Sunday, November 01, 2009

It's NYC Marathon Sunday!

The racecourse runs pretty much right past my apartment so for the past three years I've gone down to Bedford and S. 5th to watch.

At first the street looks pretty empty.



You'll see a lot of that "red overpass": it's the Williamsburg Bridge.


The first signs of the oncoming deluge are the wheelchair "runners"








Some of these competitors do things that are simply astonishing




The signal that the gazelles are about to fly by, and I do mean FLY is the arrival of the time truck




and then here they are:




and they're gone faster than you can refocus and snap a picture! The man second from the right in the white jersey with USA emblazoned in red is this year's winner!

It's always a thrill to see these guys whirl by, but the real fun comes later...MUCH later, after the elite runners, after the seriously competitive runners (like our own Stephany Evans!) after all the people who are there for more than just fun, here come the people in the costumes and the messages:
















and this was of course my favorite!






Congratulations to Danette Somers, my "person to watch for" this year! She arrived in Williamsburg still vertical and still moving forward! And she's running for TEAM FOX a cause I'm very happy to support along with her. Go Danette!

I didn't get a picture of her, she was moving too fast for the camera to focus but we managed a quick hug, and she was back on track!

10 comments:

Jon said...

I am far from any sort of competitive athlete but have done 2 full marathons and 3 half-marathons.

They are indeed a lot of fun, blisters and all. How cool to have the perfect vantage spot to view the fun.

Art, Love and Life said...

Hey Janet, you've put some tremendous photos on your blog. I'm a writer - runner, so I appreciate them. Did you see our very own Paula Radcliffe? I haven't checked the resuts yet, so I don't know if she finished or if she did what position she was in. I haven't done a marathon for a long time, but next year has a bit 0 in it, so I have been talking to people about going over to NY and having a go. Seems like a good way to see the place.

Cheers.
Ray

Ash. Elizabeth said...

i smiled checking this post out because i love marathons. my grandfather, at 55, ran the iron man in hawaii and beat even the 20-something bracket in time. he's done it his entire life, and i only hope to be as good as him someday.

great post as always and saying it made me smile is saying something since i currently look like a chipmunk after having four wisdom teeth pulled :)

Debra Lynn Shelton said...

Great pics, Janet. I have two friends from HS who have both run the NYC Marathon (as well as others). I'm blown away by anyone who can run a marathon. My husband just ran his first 10K (6.2 miles) and I thought that was incredible. He plans to run his first full marathon in Oregon in the spring. I'm psyched, since I've never been to the northwest.

Again, thanks for the great before and during pics!!

Botanist said...

These people have my deepest respect just for getting out there and trying it.

The thing I find most amazing is that the serious runners are going at a pace that would leave most of us breathless after 100 yards. And they keep it up for 26 miles.

Anonymous said...

Great photos. I've run about ten marathons, mostly in Alaska, that's where I live. But the NYC marathon is on my list. A few of my friends ran this year.

Sandra Cormier said...

Wonderful pictures, Janet. I love the range of runners from pro to fun. Hooray for writer and writer-in-law runners!

MomCO3 said...

Watching other people run their guts out is one of my favorite activities. Looks like you had the perfect site!

Unknown said...

I really admire these people. I can't even run around the block.

Terri Coop said...

Too cool! And what a great vantage point.

Many years ago I was in Paris on vacation. Unbeknownst to me, the bistro I had chosen for breakfast was on the Tour de France route. Even more unbeknownst to me, I had chosen the perfect time to be in a window seat.

Same sense of awe at the prowess and determination of these spectacular athletes. I consider walking to work to be my contribution to physical fitness, but these folks are amazing!