But my time, 3:47:01, was good. And I know I gave 100% this year. When I was done, I had absolutely nothing left to give. I was focused the entire race on doing my best. I was a little spacey for the last few miles and when I finished I was weaving because I was so exhausted.
Because I was focusing so much on my time, I didn't pay much attention to the crowds. But I could hear them. They seemed even louder this year. For most of the race, I acknowledged people who shouted my name. But near the end, I couldn't even raise my arms to wave. If you shouted my name at the end and I didn't wave, that's why. I heard you and appreciated it. At the finish I could barely lift my arms to celebrate.
My sister Janet and her fiance Ira came out again to watch. They caught me at miles 18 and 24 and then at the finish. My mother caught me on 4th Avenue (see below for a funny story about that). My friend Paula came down too but she couldn't get to the spot where she told me she'd be so we never got together. She did though spot me and took some pictures. Here they are. Paula looked for me in the reunion area but didn't know to look in the blue S group (see below).
At about mile 20, another runner came up to me and told me he liked my website. I was amazed and very grateful.
Here's the finish line photo.
Funny Story About My Mother My mother and stepfather Herman were supposed to catch me at Bay Ridge Pkwy (=70th St) and 4th Avenue. I told her I'd be there at about 11:15 to 11:30. Well she was cutting it close so she walked onto 4th Avenue and walked along the course to get to Bay Ridge Pkwy in case she didn't get there on time. She had to walk a block or two North. My mother is 84 years old and uses a cane. She's moving along and people are offering her water. One guy said "Lady, at the rate you're going, it's gonna take you two weeks to get to the finish line." LOL. Anyway, she got there on time and we met.
Best Costume There was a guy running near me for the first 7 miles in a yellow and brown giraffe costume. He was amazing. The costume had a 4 foot high neck and head on his shoulders. I hope he was able to finish with it on. I wouldn't want to do that.
Race Organization The race this year was very well organized. The crowds stayed back and let the runners run. The volunteers at the water tables did not get in our way. My only complaint this year was that they split up the family reunion area by color of the runner's start (red, green or blue). It was a good idea. But many of the family and friends had no idea what color start to look in. And, unless you knew the runner's number, there was no help offered. Unlike previous years, there was no information about the reunion area in the material given out at registration so this was a surprise. There were a lot of confused people out there.
My only other complaint is that they ran out of posters at registration. I'm sure a lot of people take extra so that's why they run out. But they should make more in anticipation of that.
Other Runners Through my homepage and other means, I know of a few other runners in this year's marathon. Here's a big shout out and congratulations to the following: Matthew Ammer...4:22:27 Matthew had this to say about the race... The race was the best I have ever ran in my life. The people along the route were very supportive. I took your advice and put my name on my shirt and so many people were calling my name and cheering me on. I could not believe some of the sites I saw as I was running across the Veranzanno Bridge (and I don't mean the Statue of Liberty) The race was very organized right from the start. My favorite part of the race was coming into Central Park and hearing the hoards of people cheering, that was really a motivator. My knees started hurting after 10 miles but I was determined to finish and by 20 miles I did not look back. I will definately be running this race again. Frank Thomason...4:45:35 Frank had this to say about the race... The race was incredible. All the tips on your page really helped. The only one I didn't heed was to not drink a lot of water before the race. I think it was mostly because I was nervous. But I ended up peeing off the bridge. The crowds were great. Brooklyn was crazy and seemed to go by really fast. The Sri Chinmoy food stop in Queens helped a lot. So did the orange slices along the way. Someone gave me a small blueberry muffin at one point. Having a personal cheering section helped a lot. I was really happy to see them at 90th Street. I ran really well until around mile 20. Then it became very difficult to run in the Bronx and Harlem. I walked for a little bit. But then I realized I was still far from finishing so I ran slowly. But once I got to Central Park, the crowds were so loud and boisterous that they just pushed me along. I was in a daze. Crossing the finish line was very emotional. I didn't expect that. After the race, I was freezing -- even though I put on a sweatshirt and long-sleeved t-shirt from the baggage truck. I didn't realize how cold it was. My time was 4:45. I'm very happy with it. I don't think I could have done much better this year. After the race, it was amazing to reflect on all the different sights and sounds and to realize that it was all part of one long journey. What a great experience! I did have a funny thing happen to me during the marathon. Well, it's funny now but it was pretty scary at the time. Around mile 10 I was going towards a water table when suddenly something flew deep into my mouth. I coughed it out and saw that it was a yellow jacket! Instantly I became very worried that it had stung me in the back of my throat which would swell up and block my breathing. Not a good thing to be worrying about when you still have 16 miles to go. I couldn't imagine having to tell people afterwards that I didn't finish the marathon because of a yellow jacket. But thankfully, it didn't sting me and I was able to finish the race. Also, when I was really struggling in Harlem, a guy saw my Georgia Tech t-shirt and told me all about their devastating defeat in football the day before (which I did not know about at the time). Not the kind of news I was hoping for during the hardest part of the race. My family got confused at the reunion area too. I like the system but there was no advance notice of how it would work. The day after the race I wasn't nearly as sore as I thought I would be. We walked around Manhattan a lot. Stairs were hard though. Your homepage really helped me out while training. Not only did it provide very useful tips on running the marathon, it was a big source of inspiration. Thank you! Joyce Pastore...4:49:23 Joyce had this to say about the race... I lived in NY (all boroughs including Long Island, except for Staten Island) for the last 18 of 22 years. I finally left for good in June, to pursue a happier, tamer life in Virginia. I was accepted into the Marine Corps marathon, but when I saw at my ATM that the NYRRC had cashed my check, I knew that my first marathon would be NYC. It was difficult at times to keep up with the NYRRC training schedule, having moved to a new state, job, lifestyle. But I really wanted this. Along the way, I found a running partner/friend. Les and I really helped each other to get ready for our respective marathons ( he ran Marine Corps, his first, too). For so many years, I had watched the NYC marathon, on TV, at that special spot off of the 59th St bridge, on 3rd Ave. Last year, when I didn't get in, I was a volunteer near mile 24. But nothing came close to being a part of it. It really was one big party. As someome wrote on the NYRRC website, it was a "26.2 mile standing ovation". It was one of the most exciting experiences of my life. AS a lifetime nonathlete and an asthmatic, I am thrilled with my slow but respectable net time of 4:42:54. I agree with most of your marathon pointers, except for taking food from spectators. I do appreciate their kindness, but for those of us with testy GI tracts, it is best to learn to eat certain foods as stick with them. Trust me, I'm a doctor. I am a fan of Power gel, too. And as a former (and always will be) a New Yorker, I am paranoid about strangers who may not be so meticulous with hand washing. Enough said. About chafing..... yes, women chafe, too. For those of us who have not had the benefit of liposuction, the inner thigh is a problem area. So is the waistband and underarm area of the sportbra. I suppose that some women who are amply endowed have more difficulty, but I am not one to speak on that matter. I ran the marathon for many reasons, but the most important was the sheer joy of it. I took one of those little clip on cameras along - next time I will remember to stop for a moment so that the pictures won't be so blurry. Since I ran 11 races in NY this past year, I have an automatic spot for 2000. Now I just have to ensure that Les will be beside me.