Last Sunday I completed my 4th of 9 races to get guaranteed entry into the 2015 NYC Marathon, and it was in my hometown of the Bronx so I was super excited! NYRR shut down the Grand Concourse which is a major street that runs through the Bronx and part of Mosholu Parkway , and we had free reign of both which was very cool. The weather was perfect for running, but the 10 miles I was certainly not prepared for. Having only been running for a few weeks full-time and my maximum mileage to date being 4 miles, I knew it would be challenging. I always say yes running is physical and you should be in some kind of good shape to do it, but a lot of it is mental. I knew if I could run 4 miles straight, I could probably run 6 miles, and what the heck I can do 10 miles. Trust me if I had other options I would have chosen a shorter race, but being that I registered so late in the game it was slim pickings. I started off at a pretty good pace. I don’t recommend you try this at home! 
I wanted to take it easy and maintain a 12:00-12:30 pace per mile but it never works out that way. When all the adrenaline starts pumping, and you see everyone around you flying by, it is hard not to try and keep up. As you can see my pace was way too fast in the beginning and I paid for it in the end. Even walking the water stations my pace was still too fast for the fitness level that I am at at this point in time. Somehow someway I’ll learn how to pace my self better in races. I had to use the restroom at the beginning of the race, but with a race of this magnitude the lines to use the port-a-pottys (ewwwwww) are super long, so I decided to hold it and go along the way. As the miles started adding on every stop had lines so I kept trekking along. It wasn’t until I was on my way back that I spotted a port-a-potty with no line….this had to be somewhere between mile 6-8 I can’t remember which. 
You can see even with stopping for a bathroom break I was still going way too fast!!! I did though run into my buddy Deb who was getting her +1 (volunteering) in, and she took this pic of me. I always throw up my peace signs. If I don’t then I’m probably not having a good time! As you can see I’m sweating like a beast….wish I would have worn a tank top that day. You see a good view of the Grand Concourse here, and this is only half the street so you can get an idea of how massive it is. 
This was on the way back, but before that around mile 5 or 6 I ran by my old alma mater Dewitt Clinton High School. I haven’t been back there since I graduated in 1999, so it was a bit nostalgic seeing the school I spent 4 years of my life at….it brought back many great memories, and had me thinking, wow time does really fly.
I would say mile 8-10 were the toughest for me, and that is where that mental comes in. I just had to tell myself to keep going. You can see the times on my miles really started to increase at this point. By now the bottom of my feet are hurting, I’m sweating profusely, and just want the race over with, but I’m still trucking along because I know I have an end goal and I have to accompl
ish it. Going in I wanted to finish in under 2hrs. I think I could have attained that goal if I didn’t stop for a bathroom break, and my constant picture taking, but what can I say, I love to take pics! Time never really matters to me, but it is sometimes nice to set a time goal and make or break it, and obtain a PR…oh well next time.
Overall I think I can say that this was the best race I ever participated in. I don’t know if it was because it was in the Bronx, the camaraderie with my BGR gals, or just the overall event put on by NYRR, but it was awesome, and definitely one I plan to do next year. Here are some pics with the gals pre race:
Stephanie, Me, & Janet
Super D…isn’t she cute!
Me & Super D
Me, Tarnia, & Vernell
Me Pre-Race
Throwing my 4 up!
And the post race pic with bling! like my tights?
I have a busy weekend coming up….hopefully I don’t kill myself and have a good time. Those post race re-caps coming soon…happy Monday! The saga continues!
