Archive for the 'Running' Category

045 Fire Island 5K: 17:54 – 2nd Place

Published on August 9, 2010 in Running. 9 Comments Tags: , .

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M32 2 2 1 17:54 5:46 72.2 %

The “Battle for Fire Island” is what I’m calling this weekend’s race. Why? I had won this race randomly last year which was great, but the amount of pressure I felt coming back to defend my title was ridiculous!

Erika and I left Friday afternoon, set to arrive around 7PM. It’s really quite fun getting out to Fire Island, especially the ferry ride. This is a picture of some guy sleeping on the van ride that reminded me of ‘Weekend at Bernie’s.’

It was a “Dad Posse” weekend if you will. Ed has a hotel out there (insert plug)… The Fire Island Hotel, which is the hub of the race every year. It’s also a really fun laid back hotel right on the beach complete with a tiki bar.

The gang for the weekend was ROLE CALL: Ed and Annelise (Jack, Isabelle, and Ben); Jim and Lisa (Josephine and Elizabeth); Mike and Kara (Kelly and Kevin); and finally Todd and Ila. (AND Louie and Bella… see photo)

After checking into our room, Erika and I hit the tiki bar ‘Hurricanes’ and had some pina coladas and apps before heading over to Ed’s house which is right next to the hotel. At ‘Hurricanes’ a big group of gals came in… a bachelorette party. While they were contemplating what shots to take I realized that I recognized one of the girls. I looked over and simultaneously we both said each others names laughing. It was Amanda, Ed’s niece who I had run a few races with over the winter. Erika and I spent the rest of the night over at Ed’s socializing and catching up.

Saturday morning Erika took off for a 4 mile run (she wouldn’t be racing Sunday) and Ed, Mike, Jim and I went over to the bay for a 1/2 mile open water swim. Wow! Amazing and I really needed it. As Ed was saying, there is something very natural about swimming in open water. We also needed the training as the Harriman Sprint Triathlon is the following weekend.

The rest of the day we all congregated on the beach. It was a beautiful day. Frankie showed up to hang for a little while followed by Todd. Ila had to bail on the trip as she was sick unfortunately. We built giant sandcastles, played football in the ocean, and body surfed. It was awesome. I was in some serious need of beach time and this was doing the trick.

We had a huge feast at Ed and Annelise’s house that night in preparation for the race. We carbo-loaded on beers and had birthday cake and cookies in celebration of a few of the youngsters’ birthdays. We all crashed between 11:30 and midnight I think.

RACE DAY

We were all up around 9AM Sunday. The race didn’t start ’til 10:30 AM which is cool on the sleep tip, but very scary on the heat factor.

Ed’s house is basically right in front of the start line. It’s so cool because you can literally hang out there having coffee and bananas (which is what I was doing in fact) up until like 5 minutes to gun time, then you just walk out his front door.

There were 2 waves this year as the race has almost doubled in size! It’s put on by Anthony and John DiGangi who I have become friends with over the last year as they do a lot of the local NYRR races and triathlons. The 5K’s purpose is to raise money and awareness for the American Brain Tumor Association.

“In 2006, Rose DiGangi was diagnosed with a Glioblastoma, a malignant Brain Tumor. After a courageous battle, Rose passed away on October 20th, 2007. In her memory, the DiGangi Family will continue to raise awareness and support for Brain Tumor Research.”

A few minutes to 10:30AM those of us in wave 1 walked out to the start line. I said hi to some of the guys from last year. It’s a pretty friendly race.

SIDENOTE: 30 seconds to the start the clouds dissipated and the sun blazed high and strong. Wonderful. It was now 85 degrees and climbing.


Just like last year, I hung one row back, trying to be discreet. The gun went off and it was a mad dash to take lead. I was boxed in right away but we weren’t going too fast so I just pushed through the crowd and took off. I was half thinking that this technique will either benefit me or cost me a good race time.

Half a mile into the race I was like “Wow, this is hard being in the lead and not knowing whats going on behind me!” Most of you runners out there will agree, chasing people down and passing them in a race is very fulfilling and gives you something to focus on. Here I was just running as hard as I could with no end in sight! At certain points where there were crowds I yelled “How far back is #2?”

1.5 – 2 miles in is where it started to really get hard. My legs got heavy and I was overheating. It’s a 5K so it’s not like there are aid stations around every corner, but when I did see one, i grabbed water dumped it straight on my head. It was so hot and I was so delirious I was teetering on walking and/or calling it quits.

At this point I could feel someone catching me. He slowly approached and we joked around for a bit, me asking him “Hey man isn’t the race over yet?” His response was “No way man, 1 mile to go.” We ran together for a little while but as we neared the 3/4 mile to go area he picked up the pace and I’m pretty sure I slowed mine down. I kept him in my sights but I couldn’t muster up any more effort. For the first time ever I thought about running straight to the medical tent!

I rounded the corner to the finish line and just tried to hold onto the pace I was working with and try and muster up a smile! Erika was there and gave me a big kiss! I quickly left her heading straight for the water area. I took a big bottle of water and dumped it straight onto my head. As I looked up I saw Kevin and Isabelle laughing at me as I did this. Trying to explain a near death run in a lava field to 7 year-olds is difficult.

I walked over to the shaded tent where all the early runners were convening. I found the number one guy and congratulated him. His name was Sebastian and he was an 18 year old track runner from Bay Shore. He starts college at Albany in the Fall and has a good future in running if you ask me!

Jim came in shortly after followed by Mike, Todd, and then Ed and Jack. We were all exhausted and the general consensus across the board was that it was brutally hot!

The gals came and joined us in the shade once all of our runners were in.

The fundraiser after party is really fun. Heineken beer, hamburgers, silent auctions, a band… We all hung around re-carbing with some beers (all the money spent went to the ABTA so we weren’t drinking in vain.)

Around noon, we all gathered around as the DiGangi’s started the awards ceremony. It was really inspiring as there were runners as young as 13 clocking times like 25:14 and guys in their 60′s matching it.



Of our group 3 of us got medals! Jack came in 2nd in the 12-14 age group, Jim 3rd in the 40-49 age group, and me for second overall. Go Team!

We hung around the after party for awhile then headed to the pool. Erika, Todd, and I left on a 2:50 ferry back to the mainland as we were all so tired.

It was a great weekend and we all killed it out there under those rough weather conditions!

Big ‘ups’ to the Eschmann’s for once again being fantastic hosts. Thanks!

044 Queens Half Marathon: 1:28:39

Published on July 27, 2010 in Running. 5 Comments Tags: , .

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M32 119 56 18 1:28:39 6:46 66.8 %

In preparation for the Queens Half Marathon (and by preparation I mean ‘carb-o-loading’) Erika took me to her favorite Italian restaurant, Pisticci’s.

Upon arriving we were immediately greeted by a server who knew Erika. I was impressed. We were promptly seated and ordered our drinks, mine being a fancy beer and Erika opting for a fancy cocktail. The food was amazing. For my entree I had a goat cheese and red pepper stuffed ravioli, topped with a vodka sauce laced with shrimp. Perfection!

I’m not sure if any of you were out Friday night, but around 8:30PM all hell broke loose. The skies opened up and an intense thunderstorm ensued! It looked straight out of a movie and I blame the full moon.

I was once again impressed, when Erika insisted that we would have no problem getting a cab right across the street, and she was spot on. It was a great night and I was no doubt ready for the Queen’s Half the next morning.

RACE DAY

At 5AM it was already 80 degrees.

The Queen’s Half Marathon (most Royal of races…) takes place in Corona Park Queens, which is an easy subway ride. I always love pre-race subway rides to the course because at every stop groups of runners get on. Its like a real-life Nike commercial or something.

At baggage we met Erika’s friend Jen and then headed to our corrals.

Up in the front, as the announcements were being made ( “Don’t try and PR as it’s brutally hot” and “Be careful”) I was in my head and getting amped up for the run.

As the gun went off I held onto the lead pack (which was thick as thieves) for the first mile before it thinned out and the speedsters took off.

The first 6 miles were an out and back course along College Point Blvd. At mile 2′s water station I passed my buddy Lam and yelled out to him! It was right around this point when I thought to myself “Holy cow, it’s freakin’ hot already and the sun isn’t even blazing yet!”

At mile 3 there was a factory or something spewing some sort of smoke and for a moment I felt like we were running a Sci-Fi race in the not so distant industrial future. Think Blade Runner meets Mad Max.

On the return trip I saw my friend Elizabeth (or Ms. Ritz) and we yelled hi! Soon after I saw Erika and we yelled to each other as well. This lifted my spirits and kept my head high.

It’s pretty safe to say that at every aid station (there were 13) I dumped 2 cups of water on my head. In fact, I may have only drank a total of 4 to the 26 that ended up on me. I was also running THROUGH the big puddles left behind from the night’s thunderstorms to help cool my feet, which were now on fire.

At mile 9 something happened where I felt awesome and kind of kicked it up a notch. It was 8AM now and the sun was high in the sky projecting its rays with no mercy.

I’m not going to lie. Pretty much from the start of the race to the finish I wanted to stop running and call it a day. Looking back, I have no idea what kept me going, but I actually sped up as the miles decreased.

At mile 11 we were heading back to the finish area and I was pretty excited. Looking at the clock times, I thought I had a chance at staying sub 1:30. Why I chose that number I don’t know, but it kept me motivated! It was here I passed a guy whose outfit looked strangely familiar. I turned and looked at him and it was the guy who I finished the Rev 3 Half Ironman neck-and-neck with in June! I said hi quickly and then kept on pushing forward.

Mile 12 we got to run around the giant globe sculpture which was kinda cool, aside from the pain we were all experiencing at this point that is.

The crowds got thick and as the finish came into view I picked up and finished fast, but no sprint. I was pretty excited to be done AND that there was a fire hose just past the finish.


My time was 1:28:39 which is my worst Half Marathon time, but I was still happy to have just finished a battle like that in such extreme conditions.

I made my way to a good vantage point to see Erika come through the finish chute. I was walking around barefoot which never felt better.

I saw Jen come through and then Erika a little later. Both gals looked great and finished strong!

After the race, we had a fun subway ride back to Manhattan as we ran into Sharon and Maria.

A few hours later we would regroup with Sharon to have some beers with her to celebrate her birthday AND the fact that she ran an extra 5.5 miles to top her run out at 30K! Nice work.

A lot of my running friends ran in this race (some of which I didn’t get a chance to see). I know runners get down on themselves if they don’t PR, but they should all be proud of themselves for finishing such a tough Half Marathon!

041 Wall Street Run – 3 Miles: 19:25?

Published on June 25, 2010 in Running. 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

The AHA Wall Street Run takes place in lower Manhattan’s Financial District and is pretty much organized chaos. The 3 Mile course runs a maze-like route through all the narrow roadways, finally ending at the ever-so-familiar Battery Marina. No I don,t have a yacht, it’s where a lot of the open water swims happen to end.

Erika asked me to pick up her number at the NY Road Runners, no problem. The problem, it seemed, was that I had not registered for the race!

Half disappointed and half excited, I left the Road Runners and sent some emails explaining my dilemma. Ed from ‘Dad Posse’ solved the problem. He couldn’t run the race so I could use his bib! Fantastic!

At work the day of the race I sat and thought about what I was about to do…
I was going to wear Ed’s bib in a 3 mile run.
SIDENOTE: Ed is in the 50-54 age group. (Sorry Ed for revealing your age)
I would surely take home an age group award for him, which would be kind of strange at the awards ceremony.

I decided to run without the official timing chip for 2 reasons. 1: Ed is running to gain entry into the NYC Marathon and however funny WE thought him knocking 3 minutes off his mile average in a weeks time was, the NYRR might penalize him. 2: Not fair to the 50-54 age group.

I met Mike and Patrick (also from ‘Dad Posse’) before the race then we set out to line up for the start. This is a general mess of a start with no seeded corrals and a total bottle neck right in the beginning. It’s a charity fun-run, not something where you’re going to be setting any records so I always tell people to just enjoy themselves.

In the start corral I ended up bumping into Anthony DiGangi who I met at the Fire Island 5K last year. He and his brother organize the run and I highly recommend it. I’m already signed up for this year’s race (fi5k.org).

The gun went off and it took me 2 minutes or more to cross the start. After getting through we were truckin’ at an 8 minute pace, people were hopping on the sidewalks and it was actually kind of dangerous from a sprained ankle perspective. This is why Erika opted to not run. She hurt her ankle in a bike fall Tuesday and didn’t want to risk injuring it further.

On Church Street there was a moment where the course widened so I sped up and cruised down the left side.

Back into the narrow streets it got really hot. It was already 93 degrees, but it seemed to escalate in those tight quarters.

I’m a huge NYC history buff and in my head I was thinking “Man, I would love to teleport an early Manhattan Dutch settler to this moment see what he thought of our little 5K.” At least he would know how far a kilometer was right? Ha.

Water Street widened the track again and I picked up my pace. We were running directly into the setting sun and it got HOT!

The final stretch runs right along the water. The group I was with all started sprinting and yelling, why not.

The clock said 19:25 when I finished but I have no idea how accurate that was without a timing chip and how far back I started. It just felt good to get the blood going and race with a big group.

I grabbed a bottled water and poured the whole thing on my head. Problem solved.

Then I heard “Hey Baker!” It was Daniel (or Dnorton). He and I chatted about the run, along with another fast guy who introduced himself to us.

I grabbed my baggage and was gearing down when I saw Mattsix, followed by Joeonetime! (using Twitter names make me imagine we are all super heroes)

I left them to meet up with Mike and Patrick. The 3 of us ended up going to Nancy Whiskey Pub which I have been wanting to go to for 10 years! It was awesome! A classic NYC dirty irish pub with loud rock-n-roll and cheap drinks. I shall return.

Good luck to Eissa, Ron and Sonja who race the Ironman Coeur d’Alene on Sunday! (I’m secretly jealous)

037 Healthy Kidney 10K: 37:11

Published on May 19, 2010 in Running. 4 Comments Tags: , , , .

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Split
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M32 129 161 26 37:11 0:18:14 5:59 72.7 %

This Sunday would mark the second running of the Healthy Kidney 10K for me and also be the first time in 2 weeks I had run (pending a track workout Tuesday) since the NJ Marathon.

I was in fact quite excited to NOT be running a race of marathon distance!

As work ended on Friday my mind wasn’t in ‘work is over’ mood, in fact I was getting fired up. That’s because I was slated to move Tuesday from my Chelsea 2-bed apartment to a new Upper East Side 1-bedroom! I had been packing since Wednesday and had lots more to do.

My co-worker and friend Annie offered to give me some boxes (as she had just moved) so I went to her apartment. I then went home, grabbed my laundry, and headed to the grocery store. One thing I overlooked in moving was that I needed a solid pre-race meal!

Shrimp Scampi it was. This dish never fails me on race day. Proteins, carbs, butter… everything the body needs to survive!

After dinner, I watched the KONA Ironman World Championships 2004 (one of my favorite ones) to get inspired, packed and then went to bed around 12.

RACE DAY

I woke up at 6:30Am and got some coffee on. SIDENOTE: not sure if any of you know this, but for some reason I don’t need an alarm clock to wake up if it’s not earlier than say 5AM. I blame my Dad.

I packed up a few more boxes before heading out on my bike.

It was amazing out and was turning into perfect racing conditions! I locked up my ride by the Band shell and after searching for Ed to no avail, I headed to baggage and then my corral. It was here that my old pal Kevin Masse from Front Runners ran into me. We caught up a bit and wished each other well on our race.

Blue Corral was pretty empty when I arrived but it was soon teeming with runners stretching, jumping and smelling of Icy Hot which incidentally makes me nauseous.

A word from our sponsors (namely the people supplying the huge cash awards for the winners)… a little National Anthem action… and then we were off!

The first mile was a bit packed but we were cooking. In a big money race like this you get all the Olympic runners and speedsters out so even the front of the pack is crowded!

We hit Mile 1 at 5:50 which disappointed me as I wanted to break 37:59 which was my PR. SIDENOTE: I’m horrible at math. 5:50 as it turns out, is good.

Mile 2 to 3 opened up the group a bit and we were running single file ‘race style’ now. I can normally gauge my body and how I’m feeling at this point and make a decision as to whether this was a ‘good’ race day or ‘bad’ race day. I was leaning more toward the bad as I was feeling a touch winded.

Harlem Hill came up and I blazed up it swinging my arms like a a madman (as I was taught to do on Tuesday Speed training). At the apex I took a deep breath, then started striding down the other side attempting to gain some time. Mile 4 hit at 24 minutes and change.

Running down the straight away by 89th street I kept trying to remind myself of the Ultra in November. During that race I had to run 9 laps around the park and the finish line was here. When I was getting tired I just said “Baker, you ran this 9 times! This is just once, you’re almost done, go go go!” It did help, but only psychologically, my legs were still burning.

At Mile 5 I ended up running along a Central Park Track Club racer and we paced each other for the last mile. Another taller fellow joined in pursuit behind me soon after. I really think this may have helped my finishing time a lot.

Rounding the bottom loop of the Park by Columbus Circle we hit the 6 Mile mark with 400 meters to go at 36:30 or so and then it dawned on me… I had been doing bad math the whole time, I was indeed on point to hit my time!

I tried to kick it up a notch but I was already blazing. It wasn’t until I saw the finish line (don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes!) that I pulled the trigger. I flew through the finish line with a time of 37:11 which was a whole 50 seconds under my goal! I felt great and had a huge smile.

After grabbing a few waters I headed down to the Finish to cheer on all my friends who were running… Ed, Matt 6, Erin, Frankie, and Elizabeth to name a few. I watched for 30-45 minutes and didn’t see any of them! I was also texting Erika so they may have slipped by while my head was down.

Back up at the main area I ran into Matt 6, Erin and Frankie. We decided to go grab some food and at Matt’s suggestion we hit Time Warner’s Whole Foods. It was amazing. They have a breakfast buffet and delicious coffee. We ate and chatted about our races before heading our separate ways. What a great start to a beautiful day! Now back to packing…

036 NJ Marathon: 03:15:27

Published on May 5, 2010 in Running. 9 Comments Tags: , , , .

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall

Place

 Gender

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M32 629 21 19 3 03:15:27
7:27
 63.0 %

Monday started the week leading up to the NJ Marathon and I was quite excited for it! The weather report for Sunday looked ideal for a great day to go for a run.

On Tuesday, my left calf was still bothering me from the Lincoln Tunnel race the previous Sunday, but I still decided to rock out Speed Sessions with our group.

We did some sprint intervals followed by some core work which proved to be a lot of fun.

The rest of the week I biked sporadically and just enjoyed the weather.

On Saturday I ran for 20 minutes (to get my legs ready) up to Erika’s apartment. She had cooked french toast for me! What?! It was delicious… she’s quite the baker, no joke intended.

I went home and made rice and bean burritos for Sunday’s Marathon, then headed out to meet Ed.

It was a ‘Dad Posse’ plus family weekend. Ed (and family… Annalise, Jack, Isabelle and Ben) picked me up and we headed out to Mike’s house, which is 10 minutes from the race. Mike and his wife Kara offered to host us for the race similarly to the Little Silver 5K last R-october.

Once we arrived at Mike and Kara’s (plus Kelly and Kevin) we proceeded to have some beers and get ready for dinner out on the back deck. Jim and Lisa (plus Josephine and Elizabeth… and LOUIE) had beat us there and were already having fun. SIDENOTE: Who is Louie? Louie is Jim and Lisa’s 1 year old Boston Terrier. He’s adorable (in a tough way of course) and even purrs like a cat at times.

For dinner we had a spread of pastas and salads which was perfect for a pre-race meal. We also had a few Coronas, which only helped (in my opinion) the carb-o-loading.

We were in bed by 10:30-11 PM. Not bad at all…

RACE DAY

I slept like a baby and woke up unaided at 6:30AM. Mike was up getting coffee ready. I grabbed a cup plus a bagel and chilled out on the back deck with the gang as they woke up. We were slotted to leave at 7:30 for the shuttle bus which was plenty of time to get my head together for the run.

Sitting out in the open air in my PJ’s having coffee, birds chirping and sun shining, I thought “Wow, what a beautiful day for a run.” Little did I know what was in store…

In preparation for battle, I grabbed 2 of my burritos and lodged them in my waistband. If you are wondering why on earth anyone would eat burritos during a marathon, you can read either my Knickerbocker Race Report or Disney for a better understanding.

We took the shuttle buses and arrived with ample time to get to the start. As we approached I noticed zero signage instructing runners or spectators where to go. We ended up running right into the side of the corrals (which were also utter chaos). Think… cattle (wait… udder chaos?). We all just hopped into the madness. As the wave 1 start went off I looked around and realized I was in the 4:15 pace area, which was 1 hour behind my goal for the day at least. Whatever… I thought I’ll just bob and weave once the race starts. We came to a halt right before Wave 2 got set off and as I crossed the Start Mat I realized I was 7 1/2 minutes back.

The Full Marathon course was 2 loops of the Half Marathon loop (which all of my ‘smart’ friends were doing).

Jim was on my heels and we started up the right side, weaving through people. As soon as we turned inland a wave of heat hit us similar to opening an oven door. Wow!

It was really crowded as I flanked everyone pushing forward. I tried to be as cordial a runner as possible, avoiding bumping people. I also had to pee really bad so I was watching out for port-o-potties in my peripheral. I knew that I would have to wait a few miles to get ahead of the early bathroom breakers.

At Mile 4, I pulled over to a port-o-potty for a hot second and whoa, it was an oven inside. “And that’s all I have to say about that… “

Moving forward I realized just what we (all 10,000 runners) had gotten ourselves into. It was scorching hot out. Right about Mile 5 I decided to have some kids at a water aid station hose me down with a water hose. 10 seconds later I was running without any music as I realized they also hosed down my iPod. Hmmm… 21 Miles with no music? Sure, I can do it.

I was cooking at a pretty good pace at this point and had high spirits. There were a lot of aid stations and I took every opportunity to grab 2 waters… one to drink and one for my head.

Not much to report for Miles 7-10… it was just freaking HOT out. The sun was relentless.

At Mile 11 we were running in the downtown area, then made our way left toward the boardwalk. SIDENOTE: I really like looped courses in a marathon as you can plan when you will use your energy reserves. Therefore, I was visually marking the course as I ran it, planning my attack on the second loop.

Cruising along the boardwalk was great as the ocean breeze was a savior. I liken it to opening the fridge after coming in from the summer heat. I think I even thanked the ‘ocean gods’ at one point…

Back at the Start/Finish I ran through the ’2 loopers’ gate. After passing through and beginning along the path I had started an hour and a half earlier things got a lot quieter. It was at this point I looked at my Garmin and realized that my goal of a Boston Qualifier or a Sub3 Marathon were definitely NOT going to happen. Whatever, it was 95 degrees and humid, I needed to stay alive! However, the show must go on, never give up.

I was in the habit now of dumping water on my head at every aid station and if they had a hose, well I may as well have been a human 5-alarm fire. I was also dry 300 meters later.

Mile 15 or 16 I started getting very hungry (we will recap this fatal error at the end of our lesson) and so I ate one of my burritos. It was ‘beyond awesome’.

Chugging along between Miles 16-20 was maybe the hardest part of the race. Most distance runners will tell you that, but this wasn’t my ‘so called’ wall. I was just hungry, like starving hungry, like runnin’ on empty. The second issue was that the scenery was sub-par. It was very ‘Mayberry’ for those Andy Griffith fans out there. I was just trying to keep my feet going and every time there was a patch of shade or a sprinkler I ran through it. Seriously, did I mention that it was hot?

Around Mile 18 is when an Angel in Disguise came onto the scene. I was trotting along (possibly drooling) and on this quiet neighborhood street with zero traffic an elderly woman came into the middle of the street. “I have water! I have water for anyone who wants it!” Wow. I bee-lined it over to her and tried to stop. She said “No! Take the water and run, Im only going to affect your time!” I poured half the water bottle over my head and THEN I did something I have never thought to do. My feet were burning! Really bad, like they were on fire. I stopped and poured the ice cold water directly into my sneakers. It felt so amazing! I smiled and ran on.


As I approached Mile 20 something totally weird happened. I was flooded with an enormous amount of energy. All the pain (or hunger) I had been feeling subsided. I looked up and just started trucking! Watching my Garmin I KNEW I had fallen off the wagon the last few miles… BUT what if could make up some lost time?

I was passing people and staying the course. I grabbed a cup of water at an aid station and I realized I was as hydrated as I needed to be. (They say not to drink more than you need to and I truly believe this). I kept going and was throwing up the Bullhorns plus Thumb ‘Love’ sign to anyone cheering me on.

Not to dwell on this strange phenomenon, but I have never had a surge of energy like this at the end of a distance run. I normally just want to die, duh.

At Mile 23 I had started catching up to the tail end of the Half Marathoners and was running around them cordially. I had programmed the course into my head and was anxiously awaiting the point when it turned left onto the beach… the home stretch… the Ocean.

Cruising along at maybe a 7 minute pace I made the left and once again was welcomed by the oceans cool breeze. It cooled my core by ten degrees without even exaggerating. I was now 2 miles out running along the crowded boardwalk dodging walkers and random people who weren’t aware of a race taking place.


As the final mile approached I got very excited. I knew Ed, Jim, Mike, Annelise and Lisa would be somewhere toward the end cheering me on, which would only fuel my finish. There was an arch ahead that said something like ‘Finish.’ I sprinted, but as I passed through I looked ahead and could see the real finish 300 meters ahead! (NJ Marathon people… NOT COOL). I summoned up some more strength and gunned it again! This time I heard my name to the left and I saw the gang cheering me on! Overdrive! I cruised through the finish, grabbed my medal and hat and went to find the crew. I felt pretty good even though I knew my goal hadn’t been achieved.

We met up, exchanged a few high fives and took a few photos before heading out.

We wrapped up the day at Mike and Kara’s with a BBQ and some more Coronas. Thanks to Mike and Kara for once again being great hosts!

Returning to mighty Manhattan, I was greeted with a sweet surprise… Erika! She insisted she take me out to celebrate the marathon! We had some BBQ and bourbon drinks (she’s from Texas.) It was a great way to end the weekend.

—

I learned a lot after this race, as usual. I need to eat my burritos BEFORE I get hungry. This way the energy transfers into my body without any down time.

Im also really excited for the whole crew! All of us killed it out there in really rough conditions. For a few of the gang, it was their first Half! Congrats to all of you, that is quite an achievement and obviously only preparing you for the next step… Full Marathons! Awesome.

On a personal note, I was kind of down on myself for not breaking any of my records and not qualifying for Boston by under 5 minutes again. I was kind of in a stupid daze, as if nothing marathon related had happened during the post run festivities. When Erika said she wanted to take me out to celebrate my race and how great I did, even though I didn’t think I had done well at all, I got really happy and snapped out of my funk.

A lot of runners get down on their performances. They aren’t happy with their times, or if they PR’d. We can be really hard on ourselves. What hit me as Erika and I were eating dinner (which is the feeling that soaked in after my first marathon) was “Hey, you just ran a marathon, jerk! That in itself is an accomplishment.” That’s when I understood once again why I run Marathons or why I race in Triathlons: to feel alive.

There are only possibilities.

035 Lincoln Tunnel 5K: 19:24

Published on April 26, 2010 in Running. 4 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall

Place

 Gender

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M32 84 45 38 10
19:24
6:17
 66.0 %

The week leading up to the Lincoln Tunnel 5K was pretty busy…

Monday: My friend Jasika had her birthday party at SoHo Grand. Erika and I hung out with her, Claire and a plethora of other interesting people until we decided it was time to head out as it was Monday after all.

Tuesday: Speed Sessions in Central Park led by Josh. We did 1/2 Mile intervals around the Great Lawn followed by (at Erika’s suggestion) a group meal at Shake Shack. It was a blast. Lets see if I can get everyone… Role Call: Josh, Erika, Amy, Elyssa, Michelle, Serene, Matt, Joe, Nancy, Erin, Anna, Frankie, Bill, and Jenna.

Wednesday: Hung out with Ed and Daniel discussing serious stuff like ‘stocks.’ We may have had beers too.

Thursday: Erika and I went to Carnegie Hall to see Frederika Von Stade’s farewell recital. It was beyond amazing.

Friday: My friend Matt’s 40th birthday party at Hill Country BBQ that involved overeating.

Saturday night Todd, Ila and I went out to Rick and Molly’s place in Hoboken to stay the night. We went out to a cute Italian place where I had Shrimp with Penne pasta as my pre-race meal. We all went to bed at Midnight, anticipating bad weather for the morning.

RACE DAY

We woke up at 7AM to cold rain, making the process of getting out of bed quite hard, especially knowing we would have to trek out in it to get to the start of the run.

After some fussing, Todd and I convinced Ila that “Yes, this is gonna be fun!” and we geared up.

We grabbed a cab and headed over to the Lincoln Tunnel start area. The dialogue between Todd and the cabbie was funny… “Where to?” says the cab driver. “The entrance of The Lincoln Tunnel,” says Todd as the driver turns in confusion.

The start area was a mess. It was raining and people were trying to find cover once they obtained their race bibs. I was queued up to start in the faster 8AM race but missed it the start, therefore slotting myself to run in the 8:45AM start.

Ila made friends with some of the head Lieutenants in the police squad running the event and they shared their Dunkin Donuts coffee with the three of us. Ila is good at this type of maneuver and we are always thankful when she pulls it off, case in point.

We headed off to the Toll Booths to get in the start pack. I led us up to the front of the gang, explaining to them the whole bottleneck thing that would take place as 1000 people scrambled to get into the tunnel.

The gun went off and we started moving slowly. Its not a corral based race so there were all different paced runners around. I ran the first mile in 9-10 minutes.

By now I had passed the bulk of the people and I opened up my stride and picked up my pace to a full sprint.

Imagine the run like this… a 3/4 of a mile downhill, followed by 1/2 a mile straightaway, then a 3/4 mile uphill… rinse, repeat.

As we made our way uphill toward the New York side I was in the very front (or so I thought). I had dreamed about this one moment prior to the run… looking down the Lincoln Tunnel, seeing a bit of light coming from around the bend, and no one else around, as if it were some surreal movie where I had to escape through the tunnel on foot. Maybe the entrance to heaven? I have a vivid imagination…

Approaching the bend my dream came to an abrupt close as 2 runners passed me coming the other direction at MACH 10! I was not in the front, I was 3 back!

Exiting the tunnel into New York is such a strange feeling. Part of me wanted to stay, thinking to myself “Um, I live right down the street, I could just go home right now.” Instead, I hugged the orange cones and made the quick turnaround back into the darkness hoping to chase down the speedsters in front of me. This, of course, would prove to be impossible as they were easily 400 meters in front of me moving at the speed of light.

The return trip was pretty cool as the large groups of people coming at me were cheering me on. Todd and I high fived as I cruised by!

Basically, the rest of the run I was just truckin’ down the tunnel making sure I didn’t slow my pace. As I came out of the tunnel to the end I experienced one of the most anti-climactic finishes of all time. I was all by myself with no one in sight as I crossed in 3rd place, arm in the air and then… no friends, no cheering crowds, just cold rain and the ramp leading up to the turnpike. I took cover back under the main tent thinking “Well, at least they have bananas.”

I finished in 19:24 at a 6:17 pace which isn’t even close to a PR, but it was fun nonetheless AND I got to run with my 2 good friends Todd and Ila. This was their introduction to NYC running and I’m glad to have been there with them.

We celebrated, or warmed up rather, back at Rick and Molly’s where Rick prepared a huge breakfast for us. Thanks for being great hosts!

034 Run for the Parks 4M: 23:34

Published on April 23, 2010 in Running. 4 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall

Place

 Gender

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M32 563 43 42 11
23:34
5:53
 72.0 %

First off, good job to all my friends who ran the Boston Marathon! I’m so proud of all of you, what an accomplishment! I was following your progress with the web tracking system (not the email one that we all know failed!)

Instead of Boston, I will be running the ‘prestigious’ NJ Marathon in 2 weeks. I think I’m ready. Ive been running, biking and swimming like crazy, but 17 miles has been my greatest distance in the last few months. Is that enough? Probably not, therefore you might see me out blazing a 20 miler in the next week. Taper?

Our Tuesday speed group led by ‘SS’ or Josh was a blast this week. He had us (Erika, Amy and I) doing some crazy hill workouts in Central Park. I picked up a few new techniques that actually prepared and helped me a lot on Sunday’s run. Thanks Josh!

Saturday night Erika and I made a pre-race meal of pasta with a side of hummus salad. In honor of running we watched Forrest Gump. I hadn’t seen it in quite some time and forgot that it’s actually a pretty inspiring movie!

RACE DAY

I met Erika on her new bike on the west side of the park for a leisurely ride to the race. SIDENOTE: Saturday we scoured the East Village and finally found her a beautifully restored 1982 Peugeot! She named him Blue Steel. It is a really beautiful bike, they don’t make (lugged) frames quite the same anymore.

We arrived at the band shell and locked up right next to Ed from ‘Dad Posse’. We geared up and then split off to our respective corrals.

The gun went off and I crossed over the timing mat like 10 seconds later. We were not really going that fast for being in the first corral so I hit the right side of the crowd and started cruising up the side of the runners.

Thanks to my hill workout Tuesday I was able to speed right up Cat Hill!

We hit Mile 1 just under 6:00 which I wasn’t too happy about as I wanted to really push it this race and maybe PR again. Right around this time the field opened up and we were running single file and really cooking. It was also at this point I had to get out of my head and say “Baker, chill out, this is fun!” I smiled and loosened up a bit continuing on.

Mile 2: 11:40, still having fun. As we started heading south toward Mile 3 I noticed that I felt great. It was one of those days where I felt no pain or cramps and just kept moving my feet as fast as I could.



The 3rd Mile came up fast – I then mustered up some strength for the final Mile. I could see some of the lead guys 100 yards in front of me, but knew I would never catch them at this rate. I rounded the 72nd street final stretch and busted into a sprint. The Finish clock said 23:40 but my actual time turned out to be 23:32.

No PR for me today! I would have needed to shave 4 seconds off that time. It was, however, a great day for a run with perfect conditions.

I hung out with Joe (joeonetime) for a bit and was interviewed by a film maker.

Here is a link to what he made, which is really great!

After a quick race recap, Erika and I rode our bikes up to a Starbucks to refuel with some sweets!

033 Scotland 10K: 37:59

Published on April 4, 2010 in Running. 4 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall

Place

 Gender

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M32 35 149 139 24 37:59 6:07 71.2 %

This week started out with torrential rain up until around Wednesday. It was miserable. Luckily, Thursday came around and was 70 degrees and sunny, not a cloud in the sky.

I had work off on Friday, so in the morning I biked around town and soaked it all up. I was sore all over though, the ‘got hit by a truck’ kinda sore. Why? Thursday night my presence was requested to help my good friend Todd (Swim Coach Todd that is) move his company’s office spaces. Lots of heavy things… desks, computers, couches, and yes… a soda machine.

Later on Friday afternoon, my brother and friend Matt came over to have roof beers. We lounged around for a few hours catching up before we parted ways, all of us having other engagements.

It was my piano teacher Sugar’s (and friend) birthday so she was having a dinner party down at Cafe Gitane. I arrived there with Walter and Amanda. It’s a really cool room in an old hotel. I am a history buff, so this was right up my alley. In fact, did you know that the survivors of the Titanic stayed there right after the incident? True story.

You runners out there know why going to a restaurant the night before a race is dangerous don’t you? Anyone, anyone? Bueller? Bueller? What if there isn’t any good pasta on the menu for carb-o-loading? There was only one pasta dish, the ‘baked pasta’ which was the equivalent to baked ziti. It was awesome. I quietly slipped out of the party around 11PM in order to get some rest before the race.

RACE DAY

I had pancakes for breakfast, which were amazing! Then, I met my new friends Michael and Jay and we walked over to the race together. It was a beautiful morning and the Park was bustling with activity from every angle.

The blue corral was packed in like sardines by the time I got there so I had to post up at the very back. Whatever.

The gun went off and it took me at least 30-45 seconds to get going. Yes, it was a crowded race. Not to sound snobby or anything, but a slew of random slow people were in the Blue. We were bobbing and weaving all around them the entire first 1/2 Mile. Im not sure how they slipped through security…

For the first mile I was flanking the left side, pushing past people trying to get out into the open. As I was cruising I hear “Baker!” to my right. It was my friend Kevin Masse running along side of me! I hadn’t seen him in awhile since he took a running break after running Philly. We chatted for a hot second before he told me to get going.

At Mile 2 things were getting better. Erika was there on the right snapping photos and cheering me on. Thanks Erika!

The Harlem Hill came up quick and it hit hard. It never ends man! I tried to push up the hill as best I could. Once we rounded the top corner and started to head back south I smiled big, knowing that the hardest part of the run was now behind me. I mean, I still had to finish, but there were no more monster hills.

By now we were a single file line of runners and were all cruising around the same pace. Mile 5 happened fast as well, which was a relief. Right around this time a few guys kinda boxed me out and were passing me. I just thought to myself, ‘let them go by, chase them down at the end.’

As we rounded Columbus Circle I was holding back… wait for it, wait for it… (not wanting to burn out right before the finish which I did once by starting too soon).

As soon as we hit the uphill and I could see the Finish coming into view I hit the afterburners and brought it into full sprint! I think I might have taken out 7-8 people that were in front of me, it was awesome! SIDENOTE: It’s true that sprinting past people at the end isn’t that big a deal if you aren’t contending for the 1, 2 or 3 spot, but for me, I get like a movie soundtrack ( the end of Teenwolf or Karate Kid for example) in my head and pretend I’m winning. It’s these little personal moments that make it fun for me.

When I stopped running I did feel extremely light headed and nauseous. This was the first time this has ever happened. I needed water, STAT! After slamming 2-3 cups I felt back to normal.

I finished in 37:59 which is a personal record by 10 seconds which makes me happy. What a great day for a run!

032 Colon Cancer Challenge 4M: 23:28 12th Place

Published on March 30, 2010 in Running. 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

Sex/
Age		 Bib Overall

Place

 Gender

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
M32 39 12 12 2 23:28 5:52 72.3 %

After Sunday’s NYC Half Mary I had no intentions of running before the Colon Cancer Challenge 4M this weekend. I did bike once or twice during the week, but I basically took it easy.

This race means a lot to me as my Mom was diagnosed with Colon Cancer when I was 14. She had a real rough time with it and almost didn’t make it through. Because of her experience she has become a nurse in order to help others with similar ailments. Pretty admirable. Go Mom!

My Friday night was actually quite fun. Erika brought me to her friend Chris’s birthday party in Hell’s Kitchen. I got to meet a lot of her close friends and every one of them was great! A very fun group. At 8 we split up and I headed to Tribeca to hang out with Ahern and Robin. It was her father’s girlfriend Susan’s birthday party at a really nice Italian restaurant. Soon after that I was back on the move heading to the NYU area to meet backup with Erika and 2 more of her friends. I love sporadic nights like that where you kinda bop all over town.

Saturday I went to Todd’s and we did Triple Homicides in the pool. It was awesome and thoroughly painful. My heart rate might get going harder in the pool that in any running race for sure!

That night I made my staple pre-race meal of Shrimp Scampi for Erika and I. It was evidently pretty good (so I’m told).

RACE DAY

I woke up early on race day and set off in search of 2 things… coffee and bananas! After acquiring said fuel sources I walked over to Central Park to find ‘Dad Posse’. Last year the Colon Cancer Run was when all of us first met, so this was our friendship anniversary run. While waiting for them my coworker Kathy jumps in front of me. Hi! She and her husband were running it too so we chatted a bit.

SIDENOTE: it was freaking cold out! Last week it was 65 degrees during the Half Mary, not today. But, I’m tough… so…

With 15 minutes to go I jumped in my corral. It was sparsely populated with speedsters and I was like ‘Whoa. I better keep up with these mama-jamas.” I had my foot on the start mat which is a rarity. The gun fired and we were off, blazing a path up Central Park.

I was in the front group of runners and we were hauling. Slowly the faster people pulled away until we were all running single file. We hit Mile 1 at 5:35 and I was feeling very good.

At Mile 2 we were clocked at 11: 45. I was maybe 20 guys back from the lead but there was no way I could take a win here as the leaders were cruising way too fast.

Mile 3 came up quick and I was still in good shape. I think the fact that I ran a Half Mary last weekend tricked my body into being fine for a 4 miler. I am also a different person when running in a race. I barrel through any pain I might have just to hang onto the lead pack in hopes of a win. As we rounded the corner to the finish I picked up the pace and rocked a mild sprint passing a bunch of runners. The first place female was right behind me so as I was crossing they had a finish line banner out on the right (for her) which I actually contemplated running through.

Time: 23:28 AND I came in 12th Place! Too cool! I also got another plaque which is awesome because Ive never won anything in a NY Road Runner race ever!

031 NYC Half Marathon: 1:20:48

Published on March 23, 2010 in Running. 7 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Overall

Place

 Gender

Place

 Age
Place		 Finish
Time		 5K
Split		 10K
Split		 15K
Split		 Pace/
Mile		 AG %
170 145 34 1:20:48 18:46 37:58 57:15 06:10 73.31

March goes in like a lion and out like a lamb? Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps…

After the monsoon that was ‘last week’ the sky cleared into what one might actually call Spring. Our running group took full advantage of this Tuesday night with a tempo run around the park. Roll Call: Amy, Elyssa, Michele, Josh, Joe and Allen! After we finished we went to Cold Stone and rocked out some ice cream, awesome! I felt prepared for Sunday 100 percent.

Saint Patrick’s Day is maybe my favorite holiday. It’s even my phone extension at work, 317, seriously it is, call me. My office sits on the 3rd floor of 5th avenue and 53rd, aka FRONT ROW SEATS to the parade every year. Some people hate it, but I savor the bagpipes, military processions and the marching bands. I do not savor, however, the drunken maniacs that hinder me from getting my lunch. I liken it to a zombie movie. You need to get to from point A to point B, acquire a sandwich and return, crossing the streets or running away whenever a drunken zombie yells or approaches you.

As if all that excitement wasn’t enough we had Lindsey Vonn in our offices for some PR and I got to meet her. She is very down to earth and really funny. I told her about the Half on Sunday but she cringed, running isn’t her thing. She’s more of a biker actually.

I biked and ran Thursday as it was around 70 degrees and sunny. Strictly amazing. I also went on a ‘drink date’ with someone who out-marathons me (you know who you are)! True story. It was a really great time and no, we didn’t talk about running the entire conversation!

Saturday I woke up and took a 1 hour bike ride around town. It was beautiful. Later that night I got ‘tuxed’ out for the Explorers Club Annual Dinner at the Waldorf. This was my 4th year going and I normally get to eat tarantulas, scorpions, and hissing cockroaches but they made cuts this year and they were left with cured meats and cheeses. Boring. I even asked a bunch of people “hey, were are all the weird things to eat?” The strangest thing he had to serve was Eel. C’mon man, thats like a household item these days…

I got to catch up with my friend Cenk (we raced Harriman together) as well as my friend Leroy who is an astronaut and was co-chair of the dinner. (www.leroychiao.com)

Dan Aykroyd was the MC and he did a ‘Coneheads’ skit which was hilarious. Part of the night we heard from Donald Johanson, who was the scientist who discovered Lucy (the missing link). He was an amazing speaker discussing our evolution and where we were headed. I could listen to him for days, very intelligent and captivating man.

Another speaker who caught my interest was Steven Squyres. He is responsible for the Mars Exploration Rover Project! He had images of Mars from the robots and talked about (as Bowie said it best) Life on Mars! Amazing.

Jim Fowler came out with his usual assortment of strange and amazing creatures… 27 foot long anaconda, african sea eagle, and a baby bobcat to name a few.

The night was concluded with a performance by the Cirque-tacular Arial Dance Company. A woman and 2 men swung, spun, climbed and hung from a sash suspended 75 feet in the air while classical music played. It might have been one of the most breathtaking and beautiful things I have ever seen.

I left around 11:30PM and got to sleep at Midnight anticipating my race in the morning.

RACE DAY

My alarm went off at 6AM and as I looked out at the dark skies my body was saying… “sleeeeep, go baaaaaaack to sleeeeep.” My brain however was like “Battle stations! Its a race day.” I therefore pulled myself up and got some coffee on. Miss the NYC Half? Never.

I left at 6:30 catching a cab up to 84th and 5th and was at baggage by 6:50. Perfect.

As I was walking to my corral I bumped into Eissa and Elyssa from Tuesday night speed sessions and we hung and chatted for a bit before it was time to jump in. In my corral I hear “Baker!” I look left and its my trainer friend Jenn! Photo op!

The corral filled I was right in front of the stage and got to see some of the elites get up and speak… shortly after the gun went off!

Even though I was in the front it was still pretty crowded for the first mile or two. There was a lot of competition, drafting, elbows… boxing people in etc. This would go on all race and it was the first time Ive ever experienced this outside of the track. Right off the bat I see Ed from ‘Dad Posse’ cheering me on, shortly followed by Jim!

As we looped down around the bottom of the Central Park loop I was passing people and getting into my groove. Normally, my ‘Running Engine’ doesn’t really kick in until maybe 3 miles deep.

At the 72nd Street crossing Elizabeth (or Ms. Ritz as most runners know her) yelled out and took some pics! Soon after I saw Robert who also cheered me on. What a day!

We hit miles 4 and 5 which were the Harlem Hill and WOW it hurt. I tried to bolt up it as best I could, remembering the Hill Digger drills we had done but also maintaining some sort of pace as I still had 9 more miles of this mayhem.

We passed the start line (Mile 6) and were headed south again, but this time we were to exit on 7th Avenue and make our way into Times Square. Along the way I saw Jim again who said I was killing it and to keep it up! I grabbed the first of 2 waters I was to drink here.

Erika was right where she said she would be at 58th and 7th Avenue cheering us on with her awesome sign! As you can see from it, we had a big group (from our Tuesday Speed Team running).

Continuing on into Times Square I hear “Hey Christopher! Go!” It was a coworker, Stephanie, who was in town from Geneva!

I was really looking forward to the Times Square portion of the race. Why you ask? Well, on any given day I avoid Times Square like the plague. Its smelly, crowded and most of all has rookie ‘walkers’ everywhere holding up foot traffic. TODAY, however, I got to run right down the middle of it (like a steel version of the Grand Canyon) without anyone getting in my way. I was also the center of attention cruising down the width of a whole Avenue, which I tend to enjoy.

At 42nd Street we took a sharp right and headed down towards Hudson. I thought about running straight into it to cool off, then realized it would jeopardize my time. Speaking of which, I was indeed flying and was on target for my sub 1:25 mark! I kept telling myself “Just keep going, eggs and coffee at Todd and Ila’s after… the sooner you finish the sooner you eat.” 42nd Street is actually all downhill to the river which I have personally never noticed.

As we rounded the West Side Highway and began our descent I knew we had a solid 3 miles to go and as I looked at the clock it showed 1:01! What?! Was I really blazing that fast? I would surely make my goal (pending no fluke situation, which of course is always very possible). I grabbed another water for safety and kept moving fingers crossed.

One of our Tuesday Speed racers (Erin) is a musician that goes by the name Lady Southpaw. She was picked to be part of the entertainment and was set up on Mile 11, playing all day. As I neared she was looking my direction singing and added “Chriiiiiis Baaaaaker!” into her lyrics! Too cool. I pushed on.

Shortly after I saw Robert again and he yelled “Yeah Baker, finish strong!” which actually resonated the most and I really thought to myself, “Hell yeah, 1 Mile to go, lets do this.” I picked up my pace and passed maybe 1 or 2 other runners en route to the finish which was now visible. It was the white bridge that goes over Chambers Street which rocks because on any normal morning run that is my turn around point, so I know the path well.

As I got close I saw the clock ticking at just past the 1:20 mark and I nearly freaked out! I totally had a huge SEG (s&*t eating grin) on my face as I blazed into the finish! Thanks again Elizabeth for sending me these pics!

Final time: 1:20:48 with a 6:10 pace.

I walked onward, very happy and relived that it was over, got my medal and some water. It was there that someone I had been corresponding with over email, Russ, approached me and we got to meet in person! He is really fast and clocked a 1:14 or so.

Soon after I was off to Todd and Ila’s where we had a fantastic brunch (or breakfast as it was 9AM). My friends Asher and Ilka joined us as well and I recapped the race and my excitement at all that had transpired. With my time I had qualified for the NYC Marathon next year which was very unexpected!

After brunch I joined my friends Robin and Ahern at their place uptown (after a shower of course). Ahern’s father ran it as well and PR’d too! He is from Philly and is on course for the NYC Marathon 2011 (pending he doesn’t make it into 2010 with the Lottery). Awesome! We celebrated with quesadillas and beers.

—–

What a day! Sunshine, friends, warm weather… all before 9AM!

Seriously though, I was a bit emotional and almost lost it right after the finish on my solitary walk over to Todd and Ila’s (they live a few blocks from the finish). Not really because of ‘qualifying’, or ‘PR-ing’, but more just being surprised! At what? Surprised at what I was capable of at that moment (cutting 4 minutes off my last half in only 4 months) and what I could look forward to accomplishing in the near future. Ironman Kona is on my ‘to do list’ (not just to participate in, but to compete) and with every race I get closer. I really took in the moment and was pretty overwhelmed with happiness.

It really was an awesome day for all runners. Congrats also goes out to my Tuesday crew who ran – I know all of you had fantastic races as well!