Wyoming ended up being the last western state on the schedule for many reasons.   Races scheduled in Wyoming are few and far between, travel logistics tend to be challenging, and all of the races we looked at were at high elevation and extremely hilly.   With all of these factors to consider, we kept pushing it off our calendars until this year. We found this little gem of a race buried on FlipKey, a TripAdvisor site, in a 50 States Series list of “Top Marathons and Races Worth Traveling For”.   Nestled in between the Grand Teton National Forest, Bridger National Forest, and Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Star Valley was billed as an ideal location for a unique, summertime mountain race.  We registered for the race, bought our airline tickets (which for some of us included legs on 3 different airlines), rented a car for the drive from Idaho Falls Airport and were off on another running adventure.

Lodging for this particular race also posed a challenge.   The little town of Thane, WY, home of the Star Valley Half Marathon, boasts a population of 364 and hotels, motels, and cabins for rent can be counted on one hand.   If you are willing to travel another 15 miles south to Afton, WY, where the population is a thriving 1,920, there are a few more options to choose from.   We reserved a cabin at Mountain Inn Condos which was located at the edge of town on the new Johnny Miller Signature Golf course.     The pictures online looked lovely, and as we drove into town that evening after driving 105 miles from Idaho Falls Airport, the view did not disappoint.

We had a fun crowd on board for our Wyoming adventure.   Two of our nieces, Janille Baker and Sharon Conrad, had driven from Baker, Nevada and EskDale, Utah to join us.   We checked out the cabin, and although small, it was clean and seemed to meet our needs, as well as giving us a flavor of “backcountry” Wyoming.

A big first on this trip was that Kathy would be running her first half marathon.   After years of dipping her foot in the water with 5K’s, 10K’s, even a 15K, she decided to embrace the challenge of a 13.1 mile half marathon, undaunted by an elevation at race start of 7,000 ft and a steep, downhill course!   Melodie presented her with a gift to mark the occasion.

Melodie also found a shirt that she just couldn’t resist buying for me.

Both shirts were smashing successes, despite that fact that the keen eye of the editor/schoolteacher amongst us caught a small problem with the year on Kathy’s shirt.

I headed upstairs to our cozy loft bedroom and stood for a minute at the rail, just absorbing the feel of the place.   As I leaned over the rail, I saw a scurrying movement below.  I couldn’t believe it.  Initially, I was accused of making up stories, but as one little hairy rodent after another peeked out from under the fridge, all occupants of the condo became believers.  For the first time ever, I heard Melodie shriek.  After the initial shock of discovering the rodent occupation, Sharon, our resident photographer, tucked her feet carefully under her and started taking pictures.

After our heart rates returned to normal, we realized we had a problem.   A BIG problem.   It was 10:00 pm in a little town where no one staffs a 24 hr customer service line and we needed help.   None of us were willing to sleep with these little critters.   After multiple attempts, I finally located someone who answered an emergency line for the condos.    She was pretty nonchalant about the mice, apparently most Afton residents live with mice, but she understood that we didn’t want to.    There was nothing else available for our 3 day stay at Mountain Inn Condos, so she advised us to call around town for different lodging.   After hours of fruitless calling, we realized that we were getting nowhere so we called the emergency line once again.  Long story short, several hours later, we moved all our belongings into another Mountain Inn condo for the night, and the next day we were given two smaller adjoining condos which actually worked very well for the rest of our stay.    All’s well that ends well.   But the mice were a first.   And a last, I sincerely hope.

The next morning, after moving all our belongings for the third time, we set out in search of breakfast and coffee.     The general consensus was that as long as we could find food and coffee, good moods would prevail.

After breakfast, the planners among us decided we needed to scope out the race course.  We drove up the mountain to the entrance of Bridger National Forest where the race would begin.   In an area that boasts 157 inches of snow a year, in July the dramatic natural beauty of the valley was breathtaking.   We decided with surroundings like this to focus on, the race would be doable, no matter how steep and rocky the course.

We stopped at Thayne Elementary School that afternoon to pick up our race packets.    We’ve done this a thousand times by now, but it still manages to be exciting, and makes us a bit goofy.

On the way back to our condo, we ran into a torrential rainstorm.   For a few minutes we couldn’t see the road for the driving rain.    As quickly as it came, it left.   And left behind one of the most beautiful triple rainbows any of us have ever seen.

We stopped at a local steakhouse for another meal after which the FitBit users amongst us decided we needed to walk for a couple miles to get in the requisite 10,000 steps for the day.    At 7,000 ft, everything felt like exercise, even a mild evening walk.

Race morning rolled around early.   We boarded shuttle buses at Thayne Elementary at 6:00 am for a 7:00 am race start.   The weather put on its finest garb for the event, however, and the morning dawned clear and dry.   It was a perfect day for running down a mountain.

The first two miles were steeply downhill but after that, it was much more gradual for the remaining 11 miles.    We ran down the road to the accompaniment of horses whinnying and showing off their colors, local dogs barking and running alongside us, and families with small children sitting by the roadside banging instruments and cheering us on.   The race was all it was billed to be; spectacularly beautiful, with the friendly atmosphere of a small town race.

And across the finish line we came.   Thanks to Sharon, this part of the race is far better photographed than usual.     The pictures tell the story.

Yours truly.

Janille…

The little sister…

The other little sister….first timer.   Big time congrats were in order.   Hugs all around.

Finishers, with a kick.

The data.

We snagged a couple of second place awards in our age groups.    It was a good day all around.

We headed back to the condo for a relaxing afternoon that included a delicious post-race meal at a local Mexican restaurant, and a quick swim to loosen up muscles abused from all the downhill running.    For dinner that night, we walked down to a local drive-in and indulged in old fashioned shakes and fries, served to us by car hops.    Healthy!!!   But hey, we figured we earned it.

Another amusing element to this particular trip was the consistent theme in our clothing choices.   After spending the years of our childhood dressed in uniforms, you’d think we would try harder to look different, but not us.   Every time we turned around, we found ourselves dressed exactly the same from head to toe.    Oh my.

We packed up and headed home the next morning, a bit sore, but much richer in terms of new memories and experiences.     Thanks again to Janille and Sharon for making our trip even more enjoyable and for providing lots of great photos!

Next stop, Westerly, Rhode Island.