I can't believe it's been so long since I last posted! Boy does time fly.
I ran the NYC Marathon 2 weeks ago and after having some time to unwind, I decided it was time to post about it, so here we go....
My weekend began when Ryan picked me up to take me to the airport early Friday morning. It was probably 5am and we were both still half asleep - why is it so hard to get up to go to work and so easy to get up to go to the airport? After saying goodbye and going through security, I boarded my plane and off I went to NYC! I fell asleep before we even took off - I never seem to have a problem sleeping on planes.
It was weird landing in NYC considering 75% of my clients are on Long Island and I know that area by zipcode and by the map - not by the trees and houses. Anyways, I flew into JFK and then took the train downtown to go to the expo. I ran into a few of my running buddies - one of them is a former Saucony rep - it's always so great to catch up with people who you share something in common with that you value so much. After I got my bib, I headed to the Port Transit Bus Authority Terminal to board the dreaded 107 to Newark, where my hotel was. I decided to stay in Newark because it was cheaper and I had no idea how sore I would be Monday morning when I woke up to fly back to Seattle. Let me tell you - it's a pain to get to. With all of the money I spent on transit into and out of NYC, I basically would have spent the same amount on a hotel in Manhattan! The initial bus ride to Newark was MISERABLE. To start, I got on the bus and a lady got mad that my bag was hanging over the seat divider so she shoved my bag up against the wall, spat on me, and insisted on sitting next to me. It was awful. Eventually, I made it to my hotel.
Saturday morning I woke up and it was POURING cats and dogs and it was about 39 degrees. It was SO cold. I took the train into the city and braved the cold and wind to do some much needed shopping - and then it hit me mid-afternoon...I'M RUNNING THE NYC MARATHON TOMORROW MORNING! I did panic a little bit, but I was able to calm down. I wound up going to the same place for dinner in Lincoln Center that I went last year and took the train back to Newark.
MARATHON DAY
Since it as the end (or beginning?) of Daylight Savings Time, I panicked that my alarm wouldn't go off or my phone alarm would get all messed up because I had been having issues with my phone, but luckily it did go off on time (4:30). I got up, got dressed, hopped on the shuttle to the train station, and then took the train into Penn Station, where I hopped on the Subway down to the Staten Island Ferry. I met a girl on the way into the city who was my age and was running her first marathon that day. It helped a ton talking to her and giving her pointers for the race since I ran it last year.
We eventually got on the ferry and headed to Staten Island. Boy was it chilly!! It seemed like the bus took FOREVER to get to Fort Wadsworth - maybe there was more traffic this year? I wound up waiting around a little longer than last year outside before the start, but I found a black trash bag that I wore to keep the wind off. They had to move the start of the wheelchair race to Brooklyn because the winds were 40+ mph on the Verazzano Narrows Bridge and I guess they didn't want the wheelchairs blowing off! The windchill was in the upper teens at the start - it was pretty brisk, but once I made it into Brooklyn, it really wasn't all that bad and I warmed up a little bit. I wound up wearing a long sleeve and windbreaker the whole time.
The race was much easier this year - having run the course last year definitely helped. Last year my back cramped up around mile 18...this year it didn't happen until mile 23 and I was able to power through. Maybe it was because of all of the yoga and physical therapy and chiropractor visits? I think I was definitely more relaxed this year. After I finished, I grabbed my medal and headed back to the hotel.
Running a marathon is such a humbling experience. People have asked me if I will continue to run, or will this be my last one? My answer is pretty simple: I will run the NYC Marathon every year I get into it. I know I need to focus on my training more - this year I didn't do the best, but I wasn't trying to qualify for Boston in this race. One day down the road I would love to qualify for Boston. Not sure exactly when that will be, but it's definitely one of my lifetime goals. I have to give up a lot to focus on the intense training for that, and I'm not quite there yet.
In the "off-season" I'm going to focus on staying healthy and in shape. Hoping to take up skiing - another one of my lifelong goals that I haven't been able to do because I've been training for a race or there hasn't been enough snow.
Thank you so much for your continued support - you know who you are!
