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Rachel Allen the Runner
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I'm not an elite runner (like my friend Heather May), but I can go the distance. 6 times so far. Each marathon was unique and I tried to capture the essence of the good (and bad) times in my race reports. They're long... but scroll down and enjoy NYCM 2002, NYCM 2000 and the 2003 NYC Urban Challenge.
NYCM 2003 -- 4:58:51 (I don't want to talk about it)
Austin 2003 -- 4:54:57 (This one was for Joseph)
NYCM 2002 -- 4:29:28 (PR!)
Chicago 2001 -- 4:48:12
NYCM 2000 -- 4:33:22
NYCM 1999 -- 5:24
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NYCM 2002
Hey guys... it's taken me a few days but I'm finally ready to wax poetic on my big day... I'm going to try and keep it brief... the goal is for you to read this in less time than it took me to run it!
Sunday morning started with an easy cab ride to the Plaza where Fred's Team was waiting with breakfast... now I've never really been a fan of the Plaza and the bad bagels sealed it... you're in NYC... you have access to the best bagels in the world and we got bagels that tasted like those horrible airy, doughy bagels you get in the street carts before work! H&H people!!! Pick-a-Bagel's just around the corner! Trump... I never liked the man... So I ate about a half a bagel, took a banana for later on and hopped on the bus. I went to sleep almost immediately and woke up somewhere on the BQE to observe our special police escort to the start... pretty cool! Once we got to the start they didn't unload us for a while so we had a nice, warm, comfortable seat and an exclusive bathroom with toilet paper. I know it was pretty cold at the start... but with my ski jacket on and my throwaway sweats I was toasty warm once we found a spot in the sun. They were out of bagels by the time we got there, so I had a power bar and drank a few bottles of water. Thank goodness I don't drink coffee... that line was nearly out to the bridge! Terrie and I went in search of bathrooms and found the biggest jackpot of all... an exclusive plaza for the fast women with a row of porta potties just for us! Translation... NO LINES!!!!! Unfortunately they weren't available closer to race time so we waited for 40 minutes by the UPS trucks before lining up... We had collected the team (Terrie, Mike Berkowitz, Mareike and Gary) and worked our way to the start... Because of the bathroom lines, we basically started at the back... something I really didn't want to do since I knew that I would have to fight the crowds to make up for it. Even with that I had a pretty good few miles over the Verrazano... Terrie and I wished the other guys good luck and ran quietly up the bridge together.
My strategy was to run clean and fast through brooklyn because it's nice and flat. I zoned out a little bit and stayed to the center to avoid the crown in the road... It wasn't until about 35th and 4th ave that I realized I missed Jessica... SORRY! Karen and Chuck were at 17th St with a big ugly sign just as they promised! Quick hug and a picture and I moved on. Next stop was Landon, but he would be on the right side... that meant crossing over the median and possibly shortening my race by about 100 yards as the green starts (runners on the right side of 4th ave) were not quite at the same distance. But nah... I ran over, hugged him and then went back to the red side so I would do this the right way. Dervin was just past mile 8 when we all merged at BAM. I was in a bit of a panic at mile 7 because I couldn't remember where he was supposed to be... but then I remembered as I passed his street and just started sceaming his name... and he was right there with a big old hug for me!
Despite all these hugs and cheers this was a pretty quiet race for me... I've been through a lot over the past few months and since I didn't have my name on my shirt (long story... but it's weather and figure related) I didn't have the distraction. But it really allowed me to concentrate on my pace, think about why I was doing it and keep an eye out for my support team.
And boy were they out in full force! Dan and friends were at mile 11.5... I was worried that I missed them... but I didn't realize I had to pass South before I got to North. Kerry was at the base of the Queensboro bridge... many times we had discussed how difficult that part was so she was there to give me an extra push over to Manhattan... it worked! I tore down the other side of the bridge and ran a nice quick pace up 1st Ave. The crowds were amazing! I missed Fred's Team because they were on the right side and I was too close to Michele at 73rd street... I screamed her name but missed her anyway... I can't ever manage to find her... she was probably refilling her beer! ;-)
Next was Mom, Mark, Rose and Sandi... I asked them to get me gatorade before I saw them again... the course seemed to be a little short on it and Sandi handed me a zip lock bag of gummi bears to keep me going in the meantime. I tore into them! After about 4 handfuls of gummi bears I started to wonder if that was such a good idea... I had never had so many gummi bears on a run before and I could feel myself getting kind of nauseous. And unfortunately that's why I missed Artemis at 86th Street... I was stuffing my face. I was expecting Loring at 93rd street but couldn't find her... so I resigned myself to running alone until I saw Mari at Mile 23... but Loring tricked me! She was standing a little farther up with a big pink sign and... you guessed it... MORE GUMMI BEARS! I took one... I couldn't possibly take anymore... and moved on. Surprise Surprise... about 10 blocks up was Chuck and Karen again! Karen started running with me for a few blocks and we looked back at Chuck for a quick pic and they said they'd see me on the other side.
Close to mile 20 there was a cop welcoming us to the Bronx... he was yelling "Welcome to the Bronx!! Do you know what we do best here? Run for our lives!" I thought that was pretty funny... what wasn't as funny was how stupid Nike was... at mile 7 in Brooklyn they had a HUGE banner that said "Wall Schmall"... and at mile 20 in the Bronx (commonly known as "the wall") their sign said "3:30 or Bust." I looked at my watch and I was at 3:30 right about then... so I said BUST!!! Nike Schmike...
Once I got back to Manhattan at mile 21 I just fell into a rhythm and kept moving... I was thrilled to see the park because I knew the course really well from that point on and could "see" the finish line. I knew that my pace was ok and that I was headed for a PR but I wasn't sure of a real time goal at this point.
At 23 I screamed at Mari and she threw me a bottle of OJ... I came up on her kind of fast (for me) and didn't feel that I really needed anything... The OJ would have been a great boost... but I couldn't open it! I had taken off my gloves and my hands didn't work anymore. Another runner tried for me but failed as well... Finally I gave it to some spectators as we entered the park at 90th. (Sorry Mari!)
At mile 24 I saw Mark and he offered the gatorade but I was ok at that point... I threw him my bag that had my gloves in them just as he was telling me he lost my mom... Mark... can I still get my gloves back? :-) Mom and Sandi were just a little farther up and I barely said hi to them because I felt myself pulled by the cat... I ran really strong up to the top and had a nice long aaaaaaahhhhh as I went down the other side... and at the bottom GoGoTep spotted me and cheered me on! I yelled that I was going to bring it in under 4:30 and kept running....
I knew it... I got to the top of Cat Hill and said OMG I can DO this! At the 1 mile to go mark my watch said 4:19:31 and I thought uh-oh! I had to make the next mile in less than 10:29... (amazing that my brain was able to figure that one out)... doable definitely but I also knew of the 59th St climb and the yucky hill right at the 26 mile mark. But I just pushed on... Somewhere along 59th street someone yelled my name and I was thrilled that someone else was there for me... It wasn't until much later that I found out it was Zan... she had paced a friend who was just ahead of me and stopped to see if she could find me... As I rounded the corner into the park and flew under the 26 mile banner I got another shock... Daniel's parents (who now live extremely close to the finish line) were cheering for me right before the last hill! And that was it... I ran kind of easy up that hill so I could conserve for the last 100 yards... and somehow... it worked! I came in with a net time of 4:29:28... that's a PR for me of 4:06 and it brings me to that sub 4:30 level! Cool Beans!
I was so thrilled when I finished... I screamed for Janet at the medal stand and refused to take medals from all of the people until I found her.... she gave me a huge hug through the medal tree and then I did a little (I mean little) cheerleader jump because I was so excited. That's when one of the volunteers noticed I was a "celebrity" and she pulled me off to the side like I needed to be sent directly to the med tent... she warned me of the curb (be very careful there's a step here) and I was grateful... but it was a little much... I could have done the 'singing in the rain' dance on the curb I was so happy!
I collected my stuff, regrouped with Terrie and her brother Gary and waited for Sandi to come pick me up. We walked home and then went and celebrated with Michael Beltran who had a nice strong showing with his cousin. I had a really fantastic day and loved every person out there whether they were a runner, close friend or random spectator that yelled "you GO girl!" NYC is just a really great marathon...
So what's the net of this marathon? Aside from the PR and really supportive friends I was able to raise over $2000 for the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. It was such an honor to be part of their team and get to share something with all of the other runners.
So what's next?? Well... I don't really have a reason to stop running right now... so I may just keep going... I'm still a little sore but may run an easy 6-8 this weekend while I'm in Houston. The next goal may be the Austin Marathon in February... and of course I've already qualified for next year's NYCM so don't be surprised if around October of next year you get those crazy emails about what time I'll be running up that Queensboro bridge!
I know this has been super long and I apologize to all of you who aren't runners... I know this can't be all that interesting to you! But for those of you that are interested I've added my splits below. Whew... this was long... but I needed to get it out in some way... Thanks to everyone for your support to Fred's Team, to me during training and all those along the course... It makes the Marathon so special and just a really fun day!
Rachel
P.S. A huge congratulations to Mareike and Mike Berkowitz on completing their first marathons! They did really great...
Splits:
1 -- 10:15
2 -- 9:28
3 -- 10:11
4 -- 9:58
5 -- 9:40
6 -- 9:39 (Karen and Chuck)
7 -- 9:40
8 -- 10:30 (Landon)
9 -- 10:13 (Dervin)
10 -- 10:04
11 -- 10:32 (slowed down looking for Dan)
12 -- 10:05 (I found him!)
13 -- 10:41 (Pulaski bridge was a tough climb)
14/15 -- 21:36 (I can NEVER find that mile marker in Queens. Kerry was here!)
16 -- 10:53 (that darn Queeensboro bridge)
17/18 -- 20:02 (I was too focused on finding friends in HUGE crowds of people)
19 -- 10:41
20 -- 10:40
21 -- 10:34 (the one mile through the Bronx)
22 -- 10:23 (back in Harlem)
23 -- 10:29
24 -- 10:57 (ouch, Mari and the OJ)
25 -- 10:00 (Mom, Mark, Sandi, Eileen and CAT HILL!)
26 -- 10:01
.2 -- 2:04
Final 4:29:28. Average pace 10:17.
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NYCM 2000
Wow It's taken me a while to recover from the whole experience this time around and I'm finally ready to put it all down on paper and tell you all about it. I will warn you in advance that this report is as long as the marathon itself, so if you want to just skim, I won't be offended! I also need to apologize in advance if I left anyone off the list, it's totally unintentional.
My mom and Joseph came in late on Saturday so we dropped our stuff off at the hotel and met Megan for a quick dinner at Patsy's on the east side. Megan, as clever as ever, brought me a gift of a giant bottle of gatorade. She said that she had to look in a few delis because it was sold out everywhere. Runners had taken over New York City! They also took over all of the Italian restaurants. We had to wait wait wait for pasta pasta pasta.
Back in the hotel I had to make sure that everything was ready to go. That meant packing a bag, layout out my clothes and cutting out the letters that would go on my shirt. I felt like I was in 3rd grade trying to cut out block letters out of sticker pages. My mother thankfully saved me with her awesome calligraphy skills by at least drawing out pretty letters for me. I was ready for the next day with "Go Rachel" on the front, "Hak" on my sleeve and "Kick!" on the back.
I woke up in the morning and my mom and brother stayed asleep while I calmly spread peanut butter on my pre-toasted day-old english muffin - the breakfast of champions. Everything was right on schedule until I realized I couldn't find my watch. I COULDN'T FIND MY WATCH! It was my worst nightmare come true. I tore apart the room. Dumped my marathon bag, my suitcase, all of the drawers. I guess I woke mom up throwing everything around the room and I started crying and throwing a fit that I couldn't possibly run without my running partner (the watch). Finally I found it under the bed. I had placed it on top of my clothes before I went to sleep. So when I picked them up in the morning I must have thrown the watch under the bed. Whew.
Now running late to meet Jim and Wendy, I went downstairs and there were no cabs, so I hijacked a private limo. I told him that since his pickup wasn't for another 40 minutes he had plenty of time to take me down to the Main library on 42nd St. Don't worry, I paid him!
The staging area at the start was pretty calm this year. It was really windy on Sunday, however nowhere near as cold as last year. It was even pleasant as long as you were standing in the sun. The wind would cause some problems for most of the course though since it was coming from the North. Just the first 20 miles or so! We staked a good spot under a tent pretty early and everyone went to go get breakfast and do their thing. My thing was going to the bathroom 4 times before the race started. I was a nervous mess. I don't know why, but for every long run (and I guess this counts) I would get awful stage fright right before it started. Bizarre. I crossed the start line 5 minutes after the cannon went off. I couldn't believe it! It took me 15 minutes to cross the start in Chicago, 15 minutes to cross from the same exact spot last year, but only 5 minutes this year? That 10 minute difference meant that I would miss my family along the entire route. Quite a bummer, but I couldn't exactly stop and wait around!
Going up the Verrazano bridge was not as exciting this year. In fact it was quite frustrating. A 12 minute mile, lots and lots of wind and garbage bags blowing in my face. Once we crossed over to Brooklyn it opened up a little bit and I was able to find my pace. I was hoping to make good time through Brooklyn since it was straight and flat. I joined up with my friend Jim again and we made great time all the way through Brooklyn and really enjoyed all of the different neighborhoods. The Hasidic streets with little girls in long black coats giving us high 5's, all sorts of bands up 4th Avenue, a cultural and exciting experience. We also ran with News Channel 4 for a while. They were riding in a golf cart and every once in a while the reporter would get out, run and interview people (he cheated). So if you saw the guys dressed like NY Yankees players with their faces painted, I was running RIGHT NEXT TO THEM!!
At the halfway point I was right on for a good half marathon time, especially since I lost a few minutes in the first few miles negotiating the crowds. It's at the halfway point where you realize what this race is really about. As you climb the Pulaski bridge and cross into Queens you see the whole Manhattan skyline across the river and the 59th St. Bridge up ahead. A truly awesome sight. Queens was quick and flat, our last opportunity for that in the race - it's all hills from Mile 14 on.
I had lost Jim in Queens, he was having a problem with his ankle and I resigned myself to conquering the 59th St Bridge alone. Just when I was about to turn up the ramp though, I heard the enthusiastic screams of Marcie Barrett-Falcone! Seeing her there gave me the strength and confidence not to crash on that bridge.
The Queensboro bridge is really the deciding factor for many NYC Marathoners. Last year it seemed like a mountain impossible to climb. This year it just seemed endless. The grade isn't really that bad, but that's the first time that you notice there is no one around to cheer you on. The cars just went whizzing past us on the other side and all the runners were eerily quiet. No talking, no encouragement. It makes for a very difficult stretch. But last year I knew that bridge killed me and I was not going to let it happen again. Jim caught up to me halfway up and we concentrated on powering up at a consistent pace and flowing back down the other side anxious to get to the 1st Avenue crowds.
And the crowds really were amazing. The first face I saw in Manhattan was Mareike (from the Vistafjord)! She had a press pass, so she was allowed special access. I was on German Internet News! How cool is THAT!?!? All the way up First Aveune, people were hanging out of every window and they were packed like it was the Thanksgiving Day Parade. Again I unfortunately missed my family and most of my friends (except Linda!) because of my 10 minute headstart, but I seemed like I had so much support it really makes a difference putting your name on the FRONT of your shirt!
Mile 18 was huge for me. I kept thinking of everyone on Kick! and the Chicago marathon, and Liam, yes, I could hear you cheering me on from England! Unfortunately though Mile 19 came next. I crashed. I felt my energy just get zapped and I said to myself, "If I can only make it to the Bronx!" And then once I got there I kept thinking, "If I can only make it back to Manhattan!"
And finally I did. As we were coming off the Madison Avenue bridge we felt a few drops of rain. But nothing more than that and all the runners breathed a collective sigh of relief! As exciting as it was to get back to Manhattan, it's equally as annoying, because the bridge lets me out 2 blocks from my apartment. I admit that the thought crossed my mind to just run straight home and fall asleep. I (sort of) congratulated myself on leaving my apt keys at the hotel! I started counting off the blocks one by one and focusing on the fact that I would see Mari right before the entrance to the park. I cannot thank her enough for being there. She had water, gatorade, bananas, gels and cookies! Everything a runner needs at mile 23. The cookie tasted wonderful and I ate about half of it before I gave it to another runner who looked like they needed a boost. After 4 hours no one really cares about cooties.
The park was such a surreal experience. People were standing 3 deep and all shouting my name telling me I looked great and that I was almost there. One runner turned around and told me "I've been running with you since Greenspoint, Brooklyn and my name is Rachel too. Thank you for running this race!" I laughed so hard and just tried to hang on. These hills were hell and I was in pain by now. I was still running with Jim but by the time we got to the park he looked like he was ready to give it an extra kick, so at the 24 mile mark I told him to run ahead. He's really amazing. In the last 4 miles he was able to make up 4 minutes and finish just under 4:30! So there I was all alone, and I kept reminding myself that I've done this part so many times and I get to treat myself by running DOWN Cat Hill instead of up it! Then I got a special surprise at 72nd St. My friend Teri was waiting at the bottom of the hill with 3 of her friends and they ALL had signs to cheer me on! I was so excited and I knew the race was mine. The best part was hitting that 25 mile mark and knowing that even if I walked that last mile I KILLED my time from last year!
It felt so good to cross that finish line and know that I had run a fantastic race. After I finally turned off my watch (I forgot in my enthusiasm) I just kept alternating between crying and laughing. After walking about another mile to pick up post-race treats and my bag from the nice UPS people, I found Rose, Mom and Joseph waiting for me at the Delacorte theatre just like we planned and we walked straight across the park to the hotel. Boy, that was so much easier than getting on the subway! The hotel room was wonderful! A hot shower, big fluffy bathrobes and room service. If you ever run a marathon, stay in a hotel!!!
I remember thinking so many times during the race, "WHY am I doing this?" and "I never want to do that again!" But as soon as I was done I wanted to get online and start looking for a marathon to run next year. I know I can do even better so why not? I can run NYC in 2001 if I want to, but I'm leaning towards running Chicago (and actually finishing this time!) or doing an international marathon (mom wants to travel) which will allow me to volunteer for the NYC marathon next year. The support all along the course is so incredible and I'm so grateful for it that I'd like to give something back next year. But first, I am hoping to volunteer for the First Annual Achilles Track Club Marathon in Prospect Park in April.
All said and done, my final time was 4:33:22. My avg pace was 10:26. I set a new Marathon PR for myself by FIFTY-ONE (51) minutes. By Wednesday the pain had all gone away in my legs, and I had only a lingering blister that was a minor annoyance. I've already scheduled a short 5 mile run tomorrow (remember it's all relative!).
And finally, thank you all for everything you did for me. Your emails and calls have meant so much to me.It's great to know I have so many wonderful friends. I hope to talk to you all soon!
Rachel
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NYC Urban Challenge 2003
Just a warning... if you thought my marathon reports were long... this will beat it. Expect to sit down for a nice long read but quite an adventure.
As if New York weren't challenging enough Dan MacDonald and I ran the NYC Urban Challenge this Saturday morning. Basically it's a scavenger hunt that takes you all over New York. You can have maps, cell phones, subway passes and friends on the internet, but you can't hop in a cab.
Team "Run, Foresters, Run" (that's us) started the morning at the Q lounge on 19th Street where we got all of our check-in information, digital camera and a very comfortable ‘make out couch’ to hang out until the Trivia portion of the morning. When we originally signed up for the race they asked us what our occupation was and didn't offer anything close to performer, actor, or artist. But there was a category for "Agricultural, Forestry, Fishing." Well that was just too tempting to pass up. So we became "Run Foresters Run." We had gone to an army/navy supply store to search out "park ranger" clothes but settled for cheap camouflage. We figured the intimidation factor alone would be worth the $15 for the tank top and military hat... plus... I look great in hats! :-)
When we signed in we picked up a "passport" which had a picture of the "Skip Chick" and told us that we would be starting at Checkpoint #4 and circling through 12 and finishing at #3 before heading back to headquarters. At 8:30 am there was a trivia challenge on all of the tv screens spread out throughout the bar. We weren't allowed to use outside help here and Dan was afraid to give out answers to other teams so we came up with a hand signal system for us to use.
A -- pat YOUR OWN ass
B -- pat YOUR OWN breast... or plural in my case
C -- Go hmmm... and touch your chin
D -- Point to yourself... Dan or Diane (my middle name... a stretch)
Totally ineffective. Dan looked like an ASS patting his... well... ass for 30 seconds while I'm screaming I think it's C! Some of my preliminary prep work paid off though because they reused some of last year's questions from other cities for our test. And honestly? Some of these questions were super easy...
What's the name of the Sopranos Strip Club in Jersey? Um... Cleavage Cafe? no...
How many sides are on a stop sign? 8... unless you're Dan who wants to count the front and back of the sign as a side. Good thing I had the pencil.
Of course I missed the obvious ones like finish this phrase (and it was the themesong from Gilligan's Island)... there is such a void in my childhood pop culture knowledge. Oh well.
Our 25 right answers got us in the 4th group to leave which meant we would leave at 9:09am. From here on out I will provide you with the clue to each checkpoint... so you can play along and feel the tension!
Checkpoint #4 (our start)
Go! Checkpoint 4 is where the race usually begins. Find it in the Chelsea area.
Well that was easy... We handed our digital camera to the official race photographer (even though she had it on her own) and asked her to take our picture in front of the Q Lounge at the starting line of the race.
Checkpoint #5
Ph.D. in Eyebrowology! First word rhymes with yuck; second rhymes with few. Find it southeast of the Woolworth Building.
Hmmm... we called Melissa and read the clue... when I repeated it the second time I said we're looking for a place rhyming with Fuck You... and I screamed I GOT IT! It's a Pluck U. (local chix chain that we used to go to at NYU) somewhere in the financial District. So we hopped on the subway and asked Melissa to find us the address while we were on the train. We took a look over the other checkpoints while on the train and tried to figure out what our biggest problems would be. By the time we were out of the subway Melissa had the answer. There was a Pluck U on Nassau just off Ann street. Good thing I used to live on Nassau and knew the neighborhood! We asked a couple of construction guys to take our pic and we were off to the next spot.
Checkpoint #6
Wampum? The oldest public park in New York, this is the spot where legend holds that Dutchman Peter Minuit parted with some "Diffles duffel cloth, Kittles kettles, axes, hoes, wampum, drilling awls, and diverse other wares" in exchange for a small piece of real estate. Get your photo near the fountain cuz it's Checkpoint 6.
Thanks to Mike Berkowitz for this one... just the other day he was being a smartass and decided to quiz me on NY history. His first question to me was "what is the oldest park in NY." I guessed Bowling Green and was right. The other coincidence is that I took my long-lost cousin Erica on a knock-down drag-out tour of NYC the weekend before and we passed through Bowling Green and I gave her the whole history. We didn't need to look up anything here... we just ran.
After another team took our picture Dan called me to the other side of the fountain... why?? We needed to find a subway that would take us back to the Upper West Side. Well... he had noticed the "Skip Chick" standing on the steps of the Custom House (National Museum of the American Indian). I accidentally hung up on Melissa because I was so excited that he had found her. A picture with the "Skip Chick" meant that we had one free checkpoint. It discounted one wrong or skipped checkpoint along the way. Knowing what we had coming up... we were going to need it.
I called Melissa back and set her on the next clue... a true stumper.
Checkpoint #7
Not the Poet's Statue, the Spirit! Within one-quarter mile of the upper west side statue of the poet whose work inspired art by Botticelli, Dali and Doré, find a representation of the Mexican spirit of corn. Find the spirit and get your photo there because it's Checkpoint 7.
OK we were pretty clueless here. We hopped on the 4/5 at Bowling Green and transferred to the A train at the Nassau station... running people over as we sprinted down the ramps. On the way uptown we managed to involve a bunch of people on the subway and poll them about Checkpoint #9... another stumper... We decided to take the train up to 72nd and CPW and risk that it was somewhere around there and that Melissa had answered all our prayers by the time we got off the train.
This was definitely our first stumbling block. Melissa had figured out that the Poet was Dante and that the statue was on the southeast corner of the park at Columbus Circle. Couldn't find it. That's my everyday entrance to the park and I had never seen anything about Dante. Another search for the statue told us the location was actually at 63rd and Columbus... in the square in front of the old Iridium jazz club and the Met... but what to do about this Mexican Spirit of Corn thing?? No google search was coming up with anything close. We thought it was probably a mexican restaurant or store that didn't even have it as part of the name... just some seemingly randome symbol on their signage. We put out the feelers to a few people on this one: Dervin, Mike Berkowitz, Mike Fruscione, and even Sandi who's still up in Massachusetts!
We took a guess at a huge DNA-ish statue on the Juliard campus and were completely wrong. We had a picture of the Skip Chick but we were worried that #9 was going to be the real stumper and we didn't want to waste her (she only works for one checkpoint no matter how many times you see her). We started running back to the statue when I noticed the Rosa Mexicana restaurant at 62nd and Columbus... of course it's on the same darn block as my gym. I was going to just check it out... but we knew we were on the right track when we saw 3 other Urban teams running for it as well... so we sprinted for it and snapped a picture in front of a metal sculpture built into the facade of Rose Mexicana. Whew.
Checkpoint 8
Roll Over? Checkpoint 8 is the bust of one who shares his name with a live feature film about a good-sized dog. Find it in Central Park.
Easy. Beethoven. We actually figured out the answer to this one on our first train ride downtown but I didn't want to ruin the surprise for you. Dan and I knew where it would be (somewhere on the Promenade leading up to the bandshell) and Melissa confirmed it for us.
Checkpoint 9
Busting out the patented Wacky Equation
{the symbol for the artist formerly known as Prince -- can't get it on my computer} Plus The Lady Who Had Trouble with the Small Green Vegetable Equals Checkpoint 9
HUH?? Ok... the Prince part was sort of easy. The nice people on the subway uptown confirmed it for us. But who had trouble with a small green vegetable? "Greens, Greens, nothing but greens..." well Into The Woods wasn't going to help... but we were able to come up with another musical that would... Once Upon a Mattress!!! The PRINCESS lost a whole lot of sleep over a pea. But where did that get us? Dervin had found out that Hans Christian Anderson had written the Princess and the Pea and that there was a statue of him in the park close to where we were, but I wasn't convinced... because of the 'artist formerly known as' part. We used our camouflage to follow another team that was looking for the same checkpoint. They weren't having much luck with Hans, so Dan and I reasoned that we had the Skip Chick and we were extremely close to getting all the other answers so it was safe to take this as our skip. Off to catch a 5th ave bus.
Checkpoint 10
"Ich bin ein Berliner." Get your photo at what's left of the Berlin Wall in midtown.
Thanks Mike Berkowitz! Don't know how he found it... but we made a really quick trip to 53rd and Madison next to Burger Heaven where, sure enough, there was a big piece of the Berlin Wall in NYC! Who knew?
Checkpoint 11
Darling Lily! A variety of interesting artwork surrounds this midtown hotel that shares its two word name with how pilots agree and a variety of apple. Grab some signage and snap a photo for Checkpoint 11.
This wasn't too bad... we figured we were looking for a hotel Roger something. Mac, raeburn, delicious... SMITH! Melissa got us the exact address and we were on our way. We accidentally ran through a commercial shoot on Park Avenue and got to Lexington Ave. when I had a sort of panic attack. I realized that the Checkpoint 4 (our first of the day) was way too easy and it was probably wrong. Dan and I read it again and thought it might be some sort of sports bar. But this was the first checkpoint. We had 3 choices...
1. It would have to count as our skip and we would have to double back and find Hans Christian Anderson... then go BACK to the Berlin wall before hitting the Roger Smith Hotel. Checkpoints out of order would get us disqualified.
2. Ignore it and pray that maybe by chance we were right about the Q Lounge being correct. 2 wrong answers would also get us disqualified... the skip was only good for 1.
3. Figure out what it really was and do the whole day over again. Yeah... no.
Neither of us felt comfortable giving in so easily... so we doubled back. It took what seemed forever and a day... but we found the statue pretty easily thanks to Dervin and Melissa. There were 2 other teams there taking pictures so even though we didn't feel extremely confident sitting in Hans' lap for a picture... at least we knew we wouldn't be the only ones. Back to the busses... this time down Lex.
Traffic was horrible thanks to that commercial shoot. We used our time wisely and got the addresses to everything else we needed. We did the Berlin Wall again and then decided to run down Madison to the hotel so we would avoid the shoot. Well pain in the ass production people wouldn't let us cross down the street where the hotel was! GRRRRR... I sort of argued with a production guy because he didn't understand my question... I just wanted to know if we could sprint through BETWEEN takes! Good thing I wasn't my usual actress beautiful self today... I don't think he'll recognize me if I'm on set with him again. :-)
We circled down a few blocks and found the hotel. To get an extra edge we decided to get our picture taken by a few construction workers a few blocks away. The ROGER SMITH HOTEL banner down the side of the building had to be enough... we were in a rush.
Checkpoint 12
Lord of the Manor? On television's Seinfeld, the characters stage a contest about who can remain "master of their domain." True or False, George witnesses a sponge bath and is the first one eliminated from contention.
If true, Checkpoint 12 is the "Yankee Doodle Boy" in the Times Square area
If false, Checkpoint 12 is the "oversized button and needle" in the Times Square area.
Too easy! I had seen the episode... but Dan knew the answer. Kramer was the first to lose out because some babe across the street in a window. We also both knew where Checkpoint 12 would be. It was on 7th ave and 39th in the Garment District... on the street where errie's new office is! I have a feeling we scared a lot of people running through the Times Square subway station in camouflage.
Checkpoint 1
Freedom Cleaners? Checkpoint 1 is south of race headquarters. Here's a hint: "Double Yes."
Another fun checkpoint. We reasoned it was "oui oui" or "si si" but Freedom was our big clue... it was a FRENCH dry cleaner! Very clever. Melissa was resourceful again with the address.
Checkpoint 2
Bong Burg? Checkpoint 2 shares its name, but not its spelling, with the French author who toured America in 1831 and later theorized that if people were generally equal in terms of civil and legal standing, social status, and wealth, the conditions from which dempcracy in America had arisen could be created in other societies. Find it within one-half mile of Union Square.
A lot of language for something Dan figured out in the first line... De Toqueville... we didn't know how to spell it but Bong Burg confirmed it. Mike Berkowtiz gave us the address and we were off!
Checkpoint 3
A River Runs Past It (in France)... Unscramble the letters below to form the name of the establishment that serves as Checkpoint 3 in the west village area.
A A C J N R
Our last checkpoint before heading back to headquarters. I was really getting tired at this point. We had farmed this question out to a few different people and no one had gotten it... so we called Michelle Martin and her fiance Robert because they live in the west village. BRILLIANT. Not even 2 minutes later we knew we had to head to Jarnac... a restaurant at 328 12th ave. We took a bus across 14th street and ran right past errie and Mike Berkowitz's apt... obviously they don't get out much! We got our picture and ran back to the Q Lounge.
Crossing the finish line was nothing like a marathon... especially when we were so unsure about Checkpoints 4 and 9... but we were pretty excited that we had finished in under 4 hours considering the winner last year finished in 3:39. Overall we were team #35... but we still weren't sure if we had been disqulified... someone still had to check our digital camera.
Well technically we were wrong about the Q Lounge... but so many people before us had argued that it should count that it did. So we had only one wrong answer. Hans Christian Anderson unfortunately was not our man. We were supposed to be looking for a store called Prince & Princess on 33 E. 68th St. Some posh children's clothing store...
But since we had found the "Skip Chick" early in the race we were covered! We picked up our medals and goody bag and called Mike Berkowitz for a restaurant recommendation the cell phone was just a habit at this point... we were STARVING! Not sure of our exact place in the race but the girl that checked our camera said that 9 or 10 teams before us had been disqualified... so all in all we definitely made the top 30 out of 150 teams! It didn't earn us a trip to New Orleans (Championship city this year... no Vegas) but it sure made our day. Our medals were hard earned and so was the hamburger and french fries afterwards!
I highly recommend this race for everyone. There are races all over the country. So if what I'm writing doesn't make any sense because you don't live in NYC, check out their website and see if there's a race in your city. It really helped that we were both runners... but you certainly don't have to be fast or even an athlete to win it. For proof just ask the 9 or 10 teams before us that got disqualified! We really had a great time all day long and want to thank all the folks that helped us out or were on standby for us. There is no way we could have done ANY of this race without you.
Stay happy and healthy...
Rachel
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