Race 4: A very delayed report of a very long race

2012 NYC Marathon medal with the
2012 NYC 60K finisher plaque.

I was in Central Park the morning of Saturday, November the 17th to end an eventful Fall running season with the newly renamed NYRR NYC 60K. It was Knickerbocker 60K before.

A regular NYRR race is capped at around 4000 runners, but the 60K accepts only 500. Still, in previous years there used to be room until race day. I guess it is hard to find 500 people willing to run 9 laps around Central Park on a cold November day, even in a running-crazed town like NYC. Not so much this year though. The race was sold out before November 17th.

I picked up my number and made my way into the Park through the Engineer's Gate. After waiting in the port-a-potty line for about 10-15 minutes I finally dared to take off my warm clothes, check my bag and line up at the start. While joking with the other runners about the freezing weather ("It is only in your head!"), I saw a smallish blond lady make her way through the group: Mary Wittenberg. The CEO of NYRR was on her morning run and as it is her habit, she was wishing good luck to the starters. She is definitely having a tough time right now. I hope she knows how much the NY running community appreciates her work.

Minutes from the start I noticed a gentleman behind me. He was telling running stories to his two friends. Running stories from the times of the marathons in the Bronx, when NYRR was only a tiny group of crazies. I didn't know who he was, but I decided to stay near them. Later, one of his ultrarunner friends (I am sorry I couldn't catch your name, if you are reading this please let me know!) told me that the gentleman was actually Dave Obelkevich, the last remaining NYC Marathon streaker! Without knowing, I was running with true NYC Marathon royalty. They were going a bit fast for me; but hey, when you are running with a legend and listening to stories about Ted Corbitt, Joan Benoit Samuelson and the Comrades marathon (a must-run race according to Mr. Obelkevich) you can't complain about fatigue! In addition to Dave, I also got valuable tips from his friend, who had run three 100-milers, last one a few weeks before this race.

Unfortunately, I had to separate from them after the third lap to get my bag and supplies. I didn't ask Courtney to crew for me this time. Just like I was carrying running fatigue from the Run Anyway NYC Marathon two weeks before, Courtney was carrying crew fatigue.

On lap 4 Ashley and her friend joined me for a while. I was starting to pay for my earlier pace and lack of eating at this point. I tried to run with them a bit, but I had to walk the hills. After they left I was clearly bonking. The rest of the race was a struggle, with more and more walking. I kept eating to no avail. I kept joking with the volunteers and fellow runners here and there to keep my mind occupied. Courtney came with much needed coffee at lap 8.

I finished at 7:32. 17 minutes slower than my time last year. I don't think the reason was the fatigue from the Marathon. I should have done a better job eating. Moving into ultras that is definitely my biggest challenge. You can get through a marathon eating gels and drinking Gatorade, but it just doesn't work beyond that.

I unfortunately couldn't walk home after this race. I had a nasty blister under my foot, which made me limp for a few days and caused some stress on my leg later on. Still, I am glad to report that I have finished the season without an injury. Two weeks after the race I am ready to go again.

On that note, I have picked my next race and signed up for it. I will be running the Bear Mountain North Face Endurance Challenge in May. I was going to do the 50-miler, but then I read about how technical the trail is and backed down to marathon distance. It still entails 4000 feet of climb and descent on a technical trail and it will surely be a challenge. Training starts this weekend!