Fun on Foot Running, Walking Blog

Last Thursday evening was this year’s first New York City Sunset and Suds 5K Run. This run is organized by Urban Athletics and is held in Riverside Park on the Hudson River at 105th Street. It costs $30, which seems expensive, but the rewards for entering include a pair of running socks, an engraved beer glass, and all the beer you can drink from the end of the 7:00 pm race until 9:30 pm or so. (more…)

If you want to run your first NYC Marathon and live in or frequently visit NYC, an important deadline is approaching. Regardless of your speed, if you have persistence, NYRR has a great way to obtain guaranteed entry into the 2012 Marathon. That Marathon is about 20 months away but, since it will take you at least several months to prepare for a marathon anyway, it is not foolish to start putting your plan in action now for guaranteed entry to such an austere event.
Step 1 is that you must register as a NYRR member before this January 31. The cost is nominal. Then you have the rest of 2011 to complete 9 qualifying races (your speed is not important) and do one volunteering stint to automatically gain entry to the big event (no lotteries, no website queues).
For more details visit www.nyrr.org. And good luck with your exciting training program ahead.

The New York City Marathon, the world’s largest and most spectacular running event, was run Sunday November 7. I ran. Nola also ran it as her first marathon.
The running conditions were close to ideal: temperatures in the 40s throughout with sunshine and moderate winds. From the weather perspective, the million-plus spectators probably experienced more discomfort than the 45,000 runners.
From the runner’s perspective, the NYC Marathon comprises three steps which can be comparably challenging: 1 Getting to the start line at the Staten Island end of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, 2 The race, 3 Getting home. I feel step 1 is the toughest: picture 40,000 people loading the early-Sunday-construction-limited subway system, the Staten Island ferries, and a gargantuan shuttle bus system from the ferry terminal to Fort Wadsworth; followed by waiting for up to two hours in a crowded, cold, windy, muddy camp for your start slot.
Step 3 can also be surprisingly tough. It took me over an hour, in cold, windy conditions, from when I crossed the finish line to get to my apartment a few blocks away. Imagine the logistics faced by anyone not so fortunate in location.
But what is really important is the race. There is nothing like it in terms of environment, crowd support, and total hoopla. The start is unforgettable, launching off onto the lofty bridge to the strains of Frank Sinatra’s New York New York. Then you pass the amazing crowds through the length of Brooklyn, followed by the Queens supporters, and the enormous encouraging throngs in Manhattan and the Bronx.
There are enough hills in this route to make it a substantial physical challenge. I loved the run, while disappointed with my time. More importantly, Nola was successful in completing her first-ever marathon with great enthusiasm and no complaints.
As for the inevitable post-race pain, the post-race partying with my Reservoir Dogs teammates quickly pushed that out of cognition.
What a day!

From Guest Blogger Nola Ford
On Sunday, I ran the Staten Island Half Marathon. It was the final race in the 2010 NYC Half Marathon Series. The day was cool, sunny and crisp. It was a perfect day to run. (Warwick did not run this race, focusing on long runs between his two marathons.)
The race started and finished close to the Staten Island Ferry terminal. The ferry operates hourly early Sunday mornings, so a huge crowd of runners boarded the 7:30 am ferry. The biggest pre-race problem for runners was the huge lineup for restrooms on the ferry, at the ferry terminal, and in the race start area. Many of the 7,000 runners would have started late.
The course headed west, along Bay Street, through the Fort Wadsworth area, and then south along the beaches. At South Beach there was a turnaround with runners essentially retracing the route back to the ferry. There are detailed maps of this part of Staten Island in our book Fun on Foot in New York.
There were several hills and varying grades everywhere except for the beach section. There were plenty of water and Gatorade stations plus porta-potties throughout.
The route provided runners with a great view of Manhattan across the way and the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. On a crisp sunny day, the Staten Island Half was most enjoyable with Staten Island locals encouraging the runners along the route. I recommend this race to all runners next year.