Tuesday, February 8, 2011

NYC Qualified!

People often ask me what marathons I've run. When I start listing the 50+ they look at me a little confused and I usually get challenged with the following conversation


"Well have you run that Boston one??"
Me: (sigh) "I'm saving it for my last state. I'll be running it this year." 
"well have you run The New York City Marathon?" 
Me: (exasperated) "no" ... and the look of dissapointment in me follows. 


NYC and Boston are not the ONLY marathons in the world and they are not any more "marathon-esque" than any other either. Granted, the people that usually make these comments are typically non runners and non marathoners so we'll let it slide.... put down the rocks and nuces people, we'll be as understanding as we can. 


Where is this all coming from?? Well... If you didn't already know, I'm originally from upstate NY. The Albany area.... more specifically the East Greenbush area... even more specifically the Castleton area (If you haven't heard of it don't worry). Anyway, for my "New York" marathon I chose to do one close to home and completed the HMRRC Winter Marathon in 2010. 




This also happened to be the first time I Boston Qualified! So great news all around. However, I'm still plagued with the disappointed looks I get from non-marathoners when I say "no, I have not run NYC." There is a reason here people... I refused to run NYC until I qualified for it!!!!


"You can qualify for the NYC Marathon!?!?" You may be saying (runners and non-runners alike). Yes, it's a lot harder than Boston, which is why less people are aware of it. Also, after putting in the effort to make a BQ, most people say "you want me to shed another 17+ minutes?!?! No thanks!"
NYC Marathon "Automatic Entry" Qualifying Standards
To make a BQ I had to run a 3:40. For a NYC auto entry I needed a 3:23. Well if you've been following along like good little kiddos I ran a 3:21 at RnR Phoenix JUST in time to make the calendar cutoff for Auto entries (Jan 31, 2011). Well that wasn't the end of the story. This is a supposed "automatic entry" but they still need to review, confirm, and if they aren't filled they can let me in. 


So where is this all going? Today I checked my bank account and saw an unexpected $196 withdrawal from my account. At first I was confused then I say "New York City Marathon." I went to the application page and saw... I got CONFIRMED!!!! I'm in for the 2011 NYC Marathon!!!




Woohoo. Now when people ask if I've run the NYC Marathon... I can safely say "I'm running it this year!"
Posted by Stephanie Estridge at 8:43 AM

19 comments:

  1. TeamarciaFebruary 8, 2011 at 8:59 AM

    Congrats on qualifying for NYC!!! I'm closing in on qualifying with my half time...

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  2. Jill@Run for the HillsFebruary 8, 2011 at 9:06 AM

    Congrats!!

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  3. LauraFebruary 8, 2011 at 9:47 AM

    Congratulations! Though I would argue that if you are a true marathoner (at least one who does many races), you MUST do NYC and Boston at some point in your life. So glad you will get to experience them :)

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  4. ChaseFebruary 8, 2011 at 10:03 AM

    The NYC Marathon is almost $200?! Good lord!

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  5. Carolyn @ Eat Well. Live Well. Be Well.February 8, 2011 at 10:12 AM

    AWESOME... and yes I stuck with you there. ;)

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  6. BabyWeightMyFatAssFebruary 8, 2011 at 10:54 AM

    Ok so they start with the people who have qualifying times and then go from there with the lottery? This is so interesting!

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  7. EmilyFebruary 8, 2011 at 11:31 AM

    Nice! I qualified too but haven't registered yet. It's that whole 196 thing... but I'm going to bite the bullet and do it soon. Everyone says its an incredible one to run!

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  8. MarleneFebruary 8, 2011 at 12:53 PM

    CONGRATS on being officially "in" - well earned!!! Soon you'll be able to call yourself a "real" marathoner! lol

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  9. justmeFebruary 8, 2011 at 1:19 PM

    rock on !!!

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  10. SuzyFebruary 8, 2011 at 1:37 PM

    Wow, congratulations!

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  11. Julie D.February 8, 2011 at 3:06 PM

    I didn't know about the qualifying times for NY. Congrats! Have a great time.

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  12. MeredithFebruary 8, 2011 at 4:06 PM

    I agree there are a lot of marathons in the world, but I think after you run Boston in April, you won't be saying there are other marathons. It's thee marathon and it's fantastic! I can't wait to get back there and hopefully some day I'll get my qualification for NYC.

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  13. ChristinaFebruary 8, 2011 at 5:37 PM

    WOW! Awesome!!!!!

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  14. Average Woman RunnerFebruary 8, 2011 at 10:30 PM

    Congratulations! NYC is my dream race - more than Boston! Way to go speedy :)

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  15. Kim (Book Worm Runs)February 9, 2011 at 2:49 AM

    Awesome!! Congratulations! :)

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  16. KarenFebruary 9, 2011 at 12:31 PM

    Fantastic - congratulations!!!

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  17. MarciFebruary 9, 2011 at 4:02 PM

    Wow, you are amazing!! CONGRATULATIONS!! I agree about the qualifying thing, but I may need to resort to a lottery entry as I'm not sure I will ever be that fast!

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  18. Courtney @ I CAN DO THISFebruary 9, 2011 at 5:09 PM

    $196 ? Holy crap!
    Congrats on meeting their tough standards! Have an awesome race!

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  19. All Things JaimeFebruary 10, 2011 at 9:23 AM

    How exciting! I qualified, too - though with my half time of 1:35:53. I need to register ASAP, though!

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