One Bad Ass Runner

The year 2015 was a great year for me as a runner, considering I ran the most mileage I have ever done in a year and my paces lowered consistently.  I just did not hit any of my goal races and had some medical issues to take care of during most of it (high blood pressure, asthma, etc.) When 2016 started and with it, my plan to run another slew of marathons to earn new states on my quest, I was hopeful that 2015 and the speed therein would help me at least feel like a better runner in 2016.  And the year started well.  I ran the Dopey Challenge with my BFF Mary, and we had a ton of fun.  My next race was the Miami Half Marathon but when I saw that the temps were PR conducive (40F at the start and mostly in the 40s for the remainder of the day), I switched to the full and thought: this is my chance, I can do this!  Except I was sick and did not know it and spent the next three weeks with either a fever, or a chest congestion/cough from hell.  I was almost...

On Sunday, I ran the Rock n Roll New Orleans Marathon.  After two DNFs due to illness and maybe a mental block, all I wanted was to finish this one.  To say I was nervous is an understatement.  I was.  Once you have to DNF from a race, it either makes it easier to make that decision afterwards, or it plays with your mind for a while.  Not sure which one I had, but I really felt unsure I would be able to complete the distance but needed to because otherwise, my mind would win for the rest of the year. This was to be my 32nd marathon an ultra (say what?) and my 8th state, not counting Puerto Rico, so I was looking forward to adding another state in my 50 in 50 quest. We arrived in New Orleans on Thursday afternoon, since it was our first trip to NOLA and we wanted to experience the city, the atmosphere, the culture.  I was a bit worried about the food, since I am allergic to shellfish, and wondered if I could find something nice to eat and be able ...