Over the last few months I've been training for two events: The Leatherman's Loop Trail Run, and the NYC 5 Boro Bike Tour. Both of them were goals for me. First up was the Leatherman, a 10K terrain race through rivers, woods, and hillside. Angela and I pushed through the whole race together, on a rough 90 degree April morning. The course was awesome, and the community of runners around the yearly event was cool to be a part of. I wish I'd gotten pictures of the race and us, but I was worried about carrying a camera. We ended the run covered in mud and dirt, and had to throw out our shoes, but it was definitely worth it.
Just one week after knocking down the 10K came the 5 Boro Bike Tour. The ride would end up being around 44 miles through the streets of New York hitting all 5 boros including an intense ride up the Verrazano Bridge before ending in Staten Island. The day is awesome because streets, highways, and bridges are all shut down for bikers for the day, and you get to see a ton of the city. Every 8 miles or so there are rest stops with food and water provided by the sponsors, and there's a celebration at the end. However, by the time we (I road with 6 friends) were in the final third of the race, there was a serious downpour, and it was a pretty misserable ending riding wet and cold. Still, it was much farther than I'd ever ridden at once, and it was a great experience. Luckily there were tons of photographers along the way, and my friend Benn brought a camera, so there is much more documentation of the day.
I plan on doing both of these events next year - it was a great time, and I'm pumped that I was able to accomplish them both in a week.
