Sorry it has been a while… I have so much to share. The main purpose of this blog is to share my running experience as a newbie, running thru pregnancy and the bounce back. So in order to catch up to date, the following blog may seem a little rushed. I am trying to close up 2012 quickly so I can share 2013’s experiences.  PRs, Ultrathons, Half Irons and running pregnant! Patience…

Last time I checked in, I had completed my very first half marathon and was ready to take on the world… otherwise known as 26.2. The NYC Marathon was my new obsession! I had the determination, I just needed help getting there. Cue Stephanie.

Steph and I have been friends since the first grade which pretty much makes her my sister, so I really trusted her wisdom when it came to almost anything. She is also a NYC Marathon Veteran which was the added bonus!

First things first- Get In! Well now how on earth am I going to run a race I cannot qualify for?

There are 3 ways to get entry to the NYCM. 1: Qualify (yea OK! next) 2: 9+1 (9 NYRR Races and 1 Volunteer) or 3: Charity.

The rule for 2012 with 9+1 entry was that the 9+1 needed to be fulfilled during 2011. Considering it was July 2012, for me, charity was it.

Team for Kids

These neon green, singlet wearing, running enthusiasts were all about the kids. Keeping them off the streets, keeping up with their nutrition and give these inner city kids something to look up to. Who doesn’t love that! I signed up right away! I pledged the minimum amount of $2620- You are responsible to pay the remainder of the funds not raised by October 5th.  I personally was not in the financial position to be responsible for much more then $1500.  Which meant my butt had to get to fundraising just as much as it needed to seriously hit the pavement.

So as a new member of the NYRR and TFK, I did what any newbie runner would do, sign up for ALL the races and email my ENTIRE address book for donations!

Not knowing at the time,  the ins and outs of the 9 +1 rule, I assumed if i completed 9 races before 2013, I’d have entry to the ING Marathon 2013… however, because I wasn’t a member since January 2012, it didn’t work out that way.. but I didn’t actually understand this until December of 2012. So as for marathon 2013 entry it got me no where but in retrospect, all these races improved my pace and built my confidence as a runner.

Anyway…

My race calendar didn’t start until August, and because of my work schedule, I couldn’t take advantage of the best TFK perk- their group training sessions, so I had to follow the week/mile plan on my own thru the summer. Tuesday and Thursday I still trained with Nike run club and Friday, I would do a quick 3 mile loop of my town. Saturdays I would set out for a ‘long’ run.

The photos below are from the 2012 Races I completed just before the NYC Marathon

 

Photo: NFL Back to Football Run. Me, Pete, Iva (childhood pal too!)

 

Suds and Sun 5k- Me and Meli

NYRR 5th Avenue Mile- I am in the nude shirt… actual mile was 7:24, not bad for a newbie!

NYRR 5 Borough Series, Bronx 10M: Gianna, Me and Steph

ING Marathon Tune-Up 18M- Longest run ever!

NYC Runs Narrows Half: Gianna & Me- First Half Under 2H… 1:58

NYRR 5 Borough Series, Staten Island Half- PR 1:57

Grete’s Great Gallop- Worst Half Ever- Day of my 22M

Don’t forget to volunteer! My +1

 

You would think training for a marathon would keep me busy enough, but no, I thru 2  more  Tough Mudders into the mix to switch it up a bit. The team and I headed to Vermont, Mount Snow to be exact, in July and Monmouth NJ, that October for my DIRTY 30! I love muddy adventures! We squeezed in a Color Run Brooklyn too!

Photo(s) Below- TM Vermont July 2012

 

Photo(s) Below- Color Run Brooklyn August 2012

Photo Below- TM NJ My Dirty 30

OK back to Marathon mode…

Week after week I followed my plan… but it got a little boring. Time to find new recruits… Stephanie already had entry, but she was very fast so I couldn’t train too much with her. Cue Emilie! Yes, based on my powers of persuasion, Emilie was now a member of the TFK too!

We trained all summer! and come August it hit us- we have 2 months to raise all this cash! So we did what any girl in the city would do- throw a happy hour! We  turned to good’ol facebook and created an event- The Run Of Our Lives. We raised about $1000 dollars that night and we $500 closer to our goal then we were just a few hours prior.

 

Run of Our Lives Happy Hour

Me & Emillie- Tickets for the Raffles anyone?!

Me & Stephanie- Largest Dirty Martini Ever!!!!

Us again!!

So here we are, still reaching out to our entire address book, outlooking the whole office and now it’s the end of August and all these races I signed up for are approaching. Just got to keep on truckin!

Run All the Races and Raise All the Funds! lol As shown earlier- a photo from each race prior to the thon!

And that is just what we did! Come October 5th, we had raised our goals, earned out neon green singlets and reached some pretty amazing running milestones.

I have to shout out my friend Gianna here. She was (and still is) a member of NYRR and ran most of these races with me. I have to thank a lot of my speed progression to her. She ran ALL the miles with me, including my first ever 22 miler. Which, I may add- she wasn’t even marathon training! Girl is die hard! Love her to bits!

Fast Forward to October 28 2012- The Poland Spring ING Marathon Kick Off. The NYRR race that opened up Marathon week in NYC. It was also the weekend the tri-state area got confirmation Hurricane Sandy was indefinitely going to make landfall. Fingers were crossed that we would have a similar experience to that of Hurricane Irene the year prior.

Poland Spring Marathon Kick Off- Game Face

As I explained earlier, I hadn’t trained with TFK, so it was great to finally meet the group that day. Our team members consisted of newbies, elite, local, and international runners. I will never forget that day. The crowds, the smiling faces, the marathon jitters and the swirling of the fall leaves. The temperature was in the 50s, no humidity but the wind whistled. It was kind of spooky but great to run in. After the race I bit farewell to the team and was looking forward to reuniting with them next week for the big day.

TFK- Class of 2012

That night I headed to Staten Island to my aunts house. She was throwing a little Halloween cocktail party. Of course, me, being the lover of all souls day, was the only one who dressed up. It was a great night. lots of laughter and lots of wine. Then I went home and waited for this storm to hit land. The next day was long and oddly calm. Some strong winds and just rainy. Seemed like Sandy was going to be just like hurricane Irene after all.

Night before the storm… Cedar Grove Beach Staten Island

So i thought.