Brooklyn PTA 5K

Here's a save the date for a 5K in early May - Brooklyn PTA's 5K Run for Schools takes place on May 2 at 10 a.m., with profit being divvied up among Brooklyn schools. Definitely worth checking out. T-shirts, post-race brunch, and I'm sure lots of screaming, happy kids will be on hand.

Brooklyn Half Update, Sort of

Mary Wittenberg posted this to the NYRR Facebook site on Sunday (I might have seen it earlier if I hadn't lost all my groups with the new Facebook redesign ... I know they're here, somewhere ...)

"We are quite hopeful of posting the date (still finalizing May 30) and the course this week. Hang in there - by end of week we should be in position to share the information. thanks for your patience all, Mary"

Thanks, btw, for NYC Running Blog for pointing this out.

Running Repeats

Please ignore the harsh temperatures outside - it's purely a blip in the march to continued good weather and putting those somewhat smelly tights and tops (OK, maybe it's just *my* washing skills leave a little to be desired) into the closet for another year.

It's also spring track season, though most of us won't go near a track during the year at all. Thankfully, there are plenty of places you can do repeats/interval workouts in Brooklyn (note the tortured transition here - ultimately, this is the point I want to make in this post).

If you're training for distances from the mile to the marathon, getting in some speed work is key. If you train your body to run faster, doing a variety of shorter- and longer-distance intervals, you'll perform better in races. I'm not going to tout the merits of how and why - if you've never done it, then check out some of the articles on Runners' World.

Where? Ahh, let me give you some suggestions:

First off, if you do have access to these tracks scattered throughout the borough and want to get a flat, fast measured workout, note this list. I've only run on the Red Hook track, which is usually scantily populated. (Since I'm not familiar with many of the others, apologies if this list is outdated and the mondo tracks have been replaced with weeds.)

If you don't have access to the tracks, here are some other places, with some measurements, for better or worse, to help you plot your workout. I'm pulling these measurements from various places on the Web, so if they are off by a bit, my apologies (please let me know and I'll fix)

* Prospect Park: It measures 3.35 miles around, and now, courtesy of some gremlins, has a 5K course marked in parts (complete with 1/4 increments) and a 10 mile course as well if you want to do mile repeats. I've been asked before if there's anyone with measurements for workouts on the paths, and need to do some further investigating on that front.

* Cadman Plaza Park: One of the posters reminded me of this today - a tad more than 0.4 miles around, right by the base of the Brooklyn Bridge.

* Running the bridges: The Manhattan Bridge is 6,885 feet long (though it's unclear what the start and end points might be from a running standpoint. What's perhaps more important: The span is 1,470 ft (448 meters).

* The Brooklyn Bridge has these little factoids, according to Brooklyn Bridge Facts and Information:

Brooklyn Bridge East River Span: 1,595.5 feet
Length of Brooklyn approach: 971 feet
Length of New York approach: 1,562.5 feet
Official length: 5,989 feet, or 1.13 miles.

* The Coney Island Boardwalk measures 2.7 miles, according to the New York Parks Department, from W. 37th Street to Corbin Place

* The Brooklyn Heights Promenade - roughly 1/3 of a mile long (1,826 feet, to be exact)

Doubtless there are others - anyone want to offer your favorites?

Weekend Race Results

Prospect Park Duathlon results are here.

Colon Cancer 15K Results are here, while 4 Mile results are here. Interestingly enough, the combined finisher total for the two races is about 4,400 -- it either means that the NYRR race cap is set too low to get the desired 5,000 cutoff (taking into account no-shows), or that a lot more people are signing up, and then not showing, than have done so in the past.

Half Marathon Popularity

Check out this quote, from a Washington Post article about the popularity of half marathons, and tomorrow's marathon/half marathon in the U.S. capital:

"The half marathon has gained in popularity over the last few years because the training commitment is much less than the marathon and runners still gain a tremendous feeling of accomplishment," said Kathy Freedman of the Capital Running Company, which is helping to time tomorrow's events.

The Brooklyn Half Marathon remains *tentatively* scheduled for May 30. Good thing it's not a popular race that draws 5,000 to 6,000 people, that people specifically train for ... (ohh, wait ...)

Give us a firm date ... please.

Running With the Animals

One of my secret wishes has been to go running up at the Bronx Zoo (another one of those places that would probably frown if you laced up your running shoes for an early mornings saunter.)

The paths look great, and think of the scenery! You could see lions, and tigers, and bears - oh my! (And run really, really fast, if you got into the safari zone)

And those pathways are so much longer than Prospect Park Zoo (believe me, I've had the wonderful experience of chasing my children around there on a weekend afternoon, especially after my muscles have tightened following a long run earlier in the day).

Alas, the trek to the Bronx is a bit much ... but now, check out this 5K at the Bronx Zoo on April 25. And it's for a great cause.

"Run to help save Gorillas in 2009. We need your help in protecting a species that is at great risk of extinction."

Doesn't quite look like they are pushing it for the competitive aspect, but that's fine.

Huge Turnout for Beginning Runners Class

Happened to be near Grand Army yesterday morning for the first of three beginning runners classes, co-sponsored by the Prospect Park Track Club and Slope Sports. There had to be at least a couple of dozen runners there - dwarfing the usual PPTC/Slope group that usually shows up. People of all ages, sizes etc. were there - simply awesome.

Some comments from the PPTC blog on this (scroll down past the race results).