New York City Marathon Goals

This journey started a year ago. I watched the 2010 NYC Marathon on television, just like I'd watched for the past several years. I run a marathon every other year and 2011 was a marathon year, so I thought, why not run NYC? I figured I'd eventually want to run it, and since it takes applying 3 times before you're guaranteed entry, I thought it was a good time to start to apply. I was pretty psyched about it on Marathon Monday when I first applied. I had my photo taken by one of my co-workers holding a Miller Lite, since that was one of the scavenger hunt items that day.

Marathon Monday, November 2010

But, they only chose 50 people for guaranteed entry on Marathon Monday and I wasn't one of them. Still, I had applied and I began to wonder if I'd get in. I knew that I probably would not get in. My odds were somewhere around 1 in 10 of getting in, and few people make it on their first try.

I started investigating other races, and finally settled on either the Wineglass or Columbus Marathons as backups for if I did not get into New York. In fact, I was more excited about the possibility of running either of those marathons that I was about New York.

And then, on April 27, I miraculously made it into the race.  Panic ensued! I wasn't prepared to get in!

Well, 6 months later, I'm fully trained and ready. I'm overwhelmed by what a big deal this race is. I don't think I ever truly realized the size and scope of this race until the last few months. It's crazy! I'm still nervous about the start line, but at least the weather is looking awesome (Low of 42, high of 55, Sunny).

So, what are my goals?  I mean, obviously I want to have a great, happy race and feel comfortable. But, I do have a time goal.

*Drum Roll*
My previous PR for a marathon is from the Walt Disney World Marathon 2010, where I ran a 5:52. I would like to blow that out of the water with a "Shoot for" goal of 5:30 and a "Settle For" goal of anything 5:51 or better. I'd be totally thrilled with anything in the 5:30-5:40 range, and I think it's achievable.

Obviously, beyond that, I want to finish in one piece and hopefully see some of my spectators on the course. This will be the longest race that I've ever completed without someone to run with for at least part of the race. Until now, the farthest I've run in a race alone is about 16 miles. I'm trying not to think about that part because there isn't much I can do about it.

So, off I go to the Big Apple! I am doing my best to blog, but watch Twitter if you want to see the most current updates.


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