I know that, with so few days left until it takes place, I ought to be talking about the Athens Marathon or telling you how that LPA Night Run went—the one that so “dazzles” the local blogosphere. But today I am going to repay a debt that has been outstanding for almost a year.
After finishing last year’s New York City Marathon, I promised a couple of posts about the organisational and practical aspects of the race. Unfortunately, my publishing pace has been very slow in recent months and I have not had the chance to do it. My first idea was to write something along the lines of that “This Is the Dublin Marathon” post, followed by another, more practical entry. With the race almost upon us and several friends already there, I have decided to make amends by publishing at least the second of those ideas.
These are just a few notes about things I would have liked to know or found curious. There are even books about all this, so let us say that my ambition is a little more modest. Some light reading for a couple of days before the race... and free of charge.
Who counts as a New York City Marathon first-timer?
This one is easy: anyone who has not run it before. Many peculiarities make it different. The sheer scale of the event—more than 50,000 runners in 2014—and of the city itself mean that the pre-race rituals are very different from those of traditional marathons, and everything inevitably takes longer.
The day has to begin ridiculously early. There is a long, cold wait beforehand and, for a change, many of us even board a boat to reach the start. It really does not matter how many marathons you have run; this is something else, a kind of enormous, perfectly organised sporting pilgrimage.
Take your passport everywhere—except to the race
After Boston 2013, security is no laughing matter. They always ask very politely, but you can encounter a security check anywhere.
The check at the Runner Expo is particularly thorough although, like everything else, very well organised. Long queues that move quickly.
Be prepared to spend money at the Runner Expo
In my other eight marathons, all my shopping amounted to a pair of arm warmers to fight the cold in Dublin. Well, immediately after collecting my bib, I think we spent about 400 dollars in the official ASICS shop, mostly on clothes for ourselves and gifts.
Brilliant designs featuring the marathon’s omnipresent name and the date of an event that may happen only a few times in your life. Add a DJ playing music to stir up the crowd, throw in another 2,000 runners hunting for their size, place supermarket-style checkouts at the end, and you have one hell of a hit on your credit card a month later. Nothing describes it better than this short video we recorded in the shop.
You have been warned. You can try to resist, but you will probably give in after two minutes, especially when you see that jacket half of New York will be wearing over the next few days.
Visit Central Park the day before
Walking around the finish area while realising that you will be there a few hours later was one of the things I enjoyed most. It makes you a little nervous, but the atmosphere makes it worthwhile: an extraordinary amount of excitement per square metre.
Change the time. Please, CHANGE THE TIME
In other words, do not do what I did. In the United States, the clocks change on the first weekend in November. My iPhone noticed, but Marian’s phone did not, so without realising it I woke up an hour early.
Of course, I had no idea and got on the subway expecting a whole crowd of us in the carriage. I was staying Uptown, so there were plenty of stops before the ferry terminal. How strange: the first stop, and I am alone. At the fourth station, at last, the first runner gets on. The subway keeps moving and it is still just the two of us. When we get off at the final stop, four idiots are left standing on the platform. How very strange!
When we reached the terminal where you catch the ferry, a giant digital clock welcomed us and revealed the monumental blunder we had just made. We were so early that, half an hour later, the police asked us to leave the terminal while they set up the security checks.
The journey from getting out of bed to the starting gun is already long enough, so adding another hour is just silly. BE CAREFUL!!
Goal: Do not get cold
I know this is like your mother telling you to take a jumper: I could repeat it 100 times and you would still think it cannot be that bad. Seriously, trust me. The cold is brutal. You will spend a long time outdoors on an island battered by an icy wind that cuts right through you.
Take every item of clothing you can. However much you wear, it will not be enough. “I’ll take an old sweatshirt” is not a plan—I tried it. Yes, you have been told that they hand out hot chocolate and a Dunkin’ Donuts hat, but how much chocolate, coffee and pastries can you consume without urgently needing the loo at kilometre three? Exactly.
If you travel by ferry as I did, this is the best sequence of moves:
Do not use the baggage service
It is better to wear old clothes that you can discard when the race starts. What is more, if you do not use the baggage service, they give you an amazing poncho-blanket-raincoat as soon as you cross the finish line. You receive a fantastic keepsake, stay warm and get out of Central Park more quickly.
Bear in mind that the baggage drop closes well before the start, so using it does not spare you from bringing old clothes to keep yourself covered anyway.
Tune your English at the start (or check the time)
Unless you are at the main start, you can hear what is happening but cannot see it. The wheelchair race begins 15 minutes before your start. If you lose track of the time or your English is not up to scratch, you might do what dozens of fellow runners did: throw away your clothes because they thought it was our turn.
Spending 15 minutes in a singlet on the Verrazzano Bridge on a bitterly cold, windy day must be an unforgettable experience. Fortunately, this was one of the few occasions when I did not make a fool of myself.
Whenever you take your gel... there will be water
In other marathons, you coordinate your gels with the aid stations so that you know when to take them. In New York, from mile three onwards, there is an aid station every single mile!
What is more, it is impossible to miss them. Perhaps 80 or 100 volunteers tirelessly shout “Water! Water! Water!” from both sides of the road, immediately followed by just as many volunteers shouting “Gatorade! Gatorade! Gatorade!” The drinks are served in cups, but there are so many aid stations that you can hydrate little by little without needing bottles.
Trust the pacers
I surged past the 3:10 pacer and regretted it. There are plenty of pacers and, from what I saw, they looked completely comfortable while maintaining exactly the right pace to finish on time. I suppose you can be unlucky, as with anything, but I would trust those pacers to guide you to the time you want.
Arrange a specific meeting point with your family
It is New York and 50,000 people are running. On top of that, for security reasons, the area where you leave Central Park is cordoned off to keep spectators away—although Marian charmed a police officer and managed to get closer.
Just in case, arrange two or three meeting points. You never know how far the security perimeter might extend.
Monday Marathon is for early risers
Did you think it all ended on Sunday? Have you still got a few dollars left to spend? Then Monday Marathon in Central Park, the day after the race, is the place for you.
But you either go at 7:00 in the morning or you have no chance. Those of us bloggers who met up in New York went later and the queue stretched around the park. It is a small shop with new merchandise—not ASICS—where you can also have your medal engraved.
We left without even trying when we saw the mass of people still waiting to get in.
Enjoy it
I think this is the most important advice. It is a marathon, but it is also New York. Go sightseeing, walk everywhere, eat whatever you like... a couple of extra minutes in the marathon are nothing compared with exploring that fantastically unreal city, where thousands of excited runners from all over the world will be milling around.
And on race day, experience it your way. I am not going to tell you to “take it easy because it is tough and you have to enjoy it”. If you want to high-five people, every hand in the world is there for you; and if you want to race flat out, an entire city is committed to helping you achieve your goal.
I will not wish good luck to those running it this year, because they are already lucky simply to be there.
New York City Marathon 2013 Race Report
All posts about the New York City Marathon
After finishing last year’s New York City Marathon, I promised a couple of posts about the organisational and practical aspects of the race. Unfortunately, my publishing pace has been very slow in recent months and I have not had the chance to do it. My first idea was to write something along the lines of that “This Is the Dublin Marathon” post, followed by another, more practical entry. With the race almost upon us and several friends already there, I have decided to make amends by publishing at least the second of those ideas.
These are just a few notes about things I would have liked to know or found curious. There are even books about all this, so let us say that my ambition is a little more modest. Some light reading for a couple of days before the race... and free of charge.
Who counts as a New York City Marathon first-timer?
This one is easy: anyone who has not run it before. Many peculiarities make it different. The sheer scale of the event—more than 50,000 runners in 2014—and of the city itself mean that the pre-race rituals are very different from those of traditional marathons, and everything inevitably takes longer.
The day has to begin ridiculously early. There is a long, cold wait beforehand and, for a change, many of us even board a boat to reach the start. It really does not matter how many marathons you have run; this is something else, a kind of enormous, perfectly organised sporting pilgrimage.
Take your passport everywhere—except to the race
After Boston 2013, security is no laughing matter. They always ask very politely, but you can encounter a security check anywhere.
The check at the Runner Expo is particularly thorough although, like everything else, very well organised. Long queues that move quickly.
Be prepared to spend money at the Runner Expo
In my other eight marathons, all my shopping amounted to a pair of arm warmers to fight the cold in Dublin. Well, immediately after collecting my bib, I think we spent about 400 dollars in the official ASICS shop, mostly on clothes for ourselves and gifts.
Brilliant designs featuring the marathon’s omnipresent name and the date of an event that may happen only a few times in your life. Add a DJ playing music to stir up the crowd, throw in another 2,000 runners hunting for their size, place supermarket-style checkouts at the end, and you have one hell of a hit on your credit card a month later. Nothing describes it better than this short video we recorded in the shop.
You have been warned. You can try to resist, but you will probably give in after two minutes, especially when you see that jacket half of New York will be wearing over the next few days.
 |
| As if they were giving it away |
Visit Central Park the day before
Walking around the finish area while realising that you will be there a few hours later was one of the things I enjoyed most. It makes you a little nervous, but the atmosphere makes it worthwhile: an extraordinary amount of excitement per square metre.
 |
| Already wearing the jacket from the merchandising frenzy |
Change the time. Please, CHANGE THE TIME
In other words, do not do what I did. In the United States, the clocks change on the first weekend in November. My iPhone noticed, but Marian’s phone did not, so without realising it I woke up an hour early.
Of course, I had no idea and got on the subway expecting a whole crowd of us in the carriage. I was staying Uptown, so there were plenty of stops before the ferry terminal. How strange: the first stop, and I am alone. At the fourth station, at last, the first runner gets on. The subway keeps moving and it is still just the two of us. When we get off at the final stop, four idiots are left standing on the platform. How very strange!
When we reached the terminal where you catch the ferry, a giant digital clock welcomed us and revealed the monumental blunder we had just made. We were so early that, half an hour later, the police asked us to leave the terminal while they set up the security checks.
The journey from getting out of bed to the starting gun is already long enough, so adding another hour is just silly. BE CAREFUL!!
Goal: Do not get cold
I know this is like your mother telling you to take a jumper: I could repeat it 100 times and you would still think it cannot be that bad. Seriously, trust me. The cold is brutal. You will spend a long time outdoors on an island battered by an icy wind that cuts right through you.
Take every item of clothing you can. However much you wear, it will not be enough. “I’ll take an old sweatshirt” is not a plan—I tried it. Yes, you have been told that they hand out hot chocolate and a Dunkin’ Donuts hat, but how much chocolate, coffee and pastries can you consume without urgently needing the loo at kilometre three? Exactly.
If you travel by ferry as I did, this is the best sequence of moves:
- Take the last ferry; it means spending less time freezing on Staten Island.
- Be the last person off the ferry; the cold when you step onto the dock is unimaginable—and I know you are still thinking of taking only a sweatshirt.
- Run towards the first half-empty bus you see. Warming up here is worth the effort, so use your elbows if necessary.
- Be the last person off the bus. If you have the nerve, wait until they throw you out. This is where hell begins.
- When your corral opens, sprint into it. People are packed more closely together and the plastic on the barriers protects you from the wind far better than the open ground where you have spent the previous hour. Do not worry about toilets: there are loads inside the corral.
Do not use the baggage service
It is better to wear old clothes that you can discard when the race starts. What is more, if you do not use the baggage service, they give you an amazing poncho-blanket-raincoat as soon as you cross the finish line. You receive a fantastic keepsake, stay warm and get out of Central Park more quickly.
Bear in mind that the baggage drop closes well before the start, so using it does not spare you from bringing old clothes to keep yourself covered anyway.
 |
| Poncho Man |
Tune your English at the start (or check the time)
Unless you are at the main start, you can hear what is happening but cannot see it. The wheelchair race begins 15 minutes before your start. If you lose track of the time or your English is not up to scratch, you might do what dozens of fellow runners did: throw away your clothes because they thought it was our turn.
Spending 15 minutes in a singlet on the Verrazzano Bridge on a bitterly cold, windy day must be an unforgettable experience. Fortunately, this was one of the few occasions when I did not make a fool of myself.
Whenever you take your gel... there will be water
In other marathons, you coordinate your gels with the aid stations so that you know when to take them. In New York, from mile three onwards, there is an aid station every single mile!
What is more, it is impossible to miss them. Perhaps 80 or 100 volunteers tirelessly shout “Water! Water! Water!” from both sides of the road, immediately followed by just as many volunteers shouting “Gatorade! Gatorade! Gatorade!” The drinks are served in cups, but there are so many aid stations that you can hydrate little by little without needing bottles.
 |
| PHOTO: NYCM |
Trust the pacers
I surged past the 3:10 pacer and regretted it. There are plenty of pacers and, from what I saw, they looked completely comfortable while maintaining exactly the right pace to finish on time. I suppose you can be unlucky, as with anything, but I would trust those pacers to guide you to the time you want.
Arrange a specific meeting point with your family
It is New York and 50,000 people are running. On top of that, for security reasons, the area where you leave Central Park is cordoned off to keep spectators away—although Marian charmed a police officer and managed to get closer.
Just in case, arrange two or three meeting points. You never know how far the security perimeter might extend.
Monday Marathon is for early risers
Did you think it all ended on Sunday? Have you still got a few dollars left to spend? Then Monday Marathon in Central Park, the day after the race, is the place for you.
But you either go at 7:00 in the morning or you have no chance. Those of us bloggers who met up in New York went later and the queue stretched around the park. It is a small shop with new merchandise—not ASICS—where you can also have your medal engraved.
 |
| No shopping, but we did get a photo |
Enjoy it
I think this is the most important advice. It is a marathon, but it is also New York. Go sightseeing, walk everywhere, eat whatever you like... a couple of extra minutes in the marathon are nothing compared with exploring that fantastically unreal city, where thousands of excited runners from all over the world will be milling around.
And on race day, experience it your way. I am not going to tell you to “take it easy because it is tough and you have to enjoy it”. If you want to high-five people, every hand in the world is there for you; and if you want to race flat out, an entire city is committed to helping you achieve your goal.
 |
| These Americans are crazy PHOTO: NYCM |
I will not wish good luck to those running it this year, because they are already lucky simply to be there.
 |
| I am so envious... we will be back |
New York City Marathon 2013 Race Report
All posts about the New York City Marathon
Originally published in Spanish on 31 October 2014. Read the original article. English translation prepared on 10 September 2026.
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