Marathon Update: Eric J Mandela at Finish in 4:33:35

ING New York City Marathon Athlete Alert for Eric J Mandela (race number 21488)

Eric J Mandela has finished the ING New York City Marathon in 4:33:35.
Congratulations! If you are meeting this person at family reunion,
please be mindful that it could take up to 30 minutes for him or
her to get there.

Note that all results are unofficial.

Thank you for using the ING New York City Marathon Athlete Alert
presented by Road Runner High Speed Online. The ING New York City
Marathon is the premier event of New York Road Runners. Please visit
http://www.ingnycmarathon.org for complete results, photos, wrap-up
stories, and motivation for 2005.

Marathon Update: Eric J Mandela at 20 Miles in 3:23:20

ING New York City Marathon Athlete Alert for Eric J Mandela (race number 21488)

20 Miles: 3:23:20
Pace per mile: 10:10
Projected finishing time: 4:26:22

Thank you for using the ING New York City Marathon Athlete Alert
presented by Road Runner High Speed Online. The ING New York City
Marathon is the premier event of New York Road Runners. Please visit
http://www.ingnycmarathon.org for mile-by-mile coverage and athlete
tracking during the race.

Marathon Update: Eric J Mandela at Halfway point in 2:08:24

ING New York City Marathon Athlete Alert for Eric J Mandela (race number 21488)

Halfway point: 2:08:24
Pace per mile: 9:48
Projected finishing time: 4:16:48

Thank you for using the ING New York City Marathon Athlete Alert
presented by Road Runner High Speed Online. The ING New York City
Marathon is the premier event of New York Road Runners. Please visit
http://www.ingnycmarathon.org for mile-by-mile coverage and athlete
tracking during the race.

Marathon Update: Eric J Mandela at 10 Kilometers in 1:02:22

ING New York City Marathon Athlete Alert for Eric J Mandela (race number 21488)

10 Kilometers: 1:02:22
Pace per mile: 10:03
Projected finishing time: 4:23:33

Thank you for using the ING New York City Marathon Athlete Alert
presented by Road Runner High Speed Online. The ING New York City
Marathon is the premier event of New York Road Runners. Please visit
http://www.ingnycmarathon.org for mile-by-mile coverage and athlete
tracking during the race.

Track Me on Marathon Sunday!

I configured the Athlete Alert system to automatically post a message on this web site when I reach the following Marathon milestones (the chip on my shoe should trigger the e-mails), 10k, half-Marathon, 20 Miles, and when I finish. If you refresh the site, you should see all the posts.

During the Marathon, I will be wearing the orange and purple uniform of Fred's Team, Eric is written on the top of my shirt.

You can watch the Marathon on channel 4 in the NY area (Your local NBC station elsewhere) I believe that on race day, you should also be able to track me on the Marathon's official web site at http://www.ingnycmarathon.com/ You will probably have to search by my race number which is 21488 .

RACE #	ENTRY	ACCEPTED?	LAST NAME	FIRST NAME	AGE	CITY	STATE/REG./PROV.	COUNTRY	TEAM	TOUR #
21488	77261	YES	MANDELA	ERIC J	M23	RAHWAY	NJ		FRED

It's Almost Race Day!

Thanks so much to everyone who has supported me every step of the way. I am now very close to my initial fundraising committment, but every dollar over that just means more money for research for pediatric cancers. The deadline for donations isn't until December 15th, 2005 so if you haven't donated yet but want to, there is still plenty of time. It feels good to be doing something about this disease however small, especially since way too frequently someone I know well gets diagnosed with some type of cancer.

Last Saturday, October 29th, I completed my last long run before the Marathon, running 20 miles in just a little over 3 hours. It was a relatively cold day, but I much prefer that to some of the summer runs where I was drinking over 3 litres during the run and several more before and after. It went very well and was one of the least physically impactful long runs I have done.

I will be leaving for New York Saturday afternoon. There is the race expo at the Javits center which is open and free to the public (9AM-5PM) where I need to pick up my race number and ChampionChip which is an electronic RFID tracking device which records the official times whenever I run over a sensor mat which is located at the finish and several other intervals. Then during the evening, there is the pasta dinner at the Tavern on the Green.

I have to be on the buses to Staten Island at 6:45 AM, so I should be at the start around 7:30 where I will wait the 3 hours until the open field starts. I have heard that because of the amount of people there, sometimes it takes 15-30 minutes after the start to cross the starting line. From the starting line to the finish, I hope to take just under 4 hours which will be a significant accomplishment for me. In addition to Fred's team, I am hoping to hook up with the 9 minute per mile pace team, which, if I am able to keep up with the leader, should get me to the finish within 2 minutes of 3:56.

Again, thanks so much to everyone for all your help and support!