"It was all a dream" - NYC Marathon 2019

"Hello. Yes, can you please wake me up at 4:57am? Thank you."

That is how I finished my work before i would awake to the day that i would run my first new york city marathon, and my third overall world major marathon.
A nice CBD capsule around 9pm, a belly full of days worth of carbs, an easy conversation with Josh Brewer on the phone, a goodnight facetime to my wife, and the luck of getting an extra hour of sleep with daylights savings time, I turned off the light in my room at the Double Tree Hotel in the Financial District, just a few minutes walk from the Staten Island Ferry I was set to ride on at 5:45am that morning.

I have been wanting to get into this race for three years. That is when i started pursuing it, yet I have hearing much about it from friends, and understanding it's general importance in the world of marathons since I began this long distance running lifestyle almost 10 years ago. Mike Mitchell did NYC as his first marathon close to a decade ago, David Brinkley was set to go before Sandy derailed him 5+ years ago, and my old teammate Carson Blackwelder has run it multiple times, I believe. Also, i remember when i was about to go to Boston in 2012, Stephen Spada expressed to me how much better NYC was compared to Boston, no doubt I took his comments with a suspected partiality but knowing his home and the friction of anything between those two cities - but also, when I visited my brother coinciding with the marathon, i would say around 5 years ago, i began to wonder and shift to thinking New York very well may be the best one.

So I entered the lottery two years ago, and also last year, both to no avail. As I was getting ready for the January 2019 Disney Marathon in Autumn 2018, I jumped in the Charlotte half marathon and ran a PR, that, as NYC operates, resulted in me qualifying still not a guarantee, to the race. So i put my name in the hat, the same week i had just finished the Disney race, and found out a few weeks after, that i had been accepted. Wahoo!

I knew I was in for something really special before I even got on the ferry, as i walked down the cold dark street where people were giving away free coffee, and volunteers were welcoming the runners with greetings of good morning and excitement. Here we are, 4 hours away from the gun, and folks are already happily volunteering, making no doubt a very long day. It was adventurous in feeling, going out from my bags and phone back at the hotel, where I wouldn't be "in touch" with people until I was done with the race...hours and miles much later far away, while going headlong into the throngs of people on the same journey. As I got into the Ferry port departure building on the Manhattan side, I immediately became away at how this even is unique in the fact that where typically in a large gathering you know in 2019 see about 85% of people looking at their device screen, but here it was about 45% - a drastic enough difference to be noticeable. Still, if you think about it - that is a LOT of people leaving it up to checked bag teams or carrying their phones during race! And yes, there were a lot that did carry, made easy by the fannypacks of pockets that some marathoners like to use. I digress...

A beautiful sunrise greeted us over the waters, while we ferry'd over to staten island.I was now for the first time in Staten Island, making that the last borough for me to have been to in my life. Being separated but still a part of the city definition, it had very much it's own personality apart from the other boroughs. A more blue color new england look, not as tightly packed like the other parts of NYC. It seemed like a great place to start this run, especially on the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge - once the longest suspension bridge at 2 miles across, made for the most incredible start. Of course we were all ready to get going for the 9:40am start, as the waiting in the start village was over 2 hours for most people. Hats off to the race in so many phases, but in no small part to the complimentary bagels, energy bars, coffee, water, and bananas...and free dunkin doughnuts hats! I was very happy this was the case because i did not bring any fuel with me. Just a pair of sweatpants and a longsleeve t shirt which i would donate after stripping off before the start. It looked like a displaced migrant group that was laying on the grass and parking lots on cardboard, wearing plastic bags and random mismatched clothes. It was chilly, but thankfully not a cloud in the sky. The corral opened up, and the crowds began to get in line to get in line. It was getting closer and then they let us to the start, on the bridge. There we got in place, while the elites had the middle of the bridge, i was on the left side facing Brooklyn. It was cool being able to see them all get ready and do strides so close to me, while the starter over the load speaker introduced them. I recognized a couple of them from where I was, and then the music began after the star spangled banner. The fever was rising and we all were starting to bounce up and down with excitement. Then, we were off...

I didn't have much trouble getting out. I was about 15 seconds behind the starting line, and then only it took maybe a half mile to have it thinned out enough i was not effected at all by traffic. I knew given the incline i would not be quick, so when my watched hit 6:49 I was not alarmed at all. This was slower than the pace I had recently decided to go for (sub 6:30). Okay, so I had the best fitness i have gotten for any marathon going into this one, so I knew I wanted a big PR but up until seeing folks run great at Chicago, and Marine Corp, did I start to believe I had a shot at going sub 2:50. It's hard to say, but I don't think I totally expected to - but also I now was brave enough to think it was possible. Anyway, the downhill part of the bridge begun and the legs started to roll along with all the rest of the people. The view was amazing up here - my favorite on the whole course....such a clear autumn day, you could see Staten Island, Brooklyn, Statue of Liberty, the New York Harbor, and Lower Manhattan. It was majestic. Also, there were a half dozen helicopters humming parallel to the bridge beside us adding to the atmosphere, as well as a handful of other copters flying about beyond.

 6:01 for the second mile, and exiting off the bridge onto the days first bit of flat ground. The difference had been made up just like that and now was at a 6:25 average. Under 6:30 would be a little quicker than my old teammate and still friend, charly parsons ran in his marathon debut the week prior at Marine Corp 2:50:59 . Simply stunning. It was always fun competing against him, and he typically would set the mark, so this was like old times in chasing him. Signs, people, cheering, parties, and anything you can imagine that people do while watching a marathon go by out on the street on a beautiful day in new york city had begun. This was going to be a rocking party. A fitness parade hahah. With 53,000 runners, i believe this was officially the biggest marathon in the world on record. We would pass by over a million spectators. What an energy!

As i started to settle into my pace and rythm and began to keep my eyes open for any potential people i may join, either known to them or not. If headphone free I would say Good Job, and on the first guy i asked what he wanted to run I was surprised he wanted to run what i did, 250. okay, I'm seeing to be going faster than him so this is a good sign, and yes we are faster than pace, but I decided to go on after he encouraged me. I didn't leave thinking I wanted to go faster than 250 - but that i wanted to run what i felt was the appropriate pace....and this felt too reserved. This being my 8th marathon, i trusted my senses more than ever since i was properly trained. It's amazing how freeing that feelign is over having done the work. We think we can avoid training because may get away with it, and we will have saved time, or didn't have to sacrifice whatever else we chose to do instead of run. But then you get to the race and - like me at Chicago - you "trust" those feelings, and then have a hell of a time once the collapse takes hold. This is part of learning, and experiencing the lessons of the marathon. And not just the race itself, but what it takes in preparation to be able to execute a pace that you can maintain. Now, you can also slack in training and run restrained, but believe me - it's not as fun as how i felt - being in shape, feeling 615s like a breeze, and like you are about to do something special. So that was my prevailing feeling as I went full steam ahead into deeply uncharted territory. I definitely had room in my head that i might not increase, but that i was tough enough to hold on. And so after passing my family beside my brothers corner at 72nd and 4th Ave. in Bay Ridge just after the 5k mark, I through them my hat - which almost made it off the street, but not quite - to where they could not retrieve (sigh), for, at this juncture in the race, i was still on the opposite side of the road from them with a barricade in the middle as the runners from different corrals merged at a point elsewhere off the bridge to to where we had yet arrived with open streets that we could run freely in.

I had my first gel, Maurteen with Caffeine - at mile 6.5 after i crossed the 10k under 40 mins. I was in a nice groove now, and was enjoying the sun shine upon my face. On ward i went, feeling smooth and in control. The new Nike Next% shoes felt awesome on my feet. I think they sure are worth the hype, as well as thousands of others in the bright green and pink shoes. Miles 8-11 in Brooklyn were awesome. The crowds were so ruckus. Then we hit the Hasidic Jewish area and it was very quite. Quite a difference.

I hit 10 miles in a new 10 mile record for me, sub 103. Wow - just cruising. The conversation in my head was starting to pick up: Keep leaning forward/push off on your toes/keep your feet falling quickly to the ground/quick cadence/you got this/feeling awesome/etc.  I was not feeling fatigued, I was excited knowing the first half was coming up pretty soon. Here in this section there was a good amount of rolling hills and turns around Williamsburg, and then as we wound our way into Queens right around 13 miles. I started to take my second Maurteen gel, no caff, and hurry up over the bridge /overpass - which was small - before the Queensboro bridge - into the first half point at 1:22:38...just 10 seconds off my half PR, but it felt easy! I thought I may not be even or negative split, but I did feel I was going to be in for a great PR because I trusted my fitness if times got rough - which i still was hoping I may be able to unleash a good finish, but i wasn't totally sure being that I had 13 miles still to run and I was on such a pace. But no less I didn't dwell on that, just continued to stay in the moment and focus each mile based on the people around me making sure I was keeping pace, picking a target in front to stay equal with, or increase, and focus on a smooth form. Being this far in people had really settled and there were a few shirts I kept tabs on for many miles that helped a lot.

The Queens Borough was very short lived, but all the attention was on getting up and over one of the hardest parts of the course, that bridge - coming at mile 15. It was hyped up enough i was ready for the challenge but actually running it was not as hard as it was made to seem.  I definitely slowed down but just to 6:30 for that mile, but on the down I didn't speed up as much and the 16th mile, with some sharp turns, i hit 6:27 - still slower than my overall pace. Maybe this was the first sign of "uh-oh". We went left onto 1st Ave. and the crowds of Manhattan became very ruckus once again, welcoming us to the first glimmers of where we'd be finishing, just a few blocks over in Central Park. Now, these next few miles 16-19 were pretty tough IMO on the long straightway, wide street, headwind, and rolling inclines. This accelerated the slowing oncoming fatigue that I began to feel, yet was being held off from the new sights and sounds of this the very populated borough. The crowds seemed to be 4 and 5 deep off the street, on both sides. Madness. I was keeping my eye out for Charly who said he would be around mile 17, but I really thought I would never see him. Sure enough, he yelled out, up on his perch, and I got a little boost from that I carried on, despite the creeping dread that was in the back of my head.

I remember waiting for the bridge out of Manhattan that would take us into the Bronx. I had shifted gears into breaking down the course into mini segments as I was now relying on mental tricks to keep the pace. Once we hit that small bridge over, beside us was a band playing Smells like Teen Spirit and that provided a little boost, but I had realized I was having a tough time - and had now since about a mile earlier on the last wide parts of the straightaway - gone from eyeing people to stay with, to seeing a few here and there come up beside me and increase their lead. I was slowing down ever so slightly, and now, coming into "the wall" I was clearly beginning the fight.

We hit the Bronx, and at mile 20 and I was still on pace for a 2:46 but but that was beginning to feel very tough to keep replicating for 6 more miles what I had done. The crowds were thin here, the scenery not as vibrant, and we passed some spectators telling us 5 more miles, and my breathing started to get labored and I wondered just how well i was going to hang on. the Mile 21 split I was now at 247 pace, clipping a split of  654. The pace had began to rise at 19, but this was the slowest difference by far of the race. We were now back over the last bridge, into Harlem (Manhattan once again) and at the 22 mile marker I split a 7:10. Uh-oh. pace now was on for a 248. I knew I wasn't going to at this point stay there, but I still thought maybe i would get a last wind to still challenge sub 250. I looked down and tried to move my legs almost mentally but in taking inventory of my body, it seemed the lactic acid had set in and I may not be able to shake it.

backing up a bit, after the second gel, finished off around mile 15 I was happy to have it finished because with the ongoing sips of Gatorade as well, my stomach wasn't loving the sweet tastes anymore and i really had no desire to take a third one when the time came. The weather provided really not a great need for me to really go after the H2O but for the Gatorade I did try and keep regular, every other or few miles, to make sure I was getting replenished and would avoid cramping.
and what typically happens with me in the marathon, is that around the Wall i do tend to get some bouts of nausea. No exception here. Its tough because your body is starting to hurt, and people are starting to pass you and its all around demoralizing. so, the third gel (GU rocket fuel), at mile 22 i tried once suck and could not take anymore. that would be it for me. I almost wondered why try, but i was trusting they would help and if i relied on my feelings i would probably regret not being preventative with fuel, so it was tough exactly to know how to handle it. anyway i had to get through 4 more miles.

at mile 23, now entering Central Park, after having the last couple miles of throngs of people pass me, .i was- for the last time- still under 250 pace (2:49:39) and was at a 7:40 for the mile. I had began to come to terms with the fact that i would not be beating my old teammate Charly's record this day, despite having such a lead for so long. Yet, three miles to go though is very short when you train for marathons. It's basically a recovery or warm up, just a bit over 20 mins. Who can't suck it up for that long?! I had to trick myself, and make the most of this race i was having and see how much of a PR i could muster. Also, I was now in Central Park, I was having the race of my life, lots of people were tracking me and I just couldn't give up. I felt a lot of pressure, and i'm glad i did - i needed all the help i could get to not give in. No doubt the experiences of past marathons helped me from going through these times before and coming out the other side. I reminded myself that this is temporary. Pain is not permanent and that my future self would be relieved if I fought with all I had, verses the alternative where I couldn't go back and change the past were I to know I didn't give my all. So, that 24th mile I did not loose pace, but i was still falling off from my expected finish. 24th mile 7:40 once again. 2 miles to go and i saw the running clock read 2:36:30 and I thought just keep holding on and this will be a great race.

I think sensing that if I could push really hard for one more mile, I knew I could get the last mile in mentally, and so with everything I had I went for it and was able to bring the split down to a 7:19. This was no small feat given it's so hard to reverse course once lactic acid sets in, and you are in mile 25. But that seemed to totally whip me out. I had mental motivation with one mile left, but physically i was drained. I could not see normally, my vision was blurry and my head so light. This last mile was one of the most tenuous runs of my life. It felt as if i could fall over or my body just decide to stop on it's own if i wasn't careful. Balancing this feeling while also telling yourself to keep running because each second slower was a sacrifice to my new PR, i was in a really rough spot. I felt the finish close but it seemed to not come. The last straightaway before the final turn was taking for ever. I was swerving left and right, just trying to keep one foot in front of the other. Slowly, i hit the last turn, saw mile 26 and the clock said 2:52:12, and i gazed ahead for a line to run to. I couldn't see it. The last stretch was winding and I had to keep trudging until I got my view-able goal line.

 There it was, up on a little incline, and while the first part of the last .2 I had no kick at all, the last half of that .2 (.1) i looked at my watch and saw that if i did not kick i would miss 253. I did, and just snuck past the line at 2:53:57. OMG - i had done it. Right there at the finish line a black guy in jeans, a fleece, and a ball cap was shaking finishers hands. Whoa, he looked like Meb Keflezighi. It would make sense i thought, but nah, really? After a few paces beyond, i had to turn back to ask. With a big smile, he nodded it was him. Amazing - this is one of the best distance runners of all time. a 2004 silver medalist in the marathon, a 2009 NYC champion, and 2014 Boston Marathon. kind of a cool thing!

that's pretty much the race recap. the long chute proved too much for my lightheaded-ness and fatigue so i went to the medical tent to recovery for about 10 mins before finishing my exit. I had really left it all out there, after a daring race going much faster than I ever have, and giving myself a real shot for going well under 250, where my previous best was only 257. All this in less than a year. I felt i really have gained a lot of fitness and improvement in 2019, and I'm excited to see myself still ripping off PRs. in the last 12 months I have had lifetime PRs in: half marathon, 10k (twice), trail half marathon, and marathon (twice).

Mile Splits for the day: (1) 645, (2) 601, (3) 622,  (4) 614, (5) 612,  (6) 615, (7) 616, (8)620, (9)621, (10)608, (11)621, (12)613, (13)622,(14) 618, (15) 631, (16) 627, (17) 623, (18) 621, (19) 631,(20) 641,(21) 654, (22)710, (23)740, (24) 741, (25) 719, (26) 822, (.2) 145
underlined is when i fell off hard

I'm close to popping another BIG PR, and i'm excited to keep on ahead. Thanks for reading!