DC & NJ part 2 - NJ marathon 11: ocean drive marathon
PRE RACE
slept in
9am start time (yay)
and thanks to mom start was directly outside the hotel.
RACE
chilly - weather stated a high of 33 or so for the day. not sure temp @ the start.
waiting to start
i had my long underwear, a wool headband (made by my mom last year), and a space blanket.
around mile 2(?) i dropped the blanket.
started on a road by the beach and me listening to some tunes.
i had a few short conversations with a few maniacs and a man running his first marathon.
i love the excitement f first time marathoners, tends to bring a smile to my face.
there was a nice variet of scenery. . . .
local streets
passed through some tolls
neighborhoods
boardwalk (pretty much closed, still neat)
bike / dirt path near the water
ocean views
drinks anyone?
more views
about mile 13 i'd been leapfrogging with a woman for a mile or so. by 14 we were running together. paula had qualified for boston twice. now she is taking her time and enjoying her runs.
i was lucky enough to meet her son & his adorable daughter (her grandaughter) @mile 17.
somewhere before mile 23 (?) we picked up another for our now 3 min run 1 min walk plus aid stations(i had started @ 5/1).
paula & laura
laura is from vermont. she is experienced in marathoning. i believe she said this was #40. mostly she runs near home, so she was making the most of this trip & visiting family in state.
her friend, kathy - whom i had leapfrogged with throughout the race - joined us @ mile 24. she had stopped to wait for laura. she makes an outstanding entrance.
laura, paula, and myself were coming up on mile 24. a cop pulls towards us from the other direction and stops. he says "do you know kathy?", opens the back seat of the car and says "i pulled her over for speeding". we all laughed.
and then there were 4
we finished strong.
POST RACE
there were photos
laura, paula, me troy, cathie, kathy
ran into kino & steven t outside the tent
& met a few new maniacs.
nice to recognize faces.
maniacs - including kino & steven t
a quick walk in the ocean then mom & i headed back to the hotel.
hope all be wonderful :)
see route map here
for elevation - look @ the chart (vs the ascent & descent)