As I mentioned in my report, I had the opportunity to go for a couple of runs while in New York City. I wanted to share these for those of you looking for a different approach to seeing Manhattan.
I began running earlier this year in an effort to improve my health. I now run a lot and even completed my first half-marathon a few weeks ago. As I was planning my trip, I thougt why not combine my love for running with two of my favorite places, Central Park and the Brooklyn Bridge. On the Friday following Christmas Day, I woke early and headed to the fitness center at the Grand Hyatt. Did a quick 1/2 mile warm up, stretched and headed next door to Grand Central. It was early and I took the shuttle to T Sqaure. From there caught a subway up a few blocks to Central Park. When I reached street level and approached the park, I was pleased to find that it was still white with snow. That was very cool! I entered the park near the plaza, stretched a bit more and took off. I found my way to the Mall(wow!!) and continued on until I found a right turn and was able to exit onto 5th avenue. From there I headed north and continued on until I reached the Jackie Kennedy resovior. I didn%26#39;t want to pass this up so I re-entered the park and circled the entire lake. Watching the sun rise with views of the skyline was incredible. I found my way back to 5th and again headed north. I reached the far north end of the park and made a left on 110th. From there I ran to Lenox. Made a right on Lenox and headed north to 115th (i think) from there cricled back around and back to 110th. According to my map, this is Harlem. I had planned to spend time in Harlem but unfortunately, this was as close as I got (next time) I took 110th to Central Park west and headed south all the way to 59th at the SW corner of the park. My favorite part of it all was how peaceful such a large city is when waking up. At times, it was like I was alone in Manhattan. At this point, I realized ';I still had some gas in the tank'; and re-entered the park and headed over to the skating rink. I circled the rink, ran through some various smaller paths and then headed down Broadway. The crowds were still light and I decided that a run through Times Square would be kind of cool. I wouldn%26#39;t recommend this unless done early and before the crowds. I figured traffic was light being it was the Friday after Christmas. From here I stopped and walked back to the hotel. The entire run took about an hour and a half and I%26#39;m guessing aprroximately 10 miles. It was so much fun going trough the different areas and neighborhoods. I had an absolute blast. I really wanted to run around the entie park but I think next time I will spend more time inside of the park. The unveness of the roads and sidewalks took a toll on my legs.
RUN TWO
On Sunday, I got up before sunrise, added a bagel and coffee to the routine and took the subway from Grand Central to the Brooklyn Bridge. I entered the Bridge and took off. Wow...I guess I was still sore from the Friday run and 10 hours of walking on Saturday...The incline almost killed me. I then proceeded across my favorite of all bridges only stopping to turn and catch a glimpse of the skyline. Looking out the Statue of Liberty and back at Manhattan was incredible. I can%26#39;t even type that cool!! I crossed into Brooklyn and started to turn around when I changed plans, exited the bridge and headed over to the Manhattan Bridge pedestrian entrance. Now, as I said in my trip report...I love this bridge and the view of the Brooklyn Bridge is a WOW experience. I crossed the entire span back into Manhattan and continued along Canal Street. At this point I chose to just run and not really worry about where. I zig zagged through Chinatown and then headed west. I ran across to the Hudson River. I would like to note, that this was Sunday morning and even more than the first run, was very quiet and the streets were empty. At one point I came along an elderly asian gentleman out for a morning jog. I slowed down, he smiled, I did two and we just cruised along for a few blocks. We never spoke but when I decided to take off, I nodded and he return the gesture with a smile. Not sure why I am adding this, only to say that is kinda like he and I had New York to ourselves. Not sure but he seemed like an all right dude:) At this point, I remember seeing a high school (Stuyvessant i think) and paseed it and found my way into Battery Park City. I followed the Hudson down to an area where I became confused. At this point I had been running non-stop for close to an hour and had pretty much reached cruise control. I started down a road and looked up to find a NYPD Officer yelling at me to stop. I really couldn%26#39;t here her well and continued on. Not good! She came toward me yelling for me to go right or left but NOT straight. I thought she meant right or left lane and started on. She made it clear really quick that she meant ';Fool, EXIT THE BATTERY TUNNEL NOW!'; Realizing the mistake I had made, (and how irritated she was with me), I stopped, held both hands in the air, and yelled ';My bad...I%26#39;m from Texas and not very bright'; She looked at me with the ';explains that'; look and smiled. I exited quickly.From here I headed over to Trinity Church and then ran over to Wall Street and passed the NYSE. I turned and headed back west until I reached the site of the former World Trade Center. From there headed to St Pauls chapel. At this point my right knee began to ache pretty bad. (IT Band I think) and it pretty much ended the run. Even so, the run lasted approximately 70 minutes (figuring 7.5 miles) and was so much fun. Again, I reccommend this run on a day when the streets are quiet. I found the streets a bit more uneven and bumpy in lower Manhattan. I probably could have avoided the knee issue if I had done a walk/ran. Either way, this was an great run and probably my best run ever.
For those of you still reading, I just wanted to share a fun option to seeing the sights of NYC. As I mentioned earlier, it was a fun way to combine two of my most favorite things. BTW from St Pauls chapel, I chose to walk back all the way to our hotel on 42nd street. Although somewhat sore and not running, it was wonderful passing through all of the different neighborhoods and seeing how Manhattan rises on a Sunday.
thanks
chipper
Running around TownI have to go rest now :)
Running around TownI cannot believe you ran into the Holland Tunnel. Classic. (Imagine if your daughter had been with you then. How embarrassing. I%26#39;m a daughter - I know.)
I think I enjoyed that even more than your trip report. Thanks for posting.
Er - Battery Tunnel.
Okay ..... so I have to agree that running in NYC can do wonders to your health and image ..... though I doubt you%26#39;ll ever catch me doing it. But I have seen the incredible transformation of ChipperTex over the past. Here take a look ..... but I warn you ..... it aint pretty;
鈥lickr.com/85/257523385_023d89e9a8.jpg鈥?/a>
So in the last year I have seen Chip go from maybe Orson Welles (not in %26#39;The Stranger%26#39; but more like in the %26#39;Citizen Kane%26#39; kind of way) to a thin guy like perhaps Adrien Brody (but not in %26#39;King Kong%26#39; but more like in that other depressing movie he was in) or perhaps ..... try to imagine Richard Simmons but not in the red stripped shorts but wearing a cowboy hat and flannel shirt. Or think of .... Oprah ...... but not the recent Oprah but the other Oprah that we all loved. Oh .....oh ..... I got it ..... oh ..... Al Roker ..... the weather guy ..... but not the fat Al Roker from ten years ago or the the really thin Al Roker from right after he got the gastric-by-pass surgery when we all sat mesmerized by his svelteness image talking about the storm forming in the Gulf ..... but the other Al Roker who cheats on his diet but downing boxes of %26#39;Ring Dings%26#39;, %26#39;Ding Dongs%26#39; and %26#39;Ho Hos%26#39; every half hour. That Al Roker !
But now picture him running ..... that%26#39;s right run Chipper ..... run!
Wow - congradulations on your health success Chipper. I can%26#39;t imagine fitting in those 2 runs on top of all the walking that a trip to New York entails. A run around central park in the snow does sound wonderful though.
Running??? Was someone chasing you for some reason???
I was with you every step of the way Chip (and then I woke up!). Another brilliant travelogue, thank you. Question - what time did you actually start running on each day and what was sunrise like from Brooklyn/Manhattan bridge? Comparable to sunset? (34)
Sounds like you had a great time there Chipper. I like a good run now and then myself so thanks for sharing your exploits with us.
Oh and here is some info for you:
';A tunnel is an underground passageway. The definition of what constitutes a tunnel is not universally agreed upon. However, in general tunnels are at least twice as long as they are wide. In addition, they should be completely enclosed on all sides, save for the openings at each end. Some civic planners define a tunnel as 0.1 miles (0.16 kilometers) in length or longer, while anything shorter than this should be called a chute';
Hi Chipper.
Great report would have loved to have been along side you what a blast.
By the way congratualtions on shedding all those pounds you look years younger. I have been running for the past 20 years plus. Lost my Dad when he was 52 years old, wake up call never looked back. Hope you have the proper long johns on when you did your running to keep those little knees warm. Well done keep up the good work.
Holy Schnikies! That%26#39;s very impressive, thanks for the stride for stride account.
';My bad...I%26#39;m from Texas and not very bright';
That%26#39;s it??? That%26#39;s all it takes??? Who knew? All my countless social faux pas invariably ending with me slinking away sheepishly, hands in pockets, shoulders slumped. I can%26#39;t wait to whip out that trump card next time.
Regarding your before and after shots...I mean, congratulations and all but at some point, bicycle shorts just aren%26#39;t a good idea. Not sayin%26#39;...just sayin%26#39;.
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