Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas

The Endless Journey

With a new kitten still adjusting to our little family and his big sister, Vixen, my DH and I had all but decided that he would stay home while I made the trek to Vegas solo. When I picked up my Dad (Grandpaw) at the airport, returning home from his Thanksgiving journey to No Cal, my Dad was very disappointed that he might not be need for kitty-sitting duty. So, we all talked it over, and my Dad assured us that he could handle Donner, the ADHD monster, and Vixen, the Grouch for 3 days.

Friday morning, we ran a few errands, then headed off to Vegas, Baby! Then, it happened. A few miles north of Devore, my DH's car died. My cell phone was dead, so we used the call box to get a tow truck to take us to a dealership in Victorville. Thanks AAA for the free 7 miles, but we needed a 22 mile tow to make it to Victorville. After a 2-hour delay, we got a rental car and were once again on our way. Of course, this is when I remembered the $200.00 in MGM Mirage gift certificates I had left at home. OOOOPs! What else could go wrong?

The Expo

We finally made it to THEhotel and off I schlepped to the Expo. I got in and out very quickly with no lines for the bib or the sweet red tech-t! I have finally learned to ask for a Small when the tech-t is "unisex" (aka men's sizing) so it actually fits fairly well. Oh, for those wondering, yes THEhotel is nice, but I wasn't impressed enough to stay there again. The regular rooms at Mandalay Bay and plenty nice, and the suites are nicer than the standard suite at THEhotel.

Friday evening was play time and my DH's choice of cuisine. He had a hankerin' for Mexican food and we learned last year that Diablo's at the Monte Carlo uses jack-a$$ meat instead of chicken, beef, or pork, so we decided to try T&T at the Luxor. Most excellent choice because everything from the chips and salsa to the enchiladas to my DH's mouth watering carnitas was absolutely the bomb! The margaritas were a little pricey, but yummy and worth a little splurge. I almost want to make the 4-hour drive one of these days just to go back and stuff my face again!

Saturday

Woke up early and check on the car. It wasn't going to be ready until Tuesday, which meant my plan of dropping of the rental and getting our car on the way home was out. Oh well, we're in Vegas, Baby! so who the heck cares! Had a quick breakfast at our hotel, then headed out for a shortish walk down the Strip. We normally go all the way to at least the Fashion Show Mall, but with 26.2 miles on tap for Sunday, I though we'd better keep it closer to home base. We checked out the new monstrosity that is City Center. Wow. I can't believe how big that place is! Most of the shops in the mall haven't opened yet. Hmmm, another excuse to come back soon! Then, we crossed the street and headed to my DH's favorite, the Miracle Mile shops. It was about 11:30 and I wanted to meet up with the forumites planning to show up to the Expo at noon, so we headed back to Mandalay Bay. I checked my cell phone while we were entering the Luxor and found that everyone was already at the Expo! Ooops, better kick it into high gear!

Made it to the Expo and found PYTM, DaTortoise, JHong, Wadia, and Pony hangin' out. We were soon joined by Jakerome and his big lens. Fun times!

I ate a super early dinner at the Pizza Hut Express at the Excalibur. Bought a little stuffed reindeer to bring home to my little furry loves and headed back to THEhotel to relax and get some sleep. As I was putting my D-tag on my shoe and laying out my running clothes, I realized I had forgotten my handheld. Ooops!

The Race

Woke up at 5:00 on Sunday morning and had my traditional pre-race orange gatorade. Then I promptly puked up the gatorade. Ooops. At 5:30, I headed downstairs to the start with a queasy stomach and not properly hydrated. Fun stuff. In shorts, Maniac bra top, long-sleeve white t-shirt, Maniacs jacket, and gloves, I still could not believe how cold it was outside! My nose immediately froze as I shivered my way to my corral. I heard the elite women start and turned around to watch on the screen in front of Mandalay Bay. After the official race start, it took a little over 20 minutes for my corral 11 to cross the start line. Yikes. The course headed south along the Strip toward the Las Vegas sign for about 3/4 mile, then turned and headed north down the Strip. As I passed the start line, I could still see runners backed up almost all the way to the Luxor. Yikes. It must have taken close to an hour to get everyone across the start! The fireworks this year weren't as impressive as last year's and I really didn't notice them at all once I started running.

This was my second time running down the Strip, and I was determined to enjoy it this time! I spotted PYTM at mile 2 with her Holla sign! Then I just cruised along, not looking at my Garmin, not caring much about my pace. At the Half Marathon split, I was of course tempted to call it a short day, but there I was, sporting the Maniacs yellow and I just couldn't be a wuss! After the turn off the Strip at about mile 10.5, it was no-man's-land for the next 10 miles. The crowd support was sparse and the water stations were understaffed, but those who were out there braving the freezing temps were really awesome!

The out and back part along Hacienda was pretty boring but it gave me the chance to keep my eyes open for other forumites. At mile 16, I pulled off to the side of the road and did a little Vegas-style strip-tease to remove my long sleeve cotton-t, which was soaking wet and making me feel too cold! I had to take off my Maniacs jacket, then the t. Ooh-la-la. As I turned to start running again, I saw Wadia running by with a big smile on his face, a little behind the 4-hour pacer. I knew a PR was a sure-bet and I had my fingers crossed for the big sub-4!

I figured I had missed JHong and I was just watching for Maniac yellow and giving shout-outs and waves to fellow maniacs. That's when I saw JHong, who actually turned around and started walking with me on his "dead legs" just making the course that much longer. I got really excited when James told me that Pony was only a couple of miles ahead of me and he was limping. I ditched James and started running again, hoping that with 9 miles to go, I could somehow catch Pony! Unfortunately for me and fortunately for Pony, my "running" pace was staying at 11+ and I know Pony's limp was at least that "fast." A fellow Maniac that I had met briefly at one of Charlie Alewine's races caught me and we shuffled along together for a while. I was just shy of mile 19 when Pony ran by at his mile 21. He told me, "I'm hurting." I never know whether to laugh or cry, Pony. I still had hopes of catching my bunny/Pony, so I didn't stick around to trade gimp stories. Off I went at my 11+ shuffle, trying to catch a bunny too far ahead to see!

After the turn-around just before mile 20, I could see Mandalay Bay and then the Luxor all the way in! At mile 22, I checked my Garmin and realized there was no way I was going to catch my bunny unless he was lying on the side of the road writhing in pain. I never want to catch Pony that way! I also realized that my gimp-goal of 5:30 was going to be nearly impossible. Oh, well. With no motivation left, I just gimped along until about mile 25.5 where I spotted PYT again and got the official word that Pony was already finished. Thanks for braving the cold temps to come out and support us, PYT!

There is nothing more beautiful than the 26-mile marker of a marathon! If I'd had anything left in the tank, I would have sprinted to the finish, but all I could do was keep gimping along for a final time of 5:34. Hey, 4 minutes off the gimp-goal ain't half bad.

Oh, I forgot to mention all of the Elvi! Lots of great costumes out there. I particularly loved the Elvis-ettes in running skirts. Sooooo cute! I'll have to consider something like that for next year!

Post-Race

The beer tent is always tempting, but it was just too cold to think about a cold beer. I headed straight for my nicely heated room and a warm shower. It was too late and my legs were too sore to brave the walk to the Bellagio, so I hit the champagne brunch at the Bayside Buffet in Mandalay Bay. Not quite as good as Bellagio, but two thumbs up. I saw quite a few other marathoners and half marathoners at the buffet, which was cool. There was one poor dude limping exactly like I was! I felt his pain. There were a few brave souls who headed to the buffet straight from the race, pre-shower. LOL.

Homeward Bound

My race report would not be complete without mention of my drive home on Monday. It was raining most of the way from state line to Baker, where we stopped at Bob's Big Boy to stuff our faces. Lots of rain off and on, and just south of Hesparia at the Cajon Summit, there was some odd precipitation hitting the windshield. I was quite confused because it wasn't rain or hail, so what the heck could it be? SNOW!@?! This So Cal chick has never seen snow fall before! Snow is that white stuff way up on the mountains! Yikes! I was a little askeered at first, but it had just started snowing, so the road was still passable. It was so amazing to watch the snow fall and the ground along the side of the road turn white! Totally put me in the holiday spirit!