Category Archives: All

154: Grete’s Great Gallop 10k – 37:51

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Friday.

What better way to plan for a fast 10k than to go out to a cabaret the night before?

One of my athlete’s and now long time friend, Nelson Aspen, was having a performance at the Green Room 42 at 7PM and I wouldn’t miss it. I had an extra ticket and had offered it up to his friend Vicki who had just landed from LA. Her and I grabbed a drink and headed into the show.

His performance, as always, did not disappoint! After the show we all met up in the hotel bar for an after party. I got to meet the ABC7 News Team who had attended. I was sad to see that Amy (Freeze) whom I already know as she is a runner didn’t make it.

I was home by 9 to make myself a cozy oil and garlic pasta dinner to fuel up for the race. Goodnight Moon.

Saturday.

I was up at 7 and out the door by 7:30 for an easy jaunt down to the start in south east corner of The Park.

I did not run into any friends in my Corral and so just did my thing and bopped around to my music. Soon enough the gun went off and we were cruising.

Mile 1 we were in a fairly tight pack and I was analyzing my body. Did I feel loose? Yes. Any pain? No. Did I feel fast? I did. My pace clicked off at a 6:12.

Mile 2 I decided to pick it up a bit and start having fun, passing people and pushing the pain threshold. I couldn’t help but notice how gorgeous it was out. My pace clicked off at a 5:57. Mile 3 I slowed to a 6:12 as we had to tackle the notorious Harlem Hill.

By now I was running in a flying V formation with 2 other guys. One was named ‘Johnny’ who had quite a few local friends yelling hi. I was a bit jealous… where were my peeps today!? We were doing a really solid job of working together as a pack. After we crested Harlem Hill I moved ahead of them and lead us for the next mile while they tucked in behind me. Mile 4 was a 6:18, which I wasn’t pleased by.

With two to go I pushed it hard again. I lost my guys and was pretty much running solo coming into the lower half of The Park. Mile 5… 6:02. I told myself ‘Just hang on a bit longer.’ as my body was burning up.

Then up ahead, I saw my friend Emily! She’s a super speedy runner friend that I had trained with and got to know earlier in the summer as we had similar paces. She is aiming to break 3 in NYC in 2 weeks and I think she’s got it covered. She has also recently asked me to pace her in the race which I’m super excited about and very honored to do! Anyway, I cruised up along side of her and we chatted for a hot second before I pushed on.

I blasted up 72nd and finished in 37:51 (Mile 6 was a 5:59).

I was really happy with my performance. It wasn’t a PR but one of my top 3 finishes in a 10k and mind you, those other top finishes were in my younger days!

On Heart Rate.

An interesting thing I noticed (for the first time ever) when analyzing my HR was that it didn’t spike until Mile 2! Totally wild right. My engine needed to warm up?

Saturday Post Race.

After cleaning up after the race I headed over to Third Avenue Ale house with my book to grab some lunch. It’s always super chill and the bartender Chloe is a big reader too so we can chat books.

That night I travelled off the island all the way to Brooklyn to my cousin Morgan’s apartment warming party.

It chalked up to a pretty dope Saturday.

153: Mightyman Montauk Half Ironman – 5:25:08

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The season closer, which was ironically my season opener, was a race ‘The Dad Posse’ and I decided to race based on a night of drinks out in Midtown after work. Most of my most epic races have been chosen during a beautifully inspired happy hour.

To Train, or not to Train… that is the Question.

You may have noticed a huge gap in my writing even though I was participating in races. There have been some big life changes and I honestly just haven’t been inspired to write. But life thrives with struggle, and as this Half Ironman neared execution date I needed to get my head back in the game.

I did two 50+ rides with my Ironman training partner Dougie Dee a few weeks prior to the race and did one open water swim at ‘Super Secret Tri Training Camp’ (aka Aunt Margie and Uncle John’s lake). These were the only cycle rides and swim I had done in a year… so I was basically relying on my running skills to get me through the race.

To the End of the Earth

Jim and I (Ed and Mike couldn’t make the race) headed out on Saturday morning. It was a gorgeous day for a drive and we kinda just took our time getting out to Montauk, which ended up being around 3 hours.

To those of you who understand what ‘The Hamptons’ are… go 15 miles past them to the last town on Long Island and you get to a beautiful place called Montauk. Old salty sea dogs and surfers alike populate this earthy beach haven where there is no judgment. Jim and I immediately loved the place.

We checked into our motel and walked the 1/16th of a mile to Transition to check in. Whoa race morning was be gonna easy.

The Point Bar & Grill

Have you ever walked into a bar and felt totally welcome and at ease? Welcome to The Point. Dark with slender windows designed in the 50’s around a brick structure, the bar was primarily old wood from a different era. Everyone knew everyone and I wanted to be those people.

Jim and I posted up, grabbed some beer and ordered our late lunch. I chose the catch of the day blackened… when in Rome. Soon enough, Mike, the older salty dog to our left started talking to us. “You guys Coast Guard?” Holy shit did he just make my day. I looked at Jim and said, “He thinks we’re Coast Guard! Do we look like Coast Guard?” We corrected him and explained that we were here for the triathlon. He wanted to buy us some beers but it was gorgeous out so we left. We would return in time…

The Ocean

We hung out on the beach for a few hours catching up on life which was cool. It was a different kind of beach hang. It was Fall beach, the kind of beach you needed a sweatshirt for, and it was nice.

Pre Race Dinner?

We hit up Montauk Brewery for pre dinner drinks and then landed at Montauk Circle Burger for dinner. Both of us had not trained and were taking this race very light heartedly. So yea, no huge pasta dinner. (Beer is a carb.)

Showtime Bitches

Jim was up at 4:30 and I was up and ready to roll by 5:30. Transition was already open and the swim waves started at 6:50… we were right on time.

We met our new friend Rob (also staying in the motel) and rode over to the start in the deep, dark and spooky fog. It was amazing, especially since the temperatures were hovering in the 55-60 degree range. Lost in the darkness and feeling extremely relaxed I did what I have done time and time again in triathlons. I was setting up my transition area and taking it all in. It can have a very eerie silence to it, all the athletes internally contemplating their day.

Me? I don’t know… let’s go have some fun chasing each other.

Coffee contemplation.

Into the Soup

I was in Wave 1 which started 10 minutes late. I waded out with my peers and was pretty damn excited about digging into this cushy clean lake. Our turn buoy, the furthest out, looked very daunting as far as distance goes. I fist bumped a few strangers (now friends?) and after wishing them well on their journey plunged into the liquid fun.

The first half of my swim was so relaxing. I thought about so many things and solved so many of my problems. Being in a swim is like a deprivation chamber, just you and your thoughts. I was focused on my form (since it had been a year) and was making nice headway.

Then, we turned around and eventually hit the back of the pack Olympic and Sprint swimmers… like a traffic jam. Now, I’m not a great swimmer as far as speed is concerned, but I can get kicked in the face have my head thrust down and manage just fine. These guys were all over and totally throwing off my game. In their defense, there were a lot of first time triathletes out there, which I highly support, but they were fucking up my cadence.

Ride Your Bike

Off into the oblivion that was the bike course I felt pretty damn good. I was wearing my Italian Torbole bike jersey because my Iron buddy Dougie Dee was doing a bike race simultaneously. We both got the same jerseys in Italy so it’s meaningful to me.

The Half Iron folk had to do two loops of this course while the Olympic people were doing one. I had a nice crowd as we cruised out on the empty highway. Then, we hit this big ass hill. It wasn’t as long as State Line Hill (if ya know it) but it was more condensed.

I found this guy I was calling ’61’ (since that was his age as marked on his calf). I had my age printed on my calf too. We leapfrogged most of the way for the next 10 miles which turned into a lot of fun. And… he was super badass. Like, if I make it to 61 this is the kind of athlete I want to be.

We passed Montauk Point and headed back east. Then, we turned kind of up north, east to another point. Both lookouts were super cool and in my head I was like “I’m coming here before we leave to check it out.”

’61’ left me as I had to do the turn around to do the whole freaking bike course over again. I gotta tell you, a point to point course is so much better than a looped one. It’s so mentally challenging.

Loop Two… Where is everyone?

As I made the U-Turn I immediately noticed I was by myself. A few things run through your head… am I back of the pack? Is this the wrong course? Am I in the front leading?

I was hoping for the latter so I started riding hard with my head down. I was enjoying myself but fatigue was clearly setting in. “Do a systems check Baker.” This is where I do a once over on all body parts and try to figure out what is slowing me down or causing my body to fail. I started slowly eating bits of a Cliff Bar, immediately noticing a difference. I also started taking salt tablets every hour. Life and energy was being restored, hope renewed.

I certainly had major ups and downs on loop two, especially since I was riding by myself most of the time. I tried to keep my spirits up and stay focused on the end game. My bike pace did pick up on certain stretches, so much that I zoned out and was just cutting through space and time in a daze. I finished in 2:50 with a 20 mph average speed.

Running is so fun

I came in hard to transition. Like, I skidded. Then, I popped out of the zone.

In T2 Jim was waiting for me as he raced the Olympic and had already finished. I was secretly very jealous. He hung out while I was changing and asked how I was doing, he had a great race and I told him I’d be done in an hour thirty. As I hit the course and started running I was like ‘That’s probably not gonna happen.’

The first hill was so cute. I thought that was the hill everyone was talking about and was like ‘seriously’?

I was also chugging along and my splits started coming in… 7:30’s! My standard issue for triathlons which made me happy. Sometimes in a triathlon you feel as if you are moving very very slowly, so to have some statistics come in that say otherwise can be up-lifting.

Somewhere around Mile 2 we took a left turn into a neighborhood. ‘The Neighborhood of the Biggest Hills Ever.’ Holy smokes, this one hill (and if you did the race you know what I’m talking about) came out of nowhere and was brutal. I started running up it then walked most of the way to the apex. I was looking forward to bombing down it on the return downhill.

The positive factor was that I was passing by lots of fun people who were receptive to my jovial positive reinforcement. Later, we would become friends. Oh, and it was crazy hot out, like 80, with occasional shade. If there wasn’t a gorgeous Montauk ocean breeze we all might be dead.

Things changed at Mile 5. This happens to me all the time, but normally around Mile 2. I cannot explain what went down, but I was watching my heart rate and trying to regulate it. Some new source of energy surged into me and the fatigue and pain I was feeling went away. People became targets and my pace quickened.

Halfway to enightenment

As I passed through the transition area, mile 6.5 or so, I knew I was half way done. I also knew that something was happening. I ran and I ran, in that odd place by the lake, knowing I would hang a left into the hilly neighborhood I now knew so well. My triathlon legs were gone and my runner body was here. I was in some sort of overdrive.

I ran (slowly up the hills) but kept momentum going. I saw all my old pals finishing who high fived me, competitors I would not beat as they were on fire and crushing it. I found myself running at a steady consistent pace hitting 7:30’s. In fact one spectator yelled at me ‘Nice cadence!’ An odd compliment in my head I was like ‘Cool, thanks.’

Exiting the neighborhood, we had 2 miles to go on the highway. If you wanted to talk to me about why endurance athletes can endure, I suppose I would say something like ’10 percent physical, 90 percent mental.’ That was what was going down in this moment… my mind and body were in total sync and in an unfaltering pace aimed for the finish. As I write this and reflect on it I realize that these moments are the most important in the sport. The mind and body working together in some sort of nirvana carrying you to the end. I honestly didn’t feel tired.

The Chapter Closes

During the entire race I often said to myself, especially in times of need, ‘This is what you live for. Do not wish for the end to come so soon, enjoy the moment.’

Unfortunately, the end did come and I welcomed it as the heat was getting to me. As I cruised to the finish my favorite spectator (who had been stationed all over and was great at well, spectating and getting me amped up) was by the finish. She gave me one final shout out as she left the scene waving goodbye.

I finished with a jump shot, an homage to my original coach, Coach Sonja, who taught me a lot. My run time was 1:40 flat.

Jim was there waiting and looking, might I add, super fresh. Very jealous! I accidentally had a non-alcoholic beer before collecting my things in transition. It was there I saw one of my competitors and now friend Baris. He happened to be across from me in transition and so we laughed a bit about the race. He is from Brooklyn! Hi neighbor.

Post Race

After cleaning up, Jim and I headed to the awards ceremony. I had won 2nd Place in my age group (26th overall), so I got a trophy! For those of you new to me… I am an artist. Growing up I did not participate in any sports at all. I started all of this nonsense when I was the ripe old age of thirty. Point being, I never won trophies, so it’s a big deal to me when I do.

After the awards we hit The Point for dinner. We were both pretty wiped out so we spent the rest of the night chilling out in our hotel.

Back to Mighty Manhattan

We were up pretty early, which meant one thing… coffee run to Sevs! (7-11… if ya don’t know, now ya know). I wanted to hit the lighthouse before leaving but Jim did not, so we parted ways.

I drove out to the tip of Long Island, the ‘End of the Earth’ as you might call it. It was remote, it was cold, rugged and so cool. I walked around a bit and watched the dedicated fishermen in the surf. It was truly another world out there and so very amazing to take in.

Go West

I had off of work, so I took my time headed back to the city. I stopped when I wanted to, making it a true road trip. I made it home by early afternoon and just like that… it was over.

In Summary

Since May I have been a walking mess. Often wondering about purpose and decisions, time and space, but mostly time. When you race for 5:25 hours you get to think about a lot of shit. I think I did most of my thinking in my total garbage 48 minute swim, finally clearing my mind. That left me open to actually compete in the bike and run and to take home a trophy after almost no training. Am I back? I think so. Battle Stations, Bitches.

RACE REPORT 147: Gothenburg Half Marathon – 1:26:40

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Sweden?

Abbe, Bojana, Brian, Susan and I decided to run a Half Marathon in Sweden. Why?

Months ago, we ended our lunch run at As Is in Hells Kitchen for lunch and a few drinks. The conversation turned to running at some point (obviously) and Bojana and Brian had said they were visiting our mutual friend Anders, a Stockholm native and running the Gothenburg Half. After a few quick airline searches we found out that we could get there for around $350 round trip. Game on.

Who is this ‘Anders’ guy?

Anders lived and worked in the States for 10 years or so, with the last stint being here in NYC. He worked with Bojana which is how we were introduced. He and I became fast friends. He is one of the few guy friends I have who run a similar pace as me, so we would go on these long runs and solve world problems. It was awesome. He and his wife Alena eventually moved back to Sweden.

Departure

I left work Thursday, unfortunately skipping my company kickball game, and made my way to JFK. I popped into the Alaska lounge for a few wines and some dinner (and plane spotting) before departing at 8PM. For the first time in a long time I slept the entire way to stop one, Iceland. If you have ever traveled to Europe you know how important it is to get sleep in along the way to adjust, otherwise you are a train wreck.

Alaska Lounge Planespotting

Reykjavik’s airport is one of the most amazingly designed airports I have ever seen. Dark, with great signage and seating that is so well thought out it should be in MoMa. I was impressed. I was also disappointed in my own country which often touts its greatness. This would be a theme throughout my trip.

The next leg of my trip was quick and I arrived in Stockholm around lunchtime. I jumped on the amazingly efficient and (again) well designed Arlanda Speed Train to Stockholm city center. It takes 18 minutes. Not 20, not 17 but 18 minutes. And of course there is free WiFi in every corner.

Hello Stockholm

Bojana and Brian were chilling out in a large park in the middle of the City Island of Stockholm. After a quick 20 minute walk I found them. It was 70 and sunny and we were all so thrilled to be there. This outdoor bar opened a few minutes after I arrived and we posted up. Shortly after Susan followed by Anders arrived.

We boarded the high speed train to Gothenburg at 5:30 to arrive at 8:30. Once again, we all had assigned seats and everything was so organized and civil. In our car we had free coffee, fruit, cookies and water in the front and guess what, there wasn’t a line of people taking everything. The train itself wasn’t fancy, but it was well designed with wood trim and folding things everywhere.

We had our fair share of train beers as we enjoyed the gorgeous and sunny ride through the country.

Gothenburg Pre Race

Our hotel was basically in the train station which would be very convenient the next day. We checked in then headed over to dinner at Taverna Averna, which was recommended by my friend Delia who lives in town. We split a bunch of pizzas and had a really fun time. The race was at 1PM the next day so we could cut loose a bit and not worry. I think we were in bed by 12.

Race Day

I woke up at 7AM being acclimated to the time difference but realized that we had nothing to do until around 10AM so I went back to sleep. I had some crazy dreams too.

Bojana, Brian and I had breakfast, showered (separately) and met Anders and his brother in the lobby before heading out to the Start. We took a tram which was packed with runners. This is the largest Half in Europe at 60,000 runners (10K-20K larger than the NYC Marathon for those not in the know) so the vibe was similar.

Interesting warm up…

The race festival area was bumpin! There were all kinds of warm ups happening and tons of runners. It was cool to see. Anders and I bid farewell to our friends as we started in Wave 1 and needed to get corralled. He and I did a half assed warm up run as it was so packed before saying goodbye. He was in Corral 2 and I was in Corral 1.

It was no different than any other race, lots of amped runners jumping around getting in the groove. I was all smiles. Would I race it? Would I just run it? I wanted to hit a time of roughly 1:25, I didn’t think anything faster possible as I had run the Eugene Marathon 3 weeks earlier. See how I feel is what I told myself.

Start

The gun went off and we hit the streets at a pretty good clip and in a very packed group. The streets were narrow. I also immediately said to myself, “Holy shit, it’s really hot and humid.”

Miles 1 and 2 were 6:25 and 6:14. We were going up and around this wooded park, which was nice but I think it was a steady uphill. It was here, out of nowhere I heard (in English) “Go Chris!” I turned and looked to see my friend Delia yelling and cheering me on! Here I am on the other side of the world and I find a familiar face… very cool.

No Hills

When we signed up for this race Anders had said it was a relatively flat course. Anders you are a liar. At the end of mile 3 as we exited this cute neighborhood we began a brutal leg burning ascent. I knew we had to get to the start of this big ass bridge, I just didn’t know it would be like this. Just as you thought it was over you took a turn and saw more uphill. Then, you saw the base of the bridge (like a big ass bridge like the Queensboro) looming with the apex out in the distance. By the time we got to the top I was really thinking I was having a heart attack. My pace was a 6:38.

Then, we bombed downhill to the base of the river on the other side. It was a relief and also fun but I was pretty spent. Miles 5-8 were along the waterfront going through various neighborhoods. The crowds never let up and there were loads of fun bands rocking out. I was hitting 6:30, 6:41, 6:37, 6:46 and was concerned with my pace as it was sporadic.

The Other (Better) Bridge

Mile 9 (6:51) had us going back over the river but on a way more manageable incline. I had like 30 minutes to go is what I was telling myself. Keep it together, no stopping.

The Straightaways

The rest of the race were on these really straight and narrow (narrow like 2 people wide) roads. I felt better but was still fatigued. The city now reminded me of Paris a bit, with its tree lined streets. People were out eating and drinking and watching us from all the cafes. Ah so jealous. Miles 10-12 were a 6:36, 7:03 and a 6:47… sporadic.

I think it was around mile 12 where I saw this gal and her husband jumping and waving madly at me. As I got closer and the haze and fatigue lifted I realized, ‘Whoa that’s Delia and her husband Johan!’ I high fived him and ‘kind of’ high fived Delia! Great to see them again!

The End

C’mon Mark!

I knew we finished on the track stadium so I held back a bit. Once we entered the stadium I knew this was the end and enjoyed my finish. I ran a 1:26:40 with a 6:38 overall pace which I am very happy with. It was a brutal course and it was hot humid as well.

After I finished I walked over to the grandstands to wait for my friends (that was our plan, which was flawless). Anders, followed by Susan, Bojana and Brian showed up and then we hit the tram back to our hotel. We were even able to shower in the hotel’s spa!

Classic Anders
The Battalion takes Sweden by storm!

Return to Stockholm

We waited for our train at a pub where we all housed some serious heavy foods to replace our lost Half Marathon calories. Then, we jumped the train back to Stockholm and had a repeat ride of the day before. Our conversation got so deep we even invented some new food concepts.

Train party

Arriving in Stockholm at 9:30PM we needed one thing… food. We popped into a ramen spot and then all went to our respective hotels to rest before the following days big tourist attractions.

Stockholm: Day 1

Once again I found myself eating breakfast with Bojana and Brian. We left to meet Susan for our Duckboat tour of Stockholm at 11. Have you ever been to Boston? Did you ride the Duckboats? Same thing. The tour was awesome and Max and his team were very funny. Guess what, America is the laughing stock of the world still… shocker. Remember when you could be proud to be American in foreign countries? Now I find myself keeping my identity a bit of a secret.

Next, we met Anders at the King’s Palace, had Fika (a coffee break) and then went on to our Segway tour!

No, this is not some freakish mug, it’s a panorama so I could capture all of it’s greatness.

It was raining so our guide Ryley insisted we wait a bit and have more coffee, which he personally brewed. None of us were willing to Segway in the rain, so yeah we will wait. 30 minutes later it was clear and we jumped on our rides. My Segway was named Caro, seriously, they had names.

He took us on a 2-2.5 hour tour of the bigger island, Soldermalm, which is supposed to be the cool place to hang out. The tour was great, very historic, and no one was maimed.

We hit up Akkurat for snacks and beers after. Then, we set off on a Stockholm sunset walking tour.

Anders used to live there so we hit a number of he and Alena’s local bars before ending at a super fun Thai restaurant.

After dinner, we navigated the Stockholm subway flawlessly to get us home. Bojana and I were very proud of ourselves.

Stockholm: Day 2

City Hall. Notice the Triple Crowns.

Susan and I went for a pretty cool run on Day 2. We followed the water similar to the route our Duckboat tour went. We then went up into the King’s old hunting island and ran along some pristine paths. She even taught me how she does her cool running ‘in action’ photos.

King’s Gate… entrance to the King’s private hunting grounds OR our running playground.

After a quick shower we were all at the Vasa Museum which ironically was 50 feet from where Susan and I turned around on our run. The Vasa was a heavily designed warship that was built in 1628 and sank 300M off the coast to be rediscovered in 1965. It was raised and restored and is 98 percent the real deal and trust me, it’s epic.

Upon entering and seeing this massive warship I was immediately reminded of Goonies, a movie I have seen hundreds of times. If you haven’t seen it please stop whatever you are doing and go watch this movie so I stop judging you.

Look at the detail and the craftsmanship that went into this thing. It is a functional piece of art.

Anders met us and then we went to see Alena, who is a chef at this dope restaurant in what one could only describe as Stockholm’s Central Park. It’s laid back though in a greenhouse and everything made there is grown in the surrounding gardens. I had a salad she had created as we all sat out in the beautiful sunny weather.

Post Lunch hedge maze!

The rest of the afternoon we spent sitting outside in various restaurants taking in the sun and the sights. Even though it was a Monday it seemed like most of Stockholm had the same idea.

Before dinner we signed up for a Stockholm Walking Ghost Tour. We started in Old CIty. Out of nowhere, this guy walks up in a cloak with a cane and begins this amazing adventure. It was funny and at times (like in the crypt) very scary.

Dinner was at a pizza place Anders recommended. It did not disappoint.

We said goodbye to Bojana and Brian as they were leaving at 7am and then we all dispersed to get some sleep.

Stockholm: The Finale

I woke up early and went for another run. My flight was at 1:50PM and the weather was 60 and sunny, spectacular… so let’s go see more Stockholm.

I mapped a solid 5 mile route that went through the Old City area and up into Soldermalm along the cliffs. I was feeling really great and knew I had all the time in the world, which helps. Up in the Soldermalm I found myself in some really steep hills that had cobblestones, double trouble. I was moving fast though and felt wickedly invincible almost gliding instead of running. Crossing the western bridge back to my island I noticed another small island with a park in it so I jumped out. I managed to find this sick vista where I captured this panorama view of the city.

Look at that monster hill!

Susan and I met in Old City and bounced to this coffee shop she had found. Anders met us there.

Our time was running out and I was dreading saying goodbye to my friend. He and Alena are having a child in 3 months, so it is up to me to visit again, which is very possible. Susan and I said our goodbyes then her and I made our way to the airport. Once there I posted up in another lounge with the thought that she could get in too, but she was in a different security class and had to stay at her gate.

Back to the USA

My flight back was great. I read, watched movies and reflected.

I crushed customs and was through in a record time of under 5 minutes.

Then, America happened. I used the bathroom in JFK and was like “What the F…” Americans are animals. Gross, filthy animals. No one respects their environment. How many times have you seen some punk throw trash on the subway tracks? Me, a lot. Until we care about where we live we won’t be able to enjoy a beautiful environment.

In Conclusion

Sweden Rocks! What a great trip this was… I will certainly be back!

RACE REPORT: 145 Eugene Marathon – 2:57:05

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Abbe and I grabbed a cab and headed to JFK on Thursday at 5:30AM. I was sleepy, but this getting up early for races thing has become the norm, so I wasn’t too out of sorts. I was teetering on that fine line of ‘Am I awake for good?’ or ‘Should I try and nap on the plane?’ I opted for the latter and passed on a coffee.

After a 60 minute snooze I felt fresh. I am reading three books for the first time since college and so I started bouncing between them. I am reading ‘Atonement’ for Book Club, ‘The King in Yellow’ which is super weird and I forgot why I even chose it and ‘Calypso,’ David Sedaris’s latest. (He is my favorite author).

Hello Portland!

A dear friend of mine from college days, Mikey, lives in Portland so we were very excited to spend some time with him. He picked us up and we set off for lunch.

Abbe’s friend Brad Farmerie (chef and owner of Saxon and Parole) had sent a very extensive list of places to eat. Since Abbe has a love of all things sandwiches we headed to Lardo. It did not disappoint! I might also note that it was gorgeous out… 75 and sunny, so sitting outside felt amazing.

We checked out Mikey’s place and chilled for a bit before headed to dinner at Xico. Susan and her brother Ryan joined us. After another amazing meal we jumped in the car and headed to Eugene.

Tracktown U.S.A.

As a runner, how could you not be excited to wake up in TrackTown USA? Bill Bowerman invented the waffle shoe here that would later become the sneaker that we now know and take for granted! He also cofounded Nike, you may have heard of them? And then there is the legendary PRE!

Anyway, we woke up and went for a walk to the stadium which was through Alton Baker Park across the street. As we exited and were on school grounds Abbe said, “Hey look, the track team!” It was a group of runners at first that then turned into a thousand. Then we realized, “Oh! It’s the 5K!” You chase two really fast runners wearing the Krusteaz Pancake outfits in the 5K and hope to beat them. Holy smokes it must be hot in those pancake suits while running a 5k, gross.

We eventually made our way down onto the field, like the actual football field, and were able to cheer on the finishers as they came in. Tomorrow we would be finishing the same, right on the 50 yard line!

Is this what it’s like to score a touchdown?

Did Someone Say Lunch?

We headed to the Tap and Growler for some some sandwiches to fuel up. My strategy the day of a race is to focus on proteins for lunch and carbs for dinner, so I had a pork burrito bowl. We were also taking it pretty light on beer and focusing on hydration.

Birds of Prey

Fun Fact: I love hawks and eagles and owls and anything that is a bad ass bird. Hummingbirds too. Did you know that Central Park’s Red Tailed Hawk population is booming? So I guess I’m a bird guy. We went to the Cascades Raptor Center to kill time and because, whoa, so many amazing creatures in one place!

It was on the side of a hill and had 25 small enclosures where the birds were kept. I at first got very sad seeing these majestic creatures penned up, but then upon further reading learned that all of them had been injured or basically could not survive in the wild. We even saw 3 Bald Eagles… what!?

Dinner was at Ciao Pizza Trattoria. We had planned it carefully weeks before after studying the menu. It was a family owned homemade pasta kinda spot. I opted for their version of linguine bolognese which has been my go-to pasta for the last few years. It didn’t disappoint one bit. Abbe, Susan and I were in bed by 9:30 with a 5AM wakeup call. Plenty of slumber time.

Strange Days

I had the wildest dreams I can remember in some time on this night. I only write this so I can reflect back. I was actually running a race of some distance, in and out of buildings, and kept getting sidetracked which for some reason didn’t stress me out. I was also talking to God, yes God, which is odd as I have spent 2 days in church ever. He (yes it was a he) was helping me dress and he was very relaxed. It was so weird and yet simultaneously cool, like hanging out with Prince. What does it all mean? Was it battle preparations for the next day?

Race Day!

We all woke around the same time. Getting older has one advantage, waking up early is getting easier. The temperature was 38 degrees and would climb to 50-55 at the end of the race. The ladies were wearing singlets but since I tend to run a bit cooler when I race I made a game time decision to switch to my long sleeve Battalion shirt. I had brought numerous options to choose from including rain gear because… always be prepared!

Our Lyft driver was great. She got us to where we needed to be and she was very calm about it all. Thank you. We scurried off in the cool morning air to hit baggage check and maybe a bathroom stop. Our timing could not have been more perfect. As we were exiting the stadium, goals accomplished, we had 5 minutes to game time. We said goodbye and popped into our respective corrals, ready to crush.

And so it begins…

The gun went off and we took off pretty quickly. I was right behind the 3 Hour pacer, which was perfect as my goal was to go just under 3, maintaining a 6:50ish pace as I had done in New York last Fall.

Sometimes you got it and sometimes you don’t. I tend to know within the first mile how my day is going to go. That doesn’t mean I won’t finish, it just means this thing is gonna be rough. Today I felt liquid, and I knew I had something in me. Mile 1 ticked off at a 6:56, which was a good warm up, but I needed slightly better if I was going to hit my goal.

As we entered Mile 2 I saw Mikey cheering on the right. We were running through the city, which consists of low lying buildings so the sun was just piercing the roadway. It was really pretty actually.

The next couple of miles were a series of straightaways through some fun neighborhoods. The crowds were very energetic and kept us moving. Miles 3-7 were under 6:50 by a few seconds.

We were now on an out-n-back section of straightaway that would conclude at Mile 10. It was really shady with shards of sunlight piercing through the trees to our left. Once we made the turnaround at Mile 7.5 we would be in full sunlight. I was plugging along pretty steadily.

The Decision

I was having a great race thus far and Mile 8 and 9 were a 6:38 and 6:39, which one would say is too fast for what I had been training for. When you train for a marathon, you are only as good as the conditions on race day allow you to be. You are at the mercy of the weather gods. Today, on this morning, the gods were with us. If there were any time to dial it up it would be when conditions were in your favor. I thought to myself, ‘You’re going a bit fast.’ and then looking around and taking it all in I thought, ‘Conditions this perfect only arise every few races, set it off.’ And so I did, all smiles. This is when I passed the 3 hour pace group.

At Mile 10 I saw, or rather heard Ryan yell “Go Chris!” I knew it was him as we had just met, and people I have just met call me by my first name only. Or, if it were a female voice it would have been my Mom.

The Halfway Point

On the Mile 12 straightaway I saw Mikey who gave me a solid high five AND shot this video. 6:41 pace. It was here I took my first gel.

I was very curious how the Half Marathon and Full Marathon breakaway point would look. Would I be all by myself? It’s hard to tell who is racing the Half versus the Full until you hit this moment.

At 13, we pulled hard left and some of the guys I had been racing with hung on. We had a solid 3-5 guys in race formation going hard as we entered this park/bike path area. It was my least favorite part of the course as it weaved along the river and offered no insight to who was overtaking you and it made footing a bit tedious. In times past when the 3 hour pacers pass me I tend to fail, so I was hyperconscious as to where they were and at Mile 14 they were on my ass!

I knew I had to keep my pace under 6:50 to avoid those punks, so I held to that, even though I was now in a bit of pain. My energy was great, but I was feeling it in my legs. 6:42, 6:47. 6:40 to the 17 Mile turnaround on the other side of the river.

I was looking across the river now, in case I saw Abbe. She never left me all day as I knew this was a bigger race for her as she has never qualified for the big show, Boston, and this was going to be her day for it. I didn’t see her, but conditions were favorable, so I was hopeful.

The Annoying Guy

From miles 10-19 I ran with this beefy annoying guy. When people would pass him he would look at them in anger, which is odd as a marathon is you versus you, unless you are an Olympian, which homeslice was not. He was doing this odd thing with me. Every time we hit an aid station my pace was consistent as I grabbed water and gatorade. He walked the aid stations to take in fluids. Then, 30 seconds later I heard this sporadic pitter patter of footfall as he caught up to me and then leveled off.

I knew he couldn’t keep these antics up, but I also didn’t care to ruin my own race. Until… this pack of young 20 somethings started cruising by in flying V formation and I decided to hang on. We clocked mile 19 at a 6:33 and it felt great. I never saw that guy again.

20 On…

Miles 20-22 were 6:45, 6:42 and 6:40. We were cruising in some shaded forest paths now and I knew I had this thing in the bag if I kept up and didn’t falter, which was of course possible in Miles 23-26. I didn’t see Mikey or Ryan and was wondering where Abbe was, hopeful she was having as good a day as I was.

Heatwave

Mile 23-24 was on the open field of Alton Baker Park and had no shade from the sun. I felt it immediately and my pace entered the 6:50-6:56 range, the slowest all day. I knew I had just a few miles to go and had created a solid buffer for my sub3 time, so i wasn’t very stressed. I thought about pouring water on my head at an aid station but was glad I didn’t as we finally reentered the shaded forest. I would have been chilled.

Right before Mile 25 I felt something odd. Fatigue in the way of energy, not leg power. I had one gel in my pocket and even though I had a mile to go I decided to take it. Did it help? Yes. A few moments later I had a slight sugar and salt energy surge, helping me push through.

Mile 26 was a 6:36 pace and I was reaching hard for that sub3, my mind was a mess. The clock said 2:51:xx and I had to get around the stupid stadium. It took forever! In reality it took 6 minutes.

The End

I turned and entered the stadium feeling like I was going to have a heart attack and saw the time, 2:57! I have in the past withheld emotion from my finishes, but have recently wanted to embrace it, and so I did.

As I crossed I threw up my arm and yelled “Hell Yea!” (not evident in the pictures) and then let forth a wave of excited screams. This was marathon number 20 and I had not only gone under 3, I had gone 2:57:05, my third best time ever at a 6:45 pace. After gathering my medal I stopped on the side of the field and looked around at it all and laughed a bit, tears in my eyes. You see, the glory of a marathon is fleeting and very personal. You must savor those seconds after it as they cannot be recreated, and so I did.

Abbe and Susan

I gathered my belongings from baggage and headed into the stadium where I soon found Mikey and Ryan on the 50 Yard line. I had a stream of texts coming in from the friends that were tracking me, thanks to you all! But where were Abbe and Susan?

Right on cue Susan showed at 3:32, nailing a BQ, followed by Abbe with a 3:34! I yelled my face off. I was so elated. Abbe has been chasing the Boston Qualifier for some time now and she had finally caught it. It was an epic day.

The five of us celebrated with beers once we all found each other. Basking in the warm sun, legs happy again, we had all achieved our very challenging goals and were all smiles.

After the Party it’s the Afterparty

We all went to lunch at the Bier Stein before heading back to Portland.

Dinner was at Pok Pok, the ultimate Thai restaurant. New Yorkers might know as we had a spot in Brooklyn that closed sadly. Not surprisingly, it was amazing… some of the best Thai food I have ever had without actually going to Thailand.

We hit Richmond Bar for one more drink before calling it.

After the Afterparty… it’s Monday

We had planned to have an entire day in Portland after the race. After sleeping in and like a thousand cups of coffee Abbe and I went to a Chinese Garden in the heart of Portland. It was really cool and very relaxing.

Once Susan joined us we went to Country Cat Kitchen for some heavy food to reload. I ordered the fried chicken because I love fried chicken and may even consider myself a slight connoisseur on the topic. I took a few bits of piece one (of two) and told Abbe it was a 9. I was in heaven. I was also taking my time so I could make sure this moment wouldn’t just slip by. By the time I had dialed into the second piece everything had settled and it was even better than the first. “Abbe, this is a 10.” Holy cow!

Next up we hit the Mississippi area for some bar hopping. Mikey and Susan’s friend Jason met us. We eventually arrived at Prost where another dear friend from college, Pete, was in wait! Man, it was good to have everyone back again telling old stories and laughing.

Reflection

We took a 6:20AM flight the next day. It was sad to see all that fun go by but it was time to return.

I (we) trained really hard on this one. I really enjoyed the ride and every one of those challenging runs. Especially the ‘Bridges’ long runs, and the feeling of getting one step closer to accomplishment after finishing them.

Marathon 20, you were awesome. You made me realize that age is just a number as I ran my 3rd best time ever at age 41. Running is hard if you let your mind get in the way.

Portland bitches, I love you! It’s great knowing we will always be friends.

And Abbe… YOU DID IT! XXOO

    RACE REPORT: 144 NYC Marathon 2:59:16

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    How do I even begin to explain the significance of this race? 

    10 years ago I was dared to run a marathon by the President of Rolex, Allen Brill (rest in peace). That single dare altered the course of my existence. I mean, I wasn’t stealing cars or on my way to prison, but this created new goals.

    Running and triathlon have changed my life for the better. Thanks to running I have countless friends pushing their boundaries in the sport. I coach numerous athletes who continue to impress me. Running… who knew?

    I’ve broken 3 hours three other times, but never in the four times I have ran the NYC Marathon. 

    Present Day…

    Abbe’s folks arrived Thursday and so we did what any logical New Yorker would do, we went gallery hopping in Chelsea. It was great as usual although I didn’t run into any old college friends which was odd.

    Friday after work we went to Reema’s birthday party in Cobble Hill at Black Forest. It was a great turn out finished with a pasta dinner (carb loading begins).

    Saturday

    It was cool and misty rainy day on Saturday. Good! Get it out of your system and let us run rain free please.

    Abbe and I made our way to Grand Army Plaza (in Manhattan) to cheer on our friends running in the Dash to the Finish 5K. I saw all of my friends and even got a high five from Bojana. Next up… bib pick up at the Javitz. 

    This would be marathon 19 and so I think Marathon Expos have gotten played out by now. I enter them as if it’s a Supermarket Sweep… “Where’s my Bib? Okay, got it. Next, the tee-shirt. Cool, thanks lady. Now get me the hell out of here!” 

    We had lunch with Abbe’s folks plus special guest star Brian H. at Randolph Beer off the Bowery. It was solid fuel. The rest of the afternoon was spent off our feet relaxing at the apartment before our 5:30PM dinner down the block at Paola’s. I opted for the bolognese which has been my pre-race go-to for like 3 years now. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. In bed by 10:30PM… 

    Race Day

    Why can’t all major races coincide with an event that gives you an extra hour of sleep? Thanks Daylight Savings! So we woke up at 5AM but it was really 6AM to our bodies… piece-o-cake. Abbe and I jetted out of the apartment at 5:45, caught a cab, picked up Meredith and were at the Staten Island Ferry by 6:15. We linked up with Brian and his friend from Germany, Jimmy. We were shooting for the 6:30 ferry but the 6:15 was loading and we had an opportunity to jump on so we did.

    I remember gazing out as the sun was coming up and thinking to myself, ‘The Gods are with us today.’

    It was a beautiful morning in the mid 40’s and sunny. The day was designed for running and we all felt it as the rising sun blasted into the ferry windows warming us like a beacon of hope.  

    Entering Fort Wadsworth we said goodbye to Brian and Jimmy as they were Blue Camp and we were Orange. Abbe and I applied sunscreen and ate our pre-race fuel. Mine consisted of 1 banana and some GENUCANN drink mix. I was ready to roll…

    After a hug and a kiss Abbe and I parted ways and entered our respective corrals. We had 30 minutes until showtime and I felt great. In my corral I was sipping my GENUCANN and having a fun time people watching. Then the guy next to me started asking questions about the race and you guessed it, we became friends. His name was also Chris. New York Chris meet London Chris.

    We had a gorgeous rendition of the National Anthem, I even said to London Chris “Wow, she is good.” Next, Peter Ciacia did his usual race instructions. I’d like to give a special shout out to Peter. Ever since I started racing in New York Peter has been the voice of the NYRR. Every race be it a 5K or a Marathon has been announced by him… “Lead vehicle, do I have clearance on the roadway?” We’re all gonna miss you Peter, happy retirement.

    The canon sounded and ‘New York, New York’ started pumping through the speakers. Showtime. 

    Wow, the Verrazano’s Narrows Bridge is long. Like, 2 miles long. I enjoy it though as all the early explorers like Hank Hudson came right under us through ‘The Narrows’ to discover mighty Manhattan. I tried to take it easy on the uphill and was doing a 7:04 pace, fine. Mile 2 on the other hand I was rocking a 6:12 which was kinda dumb.

    I hit Mile 3 in 6:31 which was also a bit too fast, but it felt fine on the legs. I had to pee so bad and in the past that it has destroyed my time so my mind was all over the place as on what to do. So I stopped, but it was gonna be quick, real quick! I was even counting out loud in the porto john… “29, 30, 31, fuck this is now too long.” 40 seconds and I was back on the streets, minor delay.

    I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Brooklyn brings a solid cheer game to the marathon. The bands were totally killing it! I was looking at the bands, grooving and nodding to them in appreciation.

    After my bathroom stop my paces started falling into place. I started to hover in the 6:45-6:50 range, which was what I needed to hit for my sub 3 hour race. I normally go out way hard knowing that I will fade out anyway, but my amazing wife Abbe convinced me otherwise. 

    At Mile 6 I heard, “GO BAKER!!!!!” and as I look across 4th Ave I see Steph and Matt6 cheering! (Great to see you both.)

    I was rotating between Gatorade and water every other aid station. I’ve done this many times and it reduces the possibility of getting cramps from ‘course Gatorade’ which can be too concentrated at times. 

    At Atlantic Avenue I was watching for a bunch of my cousins who live nearby, but that area is so chaotic I knew it might not happen. Blasting right onto Lafayette headed into Fort Greene I checked off ‘Sector One’ which to me is the 4th Avenue stretch. 

    Miles 8-13 are pretty tight as you wind from Fort Greene to Williamsburg to Greenpoint. I was still somehow holding onto my 6:45ish pace and feeling peppy. I was, however, starting to have those beginning doubts of making my sub3 time. I was having so much fun yelling at the cheering crowds that I told myself I would be okay with an over 3 hour finish, which was partially true. 

    To take my mind off things, like running, I waited until I saw a super lame quiet cheer squad and I would start this ‘underhand pitch’ move with my arms and yell, “BROOKLYN MAKE SOME NOISE!” After the initial reaction, which was fabulous, I started doing this a lot. In fact so much I was wondering if my fellow runners were getting annoyed with me. Like, ‘Who’s this guy, Mister Cheery McCheererson?’

    The stupid Pulaski Bridge reared it’s ugly head at Mile 13. It’s so bland. I knew I had cheer squad in Long Island City though so I kept things moving. Up ahead I noticed a familiar shirtless figure… it was my buddy Rowland! For those new to my really long and drawn out race reports, Rowland is a friend and a training partner. We run the same pace and often find ourselves side by side during marathons.

    I approached him and tried to be funny, just hanging to his left for a second, but he knew it was me. We chatted for a bit and he noted that he didn’t think he was going to break 3 at this point. In my head I was kind of thinking the same thing. My legs were starting to hurt (at Mile 13?) and I was doubting myself. I figured I would hang with Rowland and run with him, giving up on my sub3 attempt.

    Then, Long Island City happened. As we hit 48th Avenue or Street or whatever, LIC is confusing still, I saw Stephan, Amanda, Vivian, Silas, Leonora and Brad! Amanda was holding out a Redbull which I had requested and so I sped up and grabbed it, sloppily popping it open and chugging a few ounces. As I was rounding the corner I saw Carlos and Heath cheering me on as well! With this added cheer support I lunged ahead and was back on track. Mentally I was like ‘F-Yea, if I’m gonna go for this, let’s push it.’ And so I did.

    Miles 15 and 16 were a 7:01 and an 8:04 as it was the notorious Queensboro Bridge, which is a steady incline. This was not my first time dealing with this cold, gothic, lonely place… I knew exactly what to expect and how to deal with her. With my head looking into the distance I plugged along, slowing my heart-rate and pace so I didn’t blow up. I was amping myself up for the descent into mighty Manhattan, one of the pinnacle moments in the race. At the apex of the bridge I let out a yell of triumph, hoping to inspire some fellow runners, but all I received was silence. Was it something I said?

    The sound of Manhattan hits you as you are on the bridge making your way down. It’s like the roar of a football stadium, the sound of deafening white noise just waiting for you to arrive. It’s something so epic I will take it with me to the grave.

    Welcome to Manhattan.

    You are in the center of 1st Avenue, the Mayor of your own Parade and you can lose the run right here in this moment. Get too caught up in all of the excitement and you blow up, leaving nothing for Miles 20-26. And yet… you really need to soak this in and enjoy it as it’s one of the coolest experiences. I took my time and reeled it in a bit (I’ve blown up here in the past). My pace was still holding steady, and it surprised me.

    Thanks Jon!

    At 93rd Street I saw my Battalion cheer squad… Bobby C, Jill, Jon, Jenn, Kerryn, Cat, Morgan, Gillian, Phil, Bojana and Brian. Next, only a few blocks up I saw Kelly and Beth. Then, it was Bardy and Dana followed by Elizabeth and Juan! Go Upper East Side cheer squad! Great to see all of you.

    I really only had half a mile until I hit the Bronx after my last cheer patrol, not bad. Entering I knew Noah would be stalking me somewhere in the hood. Sure enough I saw him at like Mile 21. He chased after me insisting that I break 3 hours. Another huge boost and I was still in the 6:50 pace range.

    The day before the race Dougie Dee was texting me some positive vibes and he said something that stuck with me. ‘Coming back over the Madison Avenue Bridge I expect you to be on fire bro.’ Hell yea. I was on fire and I used my Brooklyn tactics to get Manhattan pumped. “Manhattan make some noise!” as I was bombing down the bridge. It felt great! 4 miles to go. 

    Rounding Marcus Garvey Park I got a huge salute from TMIRCE led by Chris Ho! Then, right after, I see the Gotham City Runners crew cheering me on as well! My pace was in check, but I was still uncertain about my final outcome. 

    As we neared The Park I knew I had the ever challenging 5th Ave to deal with. It’s a steady incline for around 1.5 miles, yeah it’s a delight. Just like the Queensboro the strategy is to slow down and keep it together. I was running on the far left ‘shaded’ side of 5th and everyone else was on the sunny side. Why?

    As we were hitting the top of the hill I saw Uncle Billy, all my cousins, Bojana, Brian, Jenn and many more high fiving me! It pushed my energy as I hit 90th Street and made my way into The Central Park.

    Entering The Park truly is like entering my backyard, I know every twist and turn, every landmark. It felt good is my point and I knew I had a few miles to go. As I rounded the turn by the Met hitting the Mile 24 marker with roughly 15 minutes to go I had a freak out moment. 6:50 pace doubled plus 0.2 miles (which is always annoying) would leave no room for error. I needed to dial it up.

    I made the decision to drop the hammer and set the course on fire. The sun was blinding and there were people cheering me on, but I don’t remember who as I was so laser focused. Mile 25 was a 6:43, not amazing, but also not slower than my overall pace. Right around Mile 25 I saw my friend Paddy (a fellow runner and theater actor) who jumped out at me on the course making sure I saw him.

    As I descended toward Central Park South I really pushed it. I’ve given a lot during a race before, but never at the end of a marathon, so this was new pain territory. I was on overdrive and passing runners left and right, I wanted this sub3, it was attainable, and I wasn’t going to let it slip away. I kept looking at my watch and as I crested 59th Street and turned into Central Park. I had just over 2 minutes to get to the Finish Line. I think the clock said 2:57:55… not a great time.

    With the flags of every international runner surrounding me, pushing me on, inspiring me, I ran so hard. I mean, I turned on some kind of fire that I had never tapped into before. I was totally having an out of body experience too, if that makes any sense. My legs were in such pain but my head and heart were fine and I had an amazing amount of energy. As I turned the bend coming in towards Tavern on the Green I couldn’t make out the clock time. I was confused but didn’t care, I pushed harder and harder and as I neared the Finish and the clock read 2:59:16… I had done it, sub3 in NYC. My final mile’s pace was a 6:15 and I was holding back tears. I laughed, “Ha! Yes!” as I kind of looked through everything happening around me and into some blurred reality.

    I walked on in a daze and then saw my other friends and training partners D and Brad! We took a few photos after high fiving and hugging, of course.

    After the Party it’s the Afterparty

    I walked the entire way back to The District on the Upper East. It’s a long story, my plan got sidetracked and I’ll tell you in person one day. I will say this though, I led a number of lost cheer squads over to the course to route on wives, moms and loved ones, so not all was lost.

    As I entered The District I was met with a roar of applause from the restaurant, led by my crew already present. I was home. There were so many friends and family there I can’t begin to name them all!

    Run squad

    I felt amazing, which isn’t always the case after a marathon. Trevor showed up followed by Abbe and Brian H. Then Brianna and Meredith arrived. Every time a runner entered we erupted in cheer! Man I love this day! Positivity gets injected into you from the time you wake up. We even have a few friends that are signing up to run the race for the first time… Mike! Christophe?

    Legs.

    Epic doesn’t even begin to describe the day. All of my friends had amazing races. Abbe ran her second fastest marathon! I’m personally still wrapping my head around everything that transpired.

    Thank you so much to all of my friends out there cheering. I relied on you this time and you came through like shining rays of light. This emphasizes what running is, we are one big family out to help push and support each other through our own goals and achievements. You make me proud. 

    And finally, on a personal note. I’ve been chasing the unobtainable sub3 in New York since I started running in 2008. I can tell you that I gave everything I had in this race, I wanted this so bad and pushed myself to pain thresholds I hadn’t experienced before. Our bodies can do so much more than we know, but our mind stops that from happening. Free your mind, make the impossible possible. I’ll be the first one on the sidelines cheering you on. – Baker out

    RACE REPORT: Brooklyn Half Marathon – 1:26:49

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    It’s always nice to get out of your own neighborhood to explore. I met my cousins Cat, Gillian and Morgan at Distilled for a pre-dinner drink the night before the Brooklyn Half Marathon. Winter seems to have finally left, so we sat outside and took in the sights and sounds of Tribeca. Off in the distance I see someone familiar… it’s my friend Maria leaving work! She comes up and high fives me and we got to catch up for a hot second.

    Our dinner was across the Street at Terre, a chill Italian spot. The food was really top notch! I had the Rigatoni (Danza) e Gamberi (spicy grilled shrimp, garlic and tomato) and I have been dreaming about it ever since. No visit to Tribeca is complete without a drink at Nancy Whiskey Pub so we popped in for one.

    RACE DAY

    I randomly woke up at 4:45 and since I was planning on waking at 5 I just stayed up. I prepped some Cafe Bustelo in a go cup, geared up and then called my friend Trevor like 2 or 3 times to wake him up. We were traveling to the start together and he warned me that he might sleep through his alarm. I donned my poncho and headed out into the rain. It was 5:20AM.

    We opted for a cab as we were running slightly off schedule. We arrived at the entrance to Wave 1 security right around 6. It was steadily raining and 50 degrees, but I felt great. We met two of Trevor’s friends up by our corrals and hung around until it was showtime. I also saw my friend Sebastien who was warming up, so I jumped in and did some easy running. Then, right before we were to enter the corrals I saw Evan and he gave me a bear hug. He said he was shooting for a 1:15. Spoiler alert, he ran a freaking 1:13 which is a monster PR and generally speaking just a great time!

    As we waited in the corrals a few of us that ran Boston were chuckling how these conditions pale in comparison. I was thrilled to be running in a warm spring rain! I also remember being very very calm right before the start, while others hopped around shivering. Was this running nirvana? Runirvana?

    The gun sounded and we were off to a pretty quick pace immediately, maybe 6:30ish. Half of a mile in a guy next to me says ‘Hey Baker, how are you?’ It was my friend Brad, a CPTC runner who I have done marathon training runs in Central Park with! We started running together chit chatting. A mutual friend and runner he coaches Patrick was up on the left and shouted a hello. He was aiming for a faster time then Brad and I so we let him slip away.

    We were pretty soaked by now, but it wasn’t too debilitating. In fact, I felt perfectly cooled as far as my core temperature was concerned.

    Brad and I were on the same page with tempo, we were going to hold down a 6:30 pace until we hit Ocean Parkway at mile 7 and then open it up if we felt good. At aid stations we were working together as well with only one of us going in for fuel and passing it off to the other. It’s a great teamwork strategy where you hardly slow down and can keep the focus on the pace. I felt good, but I definitely didn’t feel fast or fluid.

    We were still having fun as we entered Prospect Park and our pace was on track. I am happy to report that even on Prospect’s rough hill at mile 5 we held a 6:33 pace, pushing each other up the hill. It was right around here, as we crested that I heard a runner say, “Hey Baker!” It was Trevor!

    We rocked a 6:05 on Mile 7 as we were descending out of the park and onto Ocean Parkway. I was also frustrated as my shorts kept falling down due my drawstring not being tight. They were also water logged which wasn’t helping. I made the decision to say goodbye to Brad soon after to tie them as I couldn’t go another 6 miles like that.

    I pulled over and tied them super tight, there was no way I was pulling over again. Having lost 10-15 seconds, I took off again and got my pace back up. 2 minutes later my left shoe came untied! So Mile 8 was a 6:51.

    Soon I passed Trevor again who seemed quite confused to see me behind him.

    Miles 9-11 were pretty uneventful as I tried to maintain my slowing pace. I was now in the 6:40/45 range and my right hamstring was hurting.

    A few people we creeping up and passing me, one of which was a female who was crushing it. She put a solid 30 second gap between us at one point and then at Mile 11 I saw her on the sidelines bent over stretching. She looked frustrated. As I came by I said to her, “Come on, let’s go and finish this. You know you got it.” She popped up and started running. “Thanks man!”

    All of us were now doing a bit of leapfrogging as we were nearing the end. At Mile 12 I saw my friend D (Delgado) cheering!

    Mile 13 I dropped back down to a 6:30 pace and was feeling a bit more peppy. Then, at the turn onto the boardwalk I hear my name, my cousin-in-law Kelly was cheering! “Is Tommy running?!” I yelled (Tommy being my cousin). “Yes!”

    I finished with a 1:26:45, not by best and not my worst.

    After walking through the finish I beelined it over to baggage. The Brooklyn Half Marathon is notorious for bad bag check retrieval and I was getting cold. It did in fact take a solid 15 minutes for me to get my stuff even though there were maybe 10 people waiting at that point.

    Next up, Ruby’s for our afterparty.

    AFTER THE PARTY IT’S THE AFTERPARTY

    Ruby’s was actually moderately full with non-runners as I entered. I luckily found a table and posted up.

    Soon after D showed up and gave me a high five and hug. His friend Rashid from Cali was there with his girlfriend so we joined them. Rashid finished in like 1:17 or something sick! We also learned that Rashid and I both ran Paris the same year, him finishing in a 2:50 and me a 2:51! We HAD to have been running next to each other.

    Trevor showed up next followed by Bojana, Sweendawg and Brian. Tommy, Kelly and Fiona popped by for a little while too. Big ups to Tommy who rocked a 1:36 which is a solid 3 minute PR! Finally, Maura, Kate and some of the Gotham City Runners showed up to join us.

    It was great to see all my people out there. That’s one of the reasons I love the Brooklyn Half Marathon so much… and the afterparty is wild and stinky.

    RACE REPORT: 2018 Boston Marathon – 3:10:33

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    I have a love/hate relationship with running the Boston Marathon. I love the race, the vibes, how hard it is to gain entry and the entire race weekend. I hate that the last two times I ran it was 90 degrees and 80 degrees, making the experience a brutal one.

    The year 2018 marks my 10 year running anniversary so I thought it fitting to try and run Boston, the race of races. I fought very hard last April in the New Jersey Marathon and was able to qualify.

    DEPARTURE

    On Saturday, Abbe and I caught a 9AM train out of NYC that would get us into Boston just after 1PM. We love the train up to Boston as it’s really quite a relaxing way to get there.

    Although it was a gorgeous morning in NYC, it was freezing in Boston. We dropped our bags off at the hotel and made our way to the expo. It was a relatively painless process. At one point we were roaming around the expo and I turned to my left and Meb was standing right next to me! I yelled, “Abbe! Abbe! It’s Meb!” I mean, who doesn’t freak out when they see Meb? A minute later we were walking by two people and one of them says, “Who’s Meb?” C’mon people.

    That night we met Kerryn and Chandra for drinks at Stoddard’s before heading off to a delicious dinner at Townsman.

    Sunday morning Abbe and I met Jenn over in the Commons for a shakeout run. It was 32 degrees, windy, snowing, and April. My legs felt great and it’s always exciting to see all of the other runners getting in their shakeout. I put in just over 4 miles and was satisfied.

    We met cousin Greg over at Barking Crab for lunch, which has become a tradition. We had a blast catching up with him and gorging ourselves on tasty crab legs. After lunch Abbe and I spent most of the afternoon over in Copley Plaza searching for running gear for me. I neglected to bring a tight shell to wear as a base layer and with conditions getting worse for Monday I wanted to be prepared. We found a great Under Armor top that would turn out to be quite helpful. We also found a Boston Marathon branded running cap. My Ironman visor had almost blown off my head a number of times during the shakeout and I didn’t want to take any chances, especially in cold, windy rain.

    Pre-race dinner was held at Scampo, also a tradition. They have great food and a cool atmosphere. We were joined by Chandra and another friend who moved from NYC to Boston last year, Laura.

    As we sat down for dinner tonight I befriended an older couple next to us. They asked if I was running tomorrow. “Indeed! The weather looks horrible but I am still excited to run the race.” We laughed as I asked them, “So which one of you are running? Both?” They then explained that her sister, which was the man’s wife, was at Mass General next door and had Leukemia. They were here for her, not the race. I was immediately overwhelmed, especially as it hit home pretty hard as my father lost a battle with Lymphoma in a hospital not too dissimilar. Her name was Karen and they said she was excited to watch the race from her room. I told them, and I meant it, to tell her that I would be running the marathon for her.

    I turned back my dinner guests and tried my best to produce a positive non-teary smile. I had bolognese with spaghetti and it was perfect. It was really early when we left so Laura took us to this new tiki bar for a night cap. The place, Tiki Rock, was super cool.

    RACE DAY

    I woke up at 2AM and didn’t fall back asleep until 5, awesome. I used the bathroom around 4 and when I looked out the window I saw conditions resembling a winter hurricane… sideways rain with wind gusts and objects bouncing down the street… perfect running weather. It was still 32 degrees and I had a small moment there laying in bed where I was thinking about bailing.

    At 6AM I grabbed a coffee from the lobby. There were tons of runners in the most ridiculous outfits I have ever seen, it was great. It was a poncho party. After I geared up and said goodbye to Abbe I jumped in an Uber to go find my people.

    I dropped my gear off in bag check, not something I often do but with this weather a change of clothes is medically necessary. Then, I ran over to the bus pickup where I was meeting Rowland, D, Sophie, Jenn, and Erin. I located two of the three (plus Erin’s friend Kellen) and we got onto a bus. It was cold, windy and rainy, a theme that would be consistent throughout the day.

    Poncho Party!

    The four of us had fun on the bus and enjoyed the temporary warmth. Erin’s mom sent her to us with a box of plastic ‘food handling’ gloves. I put a pair on under two pairs of gloves. Spoiler Alert: My hands were warm and dry the entire marathon; THANKS MRS. KELLY YOU SAVED THE DAY! Our bus got lost by the Hopkington exit which concerned none of us because… more time in a warm bus. When we did exit the bus my optimism was crushed pretty hard by the sharpness of the weather. The school looked more like a hurricane evacuation center than a marathon base camp.

    Within 10 minutes they called Wave 1 to head to their corrals so I bid farewell to my friends (they were Wave 2) and made my way to the start. I made new friends with a group of Irish lads who were pretty fun. My knowledge of all things irish is pretty good these days thanks to our friends Maura and Sweendawg, so I had a lot to talk about.

    THE START

    I stopped at the last set of porta potties (along with like 900 others). Rowland and D found me as I was leaving and we ran to the start together. None of us were expecting great times so we just told each other to be safe and finish. I entered my corral with 5 minutes to spare. There were a lot of groups of international runners getting pumped up, chanting and jumping around so I did the same. The energy was picking up and I was now jazzed to run.

    My first two miles were right around 7 flat, perfect as I didn’t want to blow my quads. The weather was slightly less rainy and I was warming up and felt happy to be running. Unlike other Boston’s I was really taking in the crowds and focusing on the experience.

    At mile three or four is when the first torrential downpour started. The rain was coming at us in sheets head on, rock and roll. From that point on it was consistent storm conditions that would occasionally ease up for 5 minutes to a mere steady rain.

    Miles four to ten I was feeling good and enjoying the race a lot. Every time a downpour started I laughed out loud at the insanity of it all. My pace was still pretty consistent too with 6:55-7:05 splits which I was happy about. I certainly felt heavy though with my waterlogged shoes and heavy outfit.

    Speaking of which, for those interested (and for my future reference) let’s talk about what I was wearing.

    In order I had on:
    – Short sleeve Under Armor tech
    – Long sleeve tech
    – Adidas windbreaker
    – Grey hoodie throwaway
    – Grey sweatpants throwaway
    – Poncho
    – 2 pairs of gloves plus plastic insulation
    – A running hat plus winter cap

    At the start I ditched the poncho and sweatpants. At mile two I ditched the winter hat but kept the hoodie for the entire race. There were times when I unzipped it to see if I could manage but the cold would seep into my bones.

    Back to the race…

    For the first time I smiled and had a good time when passing the Wellesley girls. So many of them were out even though it was terrible weather.

    Right past the mile 14 marker I spotted my cousin Libby and my Aunt Jen and popped over for a hug and a photo! Getting to see them had kept me going for that first half of the race. It was around this point where I noticed my left quad hurting a bit. This wasn’t too surprising as the Boston course is known for destroying quads, I just didn’t know why my right one was not sore yet. My pace would also start to slow from this moment on to a 7:30/8:00 minute pace.

    At Mile 15 I saw a horrible runner crash. Up ahead I saw a guy stop right in the middle of the course. He had dropped his Gel and was attempting to pick it up. As he bend down his ass protruded and he basically hip checked another runner over top of him. The guy flew into the air and came down on the front side of his body and I think hit his face on the pavement. Medical people were close and rushed in thankfully.

    Next up… the Newton Hills!

    These begin with an uphill on Mile 16. There is a series of four big hills that end with Heartbreak Hill at Mile 21 and they are no joke. My legs were on fire when I hit the first one. It was here that I started thinking of Karen, who was hospitalized with leukemia at Mass General. This pain I feel is temporary, keep moving.

    Heartbreak Hill
    Heartbreak Hill – Photo credit Jenn’s Dad John. Thanks John!

    The wind was just so relentless. It really brought your pace down and used up more energy than could be afforded. I saw a friendly face at the bottom of Heartbreak Hill. Laura (or LVL) was cheering and yelled out to me! I dug in and made my way up the hill and accomplished my goal of not stopping or walking any part of it.

    My hands were still warm!

    As we descended down into Brookline I just took it step by step, mile by mile. By now the infamous Citgo sign was coming into view and I knew Abbe, Kerryn, Chandra and Jeri (a runner friend from the Dakotas who was in town to cheer) would be at Mile 25 in pink ponchos. They were so easy to spot! I ran over and high fived all of them before Abbe yelled at me, “Get moving!”

    Right after that I saw my friend Jacqueline cheering which also helped pushed my destroyed legs along!

    For the first time in my 3 years of running Boston I got a little teary eyed as I hit the ‘Right on Hereford’ and then the ‘Left on Boylston’ on my way to the finish. I really soaked it all in. (‘Soaked’ ha)

    I finished with an 8 minute course PR of 3:10:33.

    We were all shuffling like penguins thanks to Boston’s hooded space capes (which were really warm). Then, another downpour started and I laughed super hard turning to the guys to my right who in turn started cracking up. We were all in this together.

    Baggage check was a disaster. It took me 30 minutes to get my clothes in a jam packed area where no one could move. Once I did acquire my gear I went to the changing tent, which was another 30 minute wait, no thanks. I walked toward the exit area and in my head I was like ‘I can survive until I get to Brandy Pete’s for the after party and change there.’ Then, right before I was to exit I saw this lobby where a handful of runners were huddled in and changing, unchecked by lobby guard! A stranger helped me change my shoes as my hands were not working just yet.

    AFTER THE PARTY IT’S THE AFTERPARTY

    The 15 minute walk to Brandy Pete’s was pretty hard. My body temperature was definitely falling and I needed shelter. Upon arrival I took off my cloak and hat and made friends with the bartender Rachel, ordering a Guinness. I realized that my hands were trembling and I was stuttering my words. Right as my beer hit the bar Abbe, Kerryn, Chandra and Laura showed up and I was able to fully change into dry clothes. That’s the thing that was crazy. Mentally I was cold and I didn’t realize until I was changing that I was drenched head to toe even an hour after I had stopped running.

    LVL, Alex, and Chris Lopez showed up next. We were all waiting for Erin, or EK as she is known (an athlete I coach and an amazing coach herself) to show up. She arrived in good spirits within 30 minutes and we immediately chatted about the hurricane we just ran in. Next up Jenn, Lee and her Mom and Aunts and Cousin arrived. Jenn was happy to have finished her first Boston.

    After about an hour I felt back to my chatty normal self. I had some warm food in me which was doing it’s magic and all my friends were bobbing around having fun. Our friend Sophie was the last to show up. She went out with her folks after the run so she was a bit delayed.

    Our group finally called it at 7PM. We were headed to Woburn to hang out with Kerryn’s parents who had invited us to stay the night.

    After a quick (and amazing) hot shower at Janice and Marty’s place they took us to Sichuan Garden, a local favorite. It was such a great meal post race, hot (a keyword) and spicy!

    I woke up to sunshine and slow pace morning coffee and it was awesome. No running today? Fine by me.

    Kerryn, Chandra, Abbe and I had a quick lunch back in the city before catching a train home. Jenn and Lee found us and we had our traditional ‘party in the cafe car’ ride home.

    The End.

    FINAL THOUGHTS

    Big thanks to Janice and Marty for their wonderful hospitality Monday night!

    Big ups to our cheer squad, who also braved some serious conditions. I’m kind of glad I was running and not cheering.

    Congratulations to Desi and Yuki on their wins along with all the other Cinderella Story type finishes. It was such a wild race with incredible, unpredictable outcomes.

    And of course congratulations to all my friends and athletes who finished with fantastic times. We all had our individual struggles out there and yet we all finished, which is a win in those conditions. I’m still trying to wrap my mind around the rain and wind and how we didn’t all crumble and succumb to Mother Nature’s fury. I’m picturing that scene in Lord of the Rings where Gandalf is holding his staff up and yelling, “You shall not pass!”

    And finally, I hope Karen in Mass General enjoyed the show.

    RACE REPORT: 141 Tough Love VCTC Valentines Relay

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    One of the athletes I am coaching, Erin (who is also a coach), told me about this Valentines Day relay race in Van Cortlandt Park. Abbe and I immediately signed up with the team name ‘BakerBaker 2 by 4.’

    RACE DAY

    Abbe and I had also decided to run from our place on the Upper East Side to the race, which would be around 9-10 miles. Run your legs out before a race? Why not.

    After discussing the course we were to take she set off. I was running 10 minute late and would have to catch her.

    As I stepped outside I was like ‘Hey, it’s pretty nice out!’ It was a sunny morning hovering around 40 degrees, perfect running conditions. I stopped down at my local bodega and grabbed a banana to-go and then blasted off into The Central Park. I felt really good, very fluid. Knowing that Abbe had a 10 minute lead on me I booked it, hovering around a 7 minute pace.

    At the top of the Park I saw two familiar faces coming my way. It was Rowland and D getting in their long run! We high-fived and went our ways. We are all running Boston in a few weeks and will most likely run together ‘Flying V’ style. I’m very excited.

    I ran across 110th Street toward Riverside and couldn’t see Abbe. She had really put some ground between us. Therefore, instead of sticking to the plan (always stick to the plan) and enter at 108th street, I just went north anticipating a way to get into the park. It urns out that as you head north on Riverside Drive, you have very minimal and limited access points. After a quick phone call to Abbe I told her to keep going and I would find a way to get into the park further north. She was currently at 125th street.

    Barreling ahead, I found a set of stairs that would take me down toward Dinosaur BBQ and the running path, perfect! I was at 125th Street, so Abbe must only be 3-5 minutes ahead of me now. I took off, my Mile 5 split was like a 6:25, I was clearly in the hunt. As I got nearer to The Little Red Lighthouse I started thinking to myself, ‘I should have definitely caught up to her by now. Oh snap, what is she is behind me and this whole time I had been putting more distance between us.’

    That’s exactly what happened.

    I stopped and ran back a bit and waited, finally she came around the corner. We gave each other a huge hug and then went along on our way. I also had breakfast (the banana I had been carrying).

    At the end of Riverside, just past the Cloisters, we exited onto Dyckman Street and then made a left on Broadway. From here it would be a straight shot up to Van Cortlandt Park. We were bother tired and very thirsty.

    We finally arrived at VCP’s Tortoise and Hare Statue which is where the bib pickup was. We saw Chris, Mary, Eric, Andrew, Chris, Bojana and Brian. We grabbed our bib and prepared, we had made it there with 10 minutes to spare… not bad.

    Abbe was first and so she and the lead wave made their way to the start. The gun went off and some 35 people or so blasted off. It was pretty cool to look all the way across VC Park and see the little dots of runners making their way. The anchor wave was starting to get cold.

    The first couple runners returning were crushing it! Abbe came through in maybe 10th position or so. She high-fived me and I took off.

    Boy were my legs tired! Great idea, run 10 miles up to the start of a race…

    As I rounded the first turn a familiar face was headed my way. It was my friend (and Battalion Teammate) Noah who just happened to be out for his morning run! He gave me a fist bump and then turned my way running along side of me. I explained what was going on and suggested he pace me since I was wiped. Not a problem…

    Barreling through the mud we made our way onto the trails. We were about to go up Cemetery Hill, which evidently was supposed to be rough. Noah confirmed the roughness. It’s not that it’s a big hill really, it’s that the incline is very steep and winding and it’s on gravel. Our pace slowed by a minute per mile as we made our way to the top. My heart was racing and my legs were burning.

    On the decent a runner in a red shirt flew past us! He was jamming and as we flattened out Noah said “We can take that guy.” And so we did, although I was fading fast.

    We soon saw Abbe and Bojana cheering and taking pictures.

    On the final straightaway to the finish I heard someone approaching… it was red shirt guy and he was blasting it. I tried really hard to fend him off and I can honestly say I gave everything I had, but it wasn’t enough. He caught me right at the finish line and beat me by a few meters!

    As I came out of warp speed I high-fived red shirt runner as he passed going the other way. I also found some much needed water. As I was sipping it Noah came over as well as red shirt runner. He introduced himself as Shane and we chatted about the race fe or a second. He was a great guy and a very noble competitor. Abbe soon found us as well and joined in on the race talk.

    We headed out shortly after that for some much needed food! It was one hell of a race and running day in general. Thanks to Noah for the supreme pacing.

     

    Great seeing everyone too!

    RACE REPORT: 139 Abbott Dash to the Finish 5k – 19:13

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    Jeff Baker didn’t know it, but we signed him up for the Abbott Dash to the Finish 5K the morning before the marathon.

    His wife, my sister-in-law, had planned a surprise trip up to NYC for them for his birthday weekend, which always falls on marathon weekend. Marathon weekend, for those not in the know, is the greatest weekend in New York City.

    Friday night’s dinner was at Elio’s, a local neighborhood italian spot that we enjoy. I had some penne with broccoli rabe and italian sausage and it was perfection! Salman Rushdie was also in attendance at Elios.

    RACE DAY

    After some coffee, Abbe, Jeff and I set off for an easy warm up run to the start down Park Avenue. It was a cool and crisp 48 degrees out, perfect for running.

    The start was bustling with runners, 10,000+ actually! We split up to enter our respective corrals. I ran into my neighbor Angus again in the A Corral! There was a huge international crowd present due to the marathon the following day and it made me really happy. As a New Yorker I always feel inclined to help tourists, so this presented tons of new opportunities.

    The race was delayed by 15 minutes, during which my mind wandered around until it landed on the fact that I was thirsty. Wonderful. My mouth kept getting drier and drier and I swallowed, wishing for the first aid station.

    Angus and I fist bumped and then the gun went off. I felt a bit sluggish, maybe because I was parched.

    Barreling down 42nd Street was quite fun and the low light bounced off the buildings in a beautiful ‘fall morning’ kind of way. I hit Mile 1 in 5:19, which doesn’t seem accurate to me. There wasn’t an aid station either.

    After taking a sharp right onto 6th Avenue I felt my pace equalize and settle in. I felt pretty good now and was enjoying all the international cheer squads positioned up the avenue. At the end of 6th we took a right onto 59th Street and had a really nice downhill going towards 5th.

    Taking a left and entering The Park, Mile 2 clicked off as a 5:39 and there was finally some water!

    I slowed a bit on the uphill towards the East Drive a bit, but was really just having a great time. As we rounded the bottom of the Park we entered the official marathon course. It was (as always) lined with al the flags of every nation represented in the marathon. This is my favorite part of the course (NYC Marathon as well) because it really shows you how broad the running community is. I also always get a bit choked up in a happy way when cruising by the flags.

    I heard my name loud and clear right before I finished as the whole Gotham City Runners crew cheered me on!

    Mile 3 was a 6:10 and my finishing time was a 19:13.

    Sex/
    Age    		 Bib Overall Place Age
    Place    		 Finish
    Time    		 Pace/
    Mile    		 AG %
    M39 8453 232 24 19:13 6:11 70.80%

    I waited for Abbe and Jeff up by 72nd Street. Jeff said that what he misses most about leaving NYC is running around the Park. Once we all regrouped we finished the morning with a clockwise loop in glorious fall weather.

    RACE REPORT: 138 The Chicago Marathon – 3:02:36

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    Abbe has always wanted me to run the Chicago Marathon. She ran it the first year we dated, on her birthday, and she loved the course. One morning as we were looking at the race site we noticed that we had made the qualifying time to enter and avoid the lottery! We made a quick decision and registered. Game on.

    We left so very early the Friday before the race. We caught a cab at 4:45AM and were at the gate in Laguardia by 5:15 for a 6:00 flight. The good news is that we were in Terminal A, or ‘Marine Terminal’, and I had never been to that one! It was a terminal used for people who commuted via airplane. Abbe and I played a fun game called spot the runners.

    We arrived at our hotel in Chicago at 9:15AM and I needed coffee stat!

    Next, we took Chicago’s ‘L’ to the expo. I would come to love the L as it was so efficient and reliable, unlike the state of our NYC Subway system these days.

    The expo was Bonkertown and not my favorite place. The lines for bib pick up were a bit insane as they forgot to tell runners to check in at the kiosks before the secondary lines. I thought it would get better once I had my bib, I was wrong. As we made our way into the main part of the expo we had to go to the back to get our shirts, of course. Walk through all the race goodies so you might buy something, then you can leave. Abbe and I did look at possibly getting a Chicago tee shirt or hoodie, but the lines stretched out of the roped in areas our around the expo pathways. I had never seen anything like it, hundreds of people just waiting to buy stuff. I also wondered how these people had the patience for these shenanigans. My head was wrapped around how we were going to get lunch before I passed out.

    Speaking of lunch, it was awesome! We went to Abbe’s favorite sandwich shop called Xoco (Choco). It’s one of chef Rick Bayless’s spots. I had this awesome pork sandwich that was served faced down in a spicy tomato broth.

    Next up… we met one of Abbe’s coworkers Julian and his wife Denise at a new restaurant called Proxi in the West Loop. Look at me all ‘I know the names of the cool neighborhoods after just a few hours in town.’ The food was spectacular. We had tried some of everything being a bit indulgent as we still had one more night before the race.

    On Saturday I went out for a solo shake out run. It was a 3 mile out and back to Navy Pier. It was a gorgeous morning, but getting hot quick.

    Abbe had a work meeting with chef Noah Sandoval at his restaurant, Oriole. After that Bojana, Brian and Amanda picked us up. We were headed to Lincoln Park to a pizza spot Bojana knew (she grew up in Chicago). Abbe and I had thin crust while the rest of the group had deep dish.

    The rest of the day was spent on a boat doing an architectural tour of the city along the rivers. It was quite fun and made a lot of sense as we were off our feet.

    We all met Jason and Amber for dinner at Ostoria Langhe in Logan Square. The pasta was delicious and was definitely a good choice. Running fuel was consumed… and we were in bed by 9:30.

    RACE DAY

    We were up at 6 prepping and I was very excited to run this puppy. Weather looked pretty bad (hot and humid) but didn’t care. I was at the end of taper madness and was going to be set free into the streets of Chicago.

    We left the hotel and walked the one mile to the start. It was actually kind of brisk and cool out… for now.

    I kissed Abbe goodbye at Gate 2 as I had to go to Gate 5, which made no sense. I spent the next 15 minutes winding around navigating to the A Corral which was slightly nerve wrecking. I felt like a mouse in a maze, with no cheese reward.

    In A Corral with 10 to spare I started looking for all my friends. I couldn’t find David, but I did find Rowland and Delgado, or ‘D’ as we call him. We chatted about pace strategy, all of us looking to be right in the 3 hour mark. If conditions were favorable, then we push to sub3. We fist bumped and D said “Stick together guys!”

    The gun went off and were took off at an even 7 minute pace, settling in. It was a beautiful morning, 65 degrees with a cool breeze, for now.

    We were running in the dark canyons of center city and it was way cool. The crowds were similar to the NYC Marathon, very loud and three deep along the course. Around Mile 3 we lost Rowland in the crowds after a bridge unfortunately. D and I had a quick chat that we should aim to hit 6:30s for the first half, knowing that the second would be bad and we would lose time. I was down.

    The route up into Lincoln Park is great. It’s a really wide road with tons of crowd support. Slowly we ran up against the back of the 3:00 pace group and I thought to myself ‘What should we do?’ As if on queue D says “Baker what should we do, should we go?” I laughed and said “I was going to ask you the same thing!” “Then we go!” Yells D and we slowly pushed past them.

    At mile 5 we hit our first ‘6:30’ spot on. I was psyched. D also taught me a new way of getting fluids while running with a group, the person closest to the aid station simply passes water to the guy on the outside, brilliant!

    We were also running on the left in the shade which helped out a lot.

    Miles 6-12 were 6:32, 6:28, 6:34, 6:32, 6:35, 6:25, 6:24… not bad pacing!

    I felt great and so did D. We had quite a system we were rocking and we were overtaking lots of people. We saw Amber, Jason and Eric cheering right around Mile 12!

    On everyone’s splits mile 14/15 is where things got strange. It says we were running a 5:38 pace, but we certainly were not.

    Miles 15-17 were in the 6:40 range because I was struggling and told D I needed to ease up a bit. He was cool with this and let me control our timing. My stomach was a bit screwy as I had a super concentrated Gatorade around mile 14 that didn’t sit well. It was also heating up and things were getting tougher.

    #friendship

    We saw Bojana and Amanda cheering here!

    I think it was right before Mile 17 that I told D to go ahead as I was going to slow him down. I could feel myself faltering in pace and energy and knew I couldn’t keep up the 6:40’s anymore. “Okay Baker, see you at the finish!”

    Miles 18-22 I slowed down by 10 seconds per mile roughly. At Mile 22 I was running a 7:17 pace and my legs were on fire. This is pretty normal (beat up legs) for a marathon, I think we all just forget it’s going to happen until it happens.

    I was just hanging on in the blistering sun and trying to get to the end. Since Mile 16 we had been in unobstructed sun and heat (75 degrees maybe?) and it was taking it’s toll.

    Miles 23-26 were in the 8:00 minute range and I was struggling. I just kept plodding along mile to mile, aid station to aid station. I felt like I was in slow motion and that with every step my quads might explode, blood and muscle tissue splaying my friendly spectators. Gross, sorry.

    I finally made it to the Mt. Everest of a highway overpass to make it to the final 200 meters. As I came across the finish D was waiting there with a high five. I finished in 3:02:36, which I will take any day.

    Sex/
    Age    		 Bib Overall Place Age
    Place    		 Finish
    Time    		 Pace/
    Mile    		 AG %
    M39 1049 1048 184 3:02:36 6:58 68.50%

    We tried waiting for Rowland for awhile but a security guard made me walk to the end which sucked, but I get it.

    I saw a couple friends finishing, including Grace. I tried to find D and Rowland and as time ran out I knew I had to make it to the Palmer Hotel where my friends (and wife) would find me. I wasn’t running with a phone so it was crucial I made it to the rendezvous point… or be lost forever.

    I planted myself in the hotel lobby bar and proceeded to order the best chicken noodle soup i have ever had… with a beer of course! I also made friends with a lot of the folks at the bar. Once Abbe, Bojana and Amanda found me we headed out to get ready for the pig roast celebration that Nina and Momo (Bojo’s parents) were putting on for us. It was an absolute blast and I have never been more stuffed after a race.

    This race was a blast, thanks Chicago. It was far from easy for sure, but the course and the crowd support and the amazing volunteers made it a fantastic experience. I achieved my goal of coming in right around the 3 hour mark and had fun doing so.

    Thanks to Nina and Momo for the awesome after party!

    Big ups to Rowland and D for the fantastic pacing. We were on fire for that first half kicking out solid 6:30s! Days like this really make me appreciate the running community.