There was no extra hour of sleep this morning. After Lola woke us up with her usual pre-dawn clawing, pawing and noise-making, the sounds on the street began. Soon there were sirens, church bells, cowbells, whistles, barking dogs, cheers, clapping, hooting and then the High School band down the street playing the theme to Rocky for 4 hours straight. We are at mile 8 of the NYC Marathon, right at the top of a long uphill slope (thus the hill in Clinton Hill). I did not take pictures of the elite runners - too fast and very serious! Show me the throngs!
First the wheel chair racers come through.
This neighbor has a problem with anything on wheels, and was howling at every one. She really is very sweet, but her person finally took her inside - I think it was too much stress for her.
Then the wait for the rest of the race. The long shadows are great at this time of year.
A brief break from marathon coverage: this young lad looks like the wired haired dachshunds my family had - more fluff than wire, large, sturdy, rounder nose/snout and very blond. I miss them. This dog is some complicated mix.
Back to the race coverage - here are the regular runners! Many people had their names boldly displayed on their gear so some "Way to go Anita, you can do it Enribe, looking good Jose!" encouragements got us smiles and waves.
My favorite sign.
Oh come on now. It was cold - about 40 degrees for most of the race. I know people heat up when running, but seriously?!
This spectator must have high-fived about 20 runner in two minutes.
I have the world of respect for these athletes, but I think this little guy had the best mode of transportation today - a deep purse and the subway.
Some of the spectators were pretty spectacular too.
Small and simple.
I'm not sure I understand the message, but I liked the artwork.
Back to the warmth of the home. The view from the bedroom. I love the way the runners appear from under the canopy of trees along Lafayette Avenue.
We see more costumes on the slower runners.
Lola's form for race day - in the sun, and on the heater. Cats are so smart.
At about 1pm, it was like someone turned off the marathon. The noise suddenly stopped until a truck came by with a speaker system announcing that this was the "official" end of the race, and the streets would be open. A few more tired and slow runners bravely continued to come through. I was glad to hear that Edison Pena, one of the Chilean miners, finished the race - quite a feat for someone who had never run more than 10 miles before - not to mention spending 70 days in a mine.
And then after all this, the Jets won in overtime!! Overall, another great day.
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7 comments:
How very exciting! Much better than living just far enough away from the route to have only the inconvenience of closed streets and no view!
And I'm pleased to read that Edison Pena finished; what an achievement.
But as for me, I'm with Lola.
Sounds like the Marathon mania wears off on everyone. Enjoyed the race, even if second hand.
Great pictures and what an event to have such a bird's eye view! thanks too for you kind comment on my blog.
Great post, totally enjoyed it. In the end though - I would keep Lola company...
the marathon is so exciting. It must have been so much fun to be right there in the middle of it
Benny & Lily
Good to see so many people turning out in support. (I'm sure Lola was sending positive vibes from her spot on the heater). Do you think that might have been the Easter Bunny?
I used to live in Brooklyn in the '80's. I can't remember where Clinton is, my memory is gone. Many fun days in Brooklyn, lived at 388 Bergen St off Fifth, before it was trendy. Lots of night sitting on the front stoop in heat waves singing with the eclectic neighborhood.Drank lots of beer at O'conners when it really was a dive- I had heard it went trendy and nearly died.
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