On Sunday, April 14 Kim and I ran in the JFK Runway Run. I had planned to write about it the following day but a horrible, terrorist act happened at 2:49 p.m. on April 15- the Boston Marathon bombing.
Once I started hearing the details about Boston there was no way I could write about our race from the previous day.
The Boston Marathon tragedy seemed to captivate the nation (maybe the world) and pretty much shut down the city of Boston for a couple of days while law enforcement went on a manhunt to track down the terrorists.
My heart goes out to the people of Boston and all of those affected by this tragedy. I also hope for a speedy recovery to those injured at the marathon.
Now that a couple of weeks have passed since the events in Boston, I feel that it is time to write a little about our experience at the JFK Runway Run.
Runway runs are probably my favorite kind of races to participate in. They provide access and views of runways that are usually not allowed. We saw lots of planes taking off and landing while we waited for the race to begin and as we ran, which was very cool. Nothing beats the feeling of running and seeing a plane come in for a landing pretty much right over your head.
The section where the race starts & ends is at the Port Authority Rescue- Training Center. At the area are a couple of airplane-like structures most likely used for training. This year we weren’t allowed to get too close to the one shown below.
The race drew a pretty large crowd and I think it was much busier than last year. There were 963 finishers in the race. Kim and I were happy with our finishing times. I completed the 5K in 31:01, Kim in 31:59 (her fastest time yet!)
Everybody entering the race receives a very nice JFK Runway Run t-shirt and an entry into a raffle where you could win a flight. There was also an additional raffle for charity with lots of prizes like flights, hotel stays, a flat screen television and some other things.
I was hoping to win one of the flights but we weren’t so lucky. However, we did win a prize.
I won two tickets to a food event called Taste of LIC (Long Island City, Queens) which also came with two t-shirts from the prior year’s event.
I had never heard of this particular event but it’s definitely something that Kim and I will enjoy. We’ll get to try some food from restaurants from an area that we rarely visit. The tickets cost $150 each last year so I’d definitely say that we did well for the amount we spent ($60 for 3 ticket entry books) on raffle tickets!
After running my first Runway Run of the year, I am hoping to find some additional airports to run at in the future!
