Central Park Track Club » Jesse Lansner

What’s Up, Doc?

Jesse Lansner — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 12:32:07 +0000

Ever been to a doctor whose solution to any injury you have is to tell you to stop running? Thankfully, we haven’t, but we know they re out there. The Times solution â€” see a doctor who’s also an athlete. Or you could just try to find a doctor who actually knows what he s talking about when it comes to training â€” like our sports doc, who isn’t overly athletic himself, but has treated enough athletes to know what to recommend) â€” but it’s so much easier to just check the wall for race photos.

Happy Birthday Devon

Jesse Lansner — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 12:05:34 +0000

Happy Birthday to Coach Devon. As always, we have too much tact to even think of mentioning her age, but it rhymes with sporty.

Run Tonight in Honor of Doug Stern

Jesse Lansner — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 12:45:49 +0000

There will be a run in Central Park tonight in honor of Doug Stern. Details:

1st Annual Jingle-Bell Fun Run for Doug Stern

Thursday, December 20th

6pm – 7pm

Central Park Reservoir

To enter, all you need to do is buy a jingle bell from Mike Keohane for $10 (all of which goes to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center) and then show up, in costume or not, between 6pm and 7pm Ã¢â‚¬â€ right before the regular workout Ã¢â‚¬â€ on the reservoir and run in memory of Doug. This is a fun run Ã¢â‚¬â€ it will be untimed, uninsured, unmanaged, un-porta-sanned, un-everything. The way it s supposed to be.

Blame It On the Bossa Nova

Jesse Lansner — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 11:30:17 +0000

We all know that running with headphones on can be dangerous, and that in nearly every race it is officially banned by the race organizers (though that ban is rarely enforced). But ESPN s Jeff Pearlman has discovered an even better reason to go pod-free in the marathon: wearing headphones makes you really slow. At least, that s why he thinks he finished the Philly Marathon in 3:41 instead of 3:05:

By tuning into music and tuning out, well, Philadelphia, I lost sight — and sound, and touch, and taste, and smell — of everything that is truly great about the marathon experience. As the non-iPod-wearing runners burst down Ben Franklin Parkway to start the race, they were embraced by deafening cheers, by the “Rocky” theme, by signs and posters and high-fives and screams and shouts. I, meanwhile, was listening to Kiss “Psycho Circus,” head down. As the non-iPod-wearing runners turned onto Race Street, past the National Constitution Center and near the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, they focused on some of the most beautiful and historic scenery that a city-based race has to offer. I, meanwhile, was listening to Jay-Z s “IZZO (H.O.V.A.),” head down. When we reached South Street, the non-iPod-wearing runners could absorb a greeting as loud and intensive as a date with Courtney Love. I, meanwhile, was listening to Bad Ronald s “Bad Idea,” head down. From beginning to end, my Philadelphia Marathon was one long playlist — peppy and uplifting, yes, but eminently forgettable.

And lest you think it s just that he had the wrong music, bear this in mind:

Marathon running, however, is an ode to quiet strategy and reflection. You become one with your body. A quad quivers, you immediately notice. A nightmarish hill awaits a half-mile down the road, you mentally prepare. You get pumped when spectators scream and mellow when the world seems barren. In the end, you are your own master. No coach. No colleague. No rendition of Twister Sister s “I Wanna Rock” can suffer on your behalf.

Somehow, some way, an iPod does not merely cheapen the experience. It robs from it. Even the greatest marathoners of my lifetime — the Alberto Salazars, the Rod Dixons, the Martin Lels, the Paul Tergats — feel intensive pain upon reaching miles 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26. Your legs freeze up. Yours arms stiffen. You want to walk, to crawl, to literally die. Why am I doing this? Never again! Never, ever, ever again! No way in hell.

Torture is rarely fun. But it s an integral part of the marathon. What better to bond the legions of runners who do this semi-regularly?

Black or white, Jew or gentile, a 6-minute miler or a 12-minute miler — we can relate over the putrid hells of cramps and blisters; rain and snow.

But music Ã¢â‚¬Â¦ music softens things. It s a crutch, an enabler — excellent for training, wrong for racing. At the end of the day, I wanted my iPod to make the Philadelphia Marathon just a wee bit easier. I craved the euphoria of a PR, sans the struggle.

That may be the best summary of modern marathoning we ve seen. What better way to describe the headphoned hordes wearing cotton shirts that say “Didn t Train” as they shuffle along at a speed that has more in common with a Sunday stroll in the park than with any sort of running, than as people seeking euphoria without struggle?

But there is no euphoria without struggle, as Teddy Roosevelt noted over a century ago:

I wish to preach, not the doctrine of ignoble ease, but the doctrine of the strenuous life, the life of toil and effort, of labor and strife; to preach that highest form of success which comes, not to the man who desires mere easy peace, but to the man who does not shrink from danger, from hardship, or from bitter toil, and who out of these wins the splendid ultimate triumph.

Finishing a marathon is no longer a triumph; the marathon boom of the last decades has shown us that with modern training methods, and enough time to finish, there is not a person on this earth who can not cover 26.2 miles, even if some of them have to crawl at the end. But while anyone can finish a marathon, there are fewer and fewer people who seem capable of actually running a marathon; of preparing for the race for months in an effort to cut 10 minutes Ã¢â‚¬â€ or even 10 seconds Ã¢â‚¬â€ off their PR, knowing the whole time that a thousand things could go wrong on race day to foil that goal; or even that they just may not have 10 more seconds in them.

The pod-people will never have to worry about that. They tap so little of their marathon potential, and set their goals so low, that there is no way for them to be disappointed. But what is that worth? As TR also said, “It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.”

Brooklyn Cross Country Race This Saturday

Jesse Lansner — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 16:58:08 +0000

Tired of running the same boring Van Cortlandt Park course every time? Want to see the hidden parts of Prospect Park instead? (The answer to both of those questions should be yes). Then head over to Brooklyn this Saturday, for City Coach s Autumn 4-Miler. Sure, they might not have given this race as cool a name as January s Everything But the Kitchen Sink race, but we re sure the course will be just as awesome. In fact, the organizers guarantee it:

The course will take you over the Long Meadow and into the woods – expect dirt paths, wood-chip trails, and all kinds of off-road challenges.

And it that s not enough of a reason to go, in and of itself, we ll just point out that City Coach is run by our own Jonathan Cane, who always helps us out by checking the math on this site. He also checks the math on the NYC marathon site, which is how he came across 20 runners who clearly cheated at this year s race. A reminder: if you re going to be pathetic enough to cheat at a race, try one that doesn t have all those timing mats go expose you.

Celebrities! They’re Just Like Us! Only Slower.

Jesse Lansner — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 14:10:13 +0000

You may have thought that the big story at yesterday s NYC Marathon was the victories by Paula Radcliffe and Martin Lel. Or maybe the impressive times by your CPTC teammates (which are actually posted on this site!). Or even the fact that the Bronx runner won the Five Borough Challenge (though even most people who live in the Bronx probably don’t care about that). You’re wrong, of course.

The real story — as both the Daily News and the NY Post made clear on their front pages today — is that Katie Holmes ran the marathon. Slowly. Very slowly. In fact we’re not even sure if 5:29:58 (12:35/mile) counts as running for a 20-something woman who doesn’t have a prosthetic leg. (By comparison, Sarah Reinertsen, a 30-something woman who does have a prosthetic leg, has a marathon PR of 5:27:04.)

Is it too much to ask that race coverage focus on the actual racers? It’s nice that celebrities want to run marathons, but there are thousands of other runners who are racing the marathon — even if it’s only against their own previous times — and it would be nice to see the mainstream coverage pay a little more attention to them. (Speaking of which, that Lance Armstrong fellow came back and cut 13 minutes off his time, which does not make up for the fact that he’s dating one of the Olsen twins.) This is a serious event, with serious runners. Let’s see some serious reporting on it, too.

Book Review

Jesse Lansner — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 13:01:18 +0000

Ligaya Mishan has another book review in the New York Times, this time for Nicholas Christopher s Bestiary.

We would like to point out that we mention every one of her reviews on this page, and she still never writes any specifically for us. Even worse, she s now reviewing restaurants for The New Yorker, while our own Food Critics section continues to waste away from years of neglect.

Car Free Hours Extended In Central Park

Jesse Lansner — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 17:17:18 +0000

Stacy Creamer alerted us to this press release from the DOT. For those of you who just want the highlights, the important part is:

New York City Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan and Parks & Recreation Commissioner Adrian Benepe today announced further restrictions on vehicular traffic in Central Park. Beginning on Monday, August 6, 2007, vehicles will only be allowed to use the West Drive from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.

There are no changes to the evening hours (so keep watching out for cars when you re on your way to the Thursday night workouts), and no changes for Prospect Park (where all the cool kids run), but hopefully those will follow.

Run in the Shawangunk Mountains This Sunday

Jesse Lansner — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 16:43:51 +0000

We are planning a group run on the carriageway trails in the Mohonk Preserve (near New Platz) this Sunday. These are soft-surface wide trails built at the turn of the 20th Century for horse-drawn carriages so that they are never too steep and, as it turns out, ideal for running. The Mohonk Preserve has stunning scenery with cliffs and lakes and at it s center is the Mohonk Mountain House built originally in 1869 and still functioning as a luxury hotel.

This area is a 90 minute drive from the city and the plan would be to leave the city around 8am and to start running by 10am. Plan on running at least 10-12 miles with options available to run further. If interested, please email Alan Ruben today and state whether you would need a ride or could offer other people a ride.

This Is Why They Hate Us?

Jesse Lansner — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 18:39:21 +0000

“In the name of enlightened moderation vulgarity has been promotedâ€”women running in marathons, brothels, pornography in CD shops. . .”

Abdul Rashid Ghazi, quoted in this week s New Yorker. (Emphasis Added)