Touchdown in Denver. Home, well…almost. Broncos Stadium for bib pickup, 2-marathon weekend. Friday in CT, Sunday morning in Colorado’s capital city. Colfax, Denver’s only FULL marathon. HUGE Expo, but I’ve done this before. Finished the Colfax Half – in 2013. Was my last ‘big’ run before Marathon UNO, in Alaska. Lifetime ago.
Early to bed, early to rise. 6am start in City Park. Off-street parking before 5. Shower, walk the pup, hour drive to Denver – math check, that’s ‘middle-of-the-night’ early.
PERFECT run weather. Rain afternoon-delayed, no SNOW ’til morning. Week out from Memorial Day holiday, chilly 39 degrees Start. Nice! Glad I wore sleeves. LOL>
BIG city race. Feelin’ good. Aside from the long stretch down Colfax, FULL marathoners run a lap inside Mile High Stadium. Now that’s cool, huh. Go Broncos!
Stepped BACK a corral (G on my bib), lined with the 4:45 pace party. Elevation, body recovery (CT, 2 short days ago). Hoped to hang thru mile 15. Finish with a smile 😊
Slow & steady. Tight first mile. Pic snapped the Capitol Dome. Pacer stick on my left, 4 of us from the Start. Pacer Greg (last month, Big Sur & Boston), Brian from Hartford CT (what are the chances?) & Maredith (2018 100-MILE finisher). My Colfax family, next handful of hours. Easy comfortable pace. Talked briefly/intermittently, mostly listening.
12 miles. Greg (with the stick) says he’s supposed to hand off the baton. He’d catch up with us. Whaaaat? HE’S the pace bunny, we’re the flock. Never ever. Picked up another marathoner, run introductions – and we’re 4 again, crossing the Half. No pacer, no bunny.
PACE GROUP finish
14 miles. Porta-potty stop. Afraid to slow, lose my group. Efficient in-n-out (like Shalane Flanagan at Boston, just like that) Warned them I’d go dark by 18, abandon all mile 20. Appreciated their company. Only Sis’ been able to master the voices.
18 miles. Upbeat positive. Legs good, breathing easy. Didn’t go quiet for two miles. Tried to say goodbye at 22. Aid station stopped. Pollyann’ers kept cheer-leading.
ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT! But I’m NOT talking, can’t make me talk.
LAST mile. Really really really wanted to walk. Pace-group peer pressure. Happy endorphin over-achievers. Bridge. Late hill. Kinda all a blur. Happy talk in the ears, evil Mordor in my head. AND…we’ve sped up AGAIN, sub-9 minute now.
4 STRONG FINISH! Crossed together. 4:45 pace group, start-to-finish. Complete strangers ‘til today. Group SMILE. Crossed EIGHT minutes early.
Colfax FAMILY photo. LOVE LOVE my run community. Super supportive folks.
DIG being Colorado local. Pasta, hot shower & Pup – just an hour away.
Wyoming next Sunday, 50 State FINISH week after. Happy LIFE ❤️
Congratulations #12420 K R HAGA!
Here are your results for the Kaiser Permanente Colfax Marathon:
Your final time is 04:37:55 at a 00:10:36 pace.
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- Saturday EXPO
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- City Park
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- 4:45 pace party
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- dig the new lid
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- Ash’s CHARITY
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- Capitol Dome
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- Bronco’s Mile High
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- Stadium lap
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- Pace Guy disappearance
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- 20 mile SMILE
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- CROSSED together
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- 4 STRONG!
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- Colorado local ❤️
Shower, fresh clothes – and cameras. Post-marathon. Traded running shoes for boots Saturday afternoon & quick-toured Music City with Sis & family. Common theme: UP ⬆️ Whether the State Capitol or food apps on Broadway, no less than 3 flights of stairs. Good stretch after 26.2 miles of morning asphalt.
first post-LUNCH climb: Tennessee’s State Capitol Building. Located downtown, high hill kitty-corner from the weekend’s rented digs. 3 US Presidents from the Volunteer State. $20 Jackson, James Knox Polk & Lincoln’s VP Andrew Johnson. All prominently memorialized on Tennessee’s state grounds. Capitol Building: lotta Old World charm/columnar architecture, flag-topped dome. Window-peek downstairs showcased a 19th century courtroom re-purposed for present day press talks. Building poised high, surrounded by glass skyscrapers & multiple sports stadiums (football/hockey/baseball). Pretty view of Nashville. HUGE growth in Music City.
Next up: wild Honky Tonkin’ Broadway. Soooo many people & competing noises (not my scene) – but today an improved attitude, flanked with FAMILY. Thanks Stephen, Sis & Paul. Friday: ‘I can’t eat here, it’s too loud.’ Today: smiled, nodded (still couldn’t hear) & ate my apps. Pack eater I guess. LOL> Frown upside down 😊
TRIP HIGHLIGHT: the GRAND OLE OPRY. No Nashville trip complete without THIS experience. Sis pre-purchased tickets at the Ryman, first shows of winter. Performances return every November after summering in nearby Opryland. Original building, same wood floor, same church pews – circa 1892. Rustic seating bit rough on the rump/big memory flood of childhood revivals past. 1950’s ’60s ’80s and American Idol, Scotty McCreery – Opry had it all tonite. Hillbilly talk, square dancers & Opry laughter. Nashville HIGHLIGHT ❤️
2 long hugs & the weekend done, magic over. Goodnite Music City. Bye, Sis.
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- post-marathon stair climb
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- $20 Jackson
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- US President #11
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- Lincoln’s VP successor
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- Nashville ‘MUST’ experience
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- Ryman Auditorium, 1892
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- MUSIC City
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- Idol headliner
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- Colorado Welcome ❄️
Welcome to the Opry
Opry Pt 2: Scotty McCreery
Union Station
Marathon by morning, Capitol Tour by night.
Can’t take credit for tonite’s MAGIC under lights. Stephen pre-purchased two 7pm tickets while I was still flying DIA to Reagan. Early in from New Hampshire, he half-day toured the Smithsonian History Museum – met up at the Expo. Post-marathon, fancy lunch’d together; Lyft-commuted to Washington’s Union Station quarter-past 6. Life’s BEST moments are oft better shared 🙂
‘Don’t be late’ – first come, first serve seating on Sunday’s double-decker BUS.
Lite rain. Wore Bismarck beanie swag, all part of the adventure. Poncho & a seat in the open air. Ready, ready to see D.C. Element-exposed but BEST spot to soak up our Capitol under lights.
Never EVER toured before at NIGHT. AWESOME experience & Sunday night, notta lotta traffic. Historic DC drive-bys, short White House stop, half-hour Lincoln Memorial walkabout.
LOVE LOVE our country. SUPER FUN nite.
Let it rain, Let it rain. I won’t melt, it’s only water ☂️
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- Jefferson Memorial
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- U.S. Capitol Building
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- WWII Memorial
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- the White House
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- Lincoln Memorial
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- Honest Abe
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- Gettysburg Address
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- National Mall
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- AWESOME at NIGHT
