My friend Alexis, whom I helped coach to her first half marathon a year ago, lives nearby so she signed up for this race and I could not resist the urge to go cheer for her.
Like most of upstate New York, Newburgh is hilly. There is no getting around it. If you are going to run 13 miles in that area, you will be running up and down hills. A lot of them.
In fact, from what I could tell in my limited view of the course and from talking to Alexis afterward, it seems there was little flat ground at all in the race. Or, as one runner pointed out as I offered encouragement from the sidelines, "I think it's uphill both ways!"
Actually, because it was an out-and-back, she was not entirely wrong.
The race started in downtown Newburgh (a town that, unfortunately, looks like it has seen better days) and the course proceeded north to River Road. I staked out a spot a the intersection of Oak Street, before the five mile mark. The race clearly had gotten off to a very late start because at 9:30 a.m., when the leaders should have been coming through, there was no sign of any runners.
Finally, around 20 minutes later, the front runners passed by:
As I watched the mid-packers come through, I could see they had already been working hard. The Oak Street spot was situated just after a long incline and it showed on their faces. After seeing Alexis pass by and cheering her on, I stripped off my outer layers and ran up Oak Street to Route 9W, then north to Old Post Road, where the race turnaround was located. When Alexis came up to that halfway point, I ran with her a little bit and asked how she was feeling.
"Hot," she said. The sun was blazing and it was definitely atypically warm for an early June morning. I told her she was doing great and that I would see her again at the Oak Street spot.
By the time I got back there, all the runners by then were looking worn, the hills and the heat taking their toll in Mile Nine. Still the lovely view of the Hudson River had to offer some scenic distraction during such a difficult course. There is something about running along water that makes a race more fun.
Once Alexis passed again, I hopped in the car and drove to the finish line downtown. The NYC Runs folks had set up their race HQ in a small open space at the end of Broadway.
The runners were trickling into the finish line and though no one was getting a PR on this course, they all seemed triumphant in finishing this difficult course on this hot morning. There were a few turns in the last mile, moving away from the river and toward the town, and there was also one more huge hill:
I walked down to the bottom of that hill, and spent the next half hour cheering with all my might for these folks who had been put through the ringer for this race.
Knowing she was in the last mile but with the finish nowhere in sight, a woman asked me, "Where's the finish line??!!"
"Three more turns," I told her, "but only a half-mile to go!"
Alexis came chugging along and she was fatigued, for sure, but I knew she had a little bit of kick in her because she had been doing some speed training in recent months. So I ran with her up the last hill and just as she started to lose it, I backed off a bit. I told her to take it really easy until the just before the crest of the hill, then to power through with every bit of energy she had left because it was the last quarter-mile, like the last 400-meter lap in a tough training session. I recruited other spectators to help cheer for Alexis as she rounded the last two corners.
What I saw then was amazing - this 10:00+-pace runner, after 13 miles of tortuous hills and heat dug deep and rallied that last 400 meters like a champ. It was an indication that there is still lots more potential in this gal, and she can tap into it if she keeps working at it.
Post-race, it was the usual NYC Runs simple fare of bagels, bananas and other fruit - exactly what the runners needed and nothing more. I am all for that. NYC Runs events are put on by people who know what a good race needs - good organization, clearly marked courses, and helpful volunteers. Fancy post-race parties are not what this group is about, and they are all the better for it. These folks are obviously runners that love and care for the sport.
Is it worth driving up to Newburgh from New Jersey or New York City for this race in the future? I say yes, as long as a PR is not an expectation and the focus is on the running. It is a challenging course but since when are we runners discouraged by a challenge?
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