NYC Marathon

Runners speed from Staten Island across the Verrazano bridge through Brooklyn and Queens before crossing the 59th Street bridge and running up 1st avenue on the Upper East Side. By the time they reach 79th Street they are on mile 17. I walked two blocks over to catch the action. My original plan was to see the runners, get inspired and then head over to the gym. Crossing 1st avenue proved to be impossible and I ended up watching the marathon for over two hours. Watching the runners was mesmerizing. I got down there just minutes after the elite men passed and awhile after the elite women had passed. For awhile the runners came sparsely, but soon it was a steady pack that lasted for hours.

Some of the first runners I saw. Probably about ten minutes back from the leaders. These guys were running fast. My camera couldn't keep up with them.

Running.

Some of the news coverage. The guy in the orange was running and interviewing at the same time. Here they are taking a break.

People were handing out fruit to the runners and cheering on everyone. Here is a group handing out bananas. There were also people handing out oranges slices.

This building at 1st and 81st had signs and groups cheering the runners on all the way up.

There were a lot of international runners. I saw a lot of runners wearing France and Italia shirts. There was a huge German cheering section at 80th street.

Wet sponges being handed out. This was at about 1 pm several people were walking by then.