Grandma's Marathon is actually named after the marathon's first sponsor from 1977, a restaurant chain in Duluth, MN. Prior to being a restaurant chain, Grandma's was actually a "boarding house for lonely sailors" (aka brothel). My sister went to college at University of Minnesota - Duluth and the college students there treat it as a good excuse for a party (not that they need one).
We flew into the Twin Cities on a late flight on Thursday and met up with Meredith and Rob the next morning for the drive. I wanted the chance to hang out with my sister before she got around her college buddies (which usually involves a lot of shouting, inside jokes and jumping around in conversations) so we rode up together and put the boys in the other car.
The expo was busy but packet pickup was almost empty when we got there. Cody and I had followed the instructions, so walked right up & got our packets. Meredith forgot her card (of course) but, as her fiancee said, "there'll be a special line for special people like you." It only took her about five extra minutes.
That night my sister and her crew went out to a comedy show. We'd been interested in going...but, with a four-thirty alarm set, our good sense prevailed. Maybe that means we're getting old. My sister had enough sense to leave the show and be home by midnight. Her friends somehow ended up jumping in a river sometime that night and finally wound up in bed about five in the morning...however, they were not running in the race.
The shuttle bus ride from our hotel to the starting line took about 45 minutes. Considering we had to run all the way back to downtown (this race is a point-to-point along the lake shore) it definitely seemed like far too long of a ride.
Our plan for this race was to run two miles and walk one. My sister didn't have a plan (and had actually done even less training than us), except for her competitive nature and natural athleticism. We ran the first two miles together, then she continued on while we took our first walk break. Our plan dissolved quickly after that mark. The lowest point of the race (for me) was between mile nine and mile fourteen. I'd left my long-sleeve shirt in gear check since it'd been reasonably warm at the start and the general rule is if you're comfortable at the start you'll be too warm in the race. The temperature actually went down a few degrees and it rained. It wasn't until we encountered the cast-offs at the half marathon start that things started looking up. I made off with a long-sleeved shirt and a pair of mittens that improved my outlook considerably (and made me look slightly less longingly at the dropout points). The second wonderful thing that happened at the 14 mile mark was food. A guy had a tray with pickles, peanut butter & crackers, granola bars, and bananas. I took one of each, with the pickle being pretty much the best thing I'd ever eaten in a race.
The rest of the race was filled with lots of walking and some (very slow) running. The gorgeous views of the lake were entirely shrouded in mist...we only saw a hundred feet or so of water when we were right at the shore. It rained on and off the entire time.
I have to say one thing about this race: the local support is awesome. There may have been less people but there were more cheer stations along the course than any other run I've ever been in and a lot more creativity. One of the first we encountered was a lady banging on a drum and yelling at runners to "listen to nature for God's sake" and then she spanked a shirtless male runner in spandex. We also saw a yeti, a troll lineup, a bear, lots of dogs, and quite a few kegs. And this was from the back of the pack. And every time we thanked one of the volunteers they also thanked us for coming. This is a town that truly appreciates its race.
By the time we crossed the finish line (6:18) the finish area was pretty empty, due both to our slow finish and the rain that had started in harder since we'd hit town. We found my sister & company at a nearby bar and then proceeded to another one for lunch, where they (surprise, surprise) knew the bartender. We then broke for afternoon nap time.
That night, it was time to celebrate. Meredith being the social butterfly, wanted to go to where the party was at...Grandma's. There was a line to the end of the block. Personally, I've never been to a bar that was worthy of standing in line (and the boys both agreed with me)...but this was my sister's scene. For the first half hour, the line moved at a reasonable pace (despite all of the people jumping in line ahead of us) & we got to within 20 feet of the door. Then they closed the doors & started letting in only as many as left the bar. Plus, some other jerks had come up from another side & claimed they "owned this town" so should jump right in front. It was not looking promising.
We left the line. When Meredith asked us where we wanted to go, we responded we didn't really care. She yelled at us to pick something. "And now we're pissed," commented Rob. We ended up going to a bar outside of the main drag that was almost completely empty. After a drink or two, we dropped Meredith & Rob back off downtown to fight the crowds for tables & cabs at the end of the night and headed back to the hotel.
The next morning we met up with them for breakfast at the site of "Duluth's best hangover food." They headed home right after breakfast and we had another day to kill. We did a lot of touristy stuff and walked a lot. I learned in San Francisco that the key to a fast recovery after a marathon was to do a lot of walking...so we did. We went to the acquarium and then for a walk along the shore. Then we drove out to Split Rock lighthouse and walked not only to the lighthouse but also along a couple miles of trails in the area. We also walked along the lakeshore at sunset, just as the fog was finally beginning to clear out.
The next morning we went for milkshakes and a walk and it was almost hot & you could actually see the lake. Of course, shortly after that we had to get back in the car and drive away...
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