Yeah runnin’ down a dream
That never would come to me
Workin’ on a mystery, goin’ wherever it leads
Runnin’ down a dream

Tom Petty

Carolyn and I have been on a mission to enjoy life to its fullest and have had some memorable experiences along the way. Our latest adventure would become one of our all-time favorite trips as we had an adventure for the ages. Our journeys usually include a little craft beer and this one will be no different. Mix in Carolyn’s relatives, a marathon plus a presidential election and it becomes an epic adventure. I have tried to include links to places and events so you can see what we were experiencing. So it begins.

Carolyn has been running down her dream to participate in the NYC Marathon and after several previous year setbacks due to other events, this was to be her year. Carolyn had qualified for the NYC Marathon by running the Tucson Marathon several years ago in a phenomenal time of around 3:28 and some change.

It was Thursday evening, and me being me finally got my stuff packed up and ready to go. Would you expect anything other then that from me? (Carolyn had packed and been ready for several weeks) We had our boarding passes and were ready to go but first a stop at Sky Harbor Terminal 4 Four Peaks Brewery. Why not? 8th Street Ale for me and a SunBru for Carolyn. Thursday night football was on so it was fun hanging out just chilling.

Time to fly, except our American Airlines flight is delayed from 10 pm until 11 pm. Most may know that Carolyn works for Southwest Airlines so why would we fly on American? Very simple answer, we used our accumulated miles to fly for free with a guaranteed ticket. It’s a beautiful thing to fly for free.

Finally we board only to sit in the plane for another hour until we finally take off. I drift in and out of consciousness as we make our way to JFK Airport. Upon arrival, we are something like two hours late and we pick up our Uber for 35 bucks and head the 25 miles to the world famous Roosevelt Hotel. Oh my, the trip only takes us an hour and 40 minutes. Uber requires no tip, but in this case I’m throwing cash to our driver since it was no fault of his that our plane’s lateness threw us into a massive traffic jam that resembled the world’s largest parking lot.

Carolyn getting her racing packet.

Carolyn with her racing number.

Upon arrival, we check in and rest. I’m in full on dream mode when Carolyn wakes me for the start of our day in Manhattan. Since it is a beautiful day to be outdoors, we head on over to a Starbucks for some caffeine aka coffee walk the 1.5 miles to Javits Center to pick up Carolyn’s racing packet and hang out at the pre-race place.  Javits is fascinating, and there are participants and volunteers everywhere. We talk with many including a young lady from Tempe, AZ who was working in marketing in NYC. She recognized that ASU logo on my sweatshirt so I was glad I wore it. There were many exhibits and opportunities to spend money on a variety of merchandise plus some fantastic free samples to munch on. It really was something to behold. Our journey was moving along at a phenomenally.

Heartland Brewery, Empire State Building

On our walk back to the Roosevelt, we stopped along the way in search of New York brews. This included a Brooklyn Lager at the Grand Central Oyster Bar, a favorite bar in one of my favorite shows Mad Men, and a dinner at TGI Fridays in Times Square. Fridays? Well lets just say I had a gift card that was about three years old that I could never use in AZ so why not? Finally a stop at Heartland Brewery for an award winning oatmeal stout in the Empire State Building.  Carolyn is of course going for the lighter stuff. Many years ago, Carolyn and I had a drink in a TGI Fridays that was located in the Empire State Building. I’m thinking that Heartland Brewery took its spot so it was sort of deja vu drinking.

Time for a walk back to the Roosevelt and one of New York’s finest craft brews, The Coney Island Mermaid Pilsner. This was soon to become Carolyn’s favorite New York craft beer. Carolyn still has a marathon to run so it is time to rest up as we are fading fast.

It was only Friday, but Sunday’s a coming.