I Run, For Life!

I’ve been to New York four times this year, in-between my trips to DC, Brazil and Utah/Nevada/California. Each time I stayed with my family in Brooklyn who were kind enough to mind my ‘other bag’ - the ‘hot summer bag’ when I was in DC and the ‘winter bag’ when I went to Brazil, and the ‘I don’t think I will need that-bag’ when I headed West.

I love New York (yes, I have the T-shirt!) and I wouldn’t mind a few more visits there this year. New York has an amazing atmosphere with the coolest music venues, unique art galleries, delicious restaurants (vegan and raw too!), organic markets, trendy vintage and thrift stores, yoga studios, distinctive architecture, stunning running routes and, not to forget, fascinating people - everything I love in a city!

Running in New York

Despite being a concrete jungle, New York has many parks which are runners’ heaven, like the most famous Central Park. It also has smaller green spaces like the ones around Brooklyn, which were attractive enough to lure me into running outside in January, on a snow and ice-covered ground. I was lucky that it was New York where running in adverse weather conditions is not out of the ordinary. I didn’t have to face puzzled looks of dog walkers, which would have inevitabloy happen, let’s say, in Poland. In the park I met a few daredevils like myself who convinced me that I was not such a lunatic after all.

Unsurprisingly, one of the most prominent running events takes place in New York: the New York City Marathon. It is one of the largest marathons in the world, with the reported 37,850 finishers in 2006. Now, that’s a lot of people! Such a crowd can be quite intimidating, especially if you’re a running newbie like me, but I’d love to take part in it one day - I need to make sure that I’ll bring my magic hat though!

The New York City Half-Marathon, August 16 2009

For all us runners who feel a bit panicky about the NYC Marathon or who prefer to run shorter distances, there are various smaller events organized in the city, like the NYC Half-Marathon. It is indeed a smaller race than the NYC Marathon, with a shorter distance and less participants, but it is not a small event. In 2007 there were 10,506 finishers, still quite a fine crowd!

The course of the half-marathon starts in Central Park and goes through Times Square and along the Hudson River waterfront to Lower Manhattan, finishing near Battery Park (see the photo for details). This route is a great way to get to know and admire New York City: I’ve walked this way a number of times (not the whole route every time, only during my very touristy excursions) and I would gladly run the course too!

I’ve already planned to be in Scotland in August, but running this half-marathon could be a great starter before tasting the great NYC Marathon in November. Who knows, maybe you’ll see me there in 2010?

Run With a Charity

The individual registration for the event is now closed, but don’t fret: you can still secure an entry if you run for a charity. One of the charity partners of this event is The Fresh Air Fund which organizes summer vacations for inner-city children at camps and with host families. This is a great opportunity for New York kids to experience a life outside of the noisy and polluted city, and enjoy the slower pace of suburbs or smaller towns in the US and Canada.

The charity has already helped over 1.7 million children since its foundation in 1877. Its success is a result of ongoing support from numerous kind individuals who donate their time, skills and money to brighten up the monotony of the inner-city life of thousands of children each year.

If you’d like to take part in the NYC Half-Marathon and support the Fresh Air Fund’s initiative, you can sign up to run with the charity:

Run the NYC Half-Marathon with the Fresh Air Fund

Last year the Fresh Air Fund-Racers raised more than $125,000! For more information on the Fresh Air Fund, the NYC Half-Marathon and other ways to help inner-city children, visit these links:

The Fresh Air Fund

The NYC Half-Marathon

P.S. I was asked to write about the possibility of running the NYC Half-Marathon with the Fresh Air Fund by their employee. I did the research and can firmly recommend running in their colors. If I was going to be in NYC or somewhere nearby in August, I would have signed up myself. If you have a few hours to spare that Sunday, don’t hesitate to get in touch with them.

Many runners run their long distances on Sundays, perhaps you do too - why not do it in an organized event and support summer vacations for inner-city children? You’ll be done by 10 am! (The race starts at 7 am and there’s a three-hour time limit to finish.) Now that’s a productive morning!

If you do decide to run the NYC Half-Marathon or if you have run it in the past, do tell! I’d love to hear your stories from the event.

photo credit: RunnerSpace