Run Rabbi Run

All along the 26 mile, five borough route of the New York Cit Marathon, supporters can be found cheering, encouraging, and passing out water to the thousands of competitors simply trying to finish the grueling race (and for a select few, trying to win).

If they knew Scott Hoffman was running, maybe they would've thrown a few 'Shaloms'  his way.

Hoffman is the rabbi at Temple Israel of South Merrick.  He was one of the approximately 45,000 runners to take part in this year's race last Sunday.  And he finished what he started, completing the race in 3 hours and 36 minutes, good for 6448th place, if you're keeping score.

"It's an unbelievable experience," Rabbi Hoffman says.  "You want to do something good and meaningful, and I think [doing this] takes it above and beyond just the usual experience."

A lottery system is used to pick who gets a chance to participate in the race, but Hoffman's spot was guaranteed.  He ran as part of a team, for charity.  Sharsheret is a Jewish charity dealing with women's health issues, such as breast and ovarian cancer. 

A family friend is a breast cancer survivor, active with Sharsheret, and the rabbi was asked to be part of the team.  Hoffman wasn't sure he would be able to, having battled tendinitis the last couple of years.  Physical therapy has helped, and Hoffman undertook a 16-week training regimen to prepare.

This wasn't some novel experience.  Hoffman has run competitively since his high school days in Silver Spring, MD.  The NYC race was the eighth marathon he's finished.  For his and the Sharsheret team's efforts, $50,000 was raised, part of the $26 million total raised overall from the marathon.

So what exactly was going through the rabbi's mind as he stood on the Verrazano Bridge Sunday morning with thousands of runners, about to begin his trek around the city?

"It's an unbelievably exciting spectacle...I find my jaw dropping," he says, adding that the NYC marathon is run by twice as many people as the Boston Marathon, which Hoffman has also finished.

The race touches all five boroughs before hitting the finish line in Central Park.  In the weeks leading up to the event, Rabbi Hoffman tried to simulate the marathon in terms of distance, tempo, and speed.  However, when actually running the race through city streets and across bridges on a cool autumn day, it's whole new ball game.

"The key is being efficient in your running motion and your pacing so that when you ordinarily would run out of energy, you can still go forward," the rabbi says.

Hoffman also says breaking the race into smaller goals as he runs helps him focus, and makes the 26 miles seem less daunting.

"You tell yourself I'm at mile 22, let's concentrate on getting to 22.5," he says.  "Let's concentrate on getting to the tree, the traffic light, to Central Park."

Once he reached the park, Rabbi Hoffman fed off the energy of the crowd to help him finish his three hour tour through the city.

"The immediate feeling [of finishing] is relief because I can't run another step, I feel like...it's excitement, it's accomplishment," he says.

Hoffman came through just fine, though a bit dizzy, he adds.  He said he had tremendous support from his congregation in south Merrick.  They donated money to Sharsheret, and even threw a pasta dinner in his honor the night before the race.  It certainly helps to load up on carbs when preparing to go for a jog for a few hours.

He also feels it's important to lay a foundation now, to keep his body and mind sharp as he gets older.

"One of the thing's that's inspiring to me is I look at other people like my father at an older age, still working and being productive," he says.  "I want to lay the groundwork...I don't necessarily envision myself running marathons in my 70's, but I'd still like to be doing the things I enjoy doing."

And after running 26 miles through the city, fasting on Yom Kippur or giving a sermon should be a breeze from here on in.