New York City Marathon 2024

I won the lottery again. First in Tokyo and now in New York, I had the chance to run in two world major marathons in a single year. What a privilege! This post takes you through what I experienced last week when running the race through the five boroughs.

Traveling

I've spent long enough outside of the U.S. now that returning to my home country feels almost as foreign as my trip to Japan. Coming in from Europe, almost everything feels different. In fact, I'd argue that New York City has much more in common with Tokyo than with Amsterdam, where I'm living now. Just like the Japanese capital, it's filled with unlimited things to do and endless sights to see.

Complaint section incoming

However, my biggest shock on arrival wasn't from the sheer size of everything, but how incredibly loud the city was. There are plenty of sources of noise, including screeching subway cars grinding across ancient rail tracks, but if you measure by absolute obnoxiousness there is no competition: it's the cars.

There's something broken in the brains of drivers in New York City. At every intersection, the second in line will start honking at the very millisecond that the light turns green. It's simply abusive to everyone around them, especially the people not insulated by 2 tons of metal. Horn honking is only allowed as a warning of danger. Either they're unaware, or they're a delicate, fragile bunch scared of everything around them. Poor things. 🥺

Alright, complaint section over

Aside from the car shock, I really enjoyed the trip to New York. Instead of going back to Houston and being forced to write another blog post about my dislike for it, I convinced my family to meet me halfway from Europe here on the east coast instead. I enjoyed seeing a Broadway show and just zooming around underground on the subway, taking full advantage of the 12-ride fare cap per 7 days.

By the end of the trip I was even imagining the idea of living in the city.

Race Report

What was I talking about again? Oh right, there's a marathon or something.

Training

I followed Hanson's plan again, just like in Tokyo. For race day breakfast I had a coffee croissant donut. Yes, that is a thing, not just me putting three random breakfast-y words together.

Pre-race

I thought I was leaving early, heading out of my hotel by 6am for a start at 9:45am. But between the Sunday morning subway headways, the delayed ferry, and the line for the buses, I didn't reach the starting village until 8:40am, almost 3 hours after I left. On one hand, this meant less time letting the nerves build up in the starting area. But on the other hand, this whole process put a lot of steps into my legs on the morning of the marathon.

The weather promised perfect running conditions. The air was chilly, but the sky was clear and wind was light.

One logistical hurdle presented by the New York marathon is that there is no bag transport from the start of the race to the finish. That means you either need to donate or carry everything you bring to the start. The day before, I bought a cheap shirt to keep my arms warm, but I should have found something for my legs too. They froze up into stiffness before the race began, and I don't think the shock therapy of immediately launching up the biggest hill of the race did them any favors.

However, here's a little tip I only thought of after the race: if you're cold, just go through the donation bin and pick up some clothes previous runners left behind!

Race Start

Like every other sports event in my over-patriotic home country, the start begins with singing the national anthem. Then, a booming cannon shot singals the launch of my wave. It's the kind of thump you feel with your body, not hear with your ears. Do it too many times and they might summon the great Shai-Hulud! 🐛🐛

Race Middle

I optimistically set my Garmin to pace me to a 3:15 finish. Based on my training, it seemed feasible. But my training happened in Amsterdam, which is famously tabletop-flat. Within the first mile over the Verrazzano bridge I had already achieved as much elevation gain as I would in a week of training back home.

By Brooklyn (fun fact: named after Breukelen in the Netherlands) a tingling in my thighs was already giving me the inkling that I wouldn't hit that target. While there weren't any more big peaks beyond the first bridge, for the entire remainder of the race I never felt that the ground beneath me was quite flat. There was always some degree of uphill or downhill, imperceptible to the eyes, but very perceptible to the tired two feet.

Every race report of New York's marathon talks about the crowds, and I can't avoid it either. The noise level really is unlike anything I've ever experienced before. After forgetting to wear my headphones the week before in the Valencia half marathon, I didn't leave them behind this time. But, honestly, it was pointless. I couldn't hear anything in my ears other than the constant roar from the many-person-deep throngs of spectators that lined both sides of every avenue.

The End

Through the second half I watched my watch's pace predictor slowly count up the delays. After being spot on at the halfway point, it ticked up through 1 minute, then 2 minutes, then 3 minutes. When I saw a 4, I made a resolution that I'd keep it at least under 5 minutes, and aim for a sub-3:20 finish. That's the resolution that powered me through the dreaded Fifth avenue uphill. (wait, how come 5th was uphill going south, and 1st was uphill going north, what kind of messed-up reality is this?!)

I crested over the last hill in central park, within sight of the finish line, with my watch screen printing "4:59" over expectation. Right on cue, my right thigh started to cramp, but I was already so close I knew I could make it. After an incredible morning of running, I reached the finish in an official time of 3:19:40. So it turns out my watch was a little off; I had a few seconds to spare.

However, the experience doesn't quite end there. You still have to get out of central park. In fact, the last time gate on the tracking app isn't the finish line; it's the exit of the park. It takes a solid 20 minutes of zombie-shuffling after the end to receive a bag of snacks, a medal, and a beautiful and much-needed poncho before making it back out to civilization.

Conclusion

I had a wonderful time in New York. It's difficult to express my gratitude to my family, Prudhvi, and the whole city for welcoming me there.

Of course there was also an election a couple of days after, but no one's forcing me to write about that here, right? Happy thoughts and happy running!