100th Marathon

My next door neighbor shot off fireworks until 2:30 a.m. this morning and I got hardly any sleep before getting up at 5:15.  I drove down to Kingwood and ran the Texas Marathon.  It was my 100th race of a marathon or longer distance.  I enjoy this particular race because it gives me a chance to visit with a lot of friends.  My 100 is nothing compared to what my friends in the photo have accomplished.  Jim Simpson, left, was the first American to run 1,000 marathons.  Parnaveh Moayedi holds several world records, including the most marathons in a year by a female.  And, she just became the first female in North America to run 500 marathons.  Larry Macon is the world record holder for the most marathons in a year and was the second American to run 1,000 marathons.  In any case, they are all younger than I and I am glad to reach the 100 mark.  The course at Kingwood is tough.  Four loops on a 6.55-mile concrete walkway.  You really have to watch your footing.  My time is always slower on this course, which I think is long.  I finished in 7:13:47, an hour longer than my last marathon in College Station less than a month ago.