Every Fiber of My Being Cries Out in Protest

So, every single time I go to cancel my entry for the 2007 ING New York City Marathon and postpone a triumphant return to New York until 2008, my entire body cries out in fury.  “No!” I seem to say as I go to click the ‘Cancel My Entry’ link on my registration page, “There is no marathon like New York, there will never be a marathon like New York, and you’d damn well better run it this year or I will personally see to it that you will have a miserable time of it at Marine Corps this year.”  My dreams as of late have been troubled as I gear up to train for Marine Corps.  I dream of being at the marathon start in Virginia, having not trained a single mile, but convinced that I can finish anyway; I then faint into the dreaded DNF before Mile 1 is over.  The excitement, the thrill of getting into New York via lottery last year (and this year, I admit) is no match for the perfunctory and simple registration process of Marine Corps.  Drop the money at the right time, and you’re in.  New York builds the anticipation; I registered for the lottery on Valentine’s Day (my little gift to myself) and learned of my fate on June 13.  That’s four months of waiting, people!  The most I waited for Marine Corps was negative time, given that their registration actually opened up a few minutes earlier than the 10am time announced previously.

And I know I’m not giving Marine Corps or DC a fair shake, or even fair competition.  Sure, I may live here, but what fun is it really to run the monuments?  Will I notice?  Probably, and I’ll bet it’ll be an exciting day as I try to beat the bridge (that won’t be hard, honestly), but I get the feeling that New York is unrivaled when it comes to history, spectators and anticipation.  Running downtown for the first time during the National Race for the Cure was very nice, I’ll admit, but the nervousness I’d feel every time I lined up for a 5K has been vanquished as nothing will ever be as intimidating as the gun going off on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. I watch the 2006 video that the NYRR released to inspire runners and still get chills down my spine.

Part of the problem is that the Marine Corps’ advertising department hasn’t been very communicative with the registered runners, and rather than sending us updates on how planning is going and how exciting the day is going to be, the only thing I got was a confirmation email and an email that encouraged me to make travel plans (um . . . can I book a prime seat on the Metro somehow?).  Spice it up, I want to say to the event planners, but nothing’s forthcoming as of yet.  From NYC, I received email after email detailing past winners, encouraging me to submit my “Why I’m Running” story (I didn’t, so don’t look), and encouraging me to use the interactive tools on their site in which you can pit yourself against past finishers, guide yourself through the course via pictures and descriptions, and squeal in anticipation as you see an overhead picture of the starting line before the gun goes off.

But just because Marine Corps hasn’t perfected the art of getting people excited about 26.2 miles, I know that it’ll still go down as a wonderful experience when all is said and done.  I’ll get to see areas of DC I haven’t seen before; I’ll get to contrast big city enthusiasm with capital craziness as the District’s citizens come out to cheer; I’m not a big military nut, but it’s apparently quite cool to receive a medal from a younger Marine, so I guess I’ll have that experience, too (that is, if I finish).

So, bottom line: I know I have to defer New York, but it is very, very hard.  I know I’ll enjoy Marine Corps, but New York has spoiled me.  However, I will sally forth and eventually click that ‘Cancel My Entry’ link.  Trust me, I will.  No, really!