42/50 Rehoboth Beach Marathon

Here we are, briefly submerged in the frigid waters of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Delaware in December. This is what happens when a race offers 3 free beer tickets. We were in the water less than a minute, approximately equal to the time I had remaining on the race clock - I barely completed my 36th sub-3-hour state marathon. You could call it a post-race ice bath, but mostly, we were in the ocean because I told a friend it was a tradition he must oblige for having just run his fastest marathon. A fitting celebration for both of us!

2017 was my rebuild and regrowth year: I was coming off a hamstring injury when I pulled a calf muscle skateboarding this summer AND I haven't cut my hair since last year. I planned to run 10 marathons (though I canceled the Missoula Marathon after the calf incident). Of the 9 completed (GA, KS, OH, ND, WY, SD, CT, VA, DE), 2 of them missed the sub-3-hour goal: WY (the stupid yet glorious reason why was documented HERE) and the SD redo (I got sick race weekend) that I never did write about but remains a highlight of the year; just a great road trip with Libertyville Running Club friends - sorry for getting y'all sick! Third time in SD will have to be a charm.

I was planning a solo trip to Delaware when I mentioned to friends that this race is located near Dogfish Head Brewery... and then there were 3 of us. Nate, Ted, and I flew to Baltimore on Friday and found ourselves, surprise, surprise, in Chesapeake Brewing Co. by noon. After years of tasting flights at breweries, this one, owned by a former pilot, delivered on the wordplay.

Could have named the beers after the Top Gun cast for a 5-star review

The drive from the Baltimore airport to Rehoboth Beach, DE is about 2.5 hours. Did you know Delaware was our first state? Now you do. Rehoboth is a large beach town in the otherwise sparsely populated SE region of the state notable as the original location of Dogfish Head Brewery, which happened to be demolished last week. However, it has been replaced by a new building, where we found ourselves having dinner and beers after picking up our packets. We were back at the condo and in bed around 8:30pm.

A pink bib without my trusty pink shorts?! Amateur mistake.

The race is Saturday morning, 7:00am, with nearly ideal weather: sunny and 40 degrees at the start with no wind. I didn't pack my sunglasses so I borrowed Nate's. Nothing new on race day, right? I stepped out of the bathroom at 7:00am; this is about as close as I've cut it! The race started 2.5 minutes late, luckily, giving me enough time to queue up in the corral.

I tried starting this one conservatively, but soon enough a group of us formed, including someone I had met a few years ago that's also attempting this 50-state-sub-3-hour feat, chatting while peeling off the miles at around a 6:30 pace. That was unnecessary so around mile 14, I dialed it back a bit, knowing I'd miss the company but not wanting to screw this up.

The course is a mix of roads, paved bike trail, a long-ass frosted-over metal bridge(!), and dirt and crushed limestone trail in and out of the Cape Henlopen State Park and the surrounding residential area. Yes, it's pretty flat but most of the second half of this course was on the dirt and crushed limestone which seemed to prevent me from finding that top gear. Mile 20 to the finish slowed considerably. I knew I would do this in under 3 hours but maybe I cut it a bit close this time with 2:59:03. Never a dull moment!

Probably somewhere after mile 20

It was great seeing Ted - who ran the half marathon - out there at miles 18 and 26. He and I walked back to cheer Nate in for a 3:09:34 - his 10th marathon and best to date! Which brings us back to the Atlantic Ocean story...

This race has rave reviews, largely stemming from its afterparty located at the finish. It's a pricey marathon ($160 at its peak) but the food is stocked and Dogfish Head Brewery is on hand pouring your free beers. Throw in a DJ and this party started looking like a wedding reception. After those beers, we walked to the beach for our baptism, armed with a blanket I just found and a couple foil wraps.

Fashion statement with Ted, Me, and Nate

We returned to the afterparty for a few celebratory beers then retreated to the condo for a nap. It was 2:30pm and there was a brewery behind our place that we planned to reside in all evening.

Revelation Craft Brewing Co. was probably the highlight of the weekend, beer wise. One of the owners was a former Dogfish Head brewer and it showed in the quality and variety of beer. They offered 15 beers that we sampled our way through. I can't say that I've done that before; drank every beer a brewery offered on tap in one sitting. Throw in a wood-fired pizza truck and sparse but chatty patrons and this made for a relaxing night. Cheers!

I had 3,000 calories to replenish, DON'T JUDGE ME!

On our way back to the airport Sunday, we set course for the main Dogfish Head location in Milton, DE. Unfortunately, they were closed so the staff could toy shop for Toys for Tots - bummer, but we're cool with that reason. Instead, we took our adventure back to Baltimore for a kick-ass funnel-cake-battered crab cake from L.P. Steamers with our beers at Diamond Back Brewing Co.

Ted can't even fake disappointment

East Coast carnival food? Delicious!

Oh look, Du Claw Brewing is located in the airport and we're 3 hours early. What to do, what to do?

With all this crab and beer, I'm excited to get back to Baltimore in March for my MD marathon. But next up, I'll redo FL in January at the Celebration Marathon.