So I got pretty sick after the Manhattan Half due to the cold plus other factors, but I got even sicker after an evening running on the West Side Highway four days before the Bronx Half on Feb 8th. I had to stop training because of my lingering cough, and my running nose was very much out of control.I forced myself to run a mile the night before the race, and realized that my lungs couldn't take it and had to stop after 0.8 miles. Though, I couldn’t bear not being able to complete a mile as I sucked it up and finished off it, before I headed to Whole Foods for "Mom's Chicken Soup."
It was a terrible night and I couldn't sleep at all. Moreover, I had to leave home early to get to Grand Central first to meet up with SC before we headed north to the Bronx. The shuttle was terrible and I wasn't a happy camper. To add insult to injuries, a drunk guy was laughing the whole time on the train and we were very annoyed. If I couldn't handle Beavis or Butthead on TV back in the days, I couldn’t handle this bozo.
We got to the Bronx early and had plenty of time to get ready. The weather was pretty good -- at least it wasn't 14 degrees like I had in the Manhattan Half two week ago. Knowing that I was sick, I didn't know if I should start from the first corral or not, but I convinced myself to give it a try.
I felt fine at the start but immediately knew that I wasn't 100%. Though, I was able to run at a 6:45 pace the first 3 miles before I hit Mosholu Parkway. By Mile 5 I was out of it and I felt like I missed a gear, and couldn't pick up and maintain my speed. Other runners started to pass me left and right and it was a terrible feeling. My lungs were suffering and I had to slow down a bit in order to maintain my form. With 8 miles to go, including the unforgiving miles on the Grand Concourse, I had to fight on.
By the time I hit the Grand Concourse, the only objective was to carry myself home in one piece. I also wanted to look for SC on the other side of the road and see how she was doing. As I headed back to Mosholu Parkway, my pace shot up to 8:10. It was very bad but I kept on pressing in order to stay away from the 8:00 threshold (overall pace.)
I crossed the finish line in 1:41:11 (7:43 pace), some 10 minutes slower than my PR last October in the Grete's Great Gallop. It was an eye opener because I had to prep for the SunTrust National Marathon, and a slow time like this was really not ideal with only a month to go.
Despite my sickness, it was still a good day for us to run up in the hood. I took it as a training run for D.C., and hopefully I could turn things around fast because there’s not much time to get ready for the March 21st marathon.
