Knickerbocker 60K

Summary:
9+ loops in Central Park, rolling hills, awesome weather, 37.2 miles
Time: 5h 6m 14s (official), 20/209 Overall, 5/50 Age group
26.2 time: 3h 20m 6s (unofficial)

This was the most efficient race I ran; not the running per se but the time spent in doing a non-local race. I reached NYC Friday evening, ran the race Saturday morning with just enough time to eat, shower, and shop a bit in SoHo before heading back home Saturday evening. Overall, I loved this race. Food was simple, I ate at Sbarro's before and after the race.

This was the first time I've done a loop course for an ultra or any other race. Unlike point-to-point races, it is easy to get bored in these but I loved every bit of it. After a couple of laps it becomes clear who is ahead of you and I had a great time playing tag with some of the runners. As with other races, I made new friends and caught up with old ones. As usual, Garmin sucks in ultras; the battery died after 35miles or so.

I love spectators with funny posters like the girl with "I want your legs", the dude with "Congrats, you ran farther than Geb", and the photographer from "BiteMeRoom Photography".

I'm back on the streets now with today's 3mile recovery jog that turned into a 5mile run.

What are you thankful for?

In a world riddled with change, we all seek constants in our lives. For some, it is the unconditional love by their spouse, parents, or even their dogs. For others, it is the security offered by a nice bank balance or even being able to enjoy a bowl of mac 'n' cheese any time of the day they wish. We love constants and we seek for them all our lives. Despite of your ups and downs this year, if you look back, you can always rely on the comforts of the constants you hold dear. It's the time of the year when we celebrate those constants and be thankful for them. 

The one constant I have had in my life in recent years is running. Even if everything in my life is going crazy, I know that in just a few moments I can lace up and run, and forget all about it for an hour or two or more. I'm thankful for that. Ever since I started blogging my runs, early this year, I put a meter to track the miles I've been running with a goal of running at least 2010 miles this year. Today my meter reads "1965 miles" and I think I'm pretty close to my goal. Call me crazy but if my running were to anthropomorphize into a person, I would marry it. Running, I'm thankful to you. I'm also thankful to all the friends I've ran with, all the non-running friends who had to bear with my running talk, thankful to all my shoes which accompanied me through some pretty rough times, thankful to life in general for not stopping me from running.

It's never too early to say thanks. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!