Running Through A Haunted Town

A and I woke up before the sun on Saturday, October 24th for our 1.5-hour drive to beautiful Frederick County, MD. We watched the sun rise and it illuminated the orange, red, and yellow topped trees. Seriously, such a beautiful sight.

It was a perfect fall morning - crisp air and a whopping 50-something degrees. Groups of people corralled in groups drinking coffee, bundled in their pristine running attire. Most people were meeting with old friends and meeting new friends - chatting about where they are from, if they ran the race before, and just holding general conversations.

The lines started forming for the temporary restrooms. There were 3 stalls for 286 runners and the line continued to grow and grow. Little did we know that the race would start in that direction and now was the time to go, if you know what I mean.

Everyone lined up and continued to practice their warm-up routine while the national anthem played. And then, we were off. We all followed this nice gentleman below through the streets of Burkittsville,  up historic Spook Hill, through Boordy Winery Vineyard, historic Union Cemetery, Guyton's Farm, and Distillery Lane Ciderworks' Orchard.

We ran by beautiful buildings and churches, through gravel and dirt. The sights and the sounds of this 152 person town were outstanding. Even though this town is one of the most haunted places in America, no spirits were witnessed during this race.

Click to tweet: Running through one of America's most haunted towns. 

Click to tweet: Must-Do race for Oct/Nov - put it on your list.

In 2014, this particular race gained national attention by Competitor.com as a must-do race in October/November across the U.S. The race was also featured on RunnersWorld.com this year for 10 Great Halloween Runs. Being that A and I move around frequently, we are always excited to try unique races. We must agree, this is a must-do race if you can make it to the area.

I didn't do too much cross training, but I wasn't really trying to run the race for time. I really wanted to enjoy the scenery and experience with A.

A ran by my side the entire 4 miles. We finished 114 and 115 out of 286 with a time of A - 39:58 and Myself - 39:59. That put us at about a 10 min/mile pace and I'd say that's not bad.

Spook Hill Cider and Wine 4 Mile Race offered a variety of refreshments after the race - water, fresh cider, bagels, and bananas. I enjoyed my share before walking down the street to Distillery Lane Ciderworks to pick up some cider and wine.

What is the most unique race you participated in?
Have you ever traveled to Frederick County, Maryland?
What is your favorite post race refreshment?

When Life Gives You Strawberries

- A left work a little early on Friday so we could go 'officially become Maryland residents'. Can I just say, we've been to many different motor vehicle branches in many states - Maryland wasn't my favorite. However, I didn't have to take another knowledge exam so that says a lot about the drivers here. They printed my id out right on the spot so I didn't have to carry around a temp which was a new thing for me. Treat us nicely, Maryand!

- Friday night we went to one of A's coworker's house. Beers, campfire, and good conversation was exchanged. It's been a REALLY long time since I've been out passed midnight. #oldladystatus

- Saturday was one of the last days for strawberry picking around here. I took A out for his first ever pick-your-own berries. The fresh air and hard work was much enjoyed. I will give it to him though - he picked way more strawberries than I did. I prefer to eat while I work!! Also, when life gives you strawberries, you are responsible for making strawberry cheesecake - it's the circle of life.

- The tree in front of our house has been neglected for several years (at least that's what the neighbors told us). When we would get tons of rain, the branches would rub against the top of the car if it was in the driveway. So we did some adult work and trimmed back the tree. It's amazing how many neighbors will come by and say hello when you are out working. Hello neighbors!

- Dinner was a lovely and expensive evening of sushi. The restaurant we went to was just around the corner from our house and the staff was absolutely lovely, and the food was pretty darn tasty. We ordered far too much food, because 4-5 sushi rolls never seems to be enough until you have 7 rolls presented to you. Sushi coma.

- We woke up bright and early Sunday and heading to the park and the dog beach. Roxi just loves it there and it doesn't take much to convince me to go. 

- After doing some errands and A worked on the cars, we loaded up or bikes and headed back to the park. Biked about 5.5 miles through both paved and unpaved trails, killed a couple of ticks that decided we might be good hosts, and picked up a Snoball on the way home. We are working our way through all of the flavors and we still have a ways to go. 

What did you do this weekend? Was the weather lovely to do outdoor activities?