Half 284 At the Southwest Series

Natalie Uyeno(MM15186, HF17314, DA3505)-Lifetime half marathon #284 & State #41 is in the books! ✅ I finally knocked out New Mexico and I have now completed half marathons in all states west of the Mississippi River! 😊 (I was originally scheduled to do this series in 2021, but I had just started chemo a couple of weeks before and my body wouldn’t have been able to handle 6 consecutive days of races and the travel, so I cancelled my trip! 😢) Better late than never!
This was Day 1 of the Mainly Marathons Southwest Series in Farmington, NM. It was only 37° at the start (🥶), so I wore my fleece lined INKnBURN tights and pullover. I figured that the sugar skull design would be perfect for New Mexico! ❤️💀
The course was at a beautiful park next to a river. The fall foliage and sunrise were gorgeous! 🍁 The course surface was a mix of asphalt, hard packed dirt/gravel trail, and some brick-type surface that had uneven spots. I had to be careful with the uneven surfaces and I didn’t want to sweat and get colder, so I walked most of the race. (I also did this to conserve energy for the rest of the series.) I have been doing a lot of driving the past 3 days and I felt tired from the start, so I took it easy!
It was great seeing the Mainly family and making new friends! ❤️😊 I got to spend some time chatting with several amazing people and I heard some inspiring stories! These truly are an incredible bunch of runners and volunteers! 💜💜💜 Thanks to race directors Jesse Rueckert & Daniel Rueckert for putting on these amazing races that help back of the pack runners like me to achieve our goals! Only 9 states to go on my 50 States quest! 😁 I’m grateful to be able to continue to do what I love, in spite of the cancer. 🙏.

Photo and Post Credit Natalie Uyeno