2025 UA New York City Half
Jay and I running down Atlantic Ave on the Way to the Brooklyn Bridge. Photo By Gary Dean Clarke
Gloomy view from FDR
We finally hit Grand Central! Picture taken by Noel Collo at the Run for Chinatown cheer spot!
I was hyped to see my Asian Trail Mix friends on 7th Ave and 57 st. Photo by Huy Duong.
Jay and I after we received our medals at the finish. We ran 2 hours and 16 minutes.
“We’re going uphill? No wonder I’m tired.” My running buddy, Jay, panted at the half-mile mark.
Still so many more hills to go, I thought. I began making a list of the upcoming hills: Prospect Park, Brooklyn Bridge, 42nd Street toward Grand Central, and Central Park, where the finish line was. This was my fourth time running the United Airlines New York City Half, but I was severely undertrained. I had suffered a concussion back in February and had been busy with grad school applications and organizing my move to Portland. Other than in 2023, I had always run this race for fun.
“Noon!” A scream interrupted my thoughts. The first mile and a half of the race was a sort of out-and-back: up the hill, then down the hill, before entering Prospect Park. Because of this, we would see several friends starting strong and cheer each other on—a final goodbye and good luck before the next 12 miles.
Jay and I conquered the hill in Prospect Park easily, and before we knew it, we were barreling downhill on Atlantic Avenue at a solid nine-minute mile. Jay was also undertrained, so we had decided to run together for my last New York Road Runners race before leaving the city. After several turns, we ran up the iconic Brooklyn Bridge. I was getting excited, and Jay kept having to remind me to slow down.
Every year, my run club, Run for Chinatown, greeted runners at mile six as we sprinted down the Manhattan Bridge and entered Chinatown. However, due to construction on the Manhattan Bridge, the route had changed. The Brooklyn Bridge became the alternative, cutting Chinatown from the course. I would have to wait until mile ten, by Grand Central and Bryant Park, to see them along with other crews.
We got off the Brooklyn Bridge but continued onto a ramp that took us straight to the FDR Highway. Suddenly, we heard a bang and saw that a big van had crashed into a Range Rover on the road below us. There were already police in the area, and not wanting to lose time, we let the adrenaline of witnessing the crash fuel us. I did a quick calculation—three miles on this long, windy highway. The cheers would be sparse. We kept passing the mile markers, and I dug into my music. I would have preferred chatting, but Jay liked to listen to music, occasionally rapping some lyrics out loud. It began raining. It was light, but I worried it would pick up and leave us drenched. Luckily, it faded out within twenty minutes.
As we finally got off the ramp onto 42nd Street, my friend began hitting a wall. I suggested we walk on 42nd until we saw our friends, but Jay suggested the opposite, which made sense. We ran along 42nd, occasionally slowing down or stopping to wave and say hi to our support teams. Focusing on them and having fun, we soon found ourselves passing mile 11 and turning north onto 7th Avenue, where Times Square stood, closed and ready for us.
“I want to cry,” I let out. The tall buildings, the long, colorful, lighted billboards, and the tightly knit crowds roaring were mesmerizing. I took in as much of it as I could, not knowing when I would run this race again. Now that I would be living across the country, I would have to rely on the tough lottery system, as opposed to completing the 4-out-of-6 NYRR program which guarantees an entry.
We hit the last mile. All hills from here. I kept counting down: seven minutes left, five minutes left, three minutes left. Jay and I saw the finish line and sprinted the last 100 meters together. We hugged, got our aluminum blankets, medals, and goodie bags, then hopped on the subway to treat ourselves to a nice, warm bowl of ramen.
I'm truly honored to have lived in NYC and experienced the running community. Running through 42nd Street and Times Square and seeing my friends lit me up. I will try my best to qualify for the half and come back. Most of all, thank you to the best running buddy I could have had—Jay. I've run this four years in a row, and I’m looking forward to coming back. It's been wonderful, NYC.
*Next Blog: What I wore for the race.