Road Blocks

Why does life pose such challenges? Is there a simple answer to that? Yes? No? Depends on the context right?

Life isnt easy. Whoever said it is has a really good outlook on things. I had this goal - something I really set out and trained and dedicated my time to achieving - Qualifying and Running the 2011 Boston Marathon. I was 19 days away from achieving that goal. Yesterday, registration for Boston opened and it closed in a record breaking 8 hours. 8 HOURS! Unbelievable! I couldnt believe it when I heard it. Its times like these that make me wonder why things like this happen. I know and truly believe that everything happens for a reason, but why did this happen?

I sat up all night thinking about how the race closed out so fast; how if I had only run a marathon a week before or a month before or just anytime before. I thought about how I havent really set a goal in a long time that I was 100% dedicated to and how I felt so proud to be doing this. I thought about what could possibly be the reason behind this race closing out so quick. I cried, I stared into space, I tossed and turned with anger and disappointment.

The funny thing about all of this is last night when Coach Brian and I walked home from practice, we had a pretty deep heart-to-heart post the breaking of the Boston news. We talked about 'looking at the positive in things'. How there is always some good in whatever the bad may be. This goes back to the 'everything happens for a reason'. So after wallowing in my misery, I remembered this little conversation and started laughing at myself. Alicia-- there is a reason why Boston closed out so quickly; I may not know what it is now, nor in the near future. But somewhere along the line of life there is a reason.

Life throws you curve balls. and yeah sometimes they leave you extremely disappointed. But what now? Am I not going to run NYC to qualify? Absolutely NOT! I am going to go out there with all my heart, run my race and still qualify. Instead of 2011, it will have to be for 2012. And I will have every calendar notification ready to go off the morning registration opens for Boston 2012. Outlook, Blackberry, day planner, sticky notes hung in my cube, countdown counters, mental notes... you name it! But do you know what else? This makes me want to run this marathon with more heart and soul than I intended. 3:40 is a qualifying time, so why not shoot for a 3:35. Say some prayers, give me some luck folks! 3:35 is the new goal...

Wait, how many days???

So summer's here and gone... Fall is definitely upon us! What does that mean??? Fall running apparel!!! Cute jackets, arm warmers, spandex come out of hibernation, hats... the stuff that makes running a fashion statement.



As much as I am a sun bunny/beach bum, I am loving this time of year. Fall in the City is absolutely spectacular! To describe the fall here, its too hard to just write about. You have to experience it. The weather is perfect, the people all have smiles on their faces, the street fairs, the sales, and aaahhh duuh... FOOTBALL SEASON IS BACK! and of course its MLB Playoff season and the Yankess made it to the post season, AGAIN! Gotta love the dynasty!



Not only is the fall good for all the reasons above, but the Marathon is in sight. 32 days away from today! Soo exciting! Asics is one of the largest sponsors for the ING NYC Marathon. Every year they set out this huge campaign and this year's might top lasts. Check out the Asics marathon website, http://www.asicsmarathon.com/en/index.html and check out the Internet Marathon. It 'runs' you through the journey of the 26.2 (42.195 Kilometer) journey we will embark on November 7th. The pain, the joy, the exhaustion, the thrill... its all there!






If that isnt enough, Asics also put up an iteractive map of the course. Take a peek, I did! it has totally vamped up my excitement. Its a lot of ground we cover.. woah! http://www.asicsamerica.com/nycm/map.htm





So... since race day is so close and Fall is upon us, its time to think about the 'Race Day' apparel. 2 million spectators all eyes on you, another 315 million watching on tv.. hmm... gotta look your best because you just never know who your going to run into, he he he :) Man oh Man can you tell my priorities are straight?

PERSEVERANCE

So this summer has been a whirlwind. Trying to keep my head straight, my sanity and my physical well being has been quite the challenge. I am one of those major superstitious freaks that reads into everything as a "sign". Turning 27 back in April all I could think about is, 'man, the luck I have had the past couple years couldnt get any worse. 27 is going to be a good year.' So would you call the pessimism or optimism? As much as I like to try and convince myself as being an Optimist, Im not. But its definitely something I have been working on. So, in my 27th year of life, I have encountered so many obstacles I never would have though would have occurred. I have fallen in and out of love and learned that you cant change someone, they have to want to change themself (touche!). I wasted so much of my time playing this game of cat and mouse I lost sight of what I really wanted out of a relationship and the insignificant things that really dont mean much.

I have seen loved ones hit rock bottom; something I used to be so ashamed to keep a secret. Seeing a family member lose control of their life and let a disease consume them might have been the harshest reality to face. I used to run away from all the issues, but still be the front end of the reprocussions of this downfall. The funny thing about all this is, trying to keep this a secret from the friends and loved ones around you is virtually impossible. They know, so why hide it... its okay to admit fault, even if its not yours. I have experienced the pressures of dropping everything in my life to help others. I put my life dreams on hold to get my mom the help she needed and to get her life back in line. I have experienced a family literally crumbling at the seams. The effects a disease has over an entire family runs full circle, not just the people who witness it first hand.

So my superstitions stand... In the back of my mind, I had this feeling if I had a negative thought about my 27th year, then I will have all these crazy things happen to me.

This year has been such a learning experience. I realized that sweating the small stuff and dwelling on all the negative things in my life are just, well, a waste of time. Running has been this outlet; its allowed me to really contemplate what has occurred, how I should handle the situation, what I will do to persevere, and... well get out all that aggression. So during several of my mindless runs this summer, I realized I need to stop worrying about others. Things will happen that are going to be beyond my control. If they affect me, then dont look it as some negative issue; look at it as a test. If I can persevere and work beyond it, then its a lesson not some horrible problem. Pounding the pavement paved way to a new perspective; work toward what you want. Why let others bring you down? what is it going to do for you? Nothing! Why let someone elses negativity or problem interfere with your goals? So, instead of waiting until New Years and setting some New Years resolution, I set 'New Day resolutions'. Every day, I wake up and set a goal for the day. Whether its something like, smiling at a complete stranger, or not over indulging in sweets or sending thank you cards and emails to those who have donated to my charity, or an even bigger goal like trying to figure out where I want to be 5 years from now, but I set something. It puts things in perspective on a personal level. How do you move ahead if you cant make yourself happy first? Perseverance is my motto... without a little, you cant grow. So, in retrospect, 27 has been a pretty fab year!

Muddle it over, tell me what you think...

Clumsyness at its finest...

Ummm... I know I am a blonde and pretty much define what a blonde is, but seriously? I need to get it together!

Typical me once again have an Alicia moment. I was being super lazy one morning and didnt feel like looking for parking before work, so I drove down and parked in the garage by work. I put my claim ticket in my bag and went about my typical ground hog way of a day and walked out about 5:15. I hopped into the elevator by myself finally relaxing from a busy busy day when the elevator stops at the 4th floor and 2 very attractive guys hop on... that caught my attention! Hot damn! ha!

Like a gentlemen, they let me off the elevator first and we walk out of the building and across the street at the same time. Looking for my claim ticket, not paying attention I walk full force head on into a pole!!! hahahhaaaa (Cracking up at myself thinking about it!)

Those 2 guys I told you about? yeah, well they were walking right in front of me and witnessed the whole thing! I mean, I walked square into this parking pole so hard it rattled and I thought I knocked my tooth out. The guys turned around and asked, "are you alright?" and all I could do was laugh and say yes. To make the moment more embarrasing, one of them turns to me and says, "Well we know you work at Credit Suisse." and they both start laughing and walk away... who does that!?

This was probably the 2nd most embarrasing moment of my life... second to the Infamous "TREADMILL" story. I had a bruise on my forehead for a week. Honestly, I am amazed how I function in society sometimes... Like my Bff always says, "Lee you got the brains but when it comes to common sense, you got none!" ohh maaan I am definitely my own comedian.

Queens Half marathon

3rd Boro in the Half Marathon Grand Prix series!

When most of us think of Queens, whats your first thought? the comedy show King of Queens? Thats mine. And sure enough, the race was in Corona Park. So, was my experience as nice as the show portrays it to be? HA NO! Waking up at 5am, the temperature was already 85 degrees with a forecast to reach the upper 90's with 80% humidity. Yowzas!

The start of the race was in Corona Park... Okay... I get it... its a park. Soccer fields, some fountains, tennis courts, a big giant globe, ya know, a pretty nice NYC park.

Enough of the nice things about this race. This race was absolutely miserable! From the moment the race started until the end, it was probably the most miserating race I have ever done! the course looped in and out of all these crazy streets and through some foreign terrain. Every road we went down, we came back up. They were painting some fountain, so all you can smell was turpentine for like a mile on the way out and for the last mile coming back to the finish. We ran through a swamp parallel to a highway, they claimed there was going to be music "all" along the course but it was only at mile 6... Oh, and did I mention it was like 90 degrees already? uhh yeah! Any PR's? no. about 10 min off the norm to be exact.

What I can say about this race is that I finished it. I felt great considering the circumstances and really took it easy not to "race" this race. I felt accomplished and so did all of my teammates. We all felt as if we finished that race in the oppressive heat and humidity, we can conquer much much more!

All in all, the day was great! Jackie Vanessa and I planned a weekend down the shore and couldnt wait to get out of the city for the weekend. A stinky car ride over the Verrazzano bridge, through "The Rock" and into Jersey to spend the weekend with Ken and Sue. We spent an awesome day on the boat lunching in front of Bon Jovi's house waiting, or should I say stalking him with Ken's binoculars to see if he was home; cruised the bay; watched some prissy rich kids party on their boats; tried to swim a little and ended the day with a nice Jelly fish sting. Good thing we had beer! Wash away the pain with a little Amstel Light please...

A nice run in the summer heat followed by another road trip. This is definitely a benefit to living in the City. You can ALWAYS escape for the weekend, whether mentally through a run or physically to basically anywhere...

Celeb citings.

So I always get the question from family and friends, "do you ever see celebrities walking the streets of New York?" and ususally they are disappointed with my answer. "No, not at all. Plus I wouldnt know one if I tripped over one." Umm yeah. basically...

The opening night of Shakespeare in the Park I was strolling through passing the Great Lawn and the Public Theatre passing all these people dressed to the nines sipping cocktails with a jazz band playing tunes oblivious to the fact that tons of stars were among NYC's elite crowd. So of course, Im barreling down the hill to our "TFK meeting spot" and who crosses my path? Bette Midler with a s**t eating grin on her face because Im staring right at her like I know her from somewhere... typical me, I dont realize who it is until about a minute and a half after I walked past. Next up--Liev Schrieber. Chillin' on the bench by the entrance, blended in with the common folk. No one approached him, no one stopped and stared. Just let him be. Pretty cool. Not LA style... no papparazzi or crowds making a scene. My favorite scene that night was watching Kevin Spacey get an escort on the back of a club car up to the show. No need to walk when you can hitch a ride on a club car! Good for him! Supposedly tons of celebrities came out for the opening night gala. And yet, Im standing in a pair of spandex shorts, tech tee and sneakers stretching like some poorly dressed 80's aerobic instructor. Ohh the life! hahaa!

So, there ya go! I do sometimes (but verrrrrrrrry infrequently) see celebrities strolling the streets.


Next citing? the Womens Mini 10K. You might not think its a celeb citing, but I got to meet Kara Goucher and Paula Radcliffe; two highly talented and respected marathoners! The 2 women came out to NYC for the annual all womens race to support and run with us women. Kara and Paula are both preggers, and believe it or not, due on the same day!!! They came out on that hot June day to have a "fun run" and enjoy themselves, no racing! Seriously, these women are such an inspiration. They are proud of the running community and embrace the support of their fans. After the race, we got the chance to meet both of them, and ahh duhh... us picture whores... our picture taken with them! Kara is so cute! the little preggo mama can crack jokes like no other! Paula and her little accent, soo sweet!! These women are the top american runners and yet they were out with us and talking to us, giving hi-fives, signing autographs and welcomed all of their fans wishes and words of praise.

Okay so Im all celeb'd out. That was overkill for me, haaa. I never see any famous people and I seel all these up close and personal in a weeks time, pretty sweet!


Dont ask about the race. it was awful. First time I have ever felt sick to my stomach and stopped in a race. Awful! I cant eat bananas before a race ever again! the ringing in my ears, the tingling in my fingers and the dry heaving on Harlem Hill was enough to make me never want to eat a banana again! Hopefully that was my first and last bad race. I dont like knowing I can feel like that during a run. I never felt like that during swimming... and I used to do race after race after race over 3 consecutive days. Major lesson learned! Exnae on the Monkey Fruit.

what do you get when you mix work, social life, family, 30+ miles of running, and gym sessions piled into one? lack of sleep and total burn out. Delirious.

Man, I love summer. there is nothing like the long sunny days, hot weather, shorts tee-shirts and flip flops! ahh... who am I kidding?? thats not why I love summer... who cares about the little things, its the big things! Yankee games, Happy Hours, long hot runs, Concerts (oh yes, Bon Jovi x2 baby!), outdoor dinners, some races, World Cup (who knew soccer was so flipping fun!!) and of course ROAD TRIPS! Squeeze these into a jam packed day of work from sun up to sun down, a little gym action or a run, trying to keep up with family and friends outside of NYC and maybe a little "me" time is exhausting! literally. Over the past month or so, I have come to realize I have been trying to do waaaaay too much and need to learn to say "No" sometimes.

I was tired.. very tired. Alright outright exhausted! I ran a race every weekend for a month on top of 3 practices a week. Throw in there a Half marathon too.. my body was screaming, take a break before you hurt yourself! So finally I did.

That break didnt come before some great times though! One especially great time was the weekend of Fathers Day. My dad is my life! He deserves the world! Hard working, and needs a little spoiling once in a while, so I coaxed him into coming to stay for a weekend. What better way then say, "hey dad, so I really really want to do the Prostate Cancer run on Fathers day, how about you come in and spend the weekend here so I can do the run? Ill pay....?" Of course I got a yes... YESSS!! Papa-dukes is coming to my 'hood! So that saturday morning of our Dad's day weekend, I had my first Team for Kids group run, and then needed to volunteer for a few hours with the Foundation I help support through work. (again note--another thing packed into my busy life!) Pops came in early, so the Jac attack, a.k.a my roomie took him under her wing and took him for Cervesas and World Cup; thanks Jacs! With that said, I had quite the appetite and took dad to Luke's Lobster for infamous lobster rolls. Delish! Headed to Dugout Days sponsored by Delta airlines in Madison Square park, played some games, won some, lost some, got some free drink vouchers for my next flight and watched the Subway Series on the jumbo screen in the park. It was so fun! No better way to spend a hot summer day in the city then watching the Yanks play the Mets with some beers, and crossing your fingers hoping your raffle ticket number is the winning domestic round trip travel vouchers! Too bad they werent...

The rest of the day was spent at a wine tasting that we stumbled across, a little air conditioner installation and a fantastic dinner in Chelsea. After all the walking, a little Pinkberry, and my upset stomach, I think it is safe to say, I wore dad out.

The next morning was Fathers day.. the Prostate cancer run. Holy mother it was a scorcher! Hottest and most humid day of the year. The news actually advised staying indoors in a cool place, not to do any strenuous activity. Ehh, not for meeee... off to the race. 5 miler here we go... I told myself I wasnt going to race it, just pace it; and I failed that attempt. Running that race meant so much to me! Running with so many dads that were survivors, supporters, mothers and children, grand dads and grand kids. Everyone was out for the same reason, supporting the cause. So, of course I raced it! Zoomed right by dad too! He didnt even see me coming, I scared him when I yelled hi and waved in his face. Oh gotta love the chuckle he gave me seeing his face, hahaaa. After the finish, I ran into 3 of my closest coaches. and yep, got yelled at. Well not technically yelled at, but lectured. Especially by Asteria. She told me I am trying to do too much, I have too much potential and I am wearing myself out. I need to take a break before I hurt myself. I wanted to be like, "ahh duhh! I have only been saying that for 2 weeks now" but its my own fault for keeping at it. After her serious chat, the only thing I can think of doing was eating and taking a nap. And thats what I did... little Gracie Mews pancakes and dad's 3rd breakfast of the day, I sent him home and crashed for a few hours.

Buuuut........ the weekend didnt stop there! (I mean, did you really think the story was going to end that easily? ahh no!) I abruptly woke up at 2:20. I was supposed to meet Vanessa and Jackie at 1:15 for the World Cup in Little Brasil. I literally run out of the house and fly downtown to meet them to find them screaming at the score of Brasil's first goal at some bar I cant even remember.. about 4 Caipirinha's later, some serious World Cup excitement and a Brasil win, we headed to our second home... Cascabel for what else? Carnitas Tacos.. .oohh delish! and a free round of drinks because we are there so frequently. Oh help us when they move next door to the bigger space! No hour and a half wait? Hello! Tacos por favor! hahaa

Okay okay, then the weekend was over. Seriously exhausted just thinking about it. and typing about it :)

So on that note.. another story in another post.

Hasta proximo tiempo, Amigos!

Big orange cones

What could possibly stand in your way during a road race? hmm.. not much. Roads are closed, marked off -- ya know virtually car/object free so theres nothing but the wide open road...

yeh.. well virtually right? The Brooklyn half marathon was a great spring day! race #2 in the Grand Prix series. I cant even begin to tell you how great this run was. Mentally, going into it I was miserable... I woke up feeling not ready to run, walking into Prospect Park I was hating the massive crowds of people. I hadn't ran more than 7 miles prior to the race since the NYC half marathon in March so I had such negative thoughts until I realized I stood in line for a Port-A-Pottie for almost a half hr and had to run to my corral which was already closed... Squeezing through the crowd as the horn goes off, hopping the makeshift fence into my corral in enough time for the crowd of runners start moving up to the Start I dont have time to think. So, basically all those negative thoughts came flooding into paranoia that I was going to get stuck in the back of the pack and have to bob and weave through the crowds. The paranoia subsided and the adrenaline kicked in and I started kicking some serious B-U-T-T Butt! Being out of the city, I took in the sights of Brooklyn's finest landscape and made my around the loop.

On my second loop, I took a steady comfortable pace behind 2 girls. About 2 miles after following them, I lost them... How? Well... steadily coming down a hill behind them, the 2 girls diverge around a giant traffic cone marking off the the lane for the race, and with no time to react, I go flying right into it! (hahaaaaa.. Im cracking up flashing back!) the cone doesnt move, and I yell, and roll around the cone (not falling, surprisingly) and stumble to gain my composure. Honestly, I cant even explain in writing how ridiculous it looked or I sounded. Obviously, I crack up at myself for a good 5 min afterward as everyone is staring at me and asking if I was okay.

BUT THE RACE MUST GO ON!! And it did... after my embarrassing moment, a little adrenaline kick comes into play and my mood gets even better! Onto Ocean Parkway and down the flat course with the sun shining and the wiiide open road... nothing to get in my way now!! Coming to the finish, I see Kelsy and Ren cheering me on and cross the finish in a new PR time of 1:42.

On another note, my roommate had a personal best that day too! Jackie beat her best 1/2 time by about 20 minutes, now thats impressive! you go girl!

Nothing beats a good Half Marathon with out drinking and eating all them burnt calories away! Brunch in Prospect Park, a little shopping... great little sunday!

L.A., a Boozey Brunch and the ultimate punishment

So what do you do when you clearly dont want to celebrate your birthday? Visit the friend clear across the country who would love for me to visit!

For my birthday this year, I decided to visit one of my closest friends who I have neglected to visit since she moved out to L.A. 5 years ago... A solid bonding weekend with Lily! Loved it! What better way to spend a birthday than with a friend you see once a year (maybe twice if our schedules arent conflicting) and with the one person who I know wouldnt make a huge ordeal about celebrating my bday. Thanks Lily!!! No running, just relaxing, site seeing, a little shopping, lots of eating, a comedy show and what else---CELEB SPOTTING!! My first spotting?? at Joan's. Who do you ask? Kate Bodsworth. Sitting right in front of me with a table full of girlfriends. Pretty cool! She is just as beautiful in person as she is in the movies, al-naturale. 2nd spotting?? at dinner saturday night, Hayden Panettiere was sitting right behind us at Katana. Have to say, she looks like a linebacker. short and stocky. but beautiful!

Upon my return to NY, I jumped right back into running. A week off and I was totally anxious to lace up the sneaks and hit the road. Saturday, plans for brunch were preluded by a little gym action. No run - it was raining, I melt. ha! Ohhh Brunch! Brunch at Zuccherro e Pomodori always winds up with some sort of shenanigans to follow.... and sure enough!!! Clearly, Katie didnt have enough Bloody Mary's, Maria didnt have enough Mimosas, and Jackie and I obviously didnt have enough Screwdrivers. Yes Screwdrivers. Me Screwdrivers. Clearly, a bad idea from the beginning. OJ and me dont get along. Acid reflux? Yuup! Annnnywaysss... back to the story. Boozey Brunch leads to rambunctious girls giggling and yelling down 2nd avenue with the brilliant idea to continue the day with some of Katies famous Blueberry Spritzers. Lets drink some more vodka but this time with a splash of Club Soda, oh and a couple of fresh muddled blueberries.. danger written all over it!!

Dance Party USA was in full effect... until about 7pm. well for me anyways. I was in bed by 7:30 fully clothed tv blaring, lights on. (my mental remedy to feel better! ugh) 12am--outta bed in the bathroom hugging John (visit #1) back to bed... sleep a little more. 3am-- outta bed, John got a big hug again. (visit #2 and getting sick thinking about that night, ugh) 4:30am-- oh John still hadnt received enough love. (visit #3) Back to bed toss and turning hating life and the fact that OJ and vodka is my kryptonite! Never again! 7am rolls around. Im registered for the Run for the Parks race in Central Park. I drag my sorry ass outta bed, get dressed grab the Garmin and a Gatorade and walk up to the Park. "Punishment Alicia, punishment; your running this race no matter how painful it is." You gotta work hard to play hard, right? Right. With my body aching, I drag myself to the start and run the 4 miles. With my heart pounding, legs feeling like lead, I power through it. Probably the most difficult run I have ever had. But still made it outta there in 30 minutes.

Lesson learned? SEVERAL!!! 1-Unlimited drinks does not mean too many to count at Brunch

2-then CONTINUE there after somewhere else.

3-I know I cant drink OJ, so dont drink it. No matter how delicious it is, or whether you mix it with something.

4-If I insist on going out the night before a race, I better know the consequences.

5-John got a lot of love.

Lets just say, that never happened again!

Blogging Hiaitus?? I can fill you in up to the NYC Half...

woops! its been a while! Havent told you folks any stories in a few months... probably should get on that!



Welp, I have been somewhat of a "social butterfly" as my Grandmother would call me. Been constantly on the go, spending and not saving; but enjoying life. Like in the words of my uncle, "nows the time to do it before your old like me. Enjoy it now." hahaha. I laugh everytime I hear that! Seriously, you can enjoy doing wild and crazy and fun spontaneous things anytime. Maybe the recovery time isnt as quick, but ehh... you only live once right?? right!! So, where do I begin? Ohhh I donno... cold morning runs in Central Park? Nahh those are boring. All I ever wanted to do was turn around and go home... this winter was waaaaay tooo long. Couldnt bring myself to train for the Jersey Marathon. Every ounce of interest I had in running went right out the window every time I stepped foot onto the pavement and trotted up the road.. the idea of running in the winter, not for me! (Mental Note for next year!)



I did, however run the NYC Half Marathon! And to my pleasant surprise, it was a perfect day for running. March 21st - 58degrees. Perfect Perfect Perfect running weather. Have to say, was a little skeptical about the race. It was my first "important" race that I hadn't slept in my own bed for starters... (Jac had "Texas" here :-) ) 2nd I got "unexpected" phone calls at 5:30 in the morning.... (not really unexpected, more like typical) and 3rd had a lot of pent up anger that could have gone either way... (some disappointments, annoyances, you name it, it occurred prior to the race.) Sooo to my pleasant surprise, half way through the 1st loop of the park, I realized why would I drag my sorry ass all the way up here if I werent going to give it my all??? I took that negative energy and pushed through it. On my way out of the park, to my pleasant surprise I hear this absurd yell, "GOOO ALICIIAAAAAAAAAA!!!" in this deep voice that could only be one person.. Bernie. He happened to see me running out of the park as he was waiting to cheer his GF on. Thanks Bern! you gave me a good reason to laugh!



The NYC Half Marathon seriously is my favorite race. The course is awesome! I know I talked about it last year, but honestly, when do you get the chance to run through the heart of Times Square, down 42nd St and down the West Side Highway??? Never! Love, love, love! Full speed ahead, down through the finish line all I could think about is a PR (Personal Record). Sure enough... 1:44:24. What now Betches. New PR. by 7 min.



1463 calories burned later (yes according to my Garmin I did actually burn that many calories) time to eat, drink and be merry! Sunday Funday at its finest! Oh and the first day of Spring, yay! The weather was gorgeous, gathered with fellow runners and some good friends I havent seen in a while and enjoyed the fact I could eat and drink whatever I wanted. Gotta love running!! All-in-all this was the motivation I needed to want to get back out on the road... weather permitting, hahaaa



Gosh! I really do have so much to write about! If I told you it all now, then I would have nothing... so stay tuned..



a little preview to come---

A Boozey Brunch and the punishment of running...

Giant Traffic cones.....



talk soon!

xoxo

Lee

On the road again

Welp, its official. I moved to the Upper East Side. I finally hit the pavement again twice in a week! Felt great! Loving my new neighborhood, let alone my new apt and my new fish Moby!

Now, I have to learn the running etiquitte of the UES neighborhood. Who runs on the East River? Who runs in the Park? When do people go? Do they go in pacts or by themselves? I have lots of questions, so I apologize in advance for harrassing people and asking a million questions to my fellow UES neighbors...

Next mission... hating that I dont have a marathon in the near future that I am training for. Yeah I mentioned that I changed my plan and am going to run the Grand Prix in each of the boro's but I still have this mission to qualify for Boston. I know I can do it, but New York isnt until November, and to procrastinate the training until July isnt what I want to do... I need a goal!!!

So - This is where you come into play... I need your opinion. I found a marathon here on the East Coast. Actually in the town of my Alma Mater. Should I do the New Jersey Marathon on May 2nd?? Its at the Shore, in Long Branch, NJ footsteps away from Monmouth University. I havent visited the school, let alone Monmouth County or the Shore in years. What better way to re-visit the place I loved so much, right?? So, SHOULD I DO IT??!!!

Here's the catch.. If I train for this Marathon, I will be training alone, unless I can recruit some people to do it with me... ANY TAKERS????

http://www.njmarathon.org/index.html ** Check out the site! Its close and its on the Beach!!**


feedback is wanted...

It's been a while... Do you miss me?

okay, okay, I know... I have taken a blogging hiaitus. I know its no excuse, but work has been so busy, and the last thing I think about at night is sitting down at my computer, yet again.

So where do I begin?

Well, I have slowly brought my self back into the running circuit. Since the New Year, I have not really ran as much as I would have hoped. Ive had this foot issue that only a little R & R and a new pair of sneakers can cure. So, according to the PT, I have high arches and they werent properly supported. At first, my self-diagnosis (aka WebMD research) I thought I had a stress fracture. At one point, I couldnt even walk barefooted because the pain was so bad... thank goodness I dont take WebMD too seriously. So, after 2 weeks of nursing my foot, I got some arch supports, laced up my shoes and ran the Manhattan Half marathon. And guess what??!! I got a personal best!

Since I dont have any marathon plans this spring, I decided to go an alternate route. I set a goal to complete all 5 Grand Prix races. Thats a Half Marathon in each of the 5 Boros. 1-down, 4-to go! Manhattan is by far the hardest! First of all the race is in Central Park in January.. ouch.. and brrr!!! doing 2 complete loops of the park means Harlem Hill (I curse you Harlem!) twice and Cats hill twice. Killer duuude! The park isnt as flat as you think... its a lot of rolling hills and then those 2 big hills. If you can do 2 loops of the park, you can run anywhere. So on the frigid morning of the 24th, I woke up slightly hung over and tired and conquered the park in record time! 1:51:40 thats almost 3 minutes faster than the half I did this past summer. Maybe I should go to brunch and have several hours of drinking Mimosas more often... OHHH Just kidding! Never making that mistake again. But of course, it surely didnt stop me or anyone else who ran from partaking in Football festivities and a few games of "Dirty Sanchez" (and yes, the game is as bad as it sounds! TEQUILA!!)

Post Half, the knee and foot began throbbing again... instead of being stupid and running through the pain, I took it upon myself to actually fix the issue. Hold off on the running, start spinning, stretching and foam rolling more. The next goal I have is to break 1:50 in the NYC Half Marathon so I dont want to be stupid about my addiction to running.

On another note, Jackie and I moved last weekend! Guess where? Closer to the park, none the less!! Ohh so excited! Not only are we closer to the park, but we are so much closer to all the great people we met training with TFK! No more half hr subway rides to and from a run, no more cutting the social life in half because of a miserable commute back downtown! Our apartment is so flipping cute! I cant even begin to tell you how much happier we both are to be Uptown and away from the roommate we did not get along with... Now... we just need cable and internet... haaa! who knew the Cable guy needs access to the roof to give us cable??? Seriously... never heard of a such thing.

Now that the full NYRR calendar is up, keep posted to the upcoming events!!

xoxo

Lee

you must be crazy!!

I used to make fun of people who ran in the cold, used to think they were nuts. Like they had something seriously wrong with having such desire to run in the cold... but, you know what... its really not that bad!!!

My dad has asked me the past 2 weekends, the same question I would have asked those people I used to consider crazy. "How can you breathe?, Dont your lungs hurt?" My answer, "no you can breathe, its fine, you really dont feel the cold after the first mile or so." And then I get his signature laugh, "haaa" and a "I dont know how you do it."

So after my routine Saturday morning chit chat with Dad, I got to thinking - you know what - running in the cold is actually pretty nice. Yes, it is very cold out. Yes, I cant feel my toes or fingers for a bit. Yes, you do still sweat, and Yes, it does take a while to warm up. But after all the inital whines and cries about being cold, I actually really enjoyed my run. I ran the Ted Corbett 15k in Central Park this past Saturday before the whopper of a snowstorm. The air was still and silent. It was definitely as the saying goes, "the calm before the storm."

Friday night, I took a ride up to NYRR's offices to pick up my bib and souvenier with a fellow runner. Actually, an avid runner and triathlete. On the way up, we talked about how much they loved to run in the cold, that it was his favorite time to run. Meanwhile as Im listening, Im thinking I would never CHOOSE to run in this weather, but I wasnt backing out of the race either. I already paid for it, so I better get my moneys worth!! So - back to saturdays thoughts - I thought about everything we talked about regarding cold weather running. Yeah, its different, but you dont have pounds of sweat running off of you, there isnt any humidity, and... well... there really arent that many runners on the road.

Aside from cold weather running, I realized I have a true passion for running. Now that I am not running with TFK (for the time being - until Spring time) I still keep in touch with some fellow runners. Fellow runners who were supposed to run with me in the bitter cold on Saturday... Its okay I understand. Peoples tolerance for cold varies. So, I wound up running alone. Which is fine because by start time, waiting in the corrals, I am usually not with any running mates anyways. But my point is, I did this on my own. I didnt back out because everyone else did. I wanted to go, I wanted to do it, and I did. And damn, I felt good!!! consistent sub 8:15 miles for 9.3 miles. guess what that means... on track for some major improvement and an achievable goal of qualifying for Boston 2011!!!

Next obstacle... how do you run on Icy grounds??!! :) just kidding... Ill stick to spin and elliptical.. NO INJURIES PLEASE!!!

Oh, P.S. I once again stalked the internet in search for tips for cold weather running and stumbled on a few websites... this one is a fave:

Runners Rescue has great basic tips. Its a great site for people like me who just need the idea of what and what not to do in cold weather.. or just in general when it comes to tips and inforation. check it out! http://www.runnersrescue.com/
http://www.runnersrescue.com/Cold_Weather_Running_Tips.htm

Till the New Years Midnight Run...
xoxo
Lee

winter wowes?

Do you know when things become such a routine, so mundane, you look forward to a change? Well by October, I felt that way about the darn Bridle path in Central Park. I was so ready for a break from that wooded dirt path, I thought I would never miss it.

Once again... I proved myself wrong... In the frigid rainy cold last weekend, I found myself meeting Sid and Asteria for the Saturday morning run. And where else? but the Bridle path! 6 miles of running and all I could think about is maaaannn... I missed this path! Yes, I missed the bridle path the one place that I complained about most this past running season. What I realized was that it really is a runners haven. The rolling hills, the dirt beneath your feet - its so much easier on your knees. Especially in the cold. Believe it or not, running on the road is extremely hard to do in the winter. The ground is frozen, your muscles and joints are cold and stiff so running on the dirt makes it easier both on your joints and muscles and your feet too!



You know what else amazed me out there? The fact that NYC has so many dedicated runners. There were tons of people just like me trying to get their run in before it started to down pour. Huge motivator for me! I am trying to get back into the swing of a running routine, but I hate the cold!!! This definitely helped - if they can do it, why cant I???

Yesterday, I ran the Holiday 4-mile run in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. Woah Nelly! Was it cold! 26 degrees to be exact. Strategy for this? "Sprint it out! Its Friggin Freezing!" 5,000 runners were just as crazy as Maggie and I. It was so cold, that when people took the little water cups at the fluid stations, the water was freezing as it hit the ground. It was like a sheet of ice! Coach Neil asked me this question, "so, does this mean your crazy or just dedicated?" (referring trekking it out to Brooklyn in the frigid cold to run.) My response - "CRAZY" But whatever, it was fun! Running in below freezing temperature with sub 7:30 min miles... who can say they did that???



Running in the cold is quite an experience. Especially when I of all people cant stand the cold. So, I run to Runnersworld.com to find out how to run in the cold. 10 tips - I think I listened to 3 of them... Many runners and professionals tell you not layer up, but seriously, how do you not?? I know once I get going and warm up, Im sweating but if I cant get warm Im MISERABLE!!! So, I change right after the run to keep the chill out. Pros tell you not to worry about speed in the winter, its all about maintenance. so, I dont run hard, I just go. Well when I go for that matter. Motivation is so hard in the winter... the best way to stay motivated is to have a partner. Like runners world says, you cant back out if you have a partner. Perfect example, the race yesterday... I totally wouldnt have gone if Maggie wasnt going. Good thing we planned this together... no backing out! Good thing we coordinated to go together!


Hmm.... I wonder what other tips Ill find...





Adios Amigos!


Lee

post-marathon depression

I always hear about this Post-marathon depression. I knew when the marathon was over, I would be.. well.. depressed. For weeks and months, I spent 2 nights a week and either Saturday or Sunday running with TFK, then 2 other nights a week crosstraining. The marathon was my life, the people, the coaches, the park -- and then it ended. Post marathon depression. Yes, Its there.

It is now one month and 3 days after my first marathon and can still say I am looking forward to doing it again next year. I did not run for 4 weeks after the marathon. I aggravated my IT-Band and Dr Long advised me not to run. So I think I was more bothered by the fact that I was told not to basically be stupid and run for a bit, and also because all the sudden, I wasnt trying to cram in work, social life and training all at once. A month later, a 20-lb turkey, Apple cream pie, cherry pie, and mashed potatoes later; I ran. I ran and ran and ran... Probably not the best strategy after not running for weeks, but it just felt so good! So, the good new is... IM BAAACK!!! I have signed up for 3 races so far. December 12th - Holiday 4miler in Prospect park, December 19th - Ted Corbitt 15k in Central Park and (drum roll please...) the Emerald Nuts Midnight Run on December 31st! Yes, you read right... running through the New Year! Why not start it off right??

Cant wait to get back into the swing of things... I miss running. Knowing I can put on a pair of sneakers and tights and pound the pavement allows me to escape the stresses of every day life, enjoy the outdoors and socialize with good friends. So keep posted! theres more coming... I knew it wouldnt be too long before I got back on the road!!

love ya all!!
Lee

Best Day of my Life!

Finally!!! I am able to log onto my computer! One of the keys has been stuck for weeks! Now - Its time to tell you about the greatest day of my life!

Marathon Sunday was by far the best day of my life! It surpasses setting a high school record, it surpasses graduating college, blows out of the water the day I moved out on my own! From the 3rd time I woke up in anticipation of the start of the marathon, I had this overwhelming energy. Even with the lack of sleep the night before from all the excitement, I just felt so happy! I couldnt believe that after all the contemplating of training and eventually running my first marathon, I was actually going to make it to the start that morning of November 1st!

Our Call-Tree went off with no hiccups! 4:30am I get my call from Ally and Im up to call Jesse. Thats it! now I am up and getting ready to go up to the buses. The night before I made sure my clothes were laid out:
- running tights

- Socks and such

- Singlet with my name on it and bib already safety-pinned on

- Sneakers with D-Tag securely fastened

- Arm warmers

- Head warmer

- Throw-away sweats and teeshirt

and bag was packed with everything I needed for race day:

- Powergels

- Advil

- Tums

- Hat/Gloves

- Extra socks

- Change of clothes (post marathon)

- Garbage bags (to sit on at Fort Wadsworth)

- Body Glide

- TP

- Salt packets

- Chapstick
- Extra hair elastics and safety pins

I make my white bread toast with a smidge of Peanut Butter and eat a banana. I toast my bagel and pack another banana with a bottle of water and gatorade for my pre-race snack.

Dressed and ready to go, Jackie and I get blessings and good luck wishes from her mommy ;) Thanks Eva for your love!!! We venture up to 51st and 7th to meet our bus - TFK Bus #1 - AKA- The Party Bus! And it was!! Everyone with huge smiles on their faces chit chatting away about this and that, but NO TALK OF PACE, TIMES, NERVES, NOTHING RUN RELATED! Oh, and yes, there were 'rules of the bus' sent out by my girl Vanessa! good call Vane!

We arrive driving over the spectacular Verrazzano Bridge at Fort Wadsworth Park to massive amounts of people walking around, laying on garbage bags, stretching, trying to keep warm and speaking so many different languages, I never have experienced such a scene. It was like organized chaos. From our walk from the bus to the Team for Kids tent, my nerves were getting the best of me - but in a good way! With excitement building, we all found a nice semi-drier non-muddy spot to lay out our garbage bags and relax for a bit before it was time to head to the start.

Finally... the anticipation of getting to the start is finally a reality!! at 9:20 am, we walk over to stretch and then to drop off our bags to be brought to the finish at the UPS trucks. at 9:40, the corrals open for the 10am start. Anxiously, I walk over with Jesse and a group lead by Coach Glen. We walk into the back of the Blue Corral and slowly make our way to the start while slowly stripping off my layers of sweats, tee shirts, and hat. Crossing the starting line while hearing Frank Sinatra's New York, New York puts such a huge smile on everyones face! Onto the Verrazano Bridge we go! Jesse and I only had strategy for the first 2-3 miles believe it or not! We both agreed that if we hold back on those first initial miles, we were in the clear for the remainder of our journey. So, crossing the start, we take in the views and the headwind of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge and make our way into the streets of Brooklyn. Adrenaline pumping, we scope for the photographers and make sure we are in eyesight of getting our photos shot!

Running through the streets of Brooklyn and Queeens, I noticed so many details I would have never seen if I weren't on foot. The differences in neighborhoods - from the storefronts, buildings, size of streets, the people, the sounds and the culture. Its incredible! I never spent much time in Brooklyn or Queens so the excitement I was filled with was only heightened by the people cheering my name and pushing me along was incredible!

This brings me to the hardest part of the race - the Queensboro Bridge. Knowing I have ran this bridge not once, but twice helped me through my rough patch. Approaching the bridge, the crowds seemed to dissipate a bit and then we hit the bridge. It was the quietest part of the whole race. All Jesse and I had to do was make it up and over the bridge, and then we would have the roar of the 1st Avenue crowds to carry the next few miles. Queensboro bridge was dark, cold, and windy. By the time we were on the decline of the bridge, we began to anticipate the noise... down the ramp and rounding around to 1st Ave was AWESOME!! there were crowds 10 people deep; shoulder to shoulder screaming and cheering! OMG! Yes, I did get choked up a bit - no tears - but close! Down First Ave, Jesse and I had our eyes peeled for her roommate, my friends and our families. I cant believe all the spectators! I was in awe at how many people were out on the streets partying it up while 42,000 runners pounded the pavement! Surprisingly, I saw so many more familiar faces than I thought I would! Jess, Jared and Brian were the first crew of people I saw coming down First. Not even knowing they were there, I hear this familiar voice start screaming my name. It was Jess as I quickly ran past. I turned around to see if that was her, and quicky pulled U-turn to go over and say hi! Seeing them made my day! They came from Jersey and CT to see me for all of 30 seconds, now those are friends! Thanks guys for making the hike and fighting off the crowds!!

Continuing down First, Jesse saw her roommate and her friends, I saw more friends and slowly became concerned that I wasnt going to find my family and Whitney. I told them to be on the left West side of the Ave and to be in the 80's... as the 80's were ending, and I got to 90th Street, I can see these absurdly bright green signs with my name on it, and I knew I found them! Arms up in the air, yelling and screaming I went diving into them!!! I couldnt believe how many of them came! Dad, Brandon, Unkie, Bernadette, Cousin Gene and Lydia, and of course - my bestest - Whitney!!! Bearing powergels, water and mini milky ways, they quickly tried rushing me down the road... after hugs and kisses and thank you's, I took off down First.

The crowds started dissipating after that, and then I saw to my surprise, Maggie! She was volunteering at the 96th Street fluid station! My other running chica! Due to her stress fracture, she couldnt run... I cant believe she is so dedicated to New York Road Runners! She still volunteered her time! Thanks for the agua Mags!

At the Willis Avenue bridge, it seemed as if tons of runners "hit the wall". People were stopping dead in their tracks bottle-necking the traffic behind them. I had to bob and weave through the crowds from the Willis Avenue bridge through the Bronx and over the Madison Avenue bridge. This was my strongest part of the race, so it was hard to keep momentum up when people were stopping left and right. Running into Harlem, I find Coach Asteria. She runs with me for about a block, hands me a tablet of electrolytes and tells me to take it with water. Apprehensively, I hold onto it until I find Coach Sid! Gotta love Sid! Seriously, he is the biggest motivator on the course! Smile from ear to ear, he gives me a high five, asks me how I feel and tells me Im doing great! He tells me, to keep up the pace, I look strong and not to run with anyone else the rest of the race, I have it from here. He leaves me to go find others, and I take off! Down Fifth Avenue, I run into Dimitri... he's walking... the workhorse is walking. I of course get concerned, try some words of encouragement and then see the pain in his face. He turns to me and says, "I cant, it hurts so much!" Of course I dont want to leave him in so much pain, but he pushes me along, telling me not to stop because he is. Even though, I hate to see a teammate in pain and alone, I continue on my journey.

at 110th street, I know where I am - that constant 1-mile incline to 90th street. I think to myself, I have done this before, I have been told how to run it, JUST DO IT!. I put my head down, shorten my stride and pound it out! 96th, 95th, 94th thinking - when is this going to end??? I see the turn into the park! I am almost there! Done! Finally!!! The last toughest part of the race is done!!! Into the park through Columbus Circle and up to Tavern on the Green - Thats it, thats all I had left! The crowds are about 8 people deep now, cheering us on! Signs reading beers are less than 2 miles away, signs saying why quit now?

Going through the park and into Columbus Circle, I was a mess. My emotions were on such a roller coaster! My mind was mush and it was teetering from bizarre thoughts of Am I really doing this right now is this a dream, to Am I going to make it, to do I feel my toes or am I just imagining that they are numb? It was weird. So weird. I was laughing and crying all at once. And then I see the fountain in Columbus circle and see the sign that the finish is about 500 meters away and it seemed as if all that crazy thought seemed to disappear! I see the finish and the smile on my face couldnt be any bigger! I put my arms in the air and cross!!! Instantly, I break down into tears! (oh, and PS. I am crying right now writing this - re-living that moment, INCREDIBLE!!) I couldnt believe I had accomplished something so big, something so real, something that I never would have ever imagined doing! The sense of accomplishment and self revelation was so overwhelming, I just cried and cried (with a huge smile on my face of course!) I am handed a medal, then a blanket, then a bag of food. I find my way to Cherry Hill where my coaches and teammates re-group post-race. Everyone with smiles on their faces and blankets wrapped around them we congratualte eachother and share our times, stories and of course snap a few photos!

Post-race tent is a bit of a blur. I cant really tell you much about that. So, I exited the park to find my family and came across a woman who looked so tired and confused. She couldnt find her husband. With her voice shaking and cracking, she asks if she could borrow my cell phone, and of course I let her. She was so worked up, she couldnt even dial the numbers, so I dial for her and hand her the phone. She instantly starts crying when she finds out where he is and says, "Ok wait for me dont move, Ill be right there". She hangs up and starts thanking me a 100 times over. I of course start crying again because I dont know what I would have done if that was me - no cell phone and couldnt find my family. As I reunite with the fam, they hug me and congratulate me and cant tell me enough how proud they are of me! And of course, my big italian family - all they want to do is feed me!

A few photo snpas after, the clan takes the adventure with me all the way back to my apartment. They sit and relax for a bit while I take a bath full of Ice. That ice bath was probably the best thing ever! my legs felt like Jello and I knew they would be killing me on Monday, so I toughed it out for as long as I could. The numbness was painful pleasure!

So, after I finally got myself together, I sat and chatted the afternoon away. Shared my roller coaster ride of emotions, thanked everyone, viewed the pictures they took and of course they had to make sure I ate and drank to replenish myself! shortly after, they left and Brandon and I started drinking beers watching football. Yes, an ideal sunday afterall.. little 26.2 mile run, food, beers and football!!! Thanks Bran for sticking around!!!

Trying to be the CHAMP that I am, Jackie Brandon and I ventured to our post-marathon gathering at Slate. Dazzled with our bling-bling medals, fellow TFK'ers and I took shots of what other than, Patron (Bitches!) and toasted to our accomplishments. A couple of celebratory cocktails later, everyone's high came crashing down... The tiredness sank in and I called it a night...

November 1st, 2009 will go down in Blondie history as her single most remembered day of her life! Thank you all of my supporters! Thank you everyone who donated, thank you for all the good lucks and thank you thank you thank you for following me though this journey!

In the beginning of all of this, I mentioned I would be tracking my efforts on my first marathon journey - well its not going to end here! I am doing this again! My next goal - QUALIFY FOR BOSTON! I dont know if it will be a 2010 show, but it will definitely be a 2011 event!

Official finish time: 3:53:10

Official NYTimes finisher: 12,041

peace out!

-Lee

xoxo

Marathon tid-bits and facts

its winding down... days left... lets count Today - 1, Saturday - 2 ... Then the BIG DAY!

2 DAYS PEOPLE! holy cow! Since my last 2 days will be consisting of marathon everything whether its eating habits and foods, clothes, articles read, movies seen, thoughts in my mind, everything I talk about, events that I go to, shopping and stores.. marathon, marathon, marathon!

While browsing the internet, once again today veering toward marathon-related anything, I stumble across an article on MSNBC about 5 tips for marathon runners... READ IT--its good info for my cheering squad! its a really old article, but it definitely gives good advice

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15547368

check out this article in The New York Times... great advice, and quotes 2 of my TFK coaches!!

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/29/the-best-marathon-advice-youll-ever-get/

Did you know!!?? Dunkin donuts has a Marathon Donut? well go figure... "America Runs on Dunkin" how funny is that!!

This years marathon is the 40th Anniversary of the New York City marathon.


The first marathon was in central park in 1970 and consisted of 127 runners of which only 55 finished.


This year, an expected 42,000 runners are participating with an approximate 5 million spectators throughout the 5 boros.

Its supposedly the biggest sporting event in the world!

Check out Raul's article in The Daily News... So great to have his accomplishments quoted, he deserves it! Hey Papo - all you know how to do is drink Patron!?!?

http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/2009/10/29/2009-10-29_three_new_yorkers_running_new_york_city_marathon_for_more_than_just_bragging_rig.html




2 days!!! Ill see you all out there, right!!!??

Official BIB # 39615

Check it out folks! my Race day BIB # is 39615

General Start # 2 - start time 10:00 am

Since the majority of you can not be here to cheer me on, I wanted to give you some logistics for race day. Below is my projected marathon pace and finish

Please follow me through this journey, you can track me using the following alerts:

Athlete alert provided by Time Warner Cable. Follow the link below:

http://www.ingnycmarathon.com/athlete_alert.htm

The other option is Athlete Race Tracker, which is a website that is only available on race day, while the race is in progress. You don’t have to sign up for it. go to : http://www.ingnycmarathon.org/

For my Cheer Squad, I have a few rules for you:

1) I need to see you more than once

2) Give me lots of words of encouragement - even if I look like I want to stop

3) I want to see posters and signs

4) Water/Gatorade and or PowerGels are welcomed!

5) You must come meet me at the finish

... and last but not least

6) Have fun! Enjoy this day as much as I am!!

oh

and 7) have a drink for me during the parties!!!

So from all the hoopla I hear about marathon day, these are the recommendations given for good Spectator locations:

Manhattan, East Side, First Avenue: First Avenue might be the craziest, most crowded place to watch the race -- the sidewalks can be packed more than eight people deep. The runners are 16 miles into their race at this point and appreciate the roar of the crowd as they come off the Queensboro Bridge. (At First Avenue and 59th Street, Food Emporium will be sampling food and beverages from Emerald Nuts, New York Apple, and Poland Spring, while Clear Channel Radio will have a DJ playing tunes. At 96th Street, you can be part of the T-Mobile Thumbathon and race against other "thumbs" to see who texts the fastest for a chance to win a Blackberry. At 119th Street and First Avenue, BP will set up an Invigorate Station with giveaways and photo opportunities.)

First Avenue is one of the best places to see runners twice: You can see them run up First Avenue, then walk west and see the runners on Central Park South or, if you're farther north, on Fifth Avenue above 90th Street. Harlem: On race day, the sidewalks on Fifth Avenue between 135th Street and 110th Street are filled with people coming from church, going to brunch, and cheering for runners. Some gospel bands play live on the course (look at 135th, 125, and 117 streets). Marcus Garvey Park, between 120th and 124th Streets, is a leafy respite with bleachers set up for spectators.Manhattan, East Side, Fifth Avenue: Emerald Nuts, a marathon sponsor, is marking Mile 21.2 with a sampling and interactive photo opportunity for spectators. The runners stay on Fifth Avenue and run along Central Park until 90th Street, where they turn in.

Central Park: Central Park is an ideal place to watch the race; just be aware that moving around the park can be difficult on race day. Good spots include: Park Drive between 90th and 86th Streets; Park Drive below 72nd is often more crowded. You can cross the park on either the 85th Street or 65th Street transverse roads. You cannot cross Park Drive, but you can go under it: Try the arches at 80th Street, 73rd Street, 67th Street, and 62nd Street.

Central Park South: This part of the course can be crowded; spectators might find it easier to access the south side of the street than the north side. Look for Continental Airline's entertainment zone at Columbus Circle, where the course turns into the park for the final time. Street teams will also be handing out Emerald Nuts on Central Park South.

There are a few strategies you can attack to see me more than once. So, see below my pretty pictures of the Subways along the marathon route and some strategies.

Strategy # 1 :
- Take the R Train to any stop in Brooklyn along 4th Avenue (station #'s 3 - 11):
- 77th Street - 45th Street - Prospect Ave.
- Bay Ridge Ave - 36th Street - 4th Ave/9th Street
- 59th Street - 25th Street - Pacific Street
This allows you to view the runners between miles 3 and 8, but note that until mile 8, runners wearing orange
bibs will be on the left side of the road and all others on the right side.
- Take the R Train back into Manhattan to station #22 (Lexington Ave/59th Street)
- Walk East to 1st Avenue and view the runners between miles 16 and 17
- Walk West to Central Park to see runners complete mile 25

Strategy # 2:
- Take the R Train to any stop in Brooklyn along 4th Avenue (station #'s 3 - 11):
- 77th Street - 45th Street - Prospect Ave.
- Bay Ridge Ave - 36th Street - 4th Ave/9th Street
- 59th Street - 25th Street - Pacific Street
This allows you to view the runners between miles 3 and 8, but note that until mile 8, runners wearing orange
bibs will be on the left side of the road and all others on the right side.
- Take the R Train back into Manhattan to station #22 (Lexington Ave/59th Street) and transfer to the 6 Uptown
train to stations #26-28 (96th, 103rd, or 110th Street).
- Walk East to 1st Avenue and view the runners between miles 18 and 19
- Walk West to Central Park to see runners at around mile 23

Strategy # 3:
- Take the R Train to any stop in Brooklyn along 4th Avenue (station #'s 3 - 11):
- 77th Street - 45th Street - Prospect Ave.
- Bay Ridge Ave - 36th Street - 4th Ave/9th Street
- 59th Street - 25th Street - Pacific Street
This allows you to view the runners between miles 3 and 8, but note that until mile 8, runners wearing orange
bibs will be on the left side of the road and all others on the right side.
- Take the R Train back into Manhattan to station #40 (57th Street/7th Avenue)
- Walk North to Central Park South to see runners between miles 25 and 26

Also, Team for Kids has organized cheering zones if you want to hit those up:

Brooklyn (Just before Mile 8) – 4th Avenue at the corner of Pacific Street, 1 block from Atlantic Avenue and Flatbush Avenue. The cheering station entrance is near the N, R train on the Southeast corner, by P.C. Richard. Take the D, M, N, R to Pacific Street. Staff: Eugene Johnson. Please arrive by 10:15 am to cheer Team for Kids runners; come earlier (8:45 am) to see elite athletes race by the station. (according to my pacing sheet, I should be at this point 11:15’ish)

Queens (Just before Mile 15) – The foot of the Queensboro Bridge at Crescent Street and Queens Bridge Plaza South. Take the 7, N or W to Queensboro Plaza or the E, R, V to Queens Plaza. Staff: Lyncia Beggs. Please arrive by 10:45 am to cheer Team for Kids runners; come earlier (9:10 am) to see elite athletes race by the station. (according to my pacing sheet, I should be at this point around 12:20’ish)

Bronx (About Mile 20.5) –Graham Triangle–138th Street and 3rd Avenue. Take the 6 to 138th Street and 3rd Avenue or take the 4, 5 to 138th Street and Grand Concourse. Staff: Barton Adams. Please arrive by 11:30 am to cheer Team for Kids runners; come earlier (9:30 am) to see elite athletes race by the station. (according to my pacing sheet, I should be at this point 1:05’ish)Harlem (Mile 22) – Marcus Garvey Park (West 122nd Street and Mount Morris Park West). Take the 2, 3 to 125th Street and Malcolm X Boulevard/Lenox Avenue or take the 4, 5, 6 to 125th Street and Lexington Avenue. Staff: Nakia Alston. Please arrive by 11:30 am to cheer Team for Kids runners; come earlier (9:30 am) to see elite athletes race by the station. (according to my pacing sheet, I should be at this point around 1:20’ish)

If I stick to my guns, my competitive nature, and my goal, I should cross the GLORIOUS FINISH at Taveron the green around 2:00pm!!!

after crossing that finish, getting wrapped in my blanket and given my medal, I will be escorted over to Cherry Hill where we have a VIP TFK spot in the park. Please come celebrate with me there!! I want to see everyone who came out to support me!!!

OMG!! SO CLOSE I CAN TASTE IT!!! see you all on Sunday!!!!!!!!

xoxoxo

Lee

ONE WEEK!

I CANT BELIEVE IT!! exactly one week from today, I will have ran 26.2 miles through all 5 Boro's of New York City! From the Verrazano Bridge, through Brooklyn, Queens, over the Queensboro Bridge, into Manhattan and down First Avenue, over the Willis Ave Bridge into the Bronx, over the Madison Ave Bridge back into Manhattan, through Harlem, down Fifth Avenue, into Central Park, through Columbus Circle and back into the Park to Tavern on the Green. Holy Cow! Instead of just some distant vision, its actually here!

Today, we had the Poland Spring Marathon Kickoff 5 mile run. It was a little fun run that kicks off Marathon week. The excitement in the air is unbelievable!! Since Marathon Sunday is the day after Halloween this year, the majority of the team decided we would have a pseudo-Halloween today in celebration of our huge dedication and ambition to finishing the race next sunday. So, the 80's were in full effect! Jem and the Holograms were out in Central Park! and, damn!! we looked good, LOL! Stephanie was Jem, Jackie, Vanessa and I were the Holograms and Carly and Ally were the Misfits.

Okay, Okay, I know your dying to know where we found all of this ridiculous stuff we are wearing right!!?? Well... we ventured it up to Washington Heights, 181st Street. and man oh man, they have some awesome food! What was meant to be a snack because little old blondie, aka, me... was starving... wound up being quite the meal all for $30 bucks!! total for the 3 of us!!! mmm.. a little culture, delish!

How can I forget... Union Square has all of the Asics Marathon advertisements posted! Jackie, my awesome roommate, remembered her camera yesterday and we took pictures of every ad in the subway station.

Every time I see those ads, I get this overwhelming excitement. I love them! Okay, Im obsessed...

I still cant believe it, if I have said it once, I've said it a hundred times... I cant believe the marathon is almost here. This week is going to fly by. Im so excited, words cant explain!!!

I have enjoyed this experience so much, Im scared for November 2nd. I dont want it to end...

Mission this week: 1) dont get sick 2) dont get sick 3) aviod injury 4)enjoy all the marathon week events 5) dont get sick 6) carbo-load... aaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!!!! =)

I know I owe you my Bib # and race info, I promise... this week! I will have maps and everything of the course...

xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Blondie (since that seems to be the adopted name my TFK'ers have given me)

12 days... thats less than 2 weeks!

Time is flying folks! The days are getting shorter and the marathon is creeping up quickly and I still have so much to do to get ready for the big day! I think I might need to make a life-sized poster list of all the things I still need to do. Ahh! the excitement and the anxiety of getting ready for the big day!

Things to do still...

• Find a pair of tights that I am 100% sure I want to run in. (returned about 5 pairs in the past month).
• Decide what shirt I am going to wear under my racing singlet.
• Put my name on my singlet
• Buy gloves
• Buy my marathon day throw away clothes. - yes I say buy because I cant part with any of my sweats!
• Make plans for my Dad, Brother and Crew to come in and cheer me on.
• Decide if my new shoes are broken in or if I'm going to run in my old ones...
• 2 more physical therapy appointments
• RSVP to after marathon events
• RSVP for pre-marathon events
• Pick up race day package
• Relax
• Sleep

Im drawing a blank now, but there are definitely a bunch of things I think of sporatically throughout the day, and in the back of my mind I say, "Oh I cant forget about that..."

Saturday we had our official last run of the season. I cant believe it! unbelievable! No more early Saturday morning runs. What am I going to do on friday nights now? No lasagna dinners? no 10pm bed time? Okay, its not over yet... I still have 2 weeks before I can worry about that. Saturday was bitter bitter cold! It was by far my worst run this year. It hurt and I couldnt get warm. I had on my warm weather running gear and the chill in my body did not go away. I pray that marathon Sunday is not that cold. What happened to fall? Oh, Fall!! PLease come back!! at least for 11/1!!! I do not like the cold. I have great confidence in completing my first marathon, but the cold is my one element that will hold me back from having a great run! My body can not relax and loosen up when it is cold so I am asking all of you to pray, pray that marathon Sunday will be a great weather day for running... upper 50's, lower 60's no rain!!!

Are you just as excited as I am!!!!???