Day 91: Where am I?

Today: a new Longest Run Ever, and the completion of another mission.

I have been to Phoenix many times, but always in October, November, December, or January. September, apparently, still features 100-degree temperatures, but no matter. Anyway, my aunt and uncle live here, which is why I have been a frequent visitor, but because I spent most of my time with family, I never really had the chance to explore the city.

Today I had that chance, because with an 18-mile run on tap, even though I'm staying downtown, I was able to run all the way to the South Mountain Preserve, the largest municipal park in America. Only when I turned around at the halfway point to head back, and saw the skyscrapers of downtown in the far distance, did I start to appreciate that I had run so far, I had ditched office buildings for saguaros. (I did see huge, undulating green and yellow caterpillars the whole way, though.)

I should say that today was supposed to be 18 miles... but it may have been as long as 21 miles! Google Maps didn't identify a good turnaround point in the park, so I got a little disoriented when I got down there. I don't know enough about my long-run pace to tell how far I was going, and I lost some time during the run while I waited for traffic lights to turn green, so I might actually have gone 21 miles! I got a rock in my shoe about a mile from the end, and for the first time, I had to stop, to get it out, and that messed me up, but otherwise I was strong. One minute, planes were flying right over my head, headed into Sky Harbor International, and the next minute, I was in the middle of desert nowhere. 52 ounces of liquids, and three gels... I was sick of eating, and from 8:00 to 11:00, the temperature went up by at least 20 degrees... but I made it!

The other mission completed today was seeing the Arizona Diamondbacks take on the Cincinnati Reds at Chase Field. I have now seen all 30 major-league ballparks. (I've also seen three defunct parks: the Vet, formerly of Philly; RFK, in DC; and Le Stade Olympique in Montreal, where I had my worst baseball-going experience. This means that I've seen the Expos/Nationals franchise in two cities and three parks!)

(D-backs lost in 10 to the Reds, despite the fearsome Big Unit on the mound... a sloppy, sloppy game. Free Jessica Simpson concert afterward, but we bolted. Bleah.)

The time difference, and the long running, and all the other stuff going on -- I'm pretty exhausted now. We'll see if I can still walk tomorrow, especially since I'm sharing a hotel room with my dad, who flew to Phoenix this morning so we could go to the game together... he's a snorer. As I type this, he's watching Seinfeld, and Uncle Leo has just come on. "Hell-o!" Good night!

Shout-out to Amos for pushing me within gasping distance of my fundraising goal!