The NYC Marathon

In 1976 the entrance fee for the New York City Marathon was five dollars. But it took years for the New York City marathon to gain enough popularity to require an entrance fee. This is just one awesome fact I absorbed while listening to the Bowery Boys podcast on The New York City Marathon. The NYC marathon is one of the most popular marathons. Over 30 thousand runners run the marathon that lays tracks through all five burros, starting and finishing in Manhattan. There is so much history behind the New York City Marathon. Fred Lebo, an orthodox Jew who survived the holocaust and immigrated to New York City, started the New York Road Runners Club in 1958. He wanted to make marathon running popular. It took a lot of dreaming and hard work to reach this goal. The Road Runner’s Club ran in Queens and the Bronx and used Yankee stadium locker room to change and bathe after their running workouts. Not many people thought marathon running would gain popularity but Fred had a dream, which he was not going to easily let go of. The first official New York City Marathon took place in Central Park on September 17, 1970 and consisted of 4 laps around the hill filled and only semi-pathed park. In 1976 the Road Runner’s club gained more popularity by advertising and word of mouth. The 1976 marathon was significant because it had a five dollar entrance fee, was held in the bi-centennial anniversary year and the course was changed to conquer all five burros. It’s a logistical nightmare to organize a marathon even on a large budget. The 1976 marathon had the smallest budget the New York City marathon has ever had and they ran through all five burros with little police coverage or awareness. Anything could have happened, but good luck was on Lebo and the road runner club members’ side. The race raised money for the city, gained popularity and truly united people from all different backgrounds in a time when there was a need for lifted spirits. After the New York City Marathon gained so much popularity other states hosted marathons. Presently the New York City marathon is the most well known marathon and it makes itself available for all sorts of people. The Bowery Boys explained the historical part of the marathon and their guest speaker, a NYC marathon finisher, explained why it is so diverse and popular today. She explained that there are many ways to get an entrance number, which is basically your ticket to run the marathon. One way, that I was unaware of, is to raise over $1,500 for a charity on a list that the Road Runner’s Club post each year before the race. My favorite part of the podcast was when the guest speaker explained just how wonderful and diverse the crowd is who cheer the runners on. She said she encountered all sorts of tri-state area fans and her favorite moment was when she ran through a polish neighborhood where women and children were slicing fresh oranges and handing them out to runners, like herself. My mother has been a member of the Central Park track team as well as the New York Road Runner’s club since she weas fresh out college and I think she would agree with the Bowery Boy’s podcast claim that the New York City Marathon is magical.

Hanna Merrill