The sound of rain pelting the window of my hotel bedroom woke me up at 6:00 on race day morning. I could still hear the wind and the rain, which on top of a couple tight hamstrings did not bode well for a stellar marathon.

Running this marathon was a question from the start. I wanted to run the Atlantic City Marathon, but the organizers never replied to my messages, so I contacted the race director of the Asbury Park Marathon, Art. Then on the Wednesday before race day, Lisa called me and said she and Raul would travel down from their vacation in NYC to come watch me run. I still hadn’t registered for the race and now I had to figure out how to get to Asbury Park. I squeezed by with only 20 minutes before the expo closed in time to register for the race. Which brings me back to race morning preparations. I took a hot bath with Epsom Salt and then rubbed my hammies down hard with IcyHot. Lisa and Raul met me in my room and helped me wrap my thighs in tape to keep them from falling apart during the race.

After party with my superb support crew, Lisa and Raul, in New York City.

More after party at Marie and Ford’s wedding in Fairfax, VA.

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2009 Inaugural Asbury Park Marathon