A Runner's Guide to the Bridges of the New York City Marathon

Since the New York City Marathon is just over a week away, I figured I would take a break from Friday poetry to post something that could potentially be useful to runners. For those readers not running New York, I'm sorry, but poetry will make a triumphant return in the near future.

 

During the course of the New York City Marathon, runners visit three different islands (Staten Island, Long Island, and Manhattan Island) with only the briefest of visits to Mainland, U.S.A. In order to get from island to island, runners pass over 5 different bridges, two that are somewhat well-known and three that get short shrift. Because I like to mentally divide the course using the bridges, I present to you my runner's guide to the bridges of the New York City Marathon.

Verrazano-Narrows Bridge

Length: 13,700 ft

Type: Double-decked suspension bridge.

Year Opened: 1964

The Verrazano Bridge marks the start of the marathon, carrying runners nearly two miles from Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island to Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. For blue and orange runners on the top, it provides sweeping views of New York Harbor; for runners on the bottom…forget the views and stay in the middle. The bridge also forms the biggest hill of the race, something to remember when you encounter the Queensboro

Pulaski Bridge

Length: 2,810 ft

Type: Bascule bridge (a.k.a., drawbridge)

Year Opened: 1954

The Pulaski Bridge, named after a Polish general in the American Revolutionary War, connects Greenpoint, Brooklyn to Hunters Point in Long Island City, Queens. It crosses Newton Creek, one of the most polluted bodies of water in America. But you don’t care about that. You care about that fact that the Pulaski Bridge comes at the halfway point in the race. Congrats! Only 13.1 more miles to go.

                                                 Queensboro (59^th Street) Bridge

Length: 3,724 ft

Type: Cantilever truss bridge

Year Opened: 1909

While the Pulaski Bridge marks the halfway point in the marathon, for many runners the race truly begins on the Queensboro Bridge. That's because runner's must climb roughly 130 ft as they cross the East River before beginning their descent to Manhattan's 1st Avenue. As you get closer to Mile 16 and Manhattan you begin to hear the crowd. The trick is in enjoying the crowd's energy without speeding up and wasting too much of your own.

Willis Avenue Bridge

Length: 3,212 ft

Type: Swing bridge

Year Opened: 2010

After 109 years of service, the Willis Avenue Bridge was replaced in 2010. The roadbed of the old bridge was made of open steel grating prompting marathon officials to cover it in orange carpeting for the race. With solid deck that no longer requires carpeting, the new bridge may no longer stand out for its odd appearance but it’s still notable to runners because it comes at Mile 20, the point when many runners hit “the wall.” It also carries runners out of Manhattan and into their final borough, the Bronx.*

Photo credit: Steve Boyle Photo

Madison Avenue Bridge

Length: 2,893 ft

Type: Swing bridge

Year Opened: 1910

The shortest and second-oldest bridge on the course, the Madison Avenue Bridge carries runners out of the Bronx, depositing them on 5th Avenue in Manhattan at Mile 21. Yes, the Madison Avenue Bridge connects to Madison Avenue too, but since that’s not part of the marathon, who cares? If you make it over this bridge you know you're going to finish the race!


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* After the Bronx, runners return to Manhattan, but by that point they have already run through all five boroughs.

The Two Legged Commute

Today my schedule called for a 14 miler which meant getting up really early and struggling to stay awake at work--at least, that's what it usually would have meant. For the first time since this summer, I decided to make my run my commute. We have showers and a locker room at work which turns out to be a huge plus. Yesterday, I brought an extra set of work clothes and a towel with me and left it at the office overnight. That meant this morning all I really had to carry was my ID badge. The best part of this strategy is that it let me sleep in a full 45 minutes later! I felt almost guilty when my alarm finally went off: Am I cheating the system?

Photo Credit: Jessica Krause Smith

If I were to run the most direct route to my work it would only be about 9 miles so I had to be creative. to get those extra miles. I ran through Central Park (have you notice a lot of my runs involve Olmsted and Vaux?) and over 60th to the Queensboro Bridge and into Queens. By the time I got to the bridge, I could see the sun rising over Long Island City. I made my way to Vernon Blvd which runs along the East River and was amazed at how many people were out and about. There's a ConEd plant here and many taxi garages so it makes sense there was so much activity, but on weekends when I usually here this stretch is often deserted.

I crossed into Brooklyn over the Pulaski Bridge (the halfway point in the New York City Marathon) and turned onto Eagle and then Franklin. I don't usually run on Franklin so it was a nice change of scenery to pass all the cafes and shops that line the rapidly changing street. I continued onto Kent, this whole time running along the East River, watching the Williamsburg Bridge get closer and closer, passing new condo after new condo. By now it was actually light outside! Who knew you could run in the sunlight on a weekday? When I made the turn onto the Williamsburg Bridge pedestrian path I could feel the 9+ miles I'd already run in my legs. Still, seeing lower Manhattan in the early morning sun was more than enough to make up for any minor soreness.

The rest of my run took me along the East River and underneath the Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges before turning into the Financial District and ending at work. It was a perfect day for a run and I plan on doing the whole commute-on-foot thing again soon!

Do any of you ever run to or from work? Let me know in the comments.

Below the jump there's a map of my route.