Before the NYC HM: Eight of us decided to enter the lottery for the NYC Half Marathon. I figured we wouldn't all get in, but it would be an awesome race for those that did. I could hardly believe my eyes as I checked the website the evening of the lottery--all eight of us had won the lottery!
We left in the dark Saturday morning and pulled into our Financial District hotel around noon. It was a warm sunny day, and the Hudson River was beautiful. We made a beeline for the subway to take us up to Niketown for the packet pickup. Afterwards, Lauren was on mission for some Tiffany's jewelry, so we stopped in there for awhile. I couldn't believe how crowded the place was. The elevator operator was a real comedian--the elevator ride is not to be missed.
We then made our way down to Little Italy via foot and bus. Mulberry street was closed to traffic and it was a wonderful festival-like atmosphere with outdoor dining, people everywhere, and a beautiful summer evening. We dined on the patio at Da Nico and enjoyed the Italian food and the attentiveness of our multiple Italian waiters. On the way back to the hotel, we couldn't resist checking out the "back room" of one of the shops on the edge of Chinatown. The back room is an interesting concept that I hadn't experienced before. By the time we got back to the hotel, I was totally wasted and went straight to bed, as we had a very early start the next morning.
We got cabs at 6 am to take us up to the race start on the west side of Central Park. It was still dark and the sun was just coming up. After taking a picture and visiting the portapotty it didn't seem like we had to wait too long for the 7 am start.
And then we were off! A lap around Central Park first, with which we were now quite familiar. It was cool, shady and pleasant. Somewhere along that loop a guy yelled, "Enjoy it now because mile 11 is going to suck!!" My favorite part of the whole race was turning out of Central Park and onto 7th Avenue. What a thrill running down 7th Avenue! I loved it. I just tried to enjoy the moment and take it all in. The run down 7th Avenue and then 42nd street seemed like a breeze. Then we entered the West Side Highway. It seemed like it would never end. I wouldn't say that mile 11 "sucked" but I was certainly ready to be done with this race by that time. That section of the race was hot and sunny. Fortunately the day was relatively cool for an August day in Manhattan. I drank LOTS of water along the way and did just fine. As usual I was so happy to see that finish line. They were out of the wet towels by the time I crossed the finish line--I could have really used one of those! My comrades were no where in sight, so I enjoyed some of the post-race festivities on my own. I was offered a free Jamba Juice which was delicious and watched the awards ceremony in Battery Park before heading back to the hotel for a shower.
We topped the day off with a departure via the George Washington Bridge (the top level of course) and lunch at California Pizza Kitchen in Paramus, NJ.
After the race we learned that Mary took 19th place for her age group with a time of 2:10:06. Very impressive considering the field she was competing against. Congratulations Mary!!
No comments:
Post a Comment