DreamBig 2014 - #33 Maryland

State #33 - Baltimore, Maryland
Under Armour Baltimore Running Festival Half Marathon
Finishers: 8,646

October 17, 2014
This was weekend was special because it was a daddy-daughter weekend! Dad had not been to a race since 2011 when I ran race #4 in Nashville, Tennessee - where have you been, Dad? Kidding - I never invited him. Regardless, I was excited to explore Baltimore and the area with my pops. I flew in from Atlanta and he flew in from West Palm Beach and we met at BWI. After waiting in a car rental line the length of a Disney theme park, we finally got into town and found our hotel downtown. After we got settled, we went to the race expo at the conference center and since this is one of the larger races, dad was surprised by the amount of people all over the place. We went back to the hotel bar and dad had a beer while we thought about what to do for dinner. We decided on Phillips Seafood which was down by the harbor so that we could people watch and get a little taste of the town before my race in the morning. Of course, dinner was followed by me getting icecream because I have zero clue how to appropriately fuel before a race. Honestly, the worse I eat usually the better I run. We watched some street performers for a while and then walked back to the hotel so I could plot out where dad could watch me for the race and get to bed early.

October 18, 2014
The race had an oddly late start because the marathon started first, and then the half kicked off. When I say late start, I mean like 9:45AM. So I was able to sleep in but still had my nervous antics going on and when I was just about ready to beat dad up for asking me basic questions, I decided it was probably time for me to leave the hotel and just walk it off (girl has issues). It was supposed to be super cold for the race but as luck may have it, it actually wasn't too bad. I was actually concerned I would be too warm. The half marathon started between a loop that the marathon looped around - I was fine getting across into the corral because I am the world's earliest arriver but some people had to run across the marathon course to get in to the corral. It was encouraging getting to cheer on all the marathoners though. Waiting for the gun to go off, I was eavesdropping on some ladies talking about their college kids and one mentioned touring Auburn so OF COURSE I inappropriately interjected and told them that I was an out of state Auburn Alum and how much I loved my time there and had no issues making friends even though I only knew one person at the entire university. They awkwardly thanked my for my input and off we went.

Panorama of before the start

The first couple of miles we ran through some not so good neighborhoods and around a big park and then through some more not so good neighborhoods. I didn't see dad in any of the spots he had told me, but as history serves, he typically gets distracted by coffee and bagels and misses a few of the first stops. I can't blame him - he told me after the race that when he started walking to a few of the stops he was asked by a police officer if he knew where he was going and later learned he was basically walking through the penitentiary and should rethink his route. That made up his mind and he headed to the finish to just wait it out. So, I'm out on the course and although the neighborhood wasn't that great, the amount of potentially homeless people out on the course cheering with their dogs was incredible. It was honestly some of the most excited spectators I have ever experienced. Around Mile 3 leaves were falling off the tree so I entertained myself by trying to catch one before they hit the ground. I ended up catching a few, but only held on to one for the rest of the race. Coach Finnerty, my high school cross country coach, used to tell us to run like we are holding a potato chip to keep your hands relaxed. Potato Chip...Leaf....same thing. I held on to my leaf until at least Mile 9 and then I lost it (see realization in video). We got to Mile 7 and it looped around a big park which is sometimes hard because you can see how much more you have to run and in reality its only like 1.5 miles of the 13 miles total. I wasn't feeling too bad just knew I wasn't running an awesome race, so I tried my best to enjoy it.

May not feel good - but can't miss a photo opp!

The last few miles were fun because they ran through John's Hopkins and a lot of students had little tables set up on the street some of which had little cups of beer. I had seen this before on other courses but I had never stopped because I guess at the time I was feeling too good about my race. This time I said "YOLO" (Mom, this stands for 'You Only Live Once') and got a cup and made sure to snapchat it for some of my lucky friends to see. And this is when I realized I lost that leaf I mentioned from Mile 3.

In case the video doesn't work, here is the proof of the Mile 9 beer break. #YOLO

The last few miles not only was I feeling a little buzz from the beer (big surprise - I am even more of a lightweight when I am running a half marathon) but it was slightly downhill and I knew where I was going and knew I was on the home stretch. Finally at around Mile 12.5 I heard the typical, "War Eagle!" and saw dad on the side of the road. I thought he would just meet me at the finish line but Mile 12.5 works too. The last little stretch of the race ran through grounds of Camden Yards where the Orioles play which was pretty cool to see and then finished in a big parking lot.

Kickin through Camden Yards to the finish

I called dad but he went back to the hotel instead of dealing with the zoo at the finish line. I tried to hunt down Jenn Johnson who I knew from the Camp War Eagle staff back at Auburn but the finish zone was such a mad house I finally gave up and head down to the pier to get my picture. With no dad around, I asked a random girl if she could take my picture (she ended up being a Ravens Cheerleader and I think at first thought I wanted my picture WITH her -- sorry sweetheart).

Official Race Photo - Maryland State #33 - 17 more to go!

I ran back to the hotel -- so all in all I probably ran like a 16 mile half marathon (for the love of pictures). After a quick shower, dad and I hopped in the car and drove down to the Boat Show in Annapolis where we got some awesome chowder and then got some coffee and wandered the city before stopping at the Naval Academy campus where we stumbled upon a Navy/Stanford Women's Lacrosse game that we sat and watched for a while. I used to play lacrosse in high school so it was a lot of fun to for me to watch and reminisce. Once it got cold we walked over to O'Learys Seafood for dinner and then I got super sleepy and we drove back to the Baltimore area to get some rest before our Sunday adventure.

October 19, 2014
Dad and I woke up early and decided to make a day trip to Washington D.C. for the day. It was chilly so we opted to do a little walking and explore the museums. I had just been to DC with Gregg about a month ago so I was able to give dad a tour of the Air and Space Museum. We did a flight simulator and it is now noted I should never fly a plane and I almost made dad sick with my horrible flying skills. Stick to running, princess. We also went to some art museum but I put myself on a couch in front of a Monet Water Lilies painting and waited for dad to come back and get me. Me and art don't really see eye to eye. After our museum tour, we decided to try and grab a quick bite in Georgetown before heading back to Baltimore to catch our flight home. I got us a last second reservation at Clyde's of Georgetown where we had a good brunch and also had a special visitor join us! So random story - about a month ago Gregg and I were in DC for the Nation's Olympic Triathlon. The way the race started was in huge waves so Gregg started about an hour before me. While I was waiting, I was just watching people take off and I strike up conversation with a guy, Matt, who lived in DC and who was telling me about all of the places we should check out while we were in town. We ended up exchanging numbers and he hung out and drank and ate pizza with Gregg and I that entire evening and we kept in touch. I mentioned to him that Dad and I were in town and spontaneously invited him to brunch with us which is always a risk when it comes to trying to anticipate what may come out of dad's mouth. But dad and Matt hit it off very well and I was glad we all got to spend some time together. All in all it was a great trip - I don't know how I don't have any pictures of dad and I but I promise he was there with me.

Matt and I post brunch in Georgetown

33 states down - 17 more to go!
#DREAMBIG

DreamBig 2014 - #32 New Hampshire

State #32 - Hampton, New Hampshire
Smuttynose Rockfest Half Marathon
Finishers: 3,884

October 4, 2014
Some of my trips become a race within a race. I have been known to make 24 hour trips out and back to a race and this was definitely one of those races. I took an early afternoon flight up to Boston, grabbed a car and started on my rainy adventure to Hampton, New Hampshire. It's only an hour drive but it was raining and driving in the rain is my biggest fear. To add to that, the rental car had the right side view mirror flipped in and I didn't notice it until I had already started driving. So rain + side mirror dilemma = stop for coffee. I made it up to Hampton which is right across the Massachusetts border on the small coast that New Hampshire has. The packet pick up was at the Smuttynose Brewery but it was too rainy to enjoy the brewery festivities.

Thank you.

The race numbers were alphabetized so I went up to my table to find a mother and daughter chit chatting away. I gave them my drivers licenses and you would have thought I was Oprah based on their reaction:

"Oh my Gosh!! It's Ashley from Atlanta! We've been waiting for you all day!!" 

I was very confused but they explained that everyone on their list was from one of the northeastern states and they had been waiting all day to ask me why in the world I had come all the way to New Hampshire. I told them I just flew in for the race and told them about my goal and they immediately wanted to be my best friend. (I mean...who wouldn't) We chatted some more because the daughter was interested in looking at Mercer and Emory for school so they wanted to know about the Atlanta area. After about 15 minutes of chatting, I'm surprised I never just pulled up a chair, but finally I said my goodbyes to my new friends and scurried on my way. The man passing out shirts in the rain asked if I was excited for the run and wanted to know if this was my first race. I decided to keep this stranger interaction simple and replied "Yup - I'm really nervous" to which he gave me some advice and sent me on my way.

Now that I had my race bib, it was the holding stage of my 24 hour trip. I went to the hotel which was in Amesbury, Massachusetts and just hung out for a while and watched the Auburn v. LSU game debating on what to pick up for dinner. After skimming through a ton of small town options, I ran to the grocery store to get popcorn for the night and then picked up some pasta from a local restaurant and then went back to eat in my bed and stay off my feet. I tend to get two double beds when I travel so I can eat in one and sleep in the other. That's normal, right? After my popcorn snack, I called it a night and got some beauty sleep for race day.

October 5, 2014
I don't remember being unnecessarily nervous for this race but I do remember having a little "uh-oh" with a coffee pot and a single serve oatmeal container. I don't want to talk about it but let's just say, don't put a cardboard container holding oats and water on a hot plate...it will melt and the bottom of the container will fall out and make a mess (I'm an idiot). That being said, I had to make a stop at Dunkin Donuts to get me a sandwich and a coffee before driving the 20 minutes or so through the small beach towns to the race start. I was one of the first people in the parking lot so I just hung out in my car parked on the boardwalk while the sun came up. The crazy people at Dunkin had decided to try and kill me by adding a zillion pounds of sugar and cream to my coffee which was a big surprise when I took that first sip. Needing a little pick me up, I ventured to a little icecream shop turned morning coffee shop for a little brew. Please note this is all at like 6am and I'm just wandering the streets. It was by no means warm, but it would be perfect weather for a nice 13.1 mile jog. The race started at 8am so I figured I may as well get my game face on and head to the start.

Gorgeous sunrise to start the race morning!

The race started in waves, and as usual it was based on your estimated finish time. I was in wave 3 of 5 and they had wave 1, 2 and 3 lined up down one side of the street and 4 and 5 on the other side. Well, some genius decided to start wave 1 then 2 then release 4 and then 3 and 5 at the same time. If you have ever run a distance race, you know this makes for a very interesting start. For one, you are stuck with all of the people who have an estimated finish time of about an 3 hours when I am trying to run at a 2 hour pace and this creates a bit of traffic. On top of that, the first 4 miles of the course was two 2 mile laps around the town of Hampton so the streets were roped off and they were literally corralling us like cattle - for 4 miles. It was a mess but it has some element of entertainment because you basically play frogger and shoot the gap with all of the other runners. I may not be able to merge in Atlanta traffic, but I am a professional merger in the game of half marathons. It take a bit of practice but after four years of cross country and 31 other half marathons, I think I've gotten it down to a science. The other nice thing about the race start being a bit packed, was that it forced me to conserve my energy instead of taking off like a crazy pants and getting winded which happens a lot just because of the adrenaline.

So, after the first four miles, the course broke off on the road and headed up the Atlantic Coast - this was gorgeous. The coast was on our right side and the waves were crashing over the seawall so every now and then you'd get a little splash. You could see the cliffs up in the distance and for some reason the beauty of it all was very motivating. There was a group of guys really strong looking guys running in kilts and they had a girl with them who was running in one of those high altitude training masks. I was super impressed remembering my race in Santa Fe a few weeks back, and decided to try and keep pace with them. I was feeling really strong and after a while decided to sprint ahead a little. When we got to Mile 6.5, the course cut off to the left and ventured through the hilly neighborhoods of Hampton for the next 3.5 miles. I have only been to New Hampshire once before for work, but everyone always told me I HAD to come back in the fall to see the leaves changing and now I knew why. It was gorgeous. The colors of the trees was amazing added to the crisp, cool morning made the miles just fly by. I was excited that I still felt strong and knew that once we made the turn at around mile 10, that I only had a 5K to go. Added to the fact that race was so pretty and I still had some gas left in the tank, I was ready to do some serious running on this last leg.

Not my picture, but you can see what I'm talking about with the sea wall

Mile 10 to 11. 5 was a slow, gradual uphill climb but that is oddly my specialty. I had taken a energy gel around Mile 9 and was ready for it to kick in so I could make that last stretch to the finish. I conquered the uphill and the route then followed the coast, now on my left and wound back around to the downtown area where the race had begun. A mile and a half to go and I had so much going through my mind. I was confused about where this new found speed was coming from but I felt confident that I could hold the pace and stay strong. I love races where you can see the finish line - I could see this big seashell on the coast from a mile and a half away and I just kept my eyes on it. It is times like these that I wish I wore a watch that tracked my splits because I was easily kicking at a 7-8 min/mile pace for this last bit of the race and I was feeling incredible. The last bit cruised through the downtown and instead of my super sprint at the end that I usually had, I cruised in with whatever I had left after using most of my energy for the last 3 miles. Crossing the finish line, I got the text of my time -- 2:00:10. Ten seconds....woof. I never set a time goal but breaking the two hour mark always means I had crushed the race. I knew had it not been for the bottleneck in the beginning of the race, I may have been able to break two but what can you do? So close.

Snapchat sent to friends immediately after race

Official Race Photo - New Hampshire #32 - 18 more states to go!

To make up for the momentary sadness, they had clam chowder and lobster rolls at the finish! What a feast! I made my way through the seafood buffet and then laughed as I walked back to my car because of all the passing racers talking and asking about the clam chow-dah. "Ohh see there - they got CHOW-dah -- hey you, where'd you get that chow-dah from?" I love the accent. I ate the chowder and saved the lobsta roll for my trip to the airport. I had some nice ladies take my picture on the boardwalk in front of the ocean and they asked what the number was for to which I explained my goal. That got the duo very excited and they discussed starting a similar goal themselves. I weaseled my way out of the parking lot around the race crowds and drove back to the hotel to shower up and speed back down to Boston to fly home.

Medal #32 and Lobster Roll

With just my backpack, lobster roll, and new medal, I was back to the airport and home in Atlanta before dark.

All in all, it was a gorgeous race that I highly recommend!

32 states down, 18 more to go! -- 2:00:10
#DREAMBIG