Since I've started running long distances, this is a route that I have always wanted to put together over the course of a day. Simply put, this route connects all the major South Jersey Shore towns via a route called Ocean Drive which is a series of local toll/bridge roads.
I ran the route from North to South, starting in Atlantic City and ending at Sunset beach in Cape May. The route finding is fairly easy, with the only true route-finding taking place towards the end of the route in Cape May where the official Ocean Drive route wraps around Cape May as opposed to traveling in the shortest direction to Sunset Beach.
I started in Atlantic City with even calories and liquids to run the first 15 miles or so with my first stop coming in Ocean City at my parents' house which is right by the Ocean Drive route. I refilled by bottles and my brother ran the next 13 miles or so with me through Strathmere and Sea Isle and into Avalon. He was then picked up in Avalon and I was able to refill my bottles again. From this point (Avalon through the finish) I ran unsupported. The day I decided to do this route was particularly warm for mid-May at the beach and I had to use Wawa's and convenience stores along the route for water refuels for the last 22 miles or so. While this certainly impacted my speed, it's what made the most sense for me on this particular day in order to complete the route.
For anyone from the area, this is a route that I highly recommend. Experiencing all these towns in one day, on foot, allows you to feel the individual personalities of all these different towns. Although these towns are separated by small inlets and toll bridges, they sometimes feel like they are worlds apart with personalities and identities all their own.
I would love to see what kind of time someone can put on this route in a fully supported fashion. The other interesting thing about this route is how much it changes throughout the year. I ran this on the Saturday before Memorial Day, and all the towns already seemed to have the "summer noise" that folks down here get used to. I'm sure if you ran this in the dead of winter it would be an entirely different journey. To that point, weather and seasonality could also play a huge factor on this route. The summer prevailing wind typically blows from the South throughout the majority of the day, and I had a head wind for much of the day along with a good amount of heat. I'm sure someone could really plan for a weather window to try to tackle this route in ideal temperatures.
Overall, this is a really exciting route and I'm excited to see what other people can do on it. Have at it!