Manhattan Half Marathon

Saturday, January 28th, saw the advent of the Manhattan Half Marathon, the first in NYRR's Grand Prix series, in which you can run a half-marathon in every borough. It was a cool, clear, sunny morning and a good 4600 people showed up to run the first half-marathon of the year, including one nut running in a lighthouse outfit to promote a marathon in New Jersey. Usually, more than 6000 runners show up the Manhattan Half; attendance was low probably due to the incredibly early scheduling. (Isn't the Manhattan Half usually an August event?)

Many of our bloggers ran the half. Our BlogFather Derek left a brief post, it's brevity indicating his disappointment more than anything. By contrast, Dasmoo, of whom I know nothing, seems very happy with his new PR, though his post is equally as short. What is it with you guys? Details, people, details!

I volunteered to write this week's Rundown partly because I knew I'd be there myself. Got all responsible and took a lot of photos and posted my own personal report here. My race was not as good as Dasmoo's, nor even Derek's... well, life goes on. I did run into my neighbor (Boy-Who-Has-No-Blog) and was astounded to find out he ran the half in a 1:29. Very impressive. He's currently training up for Boston.

Chelle finally got off her lazy-posting butt to tell us about her race. Turns out, a good half marathon was just what she needed to shake the heavy feeling. (I mean, seriously, ten days between posts? Please post more!) She finished strong, fast, and feeling like the Flyer she is. And, of course, NYFlyGirl had an equally good race while not officially running it. She stuck to her plan. Even runner Getset, who hasn't run more than 6 miles since Christmas, managed a PR!

Before I go, I'd like to cast an eye further afield and give a shout out to Jon, who also PR'd in Houston. StSean also ran this race, the 3M Half Marathon and makes me wish I were a student again. Unfortunately, this race will be noteworthy for another reason: the course was marked improperly and the distance was off.

And that's about all I can find on half-marathons this time around. Lots of bloggers promising they'll be running various upcoming halfs and fulls. In the meantime, let's all look forward to the Brooklyn Half, huh? I know I am.