Race Report: Bronx Half Marathon

When I wrote my last post, I still wasn't sure if I'd be running the half today. I was still feeling sluggish and very congested. I woke up Saturday morning feeling a heck of a lot better. Mrs. Ansky noticed too and asked if I was thinking about running. The scales were definitely tipping more in favor of running but I still wasn't sure if my body could handle it. Then I remembered something that Diane tweeted at me Friday. She said running does not always have to be about training and racing and that it's OK to run just for fun without the pressure of training for a goal race. So by the time Shabbat ended, I decided that I would run, not race the Bronx Half Marathon. I would go up there with 2 goals 1) to finish and 2) to have fun.

What I enjoyed most about this race was being able to run through a neighborhood I wouldn't necessarily frequent. The course was strange in the sense that it was a series of out and backs on Mosholu Parkway and Grand Concourse. The miles on the Grand Concourse almost ate me up. I think at one point I even said to myself "this isn't fun anymore." I was feeling fine, nothing hurt, I hadn't coughed up a lung, it was just something about the Grand Concourse rubbed me the wrong way. At mile 11, I saw Erika and we ran the last 2 miles together. I crossed the line in 1:56:11 (8:56/mile) and I felt great. I ran for the sake of running. I had no time goals, no training plan to follow, I was simply there to run 13.1 miles in the Bronx on in incredibly beautiful summer morning.

 Mission Accomplished!