Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Where it all began

If you look to the right of this blog, you will see a history of my races. Checking closely, you will notice I have listed my first race being in 2001. That's not entirely accurate. You see, I actually started my 5k+ career somewhere in the late 80's. It was running the Corporate Challenge series of 3.5 mile races. Two weeks ago, I was in NYC on business and, before I left for home, I had an opportunity to run the course where it all started for me. It all started in Central Park.

(Above: Typical Central Park scene. Runner on the bike path with horse and carriage in front of the runner.)

(Above: Around the reservoir in Central Park. This is seen in a number of movies throughout the years. The one I remember the most is Marathon Man with Dustin Hoffman.)

(Above: The tall building you see, in this picture, is the Dakota. It is where John Lennon lived and Yoko Ono continues to live.)

(Above: Tavern on the Green was the start and finish line of the Corporate Challenge I remember most back in the late 80's/early 90's. After leaving my job in Manhattan, I ran the CC again, in the mid-90's, but they had changed the course by then. It was a shame because I liked the original course.)

(Above: The two pictures above are typical shots from Central Park showing parts of the Manhattan skyline through the trees.)

For a couple of years, when I first got married, I lived in northern Jersey and worked in Manhattan. I remember, one day, leaving work and heading to the bus to go home and seeing all these people in the streets, wearing numbers on their shirts, heading up to Central Park. Why? I asked someone what that was all about and he responded, 'That's the Corporate Challenge. It's the last race of the year but you should try it next year.' It looked like a lot of fun. But, to run 3.5 miles? Without stopping? Why would someone who thinks a 440 is taxing do anything crazy like that?
But that winter and spring, I kept on thinking about it. The company captain was named Ralph (I wish I can remember his last name) and he convinced me I could do it. So, I trained. Boy, did I train. I must have been out there for a good six weeks before the race. Mind you, not every day. But, out there enough to know that I would't die running 3.5 miles.
To this day, that first race was one of the most exciting experiences I ever had. I remember being towards the back of the pack and seeing 10,000+ people starting. It was like a wave coming towards you as people's heads started to bob up and down in front of me and it got closer and closer and closer.
I don't remember the details of the race itself other than remembering the last small hill at the finish. It felt like I was climbing a mountain. I also remember the cheering crowds the last 1/2 mile. Cheering for everyone. Cheering for me. Pulling me along to the end. The absolute rush I got hearing them. It was thrilling. I was hooked.
After a few years, I changed jobs and no longer worked in Manhattan. I became captain of our team and convinced others to do the Corporate Challenge. We went back to Central Park a few times but also did CCs in Morristown, NJ, Princeton, NJ and Philadelphia, PA. After awhile, the company discouraged our participation. We went one more time to Central Park, but, because the train was late getting us up there, we missed the start of the race. It was beginning not to be fun anymore so we didn't do it again.
Those were the days before the internet so I can't look up any of my times in the races. I do remember that my best time was 29:45 for the 3.5 mile race. After that, I ran sparingly doing a few miles at a time. But, no more races. It wasn't until I met up with Steve again, a few years later and him convincing me I could do a marathon, did I take up running once more.
Running the Central Park course once more was a lot of fun. It brought back a lot of great memories. I ran up that small hill at the finish. I finished my run at Tavern on the Green just once more. I stood there looking around and remembering the feeling I had when I had finished my first long distance race. And, wished I could do it just one more time.
(Note: When blogs collide!
I will be off to Hawaii for a week and a half so won't be able to blog for a few weeks. For the past few weeks, I have been asking around where can I realistically run in Hawaii? Well, Frayed Laces (http://frayedlaces.blogspot.com/) and the Boyfriend have graciously offered to take me out for a 5-6 miler in Honolulu next week. I am very excited about this and can't wait to meet up with them. Hopefully, some great pictures will soon follow.
In the meantime, Aloha!)

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