My wife, daughter, and I boarded the train heading to Central Park. After a few minutes of wondering if we got on the correct train, we arrive at the 86th Street Station on the west side of Central Park. We depart to the street to find a glorious (at least for running) day. My wife takes a few pictures for posterity, and off I go.
I am figuring that my Garmin is going to take a few minutes to lock into the GPS signal, so I slowly adjust all of my electronics (because I certainly do not want to screw this up) and enter the park at W90th Street. The first thing that I notice is the sheer amount of runners of every size, every age, and every level that are training in the park. During my training runs, I am lucky to see three or four others, even on a long run. I am secretly hoping I don't end up looking like a fool, but then I realize that I will probably never get a chance to do a Central Park run again.
My warm-up run starts on the Shuman Running Track, on the Northwest side of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Resoviour. The track itself is not asphalt, but a kind of compact gravel surface that seems to be very easy on the feet. I slowly transverse counterclockwise (because that is the way that the flow of running seems to be going) at about an 11:00 mile pace. Hey, this is a warm-up.
I am figuring that 1k for a warm-up should be good since I am planning to go about 10k. I feel that I am getting the lay of the land pretty well, so I hit 1k at about the South Gate House, head down the stairs to the 86th St Transverse, and kill the run. Among the many dog walkers and baby strollers, I see, to my great delight, a water fountain. I immediately have horrifying flashbacks to the fountains on the East Bay Bike Path, which looked operable but produced no water. Imagine my satisfaction when I push the button, and water comes out. Happy, hydrated, and feeling warmed up, I begin my Central Park run.
My general plan is to lap the Resoviour, then step off the track and head in sort of a non-planned zig-zag pattern to Central Park North, then come back down the west side until I have completed 10k. I hit the Shuman just about at the same place that I left and start my run, easing into a slow pace of about a 10:50 mile. The scenery is breathtaking.
I am also amazed at the cacophony of different languages that I am hearing from my fellow runners. It seems like everyone who is running with a partner and conversing is speaking a different language. Quite a change from Southeastern Massachusetts.
I lap the Resoviour in a little less than 20 minutes. At kilometer three, I step off of the running track and step onto either the Bridal Path or East Drive, I am not sure which. There are a couple of noticeable differences. The first and most apparent is that the surface has changed to asphalt. The second is that, while the running track was only used by runners, this trail was used by bikers, skaters, and pedestrians. No matter, plenty of space. I continue north until the 97th Street Transverse, then go northeast on what I think is an unnamed path. A little less than three miles sees me at 32:00. Slow, but I am taking everything in.
It is about here that I screw up. My trip takes me through the Conservatory Garden. Very beautiful and exciting; however, it occurs to me about halfway through that this might not be the place to run through. I increase the pace and escape undetected. This leads me to the southeast side of the Harlem Meer, so I decide to lap it. The track is reasonably broad but starts to narrow slightly as you round the pond. I am surprised to see that, for long periods, I am the only one using this stretch of road. Quite a difference from the beginning of my run.
When I lap the pond, I am just under four miles. My pace has increased slightly, but still very slow overall. It is at this time that I actually leave the park and do my running on Fifth Avenue. I am getting beautiful views of the park while actually getting a real feel for what it's like to be a runner in a big city setting. I take a left at the Duke Ellington Circle to Central Park North. It seems like there are quite a few more locals here, taking advantage of park benches or just going about their day. It is here that I get my first spectator encouragement; "way to go, lookin' good" comes from a man sitting at Central Park North and Lenox. At this point, he could probably tell from looking at me that I needed a boost.
I reenter the park at East Drive. This is where things get hilly, something I did not at all expect. While the elevation was not overly drastic, it was in spots very challenging. I choose to stay on East Drive for a while, but in my desire to get back to West Drive, I get hopelessly lost and disoriented. I take something of what looks like a shortcut only to find myself sidestepping large rocks and climbing up flights of stairs. It turns out I went through something called The Ravine, not exactly something conducive to effecting running. My pace at times turns into a laughable 12:30 mile, but I do manage to find my way to the 102nd Street Crossing, which leads me back to West Drive. Five miles at 56 minutes, and I am feeling sore and fatigued.
West Drive is very wide and has specific markings for both runners and cyclists. The elevation is still hovering, since I am now feeling tired, even the smallest of hills become a challenge. I hit an hour at the 97th Street Transverse, then run one more mile down West Drive until calling it quits between Central Park West and The Lake. 6.5 miles took 1:12:39, a slow eleven-minute pace, but this was more about taking in the atmosphere than working on speed. Mission accomplished.
I started to walk back to the Central Park Zoo, where I was going to meet my wife and daughter. It was wonderful to take in everything in the park, whether it be the statues, the artists, the gentlemen making giant bubbles, or the various attractions at the park. I can quite honestly say that was the most exciting cool down I have ever done.
Check one off the bucket list.
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