NYC Half, 2011 edition

I did not run the NYC Half yesterday, in case you were wondering. At nearly $100 to enter, I kind of see it as a race that's worth doing - once. And since I did it last year, this year I was more than content to stay at home and host my new best friend Olivia for the night. While other runners were carb loading, we were having our first experiences with Four Loko. (I did not drink the stuff. The ingredients in our batch were malt liquor, artificial flavoring, and red dye.)

The three eventual winners. I love how Galen and Mo are
all matchy-matchy twinsies.

From the reports I've read, it sounds like most everyone who did run the Half had an amazing time. Temperatures in the mid to upper 30s combined with clear skies and only a light wind made for ideal race conditions. My friend Kate rocked her first-ever half marathon, and then of course the elite race was extraordinary, too.

Mixed feelings on the elite race: while I would have loved to see an American take first place, and while Meb's finish and Ryan Hall's finish were both not as strong as we could have hoped, it was such a great race with such record-breaking performances that it's hard to be disappointed in the results. Galen Rupp? Finishing third after falling early in the race? All three lead women breaking the (previous) course record? Damn.

And some eye candy for those who appreciate a fine
woman. I know what you like.

I had to double-check Galen Rupp's age. I knew he wasn't that much younger than Dathan Ritzenhein and Ryan Hall, and yet he looks like he's about 17 in every single photo of him I've ever seen. That's when I discovered that his birthday is 8 May (he's 24).

Now, I don't like to read into coincidences, and I'm anti-astrology. However, Meb was born 5 May. Galen Rupp was born 8 May. I was born 11 May. I wasn't convinced when I only knew about me and Meb, but now that we can add a third to our Taurus-distance-runner party, I'm starting to pick up on a trend here.