I took an early flight out of Ontario with Southwest Airlines to Philadelphia with a layover at Chicago Midway. I was able to use my last two complimentary alcohol tickets for both legs. It was also pretty cool to have inflight wifi to watch free satellite TV.
Headed to Chicago Midway
Headed to Philadelphia
After landing in Philadelphia, I made my way to the ground transportation area to catch the shuttle for Budget to pick up my rental car. There was a pretty long line at the rental office. Eventually when it was my turn, I got a blue Ford Focus hatchback. Once on my way, I had Google map take me down to Dover, Delaware while avoiding tolls. Along the way I stopped by a Walgreens in Smyrna to pick up Powerade and water. I then headed straight for the Dover International Speedway to get the packet pickup out of the way. It was a bit dark and there wasn't a lot of signs, but I was able to make my way to the tents right next to Miles the Monster. It was pretty cool to see him in person. The packet pickup took only a few minutes inside the tent.
Miles the Monster
I then hopped back into the car and drove down to Rehoboth Beach to check out Dogfish Head Brewings and Eats. That was quite the commitment since it took about 1 hr each way to get there. Fortunate for me, I was able to snag the last spot in their tiny parking lot. It was pretty dang packed and loud inside the pub. I put down my name to get a table, but I was able to get a seat at the bar as a few people happened to be leaving. I started things off with their 75 minute IPA which was poured out of a cask. It was a blend of the 60 min and the 90 min which I thought was perfect. For dinner, I ordered their Pub Burger. I followed that up with their Wet Hop After Dark and Palo Santo through coffee and vanilla beans. The vanilla beans made it really tasty. Before heading back up to Dover to check into my hotel room, I stopped by their little store just next to the pub entrance to buy a t-shirt for $25.
75 min
Pub burger
Wet Hop After Dark
Palo Santo through coffee and vanilla beans
After checking into the Best Western, I went through the race stuff and laid out my race gear for tomorrow's marathon. I liked the race shirt. The magnet and Reese's peanut butter cups were nice and also somewhat different from the usual race swag.
Best Western
Race stuff
Mr. Flat Runner ready for the Monster Mash!
Saturday 10/17
I got ready and drove over to the same parking lot in front of Miles the Monster. We were allowed to use the restrooms at the speedway which was nicer than having to use portapotties. After a few last minute instructions, we all walked over to the starting line over at the race track.
After running a lap around the track, we then exited the speedway and started running along the side of many roads in Dover. Sometimes the edge would be pretty narrow so the cars and trucks got pretty close. Even so, most of the scenery was pretty nice. It got a tad warm near the end and I was again dealing with leg cramps. After taking a bunch of walk breaks, they finally subsided and I was able to run most of the remaining few miles at a decent pace. It turned out there were a few Marathon Maniacs that I leapfrogged with that was also running Atlantic City the next day.
Somewhere in Dover, Delaware
Click here for my Garmin data.
After talking to a few of my friends at the finish area, I got cleaned up a bit and made the drive up to Atlantic City. Again, I had Google map take me there avoiding tolls. It took a little bit longer, but I got to drive down a lot of picturesque roads. However there were a bunch of speedy assholes that blew by me at about 80 mph when the speed limit was 45-50 with almost no cars around. They all had Jersey plates. I guess that's how the locals drive. I arrived in Atlantic City at about 3 pm. I stayed at the Trump Taj Mahal where self parking was $10 cash. After checking in at the front desk, I went up to my room to drop off my stuff and to take a shower.
Nice medal
Trump Taj Mahal
View from my room
I then made the walk along the Boardwalk up to the expo at Bally's. I stopped by the Korean War Memorial along the way. I had a little trouble finding the convention hall for the expo. It turned out that I could've just taken the escalator, but I ended up taking the elevator. All roads lead to Rome. I picked up my race packet and said hi to a couple of my friends before heading back to my hotel to get dinner.
Korean War Memorial
This way to the expo
Packet pickup
Speaker stage
Atlantic City Boardwalk
I decided to eat dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe since it was conveniently located on the bottom floor of the Trump Taj Mahal. I started off with a pint of Sam Adams Oktoberfest with a souvenir pint glass. I would pick up a clean glass at their store after dinner. Then for my meal I got The Legendary Burger. I've had better burgers, but it was a good sized burger and it was pretty tasty.
Pint of Sam Adams Oktoberfest
The Legendary Burger
Back at my room, I went through my race packet and gathered my race gear for tomorrow's marathon. I also noticed that the room safe was already locked. So I called the front desk for assistance. They sent up a guy to manually open up the safe.
Race shirt
Mr. Flat Runner ready for Atlantic City
Sunday 10/18
I got ready and made the walk over to the starting area near Bally's. As I looked for the restroom inside the casino, I bumped into a few famous Marathon Maniacs also doing the same thing. As the race start approached, we made our way over to the starting corral. Thank goodness the race started at 8 am which gave me more time to rest up in between races.
Starting line
I started the race with the 4:15 pace group which was led by one of my Marathon Maniac friends. I think after about mile 3, I could not keep up with them. I slowed down a lot getting to the halfway point as I started the two out and backs out on the road. It was cool to see a lot of my friends that were ahead of me and behind me. I was dragging a bit as I reached the halfway mark, but thankfully, I was able to rally a bit and make it under 5 hrs. I thought it was nicer to be back on the boardwalk where the surface was much more forgiving and not cambered.
Click here for my Garmin data.
Yeah, it's the finish line!
Finish line
I actually felt pretty good after finishing this marathon and I was able to keep it under 5 hrs. I really don't like running doubles, but I was able to pick up two new states in one weekend. After getting my finisher's medal and congratulating some of the runners that I had been leapfrogging with for many miles, I slowly made my way over the beer garden. There I was able to get some tasty New England chowder to go with the beers. I hung out a bit with my fellow Marathon Maniacs and 50 Staters. Then it started to get a bit chilly, so I started making my way back to my hotel.
Beers and New England Chowder
Marathon Maniacs/50 Staters in the beer garden
I love free race photos!
Delaware/New Jersey double done
After getting cleaned up and watching TV for a couple of hours, I finally rolled out of bed and walked back to Bally's to eat dinner. I like watching Triple D (Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives), so I decided to check out Guy Fieri's Chophouse. I didn't have a reservation, but I figured that it was early and didn't need one since I was dining alone. I was given a booth that was close enough to see the TV's at the bar. I started things off with a martini. Then for my meal I ordered their Heritage Pork Chop Paillard and the Chili Lime Street Corn. Both items were very good and full of flavor. The pork chop was delicious with pretty much a salad on top of it. I would recommend both items. I finished things off with another martini.
Guy Fieri's Chophouse
Nice looking menu
Martini #1
Heritage Pork Chop Paillard
Chili Lime Street Corn
Martini #2
Monday 10/19
I needed to get to Philadelphia airport by around 5 am to catch an early flight home, so I had to take the route that included tolls. If I were to avoid tolls, it would've taken about 2 hrs longer. That was not worth the money that I would've saved. I ended up paying the following tolls for taking the Atlantic City Expressway and Walt Whitman Bridge.
$.75
$3.00
$5.00
After gassing up the rental car at a nearby gas station, I dropped off the car with Budget and took the shuttle to the terminal. My flight home had a layover in Las Vegas. Terminal 1 was not a very nice looking terminal. The carpeting was begging to be cleaned or changed. The food options were also not very appealing. I finally decided on eating at Sammy's Beach Bar and Grill. I ordered their Mahi Mahi Fish Tacos, but the waitress informed me that it was actually cod. Whatever. I was hungry. They were not bad, albeit a bit pricey.
Cod fish tacos
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