I Ran and I Didn't Trip and Fall

This past Sunday was the NYC Half Marathon. Leading up to the race, I was quite uncertain of how I would do. All of my long runs had been at a very slow pace, so I had no idea if I would be able to pick it up or not. Well, as luck would have it, the weather turned out to be fantastic and I woke up in a super-competitive mood, which always helps. The race went by much faster than I thought it would. The last few miles on the West Side Highway were a little rough because it was pretty boring and hot. Running through Central Park and Times Square was really cool. I ended up running 1:39:26 (a 7:35 minute per mile pace) and placing as the 215th woman overall. Not too shabby. Next year I want to be top 150 for the women. I really wanted to break 1:40:00 and I knew with about 400m (1/4 mile) to go that it was going to be really close. I shut my eyes and just sprinted. When I passed the finish line and saw my time I broke out a huge fist pump, then looked around and realized that I probably looked like an idiot. I slowly dropped my arms back down to my side and walked away to claim my free food and drinks. Mike and Sam and Maggie came out to cheer, which was awesome. I saw them just before Times Square and it was a huge motivational boost. Apparently they were waiting later on near mile 12 but they didn't see me because they were distracted by a man falling and hitting his head who was running right near me. It was great to have friends to talk about the race with and ride home on the subway with.

When I got home, the fun didn't quite continue. For my past few long runs, and this race, I've been feeling pretty sick afterwards. I know it isn't dehydration or my eating habits. I hope I can figure it out before the marathon. However, I did recover in time for a barbeque that night with Sam, Maggie, Sean and Megan on the roof of Bard Hall. I ate a lot of sausage and drank a lot of sangria. It was tough to go a week without alcohol before the race, and man was that sangria tasty.

There are two more big running events coming up this year: Reach the Beach Relay and the NYC Marathon. Very exciting!