Vanilla Sky

Ever watched Vanilla Sky? You know that part where Tom Cruise is running down the middle of the street in Times Square, all by himself? I did that this weekend. It was so cool!

I got up early Saturday morning to make a 7:35 flight to New York City to run the half marathon on Sunday morning with my friend and old coworker, W. I have been training for awhile - not as hard as I should have, but I have. 

The course starts in Central Park. You do a full loop and a half of the park (about 8 miles) and then out into Times Square, down to the Piers on the southwest end of Manhattan and into Battery Park. It was freezing at the start line and W and I stood there for at least an hour. Once we got going we warmed up a bit, but it was still pretty cold the entire time. 

Check out where I ran!

The best part of the race was running onto 7th and into Times Square. The entire southbound lane was blocked off, so it felt like me and the city. It was awesome and really emotional. The cars to my left and the people on my right - both cheering me on. 

I will say that I ran the whole thing. I ran it very slowly, but I ran it, and I am pretty impressed with myself for it. 

W and I want to do a yearly NYC race together, maybe the half, maybe not, but it was a good experience and a great weekend!

PS. Apparently Hugh Jackman ran the race (clearly I didn't see him, I'm guessing he finished with a faster time) and I saw Lenny from the Today Show cheering people on.