After miles upon miles of training, the NYC marathon finally happened on Sunday. The weather was perfect--cloudy and warm; the streets were filled with an estimated one million fans; 50,000 people from 139 countries and all 50 states showed up on the Verrazano Bridge in Staten Island ready to run.
Even after hearing stories from other runners and looking at the course map and going on many, many, many long runs, I was surprised by what it felt like to actually run 26.2 miles with thousands of other runners, being cheered on by millions. It was exhilarating to hear all the screaming, and read the clever signs, and run across bridges normally reserved for cars and to see the diversity of the five boroughs. Every mile brought something new and different to examine and consider. At the same time, it felt just as solitary as any other long run--a constant game of my body asking to stop and my mind trying to override the feeling.
The best part, by far, was having my family come out and cheer for me at many different points along the course. They were the best fans I could imagine having and seeing them raised me up and kept me going.
I finished just within the goal time I set for myself--4 hours 54 minutes and 58 seconds, which averages out to 11:15 minutes per mile and put me in 32,644th place. Most importantly, I feel like I trained as hard as I could and ran as strong as my body would allow.
Running the NYC marathon was a truly unique experience and one that I likely will always remember--and certainly one my quads won't let me forget anytime soon!
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