I was very restless the night before the race. Between the nerves, excitement, and peeing every couple hours because I had been hydrating the night before, I didn't sleep well. One time when I woke up, I checked my smart phone time and compared it to my stupid watch and concluded that my phone did indeed fall back. The final time I woke up was thirty minutes before my alarm was set to go off, but I couldn't get back to sleep. Once 5AM rolled around, I began getting ready. It's always nerve wracking getting ready for a race in a hotel. To my surprise, I don't think I forgot anything. Even though I laid out all of my gear the night before, my pre-run habits were thrown off a bit. I was very slow and methodical as I got ready to embark on what I now consider to be one of the best days of my life. I told Taylor I would see her at the finish line and I left to walk towards the New York Public Library where the start busses pick up tens of thousands of runners.
Runners were already flooding the streets and I just followed the crowd to the back of the library in Bryant Park. This is where they start herding the runners into huge lines that wrap around the block before taking us to the front of the library where we board the marathon busses. At the start of the line, they handed out brand new $28 gloves, which were a sweet start to the morning. There weren't any porta-potties in the area, so I stopped hydrating at this point. I boarded a bus a little after 6AM. It took close to two hours before we unloaded at Fort Wadsworth in Staten Island. The guy next to me smelled so badly that I was trying not to gag. Unfortunately, the bus didn't have a working bathroom. Guys were peeing in cups on the bus and walking to the front of the bus every time stopped in traffic or at a light to dump out their urine. Runners, we live a glamorous life. Meanwhile I wish I was dude because I had to pee BAD!!! I wasn't the only lady asking how much further until we get there.
It was around 8AM by the time we unloaded off the bus only to discover that we had to wait in the super long security line to into the start village where the porta-potties were located. In the forty-five minutes it took to get through security, I thought I was going to pee myself a few times. Security searched my approved, clear race bag and had me walk through the metal detector. Once I was through security around 8:45AM, I asked where the porta-potties were and made a bee line to them. I nearly cried when I saw the HUGE line for the porta-potties. I kid you not, I had to wait over 40 minutes in the porta-potty line. By the time it was my turn, I don't think I peed so much in my life. I seriously may have peed for two minutes straight, which means I did a two minute squat before the race. My legs were shaking by the time I was done.
At last, a little after 9:30AM I found a place to sit for a few minutes before I got back in line for the porta-potties. I figured I'd want to go before my corral opened around 10:30AM, so I better get in line even if I didn't have to got yet. It worked out perfectly. Once I was done with my second porta-potty stop of the day, it was time for me to head to my corral. I only had to wait about 10 minutes before my corral opened. While I waited I decided to take off my throw away sweats. After I was in my corral at the bottom of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, time stood still and I took it all in. I was interrupted by the guy behind me asking for a kiss for good luck. I put five marathon pickup lines on the back of my shirt. Folks really enjoyed them during the race. #1 seemed to be the favorite.
- Let's finish at the same time
- Do you need a kiss for good luck?
- Who's cheering you on today?
- Is this your first time, too?
- I get lost easily...Can I follow you to the finish?
The start line was kind of a blur. The National Anthem played, the cannons went off, and Wave 4 was on its way. There were military guys close to the start screaming and cheering for us! The bridge was quiet because no spectators were allowed on the bridge. I heard a rumor that advised you not to run near the edge of the bridge if you were on the bottom because the runners from the top pee of the edge and if it's a windy day, you could find it pissing rain. I don't see how that rumor could be true, but I ran on the inside nonetheless.
Once I made my way off the Verrazano Bridge into Brooklyn, the crowds didn't disappoint. People lined both sides of the street! Brooklyn was the longest and easiest borough. It was flat and fast which made it pass by quickly. I waited in line for a porta-potty around mile 9. My watch was set for 5 and 1 intervals (running for 5 minutes and walking for 1 minute), but I skipped a lot of walk breaks in Brooklyn. That could have been my demise toward the end of the race, but I was caught up in the energy of the crowd. Queens was really short, but this is where my feet started to hurt. I think my activities from the pervious days were catching up to me. The Queensboro Bridge during miles 15-16 sticks out to me. I walked the bridge in an attempt to save my legs for the finish. No spectators were allowed on this bridge either, so I didn't feel bad walking. After mile 16, in Manhattan, I stopped at another porta-potty.
The Queensboro Bridge took me into Manhattan where the roar of the crowd was unlike anything I had ever heard. Manhattan definitely had the biggest crowd. This is where I really started slowing down and taking more walk breaks through the water/Gatorade stops. I really just wanted to take it all in and enjoy every minute of it! I encountered some hills on my way into the Bronx. They say the wall hits you at mile 20. Even though I was hurting, the wall didn't hit me as hard as it usually does at this point in a marathon. At the 20 mile mark, there are only 6.2 miles left. While that may not seem like a lot compared to how many I'd already completed, that is really where the race starts. It's where I give myself a gut check to see much I want it. Back in Manhattan making my way to Central Park, I struggled with the slight incline on the course. After 20 miles an ant hill feels like a mountain. I should have trained on more hills because the bridges and hills kicked my ass. I felt like everyone cheering my name was my friend. The people of New York are really what make this race so special.
I hit the wall at mile 23. I'd like to know who put those freaking hills in the last three miles of the race. I walked a lot, make one last pit stop and put in a new phone battery between miles 23 and 25. Not long after I passed mile 25, I tried going live on Facebook. It was a weak connection, but it connected and that's all that matters. After 25 miles, it's difficult to look good and strong. However, being live on Facebook was good motivation to not look like I was experiencing a lot of pain. Hopefully, it wasn't too boring. Perhaps I should have talked more to make it interesting. I was totally in the zone.
In the last mile, three moments stand out to me. The moment I saw mile 26, the moment I saw Taylor, and the moment I saw the finish line! When Taylor came into sight, words cannot express how great it was to see her. She was cheering me on and the look on her face told me how proud she was of me! I gave her a high five, which has to go down as the best high five in the history of high fives! I took my time to take pictures of the mile markers, Taylor, and the finish line. As I was taking a picture of the finish line, I was overcome with a level of joy I've never felt before. Facebook Live lost connection as soon as I crossed the finish line, but I'm glad everyone that wanted to experience it with me was able to. I didn't cry, I just relished in the moment of victory. No matter how difficult life gets with illness, I can't give up on the possibility of better days ahead. This was my best day! I was strong and healthy and I believe the future holds more days like.
I took pictures and posed for others. A volunteer placed my medal around my neck and I took and posed for more photos. I had to shuffle my way a half mile North to get out of the runner zone around the finish line. Thankfully, I opted for the post race poncho. The poncho is fleece lined and kept me warm on my trek to meet Taylor at the hotel. I was not moving very fast after the race. Everything hurt so good. My feet and legs were on fire. I found the subway I needed, but I had to wait for three trains because it was so crowded. While waiting for the train, I was reading through all of my messages and that's when tears found my cheeks. The support I had from family, friends, and co-workers was incredible! Everyone seemed to understand how much this race meant to me and helped me embrace and celebrate it!
I stopped for coffee on my way back to the hotel, but once I was back Taylor was my hero! She helped me take off my shoes and took care of me! She went to the hotel restaurant and brought up burgers and fries to the room so that I wouldn't have to move. I was super sore after the race. It felt like I ran a marathon or something.
Overall, it was the race of a lifetime. Checked that off my bucket list, but I totally want to do it again! Exploring New York City and sharing the marathon experience with Taylor made it a trip I will never forget. I think we made memories to tell for decades and I absolutely believe we would kick butt on the Amazing Race! THANK YOU, TAYLOR!!!
