Some spring we are having these days in New York City! It's cold and windy, I actually put on a wool cap and wear gloves when outside. Just a few days ago, on Saturday, it was really spring-like for the NYC Runs Spring Fling 5K and 10K on Roosevelt Island.
My duties for the event included shopping for fruits and creamy peanut butter the day before and picking up bagels and such at the crack of dawn on the day. I once lived in Long Island City, Queens for over ten years and one time actually walked over that bridge connecting Queens to Roosevelt Island. Back then there was no subway, you could only take the tram, paid for with the tram system's own unique coins, or drive/walk over said bridge. Well, swim is probably possible if you are that good, though the toxins in the water may kill you years later. I don't recall actually driving to Roosevelt Island but checked that off my bucket list this past weekend. I always think of Roosevelt Island as Manhattan shrunken ten times. Maybe more. There is just one long Main Street running the length of the island, with some traffic circles here and there for the cars to turn around. It sure is nice to have the footpath that goes around the island.
When I first started working for NYC Runs, it was winter and water consumption was not a major issue. Runners did not drink as much. Maybe it was because I didn't work with the water stations, or maybe because we also had hot chocolate all ready to be poured. For the NYRR NYC Half, very few people took the ice-frozen water at Mile 11 water station, where I volunteered. The race was almost done and it was too cold anyway. With the Spring Fling it was very different. Gatorade and water constantly ran low and I found myself helping with mixing more Gatorade then fetch more 6-bottle cases of water, then more Gatorade, more water, on and on. It was a beautiful day to run, but it sure got hotter after 5K or 10K. Just wait until summer rolls around!
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| There were a few PPTC runners in the race, like Tom and Kai here. |
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| New PPTC member Glen and me, with the Queensborough Bridge in the backdrop. |
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| That's one big apple, Randy. |
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| Lots of bags in the bag check area. The bags were sorted by the last digit of the bib number, the columns went from 1 through 9 then 0. |
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| The Gatorade and water crew kept the runners hydrated. |
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| The finish chute by the side of the Queens-side of the island. |
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| Things got a little quiet as the 5K runners got to the start corral while 10K runners just arrived or waited for their turn. |
For all 16 photos, see
https://plus.google.com/photos/109153989599275468311/albums/5862261789361079425
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