Hot Weather Running

It seems Mother Nature decided once Memorial Day hit it was time for summer to hit NYC. We had a legitimate heat wave this past week with several days over 90 degrees. One day actually hit a high of 97. Whew! That is hot.

Perfectly placed on Thursday, smack in the middle of the heat wave, I had a race to run. I’ve wanted to run the American Heart Association Wall Street Run for a few years now but for one reason or another it didn’t work out. As it’s in our neighborhood and we’re moving later this month, I made it a point to do this race. It was so hot but I was determined to do it.

There were a ton of people at the start, many walkers mixed in with the runners, which was an auspicious start. This race also brings out a lot of corporate teams. While great, it also means there are a lot of people who don’t run often trying to look hard core in front of their colleagues. It was hot at the start, with stale air hanging around the crowds and heat radiating from the streets, but thankfully the sun was going down and the tall buildings and narrow streets mean that there’s a lot of shade.

The race goes through the mostly narrow and winding streets of lower Manhattan. It’s a great 3-mile tour of my part of the city, but it’s also a bit of a challenge due to the tight space. I got annoyed pretty quickly by the runners who jumped on the sidewalk trying to ‘get past the crowds’ but were shaving distance off their race at the same time. Especially when it came to cutting big corners. Definitely not cool to cheat.

I thought I took it slow, and I definitely did compared to some others, but the heat was still getting to me around mile 2. There was one water station along the route, and it was a little before mile 2 – I think – but there could have easily been another and it would have been much appreciated!

The finish line was along the Hudson River in Battery Park City just below the North Cove, where the finish line festivities were taking place. I run this promenade often but I swear, it has never seemed so long as it did that night! The finish line was a little smaller than usual and I kept straining to see it ahead of me but there were just people and trees and water. No finish line. I was SO beyond thrilled when I saw it.

It took a while to reach the water, apples and pretzels, then I walked around a bit trying to catch some of the breeze to cool down and found a guy to take my picture. I was pretty thrilled I made it to the finish line in that heat without walking, especially after I saw a few people being helped down to the curb. A race on one of our first really hot days. Fun times! Glad that’s over!

Then Saturday was the big #WeRUNNYC fun run sponsored by Oiselle, Nuun and Pickybars! It was another REALLY hot day, already 80 degrees by 8am. There was a great turnout for the run, sampling and raffle, especially given the heat and was fun to see so many Oiselle birds!

Two groups went out – 4 miles and 8 miles – I really have no idea how the 8 milers did it. Just finishing our run, which turned out to be a little over 5 miles, was pretty tough. The running path along the East River has little shade making it quite hot. It was great to see so many people coming together for a run and enjoying the camaraderie. Meggie and Joceyln did an amazing job organizing the event!

Even though we were sweating like mad, Grace, April, Steve (April’s husband), Woody and I went out for brunch at a cute place in Chelsea, Tipsy Parsons. I highly recommend it. It was a hot, but super fun morning and I’m so glad Grace, April and Steve joined us! Great times with friends!

 

Is it getting hot where you live? What are your tips for successful hot weather running?