Great day in my life • November 6, 2006 | 7:03 a.m.


Yesterday, I ran 26.2 miles. Wow, am I glad to be able to make that statement! And surprisingly, I enjoyed almost every minute of the day. Contrary to my fears going in, I did not have to dig down to the depths of my soul to find the wherewithal to finish. The key for me was to stay in the moment and not anticipate finishing, but to just run. I realized that whenever I did begin to think about the finish line, I would remind myself that it was still many miles away. “Ugh! Eight miles. Wow, I wonder if I’ll be crawling by then …”  So I found it was best to just take in the sights and enjoy the crowds. 

It turns out that this event is a great New York celebration. Running through the different neighborhoods gave me a chance to really appreciate the people who live there. Some of the images that come to mind as I remember it this morning: an auto repair shop in Brooklyn that had a banquet of food set up on tables along the sidewalk; the lady in an apron who came out with her pots and pans to make noise and cheer us on; the open doors of a church with the parishioners all gathered outside to watch; the many different bands that were on the sidewalks playing different styles of music; the goofy balloon hats and face paintings worn by members of the cheering crowd, and the great signs of encouragement seen along the way, such as “Pain is temporary, pride is forever.” And let’s not forget the runners: the man dressed as a cup of coffee who ran the whole race in his costume and collected his medal just the same; the runners with prosthetic legs; the runner who offered me the other half of her banana; the pats on the back and words of encouragement from those who read our blogs and watched the “Today” show.  I could go on and on.    

I was also touched by the friends and family that I saw along the way. That gave me a jolt of energy each time and made it feel like home to me. I was also very impressed with Natalie who was so enthusiastic and so excited. She loved the crowds at Fort Wadsworth in Staten Island, beaming with pleasure as she watched them get pumped up at the starting line. She made it seem easy. I think she has the strength of a giant.

This experience has been wonderful for me all the way around. Yesterday was a great day in my life. Not equal to the births of my children, but pretty up there. I’m looking forward to doing it again in April at the Big Sur Marathon. All those hills, ugh!

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