Check out our proposal videos below!
Here's the extended version:
In March 2013, Steve secretly arranged to have dinner with Lindsay's parents. After asking for Lindsay's hand in marriage, a clandestine shopping trip with Lindsay's mom helped Steve find the perfect ring, which would be ready mid-May, six weeks away.
On Friday, May 3rd, Steve got a call saying that the ring was ready one week early. He raced through rush hour traffic to pick it up in time before they left for the Jersey Shore to run the New Jersey Marathon. Lindsay's first marathon ever was on Sunday, and Steve decided to make it an even more special weekend.
The morning of the race, Lindsay was pumped, and Steve – already a four-time marathoner – was a ball of nerves. The race began and they set off, Steve keeping just two or three strides behind Lindsay, making sure she stayed in sight. With no specific proposal plan in mind, Steve stashed the ring in a handkerchief in the back pocket of his running shorts.
The Boston Marathon bombings happened only weeks earlier, and security at this race was tight. Steve knew that a finish line proposal was out of the question. Around mile 21 he noticed some cops parked along the road. He secretly dropped back and asked if they could lend him a megaphone to help him propose. They told him that around a distant bend, several cops were lined up. He could use the PA system on their motorcycles. Steve thanked the cops, who promised to call ahead and alert them of Steve's impending arrival.
Steve sprinted ahead, leaving a surprised and confused Lindsay behind. Just before mile 22, he found the row of police motorbikes awaiting his arrival. Steve got the ring out and waited with the motorcycle's PA microphone in his hand. He spotted Lindsay running forth, clueless to the police hoopla and crowds stationed on the side of the course. He called her name and asked her to come to the side. Instinctively, she realized what he was about to do. Shocked, she screamed out, "Oh no!" Alongside a crowd of strangers supporting and cheering, he asked her to marry him.
Lindsay had no idea the entire proposal was recorded, in all its candid nature. Steve got down on one knee, and Lindsay dropped down beside him, exhausted, while hyperventilating and crying. The swelling and bloating from running swelled her fingers to the point she could barely squeeze the ring on her finger. They cried and held each other.
After such a dramatic stop and loss of momentum, Lindsay wanted to drop out of the race. Steve encouraged her to finish, and they completed the last four miles, blissfully holding hands and shouting to the onlookers, "We just got engaged!" Crowds of cheering spectators energized the last few miles of the course, clapping and encouraging them along.
Meanwhile, Lindsay's parents were waiting at the finish line, expecting them to have crossed by now. The announcer at the finish line informed the crowd, "I just heard that two of our runners got engaged!" Lindsay's parents looked at each other and agreed that it couldn't have been Lindsay and Steve – the ring hadn't come in yet!
Eventually, Lindsay and Steve emerged from the distance, 30 minutes later than planned. They were running while holding hands, and Lindsay spotted her parents, calling out, "We're getting married!" They crossed the finish line together to a wave of cheers.
May 5th will forever be remembered as one of the best days of our lives!
We later saw on YouTube that another police officer recorded a different angle of the event and posted it online, as well!