#INGNYCM 2013

I FINALLY got to experience my first ever marathon, and boy was it amazing.  The day was full of anxiety, and I'm not even talking about the runners, ha!  I was determined to see my friends run at multiple points of the marathon.  It was important for me to let them know that they were not alone.  Yes, I know, there are 50,000 runners, how could they possibly be alone?  But there's something about watching someone go through glory and pain in training and watching everything come to fruition.  I also wanted to see the physical journey of what it looks like to be running at mile 8 compared to the end.  It definitely was a huge difference.  It was one of the most beautiful sights I have seen in a while.  Plus, the swarms of people running was incredibly inspirational.

I headed out the door with a bag in hand that included water, gatorade, a home made trail mix bag, my phone/camera, and my two signs.  I also had these pace tats a friend gave me, they were hardly seen but made me ponder about getting a forearm tattoo! lol

I started off at mile 8 near the Atlantic terminal mall.  

It was incredibly crowded!  Luckily, spectators were coming quickly in and out so I was able to get a good spot.  Not so luckily, I got to see my friends but they didn't see me!  Which was incredibly frustrating.  The runners looked great though.  Everyone was still fresh and definitely filled with happy energy.  I even saw people dressed in funny costumes, it was hilarious.  But, I dashed off to my second destination which was in Manhattan near 60th st.  I hustled over there and literally only stood there for MAYBE 3 minutes.  There were SO many people, and the interchanging of spectators was not happening like it was in Brooklyn.  Like, at all.  I realized with my short and injured stature that there was no way I was going to be able to see anyone I knew.  So I decided to book it to destination #3.

The Boogie Down Bronx Baby!

It was fascinating how abandoned my poor little borough was.  Seriously people, the Bronx ain't that bad!  What was great though was that there was plenty of room for me to show off one of my signs!

I was also able to scream to my loudest desires and actually be heard by some of the runners.  I made some runners laugh.  A lady and I started breaking out into very loud (and off-key) rendition of Journey's "Don't Stop Believing."  We were calling out people's names if they had them on their shirts, or their country if they were wearing flags.  And I saw one person carrying a Uruguayan flag!  Representing my people! YAYAH!  I only got to see one of my friends, but it was still an amazing experience.  I had one last effort to make sure I made some kind of eye contact before the finish line, so I headed to my FINAL DESTINATION:

Mile 24 in Central Park

It was here that you could definitely tell the difference between the experienced, amateurs, and total newbies.  Some people were smooth sailing while others were looking a little rough.  Nevertheless, they were all chugging along with the upmost determination.  It was so frikkin' inspiring.  It was weird to be so inspired by so many people who I knew nothing about.  They definitely gave me a hope and strength that I need right now.  And it was at this point that all my hard work of traveling around the city, hobbling my butt to see folks, paid off.  My journey was complete!  

I didn't bother going to the finish line because it felt like it would just be too crazy.  But I hung out in the park for about another hour.  I sat on a bench, letting my leg/ankle rest, and enjoyed the music of screams, cheers, tears, and more.  It was beautiful.  

This was definitely a once in a  lifetime experience for me.  I met so many people and made new friends.  Even people who didn't even know that there was a marathon going on started talking to me on the train.  There was just something in the air that made me feel extra connected to people that day.  One of the many reasons why I love running; the positive energy that allows you to share something greater than yourself with other people. And getting to see everyone running made me that much more excited for my chance at running the race.  At the moment it looks like I won't be running until 2015 due to my injury.  Although I have entered a sweepstakes AND I plan on entering the lottery when it opens up, so maybe I'll get lucky.  Until then, I will continue supporting and cheering on my fellow runners in the hopes that they will get to return the favor some day.  And on that note, I leave you with the following partial status update that a friend of mine put on Facebook on marathon day.  It's nice to know that my cheer section is already building.  :-)