5K in 5 states done/ update on 10K-Half states

A common goal among runners is to complete a marathon in all 50 states.  For the serious runner, that goal should take at least a decade to complete and will certainly cost a lot of money.  As for me, my travel goals are a bit more modest.  I merely want to step foot in all 50 states and have completed the lower 48 but am missing Alaska and Hawaii.  As for racing, I have set the following goals:
-Half marathon in 25 states (fulls count)- Missouri was state #17.  Projected completion is 2015.
-10 K in 10 states.  5 down- 5 to go.  Projected completion is also 2015.
-5K in 5 states.  Done.  Completed this goal in 2011.

I will list a brief summary of each 5K race plus a listing of states completed in the 10K and Half.  If I have raced multiple events, I will only list my fastest time.

West Virginia- 2002- Run For Research in 21:32. Wheeling
This event was run on the Wheeling Jesuit campus to raise money for ALS treatment (Lou Gehrig's disease).  It was a pretty fast course with only 2 significant hills.  At the time, I was merely a recreational runner in between my first and second running life.  I was suffering from Tarsal Tunnel syndrome and hyperthyroidism induced by Synthroid but I was stable chemically.  I had not been diagnosed yet but was probably in Stage 2 adrenal fatigue.  Despite being limited to only 3 runs per week, I managed a surprisingly decent time and placed in my age group.  It was then that I realized that I had some talent after all and if I could get healthy, I would surely do better.

Georgia- 2009- Pound the Pavement for Peter in 20:16. Atlanta
This was another event to raise money for medical research and I was happy to participate.  This event is also special to me because it was Nick's first race.  I was surprised to see him finish with a time of 26:xx on very limited training.  He would progress to a half by the end of the year and a full in the Fall of 2010.  As for me, I treated it as a glorified tempo run and was pleased with my performance.  Running in no man's land on a very difficult course, I finished 6th overall and 1st in my age group.  On level ground in a more competitive race, I was surely good for a sub-20.  At that time, I had done it in practice but not in a race setting since my comeback.

Tennessee- 2009- Elvis race in 19:37. Memphis.
This course started and finished just across the street from Graceland but the course was almost all residential and gently rolling throughout.  Hills were rarely longer than 200 meters and were not steep but just kept coming one after another.  I overcame instability and heat (75 w/80% humidity) in a mid-August race and delivered a very strong performance.  It was good for 2nd in my age group too and believed that I could have threatened a PR in optimal conditions.  In one of the weirder things that I have done, I turned it into a road trip to the Iowa border to get one step closer to the full 50.

Pennsylvania- 2011- Gatorade Steelers in 19:21. Pittsburgh
A very interesting event that began down by the river and finished on the 50 yard line at Heinz Field (home of the Steelers).  It was a flat and fast course with a good competitive field and I got lucky with a good day in the midst of a rough period.  I scored a new adult PR and finished 6th in my age group out of more than 100 runners.

Alabama- 2012- Rumpshaker in 19:13. Birmingham
Everyone who reads this blog knows what happened here and why it was so special so I won't rehash it.  Unfortunately,  I have not had much to celebrate since.

10K:
I have completed all of the Deep South
-South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana.
-Added Florida and Pennsylvania in 2013.  Kentucky and Tennessee are easy trips so that leaves only one other fly away.  I would lean towards Dallas, TX (Hottest 10K) or Richmond, VA (Monument Ave.)

Half:
I have completed the following states in the following years:
2007- Florida and Tennessee
2008- Illinois and Oregon
2009-Alabama, North Dakota and Louisiana
2010-Georgia and Mississippi
2011-Idaho, Ohio and Arkansas
2012-Texas, Colorado and North Carolina
2013-California, Missouri and West Virginia.
That's 18 in total.  I can probably do it with just 2 more fly away races.  SC,IN,KY,VA and OK are within 10 hours. If I had to pick 2 fly away states, I'd go with Arizona and Alaska.  Detroit Free Press is also on my list and I would like to make some inroads into New England as well.  I expect that I will end up around 30 but I promise that I will not try for 50.