25/50 Lincoln National Guard Marathon

Whoa-oh, we're halfway there (sing this like Bon Jovi)! 25 states done with 25 states to go.

This race is exactly why I set out to run a marathon in every state. I wanted to discover areas of the country that I hadn't given much thought to or had an uninformed opinion about. To be honest, my impressions of Nebraska were mostly derived from the occasional road trip from somewhere to somewhere that involved getting across Nebraska as quick as I could in a car or on a motorcycle. I did have a recollection of Omaha being a rather hip city but knew little about Lincoln other than that it is home to the University of Nebraska.

This race sells out in hours due to its ideal course and fast field. It is a well-organized half and full marathon capped at 12,500 participants that culminates on the finish line staged in the University of Nebraska's Memorial Stadium which, at 87,000 seating capacity, is huge. Unlike any race I've done before, it opens online registration at 3am to alleviate the rush to sign up.

Memorial Stadium holds a NCAA record for 340 consecutive sell out games.

We drove 500+ miles the day before the race to arrive at the expo, then grabbed milkshakes at Ivanna Cone in Lincoln's Haymarket District - a cluster of renovated warehouses home to restaurants, bars, boutiques, coffee/donut shops, and even a licorice museum that is reminiscent of San Francisco's or Seattle's Public Markets. Of course, the irony in catching a cold the day before a race that was held in near-record heat was not lost on me, hence the NEED for a milkshake. Some NyQuil to sleep, some DayQuil and cough drops to race (that turned out to be a bad idea as I was parched the entire race), and I was determined to make the best of it.

Given the circumstances, I was a bit nervous about the possibility of missing the sub-3 hour mark. My approach was to hold 6:30 min/mile pace until the heat (I knew there would be little relief from the sun on most of the course) and my cold got the better of me; and as you can see here it did just that after 16 miles. However, my spirits were lifted by frequent chant of "Go LRC!," which to my mind was everyone cheering for my own Libertyville Running Club. As it turns out, Lincoln has a running store called Lincoln Running Co. and it was probably that "LRC" that most people were screaming for. No matter. Though the back half was lonely, I did make conversation for several miles with another runner. Well, I had lost my voice from the cold so the conversation was rather one-sided. I'm sure he gravitated toward the pink shorts worn by "That Guy!".

I got more "Hey, it's that guy!" comments than I got comments about the pink shorts.

After the race, we met some friends for lunch at Lazlo's Brewery (the Mango IPA was excellent) and then embarked on what previously had held little interest to me during this state marathon journey - a tour of the state capitol building. Now this wasn't an ordinary tour. Our friend - one of The Wife's college housemates - is a Nebraska state senator (representing Omaha's Midtown district, for you locals). After showing us around her office, she joined us on the guided tour of this impressively built and ornately decorated building (if you're an architect buff, this is worth a look). She didn't tell the group who she was. Nevertheless, the tour guide later pointed her seat out in the chamber and proceeded to proclaim her to be his favorite senator of them all. With her cover foiled, it was back to shaking hands and kissing babies for her.

What's unique about Nebraska, something I find fascinating, is that it is the only state whose legislature is unicameral and also the only state whose legislature is nonpartisan. As a result, there is no House of Representatives - all the power resides within the Senate, the Senate does not sit according to party affiliation in the chamber meetings, and voting ballots do not list a candidate's party affiliation. The Supreme Court, also housed within the capitol building, displays an incredible quote above its justices' seats that reads, "Eyes and ears are poor witnesses when the soul is barbarous." That is a pretty effective quote to any witness giving testimony before the court. Who would have thought this egalitarian utopia would only exist in Nebraska of all states?!

Donuts are so hipster right now that even Nebraska is doing them in spades. Unfortunately, our efforts to indulge were seriously thwarted. The Doughnut Hole in Lincoln looked to be THE place. Of course Google Maps isn't clear on the location. By the time we discovered it, they had closed 4 hours early for the day. Then, they were also closed when we stopped by on Sunday...and again on Monday. We found another place in Omaha to stop by on our way home and arrived at dawn only to discover that it was also closed for the day. So, back home we went with a 2:54:03 marathon (14th/1,146) but no donuts.

I think I was a bit hot here and clearly walking the aid stations. (Photo credit: Journal Star)

Of course, this wasn't a total loss. A friend delivered some quality donuts from The Donut Vault in Chicago, IL to us as we left for the race and some other friends had a dozen amazing donuts from Sweetwater's Donut Mill in Kalamazoo, MI waiting for us when we got home. Running friends from a donut-themed running club are the best.

Sweetwater's Donut Mill - Kalamazoo, MI