I have to be honest, I picked this run mainly because I had the weekend off and it was a pretty easy trip from Albuquerque. I think I was back home just over 24 hours after I left. The bonus of this race, though, was that 100% of the race registration fees went to Rett Syndrome research.

I stayed in an area of Oklahoma City known as Brickyard. From what I learned, this area has been fairly recently rehabbed. Fun place to stay with lots of bars and restaurants and a canal that reminded me a bit of San Antonio.

I’m starting to feel like this blog is part a running blog and part a blog about where to find delicious vegan food (and beer). Oklahoma City did not disappoint in the vegan food department. For dinner, I went to a place called the Loaded Bowl and had the most incredible mac and cheese. And, of course, I couldn’t pass on the cupcakes for dessert.

The run was on a paved path along the river. It was a small race, but well run. Since it was so small, I had the opportunity to chat with the other race participants – it felt more like a Sunday morning jog with a running club than a true race, but as I’ve said before, I really prefer small races. It started out pretty warm and humid, but by about 45 minutes in the rain started. Rain is actually a bit of an understatement! But, after the humidity, the wind and rain felt great and I found myself smiling as I splashed through giant puddles. Remarkably, the volunteers stayed out in the deluge to hand out water and Gatorade – very grateful!

On the way back to the hotel (despite being completely drenched), I had to stop at an all-vegan donut shop.

After a quick rest (and some donuts and coffee) and a shower, it was back to the Loaded Bowl for nachos. I even brought home a cookie for Chris.

I really enjoyed my quick trip to Oklahoma City. Although I only explored a few areas, I was very impressed and told Chris that we’ll need to make a trip back sometime soon to explore more of the city.

16 down, 34 to go!