Runalicious! Little Rock Weekend!
My skirt sister, Mary Sutter, joined me for this fun weekend and although we originally prepared for the full marathon, we both had some unexpected hiccups in our training and ended up moving to the 10K and Half Marathon challenge.
Right before arriving, I was hit hard with a very bad allergy attack and sinus congestion. I was running a slight fever the day before traveling to Little Rock and honestly, felt pretty bad. I wasn't sure if I would even make it through the weekend but Mary and I had decided to take it easy and not stress our time. The goal - have fun! That's it! And, wow, did we have some fun.
On Saturday, we ran the 10K and big shout out to the Holiday Inn at the Airport for offering free shuttle into downtown and they knew exactly what they were doing. The shuttle driver who was also the front desk manager got us really close to the start. We walked a couple blocks away to try and find a place that was open. Everything was closed that early in the morning, but a very nice coffee shop/diner place let us duck out of the cold air to stay warm and even gave us a free banana although they weren't even open! We decided to return the favor and ate brunch after the 10K to thank them for their generosity and the food was amazing! @ the corner is a great spot - mix between a coffee shop and an old diner feel.
So, 10K was tough on me. I didn't feel well at all so Mary kept me going all 6.2 miles. The medals were cute and part one of the challenge was done. The music prior to the run did lift my spirits a bit and helped me feel a little better at the start. They were playing a Mandisa song "Good Morning", a song I listen to often on my training runs. Here we are posing for a photo with the candy girls really close to the finish line. We didn't care about our time so we stopped for pictures along the way. The one with the alpaca didn't turn out very well but that was really cool.
After the run, we ventured into the expo and wow, it was amazing! It has been a while since I've been to an expo with so many vendors! They had everything! My favorite purchase was this shirt. It's of course the state of Arkansas and says "I Run this State". I LOVE it!
I was disappointed that my size was mostly sold out of all the things I really wanted. They had a purple sweatshirt that I saw others wearing around town and I really wanted one. They only had three in 2XL, so I wasn't lucky enough to snag one of those. But, I did find a tech shirt and a super soft hoodie shirt that worked. You have to get to the expo early on the first day to get the good stuff.
I must be honest, I was really nervous for the half the next day, so we rested and watched basketball games. Go Hogs! Just a nice relaxing afternoon after a full day from running and visiting the expo. Then half marathon day had arrived. I was blowing my nose all night, dry throat, just struggling in general and didn't sleep very well. But, this was my home state race I had looked forward to forever! So, I sucked it up and remembered to just have FUN and that is what I did.
The Little Rock course included one of the most historical places in my state and one that brings with it some pretty intense emotions. I had to stop and take in the strength and courage of the Little Rock Nine at Little Rock Central High School. This was my favorite spot on the course! In true Kim fashion, I gave a Little Rock pound and high fives to all the volunteers along the course. My friend Mary and I thanked all the police officers and she made it a point to shake all of their hands. At one point early on, a group of firefighters was cheering us on and I lost Mary for a little bit, lol.
Mary was an awesome running buddy this weekend! She got me through feeling terrible to completing the 10K and I think I had an amazing half marathon day despite the sinus issues and not feeling my best. Little Rock was fantastic and I'll be back! If you haven't run Little Rock, put this on your list and spend the extra $25 for the perks room before and after the marathon events. They fed us a feast! We had pulled pork sandwiches, baked beans, brownies, soup, pizza, you name it they had it. Little Rock knows how to do it right and I'm proud it is my home town race.
- The medals!
- The expo was packed full of vendors and we had free lattes!
- The perks for before/after race was the best I've ever had at a race. Amazing food options, free massages and free beer too if you are into that.
- Course takes you to some historic places - Gov. Mansion and Little Rock Central High School
- The people are friendly!
- Course support was wonderful - police officers, firefighters, plenty of volunteers
- Started on time
- Very walker friendly
Sounds like an awesome weekend despite your sinus and allergy crud! I also LOVE Mandisa and that song, definitely a favorite!
ReplyDeleteI've never been to Arkansas, but everyone says amazing things about this race, so it's on my race bucket list for sure. :)
Shannon, definitely do it! I had the best time and they really put on a first class event. Be sure to pay the extra $25 for the perks, they had awesome food before and after the race plus other fun stuff! I will be back to do it again probably multiple years even though I live in WA now.
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