On Saturday, I was extremely grateful that my wife, Gloria, was willing to do the entire drive from Parsippany, N.J., to Youngstown, Ohio. That gave me a chance to try to relax as best as I could. It took us a little under six hours, what with bathroom breaks and a quick stop to play the Pennsylvania lottery, just for the hell of it.
As soon as we got to town, we went straight to the Covelli Centre to pick up our race packets. From there, we headed to the Second Sole store - the site of the start and finish lines - and proceeded to drive the race course. I had been studying the official race map for days, making notes and doing my best to familiarize myself with the street names, but I wanted to see as many of the turns and intersections as possible, to be absolutely sure there would be no problems on race day.
At first, we were a little disappointed - Youngstown seemed like the kind of city that has seen better days, but once we were on the course through the gorgeous parks, snaking around beautiful lakes and a golf course, we ended up being quite impressed. Gloria even stated that she was regretting only doing the 5K and had wished she had trained for the half-marathon.
I was determined to do everything right on the day before race day (unlike the dumb moves I made in San Antonio in December). Gloria even helped by not only driving, but letting me pick all the music in the car, knowing that would keep me in a good head space. She really is the best.
Once we finished driving the course, which included loops through downtown and Youngstown State University, but also a few stretches of trail through which we could not take the car, we went to Nicollini's - a wonderful Italian restaurant that offered a vegetable aglio e olio pasta dish that was absolutely perfect for a pre-race meal. The waiter recommended a Lost Coast Tangerine Wheat beer that complemented it nicely.
Things were going exactly according to plan when we got to the Rodeway Inn room, which was about 10 miles away. Unfortunately, the room (and the entire motel, really) was quite filthy. And sketchy. I am not a picky guy when it comes to lodging - give me a bed and a shower and I am a happy guy - but this room was truly unacceptable (you should have seen the mold in the air conditioner). But what did it matter? We needed to get to sleep and be ready for the big day. So I just turned off my brain and sacked out at around 10 p.m. hoping for a solid night of rest.
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