Brooklyn Half-Marathon May 3, 2008

Brooklyn Half-Marathon

May 3, 2008

1:53:58

I had two race free months to prep for this one, and I wanted to set a pr under 2 hours. I read up on the course and it looked like it would be very fast until the last couple of miles. It starts in Coney Island and ends in Prospect Park. Many of the online discussion boards described this one as their favorite and, so far, I agree. While the end WAS tough (HR peaked at 112%), I DESTROYED my goal and had fun doing it. I felt great afterward, if a little spent.

NYRR had yellow school buses to take people to the start, BUT you had to buy a ticket ($5) in advance. I went ahead and got one when I registered, just in case, and I was glad I did. The subway to Coney Island takes FOREVER and the bus tickets sold out weeks before the race. When I picked mine up, I was told to “guard it with my life.” Sure enough, there were people offering up to $20 on the morning of the race for bus tickets. Crazy.

Being on a yellow school bus made me feel like some kind of aging giant, young enough to remember my own bus rides to school but old (and tall) enough to be pretty uncomfortable.

We arrived at the Coney Island boardwalk about an hour before the start, so I went down to the beach to stretch and listen to the ipod until time to check the bag. I went through the pre-race routine, hit the bathroom, threw the bag onto the bus for the trip to the finish line, and took my place at the start.

NYRR is now doing color-coded starting corrals based on your estimated pace. If you’ve run NYRR races before, they use your fastest race over a mile to color-code you. I was in the pink corral which I took to be a little emasculating; all the more reason to pick up my pace in this race so I’m not pink for the next race.

The boardwalk was a little treacherous. I knew to be careful, but it was nerve-wracking to see people wipe out at the beginning of the race. I just tried to focus on my self and stay alert and out of people’s way. When we finally got on the road, Ocean Parkway, it was smooth running all the way to the park.

I was feeling great about my pace, but I knew that the real test hadn’t even started. I don’t know this park very well, so I realized that I didn’t know how many hills I was really supposed to anticipate. My lungs were burning through my chest and I ran with my arms up for a little while. I couldn’t stop and walk now or I was sure I’d miss my goal. The park just wouldn’t end. The last mile and a half was within the loop of the park we had just ran, and I was thinking, “Sheesh!! How much more could there be??!?!?”

When I saw the 13-mile marker, I looked at my watch and I could see I was going to beat my goal pretty easily, so I coasted in, high-fiving the spectators. 1:53:58

I got my bag and changed my shirt. Had a bagel and an apple from NYRR and Sue and Kit met me at the finish area. I had beat my goal by over 6 minutes and I knew I could do better with an easier finish.

Chocolate chip waffles and a well-earned nap.

2008 miles to date = 48.3