Sunday was a special day for over 50,000 people who took part in the world’s largest marathon, but it was an especially-special special day for nurse Kaitlyn Curran. She had just hit mile 16 of her first ever marathon when Dennis Galvin, her Jersey City firefighter boyfriend of four years, jumped over a barrier and went down on one knee to propose.
"People in the race were slowing down to take pictures. It was indescribable just to be there and see it all was amazing," Galvin's cousin Kathleen Figueroa, who captured the proposal on video, told CBS. She added that Curran, who said yes and then finished the marathon, had no idea he was going to propose.
SHE SAID YES: A woman who was running in Sunday’s New York City Marathon was at mile 16 when her longtime boyfriend hopped over the barrier and dropped to one knee. She ended the day with a medal around her neck and a ring on her finger. https://t.co/8xbZ6P24RM pic.twitter.com/YizdEJYOhc
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) November 5, 2018
What a lovely only-in-NYC story, right? Nothing else to see here, right?
Wrong.
Because when I quote searched this proposal video on Twitter, I could not find a single person who had ANYTHING nice to say about Dennis Galvin's proposal. The vast majority of people online in fact think that he is basically a war criminal now for interrupting her marathon run. Why couldn't he wait until the finish line—or better yet, until well after the race was over? What kind of monster would make this particular day—a day she trained months for—about him?
SHE'S RUNNING THE FUCKING MARATHON, DUDE. MEET HER AT THE FINISH LINE, YOU THIRSTY FREAK. https://t.co/93yG0gHClG
— Anne T. Donahue (@annetdonahue) November 6, 2018
listen I'm not here to police how people propose and she seems happy with it so that's great but having done some long runs in my life, I feel like stopping that far in and having a large emotional moment before having to restart again and run 10 more miles would be rough https://t.co/URiyg5oe47
— Hanif Abdurraqib (@NifMuhammad) November 6, 2018
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MARATHON? https://t.co/eGr21jx3H8
— Linda Holmes (@lindaholmes) November 6, 2018
Honestly the government should deny him a marriage license https://t.co/xFLtxD3t4t
— Parker Higgins (@xor) November 6, 2018
I would've kicked him but that's just me https://t.co/iiB3ooeRHs
— Jen Mac Ace Neptune Ramos #WontBeErased 🇵🇭 (@jenmacramos) November 6, 2018
This woman had sacrificed and trained for months to run in this marathon and in THE MIDDLE of it, this chud decided he wanted to make it about himself and hijack it away from her.
Fuuuuuuuuuuck this. https://t.co/yTOmiEzuRL— Mike Beauvais (@MikeBeauvais) November 6, 2018
This is not romantic. This is controlling. This is a dude hijacking his partner's project to bring the attention back to himself. https://t.co/bpdfZ7v13W
— E.B. Boyd (Liza) (@ebboyd) November 6, 2018
The physical and mental agility required to complete a marathon is insane. People don’t even like to run in LEGGINGS they haven’t trained in!!!!
— Caroline Moss (@socarolinesays) November 6, 2018
“Wow, my girlfriend is going to accomplish something pretty remarkable, something she’s trained for months to achieve. When we talk about this day in years to come, what can I do to make it all about me?” https://t.co/BHkX8gqUFv
— Ron Hogan (@RonHogan) November 6, 2018
this man is THE WORST https://t.co/mxJqmoYaKl
— hussein kesvani (@HKesvani) November 6, 2018
What is WRONG with people
— Rebecca Traister (@rtraister) November 6, 2018
This is just inconvenient??
— Lauren Duca (@laurenduca) November 6, 2018
What is it with dudes needing to make proposing some kind of stunt. IT’S ALREADY SPECIAL, DO IT IN PRIVATE. Especially if YOU HAVEN’T SPENT MONTHS TRAINING FOR A MARATHON. https://t.co/yzL02JMpxq
— Paul F. Tompkins (@PFTompkins) November 6, 2018
Men are the worst of creation. https://t.co/yzVZHxBhGf
— Kima Jones (@kima_jones) November 6, 2018
Sure, Curran was by all accounts very happy about the proposal. "She cried a little bit, said yes, hugged him and then said 'OK, I have to go finish my race,'" Figueroa noted. But was it selfish of him to do so like this? Are there just some places you should absolutely never propose (like at other people's weddings, or at your significant other's election party)? Or are people online just especially rage-y today?
Either way, it is truly hilarious how much people hated this. So I would think twice before you unfurl your "marry me" banner at mile 69 of the Hardrock 100-Mile Endurance Run.