NYC Walking
About a week ago I saw a poster for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer, which is happening in October here in NYC. For some reason I decided that I wanted to walk in this event, which is a 39.3 mile marathon. Granted, it’s over two days, but day one is 26.2 miles. It’s definitely a major undertaking, but I have until October to train. Yesterday I started by walking 3 miles at the gym to determine where I am physically. I’m slightly sore today but it wasn’t all that hard or taxing. So I’m fairly sure I can do this with some work between now and the event.
While I was looking for a training plan on the walk’s website I saw that local people are leading training walks in the months leading up to the marathon. I didn’t see any in Manhattan, but one I found in Brooklyn aims to walk all the way around Prospect Park. That sparked another idea: I’ve long wanted to challenge myself by walking all the way around Central Park, either around the perimeter or walking paths inside the park that do the circuit.
If I did such a thing, would anyone join me? Since this would be an endurance walk, the point is not to go fast, but to keep a moderate pace and rest appropriately. Plus, we’ll be in the park!
I’m thinking June 5th or 6th (Saturday or Sunday) would be good. It’s the weekend after WisCon and before Shakespeare in the Park starts, plus about a month into my training. If you’re interested, let me know your preference of day.
After this I’ll tackle one of Ellen W’s Broadway walks. I’ve always wanted to walk the entire length of the island of Manhattan.
Yes, I am a crazy person.
I will BE in NYC on the 5th, and I would love to!
Count me in! After doing the 14 mile walk twice, 6 miles will be a breeze. ;)
I’d love to do it – and if you want someone to do a Manhattan-length walk as well, I’m totally up for that.
Delia & I love to walk! We’d do the Central Park walk with you – sounds very cool, plus her NYBetween books – but we’ll be away that weekend. However, keep us posted (you know I almost never read blogs) any time you want to be out on the street, and we’ll see if we can’t join you.
The Avon walk is wonderful – really worth doing, and I’m sure you’ll love it. Go, you.
Yes, you are a crazy person. I can’t go walking with you in NYC, but I will definitely support you when it’s sponsor time.
If our schedules can sync, I’ll join you in a training walk or two during Wiscon. Pat Murphy is also usually a good bet for company on a walk.
I did the San Francisco Avon Walk in 2007 and mostly trained alone except for some Avon sponsored training walks. The alone thing worked for me if only because a) there were no close teams for me to get to without a car and b) I had specific ways that I walked that wasn’t always good to share it with out people (like when I was grinding toward the 12 mile mark. I was not a pretty person).
A couple of tips:
Invest in really good sneakers and non-blistering socks. Trust me, the non-blistering socks are a must. And have the sneakers outfitted by a professional. I went to New Balance to get my first pair and then bought subsequent pairs off the net once I had the right size and type.
Get whatever hydration system (backpack or lumbar) you intend to use early and start training with it as soon as you can. I went with a Camelback and trained with it so I was used to the weight and how it rode on my body.
If there’s anything else you’d like to know, just give me a holler.
PS: I envy you the NY Avon Walk route. San Francisco on day 2 was brutal.
which socks did you get? All of mine are cotton. I bought a pair of running shoes about 2 years ago that, unfortunately, haven’t been worn as much since I stopped exercising regularly. But I did get them to support my arches since they are a bit of an issue, and for walks such as this, so I think I’m covered there. Having fallen arches means I usually buy good walking shoes by default. Mediocre ones won’t support me.
…and now I don’t just want to *visit* you in NY, I want to *move* to NY. Damn you, lottery!
If I am still in the city this summer (the semester is over in two weeks and it’s still up in the air! yikes!) I would love to at least do the Central Park walk with you, if not other training as well. I need to start getting back in some semblance of shape.
Sounds terrific, wish I were going to be in NYC. Good walking!
I’ve walked the length of Manhattan, north-to-south. It was fun! I’d be interested in walking that with you when you’re ready.