36 of 50 states in the #50in50 done:
NEW YORK 11/4/18: @nycmarathon
NEVADA 11/11/18: @runrocknroll Vegas
PENNSYLVANIA 11/18/18: @Philly_Marathon
WASHINGTON 11/25/18: @seattlemarathon
TENNESSEE 12/1/18: @stjude Memphis
ALABAMA 12/8/18: @irunrocketcity
FLORIDA 1/13/19: @rundisney #wdwmarathon
LOUISIANA 1/20/19: @thelamarathon
MISSISSIPPI 1/26/19: Mississippi blues Marathon
ARIZONA 2/9/19: Mesa-Phoenix Marathon @phxmarathon
TEXAS 2/17/19: Austin marathon @austinmarathon
MASSACHUSETTS 2/24/19: Hyannis Marathon @hyannismarathon
SOUTH CAROLINA 3/2/19: Myrtle Beach marathon @runmbm
ARKANSAS 3/3/19: Little Rock marathon @lrmarathon
NORTH CAROLINA 3/9/19: Wrightsville Beach marathon @wbmarathon
GEORGIA 3/17/19: Publix Atlanta marathon @atlantatrackclub
NEW MEXICO 3/21/19: Dust Bowl Series - New Mexico
OKLAHOMA 3/22/19: Dust Bowl Series - Oklahoma
KANSAS 3/24/19: Chisholm Trail marathon @chisholmtrail44
MISSOURI 4/7/19: Go! St Louis marathon @gostlouis
KENTUCKY 4/27/19: Kentucky Derby marathon @kyderbyfestival
NEW JERSEY 4/28/19: New Jersey marathon @njmarathon
OHIO 5/5/19: Flying Pig marathon @runflyingpig
NORTH DAKOTA 5/18/19: Fargo marathon @fargo.marathon
COLORADO 5/19/19: Denver Colfax marathon @runcolfax
VERMONT 5/26/2019: Vermont City marathon @runvermont
UTAH 6/1/2019: Utah Valley marathon @runutahvalley
DELAWARE 6/18/2019: Mainly marathons - Independence Series - Bear DE
MARYLAND 6/19/2019: Mainly marathons - Independence Series - Elkton MD
ALASKA 6/22/2019: Anchorage Mayor’s marathon @anc_marathon
HAWAII 6/30/2019: Kona marathon @konamarathon
IOWA 7/11/2019: Mainly marathons - Heartland series - Clinton IA
WISCONSIN 7/12/2019: Mainly marathons - Heartland series -Sparta WI
MINNESOTA 7/13/2019: Mainly Marathons - Heartland series - St Cloud MN
RHODE ISLAND 7/21/2019: Violet State marathon
CALIFORNIA 7/28/2019: San Francisco marathon
Ferdinand and I met up in California to run the San Francisco marathon. San Francisco is Gweneviere’s hometown and she has many family members and friends who live there I stayed with one of Gweneviere’s sisters, Daisymarie. Daisymarie and her daughter Melissa ran the San Francisco half marathon and they are both running the NYC marathon as well.
We went down to the expo to pick up our bibs.
It was huge. Definitely one of the bigger expos I’ve been to this year.
We took a bunch of pics.
I hung out with some friends around tow, had lunch and stuff.
On race day, Daisymarie dropped me off and then went to her start with Melissa. The half marathon has a different start and starts later. What’s interesting about the SF half marathon is that there are actually 2 halfs with 2 different courses!
As Ferd and I were lining up at the start, I spotted another one of Gweneviere’s nieces, Sarah, right next to us. I didn’t know she was running, and it was a pleasant surprise.
The course is incredibly scenic and hilly in some parts, as you would expect out for San Francisco. We ran into Melissa’s husband and police officer, Nick, on the Golden Gate Bridge patrolling it. I have him a big hug and then kept running. Ferd and I were running great race, heading for a sub 4. But around mile 22, I felt nauseous and dry heaved on the side of the road. I knew that that meant I was mildly dehydrated. It through me off for the remaining 4 miles and we had to slow down. Just around that time, Sarah caught up with us. She was also having some issues, with her knees/legs. She almost dropped out of the race before she ran into us. We kept each other going and we were able to finish with a decent time of 4:16!
Here’s a snapshot of our run:
Here’s Sarah, Ferd and me:
Here’s us with Daisymarie and Melissa:
After heading back to Daisymarie’s to shower and get a quick rest, we headed out to meet up friends and family for brunch. I got to see some more of Gwen’s family. It was great to see everyone.
If you’re looking for a great, scenic and beautiful California marathon, check out this marathon!
Join me on the #50in50 for the Gweneviere Mann Foundation, with many ways to get involved.
PLEASE DOWNLOAD GWENEVIERE’S SONG
She was excited about releasing an album that she had just finished, but she passed before she could realize that dream, so we just recently released a single "What I Can Be" off of her album for her so that we could fulfill that dream for her. Download it here
Together we will save lives through early detection programs for lung cancer and brain tumors.
I ❤️ you Gwen.
Yasir