Forums >Racing>2015 NYC Marathon Thread
It was too warm and humid for the marathon, I'd rather having the cold and windy conditions like 2014. I found my way into the medical tent after the finish because of leg cramps.
Sorry about the leg cramps. I just wrote how I thought there were a lot more people cramping up in Central Park than I would have expected. Maybe it was the heat. Hope you're feeling better.
My blog is JT Running DC. It's awesome. Guide to Washington DC Area Running Routes. Guide to the New York City Marathon. Guide to the Boston Marathon. Guide to Running Gear. Guide to Running Clothes.
not bad for mile 25
Thanks, EastRiverRunner, for posting the stats. I was looking for some of those, in particular, how many finishers and how many male finishers, to fill in my RA report. I'm hoping there will be more data to play with in mid-November, when the official results are posted?
I see my 5k, 10k, etc. splits, but I thought I saw my mile splits somewhere? Maybe in the finisher's email? I'll check again. I was wondering, though, because I didn't see the mats or antennae every mile.
About cramping...
I think the heat and humidity may have been more of a factor. It was deceptive because it was overcast and didn't feel that bad.
I hadn't run NYC before and didn't realize how congested it would be for the whole race. It never seemed to clear up. That caused me to run about 10 minutes slower than I would have have wanted. I was never able to keep a steady pace going. Having said that, even though I was running at a slower than expected but very comfortable pace - my quads started to cramp up around Central Park. I didn't stop, but also noticed what seemed to be a lot of folks walking close to the finish. (This was in the 3:30 area ) That also added more left and right running trying to avoid them.
I was surprised about the cramps because I was running a much easier pace and expecting to be able to take off in the last 2 or 3 miles. And based on my training and fitness level, bashed quads were the last thing on my list I thought would happen. Especially after running what felt like a steady long run pace vs all out race pace.
On the other hand, I could just be old and out of shape. LOL.
My race report is up on my blog. I'm already looking forward to next year!
My race report is up on my blog.
I'm already looking forward to next year!
Julia, thanks for sharing another great RR! I can totally relate to your woes in the last six, as that's how I felt in my previous six marathons. NYC this year was different for me, however. In the last six >miles< I was able to keep going, while totally sympathizing with everyone who had to walk by then. My pace was flagging for sure, but I didn't feel too terrible then, or in the hours following the race. I was a little disappointed with my overall pace; my goal was around 8:20 and it ended up being 8:43. Let's blame the humidity, shall we? I really think it has a substantial effect.
I was pretty confused by my mile splits being all over the place, so I correlated them with course elevation in my log. That helps me to make a little more sense of it.
Don't give up on your CIM goal, but keep in mind that there are are a bunch of factors that can help or hinder you on any given day. Your great training will overcome most of those factors. Good luck!
ultramarathon/triathlete
I had a great time pacing again (3rd time pacing NYCM, 10th time finishing it). I brought my 3:45 group in at 3:44:35.
Wonderful NYCM this year but I also found it more crowded than usual. I'm not sure why it felt that way but I was dodging runners and walkers the whole way and was shocked at the number of people to just stop dead in their tracks in the water station without at least getting a cup and running past it and THEN stopping to walk. Super annoying and makes it really hard to stay on pace!
HTFU? Why not!
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I had a great time pacing again (3rd time pacing NYCM, 10th time finishing it). I brought my 3:45 group in at 3:44:35. Wonderful NYCM this year but I also found it more crowded than usual. I'm not sure why it felt that way but I was dodging runners and walkers the whole way and was shocked at the number of people to just stop dead in their tracks in the water station without at least getting a cup and running past it and THEN stopping to walk. Super annoying and makes it really hard to stay on pace!
Wow, great job pacing, MD! I should have gone with you. I was actually placed in a corral ahead of the pacers I wanted - I was in corral D, with 3:30 and 3:35. Oddly, I didn't see any pacers pass me. Maybe they need to have big flashing lights for me to notice them.
Julia, thanks for sharing another great RR! I can totally relate to your woes in the last six, as that's how I felt in my previous six marathons. NYC this year was different for me, however. In the last six, I was able to keep going, while totally sympathizing with everyone who had to walk by then. My pace was flagging for sure, but I didn't feel too terrible then, or in the hours following the race. I was a little disappointed with my overall pace; my goal was around 8:20 and it ended up being 8:43. Let's blame the humidity, shall we? I really think it has a substantial effect. I was pretty confused by my mile splits being all over the place, so I correlated them with course elevation in my log. That helps me to make a little more sense of it. Don't give up on your CIM goal, but keep in mind that there are are a bunch of factors that can help or hinder you on any given day. Your great training will overcome most of those factors. Good luck!
Julia, thanks for sharing another great RR! I can totally relate to your woes in the last six, as that's how I felt in my previous six marathons. NYC this year was different for me, however. In the last six, I was able to keep going, while totally sympathizing with everyone who had to walk by then. My pace was flagging for sure, but I didn't feel too terrible then, or in the hours following the race. I was a little disappointed with my overall pace; my goal was around 8:20 and it ended up being 8:43. Let's blame the humidity, shall we? I really think it has a substantial effect.
Thanks for the well wishes for CIM! I can't believe I'm going to do this to myself again in a month.
Yeah, I think the humidity was more of a factor than people thought it would be. I know I hadn't realized it until the morning of. The moment they NYPD officer took my poncho and I didn't care, I should have known it was going to be warm and taken some pace off at the beginning.
This was my first NYC marathon, so I don't have a baseline to compare. I thought it was crazy crowded the whole way. There were a few spots that lightened up if we hit a wider part of the street, but most of the time I felt like I was shoulder to shoulder with folks. I also couldn't believe the number of people stopping or walking in the last 3 or 4 miles. Good to know it seemed that way to a veteran of the race, too.
It was a blast though and I had a great time. But, from a racing perspective it seemed way more congested than Chicago or Boston.
Any ideas of what was different that could have caused it? The previous 2 years had more finishers, so in theory we should have had more room. LOL.