Back at the hotel, I laid out my outfit and tried to get to bed early.

Fortunately, our friend Lisa agreed to meet us at the finish and carry everything we would need for after the race -for all three of us.

Race Day:

Alarm set for 5:15 am. Since we were staying in Manhattan this year, we had to take a subway to the start.

I brought my usual race breakfast of oatmeal and coffee with me and ate in the hotel room.

We were all in Wave 2 and so we didn’t start until 8:00 am. We met in the lobby at 6:15 am.

The subway was only minutes from the hotel and everyone on the train was going to the race. This year you started in two different locations depending on your assigned corral (corrals A-F and G-L) hence two different subway stops. I was in E, Stan in F and Sherry in I. We decided to get off at the stop for Sherry’s corral -Grand Army Plaza.  I think we were there by 6:30.

Everything was very organized… the security line moved very quickly.

There was an abundant number of porta potties and minimal lines. But it was the same situation in the individual corrals so I waited.

We decided to all wait in Sherry’s corral (I).

I considered doing run/walk intervals with Sherry (since we did ALL our long runs like that) … but in the end, I decided to move up (to corral G) and do my own thing. Stan did the same.

There was quite a wait for my corral to start, at least 20 long minutes.

And the weather? No rain this year.

However, it was warmer, NOT CLOUDY and very humid.

I immediately got rid of my throw away shirt (and there was no need for Lisa to bring jackets to us after the race!!)

But you can’t change the weather, you just deal.

My plan for the race, as usual, was to stop and walk briefly at every water stop (so I wouldn’t get dehydrated) and to stop and walk longer to eat a GU at every 4 miles or so.  And then basically walk whenever I needed to.  Based on my training runs, that would be pretty often.

Lisa, Sherry, Stan and I planned to meet at the finish and return to the hotel together.

Anyway, here’s how the race went

Miles 1-3:

Eventually we started to move. And long walk it was to the start line. Some runners actually ran but nope, I walked until I hit the start line.

It was quite congested in the beginning of the race.  Did I mention there were 28,000 runners who started this race (the largest half marathon in the US) and half were in Wave 2? I may have started middle of the pack but moved into BOTP by the 2nd half of the race.

For the first 3 miles, you ran outside of Prospect Park and there were minor ups and downs in the elevation.

My plan to stop at every water stop slowed me down because in this race, they were at every mile (not every 2 miles as I am used to.)  I stopped anyway even though I wasn’t thirsty.  They were a tempting opportunity to walk and so that’s what I did.

Miles 4-6:

At mile 4, you head into the park. It starts off flat and just before Mile 5 comes the biggest hill on the course which is not as steep as some of those Central Park hills, but seems like it will never end. I continued my water stop walking and used the one at mile 3.5 to eat my first GU. Thankfully as you loop around the park, you discover what goes up must come down and you get to enjoy a nice downhill.  This was my favorite part of the race.

Miles 7-9:

As you come through Mile 7 just outside the park, you head to Ocean Parkway with a quick dip down and a steady bump in elevation on the entrance ramp.

I tried to think of this as my final stretch to the finish line. I ate my 2nd Gu around mile 7.5

It felt like Ocean Parkway would never end. Until this point in the race, I was feeling strong. My lack of long runs really reared its ugly head at mile 9. My lower back starting aching and then the bunion on my right foot started feeling funky.  As a result, walks at the water stops were getting longer. To make things worse, it was sunnier. There were lively crowds all along the course…and music. That helped a lot.

The best part was all the hoses that sprayed water on us poor runners.

Miles 10-12

Still running down that endless Ocean Parkway. At mile 10.5, I ate my final GU and walked what seemed like forever hoping to get some zip in my step. Finally as you run South, the Avenues go in order from A to Z then you make a right hand turn onto Surf Avenue where you can see the roller coasters up ahead. But by mile 12, I barely had any energy. I just willed myself to continue. I knew the end was near.

At this point, a lady ran up to me and asked me my age. When I replied, she said that I was the same age as her mother. Anyway, we continued chatting until we saw the finish line encouraging each other.

Mile 13- 13.25

Soon I saw the sign that said “800 meters to go” and then I was finally on the boardwalk.

The finish line seemed so far away but all of a sudden, the race was over.  I crossed….

Post Race Activities:

The volunteers pushed us along and finally I got my medal.

I got my bag of snacks (water, Gatorade, pretzels, an apple) and waited for my friends to finish.

I saw Stan first.

I started to feel dizzy so I sat down and ate the pretzels.

Eventually Sherry joined us and we went off to the stadium to find Lisa.

My plan was to hang around, go to the After Party (where you got beer, pizza, Nathan’s famous hot dogs, etc.) and maybe walk along the boardwalk (dip our feet into the ocean, etc.)

But we were so sweaty and tired and with thousands of runners, it was too crowded to do anything but head to the subway.

As soon as we found Lisa, off we went.

As you would expect, the subways were jam packed. We squeezed in but had to stand… for 16 stops!! And it was HOT!!

It almost got ugly. I started to feel faint and nauseous.  I asked a guy to get up so I could sit.  Stan did the same.

Phew!!

After a long hot shower and some food, I felt much better.

We probably should have taken a nap but instead we took the subway uptown and walked around before eventually we had our celebratory dinner at an Italian restaurant.

Final Stats:

Additional Race Reflections:

Though there were timing clocks at every mile during the race, they started when the elites of wave 1 started so I really wasn’t sure how I was doing.  I tried not to look at my watch.  I knew that my pace was slowing down and my walks were getting slower and longer as the race progressed.

I wasn’t really disappointed with my time. I thought I would finish much slower. I knew I would not come close to my 2018 time of 2:11:23. However, I did finish faster than 2:27.  That is the qualifying time for my age group for the NYC Half, Brooklyn Half and NYC Full Marathon in 2025.

I do NOT plan to run any of these races again. (Maybe I should have run 11 seconds slower so I wouldn’t be tempted. LOL)

Well, this was a bucket list race for me.  And I got my wish for a dry weather race.

It was not my slowest half marathon. And as I mentioned above, it was faster than I expected (based on my long run pace).

I didn’t use run/walk intervals but I did stop and walk at EVERY water stop and the 2nd half of the race, I walked several times between water stops.

Maybe if I didn’t take 4 weeks off from running due to a sprained ankle and trained harder, I would have run this race more confidently and had a better finish time.

Then again, maybe not.

But it is what it is and I am truly grateful to to able to race again.

I don’t regret running the race. The hills weren’t as bad as Central Park or the NYC bridges.  More than 28,000 excited runners. So much energy. NYRR puts on a first class event.

And running a race with friends made the experience even better.

The Good:

• Easy organized packet pick-up.
• Lots of information from sign up to race day
• The excitement and energy
• Prospect Park part of the course
• Ending on the board walk of Coney Island
• Hot Dogs and Beer at the Post-Race Party (even though I didn’t have any)
• Water & Gatorade Stops at every mile (many tables of cups and many enthusiastic volunteers)
• SIS gel at several water stops
• Crowd Support and Music throughout
• Hoses of water sprayed on the runners
• Having friends to train with and spend the race weekend

The Bad:

• Running down Ocean Ave for so long was a little boring
• Pre-Race Party was disappointing – very few vendors, no freebies
• Prospect Park hills (since I didn’t train on hills)

The Ugly:

• Almost passing out on the subway
• The 13.1 mile strugglefest (why did it feel so HARD??)

Would I recommend this race?

Yes. Definitely. For the enthusiasm and the organization. NYRR always puts on a great show!

Next Up:

Happy Running!  Have you ever run this race or any NYRR races?  Do you prefer large races or small ones? Does the heat affect your running? Please share.

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Since today is Tuesday, I’m linking up with Zenaida (The Running Teacher) and Jenn (Runs with Pugs).

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and tomorrow:

I’m also linking up with: co-hosts Coach Debbie Runs, Confessions of a Mother Runner, Mile by Mile, and Runs with Pugs