Late last year I saw an ad on Facebook. The ad was to enter the lottery to gain entry in to the New York City Marathon. I had already decided at that time that I would probably not run another marathon. Half Marathons provide a challenge, they're strenuous, but I enjoy them. At that point I had three marathons, none of which I can say I enjoyed. Don't get me wrong. I'm glad that I ran them, and I felt a great sense of accomplishment. But in every single one that I ran this thought entered my mind...."What was I thinking?" So last year, when I entered the lottery for the New York Marathon, I was thinking that the odds of getting in were pretty slim. (And they are...less than 1 in 4 get chosen). But this is one of those marathons that everyone who runs wants to run. It's one of the big ones. For me, it's one of the two major marathons in the world. There's Boston, and there's New York.
In February or March I had figured that the drawing had already happened. Having not heard anything, I assumed that I was one of the 75% who didn't make it in. Then it happened. A notice on my phone that my credit card had been charged. I was at work at the time, so I immediately thought someone was trying to make a fraudulent charge on my card. Then I saw who had charged my card...none other than the New York Road Runners Club. Later that day I got the official email letting me know that I'd been selected to run.
Not a day has gone by since then that I didn't think about what it would be like to run that race. I've watched this race on TV in past. Friends who have run this race have told me how great it is. Now I was actually going to run one of the top marathons in the world. I would be crossing the bridges with professional athletes, running the five boroughs, entering Central Park, making that turn, and heading for the finish line that I had seen on ESPN on more than a few occasions.
At that point, things started to work out pretty well for me. In my line of work, trying to schedule time off so far in advance is not necessarily an easy thing. I went ahead and submitted the requests, but knew it would be September or October before I knew for sure if those requests could be approved. But as it turned it out, luck was on my side. Throughout the new couple of months, several of my co-workers were looking to get time off themselves. So I was able to work out some trades. Those trades made it possible for me to take the entire week of the marathon off, and an additional day off to recover the following week. All without having to use any of leave time.
I traveled to New York with my best friend. On the way there we stopped by the Flight 93 Memorial in Pennsylvania. It was a moving experience and one I won't soon forget. We made it to our destination in time to stop and grab dinner while watching game #7 of the World Series. We had planned to go over to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island the next morning, but with the long drive and late end to the game, decided just to sleep in. Our first day in New York we headed to Times Square and Rockefeller Center. We went to the Top of the Rock, which I would recommend over the Empire State Building. The view of fantastic, the wait is not nearly as long, and from the Top of the Rock, you get a great view of The Empire State Building, which you don't get from the top of the Empire State Building. We then headed over to the convention center for the runner's expo. Thursday evening we got back in to the city for The Lion King. I had managed to get front row tickets, right on the aisle. The show was fantastic and I would recommend it to anyone going to New York.
On Friday we headed downtown and started our day at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. We took a guided tour of the Memorial - well worth it. To hear the stories of the memorial and the stories of some of the people who died in the terrorist attacks in both 2001 and 1993 at the World Trade Center was very touching and humbling. One fact, if you ever make it there. A white rose inserted in to the name of a victim around one of the two reflecting pools, means that person would have been celebrating a birthday on that day. There are white roses on those walls all 365 days of the year. We then went in to the museum. As big as the museum is, it is very crowded. One could spend hours in that building and still not see everything. As we watched school children on tours in the museum, we both remarked about how even the high school kids there are too young to remember the events that seem like yesterday to some of us.
Friday evening we took a boat tour around Manhattan to see the City lit up at night. A-MAZ-ING! New York is such a beautiful City at night. The boat also swung very close to the Statue of Liberty. Being that close to the statue, with it lit up like it was, made up for missing it the day before.
Saturday was a rest day, and Carey flew back to Ohio. On Sunday morning I woke up early to catch the bus for the starting area of the marathon. Even though my corral didn't start until 11:00am, I had to catch the shuttle at 5:00am. By 6:00am I was at the start area, found a tree to lean against and napped as best I could. Fortunately, friends who have run the race before let me know what to expect, so I was prepared. I had some light snacks, dressed in warm clothes that I could shed prior to the race and was prepared to be in the starting village for a few hours.
The start area was very organized, especially considering the fact that they had 50,000 runners to get through. But the time finally came when the cannon fired and I was on the course. Starting in Staten Island, runners immediately cross the Verazono Narrows bridge in to Brooklyn. The view of Manhattan from the bridge is awe inspiring. Then you hit Brooklyn. More than half of the race is in Brooklyn, and for the entire stretch the streets are lined with people cheering the runners . The Police Officers from the NYPD and FDNY firefighters are in to it as well. We then crossed in to Queens, and the crowds there were just as awesome. We were only in Queens for a couple of miles, but one sign I saw a spectator holding made me laugh "Welcome to Queens. Get Out". After crossing the Queens Borough bridge in to Manhattan, we headed north in to the Bronx. Although we were only in the Bronx for about a mile and a half, this year, running there held a little extra meaning. Just a couple of days before the marathon an NYPD officer working in the Bronx was shot and killed by a domestic violence suspect. Another officer was also shot in that incident. But the crowds were still there cheering. The officers were still there doing their jobs, as well as cheering on the runners. This was the spot in the race where I literally slipped on a banana peel that was on the road. I didn't fall down, but the irony made me laugh. We then crossed back in to Manhattan for the final part of the race, movin' on up, through the east side. Again, the crowd support never ended. It was amazing. I was near the back of the final group of runners, and still people were lining the streets. The second coolest part of the race though, was running through Central Park. At this point, you know you're almost done. But this is the point I recognized most from watching this race on TV. Especially the last few turns. I had never been on this course before, but I had seen it. Crowds were still there, hours after the pros had finished, there were still crowds cheering and giving high fives to the runners.
I've always told people that the crowd support in Columbus is the best I've seen. That's no longer the case. New Yorkers come out for the race. New Yorkers stay out for the race. It was well worth it! I'll never run another marathon again.....maybe.
In February or March I had figured that the drawing had already happened. Having not heard anything, I assumed that I was one of the 75% who didn't make it in. Then it happened. A notice on my phone that my credit card had been charged. I was at work at the time, so I immediately thought someone was trying to make a fraudulent charge on my card. Then I saw who had charged my card...none other than the New York Road Runners Club. Later that day I got the official email letting me know that I'd been selected to run.
Not a day has gone by since then that I didn't think about what it would be like to run that race. I've watched this race on TV in past. Friends who have run this race have told me how great it is. Now I was actually going to run one of the top marathons in the world. I would be crossing the bridges with professional athletes, running the five boroughs, entering Central Park, making that turn, and heading for the finish line that I had seen on ESPN on more than a few occasions.
At that point, things started to work out pretty well for me. In my line of work, trying to schedule time off so far in advance is not necessarily an easy thing. I went ahead and submitted the requests, but knew it would be September or October before I knew for sure if those requests could be approved. But as it turned it out, luck was on my side. Throughout the new couple of months, several of my co-workers were looking to get time off themselves. So I was able to work out some trades. Those trades made it possible for me to take the entire week of the marathon off, and an additional day off to recover the following week. All without having to use any of leave time.
I traveled to New York with my best friend. On the way there we stopped by the Flight 93 Memorial in Pennsylvania. It was a moving experience and one I won't soon forget. We made it to our destination in time to stop and grab dinner while watching game #7 of the World Series. We had planned to go over to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island the next morning, but with the long drive and late end to the game, decided just to sleep in. Our first day in New York we headed to Times Square and Rockefeller Center. We went to the Top of the Rock, which I would recommend over the Empire State Building. The view of fantastic, the wait is not nearly as long, and from the Top of the Rock, you get a great view of The Empire State Building, which you don't get from the top of the Empire State Building. We then headed over to the convention center for the runner's expo. Thursday evening we got back in to the city for The Lion King. I had managed to get front row tickets, right on the aisle. The show was fantastic and I would recommend it to anyone going to New York.
On Friday we headed downtown and started our day at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. We took a guided tour of the Memorial - well worth it. To hear the stories of the memorial and the stories of some of the people who died in the terrorist attacks in both 2001 and 1993 at the World Trade Center was very touching and humbling. One fact, if you ever make it there. A white rose inserted in to the name of a victim around one of the two reflecting pools, means that person would have been celebrating a birthday on that day. There are white roses on those walls all 365 days of the year. We then went in to the museum. As big as the museum is, it is very crowded. One could spend hours in that building and still not see everything. As we watched school children on tours in the museum, we both remarked about how even the high school kids there are too young to remember the events that seem like yesterday to some of us.
Friday evening we took a boat tour around Manhattan to see the City lit up at night. A-MAZ-ING! New York is such a beautiful City at night. The boat also swung very close to the Statue of Liberty. Being that close to the statue, with it lit up like it was, made up for missing it the day before.
Saturday was a rest day, and Carey flew back to Ohio. On Sunday morning I woke up early to catch the bus for the starting area of the marathon. Even though my corral didn't start until 11:00am, I had to catch the shuttle at 5:00am. By 6:00am I was at the start area, found a tree to lean against and napped as best I could. Fortunately, friends who have run the race before let me know what to expect, so I was prepared. I had some light snacks, dressed in warm clothes that I could shed prior to the race and was prepared to be in the starting village for a few hours.
The start area was very organized, especially considering the fact that they had 50,000 runners to get through. But the time finally came when the cannon fired and I was on the course. Starting in Staten Island, runners immediately cross the Verazono Narrows bridge in to Brooklyn. The view of Manhattan from the bridge is awe inspiring. Then you hit Brooklyn. More than half of the race is in Brooklyn, and for the entire stretch the streets are lined with people cheering the runners . The Police Officers from the NYPD and FDNY firefighters are in to it as well. We then crossed in to Queens, and the crowds there were just as awesome. We were only in Queens for a couple of miles, but one sign I saw a spectator holding made me laugh "Welcome to Queens. Get Out". After crossing the Queens Borough bridge in to Manhattan, we headed north in to the Bronx. Although we were only in the Bronx for about a mile and a half, this year, running there held a little extra meaning. Just a couple of days before the marathon an NYPD officer working in the Bronx was shot and killed by a domestic violence suspect. Another officer was also shot in that incident. But the crowds were still there cheering. The officers were still there doing their jobs, as well as cheering on the runners. This was the spot in the race where I literally slipped on a banana peel that was on the road. I didn't fall down, but the irony made me laugh. We then crossed back in to Manhattan for the final part of the race, movin' on up, through the east side. Again, the crowd support never ended. It was amazing. I was near the back of the final group of runners, and still people were lining the streets. The second coolest part of the race though, was running through Central Park. At this point, you know you're almost done. But this is the point I recognized most from watching this race on TV. Especially the last few turns. I had never been on this course before, but I had seen it. Crowds were still there, hours after the pros had finished, there were still crowds cheering and giving high fives to the runners.
I've always told people that the crowd support in Columbus is the best I've seen. That's no longer the case. New Yorkers come out for the race. New Yorkers stay out for the race. It was well worth it! I'll never run another marathon again.....maybe.
