Training:

Modified Hal Higdon Intermediate 1 - dropped one of the 20 milers, moved some long runs around to fit my life, and pumped up the midweek mileage.  I did all of my training runs at easy pace for the most part because I wanted to get to the starting line healthy and I was afraid of my ankle injury flaring up.

Goals:

A goal: sub 5 hours, McMillan predicts 4:46 (lol)

B goal: beat the sunset at 4:54 pm, I crossed the start line at 11:10 (so, I guess sub 5:44)

C goal: finish before they unplug the clock

Pre-Race:

The day before the race I was basically a nervous fucking mess.  I felt bad because even though Adam was in town, and wanted to spend more time with him, I was too nervous to spend more time with him because when I am anxious I get antisocial.

I made tattoos for Runners United, I taped my name to my shirt, pinned my bib, and tried things on a million times.  I gathered everything I thought I might need and put it on the dining room table (like my start bag) and packed a bag for my husband with instructions on what he should be giving me and the meeting points.  We also worked out where he would be meeting me and at what times.  Even though I was really prepared with all of my items, I was still super incredibly anxious.  I had thai food as my prerace meal - I know you are supposed to avoid spicy food, but I find thai food comforting.

I fell asleep during the Mets game (around 10:30) and woke up at 2:30AM and looked out the window.  With my new LASIK vision I could see all the cops towing the cars on the route.  I laid there awake, drifting in and out of consciousness until 5AM, at which point I decided just to get up.

I ate my breakfast (Rice Krispies and a banana) and drank a single cup of instant coffee with almond milk (which is all my stomach can handle now … since I had The Troubles).  I made it out the door by 7, as planned.  I missed the 7 train by less than 30 seconds; when I got to Grand Central, the next 4/5 train didn’t come for 16 minutes.  I barely got on the train because it was so stuffed with runners and running so infrequently.  There were runners at Union Square that just couldn’t get on the train.

When I got to the Staten Island Ferry, I was supposed to meet the Runners United people, but apparently the ferries were running late.  So even though I got there right around 8AM, I didn’t actually get on a ferry until after 8:30.  It was a giant cluster fuck and apparently not the norm. I missed giving the tattoos to everyone because the ferry was just such a mess. On the ferry I met Wendy, another Runners United girl.  She used to live in NYC but moved to Richmond.  She has a 7pm flight to catch tonight back to Richmond; she was in Wave 3 that started at 10:30.  She considered moving back to Wave 4 but I told her she was crazy because those 20 minutes could have made her miss her flight.  I got to Staten Island around 9.  I tried to wait for Kristin, but we were told that the last buses were leaving at 9:30, so I waited until 9:30 and left.

I got on the bus from the ferry terminal to Fort Wadsworth, and got to Fort Wadsworth around 10:15.  When I got to Fort Wadsworth I was incredibly hungry, since I had eaten breakfast at around 6:00.  I talked to some girls about how hungry I was, and was hoping for bagels, and they gave me a banana!  Apparently they had brought a whole bunch of bananas for this reason.  I was worried about eating a bagel because one time I had ran with hubby after eating a bagel and had crazy abdominal cramping.  So I was very happy that they gave me a banana.

I probably peed around 3 times at Fort Wadsworth within 45 minutes.  I didn’t have to pee - I was just so nervous I had to pee two or three drops over and over again.  It was nervous peeing, not peeing because of any actual pee buildup.

I met with Alexie and Danixa in the corral.  Dani was also going for a 5 hour time so I decided to run with her at the start of the race.  The woman I’d intended to start with deferred the day before the race.

The details of the race:

Miles 1-6 (12:30, 11:12, 11:28, 11:50, 11:56, 11:33):

We went up the bridge really slowly as I planned - I didn’t want to go out too fast and risk blowing up.  We were basically the last people in Wave 4; I was one of the last people to leave Wave 4 Blue.  I think maybe 20 people started behind me in Wave 4 Blue so I didn’t have people racing up behind me to encourage me to push the pace.

Once we got into Brooklyn, I saw the nanny of one of my students, who had told me she would be cheering for me.  It was really cool because I wasn’t really expecting it.  Then I saw Jess and Dasha at 4th Ave and 69th.  I was kind of a bitch because Jess held out her hand and asked me to high five her after I had passed.  That wasn't happening because A: I'm a germophobe and B: only forward progress! The crowd support in the early miles of Brooklyn was really great.

Around this point I started getting weird abdominal cramps (side stitches).  They were less severe than what I had during my 18 mile training run, though, so I just ran through them and trusted that they would eventually pass.  They did subside after awhile.  At some point Danixa ran into another friend who was running much slower than we were.  I kept on going trusting that either she’d catch up to make the time goal or that she’d run with the girl she’d bumped into.

Miles 7-12 (11:38, 11:45, 12:00, 11:32, 11:54, 11:47): 

I saw Leslie at 4th Ave and 9th and she had a cool sign.  I got really frustrated in Brooklyn.  There’s tape set up that are supposed to fence off the spectators, but they had encroached way past the tape and were on the route.  That meant that the route was super congested even though it didn’t have to be, and if the spectators had just respected the blue tape it would have been a much better running experience.

The only quiet part in all of Brooklyn where the boundaries were respected was South Williamsburg aka Orthodox Jew central.  There were a few random gentrifiers there, but otherwise the area was completely quiet and kind of creepy.  I didn’t have my headphones in so it was extra weird.

Around mile 10 is when everything started hurting.  My left hip, left knee felt tight, sore, and didn’t feel right.  I messaged my husband and told him to bring me Icy Hot when he was meeting me for the first time at mile 13.5.

Around mile 11 I saw Rob and Kristi.  They had meant to surprise me, but when I opened my phone to send my husband the message I saw where he would be waiting.  I think Rob was brewing or something, because he showed up with a huge pot and a lid that he was banging together.  I kept on trucking even though I was in pain.  I thought that I just needed to get to the IcyHot and I’d have a fighting chance at my goal.

Miles 13-15 (14:20 - potty, 12:45, 12:13):

I felt comfortable running through green point because I run there very frequently.  Even though I was comforted by my surroundings I was in a lot of pain from my hip.

Right before mile 13 I stopped and stretched because I was in so much pain.  That’s also where I stopped to use a restroom because it was the first portapotty without a line.  Even though I didn’t really have to go I thought I should use it anyway, so that I wouldn’t need to use a toilet later and have to wait in line.  I also used this chance to put in my eyedrops since I was supposed to be on top of that - LASIK 10 days before a marathon might not be the best idea.

I crossed the Pulaski  - this is a bridge that I cross on most of my training runs so I knew exactly what to expect.  It isn’t really a terrible bridge, but people around me were starting to get tired. At least some people here were starting to give up because there were a lot of walkers.  I’m not quite sure if I also walked; maybe a little bit because my hip was in so much pain.  One woman asked if it was the last bridge… I chuckled and informed her of the upcoming torture.

When I got off the bridge I saw my husband, who gave me Icy Hot which was absolutely amazing.  With no concern for modesty I pulled down my skirt a bit and rubbed it all over my hip.  He had brought the Stick, but I didn’t use it because he didn’t have it out.  He also gave me a Nuun bottle and more Shot bloks.

As I started running again, the Icy Hot started to burn and I thought to myself, “Wow, I might have burn marks from this.”  It just burned for around 30 minutes.  After the burn, my hip started feeling slightly better.

Miles 16-19 (13:57, 13:27, 12:32, 13:12):

The Queensboro Bridge was psychologically devastating.  With my hip pain I knew that my A goal was completely out the window.  And on the Queensboro so many people were walking, sometimes five abreast (which was a bit annoying).  On the Queensboro I finally put on headphones and music because I needed the psychological boost.  I also stopped and stretched and honestly walked a lot more than I should have.

After I got off the Queensboro I did a real asshole move.  I saw the medical tent, and my side boob/arm fat was chafing, so I ran across the course, bumping people, to get to the Vaseline.  “MUST.  GET.  VASELINE.” If someone else had done that I would have thought they were a fucking retarded asshole, but I was the fucking retard asshole there because I really needed the Vaseline.

I kept going.  I knew that Z and her parents would be waiting for me at 72nd (mile 16.8), so that kept me going mentally.  After I saw them, I kept going at a reasonable pace for another two blocks until they were out of sight, before I slowed down and gave myself a little walk break.

At Mile 17, they handed out wet sponges which felt amazing.  But then everyone drops their sponge on the ground, and I was not about to run over thousands of sponges.  So I walked through the Land of Sponges for a solid three-four blocks because I didn’t want to trip or slip on a sponge.

At Mile 18, I was supposed to see John from my mileage game, but I didn’t stop and say hi because I was so distracted with the pain and the sponges.   I didn’t realize until after I had passed the water station, and I felt terrible, but there was no way I was walking backwards.  Only forward progress (and mild stopping for stretching) was allowed.

Then I made a psychological deal with myself that I would jog until I saw my husband at 116th; conveniently it ended up being right near a water station which was pretty congested and slow.  Some sticking may have occurred; I’m not quite sure.  My hamstrings were so tight at that point that it was hard to maintain any semblance of a normal running stride.

Miles 20-23 (14:20, 13:32, 14:49, 15:34):

After I saw my husband I trucked it to the Bronx.  I made myself run/jog/wog/locomote myself at a pace faster than walking to the bridge.  On the bridge, I stopped, stretched because my hammies were insanely tight and seizing up.  I remember making it to 20 miles on the bridge, or maybe after the bridge, in 4:08.  I had expected to hit 20 miles under 4 hours so I was a bit disappointed.  The Willis Avenue Bridge into the Bronx was like the bridge of shattered dreams.  People were actively stopping to stretch and tearing off their pace bands.

The Bronx wasn’t very memorable.  There wasn’t much crowd support; more than the Orthodox Jew section of Brooklyn, but just barely.  At least they were cheering, unlike the Orthodox Jews that just glared at you.  There was supposed to be a Runners United NYC Aid Station there, with bandaids and Halloween candy, but I didn’t see it and didn’t stop.  This was pretty much the height of my delirium. I slowly felt my B goal slipping from my grasp, and I was starting to think maybe I should just try to finish under 6 hours and was doing tons of math in my head to figure out what I needed to run to achieve at least that goal. It might have been better that I didn’t stop, because if I had I might have ended up in the medical tent.  These miles were the slowest of my race.

After the Bronx I was supposed to see Susan, who I had planned to start with.  I never ended up seeing her; she said later she had chased me for 15 blocks on the tracker without seeing me.

I saw my husband at 116th, just after mile 22.  He gave me a pep talk, telling me that after I hit mile 23 it was just a 5K after that, which really helped.  I walked with him for a while, holding his hand, and then sticked myself really well.  He also gave me another Nuun bottle, which helped with my cramps a lot.  It was pretty hot, and I’m a really sweaty runner so I was gross by this point.  I made him walk with me for a solid two blocks before I continued on.

Miles 24-26.2 (12:56, 12:25, 12:23, 2:42):

My husband's pep talk really helped, and I started picking up the pace.  I realized that I’d done countless 5k races before and that’s about all I had left to do. Everyone else was walking, and I was just passing so many people at this point.  Because of my hip pain I hadn’t exerted myself cardiovascularly, so I was not bonking in the same way as everyone else.  Especially once I got into the park, I just turned on the jets and basically no one passed me, while I was passing tons of people.  I was running ~12min miles, once I realized I could make it and beat the sunset, I dropped the hammer (as much as one could reasonably drop a hammer having run 23 miles with hip pain) and went for it.  I didn’t really walk in the park except to just eat a shot blok, and did so while ascending a hill.  I said hello to the cat, and there was a lady under it who was really confused when I waved to the cat.  There’s a cat statue at the top of cat hill.  I said “Hi Kitty!”  The lady was so confused and thought I was talking to her.  Then I pointed to the cat, she turned, saw, and nodded at me.

I made sure around mile 25 to take off my race sunglasses since I didn’t want my race pictures to have me in sunglasses.  Hopefully my race pictures will come out OK.

When I turned onto Central Park South, I had confidence I would finish and hit my B goal.  Definitely at some points there were severe doubts I could hit my B goal; which I thought was really reasonable and should have had 80% chance of finishing but the time in the Bronx had left me doubtful. Thankfully the pep talk really helped, reframing the end of the race as just a 5k.  Suck it up.  I saw a sign: Pain is Temporary; Internet Race Results Are Forever.  I was thinking about the people on my running forum, and that I had posted my goals to Facebook early in the morning along with the race tracker.  I am pretty goal oriented and didn’t want to totally punk out on everyone.  If I could have reached my B goal, I would have felt like I accomplished something.  If I didn’t reach my B goal I would have felt really defeated, and in the Bronx I really didn’t think I could hit that B goal.

Finally I turned right back into the park and approached the finish line.  There was a tiny little hill at the end, which everyone says isn’t going to bother you because you can see the finish line.  I had felt that hill before, during the 10 M run, but this time it didn’t matter at all.  I blew right past it!  I stopped my watch and it said 5:32:11.  I had done it and beat sunset.  The results online said 5:32:07. I am a marathoner!

I took a selfie, got a medal, space blanket, huge bag of shit with a lot of non-vegan stuff, and it was so heavy and I was so tired. I grabbed my poncho at 77 and had to walk down to 72.  My husband wanted me to talk to him on the phone but it took too much energy to just hold up the phone.  Finally I met with him, put on flip flops, and that was amazing.  We had made plans to go to Peacefood Café but I just went straight home and into the shower/bath.

I actually narrated this race report to my husband from the warmth of the epsom salt bath.  Oh baby.  Minor editing was done on Monday, mostly to tone down the cursing =D

Way too fucking long, didn't read: I ran my first marathon, finished meeting my B goal with a time of 5:32:07

Congrats!!  Great job pushing through!

 

I actually narrated this race report to my husband from the warmth of the epsom salt bath.  Oh baby.  Minor editing was done on Monday, mostly to tone down the cursing =D

 

I am so doing this next time, I never want to write a race report, but I could totally dictate one!

Congrats, marathoner!

Congratulations! Great first Marathon.

Congratulations on meeting your B goal!  I think it is a fantastic 1st marathon time!  Kudos to you for keeping going while everything started hurting - let's see, side stitch, sore hip, tight hamstrings - that sounds about right for a marathon.  

This was great, your candor was awesome. Nice job hanging in there, hopefully everything heals!

Congratulations on finishing, despite the pain.  You did great.

So happy for you ! Congrats and I enjoy the cussing too.