Eight days earlier I'd taken over nine hours to finish Delaware's muddy, slippery Triple Crown Trail Marathon. To my surprise—and confusion, and great relief—I came through it with no blisters, and actually feeling good enough to try another. If nothing else, at worst it'll serve as a useful experiment; at best it gives me another state. So I flew into Omaha and made the 45-minute drive west to Nebraska's state capitol.
Solo start in the dark at 5:30 a.m. The cool drizzle would persist most of the morning with occasional surges of light rain, but never a downpour. I found the m2 aid station operational and all stations very efficient (straws in the cups!). Lagging at my m5 split I picked it up a bit. Only during m10 or so did the leader catch me (due to a 7:15 delayed start). Maybe a hundred of the pack passed me before the half-marathon cutoff.
Parking at the university stadium, beside the course, facilitated making a midway sock/shoe change before I set out on the second half. This consisted mostly of a roughly 12-mile out/back. The drizzle persisted all this time, still no heavy rain. Miles seemed to fall pretty quickly despite my mediocre pace. Traffic backed up significantly at several intersections but everyone behaved politely. Midwest style.
Nebraska's
Capitol Building
Bicycle sculptures in various media decorate the city
Typical midwest lawn decor
 |
One aid station provided an elegantly decorated trash can for water cups. |
Holmes Park provided a scenic diversion for most of miles 19–21. After the turnaround I just kept on clocking off the miles back the way I came. Finally up the hill on K Street (above), right on 16th, Great post-race provisions: For dinner I went out for a Nebraska ribeye steak.
|
 |
Here's
the beef.
AK | AL | AR | AZ | CA | CO | CT | DC | DE | FL | GA | HI | IA |
|
Please sign my Dreambook 50&DC Guestbook. And read others' comments. |
|
50 & DC Starting Line | Events Completed | Biography | Finish Line |
Chuck's 50 & DC Marathons Starting Line
UCSC/ACSC | YIA | AHS Class of 1974
Camp Wiregrass | Coral Gables Congregational Church
Concerts | Is There Anybody Out There? | Presidential Election 2004
all images and text © chuck bryant
unless
otherwise noted