Garden City Turkey Trot Review
In 2011, I ran the Garden City Turkey Trot with my husband, Brian. We were gearing up for our first half marathon and I remember struggling through this run. It was tough for me as a beginner runner.
Fast forward six years…
When Merril put up a post on our private Team Galloway LI page asking if anyone would want to join her at the Garden City Turkey Trot and then I saw that Rebecca and Jessica, from the team, were also attending, I couldn’t resist. I signed up too!
Merril and I drove to Garden City together. We met up with Jessica and Rebecca and hung inside the gym. It wasn’t warm in there, but it kept us sheltered from the cold!
Talking about the cold…
On a side note, I always find myself overdressing for these runs. I layer up. Then, once the race gets underway, within the first mile, I find myself taking off my jacket, then my shirt and tying it around my body.
Back to the story…
Fall on Long Island, in certain areas, is beautiful. Some leaves have fallen but those that remain on the trees are red, yellow, orange and some are partially green. The area in which we ran was covered with trees. That’s what made this run breathtaking. Between the colors of the leaves, the wide open spaces and the smooth roads, the race was better than I remembered.
We ran passed the Cherry Hill Golf Course. We ran passed Adelphi University campus and we ran passed the rail road station. There were tons of people cheering on the runners as we went by.
The one thing I didn’t like was “the tease.” When you get to mile 3, you run passed the church (where you start and finish) and make a final loop to the finish line. At that point, you think – should I just end this or keep going? But, you know you need to finish it the right way, so you keep on going!
Throughout the race, I was in the zone. I had my headphones on, which I typically don’t wear, and went to another place. I felt relaxed and happy. I didn’t care about anything but enjoying the scenery and moving forward.
It was awesome to finally get to the finish line. It was a little anti-climatic because the entire race was awesome and then it ended with no medal, no accolades… it just ended.
After I crossed the line…
I crossed the finish line and didn’t even see water. I looked around and still didn’t see any cups or water bottles. I walked but didn’t want to miss my group, so I stayed close to the finish line. Later, I asked someone who sent me to the other side of the church, where I saw the water, bagels and bananas. I walked over and grabbed a bagel and a water. I was starving… (I never eat before a race!)
My takeaway…
Merril finished a couple of minutes after me and we headed back to the car feeling happy and relaxed. (That’s what I love about running, I feel totally relaxed after it.)
As I reflected back to the time I ran this race six years ago, I thought, “I’ve come a long way since then…”
