NYRR Staten Island Half-Marathon 2012

Somehow I had the feeling that I would achieve a personal record (P.R.) at the NYRR Staten Island Half-Marathon 2012.  It was the first race I ran after becoming unemployed.  I had some extra time to run more often and longer, usually in the morning, with the afternoons spent on tweaking resume, submitting it to job engines etc.  The cool weather, below 80° with no sun, helped, even if it was no where near the 9°F that helped me PR at the Manhattan Half-Marathon in 2011.  For that race, I dressed in layers, with gloves, and was soaked in sweat by the time I finished, in 2 hours and 23 minutes.  I had to run continuously, both to save time and also because I had not discovered on-the-run nutrition.  For today's race, by race time I only had one layer, a singlet and a running shorts, with the long-sleeved layers with baggage check.  Usually I don't eat at all before a race, but since there was much time available, while waiting for the ferry I had a bagel and coffee.  Better training, cool weather, fewer clothes to better dissipate the heat, and pre-race nutrition, all that combined to get me to have a P.R. of 2:14:39, nine minutes from my previous P.R.

The night before, I got everything ready.  D-tag wrapped around left shoelace, bib pinned to the Prospect Park Track Club singlet, cell phone and GPS watch fully charged, eyeglass case, home keys, some money, MetroCard, Gu packs etc stuffed into a fanny pack that I will wear across my chest.  For the pre-race down time in the cold, I set aside an outer layer of long-sleeved garments.

The day started early at 4:30 AM and I was out the door by 5.  I got to the ferry terminal before 6 and would catch a 6 AM ferry, per the schedule on the wall, but the P.A. said the next ferry would be at 6:30.  I had time to go grab an everything bagel, toasted with cream cheese, and a large coffee with milk and sugar.  By the time ferry-boarding was allowed, I was mostly done with breakfast.  In Staten Island, I had time to go the restroom then spent about an hour inside the warmer St. George Terminal.  Out on the waterfront, I had some time to take photos Manhattan Island then the 9/11 Memorial.  Last year I only had time to check the bag and jumped into the race some time after most runners were already left the corrals.  This year, I had time to remove the outer layer of clothes to check them and even went back to the ferry terminal to use the restroom a few more times.  During such a trip, I met Mr. James Lu, a local runner who is regularly seen at NYRR races and well-known for his handbells and for starting to run late in his 60s.

Mr. James Lu, the venerable late-stage runner.  Near his left hand are the hand-bells he is well-known for.

Early in the race, I saw that I was running at about 6:23 minute per kilometer.  That's a bit fast compared to the usual 7:xx I maintain during the almost-daily workout.  I didn't want to lose steam so I actually slowed down but somehow I was still going sub-6:xx min/km.  Probably the excitement of running in a big group.  At one point, the right knee felt weird, just briefly, while at some other point, in the first few miles, the left calf felt a little tinkling, so I had to slow even further, both to avoid any cramps and to avoid injury before the New York City Marathon mere weeks away (on November 4th)

I normally consume a Gu pack every hour, instead of the recommended 45 minutes.  I was going to go with the recommended time but still end up missing actually having a Gu at around 53 minutes into the race, around Mile #5.  Just before that I discovered my right shoelace was loose so I had to stop to re-tie it.  Since I already stopped and a water station was visible, I had the first Gu then, washed down with Gatorade and water.  On the way out to the turnaround mark, about 7 miles out, I looked for fellow PPTC runners to give them a shout-out.  I purposely stayed near the median of Frank Cappodono Boulevard to better spot any PPTC runners but without my glasses I probably missed a few.  Some I caught in time as we passed each other and I was able to greet them loudly, other times they recognized me first and we just waved.  The "game" helped me get to the turnaround mark quickly.  It was already past Mile 7!

I recall last year around Mile 8 the runners entered Fort Wadsworth  then exited onto Bay Street.  For whatever reason, this year we ran along the outside of the fort.  The hill at Mile 8 was brutal but after that it was mostly downhill.  I had another Gu after that hill, again with Gatorade and water from the fluid station.  Around Mile 10 all that Gatorade and water had to be expelled but I resisted the urge.  Knowing how fast I can go, given the distance left, I was sure I would P.R., only if I keep up the modest pace I was running at.  Best not to have any more Gu breaks, but I did grab a water after the bridge around Mile 12.  The last mile, as usual, felt pretty long, with one more hill to surmount.

Further back around Mile 11 I started to see finishers walking or running against the runners trying to finish.  None had a medal around their necks, so I thought there would be no medal.  It would be big slight to the borough of Staten Island if there was no medal for the half-marathon finishers, since even the Queens 10K gave out medals.  After Mile 12 I saw many finishers with medals so I had the extra incentive to finish even sooner.  I only have a handful of medals so they are big deals to me to have.  Perhaps this year the trip out was further than before, as the finish line seemed to be closer.  So ran faster I did, a lot faster than usual, even faster than my usual finish-line sprint, I think.  2:14:39 it was indeed, a P.R. indeed, by nine minutes!  Normally, shaving a minute or two from a P.R. is a big deal.  Almost ten minutes is a really big deal.  With better training and losing five pounds or so, perhaps some day I can reach the sub-2-hour mark for a half-marathon!

As a slow runner, I usually don't have my photos taken by the photographers along the route.  Them photographers usually just hang around for the first few thousand runners  By the time I make my way to the finish line, there would be no photographers along the route, just some at the finish line.  Today I decided to do a favor for the runners that came after me.  On the way to the ferry, I stopped to take a bunch of photos for these later finishers.  I would take more but the rain was getting heavier and there was a ferry to catch.  The photos don't appear as good as I wish, as the bib numbers don't show well, but hopefully the runners can recognize themselves.  Below are the photos but they are also shared at

https://plus.google.com/photos/109153989599275468311/albums/5796734866780894465

Bib #9829.

Bib #9605.

Bib #8032.

Bib #8089.

Bib #9599.

Bib #8514 etc.

Bib #9248.

Bib #9095.

CHARITY MILES, MEGA-HEADACHES

I love to walk and run, occasionally even ride the bicycle.  I record my workout with DailyMile.com and rely on my Garmin GPS watch for time and distance.  When a friend suggested that I earn some money for charity while running or walking, I heartily accepted the idea.  The app in question is Charity Miles, available for iOS and Android.  It got installed fine on my crummy Galaxy I Android phone.  I was so eager to try it I went out for a walk, after dinner, around 10 o'clock at night.  It seems easy enough to use.  You pick one of the three activities - Walk, Run, or Bike.  Runners and walkers earn 25¢ per mile while cyclists get 10¢ per mile.   After choosing an activity, swipe to choose a charity to earn money for.  There are just a few now but it's a good start.  So far I chose Feeding America, Habit for Humanity, Achilles International, and The Nature Conservancy.  Other options are World Food Programme, Pencils of Promise, The Michael J. Fox Foundations for Parkinson's Research, The Global Fund, Austism Speaks, and ASPCA.  Choose the charity that best suit your ideal, then off you!  One charity per activity, you can choose a different charity the next time you work-out.

You can pause the app then resume or end the activity.  You are then requested to accept sponsorship for your activity by posting to your Facebook account, and optionally to Twitter as well.  Many people hate the Facebook idea so much but I am fine with it.  Sure there are many issues with Facebook but flooding the news stream shouldn't be one of it.  I myself at most run once a day or walk at most twice a day, so that's just three posts per day.  Compared to people who go rapid-fire and post x number of YouTube videos within five minutes, my three posts are almost nothing.  Worst case scenario, you can set the FB app that does the posting to be visible only to yourself, but then you are not really doing the simple request Charity Miles expect you to help them with spreading the word about the program.  You also help advertise Charity Miles T-shirts but I don't think they make much money from the shirts.

I have a big problem with posting the results of my activities.  Remember my post-dinner walk at 10 PM?  I was so disappointed to find that at the end of the walk, it seemed my effort went nowhere.  The app constantly complained that there was no Internet access so it couldn't post my result.  The mail app and FB app did not have any issues.  I vaguely recalled that the app would not work over WiFi, so I turned off WiFi.  Still no dice.  Turned off GPS, too, nope, app still complained of no Net access!  Turned the whole phone off and then back on.  Kill the app and start over with accepting the sponsorship?  Turn WiFi on then off again?  That seems to do the job, I think.  Or is it turning on WiFi then off, then do some Internet activity, like checking email or logging into Facebook?  I suspect the app somehow not able to detect an Internet connection until some other app goes through first.

I still don't know the sequence of fiddling to get the app to submit its data, but I managed to have everything submitted, so far.  At first, I thought all my work went to naught since I couldn't send in my results.  Then I discovered the button in the lower left corner of the main screen.  It took me to all my logged workouts and a second chance at submitting the results.  It would be nice if there is a total of my mileage.  Or even better, for the few metric-centric amateur athletes out there like me, who prefer kilometers over miles, measurements in kilometers.  Of course, of utmost importance is that the app should just work, without me having to fiddle with the few settings.  Unlike the typical apps, I cannot just input data and try a different series of parameters.  Getting new data means walking another 30 minutes or whatever.  I love walking but not enough to walk again and again just to see how to fix an app.

Hopefully it is just a problem for old Android phones running Frozen Yogurt OS version.  Anyone want to buy me an iPhone 5?  {Cricket sounds...}  No one, eh?  How about just some feedback from users of Charity Miles on more modern phones and OS versions?

Hay Hát Hơn Là Hát Hay

In my family, my late father was a good singer.  The talent skipped me and bestowed upon my son.  Or perhaps my son got it from the mother side.  My brother plays the guitar and learn the tunes by ears.  My wife is good at the Chinese zither, aka gu-zheng, and she got the kid into it, too.  He's good at it, he just hates the practice sessions.  I cannot carry a tune and don't play any instruments.  The only instrument I ever played was the recorder, in high school, and the only tune I knew was "Three Blind Mice", more popular known as "The Three Stooges Theme".

To make up for my apparent lack of musical talents, I made an effort to know song names and the performers.  I was much into music-listening when I came to the U.S. in 1980.  Radio-listening eventually got replaced by video-watching.  At the peak, I was watching America's Top Ten every Saturday morning and Friday Night Video.  Solid Gold, too.  When I had some money, I bought audiocassettes of The Police, Alan Parson Project, Sting, Heart, "Weird" Al Yankovic etc.  I also made use of whatever Queens Borough Public Library and New York Public Library had, all audiocassettes.  The public libraries did not have that many tapes for pop music so I ended up listening to a lot of classical music.  A chance borrowing of Hooked On Classics got me, well, hooked on classics.

Life got busy and for years I did not keep up with the music scene.  For a few years, while dating my future wife I listened to Cantonese pop music (Cantopop) as a way to learn more of the Cantonese dialect of Chinese.  Apple's campaign with Pepsi got me many "Weird" Al songs that I didn't know about, which led to the original songs, too.  The great thing with "Weird" Al is he's been around for so long, he parodied a broad spectrum of music.  Altogether, my musical knowledge was limited to the 80s, classical, "Weird" Al and whatever songs he parodied.  I thought I was pretty knowledgeable, at least with the 80s.  Then I discovered SongPop.

Name That Tune is the most obvious phrase to associate with SongPop.  The game is available on tradition computers and also on iDevice and Android.  In the game, you hear a tune and choose the correct song or artist name from a list of four.  You earn some points with each correct choice, the faster the more points.  Your opponent then get the same choices and would try to beat your score.  The winner gets three coins, the loser only one.  With the accumulated coins, you can buy new playlists, perhaps something you are more knowledgeable in.  Playlists include Love Songs, Female Singers, Alternative 90s, Movie Soundtrack, and more.  You can also buy power-up, the ability to eliminate two of the four choices to give you a better chance at guessing.

Much to my chagrin, I discovered that I am not that good at the game.  Some players are very knowledgeable and fast.  Then there are so many bands, singers,  and songs out there since the last time I closely followed music.  There's also much music before the 80s that I was not interested in.  Big names like the Bee Gees and ABBA I know some songs for but there were also the One Hit Wonders back then.  Strangely, I have not come across any Beatles songs, other than A Hard Day's Night in the Movie Soundtrack playlist.  Perhaps SongPop, the company, needs to have someone like the late Steve Job to negotiate hard to bring the Beatles into SongPop.

In Vietnamese, the phrase "hay hát hơn là hát hay" means "those who sings lousy often like to sing".  That's my case, except I like to play the game.  I try to get more knowledgeable by using YouTube and Wikipedia and it sometimes help.  With the Photoshopped playlist above, I should win more, but I enjoy the game whether I win or lose.

NYRR BX 10M, PART 2: THE GRAND CONCOURSE, PARKING FAIL

A big chunk of the 2012 NYRR Bronx 10-Mile took place on the Grand Concourse.  Having lived in Brooklyn for the past 15 years, I think of the Grand Concourse as the Bronx's Ocean Parkway, without the nice tree shades.  I actually lived in the Bronx for a few months in early 1980, in the Kingsbridge part, not too far from where Fordham Road meets the Concourse.  Alexander's department store used to be there, then it got replaced by Caldor's, who knows what's at the corner now.  I, perhaps along with other Vietnamese, think of Grand Concourse as "răng con cọp", or "tiger's teeth", purely because the consonants in the phrase sound similar, i.e. R.C.C.

A few people complained that the Grand Concourse was boring.  I think it is fine.  You need a wide boulevard so people can run in both directions, while the cars still can use the service roads.  NYRR is an NYC-based group so its races have to be urban runs, along city streets, in the canyons overshadowed by tall buildings.

The race started off near Joyce Kilmer Park, up the Grand Concourse then at Moshulu Parkway made a left toward that school complex consisting of Lehman College and Bronx Science High School.  The 2012 race was my second visit to the area and I still don't know where Bronx Science is.  I've heard so much about it, I would like to at least take a photo of its front door.  However, during both visits I was there to run a race and there was no time to stop and take photos.  Actually, with the Bronx Half in 2010 I did not care too much about my finish time and did stop to take photos, but not of Bronx Science.  Anyway, a turn here and there and the runners were back on Moshulu heading east, then turn around at some point to head west then back on Grand Concourse for the long stretch to the finish line.

I recalled that the start was around 161st Street and Moshulu was around 200th Street, so there should be only 40 or so blocks to go, no?  If 20 blocks equal one mile, then there would be just 2 miles to go once we were back on Grand Concourse.  I looked forward to each intersection but they seemed so far apart yet the street numbers went up by only one.  As I learned later on, these Bronx streets don't follow the 20-block rule.  They are much further apart.  Indeed, the return trip on Grand Concourse was 3.5 miles, not 2.

Something nice with the return trip on the Grand Concourse was that I bumped into Mr. James Lu, the 74-year-old runner featured in this video, http://vimeo.com/42746005 .  I saw him before after many other NYRR races but did not know his history or his name.  He certainly was a unique character.  At the Bronx 10M, I greeted him by name as I ran by him.  At the water station we both stopped but afterward I took off before him.  It is nothing to brag about to beat someone 30 years older but it had to be done, as the alternative would be worse.  I'm sure other older runners beat me to the finish line, but I did what I could.

As I walked to the garage, the sight of people queuing up to pay at the ticket machine was discouraging.  I was not too tired from the 10-mile run but standing on line for a long time was not something I wanted to do.  Out of the 3 machines near the entrances I entered through, one was out-of-order.  I walked over to the other entrance, where another 3 machines stood and the line was not too long.  It turned out one of the machines was also broken.  The one on the left supposedly would only take credit card only.  I was on a queue that supposedly could use either cash or credit card.  One runner did not have a credit card so he asked me to switch with him and I did.  Then it turned out he did not have enough small bills to pay the $8 fee.  I could have changed it for him but just to be safe I told him let me finish my transaction first.  It was a good, lucky move, as I discovered shortly afterward the credit card reader was not working and people before me had to pay cash.  Adding injury to insult, the machine did not give change either.  I think one or two people inserted $20 or $10 bills and got nothing in return.  Later on I saw one of the 2 parking staff walking around with wads of bills, maybe they were going to refill the the machine.

When I got to the machine, I had enough small bills to cover my $8 and had some bills left.  A woman behind me only had $5 so I gave her $3 in singles.  She wanted to know how she would pay me back but I told her to give it to charity when she gets around to it.  Pay it forward, that's how I like to do things sometimes.  Random act of kindness, too, I'd like to think that was.  Automation is great to some extent but when it does not work and there are no humans around it's a total pain in the ass.  I never drove to Yankee Stadium so I never park there.  I wonder how bad it would be when there was a game and these dang machines don't work properly.  Hopefully next time, if there will be one, the parking company can do a better job at serving the runners community.

LOST IN YONKERS... NOT!

I was planning to write Part 2 of the NYRR Bronx 10-Mile but something came up... The Yonkers Marathon!

The Yonkers Marathon is well-known for being the second oldest marathon in the U.S. (after the Boston Marathon) and for being very hilly.  Much as I would love to, I don't want to spend money flying to different cities to run marathons.  I make an exception if it involves visiting family.  With the City of Yonkers just north of New York City, or its borough The Bronx, to be exact, running the Yonkers Marathon is a natural choice for me.  And it was so affordable, too, just a mere $40 with early registration (I signed up in October 2011 for the Sept 16, 2012 race!)

During the weeks leading to the event, I read some blog posts about the race and got worried about its 5-hour limit.  Will there be no official listing for the 5+ runners?  Even no medals!?  Will I have to fight traffic to cross the streets?  A few days before the race, I checked the course and got worried that maybe I will run the wrong way at some point.  I sweat so much so I cannot run with my near-sighted glasses so I cannot see far that well.  I am already a slow runner, losing time by going off course won't help.  A DailyMile friend dispelled my fear when he told me that the police department does a good job of directing traffic and guiding runners.  It was also comforting to know that the marathon course is a double-loop, i.e. the same loop to be run twice.  Chances are by the second time around I won't have other runners ahead of me to follow, but by then I would know the route to follow.

The day of the race, I got up early at 4:30 and left the house by 5.  Got to the free parking lot just after 6.  I took a nap in the car until 7:30 then lined up for the toilet.  The race started shortly after the 8 AM scheduled time, with only a short speeches by the race director Steve Lastoe and Governor Mike Spano.  With only one thousand people, I was able to join the crowd and crossed the starting mat as soon as my Garmin picked up satellite signal.  Just in case I don't get official recognition, my Garmin will tell me the distance, time, and pace for the race, kilometer for kilometer.

Somewhere at the beginning, my speedy DailyMile friend Louis greeted me from behind.  He should be at the front with other faster runners, so I was surprised that he came from behind me.  He had to have a toilet, it turned out.  We chatted a bit but I asked him to go ahead.  The marathon was no time for me to start running at a faster pace from my usual runs.

At Mile #1, I remarked loudly that there were only 25 more miles to go and got a few chuckles out of nearby runners.  The crowd got thinner quickly and we started to pass by a wooded area on the right, with the Metro North track and the Hudson River on the left.  Some runners chose then to take another toilet break, in the wood, like how some people undoubtedly did on the Verrazano Bridge during the NYC Marathon.  There were water stations at every mile, a short distance before the actual mile marker, which was both on the street and on telephone posts.  All the volunteers and police officers were nice and helpful but some were different than others and came to mind more easily.  Like the one guy who did not have anyone to help him, or the Boy Scouts troop, both somewhere on Warburton Avenue.  I also appreciate the man on the bridge with the 2-liter Coke bottles, a tad before the right turn from Warburton into Main Street.  The first time around I skipped the Coke but by the second loop I was so tired I figured I needed a sugary drink.  He had no more cups and suggested pouring the Coke into my palms.  I picked up some cup off the ground and drank from there instead.  I am not a picky person!

The hill connecting Main Street to Broadway is the worst of them all, I think.  The first time I hit it, I jogged slowly up but during the second pass I walked up.  The few people in the cheering section at Warburton and Main got me resume running a bit, but by the time I reached the foot of the hill I was out of energy again.  Pass the top of the hill was Mile #5.  The water station was out in the sun and by the second loop it was already closed.  Also on the second loop I saw a man taking a break to massage his legs.  I asked if he was OK then went on.  I was tired and had to convince myself to go forward one traffic cone at a time.  Finally I reached the intersection of Tomkins and Broadway.  I told the cross-guard there that it was good to see him, that it was so lonely back there, just me and the traffic cones.  It was a good time to take a toilet break.  After so much running, it felt weird to stand in one place.  Just a short distance into Tomkins was the water station before Mile #6.  I used one cup of water to wash my hands and took another for drinking as well as a cup of Gatorade.  Before Mile #6 was the cemetery and the steep down-hill.  Normally I like to use the descent to pick up some speed but this descent was too steep, I worried that I may not be able to keep up so I trotted down slowly.  At the foot of the hill was the right turn into Nepperhan.  The first time there was a time mat to mark the 10K point.  Second time around there was just some crossing guards.

Nepperhan started out with some homes but eventually we ran into some industrial zone.  When I got out of the toilets, some people passed by me and I followed along, able to exchanged a few encouraging words with them.  When I slowed down for the down-hill, the others went further and I never caught up.  In the industrial zone, I finally caught up to a runner but then I noticed the medal around his neck.  I struck up a conversation with him and learned that he did indeed finished the half-mary but was going for the full too.  "Galvin" and I pretty much stayed together from Mile #20 (?) to Mile 23.  We walked together at water stations and then ran together afterward.  Without Galvin I think I would have walked more often.  Thanks for pacing me, Galvin!  After Mile 23, I ran across the footbridge and Galvin was no longer by my side.  I still hoped to make the marathon under 5 hours so I continued running.  Those last few miles seemed to go forever though.  I recognized South Broadway from the time when I ran the Holiday Marathons on Christmas Day 2011 in Tibbetts Park.  I was really lost in Yonkers at that time.  I could have gotten onto the Saw Mill Parkway easily from Tibbetts but I went the wrong way to South Broadway and made a U-turn.  This time I was on foot and South Broadway seemed so long.  After the right turn into Valentin I recognize a man-and-woman couple, the woman with blond hair, from the time I got out of the toilet back near Mile #6.  I really wanted to pass at least these two people and they indeed stopped but before I could catch up they resumed running.  Luckily, the stopped again shortly afterward and I did pass them.  From then on, I only stopped for water one more time.  I caught up with a runner and asked him if ahead was the turn from Warburton into Main Street for the final stretch.  He thought it was, but it turned out to be another block.  I called up some reserve energy and kept going, made the left turn at Main and shouted "I love Yonkers!"  Up ahead I saw two runners walking so I shouted to them that if they did not start to run I would pass them.  I did pass them and finally reached Mile 21, just a square card rested against a traffic cone.  The 0.2 Mile is the distance from there to just before the parking lot, then a U-turn to the train station, under the train track to the water, then a left, then a right onto the pier.  Just around the corner on the pier was the glorious finish line.  I made it in 5:10:33, not sub-5 as I wished but it was good to have the official time and a medal.

More than 15 years ago I ran the NYC Marathon, twice, in 1994 and 1995, without much training.  I ran maybe 5 miles a day and knew nothing about the recommended 20-mile run, on-course nutrition, etc.  I still managed to finish, with the lousy time of 6:30 or worse.  Last year (2011) my older self ran the inaugural Brooklyn Marathon in 5:08, a victory with the younger self from 15+ years ago.  However, as the Brooklyn Marathon consisted of 2 small loops and 6 big loops of Prospect Park.  I did not have a GPS watch with me and somehow thought I may have missed a loop.  The Yonkers Marathon confirmed for me that a tad over 5 hours is indeed my marathon time.  I did not train as much this year and the Yonkers Marathon is probably tougher than Brooklyn, so the two extra minutes is not a big deal.

One down, two to go!  NYRR NYC Marathon and the second Brooklyn Marathon are coming in November, just 2 weeks apart!  In the mean time, thank you Yonkers, NYC Runs, volunteers, police officers, and everyone who supported the race!

NYRR BX 10M, PART ONE: JOYCE KILMER

In 2011, when the NYRR Bronx Half Marathon course was changed to start and end near Joyce Kilmer Park, I looked forward to visiting the park.  I hoped that there would be a memorial or plaque about the poet Joyce Kilmer.  Years ago, from a reference in a crossword puzzle, probably about the poem "Trees", I learned that Kilmer studied at Columbia University and lived in the New York metro area.  During World War One, he enlisted like the typical male person of the time and rose to the rank of sergeant.  He refused promotions and continued to work in the field.  He often volunteered for dangerous intelligence missions.  During the Battle of Marne, while out gathering intelligence, he was killed by a sniper.  Dying for one's country, always admirable, but in this case made more romantic because the dead was a poet.

The 2011 NYRR Bronx Half did not occur.  Hurricane Irene visited New York and the City revoked the permit.  For 2012, the race was shortened by 3.1 miles to become a 10-Miler.  Some people boycotted these shorter races but I still signed up.  Most Roadrunner races happen in Central Park, it gets boring quickly after a while, so I love the outer-borough races.  Besides, I want to visit Joyce Kilmer Park.

I left home by car around 5:30 AM.  There was little traffic on the road and I got to the NYRR-recommended garage shortly after 6.  Found a spot near the exit, took a nap since it was way early for the 8 AM race.  Eventually, I walked the short distance to Joyce Kilmer Park and wandered in it, as well as up the Grand Concourse and back to the park.  To my surprise, there was nothing in the park about the poet, other than a plaque saying the park's name.  Very odd.  I hope I am wrong.  I did discover the Bronx Museum of Art on Grand Concourse.  It seems the area near the park is the civic center for the Bronx, too, as there were a few court buildings nearby.  When I first came to the U.S., I lived in the Kingsbridge area of the Bronx for a few months and did not explore the area much.  With races like the Bronx Half that I hope to find out more about places outside my work or family routines.

For the race, I had my PPTC singlet on instead of the race shirt.  While out walking about, I saw a few other PPTC shirts and saluted them from afar.  I really have to go to some PPTC functions, e.g. group run or picnic, to get to know more people.  In my corral, for bib number 9000 and above, there was another PPTC member and I mentioned to her that it was unusual to meet a fellow club member in the slow corral.  When the race started, we walked slowly toward the start mat.  By the time I got to the mat, my Garmin still did not pick up satellite signal so I pulled aside to let others pass.  A short while later, satellite signal finally secured and off I went.

FLOATING HOTEL

I recently went on a cruise vacation.  It was a five-day trip aboard the Carnival Glory to Saint John, New Brunswick and Halifax, Nova Scotia then back to NYC.  Before the trip, I only looked forward to running on some track on a top deck.  It turned out better than I expected.

I was warned about overeating and gaining weight.  With buffet-style for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, I can see why.  With any buffets, people tend to take more than they can handle.  At some breakfast food line, a kitchen staff would dole out two bacon strips per person.  When the staff was not there, I saw a few people piling many bacon strips onto their plates. Buffet food was available over many hours but the buffet kitchen did close for some hours at night. There was a 24-hour kitchen for the night owls though. I stayed with just the usual three meals a deal, perhaps more frozen yogurt than usual, but otherwise did not eat much more than while on land. I am happy to report that my weight did not go up during or after the trip.

I've always wanted to get a foot pod for my Garmin.  The cruise trip provided the perfect excuse.  I ran most days during the trip.  The one day I did not run I used the elliptical and also skipped desserts.  The jogging track is rather short, you have to run six loops to have 1 km. I am used to running 4 km or more away from home, seeing different things along the way, then back. Running around the short track was so boring I mostly ran only 5 km. One time I managed over 6 km. I could never got up early enough to run in the morning and mostly ran around 3 pm ship time. A few runners were out that time, too, which is good, otherwise the track would be crowded, like the volleyball court and the basketball court. I have no interest in basketball but would love a game or two of volleyball but the court was always crowded. It was even smaller that a beach volleyball's court and always have six or more people on each side. It was on Deck 11, the top deck, so it had a net ceiling, which was not that high so if you serve the ball too high you would hit the ceiling. For those who don't like to work-out in the natural outdoor environment, the gym on Deck 11 at forward would be the best option. Air-conditioned, with a nice, cold water fountain, plenty of towels, elliptical machines, stationery bikes, the dreaded treadmills, weight machines, yoga mats, it seemed to have everything for the gym rats. I prefer the outdoor and hoped to remove my tank-top tan so I ran outdoor most of the time and used the elliptical only once. For water sports fans, there was a water-slide and some small pools that made me wish I was back at Flushing Meadows Aquatic Center's Olympic-sized pools for lap swim.

If you are not into eating or exercising, there are many other activities to do. I played a few name-that-tune games. The first one was a comedy movie quotes. I need to either watch more movies or have better memory. I failed to recognize the lines from "Short Circuits" and "Spaceballs", two of my favorite movies. The second trivia game was about songs from the 80s. I thought I would easily ace it, but I could not even name Wang Chung's "Everybody Have Fun Tonight" and got only half right. Someone actually got 39 out of 40 points and won a nifty trophy. Every night the auditorium featured a different show, at 8:30 and 10:30. Then there was also the comedy club, with shows for the whole family and for adults only. One night, my son and I played a game of laser-tag. At $5 for 5 minutes, I thought that if you beat everyone and stay past your allocated 5 minutes over and over you would end up with a big bill. Luckily groups of five people were allowed into the inflated arena and the line was long. I was horrible at it and ranked five out of five so even if there was a win-lose situation I would lose quickly.

Of course if you rather do nothing then there was the option of reading, on a lounge chair or in your room. I knew the Kindle was popular but on the ship it was everywhere. I brought along the Steve Jobs bio by Walter Isaacson and had a good time churning through the pages, mostly while my son read his summer assignment, in our room.

The cruise is a perfect getaway for those who want to be disconnected from everyday life. I suspect at times, out in the ocean, there was no cell phone signals to get that urgent call from the office. Or if the service was available, it would be expensive so no one in my big group made any calls. The teenagers in the group probably had a great time since they could be roaming around without being nagged by the parents about "curfew" and other inconvenience. Internet access was a luxury all of a sudden. At over 70¢ per minutes, I paid about $20 for about 15 minutes, including a $5 activation fee, sheesh. Honest, it was not for me, mostly for my son to play some games, but that didn't work because of old versions of Flash or the game took too long to load over the slow satellite connection. With the high cost to pay for being connected to the rest of the world, voluntary isolation is the best option.

As an origami enthusiast, the most interesting part of the vacation was the towel animals that were placed in our room after the room staff finished making the beds etc. I even attended the demo and subsequently bought the book. At times I did have much down time, like when my son did not want to do anything else but watch TV. During such time I made sonobe pieces. Early one morning, I slipped two sonobe orbs into the library and they disappeared after breakfast. Ideally someone out there took them and got interested enough to learn how to make them.

BROOKLYN BRIDGE PARK

Many times, as I traveled on the Brooklyn-Queens Express portion that runs below the Brooklyn Height Promenade, I would look longingly at the relatively new jogging path that extends south from Brooklyn Bridge Park.  Especially so when there was a traffic jam.  I should be down there exercising my muscles, lung, and heart, instead being up on the highway contributing to air pollution.  Once or twice I went with the family and others to the area but each time by the time we got to Brooklyn Bridge Park it was too dark, or the kids too tired.  Always something or others.  I suppose some day I may drive the family and the usual entourage to the park, but I am sure by the time I find parking five blocks away I would be in a sour mood and won't enjoy the park as much.

I signed up for a few marathons this year, all near the last quarter of the year.  The Yonkers Marathon is the first one to arrive and is about a month away, on Sunday 16 September.  Most, if not all, marathon training schedules dictates that the runner must run a 32-km (or 20-mile) distance a few weeks prior to the actual race.  Of course, you are supposed to build up the distance over so many weeks, which I did not.  But I still want to do a 32-km run before the Yonkers Marathon.  According to gmap-pedometer.com, from my home to Brooklyn Bridge Park is supposed to be 16 km.  Run there and back and I will have my 32-km long run.  Nhất cử lưởng tiệng, "one lift of the hand to do two things," aka "kill two birds with one stone."

When the alarm clock blared, I was ready.  Tech clothes already picked out, camel pack with four filled water bottles, fanny pack with house keys, four packs of Gu energy gel, some energy beans, and eyeglasses case. Cell phone and GPS watch charged overnight.  I also had some money in case I need to buy a MetroCard to get back, plus an NYRR membership card for use as ID in case some mishap occurs.  All the preparation the night before can make a big difference in the morning of the big day.

I ran mostly along the south-southwest waterfront of Brooklyn, or as close to the water as I could.  I entered the Belt Parkway Waterfront via the footbridge at around Bay 16th Street then ran toward the Verrazano Bridge, all the way to Owl's Head Pier.  A short distance before the pier, I ate the first Gu and washed it down with water.

For hill training, I ran to the top of the hill in Owl's Head Park.  I thought about taking photos from the hilltop but the tree branches were in the way.  I must come back here in the winter.  Eventually I found myself along Second Avenue, ran past Lutheran Hospital, some live poultry market, and Costco.  On Second Avenue, there was a moving company called Van Gogh but I don't recall seeing it on this run. I try to run against traffic whenever possible, so at the first favorable street I turned into it to get to Third Avenue. The last time I went along Third Avenue and not in a car I was on a bike and had to ride on the sidewalk. The other options were to go against traffic or walk the bike at around the Prospect Expressway underpass. Running is so much better. I was able to keep running on the sidewalk against traffic, past Home Depot, onward to a drawbridge that spans the Gowanus Canal. I recently heard about The Superfund Super Run and had a chuckle about the nickname Lavender Lake, for the Gowanus Canal. I took photos of the canal but did not do it justice. Or maybe it's just too clean at that point. I know in the past I've seen the canal in some eerie green color.

By the time I reached the Battery Park Tunnel, it was already 16 km. My goal was the Brooklyn Bridge Park so I continued, along Columbia Street. A novel idea here is the bike path is actually half of the sidewalk, not on the road. At Atlantic Avenue, I asked a dog-walker whether there's an outlet and he told me about going around 1 Brooklyn Bridge, which he called the Grey Building. At long last, I would be on that cool jogging path. Alas, I missed the entrance to the path, which was across from the Grey Building's loading dock. I had to run on the really narrow sidewalk of Furman Street, all the while occasionally seeing joggers on the path and wondering how they got there.

Finally at Brooklyn Bridge Park I decided to use the restroom. Ooh, air-conditioned! So nice, but on second thought the location is probably a tourist magnet, better make it worth their money. From then on I mostly walked as I had to stop many times to take photos. Such a nice place! See the photos and descriptions below.

I thought the jogging/bike path was just something very basic. A dirt road at most. It turned out to be nicely paved, well marked to separate cyclists and joggers. Around Montague Street, near what is probably the exhaust tower for the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel, I saw that the path went all the way to the Grey Building and Joralemon Street.

When the entrenched portion of the BQE is jammed, I usually go along Columbia Street to get to the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel area. Columbia is so narrow and is two-way so I dread driving on it and often wonder about an alternative. I found it in the form of Van Brunt Street. Get to it from Degraw and Van Brunt would take you to the BBT also. I should have headed for the BQE ASAP but stayed on Van Brunt for too long and ended up somewhat lost in Red Hook. The only bridge in the area to cross the Gowanus Canal is on Third Avenue. When I saw Ikea I realized I was far off-course. Luckily I knew my direction and just kept heading for Third Avenue, past Red Hook Park and its pool. The track at Red Hook Park sure looked nice, but I had a long way to go to get home.

Home, so far away. Over the Gowanus Canal, past the stinky DOT asphalt plant, Home Depot, some FBI holding center, back on Second Avenue, past Lutheran... I started to think about what to eat for brunch and headed for Bay Ridge, along Third Avenue, instead of back on the waterfront, where at most I would be able to get food from a mobile vendor. I wanted a sit-down place where I would rest my tired feet. The GPS watch finally read 32-km at 73rd Street and Fifth Avenue. I already used up all 4 bottles of water, the Gu packs, plus one of the energy beans. I could use a nice cold drink but I wanted to get it from Jenny's Farm, at Fifth Avenue and 85th Street, I thought. During one of my past run, I stopped there for Gatorade and the nice old cashier-man offered me a paper towel to dry my sweat. About 5 km of walking later, with a stop for lunch, I finally made it home. The running portion took about 4 hours and 22 minutes, which is bad because at that rate I won't finish the Yonkers Marathon within 5 hours. Maybe if I didn't stop to walk and take photos at Brooklyn Bridge Park and also not get lost in Red Hook the time would be better. Also, usually during races I run faster. Something to do with all the energy around and also the natural urge to outrun someone nearby. I already plan to run to the Rockaway over the Gil Hodge Bridge. It's a quiet path with that I traveled by bike before so there will be no need to stop and take photos.

The bumpiest portion of Second Avenue?  Costco is at the traffic light, I think.

Thirty-third Street heading toward the Gowanus Expressway, which is not visible because of morning sun glare.

Going against traffic along Third Avenue heading toward the Gowanus Canal, the elevated Gowanus Expressway on the right.

The Gowanus Canal heading to New York Harbor.  I was hoping the water would be its usual chemical-polluted green to reflect the nickname Lavender Lake, but it is not.

Joralemon Street wraps around 1 Brooklyn Bridge Park.  Once I was one of those unhappy drivers stuck on the BQE.  At the moment I was a happy runner.

At last, Brooklyn Bridge Park, even if I did not get there via the fancy jogging path.

A great view of the new WTC and the good ol' Brooklyn Bridge.

Not readily seen from the highway, this waterfront path is so inviting to running.  Too bad it is not that long, but then that's where the other path can be used.  Governors Island is in the background.

A fork in the road in Brooklyn Bridge Park.  I think I went right.  Perhaps the left fork would lead to the hilltop that the series of steps I decided not to take would lead to.

A wild side of the Brooklyn Bridge Park.  There is a stream running but in trying to capture the entire height of the bridge I failed to include it.

At last the jogging path that had eluded me so long.

There were a few boat ramps along the path, such as this one.  It's closed off, made me wonder when it's open.  I would have loved to stand barefeet in the water.

Spiral Pool.  I sure rather be here than stuck in traffic on the BQE in the background.

In the background, perhaps near the white blob, is the entrance to the path, across from the loading dock of the Grey Building.  To the left of the photo is the exhaust tower of the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel.

Lost in Red Hook.  When I realized that yellow-and-blue building is Ikea, I knew I was too far south of Third Avenue.

Police Sergeant Keith Ferguson 5K

I resumed running seriously in 2009 and stayed with it, partly thanks to social media.  It really helped to see encouraging words from my friends on Facebook and DailyMile.  Still, it would be even better to have someone along with in real life.  I did meet some DailyMile people in meatspace (as opposed to cyberspace) but they are faster runners so we don't usually stay together that long during the races, or during the beginning, where runners are usually separated into different corrals based on pace.


A Facebook friend, Ramon, recently discovered the joy of running.  He took the next step and signed up for 5K races and asked friends to show some support.  He actually did better than me and had his wife and children with him for the first race.  That race took place on a Saturday, a work-day for me, so I couldn't make it, but for his second race, on a Sunday, I decided to surprise him by meeting him at the race as a runner.


Ramon's second 5K was the Police Sergeant Keith Ferguson 5K .  According to the Officer Down Memorial Page, Sarge Ferguson died in the line of duty in 2004 of a heart attack after running to aid a patrolman.  Active.com has race results starting 2009 so it is logical to assume that the Memorial 5K Walk/Run started that year.  The race started at the fountain in City Hall Park at the foot the Brooklyn Bridge on the Manhattan side.  Runners would get out of the park at the south end then U-turn to get to the Brooklyn Bridge, bottleneck into the pedestrian bridge in the middle, reach the Brooklyn end just before Tilary Street then make the trip back to City Hall.


In researching about the race the day before, I came across The Epicurious Runner's race recap of the event.  5K is not my preferred distance and the idea of a fun run was not appealing either.  I also do not like the Brooklyn Bridge since the pedestrian path shares the road with cyclists so there is little room to move.  The tourists don't help either but hey we need their dollars.  But I made up my mind to give Ramon some on-course support, if needed, so I went ahead with the plan.


As usual, there was subway track work so I had to go further away to get to a subway line, the N, that would take me into Manhattan.  Good thing I am a runner so I jogged there, with some time left to cool down.  The train arrived and I tried to take a nap on the trip in.  I got to City Hall with plenty of time to spare.  It was the first time I signed up on race day, $25, ouch.  Based on my bib number, above 900, I did not get a T-shirt after signing up.  I would get one after the race, I was told.  There was no bag check, but it did not matter to me, as I rarely use bag check anyway.


The few portable johns had locks on them that supposedly no one had the keys for.  So what would you do?  You flag down some police cruiser and get a lock-cutter and off went the locks, of course.  After using the still fresh john I made a loop of City Hall Park.  Back at the south end, I found out that the food truck there with water, coffee, snacks, etc. was there for the runners, not some enterprising businessman having a prime location.  I have a weak bladder so only took one small cup of water.  Then I decided to reach out to Ramon.  He was not too far away and shortly later I met him and his wife Dorothy.  We took photos together and chit-chatted a bit, runners' shop talk, of course.


Eventually it was time for a slow walk out of City Hall Park via the south side to get to Brooklyn Bridge.  During my walk around the park earlier, I saw the ramp to the bridge being closed and wrongly assumed that we would be running on the bridge itself, which would be great.  In reality, we milled about on the sidewalk just across from the bridge until about 8:45.  Slowly we entered the bottleneck and did not know when we should start our our GPS watches.  I am used to see some clear temporary gate to indicate the starting line, with large digital clock.  The Epicurious Runner did say that there wasn't net time, just gun time, but I secretly hoped that things may have changed since 2010, the year the E-Runner wrote the blog entry.  When the crowd started to run Ramon and I kicked off our watches, but it turned out we were a few steps behind the invisible starting line, supposedly.  There was some starting line but in reality the race was measured more in terms of starting time and ending time.  Once the starting time kicked in, the race started, whether you are right at the starting line or five minutes back.


I already knew it would be a fun run with kids and people pushing strollers but it still took me some effort to avoid the kids and the strollers, as well as the walkers.  I wish there were separate waves for runners, stroller-pushers, and walkers.  Sure I am a slow runner but I still want to give my best without having to maneuver around the non-runners.  The climb up the Brooklyn Bridge was tough, even though I knew better not to push too hard.  At some point during the ascend Ramon ran ahead of me and I decided to catch up with him on the downhill trip on the way back to Manhattan.  There was a water station at the first bridge tower but I skipped it.  I usually take water only after Mile 2 or so, definitely not so soon after a race started.  Near the Brooklyn end of the bridge, where runners would turn around to head back to Manhattan, I started looking for Ramon to give him a high-five and encourage him along.  I can always blame my slower finish to my being a few years older than him, I figured.  But he was nowhere to be seen.  I went on back to Manhattan and stopped for water just before the descend.  I picked up speed afterward and actually sailed pass a few people.  Just before the U-turn into City Hall Park's south entrance, I sprinted for the finish line.  It was nice that the announcer mentioned me as I cross the finish line.  Someone already added my name to the database some time after I signed up earlier.  Good data entry!


I remembered to ask about the T-shirt but it was all gone.  I got to leave them my home address so I suppose they'll mail me one.  Later on I met Ramon and his wife.  It turned out I passed him at some point before the turnaround in Brooklyn.  I don't run with my near-sighted glasses so I don't see that well.  Whew, I was afraid he would beat me but this time he didn't.  We were separated by just a few minutes, really.  Of course, I've been running regularly for a few years whereas Ramon just started a few months back, so I still have a little advantage over him.  Hopefully with him in my back-view mirror, I'll train better and run more regularly, not the every-other-day or whenever schedule that I am stuck with lately.  Keep up running, Ramon!

Yay, ramp to the bridge is closed, we will get to run on the road with plenty of elbow room.  NOT!

The finish line, where there was a clock and mats on the ground. 

Food-and-drink truck, get your registration fee's worth!

The four portable john before their locks were clipped.  No wonder there was no line.