I had a choice of taking a direct flight or an 11 hour drive. I opted for the latter to avoid the rental car expense (usually more than the flight itself) and to bring back some duty free Canadian booze that is not available in the USA. Because my key attractions are spread out, a car is a necessity in Detroit. The drive up was pretty smooth except for the usual congestion in Nashville. I stopped just beyond Cincinnati for the night and had less than 4 hours to Detroit on Friday morning. Detroit has a bad reputation for urban blight and crime but I found the downtown core to be just fine and as long as I stuck to the main roads, I never felt unsafe.
Friday:
Upon arrival, my first destination was the Renaissance Center and the GM Tower. I was hoping to see the observation deck on the 73rd floor but unfortunately it was closed for renovations. Oh well, I would get some nice views of the skyline later in the trip. I spent some time looking at some of the flashy cars on display then ate some fish and chips at one of the many nice restaurants in the building. With time to kill before the race expo opened at 2:00, I took a walk down by the river where the skyline of neighboring Windsor, Ontario, Canada could be seen on the other side. After a short walking tour of the business and entertainment districts, I headed to the COBO Convention center to pick up my race packet.
The race course actually crosses the Ambassador Bridge into Canada for a few miles so all registrants are required to have a valid passport. The passport number must be entered when you sign up and if you have a criminal record such as a decades old DUI conviction, you could be refused entry. When on the course, your race bib must be visible at all times and if you run into Canada as a bandit, you could be arrested. Fortunately, I have no such issues so I simply presented my passport and got my bib without any questioning. I did purchase a new pair of shorts and some gels before heading out.
From there, it would be the first of my adventures. I decided to spend Friday night in Canada really just for the sake of doing so. In the past, crossing back into the USA was always the bigger hassle. Not so this time. My entire car was searched including under the seats while I faced continued questioning by the border guard. I would not say that he was mean but he did find it curious that I would drive so far for a race and come into Canada for tourism. Fortunately, I had been to WikiTravel so I knew the names of the most famous streets, pizza joints and the shopping mall. I was told to pop my trunk and even my bag was carefully searched. I was then sent to Immigration where a criminal background check was done. This guard was more friendly and I was quickly sent on my way.
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| Windsor from Detroit |
Once in Canada, I was treated to much nicer views of the Detroit skyline and the Ambassador Bridge from Riverside Drive. I then checked into my hotel and took another short tour of town this time via car. I thought about going to a bar to mingle with some Canadians as I did in Nova Scotia but could not find one within walking distance of my hotel so I opted for some pretty good pizza at a place called Capri's just across the street. That was probably a good call to avoid alcohol because I was still not certain how my body would react so close to race day. Overall, I'd say Windsor is a pretty nice town that does not have the bad areas like Detroit but it is smaller than I expected. If I had known it would be this much of a hassle, I probably would not have gone. I stayed in the downtown area but would recommend Riverside with the night skyline view of Detroit despite the higher cost.
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| Detroit from Windsor |
Saturday:
Stopped at the Duty Free shop then it was Back in America. This time the border crossing went without a hitch and I was off to Belle Isle. It's all on American soil but it's an island within the river that separates the USA from Canada. It's popular with runners and cyclists and has a lot of small lakes, lagoons and even a small sandy beach with some more nice views of the Detroit skyline. From there, it was on to the museums. First stop was the Motown studio tour. My group had an excellent tour guide and though that style of music was before my time, I can still appreciate the talent. An overlooked gem is the Detroit Historical museum. The first floor was an indoor replica of how the city looked in the late 1800s while the 2nd floor had some pretty cool historical exhibits. Particularly gripping was the Underground Railroad, which helped escaped slaves get into Canada where there could be no threat of re-capture.
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| Belle Isle |
Except for the song Lose Yourself, I am not a fan of Eminem and his music. Still, being so close, I could not resist a quick tour of 8 Mile Road. It didn't look so bad to me and once you get further east close to Lakeshore, I saw some very nice homes. I eventually picked up Gratiot back to downtown. Now, this area most definitely has seen better days. I saw lots of abandoned homes and shops that were boarded up. Not a pretty sight. It was now late afternoon and the weather was turning nasty with high winds and even some sleet mixed in with a few rumbles of thunder. Fortunately, it would calm down and I woke to near freezing but dry conditions on race day.
Race:
The race started at 7:00 with it still being pitch black outside. The course began downtown then headed west towards the Ambassador Bridge into Canada. It was a mostly flat route with the exception of border crossings and the Ambassador Bridge began around the end of Mile 2. We would climb throughout Mile 3 and into Mile 4 but it was early on and not steep enough to be terribly uncomfortable. The next section was a gentle downhill and the book on me is if I can make it to Mile 4 still feeling halfway decent, I would probably finish respectably. Today, the early pace remained steady between 8:30-8:45 and I felt in control. At Mile 4, we were off the bridge and onto Canadian soil. This time, I got a warm welcome and was impressed with the fan support along Riverside with the aforementioned views of Detroit. Despite a slight incline, I managed to increased my pace and passed the halfway point in 56:24. A sub-2 was virtually assured and I would probably be better than the 1:57 that I managed 2 weeks earlier in Nebraska.
After 7 miles, it was the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel back to the USA. It began downhill and I let it fly feeling much stronger than I expected to be at this stage. The official border was noted on the wall around 7.4 miles and several runners stopped to snap a picture. Soon, we would bottom out and the uphill portion would be much steeper. I was starting to struggle but I knew that very soon I would come out and be welcomed back to the USA. I did carry my passport just in case but there was no danger of being stopped as long as my bib was visible. Mile 8 came and I was officially back on American soil. I looked at my watch a tenth of a mile later and found to my relief that I could afford to slow to nearly 10 minute pace the rest of the way and still come in under 2. Most likely, I would end up 1:53 or 1:54 based on how I felt. It was starting to hurt now. As is often the case nowadays, my cardio system had more to give but my legs would not produce. Still, it was somewhat encouraging that despite being severely under-trained, I really did not melt down in the last 5K and managed a decent kick at the end en route to a 1:53 finish. My second half was only 1 minute slower than the first half (less than :10/mile). This was good for the 75th percentile in my age group. Maybe, just maybe, I am healthy enough to resume serious training.
Aftermath:
I chose to stay 2 miles from the start/finish line to save money on lodging. That proved to be a bad call. So many roads were closed for runners and the Garmin was completely USELESS. I was always directed to a road that was closed. I had to actually go way off course and eventually found my way through the maze. It took nearly as long to get back to the hotel as it did to run the race.
I was finally on my way out by noon and I caught the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in Dearborn on the way back. On display were lots of classic cars including the Old Model T plus other exhibits dedicated to airplanes, agriculture and other historical events. It was now mid-afternoon but finally time to head south. I stopped in Bowling Green, Kentucky for the night then it was another 4 hours to home. I worked half a day on Monday.
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