Weekend Update ~ Cooper River Bridge Run

Happy weekend everyone! This post is coming to you from the beach! It's actually cloudy this morning so I'm inside horizontal on the couch blogging while Ryan reads through The Hunger Games.  I read the book when it first came out and can't wait to see the movie, but Ryan wanted to read the book before we went to see it. I handed over my kindle when we got to the beach Friday and he's been immersed ever since! That book really does suck you in! Here's how my weekend has looked, starting from the beginning!

Friday, we woke up early (the downfall of the working world - sleeping in is hard to do) and decided to watch the sunrise from the hammock. It was such a perfect way to start the day.

I ended up working for a little bit while Ryan napped in the hammock. We ate a quick breakfast and headed to the beach for a quick 2 mile run. I love running on the beach! It's just hard to get used to the humidity down here! After the run, we made a quick change into our bathing suits and were back on the beach in 30 minutes. Ahh, the weather was perfect! We spent the rest of the day soaking up the sun.

We finally went inside to shower around 5 pm and then we were off to Charleston! One of my best friends, Rachel, is in medical school in Charleston and we were staying with her for the race. I had made reservations for dinner at Red Drum weeks ago. I had my 22nd birthday dinner there and the food is amazing. I didn't need an excuse to eat there again! Ryan and I were starving, so we ordered the chips and salsa before Rachel and her friend got there. The menu has a southwestern flair (which I knew Ryan would love because he's from Texas) so I had to have a margarita! The lighting in the restaurant is pretty dim so I didn't get any good pictures of our food. I had the wood-grilled chicken breast which comes with mexican cheese, thin tortilla strips, and a avocado sauce. We were so full, we couldn't even make room for dessert, which is a shame because the dessert menu is to die for!

After dinner, we went back to Rachel's apartment for lots of sleep before the race. Unfortunately, right before bed, Ryan and I got news that our best friend's dad had passed away. He's been battling cancer for a couple of months and had slipped into a coma earlier in the day. I had a rough time sleeping Friday night because of my heavy heart, so that 5 am wake up call came mighty early. I think I only managed 3 hours of sleep. 

On to the race! We got dressed, pinned on our bibs, grabbed some Luna bars and a bottle of water and headed to the shuttles. Our shuttle managed to get lost on the way to the start line, and there was over an hour delay for the race. But Ryan and I passed the time, and tried to keep stretching.  Then we were off! We ran over a mile before we got to the bridge but Ryan's calves started to cramp up. We walked up the bridge (which is over a mile long) and ran the rest of the race. We had a lot of fun, and crossed the finish line together at 1:21! Training next year will go much smoother and we're going to kill that time!

After the race, we headed back to Rachel's place to shower and then meet Ryan's roommate Travis and his girlfriend Abby downtown for lunch. They had picked Big Gun Burgers and it was delicious! We ordered mac & cheese fritters for an appetizer. I had a blue cheese bacon burger and a Tom Collins! Running 6 miles requires refueling with food that's bad for you! :)



Water in mason jars!



Fried mac & cheese! Doesn't get much better!

We were absolutely exhausted but I wanted to get back to Litchfield before it got dark and before the Final Four games came on. Ryan took a little more convincing...




Rachel and Ryan post-race

Before leaving Charleston, we ended up meeting one of my friends, Kyle, at an Irish pub. It was great to see him and catch up and Ryan and I enjoyed a Coffee and Kahlua to stay awake for the remainder of the day! We also had to make a pitstop for this picture:

Fun Story: Ryan's last name is Berndt (pronounced "burnt"). As the story goes, freshman year of college, when he was introducing himself to the guys on his hall, they didn't understand what his last name was. So, to make it easier, he said "Berndt. Like burnt toast." And the nickname was born. When I first met Ryan, I was introduced to him as "Toast." I had no idea what his actual name was for at least a month. He was even in my phone as "Toast." But after dating him for a little while, he requested I no longer call him "Toast." So I'm retraining myself and slowly learning to call him Ryan! I saw this restaurant (which is a great place for brunch) and I just had to make him take a picture under the awning!

Back to the weekend! Ryan and I left Charleston around 4:30 pm. We got back to the beach and picked a local seafood place for dinner. Hanser House is a delicious, family owned restaurant about a mile from the house. We bellied up to the bar just in time for tip-off of the first basketball game. Dinner was amazing (I had shrimp and grits, Ryan had the seafood platter) and there were endless baskets of hushpuppies!!




Guess who had the fruitier drink?!

Sunday was a short day in the sun and we hopped back in the car to head home. Ryan continued to read The Hunger Games all the way home, so we could see the movie when we got back to Greenville! It was sooo good! 



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And that, my friends, concludes the weekend! Whew! We packed a lot into one weekend (and drove over 796 miles)! But it was a great weekend and a lot of fun!