Happy Spring Equinox - 2017

Happy Spring!  Official the Spring Equinox arrived at 6:28 here on the east coast.  Although it was definitely ignored by Winter, which refuses to give up the ghost this year!  I was marginally warmer this morning (and I'm being charitable because there wasn't much of a wind chill) than it was yesterday, heading into the city for the NYC Half Marathon!

Thankfully, however, the forecast is for temperatures to rise into the 40's (and may even hit 50) this afternoon.  Not a heat wave, but certainly more spring like than the frigid (+snow +ice) conditions that we had to weather last week :O

Anyway - HAPPY SPRING!  Get outside and enjoy some of it!

2017 NYC Half Marathon: Race Photos & Results

The 2017 NYC Half Marathon is in the books!  It was my 7th NYC Half (and 3rd NYRR race for 2017).  While this one was cold, mainly because of the wind chill, it was no way near as frigid as the 2014 edition!  I was cold enough, however, to have my IPhone freeze up minutes after I crossed the finish line.  I literally closed my Strava App, took the above selfie... and it died an ignoble death!  Amazingly, it came back to life roughly an hour later, as I rode home on the Metronorth.

As for the race itself, I ran a 1:52:44 (my splits, thanks to the NYC App  are posted below).  It was a solid 8 minutes slower than my 2015 finish (didn't run it last year).  I was somewhat disappointed not having squeezed in under 1:50, but given my low mileage this winter, entirely understandable.  No speed to speak of, but I could have kept running (so endurance still hanging in there).

Here are the race results from NYRR.

2017 NYC Half Marathon - Packet Pickup at Metropolitan Pavillon

This afternoon went over to the Metropolitan Pavillon to pick up my bib and shirt for the NYC Half Marathon.  This will be my 7th NYC Half Marathon!  I last ran this race back in 2015, when the packet pickup/Expo was at a different location (Skylight at Moynihan Station across from Madison Square Garden).

Not sure what to expect, weather-wise, this weekend.  After the snow on Tuesday - which quickly morphed into ice - the best hope is for a nice warm-up.  By that I mean any temps near the freezing mark - haha.  But as I write this, some strange forecasts are predicting a bit more snowfall this weekend?!  Could that be true?

In any event, this will be my NYRR race #3 for 2017.  If you're at this one - say hello!

Happy Birthday Jack Kerouac - 95 Years Young in Heaven

Happy Birthday Jack Kerouac!

He was born March 12, 1922 and died tragically on October 21, 1969 - from the ravages of alcoholism. He was only 47 years old - and this year marks the somewhat grim fact that he has now been dead (48 years) longer than he lived. 

For most people he needs no introduction but, sadly, there are increasing numbers of people who haven't heard of him, his spontaneous prose, or the beat generation (for that matter).  We're all getting older...

Anyway, to keep this upbeat (ha) - pull out your beaten up (ha) copy of "On the Road" and read a few pages - or the entire book!

March 2017 Race Schedule

This month will, hopefully, include a return to some long distance races!  It kicks off this weekend with the final Boston Buildup Race, the 25K, on Sunday.  Somehow I managed to miss the first 3 races of the Series this year - argh! 

The following weekend is the first of the 4 training runs that lead up to the Great New York Running Exposition 100 miler in June!  Last year I only ran the last training run (which is also my favorite part of the course). This year I hope to run 3 of the 4 training runs!

Mid-month is one of my favorite events - the NYC Half Marathon!  Looking forward to that one - and maybe some warm weather to go along with it :D

The last weekend of the month is still up in the air - but as of now I'm planning to do the Boston Blowout 30K. 

Here's how it looks so far:

3/5 - Boston Buildup 25K
3/12 - TGNY 100 Training Run #1
3/19 - NYC Half Marathon
3/26 - Boston Blowout 30K

As always, if you're at any of these races - say Hello!