I am no Amber Miller. Unlike the veteran runner who completed the Chicago Marathon at 39 weeks pregnant, and gave birth later that day, I spent the NYC Marathon Sunday relaxing my 7-month pregnant self on vacation. I was really sad to miss the marathon this year, both as a spectator and as a runner. I’ve always loved watching the marathon live in Brooklyn, and last year I was privileged to run the race myself (my first marathon!). I spent the morning on the beach, ‘watching’ the progress of the elites through Facebook and Twitter feeds from NYRR, and seeing my friends’ posts from the course, both as spectators and participants.
Watching a marathon is always inspiring. Whether you’re marveling at the speed and grace of the elite packs as they silently stride by early; watching the wheelchair division show us what tenacity and drive really mean; cheering the mid-packers who look impossibly happy and strong; or sticking around to give some love to the slower runners bringing up the rear, there are always people who stick out as everyday heroes to the spectators. This year, I had three friends running the marathon, and they were kind enough to share their experiences with me.
Frank Salzone is already a motivating individual. Frank is one of my colleagues, a Tier 3 personal trainer at Equinox Greenwich Avenue. As well as being a full-time personal trainer, Frank also teaches group fitness classes and spinning at various Equinox clubs, 24 Hour Fitness Clubs, CKO Conditioning, and the YMCA. Last year, Frank and I both ran the NYC Marathon, the first attempt at the marathon for both of us. I got to know him better through our chats about training, setbacks, and races leading up to the big event, and was impressed with his dedication and enthusiasm…about everything! Whether he was talking about the charity he was supporting, his clients, his training, or his love for all things Jersey, Frank was nothing but positive and excited.
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| Frank Salzone and his dad Frank Senior start the marathon. |
This year, Frank had already pre-qualified for entry through NYRR’s 9+1 program. This is a program aimed at local runners to ensure they are not only at the mercy of the lottery for entry. Any NYRR member who runs and completes 9 NYRR races and volunteers at 1 NYRR race within the calendar year is automatically entered in the NYC Marathon for the following year. Regardless of his automatic entry, Frank also ran for Team Run to Remember, an Alzheimer’s research charity, to honor his grandfather who has been suffering from the illness for the past 12 years, raising over $3,000.00 for the charity.
Last year, Frank ran a great time for a first-time marathon. I assumed that this year, his goal would be to improve upon his time from last year – we runners are always looking for the next PR. Frank had a lot going on this year – he was moving from Staten Island to Manhattan, and as you can imagine, his work schedule is crazy busy with a lot of very early mornings. (Next time you complain to your trainer that you’re tired when you meet them at 7am, bear in mind they may have already trained one, or even two people by the time they see you!!).
His dad, Frank Salzone Senior, had also made the decision to run the marathon for the first time, inspired by his son’s achievement the year before. Frank Senior had been told by his doctor 12 years ago following knee surgery that he wouldn’t be able to run anymore. And he didn’t. Until this year. Luckily, with a fitness professional son, he had a great running plan to follow, as well as a strength training plan, so Frank could make sure his dad would be taking all the precautions necessary to protect his knees. What Frank’s dad didn’t know was that Frank was not training to beat his previous best. Frank was planning all along to run every step of the way with his dad, there as his coach, his support team, and his biggest fan. For an athlete, someone who by nature has a fair bit of competitive spirit, to dedicate a major race to supporting someone he loves and is so proud of, rather than trying for his own personal goal, is an amazing inspiration.
His dad was nervous and excited at the starting line on the Verrazano, which is also the moment his son explained to him that they would be running together, and crossing the finish line together. Right at the end of the race, 25.2 miles in, Frank Senior was really feeling it, hitting the wall big time. One mile left, and his son encouraged him for every moment of it. He gave it all he had running over the finish line, and told Frank if it wasn’t for him being there with him, he may not have made it to the finish.
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| The Salzones finishing the ING NYC Marathon 2011, together. |
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| Father and Son Marathoners! |
My friend James Coopey was also one of the marathoners this year. James (aka ‘Coop’) is a running fanatic. He’s a native New Yorker, a member of NYRR, and an avid racer. The NYC Marathon this year was not Coop’s first – it was the 7th time he’s run New York, and his 9th Marathon overall, having also run the New Jersey and San Francisco marathons. He should probably have already earned inspirational points with readers for having run a marathon in one of the hilliest cities in the US!
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| James Coopey enjoying the crowds. |
Coop also pre-qualified for the race via the NYRR 9+1 program, and is a huge supporter of NYRR. As well as racing throughout the year, he is almost a fixture on the Facebook pages for both NYRR and the ING NYC Marathon. He posts about his training, offers encouragement to fellow runners, answers questions regarding the races throughout the year, and most notably as the marathon date gets closer, Coop starts to post the number of hours, minutes, and seconds left before the starting gun goes off. He gets lots of ‘likes’ for those posts! What I admire most about Coop is that he is really a great example of what I love about this sport – the majority of runners are really friendly, inclusive people. When you’re not an elite or professional runner, you are still a competitor, but usually only with yourself. Most runners incorporate running into their social lives by running their long runs or easy days with friends, and are really encouraging towards people just starting out in the sport. Coop embodies all these principles. He also picks up my race number and t-shirt for me when we are running the same races, so I am also biased.
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| James Coopey running his favorite marathon in his favorite city. |
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| Nothing better than getting that medal and knowing you’re done running! |
For all of you who may be wondering if you could ever run a marathon, bear in mind that Coop, a veteran marathoner, lined up this year at the starting line still wondering, ‘How the hell am I going to finish 26.2 miles?’ It’s probably the same thought running through 99% of the entrants’ minds – no matter how well you trained, there is always an element of the unknown once you hit around mile 20. Most marathon training programs don’t have you running longer than 20 or 22 miles as your longest run prior to the race, so you never quite know how your body will react to the last slog. I agree with Coop that it really does become a mental, even more than physical, challenge past the 20 mile mark. The awesome New York crowds were what kept Coop going, as well as knowing his mom was at the finish line waiting to see him cross. Coop missed making a PR by only 6 minutes…when I asked him whether he’d be back to try again next year, his response was ‘Hells Yeah!’.
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| Dan Bealey enjoying the crowds on Marathon Sunday. |
Dan Bealey also ran the ING NYC Marathon this year, and like Frank Salzone, he also ran for a charity close to his heart. Not just any charity, though – Dan ran for the charity he actually helped create, Team Stoked, the fundraising arm of Stoked Mentoring. Stoked Mentoring is a non-profit organization devoted to introducing underprivileged kids to action sports like snowboarding and surfing, by pairing them up with a mentor in the sport. Stoked Mentoring boasts a 92% retention rate in the pairs it sets up between a volunteer athlete and an at-risk youth, as well as an incredible 100% high school graduation rate of all its participants. Dan raised an impressive almost $5,000.00 for Team Stoked this year, in his first marathon. He has watched the runners every year since moving to the city, which drove his desire to one day run the race himself, and after helping found Team Stoked he knew he’d have to run it at least once for them.
For all the participants, it’s not so much the marathon itself that takes its toll on you, it is the weeks and months of training you need to commit to in order to know you’re prepared for the distance. Dan found the length of training one of the toughest aspects of the race, not helped by the fact that he lost a job, and started a new job, while in the middle of his training program. It’s tough to schedule your runs for the week into everyday life, especially with the volume of training required for a marathon. As well as the long run, you need to do speed work, easy runs, work on increasing mileage, and try not to overdo it or get injured in the process. Most marathoners are training at least 3, but usually 4 – 5 days out of the week. Luckily, Dan only experienced minor ankle and knee issues, but nothing that kept him from competing.
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| Dan Bealey running for Team Stoked. |
Like Coop and Frank, Dan is a local runner, so on top of the overwhelming support of thousands of strangers along the course, he also benefited from seeing his friends, mom, sister, and his wife along the way to cheer him on and give him support. Big props to his wife Allison, who managed to see her husband at several locations along the course – it’s not easy to navigate the transit system while making sure you are keeping to your runner’s pace, but it’s worth it for the huge boost it gives a runner like Dan to see a familiar face yelling encouragement and there for a hug. Dan mentioned he was not prepared for the emotional aspects of the race. As well as the incredible lift the crowd support gave him, Dan said that about half a mile from the end of the race he got choked up from the realization that he was about to complete this huge undertaking he’d spent months training for, and knowing he’d given it everything he had. Dan’s goal was to complete the 26.2 miles in under 4:30, so as to make the cut-off for the New York Times listing of marathoners. He made it with time to spare.
Congratulations to all three of you inspiring marathoners! Your stories have made me even more excited for my next NYC Marathon effort, and I hope we’ll all be running the next one together! And for all the runners still on the fence as to whether they are capable of a marathon, here are some final words of encouragement from Frank Salzone: “If anyone ever considered doing a marathon, but was too afraid, or thought they couldn’t do it and didn’t try, you can! It’s about finding the motivation and inspiration to keep going. If you don’t finish, you don’t finish, but you tried, and that’s what people will respect.” Great last words, and remember, they don’t just apply to running a marathon. Set yourself any athletic goal, and just by trying to achieve it you’ll be inspiring others.
