ING New York City Marathon - RunMarathon


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New York, New York
United States
New York Road Runners
55F / 13C
Sunny
Total Time = 3h 07m 26s
Overall Rank = 1491/38000
Age Group = 20-29
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Ate 1.5 bagels, 1/2 of Clif Bar, had Vitamin Water, 1 bottle of German energy drink
Event warmup:

none. It was freaking cold too!
Run
  • 3h 07m 26s
  • 26.2 miles
  • 07m 09s  min/mile
Comments:

This was a spectacular race held on a spectacular day. I ran a hard race and ended up doing really well. I hit my goal of qualifying for Boston (3:10:59) and had time to spare. I used a "fly and die" race tactic (unintentionally). The first 18 miles I averaged sub-7:00 pace, but then I blew up and started running 7:40 miles. It is worth noting that my longest run was 18 miles, so maybe there is a link between longest runs and where you hit the "wall".

I thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere of the race and all the spectators that lined both sides of the entire course. It was particularly interesting to see the evolution in the atmosphere of each neighborhood throughout the course. In particular, I can vividly recall the gospel choirs that sang uplifting songs in Harlem as well as the orthodox Jews that populated Brooklyn. The 1st and 5th Avenue crowds were pretty fantastic too.

I can't believe I ran 26.2 miles through all 5 boroughs of NYC in one day!
What would you do differently?:

I would definitely pace myself better. I got way too aggressive in thinking that i could go sub-3:00. This was clearly not possible for me today, or, at least, I made it less likely by starting out way too hard. Averaging 169 for the beginning of the race is not a good way to start a 3-hour race.

Also, I wasted too much energy giving high fives to the spectators and little kids. I was weaving left and right and really having a good time early on in Brooklyn. I probably could have shaved a minute by just focusing on running straight.

Finally, I would ensure that I got put in the right starting block. I got stuck in the block with 4:00 runners--clearly too slow for me. I had to weave every second of the race. This was taxing on the body and definitely added a good amount to the distance run.
Post race
Warm down:

Walked for an hour.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Poor pacing. I went out WAY too hard.

Event comments:

The NYC Marathon is more than just a running race--it is a full (and surreal) running experience that is not to be missed.




Last updated: 2008-10-08 12:00 AM
Running
03:07:26 | 26.2 miles | 07m 09s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/38000
Performance: Average
Miles 1: 7:32 (160 bpm) 2: 6:47 (160) 3: 6:55 (165) 4: 6:57 (167) 5: 6:58 (166) 6: 6:49 (167) 7: 6:47 (167) 8: 6:53 (169) 9: 6:57 (169) 10: 6:57 (163) 11: 6:51 (165) 12: 6:51 (168) 13: 6:52 (166) 14: 7:02 (168) 15: 7:04 (165) 16: 7:24 (166) 17: 6:54 (162) 18: 7:03 (162) 19: 7:27 (157) 20: 7:34 (159) 21: 7:32 (159) 22: 7:34 (158) 23: 7:12 (160) 24: 7:41 (161) 25: 7:17 (161) 26: 7:41 (158) 26.2: 1:51 (153)
Course: A great course. First 2 miles over the Verrezano-Narrows Bridge. Miles 2-8 on 4th Avenue in Brooklyn. Miles 8-13 winding through the rest of Brooklyn. Miles 13-15 in Queens. Miles 15-16 on the QB Bridge. Miles 16-20 on 1st Ave in Manhattan. Miles 20-21 in the Bronx. Miles 21-26.2 on 5th Ave and in Central Park.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5