Enjoying The Journey...NYC Style?

I mentioned earlier on that I have this stretch goal in mind for 2008. It involves a roundtrip ticket to the east coast, a little claustophobia in an insane starting field, and that famous little snippet from Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York" ... so cue the inspirational video and let's feel those goose bumps folks.

The New York Marathon is widely considered one of the crown jewels of marathoning. In fact, a few runners even attempt the "grand slam series" for marathons, which features New York, London, Berlin, Chicago and Boston, if I'm correct. This particular race touches all five boroughs, although the bulk of the course is in Brooklyn and Manhattan, and unites dozens of culturally and ethnically diverse neighborhoods. After passing over five bridges, it concludes at Tavern on the Green in world-famous Central Park amidst thousands of cheering spectators. How's that for a dream race?

Now, for the why. Why not? I don't think I am dreaming too large here. I mean, I'll be completing my 17th marathon next week. And I fully intend to continue marathoning long into the future. So, basically, I have no fears that my legs can take me wherever I intend to go.

However, that isn't the issue. Being accepted for 2008 NYC race entry and determining how to get around in New York will be my biggest challenges. I'm researching those concerns currently. Okay, maybe it could be just a pipe dream. Maybe it's better if I look at it as the late four-time Olympic champion Al Oerter put it, "it's not whether you get there, it's the journey" and not be concerned with whether I actually get there but that I tried. But maybe I just felt like wanting to get a jump on my New Year's resolution of expanding my marathoning horizons.

More to come on this soon, hopefully.

Photo by nyc.gov