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Sumo Wrestling: The Best Way to Start Your Day
With the Tokyo Marathon quickly approaching, we decided to slow our roll just a bit. This week join us as we unpack one of our last two days in Japan including visiting the restaurant wrecked by the Crazy 88s, and walking the Shibuya Crossing. Oh and of course, Sumo Wrestling: The Best Way to Start Your Day! Starting the Day by Running with the Sumos Traveling in the off-season has it’s benefits: But it also has some down sides, like missing out on some of the big draws of tourist season. For Tokyo, this included the blooming of the cherry blossoms and for us, watching Sumo wrestling. Not wanting to…
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Beachy Vibes and Fast Race Times in Jacksonville
Stephen says, 2023 is the “Year of the Marathon”. His crazy race calendar kicked off with the Dopey Challenge in Orlando and it’s looking like it might end with Honolulu in December. Last week, he shared the race report for the DONNA half. This week, I’d love to share with you the rest of the beachy vibes and fast race time in Jacksonville Beach. The Arrival Unlike our typical trip, our flight didn’t leave until 8pm. This led to a rather leisurely trip to the airport and a little extra time in the Delta Lounge. I took advantage of the unstructured time to have a glass of house Rose’ while…
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The DONNA Race Recap
What a great weekend in Jacksonville Beach with Destination Marathons (DM) for the DONNA Half Marathon. I think Jill is going to write about the trip as a whole next week so today you are stuck with my race recap. Pre-Race Dinner and Auction After our pre-race pasta dinner on Saturday evening at the Four Points Sheraton with DM, filled with laughter and great conversation, Jill and I snuck out with a perfectly executed Irish Exit. With our hotel, The Element by Marriott, being only a one minute drive away, I was able to achieve my first race goal of being in bed by 8 pm and asleep by 9…
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Diplomatic Immunity
I’m so excited to be traveling down to Jacksonville Beach this weekend to take part in the DONNA Race Weekend as an Ambassador for Destination Marathons. Although diplomatic immunity isn’t one of the perks, it’s exciting to be a part of something that combines two of my favorite things to do, travel and run. The Mission Destination Marathons provides a VIP experience for runners and spectators. They manage all the logistics so guests can focus on the race, build friendships, and create memories. And I will get to witness this in action for the first time! As one who generally does all the planning that goes into a “racecation”, it’s…
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The Dopey Challenge
Since 2023 is slated to be my last big year of marathon running, I wanted to challenge myself as much as possible. In late November I was able to snag a charity bib for the Dopey Challenge down at Disney in Orlando. This challenge consists of four races over four days: I figured this “Dopey Challenge” was a great way to kick off this crazy year of running and racing. Having never done this race before, I was fortunate to have many experienced, crazy friends who could show me the ropes. Before We Were Dopey Race week kicked off on Wednesday with a quick trip to “ESPN Wide World of…
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The Great Arizona Escape
Ahhh November…the forecast dipping into near freezing temperatures and snow on the horizon. I decided it was time to look for an opportunity to escape from it all. A few of my friends were doing the Ironman Arizona the coming weekend. I thought it would be fun to show up and support them while they accomplished amazing by things. After some further social media scanning I discovered that I had a completely different group of friends headed do Scottsdale for a Women’s only half marathon. The decision was made, flights were booked and before I knew it I was on my way to sunny and warm Arizona for four days.…
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The Best of 2022
As a couple of people who value experiences, we’ve learned fun ways to remember everything we’ve done over the year. One of our favorites is our corkboard. We tack up things there like theater tickets, paper wrist bands, and bar coasters. On New Years Eve, we take down these mementos to place them in an envelope and write about where we’ve been. We also, of course, take lots of pictures to share with you all. So as we wind down the year, let us share with you the best of 2022! The Dinner of the Year Adventura Not only was their restaurant beautiful inside and out, they had olives. They…
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Checking out the Wizarding and Surreal Worlds
Having accomplished eating ALL the food at Thanksgiving dinner and running the Space Coast Half Marathon, we were ready for a change of pace. We didn’t have much set in stone for our second week in Florida. Stephen would be running a trail Ragnar with some friends. I planned to work all week but schedule was relatively open on Friday. Seizing the opportunity, I took Momma for another adventure. We landed on checking out the Wizarding and Surreal Worlds in Florida! (The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and the Surreal World of Salvador Dali, that is.) Inauspicious Beginnings Monday through Wednesday were sort of “business as usual” for our crew.…
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Our Unexpected Trip to Harrisburg
When it comes to traveling, the best advice we’ve received is probably to be flexible and expect the unexpected. That certainly came into play on our journey to the NYC Marathon this past weekend. Let us tell you how it all started with our unexpected trip to Harrisburg. A Solid Start We like to fly early to minimize delays. So we were up at 3:30 am and out the door to the airport by 4:15. Even though we were able to pack in carryon bags we checked them. That way we didn’t have to lug them around the airport or worry about fighting for overhead bin space on the plane.…
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Cascade Express Marathon Part Two: The Rest of the Story
Before we start off, please be sure to check out Part One of the Cascade Express Marathon. You’ll hear how the training went and the obstacles I had to overcome to get to the start line. For those who already in the know, buckle in! All aboard the Cascade Express Marathon Part Two: The Rest of the Story. The Wee Hours Being up at 2 am for a race that doesn’t start until 8 am is not the ideal start to the day. On the upside, it did give me a few hours to contemplate the task ahead. I spent some time reviewing the last eight weeks of training. It…
