Bear Chasin': 13x13x13 - 4

Every current or aspiring half or full marathon runner from Dallas to Houston should take part in the Davy Crockett Bear Chase. It may not be large or fancy but it is all kinds of awesome. Example #1: sweet shirts.

There are no timing chips or fancy signs, only people who ask, "whereabouts y'all from?" And when you reply "Houston" they will tell you, "sure is a good place to be from." Then, they will make you PB&Js when you're done running.

The morning started at 3:30 and we hit the road at 4:00 for the 120 mile drive to Groveton, TX. We parked in the high school parking lot and walked all of 200 feet to pick up our packets right before the start. 

The weather was absolutely perfect; not too hot and not too cold, not windy and just cloudy enough not to bake in the sun. The route was beautiful and I'll say the only down side was a few uneven surfaces along the way.

I also met a lovely man who I would guess is in his late 60s or early 70s. He loved the new year's resolution displayed on my shirt and he was sporting a 50 States Marathon Club jersey. When I asked if he was working on all 50 states, his response was "Oh, I'm done. This is my 92nd marathon." He has trained both his wife and daughter (who was running with him today) for their first marathons and ran it with them. He said they were the most fulfilling experiences of his life. The secret to success according to him is to take it slow - both in training and in running. Take your time, stop to walk every once in a while. Your goal should be to be able to run the next day. We passed each other again as I was approaching the finish line and they were going back for their second lap of the course. He gave me a high five and from the most genuine place I can imagine said, "You're doing great - I am so proud of you!" When I am considering whether or not I want to run a full marathon in the future, he will be a voice in the back of my head telling me I can make it.

The other runners totally blew me away. Let me tell you, this course did not need spectators cheering runners on because the runners themselves took care of it. If I passed someone or if I was being passed, the other person was cheering me on telling me how great I was doing.

And the aid stations. Oh the Aid stations! This gem was at the half-way point, right next to the orange cone with a paper sign taped to it: "Turn Around!"

Here we have and extremely cheerful volunteer with bananas, oranges, pickles (only in Texas would this happen), candy, pretzels, water and powerade. And please notice the lack of line at the port-a-potty.

Final time: 2:37:19

This is almost a PR. My fastest time is 2:37:18, which is so close. Let's just chalk up the difference to the fact today's race only had a gun time and not chip times.

Cory and I before the run

My loot after the run:
medal, bear, and popsicle