December 2014
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MEMBER FEATURE: A Run for the Ages: Mike Sullivan's First Marathon Spurs a New Love of the Sport

In 490 B.C., when long-distance runner Pheidippides ran from the site of the Battle of Marathon in ancient Greece to the capital at Athens, bringing news of the undermanned Greeks’ defeat of the mighty Persian Empire, legend says he collapsed and died after uttering the words, "We have won." The 26.2 mile run was considered the ultimate test of endurance for even the finest of athletes, although legend forgets to relate that Pheidippides had also run about 200 miles in the three days preceding his fatal delivery of the victorious message.

After the Olympic Games’ revival in 1896, the marathon became the signature, penultimate event of the Games, and today, millions across the globe put themselves to the test not only at the Games, but every year, running marathons in some of the world’s great cities. BOMA/NY Director Mike Sullivan is now one of them. Mike, an SVP and Director of Operations at Edward J. Minskoff Equities, Inc., decided he wanted to do something big for his 50th birthday — this past Sept. 29 — and the 2014 New York City Marathon would be both a gift and a challenge to himself.

Winning the Lottery
A buddy of his ran the 2013 NYC marathon and was talking it up over drinks early in 2014. It inspired Mike to consider running the 2014 event. When he told his wife of his intention, she promptly replied he was full of ... himself ... and would never do it. But Mike, a long-distance track runner in high school, was not to be dissuaded. He signed up for email blasts from New York Road Runners Club to get more information.

One day in May, an email arrived announcing a sweepstakes, Mike recalls, "... for an $11 entry fee, you could win a guaranteed entry to this year’s marathon. I’ve spent more than that on a martini," he laughs, "and I’ll probably have a better chance of winning Powerball, but what the heck." He "anteed" up the $11 and put his name in.

Only 60 slots were being given out in this particular sweepstakes, but Mike believes his Irish luck was with him — and it was.

"From the moment I got the guaranteed entry, I was all in," says Mike, who sounds as energetic as the young track star of his past, when he describes his marathon journey. He trained religiously for 16 weeks, ran nine half-marathons and the three weeks before the big day this past November, he ran 23 miles, his longest run ever.

Mike also discovered he had an unusual gift — no pre-event jitters. The only time he shivered, he laughs, was sitting three hours in Staten Island waiting to start the race. (This year’s NYC Marathon was one of the coldest.) He also knew that long-distance running is a mental sport, and he was well prepared. "The key is not to be bored, to clear one’s mind." Once he hit his cadence to see if he was hitting his desired pace, "I just go. The computer tells me if I’m going to fast or to slow and therefore, I focus ahead and just go."

I Could Have Just Kept Going
Even more to his credit, Mike — who does not listen to music when he runs — did not hit the proverbial wall that can spell defeat during the last few miles. "I could have kept running even after I crossed the finish line." In fact, he enjoyed himself so much en route that he stopped to take pictures with family and friends, adding another 25 minutes to his time of 4:56.

As for no jitters and goosebumps, he did confess to reacting to the roar of the crowd as the runners first crossed over the 59th Street Bridge from Queens. The applause and cries of support can be thunderous and the jubilation seems to fill half of the East Side. "I now know what it must be like to be a football player coming out of the locker room on Superbowl Sunday to an energy-packed stadium screaming their heads off," he recalls. "I actually found myself doing an eight minute, 30 second pace that first mile coming off the bridge because of all the excitement and emotion. I found I needed to throttle back if I was going to finish."

Next up for Mike is the Washington, D.C. Marathon, where he will be joined by his wife and children, who have totally gotten behind dad in his running quest. "They love it. We’ll travel, Dad will run a marathon and then we’ll go sightseeing. I just finished my tenth half marathon in two hours, two minutes, and I’m still all in." And at press time, he had been accepted into the prestigious NYC Half-Marathon.

Speculating on the future, BOMAfacts asked Mike if he had considered running the great course of ancient Greece, the original run from Marathon to Athens. "Absolutely. There‘s an annual event following the original route and I wouldn’t even care what my time was. That would be ... the run of a lifetime!"

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