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FLRC Newsletter - February/March 2005 |
| Exploring the MORE Marathon Course | |
Finding myself in a New York City hotel only ten blocks away from Central Park, I decided to familiarize myself with the MORE Marathon Women's Masters Course. While running with guys adds a certain spark, I thought it would be fun to try something different this year, rather like the all-girls Catholic school bonding experience of my high school days. I would cross the finish line, toss my bra in the air, and no one would bat an eye.
Before I left Saratoga, I ran our standard Wednesday night trek around Skidmore with Heidi West, who cautioned, "Now don't get lost!" I almost laughed. How could I possibly get lost? The course was a series of 5 ´ 5-mile loops around Central Park. Any perpetually lost runner can handle circles.
Assured by the hotel personnel that the weather would be lovely the day of my expedition, I awoke to face a torrential downpour and a 40°-feels-like-32° temperature. I made it to Central Park without incident, using my trail tree-dodging skills to thread my way through the rush of commuters heading to work, umbrella'd and oblivious. Once in the park, however, I discovered that none of the roads were marked—no friendly lamppost signs, no blue ribbons, no orange flags. Presumably, the birds had already eaten the bread crumb trail laid down by the last befuddled runner.
My downloaded map indicated that the start was located near the Tavern on the Green, somewhere towards the left, so I forged ahead. I even found the Tavern. I did not stop for a beer, but ran doggedly on. I greeted other runners. Then I greeted the same runners again, wondering why they were going around in little circles. Then I passed the Tavern yet again. Light, even in this downpour, was beginning to dawn. Like a rat in a wheel, I found myself on an endless loop becoming just as frustrated, with no idea of how to break the spell. Fortunately, I remembered I was a female and not too proud to ask directions. I finally reached the turnaround at 102nd Street by heading up the down road. By this time I was so soggy and cold that I decided to forgo another heroic effort to locate the up road and conceded defeat.
One of the biggest surprises I had (besides the fact that the roads weren't labeled) was that every walker I stopped to ask directions was cheerful and, apparently oblivious to the miserable weather, wished me a good run. Every time I encountered a fellow runner, I also wished him well, but received not a single acknowledgement. Sure, they were wet, but so were the walkers. And they would get home a lot quicker. Are New York City runners more suspicious? Unfriendly? Focused? I'm glad I'm a Stryder and can look forward to running in my own Spa Park where people smile at one another.
Still, I plan to head back on April 10. The course, what I saw of it, looks like a good Boston qualifier—a few mild hills to give your legs a break but not seriously strain them, with the repetitive segments making split time math a breeze even for tired legs and brains. Plus, this time the paths will be marked!
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