the nyc marathon

i experienced my first new york marathon today. no i didnt run....i was merely a spectator. carol and i met up at 96th and columbus and walked on the traverse to 97th and 5th ave where a bunch of spectators were (this was at about mile 23). the whole time i tried to track koo's number online but the site wasn't loading but carol said he was on mile 21 when we first left so we would probably see him.

it was pretty amazing to see all of the runners and all of the spectators who were so into it and so excited to see the runners go by. when we arrived we saw the runners at a 4 hour pace (6.5 mph pace) and i was surprised to see that the majority of them were not young and there were SO many countries that were represented. a few people were dressed up in costumes, and as some ran by, they tried to get us to cheer, or cheered themselves....remember this was at mile 23! so awesome. other memorable people we saw: a blind man running with two of his friends who led him while all holding a walking stick, a man running and pushing his friend in a wheelchair, a couple holding hands while running, and a man with no arms. i was so so inspired by these people i think i got choked up a few times. again.. AMAZING.

on the downside, i saw some sad things such as an older woman who was bleeding down her leg and a man with blood spots on his nipple area from chaffing.

carol and i finally decided to head down to the meeting point on 70th and central park west in hopes of seeing koo. the whole street was blocked off and there were people walking around everywhere! there was an announcer on the speaker talking in several different languages. there was actually a lot of foot traffic (of course) and we finally were able to spot our friends!

poor koo looked so tired and was just munching on a nasty looking bagel. keep in mind while during his marathon training he has lost so much weight! regardless, he needed two of his friends to help him up and couldnt walk very fast at all.

the cutest part of the event was when one of his friends fed him some almonds. koo had those post marathon capes around him so his hands weren't free and his friend just opened up the bag and popped a handful into his mouth. ok i guess describing it it doesnt sound very cute but i guess you had to be there.

the way out was pretty crowded...there was tons of foot traffic but no one seemed to be caring. it must have been the runners high! i definitely need my injury to go away so i can run a few halves next year. super inspired!