Made it to the Center of the Universe for State #22 in Tulsa, OK!

And what a great way to end my 2015 marathon running for the American Stroke Association/American Heart Association!

The Route 66 marathon was my 10th marathon (9th additional state) for 2015!  It was one of the biggest marathons I have run this year, and it was incredible!  I made my way to Tulsa, OK on Saturday morning and arrived to the expo in the afternoon to pick up my bib and running packet.  Upon stepping outside, I noticed how much cooler it was than in Atlanta, but I had watched the weather and was prepared for a cool race.  I made it to my hotel and had a nice dinner, and soon it was race morning!

It was a chilly morning, with the first frost I had seen of the year as we (a running friend and I) walked the two miles from the hotel to the start.  I think it was about 29 degrees, which is a temperature I hadn't quite adjusted to yet, but the walk warmed me up a little bit.  We arrived with perfect timing, with about 5 minutes to go as we approached the starting corrals (I hate standing in the cold waiting to start!).  I found my way to my corral and soon the national anthem was playing and we were getting ready to make our way to the start!  Because it was such a big race and I am not a fast runner, it took a little while to make it to the start, and I took that time to think about each and every one of my stroke and heart heroes that I run for.  Sadly I have added two family friends that I run in honor of in 2015, which has motivated me even more to try to make a difference with my 50 States Challenge.  As I approached the starting line, I couldn't believe that this was my 10th marathon of the year.  I am so proud to run for this cause!

The Start!

 I was happy to be running again so that I could warm up, and was looking forward to getting warm enough to take off the garbage bag I was wearing for a jacket so that I could show my Tedy's Team singlet and raise awareness for my cause.  Once the sun started coming out, it warmed up and was perfect running weather!  I knew I wanted to take a picture of "Route 66", and so I kept my eye out for it, and was excited to finally officially see the road I had been singing about (Get Your Kicks on Route 66) for a few weeks while looking forward to race day!

Route 66!

Having never been to Tulsa before, the marathon was really my true tour of the city.  We winded through residential areas and little streets with coffee shops and stores, and it was a fun way to see Tulsa.  As we ran out of the downtown area, I was able to catch a nice photo of the city!

Downtown Tulsa

Soon we came into the University of Tulsa, which was a very nice campus.  The miles just went along and I was enjoying my 26.2 mile tour!

One very cool aspect of this marathon, is there was an optional 0.3 mile detour to the Center of the Universe at about mile 25.5, making it the shortest ulta-marathon in the world.  I had decided from the start of the race that of course I would take this detour and get my Center of the Universe coin.  It was a fun addition to the marathon that I was glad I decided to take the extra time to complete!

The Center of the Universe! (and my coin)

From there it was less than a mile to the finish, and I was super excited to have reached my 10th marathon finish line of 2015, and my 22nd state for Tedy's Team and the American Stroke Association!  My stroke and heart heroes have carried me to every finish line, and I can't wait to continue my challenge in 2016!

I'm still working on the 2016 schedule, but right now, State #23 will be the Garmin Marathon in the Land of Oz (Olathe, KS) in April, followed by my first TRIPLE in Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming at the Bear Lake Endurance weekend in June.

Race Highlights
Awesome volunteers and race support
Nice swag (I love my 10th anniversary jacket!)
Awesome marathon for Marathon Maniacs
A really great marathon all around

#1 Song that Got me Through a Tough Spot
Well, it was a toss up between:
Route 66 (Bobby Troup)
Oklahoma! (from Broadway)