I signed up for the final run of the Mercedes-Benz Marathon in Birmingham. The race had been around a long time but the directors decided they were done and I didn’t want to miss out on the experience. Race FOMO and all. Plus I figured Alabama would be warmish in February compared to other states I still need to do.

This was a quick one. I arrived on Saturday afternoon and went straight to the expo. I was kind of disappointed in it- very small and not a lot going on. The race shirt was also white cotton…not my favorite as I prefer the soft shirts or tech material and white is just not good for me – I’m messy. I didn’t stay there long and then headed to my hotel. It was about a two mile stroll in the rain, but it was good to walk after being on flights all morning.

For dinner I decided to hole up in my hotel and enjoy one of the worst pre race options possible. Hattie B’s Hot fried chicken. I know better but it looked good on door dash and had great reviews so 🤷🏼‍♀️. At least I was hydrating with water 🤣. And it was really good.

The next morning I caught an Uber to get close to the start line. The weather was good for running- cold. I planned to just run on feel and check out the city and it ended up going pretty well. There were some gnarly hills but because I was cold I ran faster than I thought I would, so was pretty happy with my finish. Turns out fried chicken isn’t such a bad idea after all.

At the finish line they gave us a glow in the dark medal (awesome), a beach towel, socks, and snacks. So some pretty good swag. I ended up walking back to my hotel after the race. It was only 2 miles away and I knew there was a Starbucks on the route and coffee was all I could think about. I also think it helped my legs flush out before I boarded the plane back. To top it off a drag queen told me she loved my “necklace” on the way back :).

All in all this wasn’t the most memorable race, but it was a confidence boost that I can still run well, and a good training run. I found out just a couple weeks prior to the race that I’m running the Boston Marathon in April so the more miles I can get, the better.

Next up. Massachusetts!