New York Road Runners, is presenting the perfect opportunity for fitness conscious “global citizens” to lend a helping hand. Saturday morning, February 20th, NYRR is organizing a 4 mile walk/run to benefit the earthquake ravaged country of Haiti. The walk/run starts at 9:00 AM. In addition to the 4 mile race, a kids race will take place at 10:30. According to the NYRR:

All entry fees collected by NYRR will go to New York City’s Haiti Relief Fund, administered by the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, which is directing 100% of donations to reputable organizations providing relief in Haiti.

Online registration for the event is currently open, until 11:59 PM EST, on Wednesday night (February 17), after which participants will only be able to register on the morning of the event, in Central Park. Online registration may be done through the NYRR event page.

As an additional bonus for NYRR members trying to gain entry for the 2011 New York City Marathon, NYRR has announced that it will award double “9+1″ credit for this race. That means that the run for Haiti will actually count as two races toward the nine required for guaranteed entry to next year’s marathon. For additional details, including course map, please see the New York Road Runners’ event page.

The Norwegian Festival is this weekend in Central Park. Organized by NYRR, there is literally a race for everyone. The festival takes place in Central Park, this Saturday, with the main location being at the Central Park Band Shell. the festival will have a 1.7 mile race that spans the 72nd Street Transverse, to the lower loop of the park; a 13.1 mile half marathon, that consists of two loops of Central Park Drive; and, a kids race, to top it all off.

For those who were thoroughly frustrated by the transportation breakdown at the Queens Half-Marathon, on the 20th, this will be the perfect opportunity to show up and run a stress free 13 miles. As of Monday, September 28, online registration is still open.

Check the NYRR official event page, for further details, including start times, and course map.

[Photo: Jacob Breinholt/Run-NYC]

It was fantastic weather for running, Saturday morning. The overnight rain kept things cool, and the clouds were still blocking the sun. These conditions made the 2009 NYRR, Fitness Magazine Fitness® Mind, Body, Spirit Games, 4 mile race, even more enjoyable.

The race was a NYRR club points race, and were divided up by gender. The mens’ race started at 9:00 AM, and the women’s at 10 AM. Both heats were had very exciting finishes that came right down to the final stretch.

Before the women’s race, Kara Goucher happened to be out for a run in the park, and Mary Wittenberg of NYRR, noticed her passing by. Goucher was a good sport about giving an impromptu address to the women runners, who were already all lined up in the starting chute.

The winner for the men, was Bado Worku Merdessa, with a scorching time of 19:08. For the Women, it was Aziza Aliyu, beating out Katrina Janosikova by less than a full step. Aliyu scored a 22:22, time.

In total, there were nearly 5000 finishers. As always, NYRR and Fitness Magazine put on a great event. Congratulations to all of the finishers. Full results can be found here.

Click here for the photo gallery.

The NYRR Half Marathon Grand Prix, continues, this weekend, with the New York City Half-Marathon. This race will take place in the borough of Manhattan. This leg of the NYRR Grand Prix is probably the most popular, because of its location.

The course begins on the east side of Central Park, on Central Park Drive, near 85th Street, headed south. After one clockwise loop of the park, runners will exit, onto Central Park South, headed west, to the West Side Hwy. The remainder of the course is located on the south-bound portion of the West Side Highway, to the finish line in Battery Park City. Click here for a course map.

The gun, will be at 7:00, Sunday morning. The weather forecast is looking favorable. As if there weren’t enough reasons to be excited about running, or attending this race on Sunday, It was recently announced the Paul Radcliffe, winner of multiple major marathons, will be participating. This will be the first race of the year for Radcliffe.

The NYRR announced on Thursday:

Making her first start of the year after being sidelined with a foot injury and looking to test her fitness, marathon world record-holder Paula Radcliffe of Great Britain will run in the fourth annual NYC Half-Marathon on Sunday, August 16, it was announced today by New York Road Runners president and CEO Mary Wittenberg. Radcliffe last competed nearly 10 months ago when she won her third ING New York City Marathon. She had bunion surgery on her right foot in March. The NYC Half-Marathon will be her first-ever half-marathon in the United States

This should be an extremely exciting event, with an expected participation of nearly 10,000 runners. Check back on Monday, for photos of the race.

It could be described as the “mermaid parade of running.” Friday night July 24, runners, triathletes, and others gathered in Central park to kick off a weekend of events surrounding the Nautica New York City Triathlon.

The race, sponsored by Nautica, started on the 72nd street transverse of Central Park, and Cherry Hill. The route was a 1.7 Mile lap, of the lower Central Park Drive, then back to the 72nd Street Transverse.

The event set a world record (yet to be confirmed) for the most people assembled wearing only underwear. Most of the runners got creative with their ensembles. Many of the Triathlon clubs participating in the NYC Tri, this weekend, showed up in matching outfits. It was a good time for participants and spectators alike.

For more details about the Olympic length New York City Triathlon taking place this weekend, click here.

For more photos, click here.

Central Park Underwear Run

What better way to cool off, on a hot summer Friday, than stripping down and going for a jog? This evening at 7:30 in Central Park, people will be doing exactly that.

In keeping with tradition, every year before the New York City Triathlon, there is an underwear race in Central Park. Unfortunately, registration for this event is closed. However, spectators are encouraged. There will also be plenty of sponsors on at the event handing out swag.

As an additional spectacle, the 2009 mayoral candidate, the Naked Cowboy will be on site. It should be a great chance to hob nob with the guy in his natural element.

The race is a 1.7 mile run at Dead Road, starting at 7:30. Organizers are attempting to set a world record, with this event of “most people assembled in their underwear.”

Here is a link to the event’s website. ]]> http://www.run-nyc.com/2009/07/2009-central-park-underwear-run/feed/ 0 http://www.run-nyc.com/2009/07/nyrr-run-for-central-park/ http://www.run-nyc.com/2009/07/nyrr-run-for-central-park/#comments Tue, 21 Jul 2009 20:07:40 +0000 Jesq http://www.run-nyc.com/?p=24

The NYRR Run for Central Park, to benefit the Central Park Conservancy was July 18. Zach Tolbert volunteered his photography skills for the event. He shot a hefty stack of great photos, including the one at the top of this post. Check of the rest of the photos here. You can also read the race report on the Examiner website, here.