Back in November I blogged about my goal of running the New York City Marathon by the time I'm 45, which is in 7 years. After seeing the Spirit of the Marathon last week, I decided that it was high time to actually do something about meeting that goal. So on Friday I found the official ING New York Marathon Web site and discovered that the lottery for entries opened today.
I just finished registering myself for the lottery, and I have my confirmation e-mail. I'll know in mid-June whether I've been accepted. I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed that I get in. With any luck, I'll be in decent enough shape by then that ramping up in time for a November race won't be too hard, or at least as not too hard as training for marathon can be. If I find out that I've been accepted, I'll start thinking about joining a training group of some kind. No one else I run with has expressed any interest, and I'm not sure I'm dedicated enough to do it on my own.
If I don't get accepted, I'll try again next year, and the year after that, too. The race has guaranteed entry for anyone who has signed up for the lottery but not gotten a slot three years in a row. So worst-case scenario is that I'll be running it in 2012. But I hope it's sooner than that. Now that I've made up my mind to run NYC, I want to get going.
This goal even inspired me to get up and run this morning even though I really didn't want to. Ella didn't have school today, so, in theory, I could have slept until atleast 7:00, if not later. I'm glad I got up and ran. I've started this quest on the right foot.
Showing posts with label marathons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label marathons. Show all posts
Monday, February 25, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
Why I love running
Last night I went to see a movie called The Spirit of the Marathon. It's a documentary that follows a handful of runners as they prepare for the 2005 Chicago Marathon. The movie includes world-class runners Deena Kastor and Daniel Djengo and middle- and back-of-the-packers. It was a fascinating look at runners and how and why they run. A lot of the film was rah-rah stuff about how running a marathon will change your life, but even more of it was, for me, just the sheer joy of running.
I rode to the movie with one of my running friends, and after the film she and I talked about whether the film made us want to run another marathon. She said it didn't - but she's run Chicago and Boston. I said yes - I still feel that I have one marathon to run. I found out I was pregnant with Ella six days before my third marathon and didn't run. Not that I would make a different decision, but I still sort of regret not getting that one last race in.
Mostly, though, the movie reminded me why I love running. The sport is so pure - you put your shoes on your feet and head out the door. There's no hiding behind fancy equipment; it's just you putting one foot in front of the other. There are times when I'm running when I feel that my body is functioning perfectly as a unit - my arms, legs, lungs, heart and brain working as one. It is those rare zen moments that keep me going on the frustrating days when if feels like I've never run before.
I ran this morning with JTS, one of my favorite running partners, and it was just such a perfect way to start the day. It was crisp and cool with a huge moon reflecting on the lake. I felt so strong while I was running and so proud when I finished. I truly felt at peace with the universe for those five miles.
I've been in a funk about running lately. Not actually about the running, but about having to get up at 5:00 to go running. Even with great running partners, it's hard to drag myself out of bed on those cold dark mornings, especially when at least one of my children has woken me up in the night. But last night's movie and this morning's run helped to erase a lot of my funk.
Tomorrow I'm going to tackle a tough seven-mile route. It will be my longest run since my loop around Central Park and up Broadway during my trip to New York two years ago.
I rode to the movie with one of my running friends, and after the film she and I talked about whether the film made us want to run another marathon. She said it didn't - but she's run Chicago and Boston. I said yes - I still feel that I have one marathon to run. I found out I was pregnant with Ella six days before my third marathon and didn't run. Not that I would make a different decision, but I still sort of regret not getting that one last race in.
Mostly, though, the movie reminded me why I love running. The sport is so pure - you put your shoes on your feet and head out the door. There's no hiding behind fancy equipment; it's just you putting one foot in front of the other. There are times when I'm running when I feel that my body is functioning perfectly as a unit - my arms, legs, lungs, heart and brain working as one. It is those rare zen moments that keep me going on the frustrating days when if feels like I've never run before.
I ran this morning with JTS, one of my favorite running partners, and it was just such a perfect way to start the day. It was crisp and cool with a huge moon reflecting on the lake. I felt so strong while I was running and so proud when I finished. I truly felt at peace with the universe for those five miles.
I've been in a funk about running lately. Not actually about the running, but about having to get up at 5:00 to go running. Even with great running partners, it's hard to drag myself out of bed on those cold dark mornings, especially when at least one of my children has woken me up in the night. But last night's movie and this morning's run helped to erase a lot of my funk.
Tomorrow I'm going to tackle a tough seven-mile route. It will be my longest run since my loop around Central Park and up Broadway during my trip to New York two years ago.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Get out and cheer, already
Sunday is the Austin Marathon, and the route comes right down our street for the second year. Just like last year, we're hosting a big marathon cheering party; we'll have at least 50 people in our front yard and on the side walk. All my running friends love having a place to watch the race that has hot coffee, food AND clean bathrooms.
When I ran my first marathon, way back in 1998, I loved running down Shoal Creek Blvd. because all the residents of the street were out in their yards cheering. It seemed like such a neat thing - being able to sit on your porch and watch a race. I always dreamed of living somewhere that I could do just that. But I always figured I'd have to move to a big street to have a race come by my house. Little did I know that they'd bring the race to me.
As the race has grown closer, the girls have gotten more and more excited about it. They've had the chance to watch all the training groups come through during their Saturday runs and to practice cheering for them. Two weeks ago, the organizers painted a blue stripe along the whole route, including down our street. And yesterday workers dropped off the baricades for our corner. I have to admit that I'm pretty geeked out about all of this.
Unfortunately, not everyone in the neighborhood is as excited as I. Last week a woman put a post on our neighborhood listserv complaining about the road closures because her husband hadn't been able to get home from the bakery a few weeks ago when the roads on the edge of our neighborhood were closed for the Half Marathon. In the e-mail, the woman asked for the name of the person at the city who approves the races.
I wavered about responding but finally decided I had to.
During the Half Marathon, I was talking to the woman who coordinated the bands along the race routes, and she said that the organizers had gotten so many complaints from residents of our area that they had to schedule an accoustic band for that section of the race. I was so embarassed that our beloved little neighborhood was getting a bad repuation with race organizers, and I apologized profusely to the woman.
So I wrote and rewrote a response to the complaint e-mail pointing out that there had been signs all along the Half Marathon route warning of road closures. I also said that the Half Marathon and Marathon are becoming known premiere races and are drawing top runners from around the world. They are an excellent chance for us to show off our city and our neighborhood. I finished my response by saying that I'll be trapped at home on race morning, so I'll be out cheering with coffee, bagels and friends and that I hoped everyone in the hood would do the same thing.
I sent the response to the listserv and prepared to be flamed. In the past, there have been some pretty hostile exchanges about races. Instead, I got a dozen e-mails, both just to me and on the listserv, thanking me for my response. One e-mail was from a man who lives in the hood and who will be running on Sunday. I felt much better about our neighborhood after getting the replies.
During our run on Wednesday, my friend JTS and I were talking about crowd support during the marathon. She said that the Houston Marathon has thousands of people who turn out to cheer even though they don't know anyone who is running. In Austin, the crowd is usually just people who have friends running, and that's embarassing. Houston, ranked as one of the fattest cities in the country, can turn out huge city-wide support for a great race. Austin, one of the fittest cities, doesn't even come close. Instead of huge crowds, we get people complaining about road closures and traffic.
So if you're reading this and you live in Austin, come on out Sunday and cheer. There are 26.2 miles worth of roads to choose from. Take a chair and drinks and bells and whistles and noisemakers and do our city proud. We'll be doing our best here at mile 19.5.
When I ran my first marathon, way back in 1998, I loved running down Shoal Creek Blvd. because all the residents of the street were out in their yards cheering. It seemed like such a neat thing - being able to sit on your porch and watch a race. I always dreamed of living somewhere that I could do just that. But I always figured I'd have to move to a big street to have a race come by my house. Little did I know that they'd bring the race to me.
As the race has grown closer, the girls have gotten more and more excited about it. They've had the chance to watch all the training groups come through during their Saturday runs and to practice cheering for them. Two weeks ago, the organizers painted a blue stripe along the whole route, including down our street. And yesterday workers dropped off the baricades for our corner. I have to admit that I'm pretty geeked out about all of this.
Unfortunately, not everyone in the neighborhood is as excited as I. Last week a woman put a post on our neighborhood listserv complaining about the road closures because her husband hadn't been able to get home from the bakery a few weeks ago when the roads on the edge of our neighborhood were closed for the Half Marathon. In the e-mail, the woman asked for the name of the person at the city who approves the races.
I wavered about responding but finally decided I had to.
During the Half Marathon, I was talking to the woman who coordinated the bands along the race routes, and she said that the organizers had gotten so many complaints from residents of our area that they had to schedule an accoustic band for that section of the race. I was so embarassed that our beloved little neighborhood was getting a bad repuation with race organizers, and I apologized profusely to the woman.
So I wrote and rewrote a response to the complaint e-mail pointing out that there had been signs all along the Half Marathon route warning of road closures. I also said that the Half Marathon and Marathon are becoming known premiere races and are drawing top runners from around the world. They are an excellent chance for us to show off our city and our neighborhood. I finished my response by saying that I'll be trapped at home on race morning, so I'll be out cheering with coffee, bagels and friends and that I hoped everyone in the hood would do the same thing.
I sent the response to the listserv and prepared to be flamed. In the past, there have been some pretty hostile exchanges about races. Instead, I got a dozen e-mails, both just to me and on the listserv, thanking me for my response. One e-mail was from a man who lives in the hood and who will be running on Sunday. I felt much better about our neighborhood after getting the replies.
During our run on Wednesday, my friend JTS and I were talking about crowd support during the marathon. She said that the Houston Marathon has thousands of people who turn out to cheer even though they don't know anyone who is running. In Austin, the crowd is usually just people who have friends running, and that's embarassing. Houston, ranked as one of the fattest cities in the country, can turn out huge city-wide support for a great race. Austin, one of the fittest cities, doesn't even come close. Instead of huge crowds, we get people complaining about road closures and traffic.
So if you're reading this and you live in Austin, come on out Sunday and cheer. There are 26.2 miles worth of roads to choose from. Take a chair and drinks and bells and whistles and noisemakers and do our city proud. We'll be doing our best here at mile 19.5.
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