Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Hometown Trip- Inaugural Seattle Rock & Roll Marathon

Back in OKC after a great 6 day trip to Seattle. This was the 2nd time that I've been back since relocating however I was somewhat trapped at my parents home back in December due to the snow. Good to be back home and to see friends and family. I had quite a bit going on this trip so I didn't get to see everyone and apologize to those that I wasn't able to meet up with. Have already heard from a few people that were disappointed that I didn't make more of an announcement however my primary reason for the trip was for the Seattle Rock & Roll Marathon and I didn't want to overdue anything.

I don't seem to have much luck traveling from OKC to Seattle. As I blogged back in December, I almost had to spend Christmas in Denver due to the Seattle snowstorms and was trapped there for 23 hours. This time the delay was due to the weather in Denver. Got on the plane in OKC and sat on the tarmac in OKC for 2 hours while we waited for thundershowers to pass by Denver. The pilot then decided to take us back to the terminal and we waited inside the airport for another hour before leaving.


I booked my trip through an on-line source and my trip was supposed to take me to Denver on Frontier, then to Las Vegas on Frontier and then to Seattle on another airline. My fear was that I wouldn't be able to get the other airline (think it was US Air) to honor the Las Vegas trip if I was late do to the Denver fiasco so I didn't know what was going to happen. When I got off the plane in Denver I immediately went over to the gate where the plane was supposed to be leaving to Vegas and just barely beat another crowd over there that came from another airport and were delayed. I told the woman behind the counter that it looked like they had a lot of people that were needing to go to Vegas and that I could do them a favor and vis versa if they could just get me directly to Seattle. Turns out the plane leaving to Seattle a couple hours later had an opening and I was able to get there without the Vegas trip. THANK YOU FRONTIER!! Ended up arriving in Seattle at around 1:30 am which was a couple hours later than the orignal plan but I did it with one less flight. It did however ruin the original plan of stopping by Dick's for a cheeseburger on the way home but I was able to check that off the list later in the week.


My first day back I swung by my last workplace, Keeney's Office Plus and said hello to everyone. Great to see my former co-workers/friends and to check out the new work stations in the office (Keeney's does furniture as well as anyone so you know it looks good). I then went with my family to the Mariners game. My sister got us tickets from one of her bosses in the 3rd row right behind the team's dugout. Fun to hang out at Safeco Field and watching so many baseball games lately at a minor league park really makes you appreciate a big league park (especially Safeco) that much more. The Mariners won which made it that much more enjoyable.

Was happy to get out to Greenlake on Thursday for an easy jog before the marathon. Have probably done close to 1000 laps around there since 2005 and it was good to get that in while on the trip. I've mentioned this on here before but I don't have anything in Oklahoma that compares to Greenlake. Thursday I also decided to get a pre marathon haircut. They had a radio on in the background and right in the middle of the haircut the woman stopped cutting and looked at me with a puzzled look, she said "who are they talking about" and I said "I think they just said that they are trying to confirm a rumor about that Michael Jackson is dead". Had a nice home cooked meal that night with the family and the rest of the evening was spent watching the MJ coverage on TV.




Friday I grabbed lunch at Fishermen's Terminal with my former Sonics and Storm co-worker/friend Sean. Then went out onto the dock and he showed me his Dad's fishing boat. The two of them along with 3 other family members were setting out to Alaska a few days later to fish for salmon for a couple of months. Was interesting to get a tour of the ship and to see what is essentially their home for 2 months. I don't know how they do it but think it is great and I wish them all well. I then went to the new Seattle Storm offices which are right down the street in Interbay. Great to see friends there but I didn't stay long as I knew it was gameday and a busy time around there. Then hurried over to the marathon expo to check in and get everything that I need for the marathon (bib, running chip, shirt, goodie bag, etc). The Expo was filled with great exhibits and information. Much more organized then what I expected from a first year marathon.

Friday night I went to the Seattle Storm game and had a great time catching up with friends, some that I have worked with for many years. The Key Arena holds a very special place in my heart and that was the one visit that was a must on the trip. A nice crowd came out to see the Storm beat the LA Sparks. I was only going to stay until halftime since I had the marathon the next morning but I was having such a good time that I ended up staying until the end.

Saturday was the Rock & Roll Marathon and I had a great time even if my performance wasn't what I was hoping for. I knew I wasn't in the greatest shape of my life so my expectations weren't exactly high which turned out to be good. My Mom offered to drop my sister (she ran the half marathon) and I at the starting line and that became a little nerve racking when we realized that getting 25,000 runners to a remote location south of Seattle is not that easy. Traffic at the Tukwila exit was backed up for 5 or 6 miles but we made it to the starting line okay and everything went off without a hitch. My Mom, Dad, Uncle, Aunt and a family friend all showed up at to support us. They were at the 9 mile mark to cheer us on, the 21 mile mark and at the finish line. Great to have them there and their support is always appreciated. The marathon itself was an incredible experience. I thought the organizers did an amazing job and I think it will be a success for years to come. The weather was perfect, the bands sounded great and the course wasn't too bad in terms of hills (always going to be some in Seattle) . Got to run along Lake Washington, over the I-90 bridge, through downtown and on the Alaskan Way Viaduct with an amazing view of Elliott Bay and the Olympic Mountains. Great time and who knows, maybe next year I will be back and ready to take a shot at a personal record. Until then I am content knowing that I completed my 10th marathon.


Junked out after the marathon. Had a Dick's cheeseburger on my way home before going home to shower and nap. Then went out to have my favorite pizza with my family at Spiro's. Been craving Spiro's since I moved to Oklahoma. Went to have pizza there the day after Christmas but they were closed so that their employees could have extra time with their families. This time they were open and did not disappoint. Love Spiro's pizza and am already wanting another slice.











As if Saturday wasn't busy enough, I then hopped into the car with my sister and headed out to Evergreen Speedway up in Monroe to see more co-workers/friends. Great to get back there and visit with everyone while watching some racing. The winner of the Figure 8 race that night was Shane Sawin, a friend of ours from high school. He used to race there when I first started working at ES in 2001 but hadn't been racing there over the last few years so we tracked him down in the pits and caught up with him. We were both tired at that point so we headed home before the racing was over.








The rest of the trip was spent relaxing a little with family and friends. Did manage to hang out with a few friends at a local bar on Sunday night but didn't have any massive gatherings. Also had a nice barbecue at my sister and brother in law's house. Will definitely do something big next time. I had fun and only wish it would have lasted longer.












1 comment:

runhikeplay said...

congrats on your 10th marathon! :)