Practice Principal, Tom Anthoney recently returned from the New York Marathon and cant stop raving about it.
Below, he recounts his favourite memories with a few photos.
Wow, what an experience is the New York marathon!
The only day of the year where they close the streets of New York City.
The biggest marathon in the world, with 50,000 runners.
People come together from across the globe, and just getting a ticket is a marathon process in itself.
Tom and his best Physio mate, Mark Nagel, were lucky enough to get tickets through a South Australian tour organizer: Adventure Time Travel. (ATT)
ATT run by Personal Trainer extraordinaire, Anna Liptak, have been hosting Marathons around the world for many years. They organise every detail and leave nothing to chance.
We purchased the package back in January 2023, which includes entry to the event, accommodation and lots of team activities.
Training for the marathon
Both Tom and Mark had run marathons before, Tom most recently completed the Adelaide marathon in 2021. Marks last Marathon was some 20 years earlier.
It’s fair to say, that Tom talked Mark into it, and the plan was always to run the marathon side-by-side together, and that is what we did.
Most marathon plans require 16 weeks preparation of gradually increasing the long runs on weekends from 12 to 16 to 21 and eventually to 32 km.
Mark did not miss a beat in his preparation, while Tom injured his calf muscle a couple of times (Refer to separate blog on getting over calf muscle strain… “The Old man’s injury” -Coming soon).
New York
New York in November, weatherwise can be anything.
Most of us have seen the Christmas movies filmed in New York with snow falling… Just eight weeks after the marathon.
So, we prepared for the cold, but on the day it was a beautiful 15°… Perfect for running.
The crowd lined, the streets, everywhere we ran often 10 people deep.
The crowd were unbelievably supportive and enthusiastic.
Calling out our names – which were written on our shirts, making us feel like rock stars.
“Go Tom, Go Mark!! “
“You got this!”
“Tom and Mark!”
“Mark and Tom !!”
And our favourite: “I see you Tom!”, so validating… and we did not even know these people. We could not wipe the smiles off our faces.
The Australian Team
All the people in our team (There were 70 runners from Australia) had the same experience of incredible support.
And everyone used the line “I felt like a rockstar.”
The people lining the streets were out, giving high-fives, holding signs of support, playing drums and music on stereos so loud it was an absolute party.
Brooklyn was the best! It was also early in the race.
Later in Queens, the crowd really perked up again as we tackled a few bridges that tested us as runners.
And then the cheering in Harlem and through Central Park really helped get us over the line.
Mark struggled more than, Tom (who is a running machine… And also the author of this blog😋).
But they supported each other and ran across the line together…
It is called a marathon for a reason, And the relief can be seen on Mark’s face here as we stepped over the finish line.
Would we do it again?
Tom will for sure, and quicker next time.
Would we recommend Adventure Time Travel?
Absolutely. The team spirit they created, started way before the race,
We had team get togethers in Adelaide as far back as July. Zoom Q and A sessions, and our own Facebook group, Anna has run the race ten times herself, and made the whole event enjoyable by being so prepared.
We were the only tour group that had a hotel on Staten Island to rest in on the morning of the race, everyone else has to keep warm outside for 3-4 hours minimum. We had breakfast provided, transport organised-sensational.
And month after the race many of the ATT 2023 team are still in touch, with a shared experience and plans to catch up and re-live the memories.
Thank you NYC. And thanks everyone for your encouragement and support