Marathon’d one-third of America in 2014 & never flew a red-eye.  This year already have 4 scheduled thru March.  Price a guy pays to reach East Coast races (& use minimal vacation days) 🙂

Left Denver at 1:20am, arriving in Miami just after 7am EST.  Shared costs with fellow Maniac Stacy this trip, who met me at the airport in a rental (Stacy flew red-eye into nearby Fort Lauderdale).  Super fun sharing my 48-hour tropical get-away with another marathoner – generally lotta solo travel in my 50 State Quest.

Grabbed juice & water, then headed Downtown for an early lunch at Havana 1957 – in Miami, a Cubano is the must-eat.

A Cubano is a variation of a ham and cheese originally created in cafes catering to Cuban workers in the early Cuban immigrant communities of Florida.  The sandwich is made with ham, roasted pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, mustard, and sometimes salami on Cuban bread.

Checked into a downtown apartment near tomorrow’s race Start (used Airbnb, cheaper than a traditional hotel), then trekked a mile to meet our scheduled afternoon tour.  Kayaking in Biscayne Nat’l Park was Plan A (cancelled – big waves & strong ocean undertow), Airboat Tour was Plan B (unfortunately tour bus never showed – argh).

Easy to suffer a letdown when plans go awry (& operating on little sleep).  This is where travelling double really ROCKS.  Only 4 miles from the nearest public beach so ‘beach day’ it is.  Thanks Stacy.

Caught a few winks on the sand – re-centered & re-energized, now ready to explore.  Stacy spotted a market-size crab hiding in rocks near the marina shoreline.  HUGE!  Ventured further south thru Key Biscayne to Cape Florida State Park – more white-powder sand, pelicans AND a lighthouse.  FAAANNNTASTIC!  Ya’ll know I LOVE lighthouses.

Sometimes the best plans are travelling with no plans at all 🙂

Early to bed, early to rise – tomorrow is run day…but not before downing a plate of squid.  I AM a fan of the ocean.  YUM!