If you're going to wear briefs, you'd better bring it on, the Memphis report...

|





Hello World!

So, this is the Memphis report: state #7, marathon #15, continent #3; only 48 more marathons -- 43 states, 4 continents and 1 marathon major (London) -- to run in the next 48 consecutive months... feeling good!

And to the good people of Memphis, ya'll are sure hospitable and awfully nice. I learned all about Memphis -- where to go, eat, walk, do and see -- from my 20 minute cab ride from the airport to the downtown hotel, which was conveniently located adjacent to the convention center (hello race packet pickup), thanks Expedia! Good cab driver, Willy, gave me excellent recommendations, especially with his Beale St. must-see suggestion. Not Bill St. but Beeeale St. God, you've got to love the accent. Beale St., think New Orleans and Bourbon St., walk from bar to bar with an open beverage. As long as it is in a cup, there is no problem... Place after place after place, live music coming out of every open door.

I'm telling you that Memphis looked flat when we were coming in -- ummmm, no. And it was supposed to be warm (45 to 50) according to weather.com -- uh uh. 24 degrees at the start on race day, high of 35. Favorite running friend and will-travel-to-run compadre, Sharon D., and I had made the same decision of sleeveless/short sleeve shirt/shorts and gloves ensemble. At least she had the good sense to pack an 'ear brazier.' Umm me, not so much... I know ya'll are all thinking 'be prepared, Brooke, be prepared. Didn't you learn that lesson from the JFK50?' Yeah, okay, next time I'll take some arm sleeves and a hat...

The Good:

  • placing 3rd in my age group! A total surprise with a 3:30 time and just two weeks after the JFK50.
  • the super nice people of Memphis and the race support at EVERY mile -- though I do have to say that with so many stations I couldn't remember when I last drank...
  • the look of the male spectator at @ mile 12 when I slowed down for a gel and a sip of water. It was now warm enough to toss my over-shirt (favorite husband's Nats tee, I'll make it up to you, honey). As I tossed the shirt over to this spectator I said ' let's hope the Nats do a little more for us next year!' And as I took off I remember him looking at me, looking at the tee shirt and then looking back at me again. I wonder what he did with it...
  • the food... Sharon and I ate our way through Memphis: bar-b-que, red beans and rice... GRITS!
  • the ducks... They really were cute as they paraded from the lobby fountain to the elevators where they rested in their 'duck den' for the night. Story... live ducks used to be used as decoys for hunting. Hunters with a little too much to drink thought it would be funny to rest their live decoys in the fancy lobby fountain for the night. Hunters either didn't come back or wouldn't come back -- I got a call at this point of the storytelling and missed that part -- so sorry to leave you with an unsatisfactory ending... Now you'll have to go ;)
  • Graceland. You have to go. I thought it was going to be an over-done, over-blown, ostentatious mansion. It wasn't. It was understated, reflected who he was and was a home. I thought Elvis -- and sorry if this sounds too harsh -- was an overrated, overweight, overdressed and over-sweaty, past his prime superstar. Wrong again. He was a man who cared deeply for his family and for his community, who gave continuously to those around him. Ok, a he was a superstar, who won so many honors and awards that it is too much to mention. TCB and the lightening bolt seen on his plane's tail means ' taking care of business lightening fast.' Like that! Left the gift shop with only a cookbook, 4 tee shirts, and a Christmas duet CD with current country singers... Ok, I have to be honest and say there's NO way I'm cooking anything it that book. Disgusting. His peanut butter and banana sandwiches... 6 slices white bread, 2 sliced bananas, peanut butter and 1/4 cup, yes a 1/4 cup, that is a STICK, of sliced butter. GROSS.



The Bad:

  • serious head wind that seemed to be with us the whole race. Cold, constant wind...

  • Brief Girl: I called her Bathroom Girl but Sharon's Brief Girl is better. Before the race it was so cold, and we had so little on, that we hung out in the semi-heated stadium bathroom until the last possible moment. There we encountered two people of interest. One was a Canadian who, over the top front of her shoes, duct taped heated hand warmers... Ummm, okay... that's either the stupidest thing ever or the smartest. I can't decide which. The second was Brief Girl. For those who don't know, briefs are basically grandma underwear shorts that REALLY fast female runners wear. As Sharon likes to say "If you're going to wear briefs, you'd better bring it ON!" Like run a way sub 3 hour marathon...
So, I have nothing against Brief Girl and probably wouldn't even remember her until I come up on her at about mile 15. She must have started with the Elite runners -- because Sharon and I started in Corral 1 and we didn't see her -- and died. By the time I got to her she was a mumbling mess. And my maternal instincts took over. Look, she was just 22, had never run more than 13 miles -- learned this and much more about her in the above-mentioned bathroom -- and obviously thought she was going to kick-a**. So, I felt sorry for her and took her under my wing. I'm not sorry I did it, I was on autopilot by then and was just gettin' it done. As she wined, yes wined, about how far, how long, how bad, I alternatively used all my tricks. I was the nice mom who said 'you can do it, just 6 more miles, that's right, good girl....' I was the mom who used the tricks to distract; we took turns choosing who we were going to pick off next -- she needs to work on that... But I also was the mom who turned to her and said -- now this was after 10 miles and we only had one more to go -- "suck it up! Come on. Stop crying! It is 4 times around the track!! You've got this now, come on!" And I took off... and she didn't... The thing that still bothers me is that when I saw her again, there was no 'thanks,' no smile, no glimmer of anything. I know she was super-disappointed and I know that she felt like h***, but really, not even a little something of thanks?!

The Ugly:
  • again, no ugly save the orange parking cones in the middle of the street during the race. Really, how could this be a good idea?! Sharon did one heck of a move with a last-second hop over one that came up on us. It could have been fatal...

Have had 'Mississipi Queen' by Mountain in my head all day and wished that we had had one more day there. This is what we had left to do:

  • ride on the Mississippi, riverboat, paddleboat, raft, doesn't matter...
  • eat more bar-b-que...
  • visit the Civil Rights museum...
  • and pay homage to Martin Luther King...
We'll have to go back. So, that about wraps it up... Ya'll are probably wondering what's up with the picture of the dead fish... On Sunday morning, Sharon and I took a walk along the Mississippi and by Mud Island. There, we saw these river boats and realized that the embankment was so steep and wide because the river has a height fluctuation 40 feet. This poor fish didn't get that memo!

Next up is January's Goofy Challenge in Disney. Recap, it is the half marathon on Saturday and a full marathon on Sunday. Run both and you get three medals. YEAH!

And finally, I'm up and over the $19,000.00 mark towards my goal of $20,000.00 for the year. Help me out? I have committed to running a marathon on every continent, in each of the 50 states and the five marathon majors -- one marathon a month -- to bring awareness to and raise money for Alexandria, VA charities. This year, my designated charities are Network Preschools, the Alexandria Health Department, and the Seaport Foundation. Remember that I'm paying for all my travel expenses and that your donation is 100% tax deductible. You'll receive a receipt for you tax purposes. Visit my website to learn more and donate: www.runningbrooke.com Thanks!

Cheers and it is beautiful day for a run!

RunningBrooke


0 comments:

Post a Comment