Running Anniversary Retrospective - Final Days in New York Part II

In one of the sessions following the Frostbite 10 miler that I ran in January 2006, I told Lee I decided I wanted to try a half-marathon and asked when he thought i'd be ready to do one. He looked at me like I was nuts. He responded something to the affect of "You've already done 10 miles - you could do a half-marathon next week. What you should be focusing on is preparing for a marathon". I thought he was crazy. A week earlier my longest distance had only been about 5 miles and I suddenly jumped to a 10 miler. Now he's talking about 26.2? I have to admit, as impossible as it sounded to me, it also sounded intriguing.

January 2006 I faced a huge turning point in my life. With the support and encouragement of my mother, I decided to quit my job so I could focus on my Graduate school studies full-time. The goal was to complete Grad School by May, put my apartment on the market, and move out of New York. I was contemplating moving to several different places - Las Vegas, Tampa, and Philadelphia were the top three. I actually came close to chosing Tampa when a few job offers came my way. But at some point during the spring, I decided it was time to return home to Philadelphia to start the next chapter in my life.

I have been a member of New York Road Runners since 2004. Having been a member long enough, I was eligible to run qualifying races to be guaranteed entry for the New York Marathon. The catch is, I had to run 9 qualifying races in one calendar year in order to be guaranteed entry for the following year's marathon. Knowing that I was only going to be living in New York for 4 more months, I had to pack nine races in during the spring. When Lee and I had this discussion of me running in a marathon, I had already had 2 qualifying races under my belt in 2006 - a 5 miler the first weekend in January and the 10 miler I had just completed. Only 7 more to go.

The Gridiron Classic race on Superbowl Sunday 2006 was a 4 miler in Central Park - since the Eagles were forced to play their practice squad the majority of the season due to injuries, it was the first time in 5 years I was free from the playoffs in January, so this worked out well for my running strategy (ok - I know what you're thinking people. I have to find someway to comfort myself about last season!!). On February 18, I participated in the Community Heat of the Cross-Country Championships in Van Cortland Park in the Bronx (not too far from my home in Inwood). It was just 6 days after the record breaking blizzard that hit New York. The snow had been cleared from the field and trail in the woods - but I started with 600 other crazy runners in the mud in 18 degree weather as snow flurries started coming down. This was only a 4 k race, and I was cold - so I had to push it to stay warm and really, just to see what I could do. This was the first race where I actually started to see that I could maintain some kind of speed. I finished in 21 minutes - about an 8:30 MM pace. It made me happy. 4 races under my belt and 3 more to go.

All the speed sessions I was doing in my running class seemed to be paying off. Lee began talking to me more about my running, and while he let me be happy about the progress I was making, he wanted me to do more. "I've watched you run - I see your gait and your form - you're going to be running 7 minute miles in no time - you're capable of it". I was struggling to get to the 8:30 mark and he's talking 7 minute miles. "When doing a race, start out slowly - it should feel like you're running to slow - gradually pick it up but conserve energy so that you can sprint in that last mile or few miles" he would tell me.

So the following weekend, February 25th, I ran in another 4 mile race in Central Park. Keeping what he said in mind, I started off at a 9:30 MM pace, which felt slow - the next two miles were in the 8:30 - 9:00 MM range - then, when I hit the final mile marker, I switched gears. It was cold, but I was sweating like a banshee. I was breathing heavy, feeling a little nauseous. The tears in the corner of my eyes began to freeze. I was weaving in and out of runners as I passed them, which took more effort and careful footing. I started to doubt myself. I wasn't prepared well enough to gun this. I didn't look at my watch. I was heading south on the west drive in the park and about to turn left onto the 72nd street transverse. As soon as I made that turn I saw the finish line. Just a little more - I had to push myself - finish strong. As I crossed the mat, I felt like I wanted to vomit as I tried to catch my breath. I looked down at my watch. My mind was a bit disoriented so it was a little difficult to do the math in my head. I was in disbelief at first. 7:22? That could be right. Did I really run that last mile in 7:22? I repeated the math in my head a few more times. And again, did it on paper when I got home. Sure enough - 7:22 was my last mile in that race. Maybe I did have this in my. Lee was right after all.

In March I ran in a 5K in a neighborhood just south of mine in Manhattan called Washington Heights. The highest elevation point in Manhattan is in Washington Heights around 184th Street. This race would start at 168th street and Broadway and head straight up (and down) Broadway into Fort Tryon Park. I met up with Elaine at her apartment in Washington Heights that morning. We were running a bit behind, so much so that as I was running to the start line, the first runners passing me as they had already begun the race. I had to jump into the back with the 11 minute milers and walkers. This was frustrating - I had to weave in and out of all the people - it took me close to a mile to get in with a group of runners that were running about the same pace I wanted to. But all the weaving as well as the hills took it's toll on me.

I knew the course headed into the park but I wasn't sure how far into the park we would go before we turned around. Coming from the south and heading north into the park, we're heading down hill. This was fairly steep grade. We were running, and running, and running - when the hell are we going to turn around? As i'm running down this hill, the faster runners were already running up the hill, breathing heavily. I think we ran a good half mile in this downhill portion before we turned around. What goes down, in this case, also goes up. About halfway up the hill, I was reduced to a shuffle and I desperately wanted to stop and walk the rest of the way. I had burned myself out too early and was not prepared for these hills. But I kept running and I finished and reminded myself I couldn't ignore hill repeats in my workouts anymore.

I ran in 2 more 4-milers in Central Park in April. The Thomas Labrecque run was for cancer - 7000 people showed up that Saturday morning for this race. The Adidas run for the Parks 4-miler weathered a huge rain-storm. I'm not talking a drizzle or even steady rain - the entire 4 miles took place during a downpour. It was chilly and I was soaked - but I had so much fun splashing in the puddles, trying to wipe the water from my eyes so I could see in front of me. Race numbers 7&8 were completed. My last qualifying race would be the last weekend in April and it would be the Queens Half-Marathon - my first and longest race to this date.