My high hopes of running to the pool, swimming a few thousand yards and then running another 5 or so miles home over the past couple of days was derailed due to some sort of stomach flu.  Instead I got to spend the entire day in a vertical position drifting in and out of consciousness.  I don’t get sick very often, and when I do, I am usually not completely out of commission.  However, this recent illness literally put my flat on my back and made me completely unproductive. 

This morning, my children still needed to get to school, so I managed to pull myself together and dragged myself out of the house.  On the way home I was approached by what appeared to be a harmless older lady who asked if I could buy her a cup of coffee.  I usually blow off anyone who approaches me for money, but on occasion I do succumb and dole out some pocket change.  It was a cold and windy morning, so I figured what the hell; perhaps it will be paid forward or backward at some point later on.  I also just had a feeling that perhaps this was the right thing to do, so I took her into the corner bodega to get her the coffee. 

Well my good feeling soured just a tiny bit when the woman asked if I could make it a large cup.  However, it was cold, so in for a penny in for a pound and I said sure.  Having gotten what she wanted again, the woman then had the temerity to ask if I could also spare a quarter.  I got the feeling that if I kept saying yes to her incremental add-on requests, I would soon have her ensconced in my home and wearing a new wardrobe.  At this point the proprietor of the bodega broke in and told the woman that she is not to come into his store again asking for money.  Evidently she had done this before and the owner had enough of her behavior.  My feeling of doing something good was quickly replaced with the feeling of being taken advantage.  I walked out feeling foolish and thinking that buying strangers cups of coffee is not something I should be doing, especially being out of work at this time.

Anyway, I got on with the rest of my day which included visiting my sports physician to work on my left leg which is suffering from a chronic case of shin splints and plantar fasciitis.  We also spent a fair amount of time looking at the MRI of my pelvis and discussing various exercises and therapies I could do in order to correct my chronic saddle area numbness.  We did a bunch of exercises and stretches, all of which felt good.  The increase of heart rate I achieved also helped me to cure my 48 hour headache. 

After the doctor, I picked my son up from school and took him to his first organized track workout.  He was very excited to go and worked hard throughout it.  I could see the effort on his face every time he made it around to my end of the indoor track.  I was very proud of him for his work ethic and told him so after the workout was over.  He expressed how it was hard work and that while he didn’t exactly find it enjoyable, knew he had to do it in order to be better during races.  Putting the time in to practice for an activity he enjoys has always been one of his strengths.  I wonder where he gets that from.

We talked on the way home from practice and I told him how proud I was of him.  He was sweaty and tired and I feared that he would not want to do a 15K race we have planned for this weekend.  I suggested that perhaps we shouldn’t do it if he is tired from just one track workout and that perhaps we should get some more training in.  He was emphatic though that he wanted to go through with the race, so I told him we will, but will see how it goes during the race and don’t need to finish it if he gets too tired.  He was satisfied with that, but was also sure that he would succeed in completing it.

I dropped him off at home and then headed into the city for a sales seminar.  I may start working for a friend in his mature startup company, possibly in some sort of sales capacity so I figured I ought to go.  During the seminar I got very thirsty so search out a vending machine outside the auditorium.  I found one on another floor, but I only had a $20 bill and no small change.  I asked if anyone around the machines could break the 20, when the guy just in front started to receive a bunch of coins as change for the $5 bill he placed in the machine.  He was just about to respond that he could break it, when he decided that he really didn’t want to fish $3 in coins (yes, the water/soda cost 2 bucks) out of the coin return slot.  He told me the change was mine if I wanted to retrieve it.  So I guess my good deed from earlier in the day (the older woman) not only was returned to me, but I also earned interest.  I was actually hoping that my good deed would be paid off with a winning lottery ticket (it still may be as the drawing hasn’t been held as I write this), but I guess that is a lot to ask for a good deed that only cost me $1.25. 

My soda (cherry coke) and I returned to the auditorium, where I refreshed myself with the cool tasty beverage and listened to a very interesting panel.  Hopefully, some of the content infused itself into my now caffeinated and sugar coated brain and I could make a positive business improvement with my life.  I really need to start focusing on this aspect of my life as I have been doing with my recreational/sporting pursuits.  I just need to find something work/business oriented that I love doing as much as my endurance pursuits.

So once again I have registered for the Vermont 100 Mile Endurance Run.  I had until July of next year to register, but I just could not stand the feeling of being without a big race planned for next year.  It is like I have no purpose in life, without something to focus on.  I feel better knowing that I have something waiting for me.  It gives me a reason to continue training and more importantly, just something to look forward to.  Life is so much more interesting when this is so.  The anticipation of a big event, the anticipation of anything really, is what adds the spice to life.

The big question surrounding this race is whether or not I will be able to get to the starting line injury free.  As much as I love ultra-running, ultra-running does not seem to agree with my body.  I keep getting injured every time I try to go mega long.  50 miles is about the longest I seem to be able to train for without getting seriously injured.  I’ll just have to take it slowly this year and not push myself too hard.

One of the main considerations of deciding to do the VT100 is the fact that I am still not fully recovered from the Furnace Creek 508.  By not recovered, I mean that I have a lingering health problem as a result of the race.  It’s a quality of life issue health issue that I am dealing with and not anything that is actually preventing me from being able to ride or do any physical activity.  Without getting too much into details, let’s just say that I’ve lost feeling in certain parts of my body… Parts which I would very much like to get the feeling back.  So until that feeling comes back, bike riding is off limits for me.

You can see the problem area that is causing my lack of feeling in my MRI.  From what I am told, both sides of the image should be symmetrical.  You can see a black spot on the right side, whereas on the left, a contiguous line appears.  I have no idea what this part of my body is called.  Perhaps if you are a neurologist or urologist stumbling upon these images you will be kind enough to offer your opinion.   So in the meantime, until I get my feeling back, I will just be grateful that I already have children.

Problem Area Photo 1

Well I must say I am feeling hopeful right now. It’s a brand new, cold, clear, calm and crisp day, with the sun shining and everything seemingly to operate normally. This morning I am on the way to see if I can work out an arrangement to work with my friend at his company and later in the day I will be running with a new friend that I met through this blog.

I keep hearing time and again that everything happens for a reason; in person, on replies to blog posts, in books, TV and even on the news. I hope this is true and that the ultimate reasons are benevolent. I’d hate to think that evil forces are controlling my destiny. After all there are a lot of truly bad things happening to good or innocent people. What is the reasoning behind that? I just hope that my family and I don’t get caught within the tangle of the evils forces of fate.

I have no signs of the negative strands today, so I am hopeful that things will go well from here. I just have to wait for the sands of time to fall through its hourglass to see what fate brings. I hope I have some measure of control.

So the other day I came down the stairs of my house only to find my daughter playing video games on her computer.  I am not a big fan of video games; in fact I hate them so much I feel as if my children are being deprived of a bonding experience by my refusal to play them.  I am not unduly restrictive and will let my children play them within reason.  However, when I came down the stairs and saw my daughter playing a video game instead of concentrating on an essay to get into the high school of her choice, I sort of blew a gasket.  This was especially because she told me just a little while earlier, that she couldn’t come out on a run/ride with me, because she had to work on her report.    

I told her that if she has time to play a video game, she definitely has time to ride her bike with me while I run.  She started to howl in protest that she just needed a little break, so I replied fine, you can take your break with a little exercise.  I made her get dressed and ushered her out the door with her crocodile tears still running down her cheeks. 

I didn’t tell her where we were going to ride, but I set out in the direction of Green-Wood Cemetery.  I wondered how long it would take before she figured out that I was going to take her to visit her grandfather.  She didn’t say a word during the entire ride/run over there and insisted on riding behind me the entire time.  I really didn’t care, as long as I could keep her insight.  Along the way I tried to figure out what I would say to her when we arrived at my father’s eternal resting place.

Dad rests in a brass urn that is enclosed behind glass in one of the mausoleums at the cemetery.  The room has a nice comfy bench right before his niche.  My daughter and I sat down before it and were quiet for a moment or two before I began to talk to her.  She mentioned how she missed her grandpa and started to cry.  I replied how I missed him too and was still upset with him for passing away.

I took the opportunity of her mentioning grandpa to tell her that my father would never have let me get away with playing video games when I had an important school project to work on.  He would have taken the game away faster than I would have been able to blink my eyes.  I then went on to tell her that if she wants to succeed in this life she is going to have to be better than everyone else.  There is too much competition in the world.  Everyone is after the same thing and only the stronger, smarter and more willing will be able to get it.  I continued to wax philosophical about how every subsequent generation in our family line, in fact of most generations of Americans, are better off than the previous generation.  However, my fear is that this won’t continue to be true except for those who have a commitment to excel in life that is greater than everyone else’s.

My little speech then moved onto how a strong mind is supported by a strong body and vice versa.  I explained to her the importance of exercise in leading a healthy and happy life and how I feared that she didn’t get enough of it.  I told her to look around at all the people that she knows who are in bad shape and poor health.  This was mostly because these people that we know didn’t take care of their bodies and are now paying the price by having ailments and other disabilities; including her grandpa who has the ultimate disability of being dead.

We continued talking for a while, or really, I continued talking about life in general and my daughter nodded her head in understanding.  She didn’t say much, but I hoped that I got through to her on some level.  I worry that she doesn’t have any real interests or pursue any activities.  She is like her mother in this way, which makes it hard to figure out what to talk about.  A person needs to be well rounded with interests and pursuits in order to be able to converse.  I wish we talked more; it’s just that I struggle to find a common ground with her.

After my little pep-talk, we continued our run/ride around the cemetery.  I wanted to go around Prospect Park as well, but I gave her the choice of extending our trip or heading directly home at the intersection where we would have to decide on the direction.  I hoped she would want to continue on, but she said she was hungry, so I left it at that and took her home.  We will just have to see if the seeds I planted take root and I’ll have to make sure I water them regularly.

For the first time ever my entire family joined me to do the Turkey Trot in Prospect Park. I usually have a nice sized crew doing this with me and this year’s was no exception. My family only made it larger.  We slept a little late and had to scramble to get ready, but we made it to the race site after meeting my crew on the corner of my block with plenty of time to spare.

My daughter ran with my wife and my son, who I affectionately call Beast Jr, ran with me.  Jr was intent on beating some of our friends and wanted to run a good race. We lined up about midway in the pack and started off at an easy pace. I kept checking to see if the pace was too fast by asking Jr if he was able to talk.  He kept being able to answer me in complete sentences, so I wasn’t worried that we were going too fast too early.  We were running fluidly through the first mile and he had a smile on his face the entire time.  We finished the first mile in 10:24.

Running through mile two we were still doing very well.  I made sure that we didn’t start increasing the pace too much and reiterated to let all of the kids that he saw go ahead and pass us.  I explained how they were most likely going out too fast and that we would undoubtedly pass them later on.  I kept coaching him to run his own race and not to key on the other runners around him.  I also explained about cutting the tangents and that he should concentrate on running as short a course as possible.  We made it through mile two in 10:05.

Mile 3 was another negative split in 9:51.  During all this time we were running, we were keeping two members of our group in sight of us.  We weren’t chasing them per se, but did want to try to keep them in sight to see if we could catch them at the end.  We pushed it a bit during this mile and Jr was clearly working hard.  I stopped making him try to complete sentences, but just kept asking him if he was ok, to which he was responding yes.  The smile on his face began to change to a look of concentration and commitment to nail this race.

The fourth mile was done in 9:32.  We were working very hard.  Jr started to make some grunting noises and was clearly getting uncomfortable.  By now he had shed down most of his clothes to just a wife beater t-shirt and a pair of shorts.  I was carrying his arm warmers and long sleeve running shirt.   Runners all around were offering him encouragement and telling him how good he was doing and how impressed they were with his effort.  He would smile through the pain at this and kept moving strong.  Clearly a runner was being born.

The last mile made the entire race.  I explained to him that at some point during the last mile he didn’t need to hold back any longer; there was nothing left ahead for which to save his effort.  He was clearly moaning at this point and suffering.  This was undoubtedly the first time he caused himself to voluntarily suffer for any length of time and I could tell he was trying to decide for himself whether or not this was for him or not.  Our pace during the last mile slowly crept up.  At one point during the last mile I could tell we were beginning a finishing kick a little too early.  We backed it off for a tiny bit, until we go to around a third of a mile remaining.  Jr began to ask where the finish line was.   Soon enough, I was able to point it out right around a turn.  I told him “There is the finish line, the faster you get to it, the sooner your suffering will be over”.  He took off like a bullet out of a gun and I struggled to keep up with him.  We passed dozens of runners.  People cheered and encouraged him on.

He crossed the finish line in 49:12, with an 8:17 split for the last mile.  My boy just started seriously running recently and is already approaching 8 minute miles.  I can’t tell you how long it took me to get to this point.  I am just so damn proud of him.  As we crossed the line he stated how he feels like he has to throw up.  I explained that this is normal after a hard effort and that we need to keep moving and that he should go off to the side if he needed to hurl.  That didn’t come to pass though and we kept walking down the finishing chute and soon enough recovered.  He made comments about how that last bit sucked and that he felt like he was going to die, but he didn’t make any comments about never wanting to do that again.  I think deep down he was very proud of himself and looking forward to the next challenge.

Having my own son run like this and show an interest in it is causing me to rediscover my running enthusiasm.  I can’t wait to get back out there with him again, but I know I can’t push him like I would push myself.  First off, that would be foolish.  He needs time to recover.  Secondly, I must make sure this remains a fun challenge for him.  I want him to come to me to go for a run, not for it to always be the other way around.  I’ll just have to temper myself and hope that he continues to develop as a runner.

So with nothing but time on my hands due to the fact that my now former employer let me go without cause, warning or reason, I find myself with plenty of time on my hands. Fortunately for today, I was blessed with a spectacular conditions in which to run to my heart’s content. I set out with high hopes of running until I passed out from exhaustion.  I wasn’t sure where I was going to go, but I set out into Manhattan and figured I’d decide where to go once I got there.

The run went reasonable well for the first 5 miles, which saw me just off the Manhattan Bridge. Once I arrived into Manhattan, I was struck with a malaise and a desire to just sit down and watch life pass me by. So that is exactly what I did. I came off the north side of the MB and immediately sat down on the median that separates bicycle and car traffic. I felt content to just sit there for hours. I was speaking to a friend on the phone at the time and I explained what was going through my mind. Working through my thoughts with someone helped me get back on my feet and moving again.

I realized that I was probably being plagued by negative thoughts because I was a bit hungry. The mind plays tricks on you to get your body to stop moving or slow down when it feels malnourished.  Of course, I was plagued with more than my fair share of negative thought having found myself recently among the ranks of the unemployed, so my malaise was probably a combination of needed calories and just being pissed off.

I wondered off the median in search of a Red Bull and something to eat. It didn’t seem however that the Chinese are big aficionados of Red Bull as I could find no supply of it in any store in Chinatown. I did however find the most delicious red bean bun in a local bakery. I slowly ate it while I walked towards the East River where I found a bench right by the water with views of the Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges. 

I hung up the phone with my friend at this point in order to check my email (Verizon for some reason can’t do voice calls and data at the same time – FAIL) and make some other calls. Nothing of significance came into my email, but I did reach another friend and made plans to meet up in the evening.

Fishing on the East River

I then sat around for a while watching people fish and snapped a couple of pictures.

I am blessed to have perhaps the best son on earth.  A more affectionate, kind and caring child could not be found.  He simply destroys me with his actions and words.  One night while I was tucking him into bed we had the following conversation:

Me:                        “I love you so much.”
Beast Jr:               “Daddy, I hope we both live a very long time so that we could die together.”
Me:                        Stunned into silence, choking back tears, I finally manage to reply “So do I my boy”.

I don’t know why I feel such bittersweet sorrow when he expresses these sentiments.  I guess I just can’t bear the thought of ever dying and leaving him alone.  Nothing can replace the affection, love and caring shared between a parent and a child.  This is why I suppose I prepare for the worst and am challenging myself to become a better parent.  If my children are doing their best at being my children, then it is even more incumbent upon me to do my best as a responsible parent.

I wrote recently about challenging myself to be more, to be happy and to keep moving forward.  I wasn’t being selfish when I wrote that, but I realize now that I also need to do this for my children.  My daughter recently started the interview process for High School selection in NYC.  Those of you who live in NYC and have children know what a chaotic and harsh process this is.  For those of you who are not familiar with it, you should count your blessings.  Anyway, as part of this process they ask my daughter about her extracurricular activities.  She really didn’t have much to say and responded with comments about how she is planning to play tennis and occasionally goes running with her Dad.  I realize now that I haven’t been doing enough to challenge my children.  I guess simply setting the example of leading a healthy lifestyle and challenging yourself to do more is not enough.  It doesn’t help that my wife isn’t into challenging herself as well and my daughter is taking after the parent for which it is easier to model.

Beast Jr is often very willing to go for a run or a bike ride when I ask him to join me.  My daughter does join me occasionally, but more often seems to have a reason why she can’t go.  Perhaps these are legitimate reasons, but I think it is time I took a more active approach in her life.  Sometimes parenting isn’t easy and I truly believe that I will be doing the right thing when I tell her it’s time she scheduled her day so that we have a regular time to pursue a healthy activity together.  I’ve lamented to myself over the past year or so that I don’t spend enough time or do enough activities with her.  It’s high time I started to get more involved in my children’s education, both physical and mental.

So as a follow up to my previous entry, I am not only going to challenge myself to be a happy person, but I am also going to challenge my children to always make more of themselves.  I am going to push them, like I am going to push myself.  I’ll be careful and make sure I do it with love, affection, caring and understanding.  Hopefully, I’ll be able to maintain this course.

I got a sign this morning… I little round sticker with the number “508” on it.  It was stuck in the fold of my laptop where the screen meets the base.  Where it came from and what it was doing there, I have no idea.  I am going to take this as a sign that I should be doing the FC508 race again.  This at least puts to bed the question as to whether or not I should do that race.

After waking up this morning and dealing with some system problems at work, I decided that today is going to be a good day no matter what.  I have nothing good planned, I am not expecting anything good to happen and in fact, I expect to get grief over the system problems that I fixed during a time I should have been asleep.  I can’t let all the negative energy around me get me down or get depressed about things that are beyond my control.  Today I am going to try to face the day with a positive attitude and see what comes out of it.

I need to be more like my son.  He exudes and radiates a positive vibes almost all of the time.  He rarely gets down and if he does, is quick to snap out of it.  I was not like this as a boy, or for that matter my entire life.  I am going to turn over a new leaf today and try to follow his example from now on.  Please someone kick me in the ass, face or balls if I go back to moping around and complaining.  I am sick of my own negativity.  It’s gotten me nowhere in life.  Looking back, the times I have been most successful is when I was positive I could accomplish the things I set out to do.  Letting negativity get its grips on you is a sure way to failure.

Almost everyone has the power to change the situation they are in.  The only ones in life who should be pitied are those who are truly powerless to change their state of being.  Certainly, if you live in a free society, without strife, warfare, disease, hunger and other major perils, you should be able to change and make your own fate.  If you want to do something great, to be remembered, or build your own monuments, then the one person you need to rely on is yourself. 

You will have other people in your life that will help you along.  Without you taking that first step though, those people will never materialize.  Coaches, mentors, teachers, parents and yes even your own children can teach you, coach you and offer you lessons about life.  It’s up to you though to make the most of their contributions to your life and move forward, onward and upward.  You need to reach out to someone else and convince them you are worthwhile enough for their time.

I am pissed at myself.  Pissed at pissing so much time away when I could have made so much more of myself.  Don’t get me wrong… It’s not as if I am living in squalor, begging for scraps of food and standing on a street corner hoping for some work and a paycheck each morning.  It’s just that I know I have coasted after certain successes.  I’ve let myself coast far too long and let myself become depressed when things did not continue to come my way.  If you want to be great at life, to have a great life and live a life that will be remembered with satisfaction, you have to live your life to the fullest.

The key through making it through a race or life in general is getting through the tough times.  We all hit bumps in the road.  Sometimes we go over them, other times around them and when necessary avoid the bumpy road altogether.  Bumps in the road can cause damage if they are not navigated carefully.  This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take the bumpy road.  What excitement would life be even everything was smooth sailing? 

I think we tend to remember more about the times we travelled the bumpy road.  Those times hopefully bring out the best in us and were probably the more exciting.  When I think back to the FC508, the time I remember most was a 17 mile climb and 20 mile descent on a road that had the consistency of baked rocks in dirt.  It was brutally bumpy for 37 miles and made for an unpleasant experience.  However, I laugh about it now and I remember that section more than any other.  It brought out my riding skills more than any other section and the memory of it is infused in my mind.  I don’t remember a thing about the easy sections.

If only everything in life was as pleasurable and exciting as doing a race.  I enjoy being an ultra endurance athlete because it tests me in ways that the short stuff just can’t match.  Yes, a very hard and fast short effort brings out the pain and pleasure of a job well done.  However, I feel those moments are fleeting, causing the speedsters to seek many of these shorter challenges.  How can you remember all of them though?  The long stuff has an opportunity to get pushed into your long term memory over the course of the event.  But life is not all about racing… It’s about working and earning a living, raising a family and dealing with your day to day responsibility.

Sometimes we take a turn onto the wrong road or a storm blows in, knocking a tree into our path, tearing up the asphalt or some other calamity happens causing us to just be in the wrong place at the wrong time.  Hopefully our experiences in life have given us the tools, the mental faculty, to work through these issues and navigate the hazards that lie before us with minimal injury.  If we don’t have that knowledge within us, then it’s those times we look towards outside resources to assist.  You need to have been smart enough to bank those resources so that they are available to you in the future.

A resource could be a parent, friend, god, book, society or anything really that can impart the knowledge or lend a helping hand upon us to make it through our tough times.  In my case I recently turned to my father to ask him to send me advice I could use to make it through my own difficult times.  Of course, he is quite dead, so he needed to go through extraordinary measure to send me his wisdom.  I believe he did so by sending to me several friends at the right time all of which had insightful things to say to me.  Their words are helping me to navigate through the bumps in the road and show me that once I get to the end of it, there are new roads for me to explore.  Those new roads may be bumpy as well, but at least it will be something different.

My 7th (6th consecutive) New York City Marathon is officially in the books. My unofficial time, according to my watch, is 5:09:57. I am happy with this effort considering I had no running mileage between April and October.   I did not start to train for the NYCM until Oct 7, consisted of 1x12M, 3x7M and a scattering of 4M’s and 3M’s. In other words, less than 60 miles of running in less than 1 month to get ready for the Marathon. Add to the fact that I stopped during the marathon several times to say hello to family and for every picture worth occasion and I’d say my time was darn spiffy. I certainly ran better than last year, which I attribute to running with intelligence and being injury free. 

Waiting for the start of the marathon is always uncomfortable. It’s difficult to wait around in a crowded area, with no sun in 39 degree temps.  There is no room to stretch and barely any room to sit down.  I am reminded of the cattle or chickens that are forced to live in overcrowded conditions while they await their slaughter.  You just do your best to pass the time and try to remain warm.  Luckily, I was in the first wave of runners which left at 9:40am, so my wait time was less than most. 

Honestly, I should not have been in the first wave, which I believe was supposed to launch the faster runners.  My wave time was based on past race performances and the time I predicted I would finish.  When I signed up, I figured I could do it in 3:30, but that was long before I became injured with Plantar Fasciitis and took off from running for over 6 months.  In any event, I lined up in the middle of the first wave and took my sweet time to get moving.  I stopped on the bridge several times to take pictures and for the first time really didn’t care how long I was taking.  Truth was at the moment, I wasn’t feeling so good and doubted I could even finish the marathon.  I dilly dallied on the bridge, taking pictures and by the time I started to get moving again, almost all the runners from the first wave had passed me.  It was a very odd feeling.  I was running completely alone on the Verrazano Bridge.  Usually I am surrounded by 10’s of thousands of runners.  I felt as though the sweep van might come at any moment and take me off the course.

As I made my way off the bridge, I was still almost completely alone.  I’d pass the occasional straggler and I would wonder what was causing them to be so slow when they were in the first wave.  I didn’t even have anyone in front of me to follow on the course, which made me rely on the course markings and the barricades to know which way I was to go.  Now this may not seem significant to you, but to be running completely alone in a race of 45,000 runners, running alone is completely bizarre.  I just kept making my way forward, anticipating the arrival of the fast runners from waves two and three.  I was about 4 -5 miles into the marathon, when the first runners from wave two started to pass me.  I began to feel better, as the feel of running the NYCM started to return to some semblance of normality. 

By the time I passed mile 6 and started to approach the meeting point of where my family was waiting to see me, the pack of runners had thickened enough that I felt like I was actually in the NYCM and not a lone exhibit walking down a gauntlet of spectators looking at a freak.  I asked my wife to bring me some items that I forgot to take with me and also gave her a bunch of clothes that I was wearing.  Having shed down a significant amount of clothes and taking a caffeine pill to wake me up immediately changed my state of mind and body.  I started to loosen up and began to run very well.  My pace quickened to approximately 10 min/mile, my heart rate settled in and I began to feel physically and mentally good.  The doubts as to whether or not I could finish began to melt away with each passing mile.

Being in no rush at all to finish, I didn’t worry about taking breaks along the course.  These breaks were all in order for me to get a picture of something I found interesting.  Here are a few of them…

Entering Athlete Village

Crowd Heading to Start Line

The one thing I will say about my endurance efforts this year, is that I’ve learned how to tolerate the passing of time.  It’s as though I don’t notice that the clock is ticking as I always seem to be making progress and my slow pace does not bother me.  I guess you learn that from sitting in a saddle for 18 hours in a day and crawling up 25 mile hills at only 4-5 mph.  As long as I have the sense of moving forward, I feel ok and keep on moving right along.

And moving right along is what I did.  I made it from Brooklyn to Queens, Queens into Manhattan (where I said hello to my mom at 63^rd Street), from Manhattan into the Bronx and then back into Manhattan again.  Once back in Manhattan, I knew I was home free and ran with a smile on my face all the way down 5^th Avenue and into Central Park.  I knew I was running at a comfortable and relaxed pace as my face wasn’t clenched, nor was my jaw.  In fact, I think I had a smile for most of it.  I was very pleased with myself for running so well on pure effort and training memory alone.   My finish certainly wasn’t attributable to the fewer than 60 running miles I put in over the previous 3 weeks.  My 7^th NYC Marathon Medal is probably my most satisfying, if only because I proved to myself that I can do whatever I set my mind to do.  Now I just have to figure out exactly what it is I want to do next.

On the Verrazanno

Half Way Point

Running Up First Avenue

Entering Da Bronx

At the Finish Line