A Weekend in the Desert

When I first had the idea to run a destination race for my birthday, I didn't think it would come to fruition. It felt like a lot of work for something I could always just do locally. But as each year of my late 30s ticked by, the desire to do something big for my 40th grew and grew, and before I knew it, I'd signed up for the race, booked the flights, and committed to the training. And after years of imagining and months of planning, suddenly, my 40th birthday—and my destination race weekend—was upon me.

Friday

Friday the 13th proved pretty unlucky for me this year. My birthday weekend started with the worst travel day I have ever experienced. We booked with Frontier (a huge mistake, I know) to fly out the Friday before the race. A week before the trip, our 12:00pm flight got moved to 12:30, so when our departure got moved to 1:15, I didn't worry too much. 

But 1:15 became 2:15, and then communications stopped, and the next thing we knew our flight was rescheduled for 9:30am the next morning, meaning we wouldn't arrive in Phoenix until 1:30pm Saturday. 

To say I was distraught is an understatement. Matt and I went back and forth on trying to book a red-eye with another airline, but the tickets were snapped up before we could make a decision. (And it would have cost us upwards of $1000.)

Matt blew off steam at the hotel gym, which I couldn't afford to do because I was resting my legs.

After six hours in the airport, we finally decided to book a nearby hotel and hope our rescheduled flight actually took off. Our entire Saturday had to be rewritten. My plan to sleep in, enjoy a good meal, go shopping for crystals, and pick up my packet was null.

Luckily, a friend of mine from an online running community was running the race, and when I messaged her in a panic to see if she could pick up my bib, she readily agreed. With the most important thing taken care of, I tried to keep a positive mindset, but I couldn't quiet the worry that our Saturday flight would be cancelled too, and I barely slept. 

Saturday

On Saturday, we arrived back at the airport for round two. No delays this time, but we did get to sit on the tarmac for 40 minutes because some dingbat had forgotten to file the proper paperwork for our flight to take off.

Frontier is truly the most incompetent airline I have ever used and we will remember this the next time we're tempted to save some money. It wasn't worth the lost sleep and stress, the extra cost of the hotel room, and the money we wasted on an unused day for our rental car and Vrbo.

Anyway. We did eventually land in Phoenix, and thank goodness Jennifer picked up my bib, because we definitely were too late to make it to the expo. She met us in a parking lot and delivered my race packet and a gluten free cupcake. Running friends are really the best.

From there, we headed to our Vrbo. The plan was to unwind, but I really wanted to shop for crystals before the race, and the store I wanted to go to closed at 6pm. Short on time, we got back on the road. So much for a relaxing day exploring the area before race day.

I got one last good sign for the race at lunch on Saturday. Looking back, this was spot on and more ominous than good.

After doing some research, I decided to check out Rise Moon Gems, which is a little gem shop located inside a furniture store. Matt was a good sport as I spent a good 30 minutes choosing the perfect sunstone (and garnet, and citrine, and aventurine, and amethyst...).

I carried the small stones with me during the race.

We picked up a frozen Udi's lasagne and salad for dinner, and then I began the chore of putting my race kit together.

Sunday

And finally, it was my birthday and race day! The Lost Dutchman half marathon deserves its own post.

After a shower, Matt and I had brunch at Jewel's Bakery and Cafe, where I had chicken and waffles for the first time. The whole menu is gluten free, and if I'm ever back in the area I'll definitely go again.

I was too tired for a hike, even an easy one, so we decided to take a scenic drive along the N. Bush Highway to Saguaro Lake. It was so gorgeous. The mountains in Arizona are so red and flat compared to ours here in Washington, and it's a good reminder that beauty comes in all different forms.

Of course I picked up some pretty rocks to bring home.

Also, cacti look downright huggable.

We finished the evening with some downtime—Matt at the pool, and me in bed—before grabbing dinner at the Original Chopshop and watching some Olympics. Our flight out was bright and early at 8:45, and since it was on Southwest, it went off without a hitch.

Because of the travel clusterfuck on Friday, Matt and I barely got 6 hours of sleep each night, and the weekend was more stressful and rushed than I'd hoped for. For a holiday weekend that also included Valentine's Day, Frontier's handling of our delayed flight and their refusal to help us in any way made a stressful situation exponentially worse.

All that said, the race was really what mattered to me, and I got everything out of it I wanted, so I am going to call this birthday weekend a success.

Ali