Half a Corbitt is better than none.

Some people say that the NYC Marathon is just like going for a run with 45,000 of your closest friends.  That is Bull Shit. It is a lot of things but it is not personal.  Today I found a way to really go for a great run with some wonderful people.  This event has not website, no application forms, and defiantly no sponsors.  I only found out about it because I read my fiend's blog about it last year.

My invitation.

On the Anniversary of Ted Corbett's birth a group of people meet at about the spot where he used to live and duplicate his training run.  In order to get in on this you have to know Dave.  I was lucky enough to know some people who know Dave.  You have to get an invitation from Dave, because Dave starts the run from his apartment.

This is Dave's apartment.  This is Dave.  He had just finished reading a letter written to us by the Ted Corbitt's son.  Wait letme back up.  I have to tell you who Ted Corbitt was.  I just have to quote Wikipedia

 "Ted Corbitt (January 31, 1919 – December 12, 2007) was an American long-distance runner and an official of running organizations. Corbitt is often called "the father of long distance running." He was an ultramarathon pioneer, helping to revive interest in the sport in the United States in the 1960s and 70s. New York Times columnist Robert Lipsyte called Corbitt a "spiritual elder of the modern running clan". In a Runner's World feature honoring lifetime achievement, writer Gail Kislevitz called Corbitt a "symbol of durability and longevity".

The highlighting was my idea. So he is The Man.  It is not until the next paragraph that Wikipedia even mentions that he was an Olympian.  The Man.

Oh yea, back to Dave.  This is Dave just after he read a letter from Ted's son.   He wrote a letter with the intention of it being read to the participants of this "Run around Manhattan" to honor his father.  Dave read that Ted ran the parameter of Manhattan regularly (31 to 34 miles), often twice and he even did it 3 times once!  I am told that every year Dave and his wife open their apartment so that runners can leave their dry clothing there, again.  Not like the NYC Marathon, just Dave.

So from W 96th street we took Riverside Dr North and got totally lost in Fort Tryon Park.  Nobody cared.  It was very pretty there.  after about 6 or 7 or 8 miles we took a break at Twin Donut Plus, It is just below the Norther Tip of Manhattan, where Broadway goes over a little bridge to the Bronx.

This event could not have happened with out Alex. He rode his "kick scooter" along with us the entire way.  He filled his backpack with our excess layers and the front of the scooter had a basket filled with super strong coffee, tea and for later vodka ;).


It should also be noted that the areas of Northern Manhattan know as Fort Washington, Fort Tryon, and Inwood, should as a group be know as Fucking San Fransisco.  The got staircase street there. Forgetaboutit.

Then we meandered our way back to Harlem and (mile 21 -23 of the NYC Marathon Route) and headed back to the East River at 86th St.  Pit stop number 2 was a Bagel shop on 86th and York.  This is where my problem began.  The stop was a little to long and I got cold.  Not good.  If fact if I had my withers I would have stopped to refuel more often but for shorter periods of time.  But I did not have my withers.

It is not good to get cold when you have a cold.  The next few miles I felt the pressure in my ears build up and I know that the push to 33 miles would not be a good idea.

Another amazing man I met on this run was Yijoo Kwon.  He just got back from running from LA to NYC in about 60 days.  Check out his blog here and don't forget to translate it to a language you speak.  When he saw that I was going to take a photo of the UN, he took my camera and took this one of me, in front of the UN.  I did not really want a picture of me, I wanted a photo of the upper floors of the UN that are under construction.  Like his blog, Mr Kwan speaks only Korean. But a nice guy.  Look at this video of him.he took my photo in just about the same spot he finished his 3,100 mile run.

For other versions of this same event check out Run Yijoo Run here and here or Rundangerously here.

In 1998 I ran a 50K in Prospect Park.  I did not know it at the time but Ted Corbitt was one of the people staffing the food table. My memory of that endurance event just got a little better.