Nashville: Hills, Hills, and More Hills.

The end of April brought about one of the most fun running vacations I’ve had in many months: I headed to Nashville, Tennessee. The Nashville Race is the fourth race this year in the Competitor Group Rock N Roll Marathon Series. It is my fourth race as I compete to become a Rock Legend. Three more of their events to complete and I’ll be one of a unique group of runners to have completed seven of their events in a calendar year. But, that is not what made the weekend so much fun.

The fun began weeks before when my dear friend Bruce Smith debated running the race, but decided against because he had a weekend of fun events planned in Nashville for his grandmother’s 70^th birthday. I was invited to share in the family’s festivities because I would be in town. Fortunately, the race for this event was on a Saturday, not the traditional Sunday, and I WOULD be able to share in the family fun.

I flew into Nashville early on Friday morning the 29^th of April. Once settled in at my hotel, I grabbed a cab to the Convention Center in the heart of the city to grab my running packet from the Expo. Long before heading to this race, I knew that my neighbor Adam Gerard was also attending (not as a racer) but to support a group of racers who had signed up to raise funds for Sjögren’s Syndrome Foundation http://www.sjogrens.org/ The organization is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, and Adam is the Vice President of Operations.  Adam and I had communicated back and forth a bit about the race and hopefully seeing each other over the weekend in Nashville.

I was passing through the Expo enjoying the hustle and bustle when I ran into Adam being hit up by the “Balance Band” man. Yup, one of those demonstrations where they push on your arm while you stand on one foot, and imagine that, you lose your balance. Then they place a “magic” band on your wrist and try the demonstration again. First, you know the push is coming and are better prepared, and second, they push in a different spot that would not push you off balance. Suddenly, a sucker is born, thanks P.T. Barnum, and a balance wristband is sold. Adam is a very smart man and I don’t believe he would have purchased a wristband, but timing is everything. We hugged made a few introductions with some of his folks and eventually moved off in separate directions.  Adam was saved from the “Balance Band” huckster!

I finished up at the expo, set out to explore the city, and to have some lunch. I’ve been to Nashville before, so some of the sights were repeats, but the weather was fabulous and I was enjoying being outside to soak up some warmth for these old bones. Nashville reminds me of New Orleans and Key West because there is music pouring from each and every bar. Live bands are playing all day, every day. In this instance I was rockin’ to some country twang! I loved the smell of bar-b-que and the country tunes wafting around my head: I was having a ball.

I finally headed back to the hotel to relax and rest by the pool. I asked about using the pool because the chairs were all stacked up in a corner. The desk clerk told me I couldn’t use it, but the section of “pavers” outside the pool could be used to sun if I so chose. What? That paver section was adjacent to the bar in the lobby. Now, the bar patrons can look into the pool area, but somehow sunning right next to the window was not my idea of a good time.  I chose instead to relax in my room with a book and await the arrival of Bruce. He was driving in from Kentucky and was going to shuttle me around to and from the race the next morning. Bruce and I ran together in San Antonio last November and had a fabulous weekend there, so I was really looking forward to another weekend with Bruce.

Bruce got in about midnight and we settled in to sleep only to get up at the crack of dawn to head to the start line. Bruce dropped me off and based on my expected finish, agreed to meet at the finish line at a pre-determined time. Competitor Group always has a “family area” with letters of the alphabet on tall poles so that runners, friends, and family members can connect at the end of the race. There were approximately 25,000 marathoners and with family members and friends milling about, well, you get the idea.

I loved this race. I loved running through the streets of Nashville and listening to the bands stationed every mile or so. In New Orleans there were jazz musicians, in Dallas there was a mix of rock and country. In Nashville, it was country baby: studded shirts, cowboy hats, boots and country attitude. I loved the music.

As with all races, I look for the one “critter” along the race route. I did see one school mascot, but the gal that snapped the shot didn’t capture the image well enough to share so I was in search of another critter. When I first started running, I was buying all of the images the race photographers snapped and then I realized, they all look the same. Different race, different running gear, but they are all pretty much identical. So, now for my running collection, I choose to pose with something that grabs my twisted sense of humor. Most often, it is a school mascot: a critter. I have gotten some amusing shots and they are more memorable for me with the amount of races I run.

So, after the disappointment of the flubbed snap I was on a mission and then I saw the critter of critters. He was sitting outside a funky shop and was just waiting for me to stop by. The shop owner was outside cheering on the racers and was more than happy to snap Fido and me. I believe this is now my most favorite “critter” shot. It is a good thing I snapped him because there were no more school mascots on the race.

By the time that shot was snapped, I’d begun to realize this was no easy race route.  The route was extremely hilly. Not the type of hills you run up and get a reprieve running down on the other side. They were often uphill, leveling off, only to turn a corner and run uphill again. UGH! I hate hills in my runs. Yes, they are part of the sport, but I have to admit, I love flat runs. So, this was definitely the Nash’hills’ race for me. The hills added a bit of time to my race, but not substantially. Admittedly, I was ready for the 13.1 miles to end!  I did see a few of the folks running in the Sjögren’s Syndrome Foundation t-shirts who were raising funds for the foundation along with the CEO of the foundation who was also running the race. I saw Adam’s co-worker off and on along the race route and made sure to shout howdy every time I ran past.

Finally, I crested the last hill to see a nice downhill slope to the finish.  Another half-marathon competed, the “Grand Slam” race in the Competitor Group series. I grabbed the post-race snacks and began to look for Bruce. I couldn’t find the letter 'F”, so I hung out at “H” texting him every few minutes or so to let him know where I was. After a long 30 minutes, I decided to go grab my free beer and scan the throng (like that would work in the sea of humans). While looking for the free beer, I started chatting with a husband and wife who had just finished and they too were looking for the family area. Apparently the letter I was hanging under denoted a parking area at the stadium. We rounded a corner and there stretched out before us like Mecca was the “family area.” The alphabet signs were there. We looked at each other, shrugged and agreed it was the most bizarre location we could imagine for the area, but were happy to know we’d find our folks.

There was Bruce, as planned, waiting under the “F.”  I was tired and ready to go, but my good friend Bruce insisted I get my beer first. I mean, after all, what are friends for. Beer in hand we wended our way to his car. Holy Running Blisters. We got caught up in a crowd of people funneled up a set of stairs, which truly was the only exit away from the race.  I was hungry, tired, and in no mood for slow pokes. We finally got out of the cluster and too the car. Amen, a hot shower and family fun with Bruce’s family was dead ahead. I couldn’t wait.

Unfortunately dear readers, you will have to wait: just a short day or two as I add the “family fun” to this post. It was so unique that it deserves a stand-alone recounting….