It was time to take a trip down to Fort Benning for work so I thought a road trip would be fun. After a quick search for races, I discovered the Knoxville Marathon was happening the weekend before so....
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After checking in at the hotel, I headed over to the expo. I was shocked to discover how small the expo was. The marathon itself had only 700 or so people registered. I headed over to the Team 413 booth, talked to Chris and Kiki, and bought a few more shirts.
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Plenty of people and chalk art... |
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It was time to run my least favorite part of any big city race: the last few miles into the city. It is usually not shaded, is uphill, and is in a big city. I normally avoid big city races unless I'm running with friends who want to run them. This was a well done event, but I don't think these big city races are for me. This revelation happened around mile 24. Maybe I was just delirious. After the finish, a nice lady handed me a medal and a finisher's cap. It was a great start to an awesome road trip.
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One of my favorite sections of the path |
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Another day at the office. Or not. |
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I should have brought my trail shoes to work |
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At the end of the week, I headed to Alabama to visit with my best friend from college. She is stationed at Fort Rucker and is a battalion XO. (Gee, Mary, how did we get so old?!)
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We had dinner at a local place called The Rawls which is a historic bed and breakfast as well as a restaurant. It also happens to almost have my last name. In our usual fashion, we decided to turn the next day into an adventure. We planned to drive south to Panama City, Florida, for breakfast, kayaking, and hanging out on the beach. It could not have been a more perfect day for it. It was 80 and beautiful. We took a boat over to Shell Island and then kayaked around the island to the beautiful Gulf side. The ocean was a little rough for kayaking, and I'm a wimp when it comes to water. I've kayaked in rivers, and in lakes, but never in the ocean. Thanks to Mary keeping me calm as a large wave picked us up and surfed us into Shell Island; I lived to tell about it. We paddled by a dolphin and the Blue Angels flew over while we were relaxing on the beach.
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Breakfast in Florida |
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Mary on the boat to the island |
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Shell Island |
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Das Boot |
After our island adventure, it was time for dinner: shrimp, crab cakes, and tuna dip. On the way into the restaurant we met the fellas on the left. I'm very happy to report that it was bird week for me rather than shark week. As the day drew to a close, we journeyed back to Alabama. On Sunday, it was rainy and cold most of the day. That made it a prefect day to start the morning at a truly awesome coffee shop, Boldly Going. This coffee shop serves as both a place to put some pep in your step and a place to lift your spirit.
After spending most of Sunday relaxing, on Monday it was time for a long drive back to Ohio. It had been a great 9 days, and I am very thankful for those days. On the way home, there was a wreck that caused a standstill on I-65 for 45 minutes. There was a big fire and life flight was called. A long drive home was much smaller inconvenience than what those people were going though. Unfortunately during the drive home, I heard about the bombing at the finish of the Boston Marathon. Someone went out of their way to try and destroy people. Beyond tragic. That is in the realm of cruel and evil. After checking email upon my return, I learned that a former boss had a major heart attack, and the prognosis was bad. He has since passed away. All of these things cause me to feel even more thankful for my road trip and my life no matter what tomorrow brings. I have found that giving thanks to God extinguishes both anger and sadness when my life is difficult. When life is good, it amplifies that goodness a million fold. I just wish I could always keep my focus on being thankful. Until that day comes, I'll just keep on working at it.
"If we have thankful hearts we are untouchable." - Ryan Hall
Ultra Cassie, you need to do Comrades aka the Ultimate Human Race. It will change your life. Cheers, Werner ( Major Mary's South African buddy)
ReplyDeleteLOL! Hey Werner... I know Mary put you up to saying that! Hope all is well on your side of the pond. - Cassie
ReplyDeleteHey Cassie - I did the up run this year-the Comrades up run its 87km long. I finished in 11h30. It was extremely hot : 32 celsius in the shade and 40 C on the road compounded by a strong bergwind of 50 kmph from the front. It was tough but next year I will be doing my third one. Cheers, Werner
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