Runners were pounding the pavement under steady rain Sunday morning in the 2019 NEFCU Long Island Marathon.

West Islip resident Dan Gargaro, 29, won the men's race with a time of 2:30:15. Huntington's Alyssa Salese, 26, won the women's race with a time of 3:02:07.

The race began at 7:30 a.m. Some runners were seen wearing ponchos and garbage bags to stay dry.

More than 5,000 people had signed up to run, but only around 3,300 showed up.

Salese, the women's winner, says she considered staying home because of the rain, but says the wet weather actually kept her cool and helped her run the race of a lifetime.

"The weather wound up being so perfect for it. I'm just really happy," she says.

Road closures and additional security measures were in place during the race.

The full marathon course is 26.2 miles.  Runners also took part in a 10K race as well as a 5K family fun run.

Hempstead Councilwoman Erin King Sweeney took part in the half marathon, running to raise awareness for breast cancer after she was diagnosed with the disease in December.

"This is not a death sentence, in fact it's the beginning of a new life, a happy life, and a healthy life," she says.