  Definitely going to start taping an elevation profile inside the bill of my hat. There were uphills from Miles 14 to 19 - or so I thought - was really more like miles 14 to 24. I was staging my run for elevation relief at mile 19 and there wasn't any (my mistake). I petered out and lost form but kept kicking... digging with bad form = injury. Wasn't really shooting for a time until the 4:00:00 pace group passed me at mile 20.  I over-ran the last few miles to pass the 4hr pace group.  Unfortunately the course was 26.73 miles and the pace was set for 26.2.  Despite my attempt to sprint the final mile I could not crack the 4 hour mark.  Can honestly say I don't know where I would find another 17 seconds on the entire course so I'm happy.
9	DE	Rehoboth Beach Marathon	Dec 07, 2011	4:14:03	16 Mile Ale
Notes:		All business and ugly. Flew in late the night before and flew right back out. Attempted to run at 80%. Only goal was to practice holding back and trying to have no soreness next day. Didn't take the race seriously... didn't warm up enough... didn't account for all the damn wind*.... didn't stretch enough afterward. Pulled a tendon (overuse) in my right ankle. *Windiest 'run' I've ever had.
10	MS	Mississippi Blues Marathon	Jan 07, 2012	4:58:22	Lazy Magnolia
Notes:		Ran w. injury sustained during Rehoboth Beach. Ran safe but it wasn't fun. Don't think I'm going to run w. injury again. Course was very hilly and weather was GREAT, even too sunny and hot at times. Not a big fan of the roads, lots of rough spots/pot holes and the most camber I've encountered in a race (didn't help the injured foot!). Had family with me; that was fun! Kari Brown also ran - we were attempting back to back marathons in MS and AL the following day. I posted a DNF in AL but KB made it all the way - posting 52.4 miles for the weekend!

Next:

• None scheduled... HEALING the foot.

 

Preferred for STATE.  Month [Weekend].  Example  Jul [2] = Held in July on the 2nd Weekend.  Helps me plan marathons and locations.  Tougher to plan for 50 states than you would think.  Most marathons in April/May OR Oct/Nov.

• Jan [2]  FL - Disney Marathon (Orlando) -- Waiting until son is older, a family weekend
• Feb [2] TX - Austin
• Feb [4] LA - Mardi Gras Marathon (New Orleans)
• Mar [1] AR - Little Rock Marathon
• Apr [3] MA - Boston - even if I have to buy my way in.
• Apr [3] TN - Country Music Marathon (Nashville)
• May [1] PA - Pittsburgh Marathon -- Target of opportunity - easy drive from cbus.
• Jul  [2]  MT - Missoula Marathon
• Oct [1]  UT - St George Called 'best organized marathon in US'
• Oct [1] MN - Twin Cities Marathon (rated as scenic and scores well with fan ratings on course)
• Oct [2]  IL - Chicago Marathon
• Oct [3] ME - Mount Desert Island Marathon (Bar Harbor)
• Nov [1] NY - New York Marathon
• Dec [1] NV - Las Vegas Marathon

Preferred for DATE.  Example, I would prefer to do Twin Cities for MN but it's hard to pack all marathons in October.  Might be better off to do Grandma's in June, when there are fewer marathons.

• Jun [3]  MN - Grandma's Marathon (Duluth)