The Good, The Bad and The Ugly of the 14.2 Mile NYC Training Run

I first want to thank my co-worker Melissa for taking the on-call at 5 pm Saturday so I could run this training run with some of the We Are Athletes Racing Team!!!

The day started with a 3:15 am wake up (<<–The Bad) call so I could meet Tom, Rosa and Ciro at 4 am to drive into Manhattan.  The training run started at 7:30 but we had to be on the bus to the start by 6:00 am so leaving early ensured we would get to the bus on time.  We arrived in the city by 5:15 am, we parked and after taking a couple of pics we sought out a bathroom.

(Rosa, Tom, Me, Ciro)

(Brion, Tom, Rosa, Me, Pam, Ciro)

Rosa and I headed into a building but after wandering around for 10 minutes we were unsuccessful in our quest so we all decided to head to the Ferry station to use their bathrooms.  We started walking through Battery Park only to encounter a huge rat so we decided to turn around and walk around the park rather than through it.  On the way to the ferry we actually found a public bathroom in the park and decided to go there (<— The Ugly).

Only the Men’s side was open so Tom headed in first followed by a bum.  The door was actually open so we could see their feet under the stalls so we pretty much knew Tom was okay but a few minutes later this lady stood up from a park bench and started screaming at us that we need to check the bathroom because 2 men went in and no one came.  She continues yelling that people get murdered in there and then she pointed to Brion and said, “You, you are the only guy standing here so you need to go in there and check on them!”  The funny part is that the group consisted of 2 guys (Brion and Ciro) and 3 girls (Me, Rosa and Pam) so he wasn’t the only guy standing there but it was dark and hard to see……..

Rosa and I used the bathroom after Tom and the bum both got out with the guys guarding the door.  All I a can say that it was less than pleasant as you can see by Rosa’s face:

 

Thankfully we survived the bathroom escapade and safely boarded the bus that was taking us to the start of the run.

The bus arrived at the start around 7:00 am and after visiting the bathroom at NY Presbyterian Hospital we just hung out taking pics until the start of the race which actually felt like forever.  While we were waiting Tom actually went up to the announcer and asked him to announce that racer #525 had Tiger Balm if anyone needed any as a joke because Rosa was wearing soooooo much tiger balm you can smell her a mile away (think Vick’s vapor rub).  It was actually quite funny because we think the announcer thought he was serious and not just joking so he actually announced it twice, luckily for Rosa nobody asked her for and tiger balm.

It actually felt like lifetime from the time I woke up (3:15 am) until the start of the race (7:40 am) and I was left wondering why I did this until I ran the actually run.  I did this because when on a normal training run will I ever run the entire length of Manhattan with beautiful views in the background?!??!  (<<<—The Good)

Tom and Rosa took off at the start and Ciro and I took it slow and steady because we were both nursing slight injuries (heel and shin). Once we got past the few uphill portions in the beginning it was all mostly downhill……at mile 7, the 1/2 way point, Ciro and I slowed to take a couple of pics.

The last half was pretty good until the 11th mile where we were searching for water……we ended up going off route for minute and buying a couple of water bottles only to find water at mile 12 and 13!!!  This was supposed to be a depletion run for me but I was feeling dizzy at mile 12 so I actually did end up drinking a small cup of gatorade which definitely helped!

I was feeling good when I hit mile 13 so I sped up but unfortunately that would be my undoing because at mile 12.5 I tweeked something in my knee and practically ended up limping over the finish line (<—-The Very Bad).  I did manage to set a PDR (personal distance record) and hopefully this is just an ITB irritation that will not stop me from running the marathon but only the orthopedic MD will be able to tell me that tomorrow.

After our run we grabbed fruit, our bags and headed home but not before grabbing this awesome group pic!

(Tom-1:57, Rosa-2:18, Ciro 2:40, Me 2:38)

My stats:

FYI:  Mile 12 is when we went searching for water.

Here is the map of the race:

We ran the length of Manhattan!!!  It was an incredible run!!

Here is the loot we collected:

A great run!!  Now the question is if this knee/hip pain will go away…..I am going to the doctor tomorrow if I can get an appointment and I will keep you updated on my progress.

 

How was your holiday weekend?