I took a very early morning United Airlines flight out of LAX with a quick plane change in Denver, Colorado. Then it was just a short flight in a small regional plane over to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Although it was tiny, it was a pretty nice looking airport. I picked up my rental car from National. They gave me a black KIA Soul. It was my first time driving one of those cars.
From the airport, I drove straight to the Sioux Falls Arena to pick up my race packet and shirt. Afterwards, I drove a few blocks over to check into my motel, Sleep Inn Airport, right across the street from Elmwood Park. For a little 2 story motel, the room I had was pretty nice.
I hadn't eaten anything all day so I decided to check out Taphouse 41 for a late lunch/early dinner. They have a pretty decent beer list here. I started with the Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA, one of my go-to favorites. For my meal, I ordered the Baja Burger which came with smoked hot pepper jack cheese, roast garlic mayo, creamy avocado, tomato salsa, and lime crème. That was one good burger. It was so good and flavorful, I could've easily eaten another one. I ordered it with a small order of duck fat fries which was tossed in Parmesan salt. Those were some good fries! I finished everything off with a Dark Horse Single Hop Cascade. That was a good beer as well.
Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA
Baja Burger and Duck Fat Fries
Dark Horse Single Hop Cascade
I stopped by a Walgreens along the way to pick up some drinks and snacks before heading back to my room. I ate the Pringles while watching the TV. Before turning in early for the night, I got my running clothes and gear ready.
Drinks from Walgreens
Race gear
I was awakened by fireworks that were apparently from the Dakota Bowl. I got to see some of it from the window of my room. After the nice light show, I went back to sleep.
Sunday 9/7
I woke up, got ready, and walked a couple blocks over to the starting area at the Howard Wood Field. I used the restrooms that they opened for the runners to use. I thought that was a nice amenity with having the starting line at the track. I have no problem using portapotties, but I would much rather use flushing toilets. :)
Howard Wood Field
I headed over to the starting line and was spotted by my friend who lives in Sioux Falls. The last time I saw her was at the Las Vegas Rock n' Roll Marathon a couple of years ago when it was still a daytime race. She gave me a quick rundown of what to expect from the race. Thank goodness as without her tips I don't think I would've have been mentally prepared for so many inclines throughout the course.
As per the usual, a bunch of the Marathon Maniacs and Half Fanatics gathered right before the start of the marathon for a quick group photo. After the national anthem it was time to run a marathon!
Maniacs pre-race photo
I started off going at what felt like a fairly easy effort. We would soon hit a bunch of gradual slopes. I knew coming into the race that I had put on weight since my last race. I really felt it on the inclines. For the most part, the first part of course was pretty urban. The second half was more scenic, but mostly on bike paths. When the course started heading South towards the falls, the course was mostly downhill. But then it was quite a climb heading back up towards the finish line. I cramped up pretty badly after getting to mile 20. It took me about the next 3 miles to get the legs to loosen up enough to start running again. At least the final .2 felt good. I was a little demoralized that I couldn't finish under 4:40, but I did the best that I could for my 27th state.
1: 8:26
2: 8:25
3: 8:47
4: 8:45
5: 9:03
6: 8:51
7: 9:07
8: 9:34
9: 9:34
10: 9:52
11: 10:02
12: 9:34
13: 9:53
14: 10:33
15: 11:10
16: 10:23
17: 11:02
18: 10:19
19: 10:55
20: 11:42
21: 15:32
22: 16:29
23: 15:45
24: 12:53
25: 12:14
26: 12:16
26.2: 1:46
Finish: 4:42:54
After crossing the finish line and getting my medal, there was a tented area with plenty of post race goodies for the runners. I grabbed a Nesquik chocolate milk, water, some bars, and an ice cream sandwich before finding a spot at the table to sit down. The ice cream sandwich really hit the spot! I then gathered my stuff and climbed into the bus that took us back to the starting line.
Finisher!
After I showered and got cleaned up, my friend and I decided to go eat at the Pourhouse on 12th St. We showed up pretty hungry and thirsty after running the Sioux Falls Marathon. It's a spacious pub/restaurant with lots of televisions. That was pretty nice since there were several NFL games on. The beer list was a little lacking unless you're looking to drink the cheap stuff. But they did have some craft beers. I started with a tall Tallgrass Ethos IPA. Since it was happy hour, it was a 22oz pour for only $3.50. For my meal, I ordered the Gouda bacon cheeseburger. It was a pretty big satisfying burger. The burger came with some very thin potato wedges. I finished it off with a tall Alaskan Freeride APA.
Gouda bacon cheeseburger and Tallgrass Ethos IPA
Monday 9/8
I checked out of my room and drove down to the Century Stadium 14 to catch a movie before going home. I watched The November Man. It was a pretty entertaining and action packed movie, but a little bit too predictable. Even Pierce Brosnan's acting was a bit lacking. I know his character was supposed to be a has-been super spy that still has the skills, but I was not convinced.
I gassed up the rental car and drove to the airport. I ended up paying about $13 more because I was about an hour late in returning the car. I hung out in the seats right before the TSA checkpoint to drink my water before going past security.
After getting through TSA, I decided to eat at what appeared to be the only restaurant at the airport, Red Stone Pizza Company. I found a seat at the bar to eat lunch before catching my flight home. I started off with a large IPA on tap. It was pretty good, but didn't catch the name, so I think it's a "home" brew. For my meal, I ordered their Bourbon Burger with tater tots. That was one delicious and tasty burger for airport food! I also love any place that serves tater tots as an option to french fries.
Large IPA on tap
Bourbon Burger and tater tots
After about a two hour layover in Denver, I boarded the plane heading for LAX. I was able to catch the Chargers vs. Cardinals game on DIRECTV. The Chargers were dominating the Cardinals during the parts that I caught, but it would turn out that they went on to lose. :(
Chargers vs. Cardinals
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