NYC Marathon

Sunday, November 3rd....

6am
Get dressed, have protein shake, take pictures & head out the door

Drive to Whitehall Terminal
Get there at 7:15am
And a few minutes later, I found Cate!
Cate and I were both on the OxFam team
and we met via e-mail
when the team members were introduced to each other.
She also lives in Boston but we hadn't met yet.

We made our way to the Ferry,
got on and made it to Staten Island.
At this point, we had to walk to buses,
board buses, get off the buses,
go through security checks
and walk to the Athlete's Village.
It's a lot of moving and a little stressful,
all before 26.2 miles.
It took 2 hours from the time I left Tommy
at the Terminal to the time we got to our spots in Athlete's Village.

Athlete's Village was a little confusing,
so we just sorta picked a spot,
grabbed Gatorade and a bagel
and sat down to relax for a bit.
It was chilly but not freezing.
My random layers of clothes
which would later be donated,
kept me warm enough.

About 45 minutes later,
we made our way to check out
where we'd be starting. 
Here, there was a screen of
the men and female professionals running,
which got me excited.
We also got to see some of the other
waves start over the bridge. 

And then.. it was time for us to line up!
We got to our wave, stood there for a bit,
talked to some nearby runners
and got ready to take off
Hearing New York, New York
made me feel "home" 

Being on the bottom of the Verrazano bridge
does NOT meanthat you get peed on
as I read
over and over and over pre-race.
At the Athlete's Village
they said several times
that if you do,
you'll be pulled off the course
But....that does mean
you'll see many
many....many....
men running off course
to urinate in the grass
before we got to 4th Ave

The Verrazano bridge was
TERRIBLE
It was freezing and windy
The first 2 were just miserable.
Luckily, though,
I didn't feel the incline of the bridge.
When we finally got to the other side of the bridge
and into Brooklyn,
it was like the biggest street party in the world.
Everyone in Brooklyn was out on the streets
shouting and cheering
and wanting High Fives.
It was truly amazing.
Since I had my arms(temporarily) tattooed
with my name, along with my name
written on my shirt,
I heard CHELSEA about 200 times
throughout the next 2 hours while in Brooklyn.  
I decided to run on the side of the street
to high five the spectators
and enjoy the fun.

Cate has to stop for the restroom
around mile 5,
so at this point, I was alone
And then mile 6.75, in Brooklyn,

my twin sisters jumped in
and ran a little over a mile with me.
I kept smiling at them,
telling them how great I felt
and just loving every second
of those 12-13 minutes
I got to spend in the race with them.

Into Queens, over the bridge
(changed cell phone battery,
so family could continue to track me,
which led to a leg cramp, luckily only momentarily though!)
and run into the wall
(the good one, the screams of Manhattan!)
At this point, I had been having to use a restroom
for a whilebut I refused to stand and wait
for a porta potty.
As I turned the corner onto 1st Ave
there were empty porta potties
Score!
I stopped and was back on route within a minute
Knowing I'd be seeing family again
in just a mile or less, I was happy!
But then... boom
Legs started hurting
God - damnit
It's too soon for this!
I texted my co-worker
who was in the city,
to tell him I was approaching
but I had the street wrong
so I missed him
but another friend
who he was with (& from my Tri team)
Sprinted ahead
and got a few shots of me :)

Then... my family!!
As I approached
I saw more people
than just my parents, sisters and Tommy.
Two family friend couples surprised me
with a visit to the city to see my race
I was in tears!

Tommy was waiting outside the barricades
to join me in on the run
I was so thankful & happy
I hugged/high fived them all
and off we went
The next mile or two were great
Having Tommy there
Telling him about some of the experience
Hurting, but nothing terrible
And then...Reality hit
I was running a marathon
THE NYC MARATHON
I had another 8+ miles to go
And I was just in pain
Crowds were dwindling down
And I was getting annoyed at it all

I would be lying if I said I was having fun at this point. 

Tommy was great support to have by my side
Even though he saw me crying from pain
and frustration
He kept supporting me.

Even though it felt like forever...
Next thing I knew
We were at mile 22
Where I'd see my Aunt and my Grandmother.
I couldn't wait!
My legs started moving faster
My grandmother bought 2 balloons
To help me spot them
And although my Aunt later told me
those balloons drove her nuts
seeing them from a block awaywas amazing!
I ran as fast as I couldto give them hugs and say hello
[And introduce them briefly to Tommy!]
(at which point he got this amazing picture of my Grandmother and I)

I then continued running
and my Aunt joined in for a half a block
(she refereed to herself as "this old army broad"
..it got a good chuckle out of me!)
Tears were flowing
but this time
because I was so excited

Then...I forgot about that moment 
And remembered what I was doing
A god damn marathon
Okay.. so less than 4 miles to go
I had to do a bit of walking
And kept telling Tommy
I just wanted to curl over and cry
and "it is hurts so much"
But he kept encouraging me to just keep moving
I had people cheering for me
who I just could not acknowledge
because I couldn't concentrate
on anything else
but putting one foot in front of another

We finally enter Central Park
and I'd get to see family again
Tommy was going to jump out at this point
And I'd have a mile left to go
All of a sudden
we see friend, Stephen, and
he runs 1/4 mile with me
until we hit the group
and my sisters and 2 girlfriends
jumped in with me
They ran about 1/4 mile until I told them to get off the course ;)
They then continued to run on the outside of the barricades
along side of me
Cheering and getting others to do the same
I felt like I was flying
Adrenaline had hit
and I felt like a super star
I knew I missed goal time
and no PR
but it was still magical
I was about to finish the NYC Marathon!!
They had to stop and I was off..
less than 1/4 mile to go
The smile returned to my face
And then I crossed the finish line
Threw my hands in the air and just stood there smiling


Got my medal..
My heat sheet...
My recovery bag...
And started the trek
out of the park
to meet up with family

Until I had to make a pit-stop in the med tent.
After 3 First Aid officials asked me
if I was Okay
I knew it was the right choice

I was dizzy & lightheaded
That, on top of the pain
Just wasn't going over well!

I realized...
that I hadn't taken my last pack of jellies
So I only had
Energy Bits just before the race
One pack of jellies during it
Some gatorade and water
Within 6 hours
(rookie move!!)

They tried to put me in a wheelchair
But I said I was fine
I was trying to remain as Bad Ass as I could handle!!
Got on the cot
Got some hot chocolate
Warmed up
They took my blood pressure
Had me chug water and eat pretzels
Then I was off
to meet family!!

I met up with them all
after making my way through
the finish chute, which was over a mile long!
But at least I sported the cute Orange Poncho they gave us!

Finished the evening off with some great food and family time.
I AM A TWO TIME MARATHONER! 


Me with friends who visited and Me with my Aunt, Grandma & Mom: