Today: 6 miles
Week: 14.5 miles
Workout: Niketown - E. Drive - 85th - 1 loop of bridle path extension - 1 bridle path loop - exit 85th - Niketown

Legs are still tight. I'm guessing it's going to be another week before they feel back to normal.

Today: 3 miles
Week: 8.5 miles
Workout: Central Park @65th on E. Dr. - lower loop - W. 79th - return

Knee felt great! Can't wait to get back into regular training again.

I'm inspired when I see Courtney come out to run.

http://www.womanaroundtown.com/sections/living-around/courtney-the-marathoner

Yesterday: 3 miles
Week: 5.5 miles
Workout: 2 lower loops of Central Park

YES! The pain in my knee seems to have disappeared!

Tuesday: 1.5 miles
Week: 2.5 miles
Workout: 1 lower loop of Central Park

Owwww! Still have the knee pain.

The Day After

Monday: 1 mile
Week: 1 mile
Workout: Ran about halfway around the lower loop of Central Park.

I went to sleep Sunday night feeling quite good. It was a different story when I woke up Monday morning. My left ankle felt as if someone had been banging on it with a hammer while I was sleeping. Both calves were very tight. I felt much better later in the afternoon.

I decided to try running a little in the evening. I felt good once I got warmed up. But all of a sudden I felt a lot of pain in my right knee. It felt like I wrenched it somehow. Uh oh.

NYC Marathon

WSY Finishers

Today: 26.2 miles
Week: 50 miles
Workout: Start in Staten Island - Brooklyn - Queens - Manhattan - Bronx - back into Manhattan - finish at Tavern on the Green in Central Park.

I woke up at 3:00 a.m., ate a small breakfast, and was out the door at 4:00 a.m. The 1 train was only running to Chambers Street, so I had to hop on a shuttle bus. I missed my scheduled 5:30 Staten Island Ferry. That turned out to be a good thing. I was able to stay inside the ferry terminal for 20 minutes and remain warm. Got off the ferry and got on another bus to the start area. I met up with Denie and Alanna. We grabbed bagels. I was starving. Megan arrived. We talked a bit. Then I head to my starting village. The Green Start Village.

I got in the portable toilet line. It wasn't much of a wait. The area was crowded. I got my bag organized and went looking for my UPS baggage truck. Five minutes later, they were announcing that my corrals were opening. I got to my corral with about 10 minutes to spare, before they closed it. It was one hour before the start. Volunteers had us move forward. The corrals were closed, but I could see a crowd of late arrivals trying to push their way passed three female security volunteers. Some runners finally broke through. I felt sorry for the volunteers.

Twenty minutes before the race, I took off one of my sweatshirts and try to throw it on top of one of the buses. It didn't quite make it and landed on someone's head. Oops! Sorry! They're showing the professionals on a big video screen. Everyone cheers for Haile and Meb. I eat my first GU. The cannon goes off. We start running. It's nice to be moving. I take off my second sweatshirt and toss it.

Almost perfect weather. I was worried about staying warm during the almost 3 hours I would have to wait before the start of the race. It turned out to be fine. As always, the crowds were amazing!

I started struggling a little when I got to the Bronx. Something is up with my calf muscle. It got really tight, and I thought it was going to cramp up. I started having visions of my 2008 marathon where I did a LOT of walking. But I managed to continue running even though I had to slow down quite a bit in the last 3 miles.

Mile Splits
Mile 1 8:30 (Damn! It's windy on the Verrazano, and I hope all those guys aren't peeing against the wind.)
Mile 2 7:17 (Ahhh, that's more like it, instantly feel warmer after getting off the bridge. I take off my long sleeved shirt and toss it. I'm now only wearing my YMCA singlet and arm warmers.)
Mile 3 7:32 (These crowds are great! Eat my second GU.)
Mile 4 7:10 (OK, now DON'T let these crowds make me run faster. Stick to the planned pace of 7:20 - 7:26)
Mile 5 7:04 (DOH! That was too fast. I'll slow down in the next mile.)
Mile 6 7:02 (Arrrggggh! These crowds make it almost impossible for me to stick to my planned pace.)
Mile 7 7:10 (OK, that split was a little more reasonable. Maybe my original goal of finishing in 3:15 needs to be upgraded to 3:10. I'm feeling pretty good. No no no. Don't get carried away.)
Mile 8 7:17 (Great! Let's keep the pace right here.)
Mile 9 7:17 (Yes! 1/3 of the race finished, and still feeling good.)
Mile 10 7:10 (Try not to think about the fact that I still have 16 miles left.)
Mile 11 7:16 (High five a few kids.)
Mile 12 7:16 (Dammit! Having trouble getting my GU out of my back pocket.)
Mile 13 7:12 (Hit halfway in just under 1:37. If I can just run the second half in 1:33/1:34, I can hit my goal of 3:10)
Mile 14 7:19 (Passed a guy dressed up like one of the members of KISS. I will NOT let someone dressed up in a costume beat me!)
Mile 15 7:25 (Uh oh, the bridge looms. It looks steeper than all the other times I've practiced on it. Bring it on! I love hills.)
Mile 16 7:22 (I can hear the crowds in Manhattan, and I can't even see them yet. I'm getting goosebumps.)
Mile 17 7:15 (The Niketown cheering section! Woo hoo!!! Wouldn't have noticed them if it weren't for Lex leaning way over the barricade.)
Mile 18 7:06 (Uh oh, starting to feel some tightness in my calf.)
Mile 19 7:21 (Know Kenley will be around here, so let me try to keep up my pace.)
Mile 20 7:38 (OK. Passed Kenley. Now I can slow down. But didn't want to slow down THAT much! Hmmm...can't seem to see myself on the big screen video.
Mile 21 7:42 (Taiko drummers. Cool! Forget about 3:10 finish. Let's go back to original goal of 3:15)
Mile 22 7:35 (I think I can make it to the finish without cramping.)
Mile 23 7:38 (See some guys from Niketown, and they are VERY vocal! And I think DJ was around here too! Thank you for being there! Maybe I can manage 7:30s the rest of the way. It's only 3 more miles.)
Mile 24 8:25 (7:30s is NOT going to happen. I need to remind myself why I do this. Let's modify the goal again. 3:15 is not going to happen. Let me focus on NOT walking, and maybe I can still make 3:20 and qualify for Boston. I think I see Alex on this mile. He's cheering loudly. I can do this!)
Mile 25 8:15 (I'm in trouble. Every step is painful. Was that Bernie and Maciej??? I'm embarrassed at how slow I must look to them. But 3:20 is definitely in reach.)
Mile 26 8:28 (I try to exaggerate my arm swing to generate some speed. Observers must be thinking, "That guy is swinging his arms a lot, but he isn't getting anywhere." I think a couple of hundred runners pass me on this mile, but I'm still running! 800 yards to go. I'm going make it. 400 yards to go!)
Mile 0.2 1:57 (200 yards to go, and Taegin blows by me like I'm standing still. Now that's a marathoner! She is awesome!!! I cross the finish line, stop my watch, and feel a sense of relief.)

Unofficial finishing time: 3 hours 16 minutes 38 seconds. Qualified for Boston 2012.

I have to walk a mile just to get my bag and walk out of Central Park. I catch up to Taegin, we share marathon stories. Then I walk another mile back to the West Side Y, to meet up with friends. Along the way, many strangers congratulate me. Makes me feel good even though I didn't hit my goal of 3:15. Despite the calf problems, I feel better after this race than any other marathon I've finished. I feel good enough to go out and get something to eat. Now I'm ready for a hot bath and some sleep. Next year, I think I'll just watch the marathon.

Today: 3 miles
Week: 24 miles
Workout: NTNY - Central Park, Engineer's Gate & back

Nice little warm-up and stretch. Beautiful day. A lot of marathoners in the park.

Today: 6 miles
Week: 21 miles
Workout: Central Park 65th - 72nd Transverse - West Drive - top of Harlem Hill - return

Ugly weather. I'm glad it's raining now rather than on Sunday.

Today: 4 miles
Week: 15 miles
Workout: 63rd & W. Drive in Central Park - run up to reservoir - cut across park along bridle path to Engineer's Gate - exit bridle path - run down and around lower loop - end at finish line of NYC Marathon.

1/2 of the WSY Men's marathon team was running tonight.

Today: 6 miles
Week: 11 miles
Workout: Niketown - lower loop - west side of C. Park - 72nd Transverse - E. Drive - 102nd Transverse - turn around, retrace route.

I think the temperature at the time I began the run was about 47 degrees. It felt colder! I need to make sure I have plenty of clothes to keep me warm in Staten Island while I'm waiting for the marathon to start.

Today: 5 miles
Week: 5 miles
Workout: 5-mile loop in Central Park at conversational pace.

Running Scared with Bridge Runners

Today: 3 miles
Week: 39 miles
Workout: Ran through Chinatown and Bowery

Free face painting! What more could you ask for?

Today: 11.5 miles
Week: 36 miles
Workout: Niketown - C. Park South - Enter park @ Columbus Circle - around top of park - exit 90th St - up Fifth Ave. - around Marcus Garvey Park - turn around at 124th St & Fifth Ave - return to 90th St. - enter park - exit park at Fifth Ave & C. Park South

Hope marathon day is just like today. Cool & sunny. Felt great. Counting down the days. I ran a little extra along Fifth Ave.

Yesterday: 8 miles
Week: 24.5 miles
Workout: 65th & E. Drive in C. Park - lower loop - up W. Drive - around top of park - 102nd & E. Drive - turn around and retrace steps

Nice night for a run. Ran a comfortable pace.

400m Repeats

Wednesday: 5.5 miles
Week: 16.5 miles
Workout: Warm up from Y to 102nd St. Transverse. 6x Repeats across 102nd Transverse with 1 minute recovery

Reservoir

Today: 6.5 miles
Week: 11 miles
Workout: 65th St & E. Drive in Central Park - 85th St - 3 loops of reservoir

Nice, relaxed run. Too humid.

Tempo Run

Today: 4.5 miles
Week: 4.5 miles
Workout: Warm-up from Y - lower loop - 72nd & E. Dr. From there, run to 85th - make left and run along bottom of reservoir until on W. Drive - south through lower loop and ending at 72nd & E. Drive. Cool down back to Y.

I ran around 6:40/mile.

Inwood Hill Park

Today: 6 miles
Week: 37 miles
Workout: Run through Fort Tryon Park and Inwood Hill Park

It's amazing what a difference a day makes. I felt stiff and sluggish on yesterday's run, but today, I felt relaxed and fast. I thought about the marathon the entire run.

Last Long Run Before the Marathon

Yesterday: 17 miles
Week: 31 miles
Workout: Niketown - 1st Ave. - 125th - 5th Ave - 90th St - Enter C. Park - clockwise loop of the park - Niketown

I did a little extra running along E. Drive in the park. My legs felt tired today. I was reminded about the hill on 5th Ave. That won't be fun during the marathon. Maybe I was feeling sluggish today because I was suffering a mild case of depression from the Yankees' loss in Game 6 last night.

Friday: 6 miles
Week: 14 miles
Workout: 1 loop of Central Park @46:49

Hill Workout

Yesterday: 5 miles
Week: 8 miles
Workout: Niketown - C. Park's E. Drive - 5x Cat Hill

Felt like I hadn't run in awhile.

Game 5 ALCS

Mariano on the mound.
Yankees finally win 7-2.
Still trail series 3-2.

Game 4 ALCS

View from my seats at Yankee Stadium.
Best seats I've ever had.
Yankees lose again, 10-3

The Rangers' Benjie Molina's go-ahead home run seemed to sail right over my head and barely clear the foul pole. Nooooooooooo!

Fort Tryon Hill

I've never had field level seats at Yankee Stadium before.

Monday: 3 miles
Week: 3 miles
Workout: 1 mile warm up, 3x hill at the back of Fort Tryon Park, 2 mile cool down

This was one of the shortest runs of the year. I was in a rush to get a workout in before heading to the Yankees-Rangers ALCS Game 3. Yankees were shut out 8-0! Damn Cliff Lee!

West Side Hwy

Today: 6.5 miles
Week: 53.5 miles
Workout: YMCA - West Side Hwy - Battery Park

Met Farbod at 59th on the West Side Hwy rec path and ran the last few miles of his 20+ mile run. We were probably doing something close to 7:00/mile for the last couple of miles.

Long Run

Today: 16 miles
Week: 47 miles
Workout: Niketown - 3x Queensboro Bridge - FDR to 96th St - back to Niketown (ran a little extra along FDR)

It was WINDY on the bridge! Felt like I was running in place at times. I hope it's not like that in the marathon. I'm trying to decide how far I should run in the next week. Should I go on another 16 to 18 miler?

Lower Loop

Today: 9 miles
Week: 31 miles
Workout: 5 lower loops of Central Park @7:00/mile.

Total time for the loops was 1 hour. The times for the loops were 12:50, 12:08, 11:50, 11:54, 11:23. The pace felt faster. I guess it seemed more difficult than normal because I was cold and soaking wet for much of the run.

Yesterday: 5.5 miles
Week: 22 miles
Workout: Warm up from YMCA to West Side Hwy - Going south, run hard for 2 min, recovery jog 2 min; run hard 3 min, recovery jog for 3 min, 4 min hard, turn around and head back uptown at 4 min recovery jog, run hard 5 min, recover back to 59th, and run back to Y.

Today: 6 miles
Week: 16.5 miles
Workout: 65th on East Side of C. Park - lower loop - W. Dr. - 72nd St. Transverse - E. Dr. - 102nd St. Transverse - return the same way.

4x4

While trying to wait out the thunderstorm,
I got hit on the head by two chunks of hail, about this size.
Thanks for the picture, Alanna.

Today: 10.5 miles
Week: 10.5 miles
Workout: Lower loop of Central Park + warm up from YMCA to 72nd St Transverse & E. Drive - 4 mile loop @ tempo pace - 4 Cat Hills from the Boat House to the stop light - cool down back to Y

Didn't intend to run as fast as I did, but Farbod kind of pulled me along. Legs are still sore from the 22-miler on Saturday. Ended up doing the 4 miles in 26:43 (6:41/mi). The Cat Hill repeats were done in 1:36, 1:30, 1:26, and 1:22.

We got caught in the thunderstorm. But fortunately, we got back inside before the hail.