Maine race day

Yesterday was race day.  It was a sunny wake up with temps in the cool mid 50s.  It stayed comfortable throughout the morning and proved a gorgeous day for a half marathon.

In the pics you won't see my obligatory bib pic as there isn't one to show.  No bib.  No timing chip.  This was a fun, old fashioned race where you run and simply give your name at the finish for record.  It was certainly a change from standard races with a bib, timing chip, and emergency personnel (police and EMT) along the route.  But, in the end I think it was a nice job by a small organization looking to inspire fitness and raise funds for its camp.  Also, so long as you finish what more do you need, right?

My watch had me clocked at 1:48:10.  I'm happy with that considering how hilly the course was and my overall distraction throughout the race.  This was a picturesque route that displayed both country and ocean views.  My favorite was the turn at Marshall Point Lighthouse.  In the end I could have trained harder for a stronger finish but am happy with my time.

After the race we headed back to the Inn to check out before heading to brunch.  From there it was back to NJ and then onward to DC.

This was a fun weekend with my sister and brother-in-law.  These race weekends are always fun but much more so when you've got great company like them.

Up next:   Kansas

Arriving at the camp

Heading over to the start line

Finish line shot

Brunch time

Salmon with eggs Benedict.  Delicious.

A great weekend

Maine, whales and more lobster

It was a fun day today that saw us spotting a number of fin whales off the coast of Boothbay Harbor in the Gulf of Maine.  I have never seen a whale up close before so needless to say it was quite an experience.  We saw a few not too far from our boat but it was the last sighting that really caught everyone's eye.

A fin whale came up for air just within 30 yards of the boat giving us an up close viewing that I never saw coming.  It was so close that everyone on the bow of the boat could literally feel the spray of the water that he/she exhaled.  It was great.  However, because I was caught off guard and busy taking in the experience, there is no photo to record the moment.  But, take my word for it ...  it was awesome.

Afterwards it was time for dinner and my last Maine lobster for the weekend.  Therefore I decided to go all out and get the 3-pounder.  I know what you're thinking.  I should be carbo loading for my race tomorrow.  Well, take a look at the photo below and you tell me if you could resist a lobster like that.

Race day tomorrow and more pics to close the weekend.

Our boat the Pink Lady II

Pushing away from the coast

LOOK IT'S A WHALE!

And another

Yep another

No more whales but I just like this pic of the ocean

Heading back to land

More lobster

Awesome

Dinner view

Three pound lobster to prep me for some marathoning

In case you need to see it from another angle

Maine day 1

I'm almost inclined to let the photos just speak for the day.  But, I'll put a little down here to get things started.

A great first day in Maine.  It started with a drive over to historic Camden to see what was described earlier as "a small iconic Maine town."  And they weren't lying.  It's a quaint little town.

Afterwards I wanted to see how long the drive would take from the Inn to Tenants Harbor for race day.  It was pretty quick.  Once at the camp where the race will start, we decided to take a walk down to the water for some pictures.  From there we drove over to Port Clyde to see the famous Marshall Point Lighthouse.  For those of you who are fans of Forrest Gump, it's the lighthouse that he runs up in the running portion of his life.  It's pretty cool.

At that point it was time for dinner so after a quick stop at the Inn to rest we went over to Miller's Lobster Deck.  As you can guess, the lobster was delicious and the views memorable.

Tomorrow we're doing a boat tour to see if we can see some whales.  Then it's race day on Sunday to cap the weekend, before heading back to DC.  More pics to come.

The view I wake up to in the morning

Lunch time

Where the marathon will begin

We found a beach

Marshall Point Lighthouse

Rich and I

Dinner time

Soft shell lobster which we were told was "sweeter" than hard shell.  They were right.

View for dinner

Sun setting