Monday, April 13, 2020

A Bit of Good News

Recently it's been bad news, followed by more bad news. Not just for the world in general, but for my life specifically. I try my hardest to not get bogged down with it and to readjust my sights to focus on the positive (not everything is "good" but there is "good" in everything... we just might have to dig a little deeper some days to try and find it), but I'll be honest, some days (and not just during this COVID-19 crisis) it's hard and we need a helping hand to pull us out of our dark hole.


Sometimes those silver linings come when we least expect them. I know celebrating the joys/ successes in my friends' lives often helps me get out of my own head (even if just for a moment), so I thought I'd share a bit of my recent good news in case you needed something to smile about and wanted to be happy with/ for me for a moment.


I'm not sure if you remember, but a few months ago I shared about a little personal heartbreak. I know, in lieu of the realities going on currently, not being able to register for the New York City Marathon seems (and is) trivial, but that didn't make it hurt any less (especially in the moment). If you didn't read the post, the gist is that I ran a time qualifying race this past fall for the NYC Marathon, but when I went to register all of those spots had been taken between the time registration open and when I was able to get on the website (a mere 90 minutes later) because I was working at a local elementary school jog-a-thon. Eventually I threw my name in the hat for the lottery (for a fourth time) to see if I could get in that way, but had talked to the hubby and decided that if I didn't get in we would still go to New York City a different weekend and I would run my own 26.2 miles. I was pretty excited about either option and came to terms with the lottery deciding my fate.

Source

I shared with a few close friends who were pulling for me, but the results of the lottery did not go in my favor. In fact, the lottery was a BIG FAT "NO" for over 97% of us who entered {a Runner's World article reported approximately 185,000 people entered the lottery (which was a 50% increase from the 2019 drawing) in hopes of securing one of 4,200 spots!}.


Before starting to plan my McDot NYC Marathon, I decided I would exhaust all possible resources. (Don't get me wrong, I was absolutely stoked to do my own "event", but I also knew {or had heard} that a large chunk of the magic that is running in New York is the race itself - the spectators, the crowds, the thousands of fellow runners.) Our Brooks tech rep for the running store I worked at suggested I reach out to our New Balance tech rep (since they're one of the title sponsors for the race). I figured it couldn't hurt and shot over an email. At this time I also told my boss what had happened. Originally I didn't want her to feel bad since I didn't get in due to helping her at the jog-a-thon, but in case our rep reached out to her I wanted her to be up to speed. She apologized up and down and also recommended I reach out to New Balance sales rep in hopes she could help. Again, I sent an email but in the back of my mind was starting to consider it a lost cause.

Source

To my surprise I received an email a week later (I had told myself that if I hadn't heard from my contacts by a certain date I would scrap the official race and move forward with my "alternative" idea). Our sales rep had been traveling, which is why she hadn't responded sooner, but when she was back home she sent over a quick email asking for my email and phone number. I thought maybe she'd pass along my info and I might get a call in a few weeks if something turned up...

Source

LOW AND BEHOLD, A FEW MINUTES LATER I HAD AN OFFICIAL EMAIL FROM NEW YORK ROAD RUNNERS! 


I literally had to stop myself from squealing out loud and dancing around the store because I was at work when I opened the email and didn't want to freak out any potential customers who might be walking through the door at that very moment.

Source

I know some of you may be curious, so I'll let you know that I still paid for my entry (just like I would have if I would've been able to register with my time-qualifying race or if I had gotten in via the lottery) and I was 110% fine with it. I was in no way looking for a free or comped entry when I reached out to our New Balance contacts. I also felt like I had attempted to get in through the "proper" channels, so didn't feel like I was asking for preferential treatment (although I'm sure I will probably hear otherwise from the peanut gallery). Had I not been working at a jog-a-thon for the running store when registration opened, you can absolutely guarantee I would've been on the NYC Marathon website as soon as the clock struck "open". I only reached out to my connections through the job because my job is why I didn't get into the race in the first place. Again, I know I do not "need" to justify my actions to the InterWebs, but even still, I wanted to speak my piece.

Source

So, there you have it, my exciting news - I WILL BE RUNNING THE 2020 TCS NEW YORK CITY MARATHON... Well, that is if the race in November is still being held. Currently the race (set for November 1st) is 200 days away. As we know, a lot can happen in that time (shoot, I mean look at everything that has happened in just the last TWENTY ONE days), so, for now, I will continue to pray for the health and safety of those in New York (and across the world) amid the COVID-19 pandemic. When the dust settles and the smoke clears, I hope that the race will be able to take place (and so do safely), but, in the meantime, I will continue to focus on the truly important things in my life - faith, family, friendship, love, kindness, generosity, compassion, helping others, being a light and staying healthy {physically, mentally and spiritually}.

Thanks to Sarah Marie Design Studio for the tank that helped me share my announcement!
If you want to place an order (and who wouldn't?!), you can use code "SMDS-MCDOT" to save 15%.

What is a joy/ success in your life right now that we can all celebrate together?

No comments: