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 Swim
Comments: As we lined up according to our wave I caught a glimpse of the pros who had just started their race. I heard someone call out my name and I turned around to see Kim and Patrick standing right there taking my photo. I was very happy to see them because I wasn’t sure how/when they would be able to find me. My sister Barbi was coming separately so I hoped she would make it before I had to start. As more waves jumped in, the race announcer’s voice boomed over the crowd, calling out the home towns of different competitors. The air was cool and breezy, buzzing with excitement and adrenaline. Just then my sister arrived to see me off. Suddenly overcome with emotion she burst into tears and wished me good luck. I choked back tears of my own and tried to regain my composure as Patrick snapped off a last few frames. We made our way onto the dock and I found a place to sit on the edge. Some people were already in the water, holding on to a rope to keep them from being swept down stream by the current before the horn blew. We had all been told to expect a swim PR because of the strong current at that time. The horn blew and I jumped in, refreshed by the cool water but surprised by the salty taste. I pressed the button on my stopwatch and set off. I’m not a big fan of swimming in salt water so between that, the chop and the usual bodies bouncing around, it took me about 600m to get into a decent rhythm. I finally found a comfortable pace and just tried to put it on autopilot the rest of the way, never really aware of the effect of the current. I sighted well but at one point near the end I heard a woman in a kayak yell at me to move left. I forced myself to swim on a diagonal and saw the exit ramp come into view. I reached the ramp and saw six or seven young men helping drag people up onto the dock. They were yelling, “Stand up! C’mon, keep moving!” I struggled to my feet and moved off the dock as fast as I could. Looking at my watch, it read 19 minutes! My previous time this distance was 35 minutes in a lake. What would you do differently?: Have a better start and sight a little better.  Transition 1
Comments: I stripped my wetsuit down to my waist and started the 700m run on the asphalt back to transition. The ground was hard and stung my feet a bit, forcing me to adopt an awkward, light walking jog. T1 went fine, stepped out of my suit easily and got to the mount line. What would you do differently?: Nothing  Bike
Comments: I navigated the other riders and sped off to the first, steep technical turn up out of the park and onto the West Side Hwy. Right away I was able to find the right gear and felt very comfortable pushing the pace. My confidence was building as I started to see a potentially great day ahead. I rode by Kim and heard her yelling encouragement. As seems usual for me I traded places back and forth with a few other riders, trying to maintain a measured effort. Road conditions were good as I kept pace with a guy on a P4 for a good while until he found a gear I didn’t have. I stayed within myself trying while to push the boundary of my comfort zone. We crossed over into the Bronx and I knew the turnaround was not far off. Coming back on the return leg I first realized how perfect the weather was as I enjoyed the great high view of the Hudson across to New Jersey. It was cool and breezy and I felt another boost of confidence take hold. The forecast was for the mid 90s and I thought about the poor racers who had to start a lot later. I took another gel at about the 20 mile mark. We rode down to 57th street for the last U turn and headed back to transition. What would you do differently?: Push a little harder Transition 2
Comments: Got out of T2 comfortably and grabbed some water as I headed out to 72nd street toward Central Park. What would you do differently?: Nothing  Run
Comments: I looked at my watch again and saw that I was on pace to break three hours. With that boost of energy I set my sights on the final leg. 72nd street was closed off and there were a decent amount of people cheering us on but I thought the crowd might be a little bigger. I was chugging along well until about mile 3, drinking a cup of water at each aid station and also pouring one over my head. I drank a mix of gatorade and water periodically from my fuel belt and ran through sprinklers being held by volunteers to keep refreshed. The path was lined with spectators cheering us on and at one point I ran past my support team and saw Patrick taking pictures and Kim and Barbi cheering. At the mile three marker I was happy to know I was half way done but I felt the fatigue starting to build. The miles started to stretch and I was reaching the limit of my endurance. The heat was starting to become a factor. I pushed on the downhills, trying to lengthen my stride as best I could. I managed to pass a bunch of people in my age group but was fighting hard to maintain my pace. Finally I sensed I was almost at the finish and a wave of relief washed over me. I took the last few turns and saw the finish chute ahead. I was about 20 yards from the end and three women blew by me, two of them neck-in-neck, in an all-out sprint to the finish. All I could think was that I hoped then didn’t block my finish line photo. I saw flashes popping as I came across the line completely exhausted. I stopped my watch and was thrilled to see that it read 2:52:47. I moved in slow motion, picking up a water, bagel and banana. A volunteer put an ice-soaked towel around my neck as I staggered to meet my family and friends. What would you do differently?: Would like to have a stronger 2nd half. Post race
Warm down: Walked around for a few minutes, then stretched out and got a massage. Left the park and had a huge lunch including banana bread, cheeseburger and fries, french toast and a vanilla milk shake. What limited your ability to perform faster: I need to train better for the run. Event comments: This was a unique, well organized race from packet pick-up to finish line. I'm not sure if I missed the post-race food or if there was none other than what I mentioned. I had a hard time finding a bottle of water after I left the finish area and ended up getting one from the invite-only Accenture tent at the Finish Fest. The crowd was so big and I was so tired it's all kind of a blur. Will definitely do it again next year. Last updated: 2010-07-19 12:00 AM
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United States
Korff Enterprises Sports Marketing & Event Management
85F / 29C
Sunny
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = M40-44
Age Group Rank = 246/409
Tossing and turning half-asleep at around 2am, I finally got up at 2:50ish on race morning. Gave up a chance to stay at a friend’s house 5 minutes from the venue so I could sleep in my own bed and drive in from West Orange, NJ. Put together the last of my gear and ate my usual pre-race breakfast of PB&J, a banana and some Gatorade. We (my wife Kim and I) hit the road at 3:50am making it into the city in record time to find a parking spot on the street a few blocks from the transition area in Riverside Park.
The sky was still cobalt blue as we followed the stream of people being dropped off by cabs and car services down to transition. Flood lights illuminated a sea of bikes pre-racked on Saturday. I wasn’t sure how tight security was going to be but Kim was able to wait right outside transition with a small group of dedicated people who had made the early trip.
I laid out my gear and inflated my tires with a pump provided by the race organizers. They had about 20 pumps lining the fence for us to use which I thought was a nice touch. Kim took a few photos of me on a hill overlooking transition and I took a short jog to warm up followed by some light stretching. She had plans to meet my sister and best friend Patrick a mile north at the swim start while I walked up there on the Hudson Riverwalk. We said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. I wasn’t nervous, but I used the time on the walk to relax my mind, take some deep breaths and savor the quiet anticipation of the race.
Earlier in the week my mother had passed away after a long battle with Alzheimer’s so I had not done any training for six days prior to the race. It had been a long, tiring week and I was not sure how my body would react to the lay-off. I figured I was either totally well-rested and have a great race, or not be able to find a spark and fall flat.
Up at the swim start I got my timing chip, went to the bathroom one last time (in one of the 40 porta-johns) and put on my wetsuit. I put my sneakers, inhaler and body glide in a numbered plastic bag and it was tossed on a truck to be delivered back to me at the finish. I also took one Gu gel about 20 minutes before the start.