I spoke about the Bronx 10-miler a little bit in my
previous post, but let’s talk about it some more, shall we?
Packet pick-up on Saturday at NYRR was easy breezy as
usual and I just love me a small women’s tech shirt! The Bronx 10-miler shirts
were pretty snazzy- I like the deep maroon color, it’s different. But SO many
people wore them to the race. What’s with that? They also threw a Gu in the
packet- with caffeine! Perfect, considering that’s what I plan on fueling with during
my marathon.
I went to bed fairly early Saturday night and was up
bright and early to foam roll and stretch. I pinned my bib on, and threw a
throw-away long sleeve shirt on over my tank top. I didn’t feel like freezing
all morning. I ate half a banana and some dry cereal and headed to meet friends
from November Project at the subway. As usual on a race morning, the subway was
crawling with runners. We accidentally got onto a 6 train instead of a 4,
waited 15 minutes at 125th Street, but eventually, made it to Yankee
Stadium. It was a quick walk to race day central where we jumped in the pretty
massive porta potty line.
I had really overdressed with the long sleeves- it was a
pretty hot and muggy morning and luckily a friend was checking a bag so I threw
mine in there and didn’t have to toss it in the garbage.
New on my radar? Energybits. Has anyone else tried them?
I think I need to give them a whirl.
Anyway, as I said before, this race was really just about
practicing running through the aid stations and drinking water for me. As
usual, I hated the weaving in and out of people at the start of the race- I’m
really hoping my marathon is less crowded. The first 4 miles were on the
highway, 1 or 2 hills but nothing crazy. My calves were tight and my shins were
hurting but, like I do, I ignored it.
When I came up on the first mile marker and aid station,
I grabbed a cup of water, went to take a sip and immediately started coughing
and choking. OK. This was going to be fun.
Second mile went better because I saw the people around me bending their cups into a funnel and that made drinking a lot easier. Throughout the race, I stopped at all but one aid station. Around mile 5 my stomach started sloshing around because it was filled pretty much with all water. Time to practice nutrition!
I had brought a “That’s It” bar with me and nommed on
that slowly for about a mile. The consistency was fine for chewing although it
still messed my breathing up a little. I definitely think I’m going to stick
with GUs for the race on Sunday.
The course from miles 4-7 were through a park and was
kind of a weird loop thing that was clearly just to make the mileage. I never
felt like the course really cleared up all that much, which was frustrating.
I thought I was going a lot faster than I apparently was,
which was also frustrating! But I know that was probably due to stopping 9
times for water. Around mile 8 my legs were finally numb/not in pain anymore
and I hit a nice pace that felt good. Then, I was crossing the finish line and
Coach John was there for a high five which was great!
I got my medal, an apple, a banana, a sparkling water,
and a bag of pretzels. Ate the apple, saved the rest for my stockpile at the
apartment. I caught up with Laura, Patrick and some other NPers and we headed
back to the subway.
I liked this race because it was easy to get to, easy to
get home from. The weather was absolutely beautiful. Wasn’t a fan that it was
so crowded, had long bathroom lines, and the volunteers at the aid stations
weren’t the greatest. Overall, it was a race I would definitely consider doing
again next year- I like the 10 mile distance and it wasn’t too hilly.
Finish: 1:23:56
