Mike's Marathon Blog

I am still exhausted from Sunday. It was a long day even if you don’t count the 5 consecutive hours of running.

While most people were snacking and enjoying the NFL on Sunday, here’s what I was doing:

4:45 a.m. – Alarm sounds

5:30 a.m. – Cab to Central Park

6:00 a.m. – Children’s Hospital bus

7:00 a.m. – Staten Island, sit on the ground outside in 32 degree weather with 47,000+ runners

10:00 a.m. – Enter corral with Miriam

10:40 a.m. – Start the New York City Marathon on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge

11:48 a.m. – Gebre Gebremariam of Ethiopia wins the race in 2:08:14. I am at mile 6.

12:45 p.m. – Bathroom break at McDonalds

1:40 p.m. – Run past Jacky, Mark & Mark’s family at mile 15, just before the Queensboro Bridge

2:40 p.m. – Enter Central Park with about 4 miles to go

3:45 p.m. – Cross the finish line at 05:13:48. Yes, we beat Jared by 20 seconds!

4:45 p.m. – Meet Jacky & Mark at a nearby Starbucks for hugs and ice cream sandwiches (which we requested beforehand)

5:30 p.m. – Hotel for the greatest shower in the history of showers

6:15 p.m. – Cab to JFK

8:50 p.m. – Flight to Boston

11:15 p.m. – Home, ice bath

12:10 a.m. – Bed

To be continued………

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The NYC Marathon is complete.

It was slow and steady, but I crossed the finish line.

I am extremely sore, but everything is intact.

I am already back in New England and ready for my bed.

Thank you to everyone for all the texts/emails/phone calls/FB messages!

To be continued……………

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Tomorrow is the big day. In 10 hours, I will be on the Children’s Hospital bus heading to Staten Island for the start of the New York City Marathon.

Our trip to NY has been great so far. After a few headaches in Boston, we arrived in NY on Friday at 2. We tried to go to Jack’s favorite spot in NY, Serendipity, but the wait was far too long. We grabbed some NY pizza and checked in to our hotel. The hotel was a question mark when we booked it, but it turned out to be really nice.

Our friends, Mark and Miriam, arrived a few hours later. We headed over to the marathon expo to get our numbers and goody bags. We ate dinner at the restaurant at the hotel and hit the hay early.

Today, after breakfast, we took the lovely NYC subway to Ground Zero. Talk about some inspiration before the race. Everyone in the area is very emotional and it’s strange to see the same sights and buildings as you’ve seen so many times in all the 9/11 videos and pictures. The designs for the new 9/11 museum and tribute park are amazing. The park is set to open 9/11/2011.

Of course girls can’t go to NYC without doing some shopping. As long as I got to go to Nike Town, I was fine with it. I bought a few Nike marathon shirts and thank you Katie for the 40% discount!

We had an early dinner, bought our yogurt, bagels and juice for tomorrow morning and headed back to our rooms before 8. My bags are packed, my outfit is laid out and my number is securely pinned to my shirt. I am currently icing my back and watching The 40-Year Old Virgin on Bravo.

Luckily we get an extra hour of sleep tonight, so 5 AM won’t come too early. Hopefully my alarm sounds at the correct 5 AM.

Time to sleep then……..time to run!

2011 NYC Marathon. I’m in!

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I leave for New York tomorrow morning. We are flying, which is one of the better decisions I have made in my life. Especially since I don’t think my back could sit in a car for 4 1/2 hours. The price was comparable to driving, so it really was a no-brainer.

After a full week of rest, constant icing and 3 visits to the chiropractor, I have decided to give the marathon a go. My back is what it is at this point. Out of the 2 doctors I saw, one said I wouldn’t finish and the other said I might blow out my herniated disc. But of course, both are worse case scenarios. Best case scenario is I finish, I feel good and I complete 2 World Major Marathons in 8 months. I’ll take the chance.

As for the Athlete Alert – I just signed Jacky up and it did cost $2.99. Kind of pathetic, but someone has to pay for half of New York City’s roads shutting down for 6 hours. Again, you can follow me online for free! Just type in my last name or bib number.

Many of you have called/texted/emailed me over the past few days, asking how my back is feeling and wishing me luck with the race. I truly appreciate the concern. It means a lot.

59 hours!

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Just in case I run:

ATHLETE ALERT
Fans, family, and friends can track their runner via SMS text message through Athlete Alert!

Once the Athlete Alert registration system opens (during race week), anyone can sign up to receive texts tracking the splits of up to three runners. Splits will be recorded at the 5km, 10km, 15km, 20km, 25km, 30km, 35km, 40km, and the finish.

$2.99 in the U.S. / $5.99 International.

On-Demand tracking will also be available on race day. Users can text their runner’s race number to request the latest recorded split whenever they want. $2.99 (domestic only) for unlimited requests.

I’m not sure if it costs $2.99 to simply track someone or just if you want to receive their exact location? Anyway, if you don’t feel like spending $2.99:

ATHLETE TRACKER
This free service is available on race day (and afterwards) and lets fans track up to 3 runners directly in their web browser. Available on http://www.INGNYCMarathon.org at 7:00 a.m. EDT on Sunday, November 7.

My bib number is 42328.

My friend Miriam’s bib number is 47639.

As of right now, I still do not know if I can run. My back is definitely getting better day by day. Luckily, I still have a few more days to heal/decide. I am staying positive and optimistic! That’s what I keep telling Miriam at least.

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The Lo Kai Halloween Party didn’t stand a chance. Yes, I said the Lo Kai Halloween Party.

How frigin cute is this kid?

Chiropractor. Tomorrow. 8:30.

Fingers are crossed.

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No, I’m not talking about Brett Favre. Trust me, I wish I was talking about Brett Favre.

I will unfortunately be a game-time decision for the NYC Marathon. Right now, I can’t walk. I can’t bend over, I can’t sit, lay, stand up straight, move, sleep, etc. Running is currently not even an option. It is physically impossible.

My back started flaring up again last week. I golfed on Thursday and as much as I want to get mad at myself for golfing, I know that’s not the sole reason for my current back pain. It had been hurting a little all week and I guess that was the nail in the coffin. I was in the clear for awhile, which was nice, but this pain has been coming and going all year. I have a herniated disc. I wasn’t supposed to be exercising, never-mind training for a marathon. I guess it caught up to me.

The worst part about this whole episode is that it doesn’t just affect me this time around. My friend Miriam and I have been training for this race together and as of now, she might have to go at it alone. I feel terrible. I honestly cannot even sleep thinking about it. Well, that and the excruciating back pain when I lay straight.

My plan first thing in the morning is to try and get an emergency injection. I don’t know if they will take me on such short notice, but maybe they will squeeze me in after I explain the situation? The last time I scheduled an injection, it took over a month to get an appointment. And looking back now, maybe I should have kept it?

If the injection is off the table, then my next step will be a chiropractor. I’m not sure if they can help, but perhaps they can do something/anything to relieve the pain for the weekend? I don’t know if this is possible, but it’s worth a shot. What’s the worst that can happen? I can’t walk as it is.

Can I back-out at this point? The answer is yes. I have until the day before the marathon to cancel. My number would automatically be transferred to the 2011 NYC Marathon and I would be given a spot for that Miles for Miracles team. Any money that I have raised has already been donated to Children’s Hospital.

I unfortunately cannot stop time. The marathon is 1 week from today and I leave for NY in 5 days.

I’m praying for a miracle!

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Two weeks from yesterday, I will be running the New York City Marathon.

My 2nd to last long-run was Saturday in Boston. You can tell how close race day is by the time it takes you to get out of bed in the morning. Two months ago, I was up at 7, in Boston by 8:30 and running by 8:45. Now, I’m lucky if I’m out of bed by 8:45. My friend Miriam doesn’t seem to mind since I know her ‘alarm clock’ is the buzz of her front door when I arrive.

We had a typical 2nd to last long-run of the season too. Before we started, I told Miriam that I wanted to run to the water at some point to see the Head of the Charles. After about 11 miles, we headed to the ‘dirty’ water. A run along the water watching the rowers quickly turned into walking, talking, eating doughnuts and drinking coffee. I guess this was our treat for all those long Saturday mornings together. I don’t know about her, but I’m going to miss them. Maybe I’ll surprise her the Saturday after the marathon for a nice reuinion run?

Miles for Miracles is having a dinner for us on Thursday night at Maggioano’s in Boston. This will be the first time meeting the members of the NYC team. It will also be the first time I see the coaches and the MfM staff since finishing Boston. Hopefully the Patient Partners will be attending the dinner, so I get a chance to meet Braedyn and his family.

For the next 2 weeks, I basically try not to get injured. Silly as it seems, but you don’t want even the slightest sore back, sore ankle, sore foot, sore anything before running 26 miles. I don’t even want a hangnail from now until the 7th. And you know, after 3 months of training, this is when you will get hurt! Bad luck always seems to find a crack in the armor. Take Boston for example. I think it’s safe to rake leaves in the yard the Wednesday before the race. By Marathon Monday, I had to run with a long-sleeve shirt becuase both of my arms were covered in poison ivy. True story.

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The New York City Marathon is 21 days away! Oh boy! I just received my official bib number for the race. This is when it truly starts sinking in that I have to run 26.2 miles in 3 weeks from today!

Bib: 42328

Green Wave #2

Corral #42

It’s like we’re cattle or something!

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I have spent the past few weeks trying to get an appointment at Brigham and Women’s for a 2nd opinion on my herniated disc. Lahey was pushing for the injections, people have told me just to get surgery, others tell me to go to the chiropractor, physical therapy, rest, stop running, so on and so forth. I needed someone to tell me what to do. My back injection was scheduled for October 13th, so I needed to know what my game plan was before then. Also, I have to run one of the biggest marathons in the world in a month and I don’t really want to cripple myself at mile 20.

My friends Mark and Miriam called around and got the name of a great back specialist at B&W’s. With our amazing health care system being what it is and maxing out my cell minutes, I finally got a referral and an appointment with the guy last week. My plan going into it was that I was doing with whatever he recommended. If he said surgery, I was scheduling an appointment. If he said ‘you’re fine,’ I was planning on sucking it up and dealing with it.

After a 2 and 1/2 hour commute into Boston and a long tour of every hallway in the hospital, I was told the doctor was in surgery. Of course he was! Why wouldn’t he be in the OR during the time of my 10:45 appointment that took me a month to get? I gave the receptionist my number and told her to call me when he was back. I felt like I was at the Olive Garden on a Saturday night. They should have those buzzing, vibrating things that light up when you’re table is ready. After an amazing turkey club, a quick walk to Children’s to visit Miriam, 800 hands of Texas Hold’em on my BB and 3 hours later, the doctor was ready to see me.

I guess it was worth the wait. He was an awesome guy and actually stayed in the room and talked with me for probably 20 minutes (still in his surgery clothes). He asked me a bunch of questions, I asked him a bunch of questions, I told him I ran 22 miles a few days ago and that I was running NYC in a few weeks, he laughed. This was his comment about the race, “I ran NYC a few years ago with someone else’s number. It was harder than I thought. You might blow your disc out running, but I would do it. Bring your MRI CD with you, just in case.” Marathon number, check. MfM singlet, check. Gel packs, check. MRI CD in case my spine snaps in half, check.

Treatment……he chose the ‘nothing’ route. He thought since I was so young (not sure he noticed my hairline like the other guy?) and so athletic (never thought I would say that in my life) that the disc would heal on it’s own. He wasn’t against the spine injections, but urged against it since NYC is only a few weeks away. He recommended I take it easy for a weeks/months after the race. He also told me to get another MRI at the beginning of next summer to see if the disc had healed or not. If it’s still herniated, then possibly consider an injection at that time.

Unfortunately, it is probable that my back will always be an issue. Like the guys at Lahey said, some people are lactose-intolerant, others have bad skin, some are glutarded. You take the cards you’re dealt, right? Luckily my back has felt better over the past couple of weeks. I haven’t been doing anything different, so hopefully that means it’s starting to heal? I have no idea.

As of now, I plan on following the doctor’s orders to rest over the winter. But who knows? Maybe someone will have an extra Boston number?

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