New Jersey – solesistersrun4als

On April 29^th, Thelma and Louise set out to tackle 8 half marathons in 8 different states in 8 days. Starting from SC and MI, we met at the Detroit Airport and then flew to Providence, RI. After landing and getting the rental car we drove to our first race in Cheshire, CT – the ION Bank Half Marathon. We had an amazing meal at a local Italian restaurant and then we were in bed early. The next morning we were off and running……literally. Once we found parking we set out on the 1^st of several days running. Knowing that we had so many miles ahead of us this week, we took each race at an easy pace.

Each day became like Groundhog Day – we ate, ran, slept, ate, drove, ate, slept. Occasionally we would even get a nap.

We won’t bore you with the day to day routine. However, after the ION Bank Half we headed to the Mainly Marathons Independence Series which would give us our next 5 races in Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. We really love running with this group. The downside for Sue was that several of the races were more trail like but what is a downside for her has turned out to be a plus for me as I have really come to love the trail atmosphere.

We had a long drive to Massachusetts on Friday after our last race in NJ. What should have taken 4 hours or so ended up being 6 and half hours. The weather was atrocious! Heavy, heavy rains and winds caused traffic to be snarled and visibility near zero. We were very thankful to get to our Air BnB for the night. We had an amazing hostess (Emily) and settled in pondering how to tackle the race (the Twin Lights Half Marathon) as the weather was not supposed to let up until after noon. Well, we got our answer prior to going to bed – the race had been cancelled due to the heavy flooding in the area. Although we were disappointed, we know that race directors don’t take that decision lightly and we are firm believers that everything happens for a reason.

Taking advantage of the extra sleep and not having to rush, we went for a walk at Halibut State Park before heading back to Providence for our final race – the Rhode Races Providence Half Marathon. The drive was smooth and we were ready to run the next day and to finally get back home. As much as we hate our adventures to end, we do both love our families and look forward to seeing them.