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This is part of a series of posts about my quest to run a half marathon in all 50 states. Florida was my 8th state.
I ran the Naples Daily News Half Marathon in January 2007. I chose this race for my one in Florida for a couple of different reasons. At the time, my mother-in-law and step-father-in-law had recently bought a winter house in Naples and had invited us down for a visit. Also, we (my husband's parents and my family) were all planning a vacation together in Hawaii the following fall and would be bringing our daughter who would be almost 2 when we flew to Hawaii. I wanted to see how she would do on an airplane before we flew all the way to Hawaii. Since this race was in January, it would be a nice respite from the cold weather where we lived. Finally, I purposefully did not choose a Disney race because the huge crowds at their races and super-early start did not appeal to me. I think Disney is fine for family vacations just not for a race, but I know plenty of people love their races so I may be in the minority on that one. My verdict: the Naples Half Marathon is a fun, not overly-crowded race in a perfect location for those from colder climes looking for a break from winter weather.
From my post-race notes:
"Ran through wealthy neighborhoods with huge multi-million dollar homes and had views of the water. Flat and nice. Good early start so didn't get too hot. The shirt and medal were cute and of good quality. A clergyman at Trinity-by-the-Cove Episcopal Church was outside the church blessing runners passing by with holy water, which was quite interesting. My finish time was 2:01:09."
Find other race reports from my 50 states quest plus other posts on travel at my blog, runningtotravel.wordpress.com, where this was originally posted.
Published by Donna Stefanick
7 years ago 
