Cheryl Clears The Foggy Driftless Half Marathon.

 What a fun day!   No rain!  Not much sun!   Cool-ish temps and a fun race route.  What could possibly be better than that?  Oh wait!  Winning another award.  First place Female in her age group.  Then it is official:  The Driftless Half Marathon has to be ranked as one of the best runs this year.  ( Don't ask me to catalog all of the races, just know it is one worth repeating.)  So let's fill in the rest of the story...

This morning was plagued with fog.  Deep, thick, dense fog!   The kind that forces you to drive 25 in a 50 MPH zone!   The first thing we saw on the way to the Kwik Star was a DEER in someone's yard!  No need to hit a deer on the way to the start line.

After picking up our coffee and donuts, we slowly drove to the start line 13.1 miles away from Lansing.  We almost drove past the giant firetruck that marked the start line because the fog was so thick.   But we managed to get there and park close by so we could visit the bathrooms and prep for battle.  

Thankfully, the fog eventually cleared slightly so the runners could be seen on the road.  However, it never really fully evaporated.  Even as we left, the fog could still be seen in the high areas.  But at least the scenery could be seen from the race course and no one was in any danger of being hit by a car.  (at least with the fog being the reason...)  

The race route separated off the main road and skirted the river.   This gave me a chance to get ahead of the runners and catch Cheryl at mile 5.   I watched her come down the muddy road and make the turn onto the main road with the help of lots of other spectators.  At least she did not have to climb the really high hill that the main road traversed.   I think the runners went around it on reasonably flat ground. 

But that flat ground did not last too long.   Eventually, they had to deal with the incline on the main road and I was there to cheer Cheryl on at mile 8.   By this time, most of the pack had thinned and Cheryl was running mostly alone.

Running to Mile 8

  I was able to give her some diet coke so she would not have to stop for the "self serve" drink station.  As she ran by, I fired up the Subie for Mile 10.

Mile 8

By then,   she was linked back with a couple of guys about 50 yards behind and in front of her.  I figured the guy behind would try to catch her at the finish.

Mile 10

With only three miles to go,  most runners save a little "kick" for the end to sprint past their rivals at the finish.  regardless, I thought Cheryl was doing well for the terrain and visibility. 

See the rain in the distance?

When I arrive at the finish line,  I noted the train tracks near by.  Wouldn't it be funny if a train came by right as the runners were finishing?   Well, that is just what happened!  And on top of that.. It happened while Cheryl was coming in!

I figured I had better be on the right side of the tracks before the train blocked my view.   It was a LONG one.   And Cheryl managed to come in just as the end was clearing the area.  It was a pretty cool sight to see, but you could not hear any cheering over the train noise, which was deafening!  

Shortly afterwards,  My camera told me it was out of memory!  Huh?   I apparently had maxed out the memory with the pictures, so I had to delete some to make room for more.  I will have to inspect the storage later to make sure this does not happen again.  IN the mean time, I did manage to get a pic of Cheryl with her metal and mug. 

Oh!  Right,   I mentioned she won her age group award. ( first place!)  And go this hand made mug.  Probably made from a local ceramicist. Apparently, there are a lot of "artists" in this area.  You might think that Cheryl and I would fit right in a place like this. However, Artists hate other artists.  Mostly because we are jealous of each other's pathetic success.  Maybe that is just my opinion. ( ok,   Probably...) But I do know that there is something about artists that is weird, and we are weird enough without hanging around additional weirdos...

So after enjoying some Pancake Breakfast, we drove home.  It was a fun event and we are now safe and sound at home relaxing.   Hiro, the cat, has finally forgiven us for abandoning him for 24 hours,  And is sitting on my lap.... Bothering me as I type this.  Cheryl agrees that that race should be done again.  I think next time, I will have a better grasp of the situation and the race route. And we both would like to spend a little more time exploring the surrounding area, since it was so pretty up there.   Quite the change from the rolling hills and flat terrain of Southeastern Iowa.   Cheryl was even pleased with her performance, running a 1:45:49.  Finishing 16th overall,  4th for her gender. ( and first in her age group.40-49)   Out of 132 finishers.  She managed to run the race and ENJOY it... Without killing or hurting herself.   That's a win in my book.  

Next week is Des Moines.   Cheryl will be running the half and we hope to see a few acquaintances there along the way.  Cheryl will be running the half again.  We shall see you then...