Spontaneous New York Marathon

Unable to participate in the New York City Marathon, a software engineer in the US organized an impromptu marathon without a permit, requiring no registration or entry fee, and allowing runners to participate in a relay race.

"Everyone wait a minute," announced Matt White, a tall man in a grey shirt, gesturing that the race was about to begin.

Minutes before 9 p.m. on July 14th, a small group of runners gathered around the Manhattan entrance to Williamsburg – the bridge over the East River connecting Manhattan and Brooklyn – hastily affixing makeshift bib numbers to their shirts. When the clock struck 9 p.m., White – considered the unofficial Race Director – gathered the group together and declared with a glint in his eyes: "Run at whatever pace you want, whatever feels right." Then, the first leg of the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon began.

The Williamsburg Bridge connects the two banks of the East River, as seen from Brooklyn towards Manhattan, New York. Photo: AP

Earlier in July, White posted a link inviting people to the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon on Reddit in the r/RunNYC group. The race quickly went viral and generated excitement within the New York running community.

The link announcing the race "will start at 9 PM on Friday, July 14th" and is where runners "experience the excitement/joy/victory/challenge of running more than 10 loops on the bridge connecting Manhattan and Brooklyn." But White emphasized that "runners may have to run more than 10 loops," as he was unsure of the length of the Williamsburg Bridge and couldn't find consistent results when "asking" Google for help.

White is a 28-year-old software engineer who used to row in college and doesn't consider himself a track and field athlete. He runs for a few months each year and enjoys challenging himself with one or two unique endurance feats.

A few weeks earlier, White excitedly signed up for the 2023 New York City Marathon on November 5th, but was turned down. That day, he decided to run the marathon alone on a course near his Brooklyn home. "I thought that was funny," White said. "So I looked for more interesting places to run." He then chose the Williamsburg Bridge and the idea for an impromptu race came to him.

The humor, playfulness, and wit displayed in White's Reddit link caught the attention of Reddit users and prompted many runners, like James Jackson, to put aside their plans and show up at Williamsburg on Friday night. Jackson read through it and was immediately drawn to the site. "This is great, so interesting. Someone's crazy. But it's fun," he said.

White (wearing number 66) also runs the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon – a race he initiated, organized, and officially launched. Photo: Runner's World

Jackson then found the marathon White was organizing on Strava – the world's most popular social network for running. "I'd never heard of this guy. But White was like a restless cat wanting to run a marathon," Jackson said. "Someone took a screenshot of the announcement about the race and sent it to the group chat. And we all said the race sounded great and we wanted to support it."

Jackson's friend, Miranda Feamster, had never run a marathon. So when encouraged to participate in the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon, Feamster suggested in their group chat that they compete as a team and split up the distance.

Initially, people were confused by the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon website, which stated that there was no registration required, no entry fee, no support stations, and no event permit. It all seemed like a joke. The race description read: "After months of exploring the route in New York, we are pleased to announce a straight and turn-around course."

This introduction continues with White's humorous tone, as he notes that runners can encounter "some famous hills" along the route, including Williamsburg on the Manhattan side and Williamsburg on the Brooklyn side. Despite the noisy traffic below the pedestrian walkway, the Williamsburg Bridge is a popular spot for jogging, but not one for running multiple laps continuously.

A section of pedestrian walkway is located above the Williamsburg Bridge, beneath which is a road for cars. Photo: NYC

Runners quickly hailed White as a genius. His eccentricity attracted around 35 people to the unofficial race. Some participants wore green shirts, like Emily Templeton – who had only started running a few months ago and was training for the Warriors Ultra-Run, experiencing the 45km overnight run that recreated the escape scene from the 1979 film, The Warriors. She saw the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon at night as a great opportunity to practice.

Several seasoned runners also participated. The unofficial champion was 24-year-old Diego Arantes, with a time of 2 hours 33 minutes and 49 seconds. He relied on his GPS to know when he had covered the full 42.195 km distance. Arantes aimed for a sub-2:20 time at the Philadelphia Marathon or the London Marathon, so he took the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon very seriously. The Brazilian runner believed he was inspired "by the random, crazy endurance challenges" at White's impromptu race. Arantes only learned about the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon the night before and thought, "Why don't I participate?"

The runners were all smiling as they ran through the cheering area, halfway across the bridge, where electrolyte drinks, bottled water, dried pineapple slices, and a selection of beers were available. This was also where runners competing in teams switched places in a relay style. In her first marathon, Feamster took on the final leg of the race, and her team completed the 42.195 km distance in 3 hours, 19 minutes, and 1 second. Afterwards, they emerged from the Williamsburg Bridge singing Queen's iconic song "We Are Champions."

Two runners run past the cheering area and water station in the middle of Williamsburg Bridge during an impromptu race in New York on the evening of July 14th. Photo: Runner's World

Before the race, White was nervous because it was his first time running a marathon with a group. But after returning home and immediately going to sleep, he woke up the next morning feeling optimistic. Everyone expressed excitement about the Williamsburg Bridge Marathon 2024, and the idea could inspire others to organize similar special races on other bridges.

White even reported ending the race with a message on Reddit expressing gratitude to those who participated in the impromptu and unofficial race. "It was a pleasure running on the Williamsburg Bridge with you all," he wrote. "As I mentioned, when I left my apartment to go to the racetrack, I wasn't sure what I would expect. What I experienced exceeded my wildest dreams about this race."

Hong Duy (according to Runner's World )

Source link: https://vnexpress.net/giai-marathon-tu-phat-o-new-york-4638957.html