Louisiana Half Marathon - 2014

Patrick Morein's Louisiana Marathon - 2014 results

Yesterday I completed my third half marathon with virtually no training.  I ran 2.3 miles in mid December and my knee still didn't feel right so I didn't do any more training.  My last significant mileage prior to yesterday was the Gulf Coast Half-Louisiana Northshore last October 20.

My knee is actually pain free right now so I'm hopeful that I will be able to train for the finale to my 50 state half marathon quest in May.

Hawaii

Order in which state was run: 35

Order in which state was admitted into the union: 50

 

Hawaii was once an independent kingdom. (1810 - 1893) The flag was designed at the request of King Kamehameha I. It has eight stripes of white, red and blue that represent the eight main islands. The flag of Great Britain is emblazoned in the upper left corner to honor Hawaii's friendship with the British. The combination of the stripes of the United States flag and the Union Jack of Great Britain is said to have pleased the merchant shippers of both nations. Flag adopted for official state use in 1959.

 

Date: February 7, 2009
Race: Run for the Whales
City: Wailea
Cost: $35.00
Trip Report

Run for the Whales was a small half marathon in the southern part of Maui.  It was a part of whale month that occurs every February in Maui.  This was my first (and only to date) trip to the Hawaiian Islands and i was able to visit three of the islands in my eight day trip.

 

Up next: West Virginia

Illinois

Order in which state was run: 34

 

Order in which state was admitted into the union: 21

 

The Illinois flag is a simple representation of the Great Seal of Illinois against a white background. In 1969, the General Assembly voted to add the word "ILLINOIS" under the Great Seal of the flag. The State's name was added to the flag to ensure that people not familiar with the Great Seal of Illinois would still recognize the banner. Flag adopted 1915.

 

 

 

Date: October 12, 2008
Race: Bank of America Chicago Marathon
City: Chicago
Cost: $110.00
Race Report

Training for an October marathon meant running in hot and humid weather in Houston.  My training was sidetracked by shingles and then Hurricane Ike.  Even with the training obstacles I was able to run a marathon PR with warmer than ideal weather in Chicago. 

Date: June  4, 2011
Race: 13.1 Marathon Series
City: Chicago
Cost: $38.00
Race Report

While I an a PR marathon in Chicago, I returned to Chicago to run an Illinois half marathon.  Hot and humid weather conditions caused the race director to cancel the race prior to my finishing.  This was my first race that I started and not have an official finish time.  I did cross the finish line and did receive a medal.

Up next: Hawaii

Alaska

Order in which state was run: 33

Order in which state was admitted into the union: 49

Alaska adopted the flag for official state use in 1959. The blue field represents the sky, the sea, and mountain lakes, as well as Alaska's wildflowers. Emblazoned on the flag are eight gold stars: seven in the constellation Ursa Major, or the Big Dipper. The eighth being the North Star, representing the northern most state.

 

Date: June 25, 2008
Race: Great Alaskan Maritime Marathon
City: Juneau
Cost:
Race Report

Ever since watching Love Boat in the 70s I wanted to go on a cruise.  I'm not much of a beach person so an Alaskan cruise in particular appealed to me.  Fast forward to my state chasing and a cruise that included running at ports of call apealed to me so I picked this race for my Alaska half marathon.

Racing was fun and meeting other runners was fun as well.  This may be my only cruise (I enjoy doing my own thing on my own schedule) but it was a fun experience.


 

 

Date: June 18, 2011
Race: Mayor's Half Marathon
City: Anchorage
Cost: $43.60
Race Report

Part of my adventures in running the 50 states is visiting National Parks nearby.  The Alaskan cruise I took in 2008 cruised Glacier Bay National Park.  I decided to return to Alaska to visit a couple more of the many parks located in Alaska.  Since I was traveling that far I figured I may as well throw in another half marathon as well.  I ran a half in Anchorage and then spent a week in Alaska visiting Kenai Fjords and Denali National Parks.

Anchorage was a fun place to visit in June.  They had a summer solstice festival going on when I arrived; sunlight was out most of the 24 hour day that time of year.  I was living in Texas at the time and got a kick out of the Alaska-Texas shirts (which I'd never seen before).

Up next: Illinois

Michigan

Order in which state was run: 32

Order in which state was admitted into the union: 26

The design on Michigan's deep blue field has three mottoes:
On a red ribbon - "One Nation Made Up of Many States"
On a blue shield - "I will Defend"
On a white ribbon - "If You Seek a Pleasant Peninsula, Look Around"
On the blue shield the sun rises over a lake and peninsula, a man with raised hand and holding a gun represents peace and the ability to defend his rights. The elk and moose are symbols of Michigan, while the eagle represents the United States. Flag adopted 1911.

 

Date: April 6, 2008
Race: Martian Half Marathon
City: Dearborn
Cost: $40.50

Martian half was a race put on by the Half2Run 25 half marathons in 25 states challenge so it was fitting that I include this race in my state quest.  The dri fit race shirt was the most interesting, best themed,  and loudest race shirt I ever received.  This race was run with a case of Achilles tendonitis.

 

This was the first state run after I started blogging.  My race report including a pic of the race shirt can be found here.

 

Up next: Alaska

New Jersey

Order in which state was run: 31

Order in which state was admitted into the union: 3

The State flag of New Jersey is buff colored. The state coat of arms is emblazoned in the center. The shield has three plows with a horse's head above it. Two women represent the goddesses of Liberty and Agriculture. A ribbon at the bottom includes the year of independence in 1776 and reads: Liberty and Prosperity. The New Jersey state flag was formally adopted in 1896.

 

Date: October 14, 2007
Race: Boardwalk Runners Half Marathon
City: Atlantic City
Cost: $40.00

This was my first time visiting New Jersey.  The boardwalk area reminded me of the French Quarter in New Orleans.  Nice areas with seedy areas within a block.  We arrived at the Boardwalk, checked into the Comfort Inn a block or so off the boardwalk near the host casino and headed to the casino to pickup our race packets.  Included in the packet was a free buffet at the host casino.  Carb loading problem solved!

Race options included a 5k, 10k, half marathon, and marathon.  Three of the four races started in one direction with the marathon heading the opposite direction at a shared start line.  This made for the most unique race start that I have witnessed to date.  You had marathon runners lined up on the hotel side of the boardwalk with all other racers lined up on the ocean side of the boardwalk with one chip mat across the boardwalk.

I ran within a minute of my half marathon the day before on a much flatter course.  I experienced tightness in my back towards the end of the race.... may have been the hills from the Baltimore half the day before catching up with me.

New Jersey was my last new state run in 2007.  I would run one more 1/2 marathon in 2007 for a total of 13 half marathons run in 12 states (10 new states).  It was also my speediest year with my top 4 times and 9 of my top 15 times coming in 2007 half marathons.

Up next: Michigan

Maryland

Order in which state was run: 30

Order in which state was admitted into the union: 7

The Maryland flag contains the family crest of the Calvert and Crossland families. Maryland was founded as an English colony in 1634 by Cecil Calvert, the second Lord Baltimore. The black and Gold designs belong to the Calvert family. The red and white design belongs to the Crossland family. Flag adopted 1904.

 

Date: October 13, 2007
Race: Under Armour Half Marathon
City: Baltimore
Cost: $57.00

The Under Armour Half Marathon was the first leg of my second Saturday Sunday back to back multi state half marathon weekend.  The half for this race weekend started 2 hours after the full start at the 13.1 mile mark of the full.  Nice for sleeping in but tough for checking out of the hotel post race.  No late checkouts were given as the Ravens had a home game the next day.

Packed bags pre race held with the valet and use of showers in the swimming pool area worked out fine.  After a post race lunch at the Cheesecake Factory, made the 4 hour? or so drive to Atlantic City to pick up my race packet for the half marthon Sunday in New Jersey.

 

Up next: New Jersey