Running Wild Missoula

On Sunday, I completed the Missoula Marathon.  It was my 12th Marathon in my 10th state.  (This is VERY significant to me because once a runner completes a marathon in 10 states, they can apply for the 50 States Marathon Club.  Needless to say, I filled out my application yesterday and mailed it in.)

The Missoula Marathon is one of the best marathons that I have run to date.  It's so well-organized, the community is extremely supportive, and the temperatures are perfect (mid to upper 40s at the start and low 70s at the finish).  The course is pancake flat, with the exception of a rather large hill around Miles 13.5 to 15 (the views at the top made it worth it!).  The only downside to the marathon is that it is incredibly super duper oober expensive to fly into Missoula.  

I loved the super simple starting line area (even the gopher holes were highlighted around the port a potties) and the 6 a.m. start:

As far as my overall performance - I was incredibly pleased.  I set out to just have fun with the marathon, and I ended up finishing in 4:56:57, which is within 2 minutes of the PR I set at the Oz Marathon this spring and included a port-a-pottie pit stop and a few scenic photo ops along the way.  It kind of makes me wonder what I would have run had I been actually pushing myself...

Memorable highlights for me:

1) Fireworks at the start that could have rivaled some at the start of the Disney World races, but what can I say, I like the ones that burst out into circles better that the ones that just streak through the sky like fountains.
2) The bus drivers that took runners to the starting line actually knew how to get there AND actually let us off the bus.  (You may recall the Chicago expo bus driver that didn't know how to get back to the Fairmont and the Disney World Marathon bus driver that refused to let us off the bus until a nice race volunteer did some negotiations so he would free us from our captivity.)
3) The scenery.  Looking at foothills and mountains for hours while running does not get old:

Between Miles 4 and 5

Between Miles 16ish and 17ish (Maybe taking 6 photos of this
 bridge is where my two minutes went...)

On the way to Mile 18  (Photos like this make me feel guilty for listening to
 Jay Z,  Nicki Minaj, and Ke$ha along the way....)

4) The "Marlboro Man".  Around Mile 13.5 this awesome rancher was rooting on the runners.  I took his photo, and he asked where I was from.  Turns out my Montana cowboy is from Joplin, MO.  At least he didn't say he was from New York City....

5) The Top Gun quotes posted along the route.  Examples:  "It's time to turn and burn."   "Show me the way home honey."  "We gonna have to buzz the tower."  I thought it would have been fitting to have a big "Yeehaw.  Jester's dead." sign at the end of the marathon, but alas, there was not one.

6)  The spectators:  Around Mile 16, I heard piano music.  A man in a tuxedo was sitting under a white tent in the middle of field playing a grand piano.  Totally cool.   The last 7 miles or so are in residential areas and lots of spectators sit on the end of their driveways to cheer the runners on.  At this point in the race, when there are only 1,000 marathoners, everyone is pretty spread out.  It was pretty cool that I would be basically by myself on some streets and these people were cheering just for me.  I kind of felt like Miss America in a parade waving at everyone and thanking them for cheering me on.  (It kind of got to be a relief after a while when I would hear something like "you go girls!" and would be thankful that there was someone else running near me.  It's a lot of pressure to entertain the "fans"!)
7) Watermelon and fruit pops at the finish line.

8)  Free finisher's photo:

My Free Finisher's Photo :)

9) Free finisher's video:
http://www.finishcam.com/MT/Missoula-Marathon-2011/WatchVideo.aspx?Id=XoZsweEZuA3rjPsA4d7Xck0fZ77CHLLS

And now I only have 40 more states to go....