A Journey to race in all 50 states

Some time ago, I am not sure exactly when (many years ago), I hatched the idea of racing in all 50 states. I revisited the idea one day when I got curious to know exactly how many organized races I have done in my lifetime. So I dug out my old High School and College scrapbooks & training logs and starting putting together a log of all the races I had participated in.

Wow, it was so neat to look back at all the old newspaper clippings and photos. Although I discovered I only had a few pictures; just the ones given to me by other team members parents (I am so thankful for them now). I didn’t own a camera and quite frankly it’s hard to get a picture of yourself in a race, but no matter my “in the zone” running pictures aren’t so glamorous (all you runners out there know what I am talking about – wink, wink). It was also fun to look back at more recent races and events. (add picture of log) As I looked through the albums I logged each race listing the date, race name, location, distance and results. Wow, I have raced a lot over the last 27 years. It was fun to re-live some of those great race experiences and see how many states I had raced in. High School and College running has taken me to many of the western states, but I still have a lot of states to visit. I have always wanted to see more of America and what better way to do it than racing in all 50 states! I know I have a lot of people that visit my website from all over America and I’d love to hear from you. I am looking for well established Friday or Saturday races (that won’t be cancelled) and are not super long (5K, 10K, ½ marathon, night runs, and possible Sprint/Oly triathlons). It would be great if the race covered more than one state. Here are the states I need to do (lots, I know): Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming States I’ve already raced in: Arizona, California, Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Vermont, & Wisconsin. I need your help, please comment or email me about; what you think I should see in each State, travel tips, best months to visit, bad weather months I should avoid and race suggestions. (Weekday or Saturday races only, I prefer not to race on Sunday). If you know of any deals on hotels, race discounts, discounted flights, host families willing to help please let me know. I am excited about this adventure! ~ Coach Lora Ericksonwww.BlondeRunner.com Support me on my quest?Travel, hotel and race entry can get expensive so if you or your company would like to help out or sponsor me please contact me lora@blonderunner.com Thank you so much for those who have already contributed to support me.