Welcome to Part 3 of my recap of the Center of the Nation Series. Of course if you’ve missed part 2 just go here and if you missed part 1 just go here.

In my last post I covered off on South Dakota’s race. That brings us to our Wednesday in Wyoming! I’ve got LOTS to talk about for hump day.

First, let me start off by saying the course in Wyoming was breathtaking.

Sunrise on the ranch is what I call morning glory!

It was an out and back course on a family ranch (thank you Jensen family). Terrain was loose gravel and dirt, mostly flat with one hill leading up to the turnaround. This was where we first got to experience the “turnaround crew” or as others called them the “ice guys” (photo to come for Day 5 recap) . They were 2 of the many amazing volunteers. These 2 guys spent countless hours at the turnaround cheering everyone on and offering water and ice (it was a HOT HOT day). They gave out free hugs too.

The morning started with a speech from Roger. He had asked that this day be “Boston Day” and that people wear blue and yellow. He was ponying up $5 for every person in blue and yellow up to $500. Long story short, Roger lost over a hundred pounds and he did it for the main reason that he wanted to run the Boston Marathon because his dad had run it. And simultaneous to that he wanted badly to raise money on behalf of his niece Julia who’s been battling with Cystic Fybrosis.

Speech!

Boston Day!

Red Sox in support of Boston worn by none other than Clint our amazing race director!

Good morning!

Because the course was made of loose gravel and dirt, I opted to wear these lovely zebra print gaiters that my friend Shishaldin made. (She made them for all 5 of us. And two different patterns too!)

Gaiters made with love. Thanks Shishaldin!

So the only teensy weensy problem on this day was my tummy…..not sure if it was the fast food we had the day before or nerves or what but I was REALLY uncomfortable for the entire run. And there were times were I had no choice but to walk and pray for the “urge” to pass. Thankfully I made it to the finish before heading over to the lovely “powder room”.

At least my $11 blue capri pants purchased the night before from Walmart were a success!

Between Roger’s speech in the morning and then feeling physically ill, my emotional state became compromised for sure. I think it was at about mile 12 that I started to cry. But it wasn’t really a bad cry. It was a GOOD cry. I had that moment where I realized how lucky I was to be able to travel and run and experience life.

There were a few more highlights of the day….a new friend Daniel was closing in on the finish line for the half just as I was closing in on it too….only I still had to complete 2 more laps. But Daniel was struggling those last few minutes and I picked up the paced and supported him and cheered for him and got him to the finish. Of course then I gave him a congratulatory hug and went back out for my final 4 miles. (This was my slowest day. 2:43 finish time.)

Daniel wore superhero shirts every day and came in first place for all 5 halves. All were between 1:42 and 1:55. Amazing!!!

Another highlight was getting to know two really inspirational guys. Meet Grant and Aaron:

These guys are working towards completing 50 marathons this year, raising money for the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation for spinal cord injury research. You can find out more about their efforts and donate here. There was also another runner who had a graphite prosthetic. I didn’t know his story until just today when someone shared this article.

Slow time….fun gaiters…..my favorite state sign of the trip….and more bling!

With Wyoming complete, we headed back to our cabin but not before making a stop at the state line for a photo op:

To be continued.

Question: If you could only see one would it be a sunrise or a sunset? Ever had a runner’s trots issue?

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