Avon 39: The Recap

Yes, the sign at the finish line says I crushed it. I feel a bit more like I survived it, but either way, it's over!

I did a brief update during the walk, but here’s the long and involved recap of the weekend, including at the bottom tips for other (crazy) people considering taking on this endeavor!

Saturday

Saturday morning the Opening Ceremony began at 6:15 and the walk started at 6:45 at Pier 97 on the West Side of New York. I took a cab over from my hotel and arrived there around 6:30, in time to hear really touching stories from survivors and those who have lost loved ones to breast cancer. The CEO of Avon Products spoke as well, and told us she’d be out there walking with us for her 5th Avon Walk. For those who don’t know, my mom was an “Avon Lady” for most of my childhood so the fact that they sponsor this walk and are so supportive of breast cancer research is actually a nice tie in for me.

 A lot of people who do this walk do it in memory or honor of a specific person in their life who has fought breast cancer. While my motivation was more general, finding a cure and supporting those currently fighting, I did have a number of women in my life who have been impacted and they were on my mind during the walk. Family members, friends, the mother's of two close friends, current and former neighbors, current and former coworkers - women from all aspects of my life. 

the slow, crowded start

There were around 4,000 people participating in the Walk, (my guess is 75-80% women) from 44 states and DC. I ended up talking to a few women on the course who had come from Bermuda to do it, so perhaps there were other countries represented as well! It was amazing to see the big crowds, but less so when we officially kicked off and all had to walk the first three miles along the Hudson River Greenway, a two lane walking/bike path. It was slow going at first and very bottlenecked with people trying to get by. We exited the riverfront walk at 115th street and then started heading south again, still in Riverside Park, but along Riverside Drive until the park ended at 72nd Street.

After exiting the park we zig zagged through the city, mostly staying on the west side on 9th and 10th avenues, down into lower Manhattan to Hudson, then Bleeker, then Lafayette Streets. It’s funny, this is the part of the city I never seem to stay in, but almost always eat in when I’m in New York. It was nice to walk through some neighborhoods I had a tiny bit of familiarity with and be able to remember seeing Ron Pope at the Bitter End with my friend Eleanor as I passed it, or being on the same streets I vividly remember walking with Samantha during our trip to NY a few years back or just blocks from where Nicolette and I had dinner the night before.

crossing the Brooklyn Bridge

From there we did something I had never done before – walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. It was pretty cool to see it up close and I loved the architectural detail, but it was SO crowded. Not just with the 4,000 walkers doing the Avon Walk, but mobs of other tourists and locals enjoying the gorgeous weather on a Fall day. Near the Brooklyn side of the bridge was the 13 mile mark and the lunch stop at 13.1 was immediately on the other side.

After I took longer than I should have as a lunch break (about 40 minutes) it was back to walking through Brooklyn Heights and onto the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, which afforded some great views of Manhattan! We wound our way back around to the entrance to the Manhattan Bridge and used that to get back over the East River, the second, but not final time I’d cross that body of water on Saturday!

view of lower Manhattan from Brooklyn

View of the Brooklyn Bridge from the Manhattan Bridge

Back in Manhattan it was more zig zagging, all on the East Side trying to make our way north. We walked by Astor Place, Grammercy Park and eventually made our way up to Grand Central Terminal. This was near mile 20 and where my friend Nicolette was waiting to keep me company! She walked with me for about 2 miles and it was so nice to have someone to keep me moving, in addition to the supportive and encouraging texts I was receiving from afar!

The final leg on Saturday was past Gracie Mansion, the mayor's house, and then along the East River to Randall's Island where Basecamp 39 was set up. This was the last time for crossing the East River and involved a steep ramp to get to the top of that bridge and then a short, but steep hill *just* before the actual finish line. Not cool Avon Walk planners! Not cool. 

Mile 26ish. Yes, I walked so long the sun rose and set while I was out there.

I finally crossed the finish line at 6:30 p.m., 11 hours and 45 min after starting. Ugh.

I took a shuttle bus back to the event hotel and then a cab to my hotel where, thanks to Nicolette, I rode the elevator up to my floor with the lovely man delivering our dinner, which was great as there was no way I was venturing out of the room the rest of the evening!

Sunday

Sunday morning started at 5:30 am again, with a complete reverse of Saturday night - cab from my hotel to the event hotel, then shuttle back to Randall's Island. I left the island Saturday night as it was getting dark and returned as it was getting light out! 

Crossing through Time Square

The first two miles on Sunday was a backtrack of Saturday night as well, but then once we got out of the park at 84^th street we started heading north to 110^th and ended up walking along the top of Central Park, back to Columbus Ave and started heading south again, with more zig zagging, over to Central Park West, through Columbus Circle and over to Sixth Ave, across the top of Time Square and then back to Eighth (or possibly Ninth) Ave to 22nd street and then back over to the West Side where we followed the trail along the Hudson, past The Intrepid, and back to Pier 97.

That makes it sound so simple and easy, but it wasn't. Sunday was HARD. The start wasn't bad, and I got through the first three miles in just under an hour, which was great, but the next 10 were sloooowww going. By 6 miles in I was contemplating hopping in the "sweep" van and getting a boost by cutting out a mile or so, and at another point  I seriously considered hailing a cab, but like it or not (I did not) I kept going. In the end it truly was circumstance that I actually completed 39.3 miles and not 35 or 36.

Why was it so hard this time? Last year was hard too, but this time I think being alone did make a big difference. I walked with other groups at times, and chatted with people here and there, but it wasn’t the same as doing the entire walk with a friend and being able to set a pace together and stick with it.

I also didn’t train as diligently as last year. I definitely made sure I got the long walks in, but those were always supposed to be followed by roughly half as long walks the next day and that just didn’t happen nearly as much as it should have this time.

But, as hard as it was, I did finish. And I even ventured out of the hotel Sunday evening to get a yummy dinner at my favorite NYC restaurant (Otto Enoteca) , which involved taking the subway and walking several blocks on either end of the trip.

Surprisingly, considering how bad I felt both Saturday and Sunday evenings, I woke up feeling pretty OK on Monday. I’d say I was at 80% at the start of the day and by evening the only time I really had discomfort was going up and down stairs. Since I had the time I ended up walking the mile and half from my hotel to Penn Station to get my train home. I definitely was surprised by how well I recovered!

And now… some random asides and tips:

• I never got any blisters, during training or the Walk. Amazing, I know. I did buy the expensive, running store socks (both Balega and Feetures – which advertise “No Blisters!” on the packaging) in the high cushion variety. I also changed socks midway through the walk on Saturday and wore different sneakers Saturday and Sunday.
• I’m pretty sure the fact that I kept going, heading out to dinner on Sunday night, walking to Penn Station Monday morning, really did help me recover faster. I wasn’t moving fast during those “keep going” times, but it kept my muscles from just locking up which helped.

It's amazing how many survivors
complete the walk each year

• I can see how people get swept up in the spirit of the event and worthiness of the cause and continue to do the event year after year. There were so many people on the course wearing pins indicating it was their 5th, 7th, 11th Avon Walk. I really really need to remember how time intensive the training was, how bad I felt at times during the event and just how hard it was to walk for so long. I don’t want to do this event again. Twice was definitely enough. But with a little space, and an easy recovery…. I can see why people keep coming back.

This man in the cow suit was one
of several volunteers I remember
from the DC Avon Walk!

• I would consider joining the “Crew” in the future. They have a pretty intense few days as well, but not the same as the walkers. I saw some of the same volunteers in NYC that were on the DC route which was pretty cool. The crew also has a fundraising requirement, though it’s not nearly as much money. That’s the door I’m leaving open for the future. Not the walking door. No, nope, not gonna happen.

And finally, in case anyone is actually still reading this marathon (and a half) of a post…

Thank you!

Your support and encouragement, via FB, texts and phone calls kept me going. You all believed in me
and that I could do it when I had some serious doubts on my end!

Your generosity is reason I was able to raise $4,148 to go towards breast cancer research and support for those currently in treatment. I’m proud of myself for walking the 39.3 miles, but I’m even more proud that I was able to raise those funds and I appreciate each and every donation I received.