Counting Down

Well, my friends, tomorrow is Thanksgiving. We are looking forward to the holiday, and will be spending it with good friends.

However, Thanksgiving has come a little too quickly for us this year. We know that once Thanksgiving is over, the final countdown of our last days in New York must begin. The twelve days between Thanksgiving and our NYC departure date are going to be incredibly busy ones, filled with both the tedious tasks of packing, cleaning and tying up loose ends before our move as well as the fun times of taking Ellie around town to see as much of a New York Christmas as we can possibly cram into twelve days. (It will be The Twelve Days of Our New York Christmas, if you will.)

All this will keep us very busy, so I will not be sharing any of that with you until we have arrived in Florida. In the meantime, however, I want to say goodbye to my beloved New York by spending the remaining days (with just a couple of exceptions for special occasions) reminiscing and counting down our top ten most favorite New York memories. These are the moments that, above all others, made our time here so incredibly fantastic. I have a list all queued up, and hope you won't mind taking a walk down memory lane with me as we say our goodbyes.

Before we get into my Official Favorite New York Memories Countdown, there are a couple of things that didn't quite make the cut, largely because they aren't discrete events and so did not fit my plan for this Top Ten. But, they are parts of the city that I just love so I simply can't leave them out. (Hey, do you have any idea how hard it is to narrow down four years' worth of out-of-this-world experiences to just ten favorites, anyway? It's HARD.)

And so, my New York Favorite Memories: Honorable Mentions are as follows:

Honorable Mention #1: Bryant Park

I have said countless times that Bryant Park is my favorite park in the city, but I think it actually be my favorite place overall. In the spring, it's a beautiful place to have lunch (which was Ellie's first NYC outing, actually!). In the summer, they have so many fun events (many that we took advantage of): movies on the lawn, free knitting lessons, Broadway in Bryant Park concerts weekly. In the winter, the lawn is transformed into a skating rink and the perimeter of the park is lined with great holiday shops. The Southwest Air porch is a fun little place to grab a drink, a snack and a Snuggie while you cuddle up by the fire pit. And, in addition to all these regular things, we have enjoyed other special events there, too, including the Madden NFL 12 Pigskin Pro-Am, their beautiful 9/11 tribute, and the sheep on the lawn.

Fun times in Bryant Park

Top row: Ellie's first lunch in Bryant Park; Snuggies and boozy hot beverages on the Southwest Porch with my friend Amanda; Broadway in Bryant Park with my friend Megan; Bryant Park's 9/11 Tribute; Citi Pond skating rink; the holiday shops

Bottom row: Crowds gathered for Movies on the Lawn; Madden NFL 12 Pigskin Pro-Am; Ellie checking out the sheep on the lawn; and people (including me!) gathered to learn how to knit

Honorable Mention #2: Lincoln Center

Lincoln Center is another one of my most favorite places in New York City, probably second only to Bryant Park. First of all, it's just beautiful.

Lincoln Center at night

Avery Fisher Hall

And then, of course, there are the events. We saw so many incredible events at Lincoln Center. Aside from events you can see in many cities (such as The Nutcracker, Idina Menzel in concert, etc.), there were so many events that we could not have seen anywhere else. From J.K. Rowling's only U.S. appearance to promote a novel, to John Williams conducting the New York Philharmonic, to the NY Philharmonic playing the music of West Side Story along with the film, to the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 premiere - almost every event just left me with that very overwhelmed is-this-really-my-life?! feeling.

Clockwise from top left: Me enjoying the fountain at Lincoln Center; feeling inspired after seeing The Nutcracker; Daniel Radcliffe at the Harry Potter premiere; and meeting J.K. Rowling

My Lincoln Center love runs very, very deep, and I will miss it so.

Eric and me after a wonderful show at Lincoln Center

Honorable Mention #3: The Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge was one of my most favorite activities to take our visitors to do, because on a nice day it is just such a pleasant outing. However, Eric and I first walked across (well, halfway across) the Bridge on a very cold, snowy, windy December day. The positive side was that the bridge was virtually empty (a rare sight, indeed), but I have no idea why we thought that was a good idea.

We're having fun here, sure, but this was still a pretty stupid idea.

Since then, we have perfected the Brooklyn Bridge outing: we take the subway just into Brooklyn, then walk down to Brooklyn Bridge Park to enjoy the view. In the past, if we were feeling hungry, we would generally stop at the Ice Cream Factory to grab a cone while we wait in line for Grimaldi's pizza (at the very least, we always get ice cream, even if we're in the middle of a 42-mile bike ride!). Then, we walk back to Manhattan across the bridge. The views are beautiful and it's just a wonderful afternoon. Actually, the views are so great that I even used one of our pictures of the view from the Brooklyn Bridge for the header of this here blog!

Top row: Eric and me below the Brooklyn Bridge; the view of the Empire State Building from the bridge

Bottom row: The Ice Cream Factory sitting below the bridge; on the bridge with Molly and Heather; taking a break/ice cream stop during the Five Boro Bike Tour; Ellie's first time on the bridge

Honorable Mention #4: Christmas in New York

Christmas in New York is just magical. Everything is so beautifully decorated, you can't help but get into the holiday spirit. (Although I will admit that the increased number of tourists does its very best to suck the joy right back out of you - last year I worked right by Radio City Music Hall and tended to feel very Grinch-y during my evening commute thanks to crowds so thick I could barely get to my train.)

Bah-humbug to the crowds aside, Christmas in New York is such an experience. Although many signs of the season show up before Thanksgiving, the festivities officially begin with the arrival of Santa at the end of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (we plan to take Ellie to Macy's to meet him this weekend!). Of course, the Rockefeller Center tree is spectacular. The store windows are sights to behold. The huge ornaments and light bulbs on Sixth Avenue are lots of fun. The Rockettes show should not be missed. There are ice skating rinks, holiday markets, twinkling lights and decked-out trees around every corner. There's nothing like it.

Christmas in New York

Top row: The Rockefeller Center tree; ornaments on Sixth Avenue; Radio City Christmas Spectacular; light bulbs on Sixth Avenue; Macy's decked out for the holiday

Bottom row: Window display from a past year at Bergdorf Goodman; the Wall Street Bull sporting a festive wreath; Cartier wrapped up in lights on Fifth Avenue; holiday market at Columbus Circle; the Empire State Building lit for the holidays

Our original favorite Christmas in NYC sight was the Stock Exchange. Our first year here, they replaced the flag that usually stretches across the columns on the front of the building with a flag made out of Christmas lights. To our disappointment, that light flag has not been back since our first Christmas. Our other favorite thing was the dancing snowflakes on the facade of Saks, which has now been replaced by some sort of laser bubble and snowflake show. Because they keep doing away with our favorites, I hesitate to even say what my current favorite thing is, but here goes: the musical stars in the Time Warner Center. They are huge, suspended from the ceiling, and their lights dance to the music that plays throughout the building. It's beautiful and I could watch them for hours.

Our Christmas favorites

Top row: Us in front of the snowflakes at Saks; Stars in the Time Warner Center

Bottom row: The old Stock Exchange lights; more of the stars at Saks

I know we will manage, but I have a hard time picturing getting so into the Christmas spirit in any other city. In New York, it's simply infectious.

Honorable Mention #5: The Skyline View

Oh, the skyline view. Every time I get a good look at it, it takes my breath away. I don't know how I am going to live my life without this view at my disposal. It just...I can't even describe how it makes me feel to look at those gorgeous lights.

The view has been a big thing for us since we moved here. As you may recall, our original NYC home was on a low floor and looked out on a courtyard enclosed by other buildings. However, a few months later when the economy sent rental prices downwards, another unit opened up in our building which included a near wall-to-wall view of the midtown skyline. As much as I hated to pack up and move again after just getting settled, I knew we could not pass up the view that the new apartment offered. When we moved in, we left our blinds open almost constantly so we could admire it at all times. From the comfort of our living room, we were able to watch the Empire State Building don many different colors for many occasions and causes. We were able to see the Tribute in Light downtown on September 11th. We were even able to watch the New Year's Eve ball drop from our bedroom. That view is permanently burned in my mind and I will never forget it.

All of the above pictures were taken from our old NYC apartment!

Top row: General favorite shots of the view

Bottom row: The Empire State Building lit for Thanksgiving; a full moon over the city; the Empire State Building lit for Christmas in the background, with our tree in the foreground; view at dusk; fireworks going off above the ball (between the buildings) at midnight on New Year's Eve; Achilles soaking in as much of the view as he could before we moved out

Then, we moved to Hoboken. It broke my heart to leave that view behind, but even though we couldn't see the skyline from our new living room, the view was spectacular just a few steps outside our building.

The view from Hoboken

Left side: The view from Pier C; Holiday Empire State Building; rainbow over Manhattan; Ellie enjoying the view of downtown on a snowy afternoon

Right side: Empire State Building lit purple for Prematurity Awareness last weekend

And of course, the view from Top of the Rock can't be beat. There is a reason Top of the Rock has become one of my favorite places to take our visitors. It's just stunning. The trick is to go just before sunset, so you can take in the view in both daylight and at sunset, and then watch the city light up as the sky turns dark. Time your visit for a night when the Empire State Building is lit in festive colors, and there's just nothing like it.

View from Top of the Rock

Top: The view on Election Night this year

Bottom: Ellie's first time at Top of the Rock; Eric and me enjoying a Gator-colored Empire State Building in 2009

Now, with these five Honorable Mentions officially honored here, we can move forward into the holiday (our last in the city, WAAAAH) and then on to saying our good-byes. Stay tuned for my Official Favorite New York Memories Countdown, starting Friday!

Jeff, Sarah and the Brooklyn Bridge

First of all, thanks to all of you for your kind and encouraging comments and well wishes in regards to our big Leaving NYC news from Friday. It's so much easier facing such a major transition knowing we have the support and love of our friends and family!

But for now, let's get back to having fun in NYC, shall we?

Last weekend, our good friend/former roommate/Ellie's godfather Jeff and his lovely girlfriend Sarah came up from Washington D.C. for the weekend. It was great to have Jeff back to visit (the last time he was here was the awful, freezing, disgusting, snowy Urbanathlon weekend), and very nice to finally meet Sarah!

We got together with them for dinner at our place on Saturday night. Eric brought them to our apartment, where we sat and played with Ellie for a while before putting her to bed. Then we enjoyed some Grimaldi's pizza, wine and conversation. They stayed up until they had to leave for some sort of very cool-sounding live theater haunted house type thing that night.

Ellie with her godfather

On Saturday we made plans to meet in Brooklyn for ice cream at the Ice Cream Factory, followed by a walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. On our way to the train station that morning, Eric, Ellie and I passed through the Hoboken Arts and Music Festival, which is always quite nice.

We do love a good street festival.

Ellie got a balloon!

When we got to Brooklyn we made our way down to the waterfront to enjoy the views. Jeff and Sarah met us there and we snapped some scenic pictures.

Jeff and Sarah by the Brooklyn Bridge

Family shot!

Ellie, Eric and Jeff

Eric, Jeff and Sarah then went into the Ice Cream Factory to get some ice cream while Ellie and I waited outside. Unfortunately, while they were all inside, it started to rain! So, we spent some time crowded into the doorway of the ice cream shop waiting for the rain to slow down. At least we had the nonstop game of "Don't Let Ellie Grab Your Ice Cream" to keep us occupied.

When the skies eventually cleared, we began our walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, after stopping for our usual fun with silhouettes, of course. I have to admit, of all the poses our visitors have done with these silhouette people over the years, I think Jeff and Sarah's pose was my favorite. They really thought outside the box.

Clever!

I must say, walking across the Brooklyn Bridge is still one of my most favorite things to take our guests to do, because it is such a nice, scenic walk. It is one sightseeing thing I never get tired of.

Walking across the bridge

Jeff and Sarah enjoying the view from the bridge

Manhattan-bound

More bridge fun!

Ellie was not nearly as impressed with the view and walk as I always am, although I do think she had a nice time.

Poor sleepy baby!

When we got back to Manhattan, we did a little walk around downtown to give Jeff and Sarah a quick look at some of the more notable sights, including St. Paul's Chapel, the Freedom Tower, Trinity Church, Wall Street and the Stock Exchange, and the Bull.

Ellie was much more excited about the Stock Exchange than she was about the Brooklyn Bridge. Also, she has a cupcake on her butt.

Jeff and Sarah killed it in the Fun With Statues department. Oh, how we laughed!

By that time, Jeff and Sarah had to head back to midtown to catch their bus back home to D.C., so we said farewell and sent them on their way. It was great seeing you guys! Thanks for spending your visit with us. We hope to see you both again soon!

John's Visit

Boy, I really have fallen off the face of the earth over here, haven't I? This lack of posting is out of character, I know. But our lives have taken a turn for the crazy lately and I just haven't had the time or energy to devote to blogging, which is a bummer, because I like blogging. Such is the life of an adult though, right? I'll try to get my act together and get back into the swing of things ASAP. Next week, for example, is going to be a fun week, but we'll cover that later.

We have still been doing fun things in my absence, of course. For one thing, last weekend Eric's friend John came to visit. John and Eric are old friends from high school, and John was a groomsman in our wedding. Now he lives out in Arizona, so it was nice to have him visit for the weekend. John was our first visitor since we moved to Hoboken, and the boys did all sorts of fun things!

When John got into the city last Friday afternoon, Eric left work early and they hit the town. They met up in Bryant Park, and tried to go into the NY Public Library but John had a suitcase with him and thus was not allowed in. They picked up some pizza at Little Italy Pizza (Eric says it's the best near Grand Central), then walked up to St. Patrick's Cathedral and through Rockefeller Center, then over to Times Square, where they stopped into the M&M Store and Toys 'R Us. They caught a movie in Times Square, then walked back to our old stomping grounds for some BBQ at Daisy May's. They ate their dinner by the Intrepid before grabbing the ferry back to Hoboken. (Yes, you're right - that is an awful lot of walking to do with a suitcase.) That night we hung out at the apartment, playing some Wii and other games, including a 246 Wii bowling effort from Eric and an hour of Mario Kart victories for John.

On Saturday, they did some downtown stuff: ice cream at the Ice Cream Factory in Brooklyn, Brooklyn Bridge, Wall Street, the Bull, Battery Park. 

Pretty (albeit hot) day by the Brooklyn Bridge

John by the Brooklyn Bridge

We always have people take a picture with these silhouettes, and they always pose differently!

The boys on the Bridge

You know what they say: you gotta grab the bull by the...wait, that's not right.

With the Statue of Liberty at Battery Park

As I understand it, the highlight was Battery Park, where John was chased by a turkey for a considerable distance. Now that's just good stuff. (Also, I feel like it says something about New York City that when Eric texted me and said "John just got chased by a turkey in Battery Park," I was unsure if he meant an actual turkey or a person dressed as a turkey, and both seemed equally plausible.)

John being chased by a turkey!

From there they went up to Madison Square Park, where they considered (and decided against) waiting in the Shake Shack line, checked out the Flatiron Building, then made their way home.

Fun with the Flatiron

Fancy hat, John.

The boys came home and got in a solid workout playing Mario and Sonic at the Olympics. We got pizza for dinner and spent the night in playing more video games and watching Michael Clayton. Much needed relaxation after a long day of walking!

On Sunday, Eric and John went out to Citi Field to see the Mets play the Braves. (They finally got their Shake Shack lunch there, too!)

Citi Field

Eric was not pleased with the composition of this shot.

Inside Citi Field

At the game

That night, we stayed in again with more pizza, more video games, Spy Game and a little guitar lesson for Eric.

The next day the boys hung out until Eric had to head into work, then he bid John farewell.  Thanks for coming, John!

Just Keep Swimming

At long last...my Five Boro Bike Tour recap!

Before I get to the meat of this post, I want to say a little something. I am usually a very optimistic blogger. I don't think that I am ever untruthful, but I choose to look at the bright side of things, even when I may have been disappointed. I don't refrain from mentioning the bad, but I try to focus on the good.

But nobody wants to read a blog that doesn't reflect what really happens, nor do I want to write one. With that being said, I will warn you in advance that this post will take a turn for the negative part of the way through. I wish that it didn't have to. I wish that it would say nothing except how amazing the Five Boro Bike Tour was, what a fantastic time we had, how the only struggles I faced were due to my own lack of athleticism. Sadly, that's not true. In fact, my lack of athletic prowess was quite low on the totem pole of things that kept us from a total positive experience. More so, poor planning and lack of organization by Bike New York, the organization responsible for coordinating the Five Boro, created a situation that was at best incredibly frustrating and at worst, potentially dangerous.

This post is going to get long, I can tell you that right now. We took tons of pictures and I have a lot to say. If you're in a hurry, here's the Cliffs Notes version: We had fun, then we stood on an elevated highway for two hours, then we hated life, then we crossed the finish, then we spent three more hours trying to get home. The take home point: WE DID IT, and that's awesome, but it was not always pretty.

And a note about the pictures in this post, just FYI: most were taken with our point-and-shoot, by Eric, while riding a bike through New York City. Hence, most are fairly poor quality, but that is thanks to the camera - Eric's take-a-picture-while-riding-a-bike skills are exceptional! We did have our DLSR with us to take photos at rest areas, so when you see super clear standing-still pictures, you know what's going on!

Okay, enough preface. Let's get to it!

We spent Saturday evening before the race resting up, eating pasta, getting hydrated, and preparing our bikes for the Big Ride the next morning. We got our vests and helmets all set, too.

Our vests and helmets, all set to go. I've never had a race number before! I felt so fancy.

Sunday morning  we woke up around 5:30. My first words to Eric were, "don't make me do this." I realize that is not a good way to approach an athletic challenge, but I really think I was more talking about getting out of bed before sunrise than riding a bike for 42 miles.

We left the apartment around 6:00 and caught the 6:15 PATH train with no trouble. We needed to get to the World Trade Center, and on weekdays there is a train that runs directly from Hoboken to the WTC. Unfortunately, on weekends they combine train lines so no such direct route exists. That meant we had to take the train from Hoboken two stops to Grove Street, then transfer to a WTC-bound train. There were few fellow bikers at Hoboken, but the platform at Grove Street was jam-packed with bikes. Everyone was in good spirits, taking pictures and generally being excited about the ride.

Grove Street PATH platform

Waiting for the train 

(This is the first of many, many pictures we would take together throughout the day! I honestly don't think we've taken so many pictures together since our wedding day.)

We managed to cram ourselves onto the next WTC train, and had no trouble getting out of the WTC station without having to carry our bikes up a billion stairs. (How there was no line for the elevator is still beyond me.) From there, we were just a couple blocks from the back of the start line, so we filed in and began the wait. We were in line by 7:00 a.m., and the first wave of the race was scheduled to start at 8:15. We spent our time people watching, updating Facebook/Twitter (my first of many throughout the day) and shivering, because it was pretty chilly in the shade. We were excited, though!

I'm feeling ready!

Crowds of cyclists behind us

Let's do this thing!

As expected, around 8:15 we caught sight of a pyrotechnics show off in the distance as they let the first wave of people through. We were in the second wave, so once the first group was through they basically redid the opening ceremonies and we actually got started around 9:00. The best part about crossing the starting line was the pyrotechnics, because that fire felt WARM. My cold legs loved it. The fire show was very "PAY NO ATTENTION TO THAT MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN!" which I thought was funny. Also, they had music playing as we crossed the starting line - including "The Lazy Song" by Bruno Mars. As much as I love Bruno Mars and that song, a song with lyrics like "Today I don't feel like doing anything, I just want to lay in my bed" is not exactly a good pump-up song for a 42-mile bike ride. But whatever, we were on our way!

Pyrotechnics at the starting line in the distance

Here we go!

(As a result of Eric working the camera, there are a million pictures of me on my bike and few of Eric. Sorry, Eric!)

The first leg of the ride took us north along Sixth Avenue. It was pretty awesome to ride in the shadow of the Empire State Building, past Bryant Park, through Herald Square (usually one of my least favorite places in Manhattan because it's always so crowded, but the roads were clear for the ride!), and up past Radio City Music Hall. I enjoyed this part of the ride because these are places I am very familiar with, and seeing them in this new way--on a bike in the middle of a closed-down road--was a cool experience.

Good morning, Empire State Building!

Passing Bryant Park

Radio City Music Hall

Just after Radio City is when we hit our first bottleneck. They were stopping bike traffic to let pedestrians cross the road, and I think they were also staggering entry into Central Park. We were only stopped about 10 minutes, I think, and we made the best of it. We had already gone three or four miles and were feeling pumped!

Hanging out on Sixth Avenue

When we got moving again, we turned right onto 59th Street then left again to go north into Central Park. It was pretty crowded through this stretch and the going was slow, although for the most part it did keep moving. We got to see some blooming trees, which were very pretty. Central Park is great this time of year.

Riding through the Park

Wow! He can even self-take a picture while riding a bike! He's so talented.

One of the pretty trees we rode past

We exited the Park at the north end and continued on past Eric's original NYC digs and up through Harlem. Eric and I stopped at the first rest stop outside of the park, where I posted another Twitter update before we got back on our way.

From there it was just a short distance to our second borough of the tour: the Bronx. (Did you know the Bronx is the only piece of mainland U.S. in New York City?) We crossed over the Madison Avenue Bridge, rode briefly through the Bronx (where I popped the chain on my bike, but quickly fixed it and we were on our way), then back into Manhattan via the Third Avenue Bridge. That was it for the Bronx - one borough (and nine miles) down!

Crossing the Madison Avenue Bridge

Eric in the Bronx (we had just been stopped in a traffic jam, which is why he's standing - he didn't just randomly stop in the middle of traffic, not to worry.)

Crack is wack, yo.

Welcome back to Manhattan!

Once back in Manhattan, we hit another bottleneck, but weren't stuck for too long. We rode south along FDR drive, which is usually closed to cyclists. This part was pretty cool, with the Queensboro bridge visible off in the distance. We rode through a tunnel on our way, and everyone started hooting and hollering and ringing their bike bells, which was fun.

NYC Bike Tour Sunday on FDR Drive

Me (and Eric's elbow) riding through a tunnel

Riding towards the Queensboro Bridge, seen off in the distance!

What came next ended up being my favorite part of the tour. We rode over the Queensboro Bridge (and yes, I did start singing Simon and Garfunkel, as promised), which was so neat. It's a very cool structure and the views of the East River to the right and the left were fabulous. After the bridge we rode down a long ramp with stunning views of Manhattan, and past Silvercup Studios (where many TV shows/movies are filmed). Going down that ramp and seeing those sights after just having ridden over the Queensboro Bridge was without a doubt the most euphoric feeling I had all day. I was loving it. Plus, that ended our time in Manhattan - two boroughs down, three to go!

Cyclists approaching the Queensboro Bridge

Ready to head to Queens!

How cool is that bridge?

Again, let's marvel at Eric's photography-while-biking skills. He got both of us AND the view in the picture!

Riding down the off-ramp, with Manhattan in front of us

Quick picture during another brief traffic jam. See the Empire State Building and Chrysler Building behind me?

Eric, after having crossed that bridge behind him

Silvercup Studios

I have to stop for a second and mention how crappy my bike was. I mean, we knew our bikes weren't great, and we considered upgrading before this ride, but just couldn't quite afford to invest the money we would have needed to in order to make it worthwhile. And really, our little bikes served us just fine and got us through the ride with no trouble. But, EVERYBODY PASSED US. Me in particular. I was so slow! How? Even going down hills, I was super slow. Eric would just speed on ahead of me, and I'd catch up later. I can only assume that this is not my poor biking ability but rather my bike's fault. That's reasonable, right?

Now in Queens, we stopped at the Con Edison Learning Center rest stop to take a quick break and eat a little something. It was a great place to stop - at the foot of the bridge, with great Manhattan skyline views. They had live music, free bananas and places to fill up your water bottles. We snacked, updated the Twitter world of our progress, and took some pictures. Then it was right back on our bikes!

This is me telling the Internet that I'm still alive.

At the base of the Queensboro Bridge

In Queens, but with a great view of our favorite borough behind us!

We continued south through Queens, then into Brooklyn via the Pulaski Bridge (third borough and 22 miles down!). The start of the Brooklyn ride was actually pretty nice - not necessarily scenic, but just a nice, long stretch of flat road that enabled us to ride for quite some time uninterrupted.

Welcome to Brooklyn - like no other place in the world!

Riding through scenic Brooklyn

One thing that was kind of fun throughout the race was that there were often people on the side of the road cheering for the bikers. I have always been on their side of the fence, so to speak, as I am often spectating at Eric's athletic events and cheering him on. I have never been one of the people that the spectators are cheering for! It was weird and kind of fun to be on the other side of things, although I'm not sure I'll make a habit of it.

Before too long we were approaching Dumbo and the Brooklyn Bridge, another area I am familiar with. We rode past the long line at Grimaldi's Pizza and realized again how lucky we are to have a Grimaldi's that delivers in Hoboken! We decided to create our own rest stop and take a break at Brooklyn Bridge Park. We took some photos, and I texted family members to let them know that not only was I alive, I was feeling great with about 12 miles left to go. We also talked ourselves into getting some ice cream at the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, which has fabulous ice cream. We figured, we don't get out here much, so why not?

Taking a rest break with the Brooklyn Bridge behind us

Eric enjoying his ice cream cone

My to-die-for strawberry ice cream cone. I don't even particularly love strawberry ice cream, but I could eat this strawberry ice cream every day of my life.

Eric is ashamed that we are eating ice cream while the rest of the tour zooms on by. Whatever, it was delicious.

We briefly mentioned to each other that the Brooklyn Bridge was sort of our last "out" - if we didn't feel like we could finish the whole tour, we could just ride back over to Manhattan on the Brooklyn Bridge and head home. But, "no way!" we said. We were feeling great and only had about 12 miles left. We could do 12 more miles, no problem. So, we hopped back on our bikes (realizing for the first time that our backsides might be starting to be displeased with the day's events) and continued on.

We rode for a bit before hitting yet another bottleneck. This one was the longest yet, with no apparent explanation for why we were stopped. Once again, we made the most of it even though we were eager to continue on to the finish.

Ready to tackle the second half of Brooklyn

Stopped again, but still having fun!

When we got moving again, we entered the Brooklyn Queens Expressway, which is where everything went downhill. Well, first it went uphill (ha, corny joke) - I fought my way through one steep (to me, at least) incline, only to have my spirit crushed when I saw another big hill in front of me right away. I walked up that one. Shame, I know. I was trying to save my strength for the last bridge of the tour, which I heard was a doozy!

That sign reads "NYC Bike Tour Today: Expect Delays." We had no idea how ominous that sign would later prove to be.

Motoring my way through an uphill climb

Ah, busted. This is me being mad at Eric for taking pictures of me walking. Don't judge me!

We weren't back on our bikes but for a few minutes when we hit THE TRAFFIC JAM. The bottleneck to end all bottlenecks, and the reason for my (and many others') sincere dissatisfaction with this ride. We were stopped at a virtual standstill on this portion of the BQE for TWO HOURS. I wish that I were exaggerating. Thousands of us were just trapped there. After waiting an hour, we finally learned the hold-up was that construction narrowed the course to just one 12-foot lane up ahead, and that was causing the jam. The geniuses at Bike New York apparently felt that fitting 32,000 riders through a 12-foot space would be no problem. As a result, we sat. And then crept forward. And then sat some more. And then crept some more. FOR TWO HOURS.

The view in front of us on the BQE...

...and the view behind us. Thousands and thousands of people trapped.

Some people got so desperate to get moving that they crossed over the concrete barriers into oncoming highway traffic to try to get ahead. They ended up getting stopped up too, and eventually (though it took some time) NYPD decided to force them back over to the designated course. They then crowded in and cut in front of thousands who had been waiting longer.

This wait was not only inconvenient, it was potentially dangerous. We stood there for literally hours in the sun with no shade, no place to rest, no food and no water. People who had skipped the previous rest stop with the intent to hit the next one just a few miles away were left with nothing to eat or drink, and no bathroom facilities for hours. Thankfully I didn't witness it firsthand, but in the days after the race many stories surfaced about people having to just go to the bathroom in the street, in the middle of the crowd. Can you imagine? We were on an elevated roadway with absolutely no way out. There were no exits, and being elevated meant there was no simply walking off the course and calling it quits. There was no going back. We had absolutely no options but to stand there and wait, with no information as to why we were waiting or how much longer it would be. Even the Ride Marshals stuck in the crowd with us had no idea what was going on. People were sunburned, irritable, thirsty and uncomfortable. There were children and elderly stuck up there. Thankfully, at least to my knowledge, there were no serious medical emergencies, because if there had been, there would have been absolutely no way to reach the person in a timely manner.

This poor little girl fell asleep on her bike as we sat and sat.

Restless crowds, although really most people were far more patient than they should have been. It's a blessing we didn't end up with a riot on our hands.

The worst part was that Bike New York clearly knew about this construction ahead of time and knew it would be an issue. In their "here's what to expect on Tour Day" email the sent out a few days prior to the ride, they mentioned that "ongoing construction on the BQE" might cause a "bit of a jam." Bit of a jam?! This did not count as a "bit of a jam." This was more like "uh oh, we need to reroute the entire race" caliber. There were so many things they could have done to improve this situation, including a full reroute (at least to a street that was NOT elevated, thus allowing for exits as needed); providing notice at the Brooklyn Bridge that people should take that shortcut back to Manhattan to avoid the extensive delay; notifying people at the last rest stop before the jam that it would be their last available rest stop for over two hours; allowing people up onto the BQE in waves; or at the very least, figuring out a way to provide the poor stranded cyclists with necessities. It was just completely unacceptable.

Since Sunday, Bike New York's Facebook page has been inundated with negative comments from riders ranging from disappointed to completely irate, and rightly so. As of yesterday, however, Bike New York deleted all comments from their Facebook Page and closed it to comments. They issued a vague apology and apparently got tired of hearing about it. I also came across this blog post (before Facebook comments were shut down), which includes an open letter from the organizer of the SAG operations ("Support and Gear" - they provide help to cyclists who need it) about the absolutely appalling way this situation was approached beforehand. Of course, this is one person's account and I can't verify it, but judging by how things played out on Sunday, I am not inclined to doubt what is said in that letter.

By the time we finally got moving again, soreness had set in. Our muscles were tight, we had lost our momentum, the weather had turned cold and windy, and all our goodwill built up during the day had been dashed. All we wanted was to be done. We ached and were tired and just didn't have it in us anymore.

Of course, the next stretch of the course went along the waterfront, into a relentless head wind. It was cold and very difficult, and for the first time, I started to question if I would be able to finish. And looming ahead of us was the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, which we had heard was the toughest challenge of the entire ride.

I was hating life at this point.

This bad boy was looking pretty darn intimidating.

We bypassed the final rest stop before the Verrazano in favor of getting this awful ride over with as soon as possible. As we started the ride up the Verrazano, I knew I wouldn't make it. After that long, cold ride into the wind I felt completely exhausted. I dismounted to walk up and started to feel like I was having an asthma attack. My chest tightened up and I started wheezing, feeling like I couldn't breathe. I had asthma as a child, but haven't felt that feeling in probably 15-20 years. It scared the daylights out of me, especially knowing that any medical attention I may require was most likely still trapped back on the BQE. This attack may actually have been anxiety more than anything, as I wondered how on earth I would gut out the rest of this ride.

I don't know how I would have gotten past this point if it weren't for Eric. I know he was feeling completely spent too, but he didn't show it. He stopped me in my tracks and made me relax my breathing and drink some water. He switched our handlebar bag over to his bike to make my bike as light as possible. He walked slowly up the bridge with me and just having him there helped to calm me. We made it to the top of the bridge and felt a bit better, so we rode the rest of the way down. (That bridge went on FOREVER, though - it's 6,690 feet long!)

We weren't the only ones walking up the bridge, but more people rode than I expected! Good for them!

Views of Brooklyn and Manhattan from the Verrazano

And at the end of the bridge - at long, long last - was the POST-RACE FESTIVAL. In Staten Island, our FINAL BOROUGH! I felt such a sense of relief after crossing that finish line! I wish that it had been nothing but joy and pride in my accomplishment, but unfortunately, thanks to that two-hour traffic jam, I was just glad it was over. I promptly flopped on the grass and vowed to never move again.

Crossing the finish line!

Posing with a crazy "You Made It!" guy

Aaaaah.

We are spent.

But, alas, I did have to move. And here comes the other thing about that two-hour traffic jam that really bothers me: by the time we reached the festival, they were shutting it down! All the vendors, including free food and drinks (Snapple, chocolate milk, etc.) were packing up and there was nothing left to enjoy. I heard after the fact that even the food-for-purchase was mostly gone. We got in line for our free photo, and were told we may not get to have it taken because they were closing at 5:00 (we arrived at the festival at 4:45). They ended up keeping it open for another hour (so we did get a picture, which I posted in my "I Did It!!" post), but we were so frustrated that this festival, funded I'm sure with our $80/person entry fees, was closed to us by the time we arrived thanks to THEIR poor planning. Unbelievable!

With nothing left to enjoy at the festival, we got back on our bikes to ride the remaining three miles from the festival to the Staten Island Ferry. Although this ride was fairly easy, I just kept repeating what had become my mantra of the day: "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming!" Do you remember that from Finding Nemo? I got that into my head as I forced myself to "just keep pedaling, just keep pedaling" up a difficult hill, and all day long it kept popping into my mind when I started feeling tired or like I wanted to stop. Just keep swimming, just keep swimming... I "just kept swimming" for all three miles back to that ferry. FINISHED.

VIDEO: "Just keep swimming!" from Finding Nemo

But, not so fast. As I mentioned, we arrived at the post-race festival at 4:45. It took us another THREE HOURS to get home. We had the three-mile ride to the ferry terminal, then waited FOREVER for a ferry. We were freezing, exhausted, hungry and all around miserable. I was filthy and wanted nothing more than a shower, food and a couch.

Somehow, my legs got ridiculously dirty.

Huddling together for warmth as we waited for the ferry

We were finally herded like cattle onto a ferry and made the long (cold) trip back to Manhattan.

Tired cyclists crammed onto a ferry

We're exhausted, but we're still smiling!

We then had to do the two-trains thing again, thanks to the weekend track schedule. Of course, we had long waits for each train. At one point we nearly got on the wrong train, and in our hurry to jump back off, I slammed my ankle HARD with the pedal of my bike. Owwwww.

We were so exhausted and sick of the whole thing we seriously considered just abandoning our bikes on the side of the road so we wouldn't have to lug them around anymore. I'm sorry, bike. I know that's no way to think about you after you served me so well (albeit slowly) on this ride. But it was just too much. (Not to worry, our bikes did end up making it home with us.)

We finally got home at 8:00 p.m. We were gone for 14 hours that day, and only six of those hours were spent riding. The remaining eight hours were spent traveling and waiting around. How sad that we spent as much time standing around (2 hours at the start, 2 hours on the BQE, 2 hours for a ferry and more miscelleaneous stops throughout) as we did riding our bikes on this bike tour!

When we got home I jumped in the shower immediately, where I tried to scrub the "dirt" off the back of my legs, only to realize that "dirt" was actually bruises. The bruises on my legs turned out to be the most painful part of my recovery. All my muscles were sore for a day or two, of course, but those bruises live on.

The badly bruised back of my right leg. That ankle is also the one I slammed into with the pedal. Although the ankle bruise doesn't look too bad, it still hurts today.

Overall, I would say I was fairly disappointed with this tour. We did have a lot of fun at the beginning, but it is such a shame that the poor planning at the back half of the ride eclipsed all our fun memories of the first half and now the negative is what sticks in our minds. I certainly do not plan on doing this ride again. The only way I would even consider it would be with a greatly reduced entry fee, and then I would cut myself off at the Brooklyn Bridge to save time. But really, I have no intention of ever participating in another Bike New York event after the debacle we were were a part of on Sunday.

But now, back to my optimistic blogging: the best part of the day was getting to spend all that uninterrupted time with Eric. We had such a great time together, doing something so different, something neither of us has ever done before. We had fun together and struggled together, and emerged triumphant together. I'm so proud of us for accomplishing it, even with those hiccups along the way. We did it!