All – Page 3 – BEYOND DEFEAT

RACE REPORT: 128 Fire Island 5k – 19:59

Posted on August 19, 2016 by admin

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On Friday, I left work to meet up with everyone (Abbe, Bojana, Brian and Maura) at Penn Station. It was steamy and I broke out into a sweat immediately on the subway platform, just a precursor of what was to come.

It seemed that my crew had boarded the train, so I did the same. Once we all found each other drinks popped open and a ‘Here’s to a vacation weekend’ toast ensued. Fun, had begun.

One of my favorite parts of the journey to Fire Island is the final 30 minute ferry ride across the Great South Bay. It’s such a gorgeous experience (if you have weather cooperating). The wind in your hair, the sun setting and the smell of ocean water marinating in a boat full of happy beach goers.

Another one of my favorite parts is that there are no cars on the island! Bikes and walking everywhere, it’s so cool!

We arrived at Ed’s place, the Fire Island Hotel, checked in and hit Hurricanes for the notorious Rocket Fuels. A Rocket Fuel is a like a Pina Colada on steroids, and yes, they are delicious. From 7 to Midnight we sat there drinking and eating (the fish tacos are superb) carrying on. Ed (from Dad Posse) eventually joined us around 9 and joined in on the mayhem.

The following day Jim and Mike (also from Dad Posse) joined up. We went to Jim’s place which is a few blocks down from the hotel and has a more than solid beach day. Jim and I surfed and caught some real nice rides. The tides shifted after lunch though and I changed it up with a boogie board. Those were some of the best boogie board conditions I have seen since I was a kid, you could catch anything!

That night we had a cookout at Jim’s. We made everything you could think of… chicken, corn on the cob, green beans, baked beans, ribs, salad and I think there was cheese. Something in that mix had to stick and help in the race the following day right?

Did I mention that John C. Reilly was having a cookout at the house next door?

RACE DAY

I woke up at 6:45 and said goodbye to a sleeping Abbe. Jim and I had morning surfing to attend to.

Coffee in hand I strolled down a very serene pathway to Jim’s, no one was awake yet and the peacefulness was exactly what I needed.

Jim and Mike were awake having coffee on the front porch, I joined them. Soon after the three of us walked up to the beach and jumped into the soup. It was brisk, but refreshing. Mike stayed behind to swim in the surf and Jim and I headed out past the breakers. We were the only ones out there and it was super cool. Not cool if the sharks are hungry as they have limited options, me and Jim.

I caught 2 really nice rides that took me almost all the way into shore. It’s a really great feeling riding a wave, the Beach Boys said it best… ‘Catch a wave and you’re sittin on top of the world.’

We bailed after awhile as we had a 5k to race in an hour. Energy conservation right?

I met Abbe and split a bagel before gearing up. Her, Maura and I did a slow warm up, linked up with Ed, Mike and Jim and headed to the start. Bojo and Brian were going to spectate due to unforeseen injury. We did a pre-race team photo knowing that the post race team photo was going to be ugly. It was 85-90 degrees already.

I jumped in the front corral with 10 others and wandered around in the sun for ten minutes. Anthony, Sal and John Gigangi, race organizers and friends of mine, gave a few speeches before show time. It’s amazing how far the Rose Digangi Foundation has come in helping people and family’s cope with brain cancer.

The gun went off and it was on. 5 people went out blazing fast and I just, well, I just ran right on the threshold of it being really sucky. On the out part of the race we had a headwind, which kept us ‘kind’ of cool. I dumped water on my head any chance I got though.

I ran the entire race with Tara, who always wins 1st Female. We were holding a 6:30 pace steady. I had no interest in pushing it any further. AT Mile 1.5 one of the teenagers that blasted ahead in the beginning was on the side puking. I yelled, “Hey man, you okay!?” He was.

On the way back we had a tailwind. In most circumstances this would be a welcome condition in a race, not today. It was as if someone turned off the fan in a really hot courtroom. Just keep running.

As Tara and I were nearing the finish I realized they had the tape across for her (1st Place Female) so I hung back a bit and let her hit the tape before crossing. I then poured no less than three bottles of ice water on my head and retreated to a shady area by the finish.

I finished in 19:58, over 1 minute slower than the other 4 times I have run this race.

Sex/ Age	Bib	Overall Place	Age Place	Finish Time	Pace/ Mile	AG %
M38	1	7	2	19:58	6:26	69.60%

One by one the rest of The Battalion came through the finish looking for water. We all got really cool finisher medals that had a bottle opener on it!

Once we had the gang together we made our way into Schooners for the after party, which is quite a fun after party. We hung out, laughed, talked to other runners and hydrated with beer. I got a 2nd Place AG award but more importantly Maura got 3rd AG! Baker… why is that more important?

Maura has been injured for god knows how long and is back on track. This was her first race since November (I think) and she got an AG award! Well done Maura.

We all headed to Flynn’s for a big lunch. Abbe and I caught a ate afternoon ferry home, bidding our friends and Fire Island farewell… for now.

RACE REPORT: 127 NYRR Team Championships – 32:33

Posted on August 16, 2016 by admin

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The NYRR Team Championships is a really fun day in the Park. All the teams come out and cheer in massive crowds. In order to race you need to be part of a NYRR sanctioned team.

A lot of the team went up to Inwood after work on Friday to a free event The Met was putting on. Dinner was held at Indian Road Cafe, a very cute and unique neighborhood hangout. I opted for the linguine as the server said it was added to the menu that night. It was a home run. I haven’t had homemade linguine that good in some time.

RACE DAY

We originally had 10-12 Battalion teammates signed up for the race, but a few didn’t make it for various reasons. Abbe, Kelly, Susan, Jenn, Noah and I linked up 30 minutes before the race started. Everyone was feeling pretty good although it was getting hotter by the minute.

Noah and I went over to the west side in the high 90s and waited for the first pack of ladies to come by. They were flying! You could also tell that they were suffering from the heat. As soon as all of The Battalion came by we ran over to the east side to cheer.

Over there we linked up with Gotham City Runners for some joint cheering. One by one our crew came through, everyone looking good, but hot. We linked up with all of our females by the finish, some even had bags of ice!

Noah and I did a warm up and then jumped in A Corral. It was hot and it was going to be challenging. The vibe in the corral was way chill though with all the teams socializing. The gun went off and the group surged forward.

I felt okay, but I didn’t have fleet feet. We barreled down the east side of Harlem Hill and it got slightly easier to maneuver going up the west side of Harlem Hill. I hit a 6:20 pace here.

I saw the female Battalion squad cheering at mile 1.5 where Noah and I had been.

The rest of the race was spent just hanging on to the 6:30ish average pace I was running and pouring water on my head. It was pretty quiet down on the lower end of the Park, obviously as the action is in the North.

As I headed into my final mile I picked it up due to the intense cheering. I rocked a solid 6:18 pace here. I finished up in 32:33 which is far from a PR, but I was happy just to be out running Team Champs.

Thanks for the pic GCR!

Sex/ Age	Bib	Overall Place	Age Place	Finish Time	Pace/ Mile	AG %
M38	1013	297	52	32:33	6:31	67.40%

After the race we all went to a crepes place on the Upper East. The food was amazing and it was a blast hanging with the crew!

RACE REPORT: 126 NYC TRI – 2:27:37

Posted on August 1, 2016 by admin

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The NYC Triathlon is my favorite race hands down. Home field advantage, great course, all my friends race or spectate and we have a fun after party (of course). This year was my fifth attempt.

RACE DAY

I was up at 5:30-6ish as Abbe had a long run she needed to hit and she wanted to beat the heat. We had some coffee and then we each set out on our way. My heat was set to roughly go off at 7:30 so my plan was to take a cab to the swim start at 6:50. I was there by 7, peanut butter sandwich in hand walking through the crowds of triathletes. This is the 4th year I did not go to transition at 5AM to check on my gear. Luckily though, Dougie had to head down there early so he checked on my gear for me. Thanks friend!

I lined up in my corral and watched the mighty North River pass by as I waited to get into the soup. Abbe surprised me by stopping through during her long run to say hi and wish me well.

I made friends with a guy from Ireland (but lives here) named Derrick. It was his first triathlon ever so I tried to be helpful by giving him tips and easing his nerves. I told him that this was the cleanest I had ever seen the river, which was actually true.

As we lined up to jump in the water everyone but me sat down to slide in. F-that, I’m jumping in over all of y’all.

The North River was salty, way salty as we hadn’t had any rain in a few weeks. I didn’t mind as I automatically pair ‘healthy’ up with ‘salt water.’ This was the first time I had swam since Ironman Louisville and I was excited. I dug in and enjoyed my morning swim, basking in the sunlight. Every now and again I would catch some feet or someone would tickle mine, and so I adjusted position.

With 200 meters to go something happened that has never occurred in Baker-race world before. As I was taking a breath on my right side someone (on my right side) was driving their left hand down for a stroke. That had caught me square in the side of the head, kind of by my eye. My goggles flew off and I was ‘stunned’ for a hot second as if I were in a boxing match and just catch a right hook. I composed myself, put my goggles back on, accidentally touched the bottom of the river and got back into the groove. I secretly wished to come across my assailant so I could vanquish him, alas it never happened. Swim caps tend to make everyone a bit anonymous.

Out of the water and into transition we go. Always, always, always my wetsuit never comes off as quick as I want it to. I almost asked the guy next to me to rip it off. I could have offered him copious amounts of 50 SPF sunscreen. Speaking of which, I coated my wet body with the stuff before heading out on my mighty steed.

Out on the parkway I kept it cool until I could analyze my surroundings. The bike course on this puppy is way intense due to volume, speed, and lack of space. One wrong move and you’re toast.

Up in the Bronx I really took advantage the hills and flew. It was awesome.

Time to run.

I threw on a visor, more SPF 50, and got going. I stopped to say hi to this older woman who works at NYRR I know. She is like my alternative Grandma. Clearly, I always forget her name.

Did I mention that it was hot out?

I hugged the shade as we cruised across 72nd Street. I saw Abbe and the cheer squad and I gave them all high fives. Further down I saw Thomas cheering. He and his wife Claire (willrunforbeer) were going to/ had a baby the next day so I yelled to him,”Good luck tomorrow!” which only confused him. Claire later explained what I meant. Congrats Gallaghers! I can’t wait to meet Molly! (Can I call her Meg though, that is her initials.)

I hope that guy behind me is okay.

Back to the race…

I entered The Central Park and was so thankful of the shade on the west side. I felt great and dialed it up, passing who ever I could. Running is my jam, and you are in my backyard, so double trouble.

On the east side I saw my friend Sal, who was out for a run in the opposite direction, he wished me well. Then, out of nowhere some chick blasted me with a fire hose! She was at an aide station and I welcomed it, but I mean she destroyed me! I was soaked and now slogging along making funny squishy sounds.

I rounded Cherry Hill before launching into the finish chute. I saw Abbe, Susan, and Eric cheering and waved. I finished in 2:27:37, 10 minutes from a PR, but it was certainly a good time.

Comin in hot!

The Battalion all grouped up before heading to Amsterdam Ale House where we celebrated with food and drink. It was a hell of a day.

Sex/ Age	Age Place	Overall Place	Swim 1.5K	T1	Bike 40K	T2	Run 8K	Total Time
M38	67	538	25:04	7:15	1:14:48	2:55	37:37	2:27:37

NYRR Mini 10k – Spectator Report

Posted on June 17, 2016 by admin

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The NYRR Mini 10K is a women’s only race that has been held since 1972. It is of significant importance in women’s running history. Just three weeks after its inaugural running Title IX was signed.

The Battalion had 8 females racing, so the men were going to go cheer!

I crashed at Dougie’s as a lot of the gals were having a sleepover at my place. We ended up leaving at 6:30AM to report to cheer squad. Cooper lives close to Doug so we scooped her up. The weather was good, not perfect, but better than years past.

I have to say it is a strange feeling to not be racing. Part of you is like ‘Oh I feel left out, I wish I could race’. Then, as I sipped my giant cup of Starbucks I thought, ‘No, this is lovely, what a day to watch people run. I am a good clapper.’

First up was Maddie, our youngest team member. She was racing the kids race in the 7-10 bracket. As we were getting her into corrals Erica and Robert rolled up with their son Emmit!

At 72nd Street we met up with Maura who briefly joined our cheer squad. Eric (elite cheer squad) showed up to hang as well. My buddy Pat from the Reservoir Dogs was hanging out for a bit too. She crushed it. What other 10 year old has a Battalion race singlet?

Next up were the masses of women. It was pretty packed at mile .25, luckily our team shirts are red and very easy to spot in a crowd. Abbe, Susan, Amy, and Danika rolled by in a squad looking good. We then saw Bojana, who seemed to be having a lot of fun and was all smiles. Once the main pack left we hustled over to the Boathouse which was mile 5.

We saw all the gals, this time we spotted Kelly. They had broken up into smaller groups and drifted apart, but they all looked strong.

Douige, Maddie, Eric and I hustled over to the finish line where we met everyone. There was just one person missing… Amanda. She was in wave 2 and was about to cross the finish. We gave her a serious cheer as she cruised through the chute.

There were of course many team pictures to be taken. Once that was done there was one final plan, meet up to celebrate at the Boat Basin at high noon. We did an all hands in the middle of the circle cheer ‘BATTALION!’ and then split.

THE AFTER PARTY

Then after the run it’s the after party. We rendezvoused at noon as planned and scored a giant table right in the middle of all the action. There were roughly 12-14 of us in attendance. We had a blast and were there for most of the day… I mean, it was gorgeous out. Towards the end of the afternoon I noticed that randomly my friend Beth was there with another group of 6-8 runners, cool! We hung for a bit before it was time for dinner and Abbe and I parted ways.

Congratulations to all the female Battalion members who killed it and congrats to all my female friends on other teams who killed it!

RACE REPORT: 125 Brooklyn Half Marathon – 1:23:41

Posted on May 26, 2016 by admin

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Why do I like the Brooklyn Half? Because I break the course up into three distinct sections.

Section 1 (Miles 1-3): Straightaways with acute angle turns.

Section 2 (Miles 4-7): The rolling hills of Prospect Park.

Section 3 (Miles 8-13.1): The flat, straight shot, direct injection into the beach.

Dougie, Danika and Maddie met Abbe and I at our place and the 5 of us jumped a cab to Brooklyn. Once there we found Battalion teammate Jenn, who was rarin’ to go. The others were already corralled up. Up in Corral A as usual I ran into my friend Evan and rocked a high five.

A very strange rendition of the National Anthem took place. I had no expectations except to just being present in the moment and running hard. It was overcast, maybe 55 degrees and slightly humid. It was also the 5 year anniversary of my father’s passing to the day. We all had some remembrance toasts to make and we were already late to Coney Island.

The gun went off and within seconds I was across the mat and cooking down the street. Section 1 had begun and I immediately became parched. I saw Maura and Kate from GCR at Mile 1.5 cheering like banshee queens. Then, at Mile 3 I saw Abbe, Danika and Maddie. I veered over hard left for some high five action. Mile splits were 6:17, 6:18, and 6:14 and I felt great… I guess just keep doing what you’re doing Baker.

It was great hitting Prospect Park as things opened up a bit. I was now with a solid group of 3-4 people in race formation playing leapfrog. One of them happened to have a yellow GCR shirt on. I yelled. “Hey GCR! Right on man!” He laughed and said that he had thought we had met. His name was Pablo and I would see him later at the after party.

That’s Brad in the blue, he and I became friends at the afterparty.

We hit the big hill on the east side and I knew my pace would suffer, it’s a doozy. At the top was Maura and Kate again!

Dropping back into the lower part of Prospect I knew we were about to exit Section 2 and I was excited. It was also the halfway mark and I still felt great! Mile splits were 6:19, 6:29, 6:32 and 6:10.

Exiting onto Ocean Parkway I ran right towards Elyssa waving! She is a Whippet and so probably wasn’t expecting me. I love the artsy shot.

On the highway I was thankful that the clouds had stayed in place as there is no shade. I slowly passed Grace from CPTC and had a quick ‘hello how ya doin.’ (Grace is way fast!)

Miles 8, 9 and 10 started to click off faster than I actually wanted them to. I was having such a good time I wanted to really enjoy it. Somewhere around Mile 8 I saw Bojana, who didn’t run because she BQ’d last weekend and her feet hurt. She looked so fresh in her civilian clothes! I ran over and high fived her before pushing ahead.

It was also somewhere around this point that I heard from behind a loud distant scream. It sounded like “Go Chris Baker!” I later found out that it was Abbe who had gotten to the cheer point just after I had passed.

I saw Dani from CPTC at Mile 11 (also looking fresh) cheering as I went by. Right around now is when Grace caught back up to me. Her and I along with a few others held together and brought home the final miles. It was tough, but very epic at the same time. Those final 800 meters seem to last forever on this course and you really have to fight to hold on.

I cruised down the boardwalk and finished in 1:23:41, not a PR, but my 4th best half marathon (out of 18) finish.

Sex/ Age	Bib	Overall Place	Age Place	Finish Time	Pace/ Mile	AG %
M38	7667	324	44	1:23:41	6:23	70.93%

I headed right to Peggy O’Neils to begin the after party. I saw Sam and met Brad and Pablo. Josh, Alex and the rest of the GCR crew started rolling in right before the Battalion arrived. Battalion had a different location to get to though so I said my goodbyes and headed to Ruby’s by the finish.

Cat, Gillian and Tia had secured a big table for us so Abbe, Danika, Dougie, Maddie, Aunt Margie, Jenn, Brianna, Charla, Nikki, Lindsey, Bojo, and Brian (along with a few other new friends) had a good home base.

All of us gave a big toast to my Dad, Bruce, and I was hit with a serious wave of emotion.

Then, out of nowhere my name gets yelled it it turns out to be Elizabeth and Juan! Fun times!

Speaking of fun, our youngest Battalion member Maddie (Dougie and Danika’s 10 year old) was running the kid’s mile race. We all went out to the boardwalk to cheer her on. She did fantastic coming in with an 8:01 mile pace, impressive!

We continued the day at a few more places before ending it with our traditional Cyclone ride followed by dinner at El Paso… my favorite and I think one of Beyonce’s as well.

It was an epic double header PR weekend for The Battalion.

Poconos:
Bojana – 15 minute PR + BQ
Abbe – 15 minute PR
Noah – 1 minute PR
Cat – 2 minute PR

Brooklyn:
Jenn – 3 minute PR
Brianna – 2 minute PR

We should all be very proud at what was accomplished in such a short period of time. Well done Battalion.

I look forward to calling Battle Stations and seeing what you all will throw down next.

RACE REPORT: 124 The Boston Marathon – 3:18:17

Posted on April 23, 2016 by admin

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After running Boston in the historically horrible heat of 2012 I was very reluctant to come back. A few years later though, I was enticed. I had forgotten how hard the course was and was excited by the buzz and possibility to run again in the most noble of running races. I trained my face off and BQ’d in Paris last year, which gained me entry.

Abbe and I, along with Dougie and Danika, arrived Saturday at lunchtime via the train. Cousin’s Matt and Shannon (who were up from North Carolina to watch the race) joined us.

Our next order of business was the Expo. The weather was perfectly Spring like, 50 to 55 degrees and sunny. It was very well organized and I was at my bib pick-up counter easily. A funny conversation took place while getting my bib though. The girl who was looking over my credentials (Runner Passport and ID) looked at my very seriously and said, “Is your license expired?” I kind of had a panic moment and said, “Um… no?” She handed it back to me along with my bib. I then looked at my license, in red at the bottom it said ‘Expires in 2022.’ Why you gotta mess with my head lady?

We ran into my friend Beth and she told me to watch for her by the Citgo sign on Monday.

Then, I went and purchased my 2016 Celebration Jacket, a fun tradition. I tucked it away in a bag after, only to be worn after I finish the race.

We had dinner at Union Oyster House that night. It was awesome. We had on non-race bibs.

Sunday felt very anti-climactic due to the fact that I had my bib and everything I needed for Monday. It could just be a ‘fun’ day to do whatever. We started off with a shakeout run. I parted with Abbe, Danika and Dougie at Boston Common once I hit 2-3 miles. They continued on for another 8.

We went to Barking Crab for lunch where Matt, Shannon and Greg joined us! I love Barking Crab and find it necessary to visit it every time I go to Boston. It was gorgeous out, so we wandered around Boston harbor before deciding to go to the Boston Tea Party museum and re-enactment. It was highly entertaining. So much so that we ended up going to a pub, Mr. Dooleys, for some traditional irish music. The guys in the band at one point asked who in the crowd is running. I raised my hand and in an irish brogue he laughed and said, “Ya, you look like a runner.” This befuddled me, as I really don’t think I look like a runner.

Dinner was to be had at Scampo, an amazing italian (obviously) place built in an old jail. I choose lasagna as my meal of choice. Abbe and I took off right after dinner due to the whole ‘race’ thing the next day. I was so mad though, because Dougie and Danika went to the bar next door and Commissioner Bratton and the Chief of Police… for NYC, were hanging out!

RACE DAY

Look how dumb and happy I am on race day. I thought the temperature was going to be fine!

I grabbed a coffee and set off on my 30 minute walk to the buses. It was so peaceful.

I got to sit in the front seat of the bus, which was fun. I felt like the Battalion Commander of a bus full of troops ready for battle. Once in base camp I was immediately spotted by my friends Rowland and D. We laughed a bit at how it was going to hit 70-75 degrees. A PR today would be challenging. We camped out on some boxes and chatted for an hour before making our way to Wave 1 start corrals.

By now it was hot and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. For those not familiar with the Boston’s challenging course, one aspect is that there is no shade the entire way. A sunny day means it is on you the whole 26.2.

At 9:50 two Blackhawk choppers cruised us, which was pretty sick. Then… the start gun.

We blasted off at a 6:15 pace, which I slowed down to a 6:30. We were in a tight pack, typical for Boston.

As we hit the 5K mark I was feeling good. When we hit the 10K mark I was not. The heat was really settling in and the sun was annoying me. Some crazy bad vibes started running through my head. I wanted to quit.

15K mark… “Why am I doing this. This is so rough. Everything hurts and my body is on fire.”

Then, I thought about how my cousin Libby and my Aunt Jen were in Wellesley cheering and I got excited to see them. They live in Boston. I was in Boston, that’s right, that’s where I was. This wasn’t some race I signed up for on a whim, I trained my ass of last Spring, harder then I ever had in a running race, to get here. I had no intention of PR’ing, this was supposed to be about the moment.

‘Dial it down Baker.’ I thought. I dropped my pace to the 7:30 range, splashed two cups of water into my face and looked ahead.

Once we hit Mile 10, I remembered this time to move to the far left of the street so that when we passed the Wellesely girls my ears didn’t explode. It is seriously so loud that your ears rattle. It’s the loudest thing I have ever experienced. Even as I passed them this year on the far left it was painful. A few of us looked at each other and kind of laughed, pushing forward.

The town of Wellesely is pretty big and the streets were packed. I was chugging along with blurred vision. Off in the distance on the right though I saw someone jumping and waving. It was Libby! I ran right at her to give her a high five, but she was coming in for a hug! I warned her, “Libby I am crazy sweaty!” She didn’t care. We laughed and I high fived Aunt Jen as they told me to get moving again!

I had 10 mile to go before I would see any friends again.

At this point I noticed a strange and annoying phenomenon taking place. As we would enter the aid stations a few guys right in front of me would come to a dead stop go get and then drink their water. Buddy, this ain’t your first marathon so what’s your deal? This started happening at every aid stop! I made a new plan to enter them towards the back for safety as a few times I almost destroyed a few guys.

We hit the hills at mile 18, which really aren’t that bad, it’s just where they are on the course that sucks. After the second hill a guy, pretty beat up looking, said to me “Was that Heartbreak?” “No man, sorry, Heartbreak is closer to mile 21.”

I really enjoyed the cheering from Boston College this year. They were loud, but also very supportive in their cheering, if that makes any sense.

I was excited to see Heartbreak Hill as my quads were basically destroyed from all the downhills. My legs could use a break on a nice steady uphill. My pace for the last 5 miles was fluctuating in the 7:30-8 range.

Knowing that now the course would level out I put my head down and picked up my pace a bit, each step more painful as I went along. I don’t remember being in more pain in another marathon than I was now. Of course, if I go back and read some old race reports I am sure I will see that last line repeated a few times.

I could now see the Citgo sign in the distance. I hopeful reminder of all my friends that told me “I’ll be under the Citgo sign at mile 25!”

As I approached I saw Abbe, Danika, Dougie, Greg, Matt and Shannon all screaming! I stopped and gave some high fives.

Pressing on I then saw Elizabeth who was cheering like crazy!

Next up, the GCR Cheer squad in full effect, who captured this image.

The right turn, followed by the left was more epic then I remembered.

With the finish line off in the distance, I got emotional. I had done it. I had made it to this moment in time. “Thank you Boston, it is an honor and a privilege.”

Running down the center of the street with crowds roaring I though about the Boston Marathon as this epic beast, one of the toughest in all the lands. Today it had won, as I was all used up as I crossed the finish line.

Sex/ Age	Bib	Overall Place	Age Place	Finish Time	Pace/ Mile	AG %
M38	1685	4552	2345	3:18:17	7:34	66%

I really felt like I earned the medal on this day.

After finding Abbe we all made our way back to Mr. Dooleys Pub (I really liked it). Guess who happened to be working just up the street? Our dear friend Maura! She popped in for a cider and to celebrate. I was very unlike my usual post race self. It took me a good hour to get my act together. Like I said, I got my ass kicked and it showed.

We checked in on our other Battalion teammate Kelly, who had finished. Congrats Kel!

We hopped a 5:30 train back to the city, where we did some more celebrating of course.

–

Boston is to me the pinnacle of the marathon. It took me four years to get to my first, and my second was no easier. The challenge of getting to Boston itself is what makes the experience so rewarding. Everyone you see running fought that very hard battle to get where they are. They earned a spot in the show of shows, the Boston Marathon.

Boston inspires others. At certain points during the weekend both Abbe and Dougie said “2018. In 2 years I will be back here, this time running it.”

I believe in them. See you in 2018 Boston.

RACE REPORT: 123 NYC Half Marathon – 1:27:06

Posted on March 26, 2016 by admin

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Danika, and Abbe set off to run to the start about 5 minutes ahead of me. Booked it down Fifth Avenue in the dark I was peering way ahead to see if they were coming into sight. On the corner of 88th Street an older man was hailing a cab that didn’t exist. As I approached he asked if he could run with me to the start. “Of course!”

He was hoping to break 2 hours in the race. I would like to think that our little warm up down Fifth helped him o achieve that.

I finally found the girls at the security entrance and we made our way to the corrals.There we hung with Josh and Brianna, hopping around trying to stay warm. I saw a Battalion shirt headed my way and it happened to be Kelly. I ran with her, fist bumped goodbye and then made my way to my corral.

The gun went off and we jolted forward, immediately pushing a 6:30 pace. Although it was cold, I felt fine and was enjoying myself.

Harlem Hill kicked my ass. I did perk up though on the descent when I saw my friend Juan cheering. I ran over and gave him a high five.

The West Side Rollers were their usual challenging self.

I was excited to be nearing the exit of the Park. Don’t get me wrong, The Central Park is my backyard and I love it dearly, but it is the most challenging part of this particular race.

We hopped out onto 7th Ave and into what I call… The Canyons. Running straight down into Times Square (a place I normally loathe) is quite a cool experience. I saw my friend Beth cheering and just as I was approaching some gal in an Oiselle Team shirt ran by and she and cheer buddies went nuts, missing me. Oh well.

Take a sharp right onto 42nd Street and head towards the mighty North River. Up on the right, Battalion Cheer Squad Commander Eric was on the scene! A quick high five and I was off, barreling semi controlled downhill.

Luckily for us runners, as we hit the West Side Highway the wind was at our backs. The miles started to tick off quick. I saw Helen, who I also gave a high five to followed by the whole Gotham City Runners cheer squad! Some Aussie running next to me asked how I knew everybody.

Running through the Battery Tunnel is cool, until you have to exit it on an uphill at mile 12.5 with the wind in your face.

I finished in 1:27:06, not my best and not my worst, I was happy. I returned to the finish line just in time to see Abbe, Danika and Kelly all finish within seconds of each other! Abbe had a 2 minute PR!

Sex/ Age	Bib	Overall Place	Age Place	Finish Time	Pace/ Mile	AG %
M38	554	615	103	1:27:06	6:35	68%

We headed over to our after party at Irish American (that’s me!) and I proceeded to order a Smithwicks and a full irish breakfast. Delish.

Battalion members slowly trickled in until there were 15-20 of us eating and drinking, discussing our races. It was one hell of a day! Congrats to all!

New York; Entry One

Posted on January 18, 2016 by admin

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Every so often, if you are watching for it, you have one of those perfect days.

I awoke well rested after a solid night of sleep ready to tackle the day. Boston Marathon training is in full swing and I had 6 miles of easy running to do. First things first… some Cafe Bustelo.

As I set off from Engineers Gate I noted how great the weather was for running. Sunny, zero wind, with a temperature of 40-45 degrees. Perfection. Coming at me from a distance was a familiar face. It was my old friend Sebastian, cruising by with a shout out and a wave. Then up ahead I was passing another runner who then said, “Hey Baker!” It was my friend Juan! We ran together for a few miles discussing all things triathlon. I think I may have even convinced him to join The Battalion secretly! It was great catching up with him. I said goodbye to him at the bottom of Harlem Hill and not ten paces later the next runner I was passing says, “Baker!” It was Nelson, one of my athletes (also Battalion member). He and I ran together catching up. My friend Elizabeth happened to run by us shouting a familiar, “Heeeeey Baker!” I said goodbye to Nelson and pressed on, wondering who else I might run into.

Next up for fun activities was ice skating.

I cleaned myself up with a shower then jumped on a Citibike to meet Dougie and 2 of his kids, Haley and Madison, for skating at Wollman Rink in Central Park. I love going to Wollman Rink. So much so that sometimes I just go by myself and skate for an hour.

Conditions were also perfect for ice skating and it wasn’t too crowded. The four of us were having quite a fun time. I have to apologize to Maddie though, every time I skated by and yelled out to her she became distracted and fell. Twenty minutes into skating I was coming around a turn and I see my old friend Colette skating with one of her sons, Edward! I gave her a big hug, what are the odds? It was so fun catching up with her. Strangely enough, the last time her and I were ice skating together was in the same location during my ‘Ice Skate Birthday Party’ in 2008!

Please excuse my strange expression, it was bright out.

Abbe picked me up just after noon and we headed to the Upper West Side for some lunch at Cafe Tallulah. I needed to recharge after my mini triathlon… run, bike, ice skate.

After lunch we headed to the Museum of Natural History where a new exhibit was on display. TITANOSAUR! It is the largest dinosaur ever discovered and we were super excited to get a look at it. Susan, a fellow Battalion teammate and friend, was equally interested so she linked up with us. The Natural History Museum on a Saturday at 2PM is no easy place to navigate. I know the layout pretty well though and was able to quickly navigate us up to the main attraction.

The Titanosaurus was pretty cool. It is a massive sauropod weighing in at 70 tons (12 elephants). As we stood there gazing and taking pictures in the midst of the hundreds of museum-goers, my best friends Todd and Ila (along with one of their kids, Keenan) pop up out of nowhere! We were all crazy excited to see each other and also totally baffled on the odds of this happening! They were in the city for the night to go to my brother Jeff’s going away party. They were going to surprise us at the actual event later that night. Seriously! What are the odds?! After showing the Keen-bean around a little longer we all made our way out to go freshen up for the night. Susan, Abbe and I had a glass of wine and then traversed across the Park.

Jeff and Ali’s going away party started with dinner at Maya. Here is what made that fun… aside from guacamole. Our table happened to be Me, Abbe, Susan, Brian, Phyllis, Todd, Ila and Keenan, a very fun crowd. I had heard that my extended family was also there, so I crept through the restaurant before stumbling upon Uncle Bill, Morgan, Uncle John, Aunt Margie, Cat and Gillian! Our friends Josh and Rachel and Ahern and Lauren were there as well, what a crew!

At Pony Bar, where the party was happening, it got even better. I don’t know if I can name all the guests as there were so many… it was great seeing everyone. We took over a better part of the whole bar and sent off Jeff and Allison in true NY style.

I fell asleep with happy dreams of the team long run that was to take place in the morning…

And that, was one of those perfect days.

Warmest Regards, Twenty-Fifteen

Posted on January 3, 2016 by admin

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2015 was great, but it was not without a few challenges. Those challenges were outside of the Running and Triathlon world though and I guess that’s called ‘life.’ The challenges faced in the Running and Tri world were brought on myself, because I signed up for a boatload of big races with big expectations.

Abbe and I signed up for the Paris Marathon and both of us got in. I then decided that I wanted to PR the race with a time of 2:50, shaving 4 minutes off my previous PR. I changed my training strategy completely and worked harder than I ever had. I ran heavy volumes day and night and in all conditions, something any of you runners reading are all to familiar with. On race day I ran a 2:51 and change which I was very happy with. The hard work paid off and my training strategy was on point.

The next challenge of 2015 was to race my third full Ironman distance down in Louisville with my friend Dougie. The goal here was to train smart and finish strong. We trained our asses off every weekend. So much so that we had to move long runs (18-20 milers) to Tuesdays! Saturdays were long bike rides (80-100 miles) followed immediately by 1-2 hour runs. We had Super Secret Tri Training camp out in New Jersey at my Aunt Margie and Uncle Johns house where we were doing 2-3 mile open water swims every Sunday. The race went according to plan and we both had fun. Mission complete.

We had a few other races mixed in as you can see from my helpful diagram.

I also made the decision to leave the Gotham City Runners and form my own team, The Battalion. I will miss the friends I made on GCR, but it was just time for me to do my own thing.

I was injury free thanks to intelligent training and visits to see Dr. Levine for ‘tune ups.’

2015 wouldn’t be what it was without all the friendships and camaraderie. Thanks to all of you who were a part of making my 2015 great.

RACE REPORT: 122 Ted Corbitt 15K – 1:00:31

Posted on December 28, 2015 by admin

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We, The Battalion, assembled for the first time ever to run the Ted Corbitt 15K.

There were 10 of us running the race and we assembled on 96th and the West Drive. It was easily 55-60 degrees out, shocking considering this race is normally arctic conditions. We all set off to our respective corrals after a little pep talk.

Up in my corral it was stinky as usual, the smell of Icy Hot and BO lingering in the morning air. I had no idea what to expect as far as my run was concerned. I had only just started running again after some time off from Ironman and NYC Marathon. I was just going to have fun and push it a bit.

Ted Corbitt’s son was there and spoke a bit, very cool. Any runner who doesn’t know Ted’s story should read his bio. The guy was running 200 mile weeks at his peak.

The gun went off and it took at least 2 miles until the congestion had dissipated. I was firing off 6:20-6:30 miles the entire race which I was happy about. I knew a PR would be a tall order (59:23) but I still wanted to push my speed.

I got to see my friend Laura (who was volunteering) at 72nd Street twice. I also saw fellow enlisted Battalion teammates Danika and Maddie cheering at the 102. GCR had a nice crew out giving us cheers as well!

I finished up and headed over to the 102 to see the team come in.