Marathon weekend

Runners, on your mark! Get ready! It's New Jersey Marathon Weekend!

This is a bitter sweet post for me since I had to drop out of the marathon, and now it looks like I might not be able to do the Long Branch Marathon, either (the two events are held on the same course at the same time).

Why? Well, I've been having some health problems, which I don't want to go into here. I'm going to be fine, but it's made running more challenging.

I thought I'd be able to gut it through until I saw the weather forecast. It might have been chilly this morning, but the prediction for Long Branch is 87 degrees on Saturday and 81 degrees on Sunday.

Yikes. When you train in cold weather, jumping into summer heat isn't the best idea. Your body isn't used to it. I know mine's not - I'm not a hot weather runner, either.

So I might do it, I might not. Go ahead and call me a wuss. It's OK. I feel that way, too.

Whether I run or not, I'll be spending the weekend in the Ocean Grove/Asbury Park area, and I'm stoked. The more I visit, the more I want to go back, and the idea of spending two summery days there with no work agenda is borderline thrilling. You bet I've got my beach chair packed in the back of my car, ready to be planted on the beach on Saturday.

Anyone else running on Sunday? And what are you thoughts about the weather?

Recommended: Bedandbreakfast.com

On May 2, I'm running the New Jersey Marathon. Rather than driving to Long Branch the morning of the race, I decided to stay overnight so I can sleep in a little later and be refreshed.

Who am I kidding? I'm going to be a nervous wreck and probably stare at the ceiling most of the night.

Problem is, the obvious hotel options are sold out, and I didn't want to pay north of $250 a night with a two night minimum stay required.

I put Asbury Park into kayak.com, which scours other travel websites for best prices, and it popped up options via bedandbreakfast.com. I scored a night in a nice Ocean Grove B&B for $100, one night stay only (no, I'm not going to tell you where, stalker).

So if you're looking for a B&B stay, give this resource a shot. I did a search through Cape May via the site, and it was spot on with options, prices and details. It's a great resource.

New Jersey Marathon

I've finally taken the plunge. I've signed up for a marathon. If all goes according to plan, I'll running my fastest 26.2 miles on May 2 in Long Branch for the New Jersey Marathon.

Training starts in a week. There's two feet of snow on the ground. I've never run further than 13.1 miles in my life.

I. Am. Terrified.

I promise not to flood the blog with posts about marathon training (which is very boring, and not much different from what I normally do except I'll be doing it exponentially). But since this is an event that takes place at the shore, I figured it was an appropriate thing to mention on the blog.

Prayers are much appreciated.

10 Things that ARE My Jersey

Yesterday, I had my say about a new MTV "reality" show whose premise seems to be "make fun of New Jersey.

Does that culture exist? I've heard of it, but never seen it. It's not the Jersey Shore I know.

So here is my list of 10 things that ARE my Jersey, working north to south. I've stuck to the Jersey Shore, but feel free to add shore and non-shore items in the comments.

1. History House in Sandy Hook
2. Tater Tots at Asbury Lanes in Asbury Park
3. Beach bonfires in Long Branch
4. Long Beach Blvd. in LBI (and all the names it's called on the island)
5. Atlantic City Marathon -- 51st running on Sunday. Good luck, guys!
6. Pizza with birch beer at Mack & Manco in Ocean City
7. Wetlands Institute in Stone Harbor
8. International Kite Festival in Wildwood
9. Rocking chairs at Congress Hall in Cape May
10. Sunset at Sunset Beach

So what's your Jersey?

Windsday

I went to Long Branch today to work on a story involving Pier Village. After the interview, I headed closer to the water to grab some lunch. Today was the windiest I've ever experienced at the Jersey Shore. I had to walk sideways to stay upright, and even put on my parking brake to keep my car from swaying while parked.





I like the shore in storms, but yikes it was a windy one today.

Asbury Bike Ride

On Sunday, my dad and I hitched our bikes to the back of his car and drove to Asbury Park for a bike ride. I also strapped a camera to my waist in a belt bag -- NOT A FANNY PACK as my dad joked. Laugh all he wanted, but I got some good pictures. And it's really called a belt bag. Stop laughing.

From inside Convention Hall:



Candyteria on the boardwalk:



I wore my Garmin Forerunner 405, a running watch with GPS, on the ride, so here's a map of where we rode:



Bikes are allowed on the Asbury Park boardwalk until noon -- not 10 a.m. like I thought. Also, I love my road bike, but for boardwalk cruising? Not the best ride, but I managed.

After our ride, we headed down to Ocean Grove for brunch at Nagle's. Hi dad!



I love the old signs, too:





On a sad note, Kitch & Kaboodlein Ocean Grove is closing. I bought a great double boiler for $3 at the closing sale, but I always liked that store.

I brought my bathing suit, but it wasn't a great beach day -- windy and a bit cold, so we headed home. I ran 5 miles (at a 8:37 min/mile pace -- SUCK IT, SHOULDER SURGERY), then spent the rest of the day on the couch watching Law & Order marathons.

It's gloomy out today, and even though I can detect some lingering humidity, it feels like summer's on the way out. I'm hoping for a few more heaters, though, so I can bring Emily down the shore (No beach tags! And no one yelling about my dog!) I'm probably going up to Long Branch later this week to work on a story, so my shore season definitely isn't over. I'm realizing this year that it's never really over for me -- I'm always writing about it. It's just the season that changes.

If I could re-do the summer, I'd have spent more time on the beach. I might have scheduled my surgery for the fall or spring so wouldn't have lost a month of shore time, but at least it's out and gone.

What would you have re-done about the summer? Or, for a positive spin: what will you do different next year?

My Shore Weekend

See those shoes? Cute, right? They are, but they are also blister makers. After walking all over Asbury Park on Friday night, my feet were so wrecked that I couldn't do the Belmar 5 on Saturday (and it was not because I had been drinking -- I was the DD on Friday and fit as a fiddle Saturday morning, except for the feet).

Pinchy shoes aside, Bill and I had a great time in what we consider the northern shores this weekend. Plus, we were celebrating. I met Bill right before his birthday. But his birthday isn't just one day -- it's celebrated over a week. Since my birthday is on July 19, we started celebrating my birthday on Friday night in Asbury Park.

Bill had never been to Long Branch, Asbury Park or Ocean Grove before. After he wound he way around shore traffic on Friday, we headed to right to Asbury. Bill brought his camera, so the pictures of AP are his (the one that lead off this post was taken at the photo booth in Asbury's arcade).

I had my heart set on dinner at Langosta Lounge, but that would have carried an hour and a half wait (an hour and a half!) I know, I know, I should have made a reservation. But the alternative was wonderful. We had tapas on the deck at the Watermark where we could sit outside and watch the boardwalk go by. We also watched as pirates stormed the bar.





It was a themed bar crawl birthday party. The gentleman in the above picture was celebrating his 27th. A big group, too, from Ocean Grove.

After our first course at Watermark, we headed to downtown Asbury for entrees at the Brickwall tavern. Big thumbs up to the mac and cheese (and no wait but a kick ass band playing).

Then we walked down Cookman Ave. to the Silverball Museum. I don't tend to exaggerate, but this is quite possibly the coolest thing I have seen on my shore travels.

It's a working museum. Pay $10, and for an hour, you have free play of pinball machines from the 1930s through 1980s. Bill and I walked around with our jaws open, like kids in a candy store. We both grew up playing pinball down the shore (me in Ocean City and he in Wildwood), and what a great way to re-live that past, and play what was the best of the best from the past. It was so worth $10, and even getting a little turned around in finding it (the museum is housed in the basement of a clothing store).





We had the whole place almost to ourselves, and I quickly learned that Bill is a much better pinball player than I am (he won six games, and I won one). It didn't feel like it mattered if you won or lost, though, because of that one $10 fee for an hour of play. Such a cool place. Such a cool idea.

After pinball, it was off to show Bill some of the places I liked from my last trip to Asbury Park. First, it was to the Annex for some sangria. Given my DD roll, I only had a few sips of Bill's drink, but it was enough to know that I like both the white and red sangria they serve.



We wrapped up the night at Asbury Lanes:



The tater tots? Out of this world.

Aside from the blistered feet that left me limping on the walk between Cookman Ave. and the boardwalk, we had a blast. I'm glad Bill liked it since I had talked up the town.



A few more notes from the weekend:

1. We stayed at Ocean Place in Long Branch. Great spot:





Nice views, nice service, great location. I realized after I booked the hotel that my dad and step mom stay there every year. The brunch buffet is fantastic. If you go, make sure to pick up what looks like orange juice with a raspberry in it -- it's actually a mango/yogurt/smoothie thing that was the perfect cap to my meal.

2. The beach in Ocean Grove is lovely. I spent Friday afternoon on that beach, and would do it again if I was in the area. Great beach day, too. Rough surf.

3. Thank you, Atlantic Books in Long Branch, for carrying my book:


4. I had dinner on Thursday night with Caren Cheser, a fantastic Jersey freelancer. We met up at Rooney's. Can we say yum?



That artichoke heart was out of this world.

5. On Friday, I had brunch with ANOTHER fabulous Jersey freelancer, Gwen Moran. She showed me Sunset Landing in Asbury, which was a great spot for a shady, quiet outdoor meal.





6. What genius scheduled road construction in Long Branch on a Saturday during the summer?

Aside from the blisters and the traffic snarl on Saturday, it was a great weekend. It's also a lot different than what I usually cover down at the South Jersey Shore. Sure, these are beach communities, but they seem to be more year round spots than barrier islands like Sea Isle and Avalon. It changes the dynamic. I've seen restaurants in Asbury busy in the off season and could easily see a place like Brickwall working where I live. It's by the shore, sure, but it's not tied to it.

I'll be heading back down to Sea Isle on Friday for my Saturday birthday brew ha ha. I've given it a vague sports theme since Bill insists that basketball jerseys are THE thing to wear to the OD. Anyone know why? I'm curious.

Be Right Back

Hello from Long Branch! Just a quick post to say that there won't be a "Your Shore Weekend" today -- I just ran out of time to put it together (those things are labor intensive!)

But check this out.



These are the Queen of Hearts, a very cool lady band I caught at McLoone's Pier House last night. They're playing at Tim McLoone's Supper Club in Asbury Park tonight if you're in the area! I shot a video of the ladies rocking it, but my internet connection's a bit slow and it didn't upload. Will try again when I'm home!