Cheering to Dinner...and It Gets Better!

It's been almost two weeks since the New York City Marathon, and I have lots of news to report.

First off, cheering for the marathon was SO MUCH FUN!  I have to admit, the weekend leading up to the race was kind of a bummer for me.  As I mentioned last year, marathon weekend is one of the biggest weekends of the year for Front Runners (next to Pride weekend), as we host a big pasta dinner, a pancake breakfast, and the water station at mile 24.  But this year, I couldn't help but think that I was an outsider, undeserving of all of the carbs since I wasn't running.  When it seemed like all of Front Runners, indeed the whole city, was preparing for the run of their lives, to me it felt like it was just another day.

To get my mind off of not running the marathon, I tried to completely immerse myself in cheering for those who were running.  I was determined to be the best Front Runner cheerer ever!  To that end, Mikey and I dubbed our cheering squad as CHEER FORCE ONE, and we embarked on a momentous crafting project--making a huge banner with the FRNY logo so we could cheer our teammates and have them notice us as they ran by.  It was one of my first major sewing projects since last year's yoga mat bag.  And it came out really well!

Sunday morning, team Cheer Force One gathered at Mike's house in Greenpoint, where we were treated to a yummy breakfast spread.  My favorite was a marscapone whipped cream that went on the French toast.  Very tasty.  :-)  Oh, plus we had some mimosas and Irish hot chocolate, and I made a giant thermos full of bourbon and hot cider.  Heehee, we were definitely going to be toasty despite the cool temperatures.

Our first stop was around mile 8.  This was a great spot to cheer from, since everyone was still feeling pretty fresh, looked good, and were happy to see us.

As you can see, there were about a dozen members of Cheer Force One!

Here's John and Rich, the 2nd and 3rd Front Runner finishers, whizzing by us at mile 8.  John ran a 2:41:53--that's a 6:11 pace for the whole marathon--and came in 159th out of almost 45,000 finishers!  Pretty amazing that his marathon pace is faster than the pace for my 5k PR (6:12).

It was somewhat bittersweet, though, to see another group of Front Runners come by.  Mikey, Cenk, Darin, Manja and Marty formed a 3:30 pace group and all came by together.  For the week leading up to the marathon, even two days before the race, I seriously debated doing the marathon and running with them. They looked like they were having so much fun; it would have been great to run the whole race with a group of friends around to help pace me.  But in the end, I decided that it was wiser to just be a spectator.  Trying to run a marathon with the little training that I had, and just coming off two injuries, was probably not a good idea. And I didn't even know if I could run a 3:30...I would have been really upset if I had set out to run a relatively modest pace for a marathon, and not even be able to keep that up (my Blue Line Run was at about a 3:30 pace, and we all know how that went).  

After Team 3:30 came by, Team Cheer Force One headed to our next stop.  I had wanted to try to see the runners at three locations--Miles 8, 18, and 23--but John was just too damn fast, and we decided that we probably wouldn't be able to make it to 18 in time for him.  So we went directly to Mile 23, around 95th and 5th, with our banner, hot toddy, and bullhorn in tow.

This was a great spot, pretty much at the top of that looooong 5th Avenue hill that I always hated running this late into the race. With our banner, I think the Front Runners could see us cheering from far away, and it was good to think that we might have helped boost their energy and spirits as they motored up the hill.  We stayed there for a while, and got to see everyone from the lead men to the middle-of-the-packers.  It was great to see so many Front Runners!  And every time a Front Runner came by, I went berserk and started screaming, jumping, and waving the banner. By the end of the day I had no voice left.  But it was so much fun!!

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My other big news of the week is that my running club, Front Runners New York, released its video for the It Gets Better Project.  For those of you who aren't familiar with it, the It Gets Better Project is a collection of videos that were made in response to a recent and heartbreaking string of suicides following instances of anti-gay bullying.  The videos are directed towards kids facing bullying and harassment or considering suicide.  It's a terrible tragedy that 9 out of 10 LGBT students have experienced harassment at school, and more than 1/3 of all LGBT kids have attempted to commit suicide.  I hope our video can reach some of these kids and possibly make a difference in their lives.

I'm so proud that FRNY has decided to take part in this project, and I'm so honored that I was able to have a part in it.  Please take some time to view the video and forward it to your friends, families and colleagues, especially to any young people or anyone who works with young people, like teachers and coaches.  Together, I think we can really help make a difference in the lives of countless LGBT youth.

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This week, Front Runners also restarted its indoor track workout season.  Our first workout was Tuesday.  Even though this will be my fourth year doing the Armory workouts, I always get butterflies in my stomach before every workout.  And it was no different on Tuesday.  Our first workout was 8x400m.  I was really nervous.  The last time I ran on a track was at the Lockport 100 Mile Relay in July.  And I have lost like pretty much all of my fitness since then.  So this was going to be interesting.

I decided not to run with the "fast" group, settling instead in one of the "medium" groups.  I didn't want to run first in the group either, so luckily Tsing was in my group and I was able to tuck in right behind him the whole time.  My plan was to try to just maintain 90-second 400s.  The first one was a little slow, like 93 seconds, but we gradually got faster and faster.  I finished the 8th 400 in 84 seconds, and I felt like I could do a lot more.  It felt great to be back, running fast-ish.  But for now, I'm trying to take it easy for a few weeks; there's no sense in rushing into the speed workouts right now.  I have my eyes on Boston in April 2011.  Until then, I'm going to train smart, stay as injury-free as I can, and enjoy my gradual progression back into shape.

On the Subway after the Track Workout.

I Will Be a Spectator

So I've decided I will not be running the 2010 ING New York City Marathon.  This was a very difficult decision, but I believe it was the right one.  I am seriously undertrained, and have been battling injury for the past year.  My mileage has been way, way down from where it was even in the spring, and I've had very few successful long runs this season.  For me to run a marathon in just two weeks would be extremely difficult, possibly risking even more injury.  It would also be a really really really slow run, and would just not be an enjoyable experience for me.

I came to this decision on Sunday, in the middle of what was to be my last long run before the marathon.  You'll recall that last week was the FRNY Blue Line Run, the last 20 miles of the marathon, and I had a pretty disastrous run, pretty much falling apart and having to take a taxi after 17 miles.  After last week, I gave myself one more chance to have a good long run before the marathon.  I came up with a great 22 mile route, which traces the last 15 miles of the marathon, following a 7-mile run from my apartment to Williamsburg.  I specifically wanted to do the end of the marathon route again so that, on race day, I wouldn't be dogged by the reminder of how crappy I felt during the Blue Line Run down Fifth Avenue.

So Sunday, I headed out for my planned 22-miler.  I felt fine for the first 12-13 miles.  But then I just started to get tired, and kind of lost my energy to keep it going.  I could probably have still continued, but I knew it would be a struggle, and mentally, I knew that it just wouldn't be fun.  About mile 14, I stated thinking that I just didn't want to run 8 more miles to finish my planned run; and the thought of running 12 more miles in the marathon just seemed like it would be miserable.  So I decided to just stop, enjoy the run that I had, defer on this year's marathon, and head home for some lunch.

It was a difficult decision, but one that I think I'm glad I made.  Running is supposed to be enjoyable.  Even when it's difficult and I'm pushing myself to the limit, I enjoy it.  But pushing myself to do a race that I'm not properly trained for is just not fun.  It's also not responsible running.  I'd like to think that I've matured enough as a runner that I don't have to be out there for every race, pushing my body to do things that it really shouldn't be doing.  It's not always about the distance covered, or the time that I ran it in, or how many times I can do a race.  Running is more about the love of the sport, and the ability to continue pursuing this passion.  I know that, by making the difficult but responsible decision to pass on this year's NYC Marathon, I am strengthening my love for running, and taking care of my body so that I can have other great races in the future.  While I'm definitely disappointed in missing out on New York, I am even more inspired to take care of myself and train properly in the spring in order to have a kick ass Boston.  I'm so excited to get back in shape and renew my love of running.

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After deciding not to run the marathon, I was definitely a little bummed.  But fortunately, I had previously made plans for some runner friends to come over for dinner.  Among them were Mikey and Derek who got me excited to be a part of "CHEER FORCE ONE," our marathon cheering squad.  I'm hoping we'll get to see our teammates in three separate spots--Greenpoint, 1st Ave and 5th Ave.  I've never actually been a spectator at the marathon, so think this will be a lot of fun.  

Ever since Mikey's chicken dinner last week, I've been thinking about making some pulled pork.  The last time I cooked up a pork shoulder, though, I ended up eating pulled pork for weeks, and I got a little sick of it.  So this time I decided to have a pulled pork party, with a bunch of fun side dishes.  

This time, I made my own barbecue sauce (although I kept handy a bottle of store-bought sauce just in case I was unsuccessful).  I actually make barbecue sauce often, but I only know how to make it with asian flavors (soy sauce, sesame oil, grated ginger, hoisin, oyster sauce, bulgogi sauce, etc.)  But I didn't want this sauce to be too asiany, because I didn't think that would work so well with my side dishes.  So my sauce consisted of: sauteed chopped onions, garlic power, ketchup, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, chili power, cayenne pepper powder, Manishewitz grape wine, red wine vinegar and a little bit of sriracha sauce.  It came out really good!  A perfect blend of tartness and sweetness, with a little bit of a kick.  Someone even commented that I would make a lot of money if I bottled it.  :-)

For my side dishes, I made cole slaw, baked beans, collard greens and a corn pudding.  Mikey and I got into a disagreement about the collard greens.  He thought they should be sauteed and served crisp and bright green.  I thought that, when serving collard greens with barbecue, they should be cooked for a loooong time, and super wilted to the point where they practically melt in your mouth.  We ended up in a compromise and served them somewhat wilted but still crisp.  Feel free to comment below on how you like your collard greens!

I think the biggest hit of the night was the corn pudding.  I decided to make corn pudding because I thought it would be a more interesting alternative to cornbread, which I'm not always a huge fan of.  Everyone liked it!  It was completely finished by the end of the night.  The consistency was kind of half-pudding/half-cornbread, and it was really able to showcase the sweetness of the corn.  I thought I'd include a recipe, which I adapted from a combination of this and this:

              Dave's Delicious Corn Pudding

              3 15-ounce cans of corn (2 cans drained; 1 can pureed)

              1 medium chopped onion, sauteed

              2 eggs

              6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter, melted

              8 oz sour cream

              1 box jiffy corn bread mix

              1 tablespoon sugar

              Combine all ingredients and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.  Enjoy!

And for dessert, homemade sweet potato pie.  Yummmmmm!!!!!

Post-Marathon Curry

These past couple of days after the marathon have left me with some sore legs.  Those of you who actually read this blog know that I had made an appointment with the sports medicine doctor, Jordan Metzl, for the week before NYC to have my butt issue checked out.  The morning of my scheduled appointment, I felt like there wasn't an issue anymore (it was, after all, about ten days since I had made the appointment).  There was also a part of me that was feeling just too lazy to go to the doctor's office, which is super inconveniently located on 72nd Street east of York (I didn't even know there was anything east of York!).  So I canceled the appointment.

That was a dumb move.  I spent the next week wondering if I had a stress fracture, and dreaming of all sorts of worst-case-scenario possibilities (e.g., having my hip snap in half around my 18 or ending up like this girl).  I was a bit of a nervous wreck the morning of the marathon, not knowing if my butt would, at any moment, seize up or be in utter debilitating pain.  Fortunately, although it did act up a bit around the last eight miles, I was able to finish the race without it affecting my stride.  However, in the days after the race, the dull pain in my butt has been persistent.  And, despite my best efforts, I can't seem to massage it out, or even identify where it's coming from.

So I called to make another appointment the day after the marathon.  The earliest they can fit me in is next Monday.  Until then, I wait, and take it easy.  I'm planning on going to tonight's fun run, but will probably just do four really slow, easy miles.

Last night, I invited some runners over to watch the broadcast of the marathon, which I had DVR'd.  I had heard of some dramatic events, such as the fall in the women's elite race, Paula Radcliffe's sudden stop after her disappointing 4th place finish, winner Deratu Tulu's unsuccessful attempt encourage Paula to stay with the front pack, and Meb Keflezighi's emotional finish; and I was really excited to see it all.

I had originally thought about ordering pizza, but at the last minute, decided to make a Japanese chicken curry instead.  I hope the guests weren't too disappointed.  Japanese style curry is one of the easiest things in the world to make, and it's also quite tasty.

Interestingly, the Japanese have historically viewed curry as a Western dish, as curry was introduced to Japan by the British in the late 1800s, when India was under British colonial rule.  It's characterized by its sweetness, and often grated apples are added for this purpose.  In addition to a protein (I usually use chicken thighs, but a fried pork cutlet curry [katsu kare] is also a popular choice), the basic vegetables are potatoes, carrots and onions.  This is not traditional, but sometimes I put in some dried cranberries for a little tarty surprise.

To make it, I just throw everything in a big pot and boil it, adding curry power and a roux at the end (with some seasonings like salt and sriracha).  You can also buy pre-made blocks of curry that have the thickener mixed in, but that's kind of cheating (though I do it sometimes too).  Yesterday's curry was a big success, although I may have put in a little too much sriracha, haha.  I paired it with a quick pickled napa cabbage.  Yum.

Marathon Weekend!!!

I'm writing this the day after the New York City Marathon.  This weekend has just been a whirlwind.  There's so much to report since my last post, but I will try to keep things short.

Saturday was the FRNY fun run followed by the Pancake Breakfast.  For those who are doing the marathon, we just do the last two miles of the marathon.  Apparently just moments before I arrived in the park, U.S. Olympic Marathoner Ryan Hall had run by.  I was so sad I missed it!  The 2-mile run itself was pretty uneventful.  I could tell I still had some issues with my feet, left calf and right butt, but I had already decided that these were just pre-marathon jitters that weren't going to seriously interfere with my race.

Otherwise, it was super exciting running those last two miles.  I love seeing the jumbotron they have set up at Columbus Circle--it makes me feel like a rockstar coming in.  I thought of the next day, when I would be running that last half mile in Central Park.  I remember my previous NYC Marathons, and the signs marking 400, 300, 200, 100 meters to go seemed to be spread out by miles.  But running that route on Saturday gave me the confidence to face the marathon on Sunday.

Back at the church, a large crowd had already gathered for the pancake breakfast.  One tradition Front Runners has at this breakfast is the "Marathon Game."  The game begins with everyone standing up if they had ever run a marathon.  Then, runners remain standing if they have run two marathons; those who have only run one sit down.  The numbers increase, and more people sit down, until this is just one runner remaining.  The winner this year was Dale, a visitor from (I think) Calfornia.  He had run *190* marathons total, including 30 just in 2009!  I actually met him in April when Dane and I ran the Big Sur Marathon.  I have to say that 190 sounds a little bit excessive to me, haha.

At the same time, there were only a few people still standing when the game had reached twelve marathons.  I was really proud of the fact that I've done twelve marathons.  But it also made me reflect... was I perhaps doing too many?  Considering that my legs were still sore from Chicago, I decided that 2009 was too intense of a year for me, with five marathons and the Reach the Beach Relay Ultra Team (where I ran 34 miles in a 24-hour period).  I made a mental note to myself that next year, I should maybe only do two of them.

I did very little on Saturday, preferring to rest before Sunday's race.  That also meant foregoing on Halloween festivities.  Instead, I went to my third pasta dinner in a row.  This time, it was at Cola's in Chelsea, which, since I first moved to NYC in 1998, has been my favorite non-fussy Italian place in the City.  It's a charming little space, with a very intimate ambiance.  It's a big change from the more trendy Italian places, especially around Chelsea.  And the pasta there is always good.

Most of the time I go to Cola's I get the linguini frutti di mare.  I suppose some people avoid shellfish and other "iffy" foods the night before marathon, but this is my favorite pasta dish.  Cola's piles on the calamari, clams and shrimp in their version of it, along with a hearty mound of linguini, making it a perfectly comforting meal for me before a big race. 

To be honest, I didn't really miss Halloween at all.  I sat by the window at Cola's, and saw all of crazy, chaotic Eighth Avenue prancing up and down the block--most in costumes, some already drunk.  I felt really serene being inside the cozy little restaurant, and looked forward to a restful evening at home.

The next morning, I woke up at 5 am.  I had gone to sleep around midnight, but with the time change, I got a full six hours and felt pretty refreshed and energized.  I had gotten to the subway at 5:45 in order to catch the 6:30 ferry to Staten Island.  Since I live on the edge of the West Village, the subway station was a delighful mix of marathoners and drunken partiers.  Gotta love New York.

It took 45 minutes for the subway to come.  This stressed me out so immensely.  Most of the Front Runners were planning on taking the 6:30 ferry, and it was the one I took last year.  I had no idea if anyone would be on the 7am ferry, if it would make me late for the marathon start, or if I would have to spend the next three hours stressing out by myself.  Fortunately, a 6:45 ferry was added to accomodate all of the people coming in on the subway, and I randomly ran into Patrick and Zander.  I was relieved to see some familiar faces.  And the moment we got to Ft. Wadsworth, I saw the rest of the FRNY crew, who had all been waiting in line at the porta potties.  (Random note: the toilet stalls on the Staten Island ferry do not have doors, and the person who is stuck using the very first one is on display for all the world to see.  That was lucky me.)

About a dozen of us were gathered together by the blue start village.  Someone had the forethought to bring a big plastic tarp, which was perfect for us to sit on since the ground was wet from the rain the night before.  Kieran and Darin were wearing plastic bags on their feet, which made me wish I had them too, since I had only brought my one pair of shoes and they were already getting really muddy.  Fortunately they didn't get wet. 

At around 9:00, we went to check our bags.  I separated from the group to use the porta potties one last time (very glad that I brought some toilet paper with me since by that time the porta potties were out).  When I finished, it dawned on me that I had no idea where the start was, and that the corrals were closing.  I started to freak out.

Not knowing where I was heading, I ran in the direction that I saw most people heading.  I realized that everyone around me was in the second or third wave, and I was in the first.  Then I saw what appeared to be the first wave sectioned off by a six-foot tall fence.  I ran around in circles trying to find the opening in the fence to get through to my corral, but could could find neither an opening nor the "F" corral.  Others were jumping over the fence, so I decided I needed to do that too if I was going to start in the first wave.  Climbing the fence was easy.  But when I got to the top of it, I panicked.  I didn't want to jump down from that high, and couldn't figure out how to gradually lower myself onto the ground.  So like a big homosexual, I asked a random friendly looking runner if I could hold him, and manuevered my way onto the ground.  Crisis averted.

Moments after I got into the corral, it started moving towards the start line.  The wait at the start was relatively uneventful except at one point I felt something spraying my leg.  I turned around and saw the man next to me peeing on the side of one of the buses that sectioned off the start, and the pee was ricocheting off the bus directly onto my leg.  Gross.

I practically danced the first quarter mile.  It's such an emotional time for me at the start each year when they play "New York, New York," and this year, I really wanted to make sure to treat the marathon as a "fun run" without the pressure of a time goal.  Although I started off the race with a Nike pace bracelet, I ended up tossing it at mile two because it was making me push myself harder than I wanted to. 

Here are my splits, and what I remember from the race:

Mile 1:  8:36

Mile 2:  7:22

Mile 3:  7:55

Mile 4:  7:51

Mile 5:  7:49

Mile 6:  7:47

Mile 7:  7:48

Mile 8:  7:51

Mile 9:  7:51

Mile 10:  7:39

Mile 11:  7:50

Mile 12:  7:45

Mile 13:  8:21  (I made a quick bathroom break.  Even though I didn't reeeeally have to go, I thought to myself that if I wanted negative splits, I should really go in the first half, haha.)

Mile 14-15: 16:09  (I forgot to hit the lap button)

Mile 16:  8:18

Mile 17-18:  15:51 (Ugh, forgot again)  This is when I started feeling my butt issue.  It wasn't a sharp pain, but I could definitely feel that something was not right.  And whatever I felt seemed like it was going down to my right hamstring and up to my lower back.  I started slowing down a tiny bit.  Not significantly, but enough so that my foot strikes weren't as hard.  It was also around mile 17 that I really started running with Matt.  We had each passed each other a couple of times since about mile 10.  But on First Avenue we kind of paired off and worked off each other.  This was Matt's first marathon.  It was funny, at one point, hearing people call out "Go Dave!" he turned to me and asked "How does everyone here know you?"  He didn't see that my name was pinned in big letters to my singlet.  Later, one spectator, seeing that we were both Front Runners, shouted, "Go Dave!  Go Dave's Friend!")

Mile 19:  8:10

Mile 20:  8:23

Mile 21:  8:31  (By this point, any hopes of negative splits were way out the window.  I was actually getting kind of discouraged.  But then I saw two FRNY cheerleaders.  First was Kerstin.  She was cheering so loudly and exuberantly, it immediately gave me a boost.  Just a few seconds later, I saw John MacConnell cheering on the other side of the street.  I ran across a dozen runners to go and give him a hug.  It cost a few seconds, but I more than made up for it with my renewed energy over the next mile.)

Mile 22:  8:30

Mile 23:  8:16  (After about 5 miles of running together, Matt starts to pull ahead.  I let him go, and after a moment, I see Timmy.  I have to say, it's pretty comforting seeing so many other Front Runners all around me running this race.  Timmy asks me how I'm doing, and I say something like "Oh my god, I'm dying.")

Mile 24:  8:32  (This was the mile I was looking forward to.  The Front Runners are in charge of the mile 24 water station, and there were going to be dozens there cheering for me.  I took a moment to compose myself so I would look good running through.  It was great to see so many Front Runners out there cheering.  It was totally the boost that I needed.  I grabbed a cup of water from Sharon, and went on to finish off the race.)

Mile 25:  8:11

Mile 26:  8:04

Last 0.2:  1:35

Total:  3:31:05

In the end, I was almost 22 minutes slower than my Chicago Marathon time three weeks ago, and 15 minutes slower than last year's NYC Marathon.  It felt a lot more difficult than Chicago.  However, whereas I ended up walking much of the last 3-4 miles at last year's NYC, I didn't walk at all on this one (although I did take about a 15 second bathroom break).  I'm very pleased with how I did.  I stayed pretty strong until the finish, kept a good attitude the whole time, and was smart not to overdo it when my butt started acting up.

After the race, I had what has become my post-ING NYC Marathon tradition--a street cart vendor hotdog.  A group of us then went to a post-race party that Harlem United was throwing.  Harlem United provides services to people with HIV/AIDS, and was one of the charities that sent runners to and benefitted from the marathon.  FRNY's Koach Kelsey is the Deputy Director of Supportive Housing there.  It was great to sit down and get a cup of coffee.  They also had a big dinner spread for us.  Of course, it was pasta.  So four big pasta dinners on four successive days.  I'm ready to stop carbo loading for a while.  :-)

 

Carbs, Carbs, Carbs!!!

OK, now I'm starting to get excited.  Marathon weekend is in full swing, and carbo loading has begun!

Yesterday I went to the marathon expo.  To be honest, before yesterday, I didn't even know what corral I was in... all of my pre-race energies focused on Chicago, and until recently my participation in NYC was still up in the air.  But when I picked up my bib, it all started to sink in.  I suddenly rememered why I love the NYC marathon so much--running through the city I call home, feeling like a rockstar with millions of spectators cheering for me, and seeing my friends along the course and the Front Runners handing out water at mile 24.  When I saw my name on the monitor at the D-tag check, an feeling of excitement came over me, and I felt ready to take on the greatest race in the world.

And to further get me pumped up about the race, I randomly saw John and Mike.  Yay!!!

I had planned beforehand not to stay at the expo long, thinking maybe it would stress me out.  I also vowed not to buy any marathon paraphernalia branded "2009" ING NYC Marathon, since I was having some sort of irrational fear that buying any would jinx me and force me to drop out and then get stuck with all this marathon gear for a race I didn't finish.  Besides, I'm saving my money so I can buy an entire wardrobe of "2010 Boston" running clothes.  :-P

So I left the expo early, and went to the first of what is going to be three pasta dinners in a row.  Yesterday's dinner was at Le Zie in Chelsea.  They claim to have the "Best Spaghetti and Meat Balls in Manhattan."  I've had it before and it was quite good.  Last night, though, I opted for the Mezzemaniche with Sausage and Fennel in a Light Tomato Sauce.  I had to ask what mezzemaniche was since I wasn't familiar with it.  Turns out it's short tube with ridges, kind of like a rigatoni cut in half. 

It was really tasty.  I love fennel and I love sausage, and the two of them are a natural combination together.  For some reason, I've only cooked with fennel once in my life (and that wasn't even on purpose; I didn't have any star anise on hand but wanted to make Chinese beef noodle soup, so I improvised).  Anyways, this meal inspired me make something with fennel.  Stay tuned.

OK, off to pasta dinner #2!

Three days away

So it's three days before the NYC Marathon, and the whole city seems to be abuzz with pre-marathon energy.  The international runners have started arriving in town.  The stands at the finish have been set up in Central Park.  The NYC Marathon Blog is posting new entries so fast it's hard to keep up.  And, of course, my Facebook feed is constantly streaming with updates about last-minute anxieties and excitement, and news from the Expo, which started today.

Meanwhile, though I hate to be a Debbie Downer, I've been feeling like I haven't had the same level of excitement about this race as I did before my other marathons.  Running Chicago less than three weeks ago really wore me out, both physically and mentally.  I feel like I've spent the last two and a half weeks trying to recover (but not necessarily succeeding).  Before Chicago, I felt in great shape, and I was determined to get a PR and qualify for Boston.  But since then, I've been dogged by this nagging butt pain, which is back today after my five miler yesterday.  I also noticed something going on in my left calf, which pretty much came out of nowhere since I've never had an issue with that calf.  And although I don't think these physical ailments are debilitating, I feel like they've contributed to my somewhat ambivalence towards Sunday's race. 

I think another thing that contributed to this feeling was the fact that I could not think of a goal for the marathon.  I know I don't have it in me to get another sub-3:10.  But after my performance in Chicago, which I am so, so happy about, I feel like it's hard to get excited about doing a marathon that will be significantly slower.  This will not be my first time doing back-to-back marathons.  Last fall, I did Chicago and then NYC three weeks later.  This past spring, I did Virginia Beach, the Ohio River Runners Marathon, and Big Sur in the span of five weeks.  The difference with those times, though, is that with Chicago 2008 and Virginia Beach 2009, I had rather disappointing runs, and I was determined to do better on my next race.  This time, I know I can only do worse. 

So I've been trying to counteract that feeling and get excited about NYC.  Yesterday, I went to the FRNY fun run.  I wore my 2009 Chicago Marathon T-shirt to the run to put me in a good mood, and I'm happy to say it worked.  I let out a big gay scream when I walked into Rutgers Church because there was Josh, standing there wearing the same shirt!  That was a good start.  :-)

(BTW, Josh had an awesome race in Chicago, finishing in a ridiculous 2:49:23--that's a 6:27 pace!).

The Wednesday fun run before the marathon is actually one of my favorite runs of the year.  This is because it's usually the first time that I see the finishing chute all set up in front of Tavern on the Green, and that always gets me excited about the marathon.  I was happy to see it yesterday, and I pictured myself crossing that finish line and feeling so great at the end of the race.  It made me realize that I really did want to do the marathon, and that I was excited about running it.  My feelings otherwise were just the normal anxieties that everyone feels before the big race.  And I'm determined to channel that nervous energy into having a great race on Sunday.

Now I'm not trying to kid myself, either.  I'm not going to set a new PR.  But I'm going into it with a plan to have fun and do my best.  If I had to make a numerical goal, I think I'd like to get somewhere in the 3:20ish range.  Ideally, I'd like to start off slower and get negative splits.  But for me, this race is not about the time; it's about having fun, seeing New York, and running the greatest race in the world!