The Wait

I really don’t know what I was thinking.  I am committed to running the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC on October 25^th.  So, why in the world would I put my name into the lottery for the NYC Marathon on November 1^st, just one week afterwards?

It was just an impulse, really.  How could I not?  This is my third time entering the race.  The first time I did it was in 2001, when I thought that entering would spur on some great training regimen that would keep me in shape forever.  I didn’t get in, and I stopped running altogether shortly thereafter.  That September 11^th, the world changed and many people decided not to fly into NY for the race.  The NYRR sent me an e-mail saying there were now available spots, only I hadn’t run more than 4 miles by then and probably put on 15-20 pounds.  So I didn’t run.

Last year I was able to gain entry through the American Cancer Society’s DetermiNation program and ran NYC, my first marathon.  It was an incredible experience and I just couldn’t resist the chance to do it once again.  After raising money for charity last year, I knew this year would be difficult.  The “fat guy gets skinny and runs a marathon” novelty has sorta worn off.  But… If I could run 2 marathons back-to-back.?.?  That would be something more challenging.  That would be something I could sell.  That would be something I could blog about.

Is it something I could realistically accomplish?  Well, that’s another story… but I’m willing to put the work in to find out.

There was only an 18% chance I would get in, but that seemed like better odds than most state lotteries, so I was feeling a bit optimistic.  Today, I sat in front of my computer screen on the New York Road Runners’ site, hitting “Refresh” time and time again, hoping to see a status change that would tell me I had made the cut.  I checked my email often and even made a few calls to my credit card company to see if any charges were made.  (The first thing they do when they pick your name is to take the money for registration.)

As of this writing, I have not been chosen.  Maybe that’s for the best – running two marathons in consecutive weeks can’t be all that wise.  Perhaps I should feel relieved.  But I’m also a little sad.  NYC was my first marathon – an event that I would participate in anytime I could get the chance.  There's still time.  Maybe I'll get in, but for now there's only one thing to do.  Wait...