Source: Robert Caplin, The New York Times
You can cancel the race, but you can't stop people from waking up early, putting on spandex, and running in circles to say they completed a marathon.. even if it's an unofficial marathon.
After the Friday announcement of the first NYC Marathon cancellation since 1970, the participants in one of the largest marathons in the world were left wondering what to do with their Sunday morning. I, like many of the other participants, did not need to wonder for too long. After a post-cancellation margarita, it seemed clear. Run anyways.
But more than loving the fact that thousands of other marathon runners from around the word flooded into Central Park to finish the race that has been a longstanding tradition in the great city of New York, you have to love the New Yorkers that also came to Central Park to cheer and support the runners with a little New York hospitality. You have to love the children passing Halloween candy to the athletes and the crews of Uptown-ers holding signs like "you've been training for this race longer than Kim Kardashian's marriage" on the side of the road.
Mostly, you have to love that one guy in Harlem holding up a 2 liter bottle of Diet Pepsi and a Dixie cup yelling "Hydration!" and "You're almost there!" When you're running in circles (4.5 circles to be exact), it's hard to know exactly where "there" is. I love New York.
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