The vacation in Vacation Races!

To make my first Vacation Races a lot of fun, I took Nathan and Camden with me!  We flew into Las Vegas and the boys were super excited to head to Vegas Baby!!  Our night in Vegas was the first night in which hotels were open again after quarantine, so I figured the rooms would be nice and clean!  We booked our night at the Paris hotel, but were moved to Caesars Palace!  I was fine with that!  

Caesar's Palace is an enormous hotel with lots of restaurants and shopping on its property.  Not everything was open, but it still had a lot of cool things to see.  One thing I was especially thankful for was that Vegas was not totally open.  There is a reason it is called sin city and we saw advertisements for shows that I was glad weren't happening!

But we did have fun looking at all the hotels, eating at Wahlburgers and seeing the Bellagio Fountains.  That was the only thing I have ever wanted to see in Vegas and was glad they were performing! 

Inside the Bellagio

 

Bellagio Fountain

Our hotel room was very luxurious and we were able to find a divine Italian restaurant for our Thursday night dinner.  One thing that I noted was how hot it was and how thirsty I was all the time.    

The view from our room

Dinner time!

Friday morning we left for Utah after a dip in the cold waters of the pool at Caesars.  We had been ready to swim the night before after walking around all day, but the pool closed at 6.  

On our drive to Utah, we saw a sign for the Valley of Fire.  Not knowing what it was, we drove into the state park and were very happy we did! We climbed on the red rocks and went for a short hike through the sandy desert.  It was different from any place I have ever been.  Another hot place and there was no water around.  I am used to waterfalls when hiking!  

The red rock formations

Views from our hike

We arrived in Springdale, UT on Friday night and then got up super early to get a parking spot in Zion National Park.  We weren't able to get near the Narrows hike, but we were able to hike to the Emerald Pools.  It was another group of mountains that were so different from what we have in the east.   

Zion is a beautiful place!  A great example of God's handiwork!  Between looking up at the mountains and looking around at the deer who were very tame and walked right near you, we had a great time at the park.  And that night I ran the half!  It was a great weekend of spending time with my boys and enjoying the great outdoors.  So thankful to be able to visit and run in Utah!

The Race that Saved my Sanity

There have been so many things that people have lost out on because of Covid and the things that I have lost out on are minor compared to many people's losses.  I think of weddings that didn't happen as planned, graduations that were missed, loved ones that had to be in the hospital by themselves and funerals that could not be attended.  So I can't complain when I think of how much I have not lost because of Covid.  But my mom said that disappointments are still real for those who are disappointed and one disappointment that affected me was the postponement or cancellation of races.

After my NC race in February, I had a half planned in April that was postponed until June 6.  This was the race that Camden also was planning on running.  Then I had a series of three races planned for Memorial Day weekend in KY, WV, and OH.  I was going to take Nathan with me on that road trip.  Then those were cancelled/postponed until 2021.  And after training for the second time for the Memphis race, this one was, of course, postponed until 2021!

Bummed and disappointed, around the middle of May I saw an advertisement for a Vacation Races half marathon at Zion National Park in Utah on June 6!  I had not stopped my training schedule for that long, so I felt confident that I could handle the race.  I looked into plane tickets, which were cheap, and asked Dave about it, and he said go for it!  Dave has been my biggest supporter in this crazy goal of mine and I am very grateful for his support!

I decided to take Nathan since we missed our road trip; and then decided to take Camden too since he was the main one in our family that was always stuck at home!  So the three of us headed to Utah by way of Vegas so that I could run in state number 4!

Vacation Races did a great job throwing together a race so quickly.  I heard of it about 2.5 weeks before it happened!  It was a staggered start night time race through a desert trail near Zion National Park.  I started the race at 7:00 on Saturday night and finished around 9:45.   Although I ran the whole way, even slowly up the hills, I did stop several times to take pictures.  It was truly the prettiest place I have ever run! And the first time I have seen this area of the country.  Of course, pictures do not do justice to this place! 

 I was glad I had started at 7 and could see the sunset and that I didn't have but about 30 minutes of real darkness.  The last 2 miles of the race were down hill and I thought I could go faster then, but because it was super dark (I had a head lamp), I had to run very carefully through the sandy and rocky trail.  It was a full moon that night, but also overcast so there was not much light from the sky.

My dusty shoes after I finished

It was super cool to run pretty much alone over a trail I had never seen before.  And although they asked spectators not to congregate at the finish line, since there were so few runners, Nathan was able to stand at the end and cheer for me!

I am very grateful for my family who was there for me.  And glad to have moved Utah to the finished list!  I have now completed 4 states!         

Because the race was planned so quickly, they did not have time to get the finisher medals for us at the race.  So several weeks after it was over, I received this awesome bling in the mail!  And it glows in the dark!  I have to say, Vacation Races races are starting to become addicting!

      

North Carolina Half

The first half I was able to run in 2020 was my North Carolina half in Oak Island.  Although I know I won't be able to have a fun getaway weekend for every half, this one was!  Dave and I were able to go away for Valentine's Day and get a run in.  It was a win win!  

Dave ran a fast 5K and Amy ran fast for her on her half!

We left on Valentine's Friday and made it to the race expo in time to get our bibs and a new pair of socks.  Then we had a great dinner at an Italian restaurant in town.  It was delicious!  And a good carb load.

Sunset at Oak Island

We had an early start, per usual for a run, on Saturday morning.  And it was a very chilly morning!  Temps were in the 30s when we arrived!  Amy started before Dave, but of course he finished before her!  He even had time to take a nap in the car!  It was a mostly flat course and I was able to stay with another girl who was running at a fast pace for about the first 3 miles.  Although I slowed down after that, I was able to finish in 2 hrs and 11 minutes, which is my fastest or 2nd fastest time for a half.   

Before

After

After a a shower and a short nap, we went into Southport to explore the town.  We had lunch at Oliver's and Dave said they had the best lobster bisque he has ever tasted!  

The view from Southport

We walked a lot in Southport and even went in the town museum.  Then we found a great bakery and I got the most lemon filled pastry I have ever had!

That night we went back to the Italian restaurant and got a pizza to take back to the hotel so that we could relax and not walk anymore!  On Sunday, we toured the Oak Island lighthouse before heading back home.  It was pretty scary walking to the top, and nerve wracking standing outside at the top!  Although I am glad we did it, I would and have signed up for more races, but I don't plan on climbing that lighthouse again!!

The scary stairs!

The view from the top

Oak Island Lighthouse

All in all it was a delightful weekend.  And state number 3 is checked off my list!

Running Goals

 Running has been a big part of my life, especially during quarantine in 2020!  But before this miserable year, in 2019 I made a goal of running a half or full marathon in all 50 states.  As of 2019, I had only done this in two states.  I have done most of my races in SC, and almost almost all in the Charleston area.  My first half was in Myrtle Beach in February 2008.  I didn't immediately get the long distance running bug then, but in 2013 I signed up for the Charleston half and have been running since!  Here are some of my SC races....

My first half that I ran with, or rather behind, my brother in law Rob,  Myrtle Beach  February 2008

My first marathon, January 2014, with my faithful family supporters!  It was very cold that day and they had to wait a long time for me to finish!!  Charleston Marathon

My parents also showed up to cheer me on at the end!

Diva Half Marathon 2014, Myrtle Beach, SC

My most unique "medal"  This was for a May Day run on May 1, 2015.  This was a guerrilla style run that started out in downtown Charleston and ended at Folly Beach.  No road closures and no guaranteed water stops.  It was an interesting run!

2017 Charleston Marathon  (Although I had said I wasn't running another marathon after LA, I told my friend Kelly I would run it with her.)

Save the Light Half on Folly Beach with Kelly Bessinger, February 2018

About the second marathon state...after already checking off my bucket list goal of a full marathon in Charleston in 2014, my friend Tara talked me into doing the LA marathon in 2015.  She didn't have to talk too hard!!  So California became my second state.

Tara Jackson and I at Dodger stadium at the start of the race 

  

So coming into 2020, I had two states checked off and 5 more planned for the first half of 2020.  Then Covid hit!  Fortunately I was able to run in NC for a Valentine's Day getaway at Oak Island in freezing cold weather, but good running temps, Dave and I ran the Oak Island 5K and half marathon.  He finished his 5K a long time before I finished my half, but then we had the rest of the day to rest and explore Southport, NC.  It was a great weekend!!  And now NC is my 3rd state!!

But then the next four races were canceled.  The most frustrating one was the half in Memphis that most of my family had signed up to run.  Camden and I trained for this to happen in April.  He had trained so hard and had made it up to running 11 miles before they postponed it to June 6, 2020.  If you are reading this, you know that by June, Covid had not disappeared.  So after training for a second time, Camden was really disappointed!  We now will have to wait until April 2021, hopefully, to finish that race.    

But for me, I was able to find a half to run on June 6 thanks to Vacation Races.  But that is a story for another post!