ING New York City Marathon

I finished the ING New York City Marathon in 4 hours and 36 minutes and 52 seconds.

I was rockin' the race for the first 13.1 miles. Had I kept up my pace I would have posted a sub-four hour race.

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But around mile 18 I hit the wall...worse than that, I started feeling nauseous and stopped consuming carbs (I was wearing my iFitness belt which was stocked with blocks and beans)...

...that being said, it was a great race - the weather held out and there were only a few showers around 5am so that by the time I hit the Verrazano-Narrows bridge the pavement was dry.

My favorite poster created by a spectator read: "Pain is temporary. Pride is forever." I must have seen at least three posters with the same phrase and each one made me smile.

I was interview over e-mail about my experience running in the marathon and here is some of what I wrote...

I have been a casual runner since college - so since 1996. I was initially attracted to the sport because it is so low maintenance. All you need is a good pair of shoes and everything outside your front door becomes fair game....I trained for 21 weeks. I ran three to four times a week, strength trained twice a week, incorporated yoga stretches into my cool-downs and improved my diet by eating less processed foods....I was one of the lucky 18% who got picked for the 40th running of the ING New York City Marathon via the lottery. All the training, all 21 weeks, was totally worth it. The experience of running through the streets of New York City will be with me forever.

Miles ran - REST

I packed my race shoes and race-day clothing in my carry-on just in case my luggage didn't reach me in New York City. Aside from our flight being cancelled and being re-booked on a later flight - my husband and I arrived into LaGuardia on Friday around mid-morning.

After dropping our bags off at our hotel in lower Manhattan we walked up to the Javits Center to pick up my race day packet.

This morning we scouted out where the Whitehall Terminal Manhattan (South Ferry) is located - that's how I'll be getting to the starting line. First by walking, then by boat, then by bus and then walking again to my corral and to the starting line.

I've been eating carb-heavy meals for the past three days, eating more protein and being very aware of how well I'm hydrated. If I've faltered anywhere it is by walking too much in the streets of New York City - but it's so hard not too! 

Tonight I've laid out my clothes, set four alarm clocks and I am ready to tuck in early.

Here are some beautiful shots of the 26 mile mark in Central Park that my BH took today:

See you at the starting line!

Athlete Alert sponsored by Time Warner Cable opened today at 12noon EST.

You can track 4 people as they run the course via e-mail only.

“Splits will be reported at every 5K mark along the course as well as at the start, half-marathon mark (13.1 miles/21.1K), every mile after the half-marathon mark, and the finish.”  Read more...

Who I'm following:

• Paula Radcliffe
• Joan Benoit Samuelson
• Edward Norton
• Jorge Torres
   

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Just for fun I thought I would answer the question, "What can you find on Craigslist that has anything to do with the ING New York City Marathon 2009?"

Here is what I found:

• PLENTY of folks interested in renting their apartments during the ING New York City Marathon weekend.

• A help wanted ad for event security "All officers must be available to work the New York City Marathon, November 1, 2009."

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• Loads of personal ads for like-minded runners looking to share dinner...and more...with one another.

• And a solo keyboardist stationed at Fort Greene, Brooklyn on Nov. 1 who is in need a sound system.

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