2017 NYC Half Marathon: Race Photos & Results

The 2017 NYC Half Marathon is in the books!  It was my 7th NYC Half (and 3rd NYRR race for 2017).  While this one was cold, mainly because of the wind chill, it was no way near as frigid as the 2014 edition!  I was cold enough, however, to have my IPhone freeze up minutes after I crossed the finish line.  I literally closed my Strava App, took the above selfie... and it died an ignoble death!  Amazingly, it came back to life roughly an hour later, as I rode home on the Metronorth.

As for the race itself, I ran a 1:52:44 (my splits, thanks to the NYC App  are posted below).  It was a solid 8 minutes slower than my 2015 finish (didn't run it last year).  I was somewhat disappointed not having squeezed in under 1:50, but given my low mileage this winter, entirely understandable.  No speed to speak of, but I could have kept running (so endurance still hanging in there).

Here are the race results from NYRR.

2017 NYC Half Marathon - Packet Pickup at Metropolitan Pavillon

This afternoon went over to the Metropolitan Pavillon to pick up my bib and shirt for the NYC Half Marathon.  This will be my 7th NYC Half Marathon!  I last ran this race back in 2015, when the packet pickup/Expo was at a different location (Skylight at Moynihan Station across from Madison Square Garden).

Not sure what to expect, weather-wise, this weekend.  After the snow on Tuesday - which quickly morphed into ice - the best hope is for a nice warm-up.  By that I mean any temps near the freezing mark - haha.  But as I write this, some strange forecasts are predicting a bit more snowfall this weekend?!  Could that be true?

In any event, this will be my NYRR race #3 for 2017.  If you're at this one - say hello!

2014 nyrr grand prix patch... and certificate!

this post was almost sidetracked because of the cataract surgery this week - the 2014 grand prix series patch arrived on wednesday (same day as the surgery, in fact)!  this was the first back to back 5 boro series i've completed.  Prior to 2013, the last time i completed all 5 races was back in 2005 (when the series consisted of 5 half marathons across each boro).  Given the races i've missed in 2015, there won't be a 3 peat of the series this year!

last year, as a little bonus, a package of race magnets was included with the patch and certificate.  this year, there were no magnets.  but the patch is, i my opinion, way cooler than the 2013 version!

here is my short recap of the five 2014 races - which i posted back in October, following the last race - the staten island half.

2015 nyc haf marathon race report

when i signed up for this edition of the nyc half marathon, i expected to make a run at doing all five races in the 5 borough challenge again (going for 3 straight years).  but, instead, the week registration for the brooklyn half was set to open i learned that i'd be traveling that week - argh.  so much for the 5 boroughs this year.  it's not that i don't love running the nyc half, but my primary reason was jettisoned the minute i realized i couldn't run brooklyn in may.

getting back to the nyc half, the weather was 20+ degrees on race morning this year!  last year i actually ran the race with my windbreaker on - something i rarely do (and didn't regret running with it for one second).  with the temperature hovering in the low 40's it was practically balmy waiting in the corral. in a corral first, i took the time to download the nyc half app - mostly to check out the course map.  but the added bonus was adding my bib number for tracking - and, presto, just after crossing the finish had my race splits in hand!  but i get ahead of myself.

it was a very crowded start.  it took me 2:25 just to reach the start mat (not much longer than the 2 minutes it took last year, but it seemed a lot longer).  like last year i had forgotten to grab a gu out of my bag when i dropped it off.  rather than a random act of kindness when someone simply handed me a gu last year, i managed to find a gu when the corrals collapsed and we moved forward.  that one, plus  the gu i had as we crossed 42nd street would be the only things i had during the race (except for water).

my game plan for the race was to run sub-8 minute miles - and bring it in under 1:45 overall.  my first mile, 8:13, was my slowest of the half.  mile eight came in at 8:24, but i stopped to look for a gu with caffeine at the table.  the fastest was the 7:34 i ran for mile two!  the rest of the miles were clustered just under/over 8 minutes - pretty consistent, actually.  the highlight was running the last 5k faster than the first one, just barely (24:23 v. 24:40)!  when i reached 10 miles in 1:20:33, an 8:03 pace, i picked up the pace and managed to save a couple of seconds off the overall result - and brought the pace down to 8:01 - just missing my target.

i did manage to squeak in under 1:45 - that made me smile, actually.  still, it was 4 seconds slower than the 7:57 pace i ran at the boston blowout 25k two weeks earlier - and a solid 8 seconds a mile slower than the colchester half the day before.  not sure why i ran this one slower.  maybe it was the drop off in mileage over the last couple of weeks?  the lower mileage wasn't a result of injury, i was just tired of day after day of piling on clothes to run in the frigid weather.  now that it's gotten warmer (relatively speaking), the mileage will climb back to normal.

the only downside of the entire day was not running into a single familiar face: before, during, or after the race!  i knew - and looked out for - a lot of people who were running, but i didn't see any of them out there.  i think the only time i spoke out loud was to ask the finish line volunteer if she would talk my picture (which she did)! 

here's the screen shot of the splits from the nyc half app:

here are my race photos.

packet pick-up for 2015 nyc half marathon

 

 this afternoon i picked up my bib for the 2015 nyc half marathon at the skyline at the moynihan station.  it was a new location from the one used last year.  the process went very smoothly - last year there was some sort of registration glitch that resulted in a new bib number being assigned.  this time around picked up bib, picked up shirt, and i was set. 

 

for the actual expo, it was big - much bigger than i remember it in previous years.  it had a nyc marathon lite feeling to it.  i'm looking forward to the race.  i hope this "warm" weather sticks around for a few more days.  this winter has seemed like we're never more than a few hours away from a return to the deep freeze!  still, given how cold it was at last year's half, even the mid-20's would be an improvement - haha.

 

as always, if you're at this one - say hello!

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2014 nyc half marathon: race report

even thought this was my 5th nyc half marathon, it seemed new because the last time i ran this race was way back in 2010!  both the new course and that i hadn't run in central park (excluding the last couple of miles of the nyc marathon), since last september, may have added to that feeling.  normally, i'd be on my 3rd or 4th nyrr central park race by march (i had signed up for the kleinerman 10k in January, but skipped it b/c of the foul weather).

weather-wise, the cold and wind chill, didn't make for an auspicious start.  it was a solid 20 degrees colder than the day before - when i got to run a few miles in shorts.  but when i got up sunday morning, it was back on with the tights - and two long-sleeved shirts.  as it turned out, i added a third layer, my windbreaker, at the last minute.  it was strange bouncing between feeling overdressed - most of the race - and thankful for the extra layer - running into the wind.

it was the wind blowing across 59th street as i walked over the park from the subway that made me put on the windbreaker.  as i walked up to the corrals, i realized that i had left my power gels in the bag.  i seriously toyed with idea of walking back to the baggage truck, but since i had already go thru the police checkpoint and the corrals were right in front of me, i decided to skip it.  then, as i was trying to remember which mile the gu station was located on the course - someone offered me a gu!  a total random act of kindness (or maybe karma)?

aside from that brief interaction with the runner who offered me a gu, the rest of the time waiting in the corral was uneventful - and very cold.  luckily, as the corral filled, the collective body heat of my fellow runners warmed the place up a little (as did the sunrise, a little after 7).  when the gun went off, it took a solid 2+ minutes to reach the timing mat at the starting line.  on the way there, we ambled past the starting corrals for the second wave!

between getting to the start and running in the heavy crowd, mile one, at 8:18, was my slowest of the race. i would have 2 more 8 minute miles during the race, but the rest were mostly 7:40's and 7:50's.  the pace was noticeably slower than my performance at the boston buildup 25k the week before, which means i didn't get in enough recovery.  then again, it could also have been from the irish whiskey tasting at zachy's the prior afternoon, or the st. patrick's day party that night (where i limited myself to a pair of killian irish reds).

here are my race splits:

5k  25:03
5m  39:51
10k  49:21
15k  1:14:11
10m  1:19:26
20k  1:38:13
13m  1:42:39
13.1  1:43:24

7:54 pace

by way of comparison, my five mile split at the 25k was 37:59 - roughly 2 minutes faster.  at mile 10 of the 25k i had run 1:16:34 - i had fallen 3 minutes off that pace.  i had run 13 miles 1:39:19 at the 25k, still a solid 3+ minutes faster than my 1:42:39 split at the half marathon.  even so, i was more than pleased with the outcome - and i managed to shave a full minute off my fastest nyrr half marathon from 2013 (1:44:28 at the staten island half) :D

my half marathon goal for 2014 is to get my times back under 1:40 (which i probably would have swung if the 25k and half dates had been reversed) :D

one final thought on the the course - well may two - was the thrill of coming out of the battery tunnel underpass and seeing the brooklyn bridge looming ahead, as we ran to the finish.  that moment slightly inched ahead of running down seventh avenue, as times square loomed straight ahead.  either way, those were the two main touristy highlights on the coursed for me.  and, in something of a surprise, it seemed to be colder and windier at the finish, down in the financial district, than it was in the park (or maybe that was just exhaustion?)!

here is the link to my race photos & results.

2014 nyc half marathon: race photos & results

in one word, the 2014 nyc half marathon was - freezing! but the frigid cold and wind didn't take away from what a fantastic race it is.  the temperature was easily 20 degrees colder than the day before (i ran in shorts on saturday) - and spent most of my time in the corral with my teeth chattering!

as for the race itself, i ran a 1:43:26, 7:54 pace - well off my target of 1:40 (but a minute faster than the nyrr half marathons i ran last year).  all in all, i was more than happy with the result.

here is my race report.

here are the race result from the nyrr.

packet pick-up for the 2014 nyc half marathon

went to the metropolitan pavilion this afternoon to pick up my bib and shirt for the nyc half marathon on sunday.  in the "it's a small world" category, got the bib from my friend julie, who was a volunteer at the expo.  she pointed out that the bib # on my registration card had been changed -- that was a first! 

apparently, i wasn't the only runner who came in with one number and left with another.  the problem was quickly resolved at the help desk - and a printout of  a new registration slip/number was done right there.  i just took the new one back to julie and picked up the correct bib.  luckily, the new # wasn't too far removed for the original - and i was still in the 4th corral, first wave :D

hopefully the frigid weather that suddenly returned and enveloped the city today will leave by sunday - and we can run this one in shorts :D

2013 nyrr grand prix patch... and race magnets!

a two for one surprise arrived in the mail from the nyrr - not the just the patch for completing all 5 races in the 2013 five borough grand prix series (that was expected), but the 6 tiny race magnets that came along with patch (totally unexpected).  personally, i dig the magnets more than the patch itself.  each race shirt logo is represented, plus one for the series itself!

i last completed all five races in the grand prix series back in 2005 - a whopping 8 years earlier, when each race was a half marathon.  i normally run 2-3 of the races a year.  occasionally i managed 4 out of the 5.  but running all 5 in one year is a significant logistical accomplishment (aside from actually finishing the races themselves).

this year (2014) will see yet another variation to the composition of the series with the switch of the nyc half marathon for the manhattan half.  running the manhattan half counts toward the 4 of 5 races for guaranteed entry into the 2015 nyc half, but it no longer counts toward the 5 boro series itself (i believe).

last, but not least, the envelope contained a certificate of completion that listed each race and the finishing times. all in all, a great job in wrapping up the 2013 series by the nyrr!

 

ny running show podcast: nyc half, spring equinox, & chris mcdougall's "born to be a trail runner"

while the majority of last night's ny running show (episode #23) was devoted to nyc half marathon coverage, we also talked about the much smaller spring equinox 8k race race in new canaan and chris mcdougall's article, "born to be a trail runner," posted on the ny times "well" blog on friday. mcdougall's article generated 3 pages of posted comments - across the pro and con spectrum. then, as usual, we ended with a survey of upcoming local races.

for those of you planning on the scotland run next month, the ny running show crew is trying to put together a post-race meet-up. stay tuned.

listen to episode 23 at talkshoe.

2010 nyc half marathon race report

What a perfect weather day we had - and what a difference a week made - for the 2010 edition of the NYC Half Marathon. No rain, no cold, sunshine and temperatures in the 50s - a “no excuses” day to get out and run! Those conditions fueled a record turnout and finish of just under 11,500 runners. My 1:37:29 finish was a personal best for this race - and easily beat my 1:38:36 at the inaugural race in 2006. The result was even more surprising because I had a 1:40 target in mind - and didn’t push the pace until the last 5K (and the final mile was my fastest of the race).

But the day began with a few glitches. Emmy and I drove in, and had a hard time finding a place to park - finally getting one on 89th Street and 2nd Avenue. We had missed the pre-race group photo with the World Lung Foundation, and almost missed the baggage trucks! The UPS truck from Emmy’s corral closed just as she arrived - and wouldn’t take anymore bags. My corral’s truck immediately next, was taking it’s last few bags - mine included. Thankfully, the baggage handler let her put her bag inside of mine and then took the combined bag!

There was one more technical glitch I was confronted with in my corral. My brand new watch (which Pat had gotten me the day before to replace the one that died after so many years of race and training service) - began acting up! I couldn’t get the functions to work properly. Eventually, with the clock showing 3+ minutes of elapsed time, the gun went off and I started keeping splits with that extra time built-in. But even that wouldn’t last!

Almost the entire 10-15 minutes I spent in the corral was a blur - spent on trying to fix my watch - argh! As it turned it out, after a slow, slightly crowded first mile, I got into a groove of 7:35-7:40 miles. This lasted until we reached 5 miles, and with the Lasker Pool in sight, my watch died - or, I should say, completely zeroed out (erasing the splits and magically reset the time 4 hours ahead)! I was furious, but there wasn’t anything to be done. Amazingly, about 30 seconds later it starting working again - at least recording new splits.

According to memory, I reached 5 miles in roughly 38 minutes. The official split for 5K was 23:45, a 7:40 pace. My 10K split was 46:59, a 7:35 pace. My watch was once again recording splits, and I was dutifully logging them. But, I had pretty much decided to ignore the watch and key off the mile marker splits. With the new course we had more distance in the park - reaching the 8 mile split just before turning south and heading out onto Seventh Avenue for the run down to 42nd Street.

The next split, 15K, was along 42nd Street, and I reached in 1:10:18, a 7:34 pace. The new course added a short right turn at the West Side Highway. The extra loop (together with the extra park distance) accounted for moving the finish line north to Chambers Street. The 10 mile mark was just south of 42nd Street - and I remember reaching it in just under 1:16. At this point, with just 5k to go, I picked up the pace significantly.

From memory, my last 3 miles were roughly: 7:19, 7:10, and 7 05. I reached the 20K split in 1:33:21, a 7:32 pace and really pushed the last 7/10th of a mile to the finish. 1:37:29, a 7:27 pace, was my official finish (having yet again lost the 59 minutes worth of splits on my watch when I tried to store them). Emmy was just up ahead, having run a 1:35 - and taken second in her age group! I can’t remember a race where I ever had such problems with a watch - and may have been better off just running without it!

But by the time I reached the post-race festivities the watch problem was ancient history (although, Pat exchanged it for a new one later that afternoon). In stark contrast to the beautiful spring day, I skipped the cold refreshments and rehydrated with hot chocolate! And later still, I switched to a Heineken (thanks to Marty)! Post-race, aside from the World Lung Foundation running team, there were plenty of familiar faces in the crowd: Tom, Eric, Hugo, Greg, Maria, Sharon, and Liz - and new ones too, Robert, Helen, and Leo!

Next up: Raleigh, North Carolina, for the Umstead 100 Mile Endurance Run!

2010 nyc half marathon: race photos and results

what great weather we had for the 2010 nyc half marathon - and a record field of almost 11,500 finisher! on a slightly altered course (more in central park, less on the west side highway) i ran a 1:37:29. the only trouble i had this morning was technical - my watch malfunction twice and, as a consequence, my mile splits have vanished. otherwise, it was a fantastic day!

race report to follow. here are the results from nyrr.

i posted more pictures on facebook.

and here are my wlf running team photos.

2010 nyc half marathon: world lung foundation running team photos

the world lung foundation running team had a great day at the nyc half marathon! on the heels of our team's pasta dinner last night at tony di napoli, we had perfect weather to run and all 20 members of the team came in with excellent results. this is the third straight year that wlf has fielded a team for the nyc half - and we've managed to raise over a $100,000 in fight against childhood asthma in africa in the process!

i posted a few more race photos on facebook.

run the 2010 nyc half marathon on behalf of the world lung foundation :D

with the lottery results announced last week, anyone not selected has two options for running the 2010 nyc half marathon - guaranteed entry via time or guaranteed entry via charitable organization. if you're want to run the nyc for a charity, consider running it on behalf of the world lung foundation!

as we've done in the past (2008 and 2009), the wlf team will raise money to fight childhood asthma in africa. over the last two years we've raised just under $100,000, and following the 2009 edition made a $49,000 grant to the kenyan association for prevention of tuberculosis and lung disease.

for more information, check out the world lung foundation running team page. this weekend we kick off our first group training run in central park. join us!

2009 nyc half marathon: race report

this was my third nyc half marathon in it's brief four year history! i don't remember why i missed the second year (2007), but it's quietly become one of my favorite half marathons (probably second, behind the brooklyn half). the full loop+ of central park, the run down seventh avenue to 42nd street, then across to the west side and straight south to the finish line at battery park is a fast course. as in prior years, it would be a hot, steamy morning to run a race - but, thankfully, no rain for this edition.

for the second year i was part of the world lung foundation running team. last summer the team raised more than $45,000, which all went to fight childhood asthma in kenya. the funds we raised this year will also be used to help children who suffer from asthma. in addition to our returning members, the team included some first-time half marathoners. for a couple them, this wasn't just their first half marathon, but it was their very first race!

the day began with a 4:45 wake-up; then don and emmy got to my house at 5:30 for the half hour drive down to central park. we had planned to meet up with the wlf team in front of the guggenheim museum at 6. but some bright city planner decided that it would smart idea to shut down two lanes of southbound fdr traffic on the day 10,000+ runners and their families would descend upon central park.

we were late enough that everyone had dispersed for the corrals by the time we arrived. the upshot (or downside?) of the missed pre-race meeting was that i didn't have a wlf team singlet to wear for the race. my taconic singlet would have to do. but once we got to the corral, emmy insisted that i wear her singlet (which, to my utter astonishment, fit)! last year i lined up with my camera. this time around the pictures would have to be post-race.

my only time goal was to finish in 1:50 or better. emmy, who was using the race as a training run, had a similar plan in mind, so we ran the first 10 miles together. for the very crowed first 7 miles, the full loop+ of the park, we ran a 56:20 (just over an 8 minute pace). as we exited the park, yvette and some of the wlf team was cheering on the runners! without breaking stride, we ran over to yvette who gave my singlet to emmy; which she then wore for the rest of the race!

we were now on my favorite stretch of the course - seventh avenue and 42nd street. i've run so many miles in central park (training and racing) that the first half was merely the long intro to the fun, "touristy" miles of the race. as we exited the park (sadly, sans the sounds of ac/dc's "welcome to the jungle" - my favorite memory from past nyc half marathons), i said to emmy, "we're halfway there!" to which she corrected me - "we're way past [at 7.5 miles] the half way mark!" that was the first of two "math" slips for me!

i was impressed with the number of music acts along this stretch of the course! seemed as if there was a band every few blocks at one point! in years past, i only remembered the music at the turn south off 42nd street. running across 42nd street, with the music, crowds, lights, traffic free west bound lane, was fantastic! the only downer, the jumbo t.v. screen at 42nd didn't stream video of the runners coming down seventh avenue as in years past.

at the 9 mile mark, a couple of blocks before the turn south, i said to emmy, "wow! just a 5k left to go! woo hoo!" the heat must have gotten to me because she said, half amused - half concerned, "we have 4.1 miles left to go!" oops! as it turned out, the final 4 miles were the toughest - mainly because of the heat. at that point the sun was out and it had probably climbed 10 degrees from the 70 something degrees at the start.

with three miles left to go in the race, emmy dropped back a block or so. i was in my "let's get this thing over with" state of mind by now. in the last mile i passed a runner in distress - with one of his teammates and police officer trying to decide the best plan of action to help him. after the race i heard that many runners had succumbed to the heat on that stretch of the course (one of whom was a wlf teammate of mine).

during the entire race (except for yvette) i saw none of my friends on the course! after i crossed the finish (1:46:58), i said hi to mary wittenburg (who cheered on the finishers) and my friend bob. we waited for emmy to meet up with us, and then we proceeded to the baggage claim. in that short span of time i saw george (fellow trrc teammate) and, after baggage, mark (former wtc teammate). then we met up with the wlf team at the family reunion area.

it took a while for us to reunite with don (shades of the problem we had the first year), but then we took the 4 train back uptown to 86th street. the car was a few blocks from the station. with the exception of one wlf team member who didn't finish (heat problems), it was a great day. we'll definitely be back for the 2010 edition (which may be scheduled for the spring, according to pre-race speculation).

here are my race photos.

here are my 2008 race photos and my 2008 race report.

paula radcliffe wins 2009 nyc half marathon!

paula radcliffe won the 2009 nyc half marathon yesterday, and ryan hall hall took 3rd place in the men's race! radcliffe's 1:09:45 was just 2 seconds off the course record, and marked her 7th straight win (in races from one mile to the marathon) here in nyc! in her last race, radcliffe won the 2008 nyc marathon last fall. even more impressive, not only did radcliffe decide to run the nyc half at the last minute (literally, last week), but she had major foot surgery last march.

radcliffe finished 1:19 ahead of second place mamitu daska of ethiopia. catherine ndereba of kenya, who owns the course record set in 2006, finished third in 1:11:56. paula radcliffe is off to berlin, where she will decide by wednesday whether to run the marathon on behalf of great britain at the world championships next weekend.

in the men's race, tadese tola successfully defended his title with a 1:01: 06 win! the battle for second place was tight: ridouane harroufi of morocco took second in 1:02:33, with ryan half behind him by just two seconds, 1:02:35!

check out the full race coverage at the nyrr.

2009 nyc half marathon: race photos and results

hot and humid day for a half marathon! finished my 3rd nyc half marathon in 1:46:58 (8:10 pace). it was a slow, but fun, race for me. race report to follow.

paula radcliffe won the women's race and ryan hall took 3rd place in the men's race. here are the complete race results from nyrr.

here is my race report.

here are some race photos (these are post-race). will add a few more (pre- and race) photos later today:

2009 nyc half marathon: packet pick-up

this afternoon i picked up my nyc half marathon bib, tech shirt, and goodie bag at the new york road runners club. it was a different experience from last summer, when the pick-up was held at niketown and had the feel of a small race expo staged in a large atrium. today felt like a pick-up at any other nyrr race (except for the package of paul newman's popcorn stashed in the drawstring goodie bag).

this is my third nyc half marathon (having skipped the second year a reason that now escapes me). like last year, i'm running on behalf of the world lung foundation team (which, last year, raised more than $45,000 to fight childhood asthma in africa). like the first year of the nyc half, i'll be joined by don and emmy!

i have no particular time goal in mind (aside from finishing in under 2 hours). i'm looking forward to the social aspects of this event more than the competitive ones. some of the runners on the wlf team will run their very first half marathon this weekend! a few are using this race as part of their training for the nyc marathon this fall.

aside from my old (and new) friends, i hope to catch sight of ryan hall, paula radcliffe (a very last minute addition to the already impressive elite field), and deena kastor!!

if you're at the nyc half this weekend be sure to say hi!