Run, Karla, Run!

Photo by Christy Hourihan

The 2010 ING New York City Marathon is now another notch on my hydration belt. After months of agonizing, planning, plotting, scheming and dreaming, I ran the best race I could.

I sang. I ran. I conquered.

Sunday, Nov. 7 was that rare day of days when, Murphy’s law be darned, everything went right. Not only was it my fastest marathon to date, but it was also the most fun. I wasn’t just running; I was singing at the start of the wheelchair and professional women’s races. Read the rest of this entry →

Karla Bruning will sing "American the Beautiful" at the start of the 2010 ING New York City Marathon. Photos by Phil Hospod.

After four months of training, five races, four physical therapy appointments, one x-ray and one MRI, it’s finally here: the ING New York City Marathon. Tomorrow I’ll toe the starting line on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge with 45,000 other runners.

But I’m not only running; I’m singing too. New York Road Runners has asked me to kick off the wheelchair and professional women’s races with “America the Beautiful.”

It’s an honor for a singer to be asked to perform at any major sporting event like the New York City Marathon, but as a singer who also happens to be a marathon runner, it’s like having your cake and eating it too. Singing for athletes who are able to accomplish what most of us only dream is humbling and a privilege. I’m already anticipating getting shivers, and not from the cold. Read the rest of this entry →

If you’re a runner in New York City, there’s plenty for you to do this weekend, including a free party, professional runner appearances, free pasta and more:

FRIDAY NIGHT PARTY

What: Gotham to Golden Gate: The San Francisco Marathon™ and Crowdrise™ Partnership Launch Party.

Edward Norton and Robin Quivers, along with runners, athletes, fitness gurus, celebrities, philanthropists, sponsors and marathon fanatics will gather to promote “Worth the Hurt™,” a global campaign to ‘conquer the hurt’ for charitable causes. The San Francisco Marathon is daring New Yorkers to run on their turf and raise money for a good cause.

Join them for drinks, music and other fun. All attendees 21 or over are welcome. Please mention “The SF Marathon” when you arrive. Read the rest of this entry →

Photo by Joris van Rooden

With only four days until the ING New York City Marathon on Nov. 7, my excitement is ramping up exponentially. So I made a New York City mix—a love note to the city I adore, and love to run. These are my favorite songs about New York. There are lots of standards, some show tunes, rock songs, folk, rap and more. It seems everybody loves to sing about New York.

Happy listening, happy running, and when you’re facing the Queensboro Bridge at mile 15 of the marathon, just remember what Simon and Garfunkel sang in “The 59^th Street Bridge Song” (another name New Yorkers use for the Queensboro): “Life—I love you. All is Groovy!”

If you have a favorite New York City song, list it below! Read the rest of this entry →

Edison Peña, center, ran every day while trapped in the mine. Photo by Hugo Infante/Government of Chile.

Edison Peña, the rescued Chilean miner known as “The Runner,” will run the ING New York City Marathon on Nov. 7, Universal Sports reports.

New York Road Runners, which organizes the race, invited Peña to New York as their special guest after president and CEO Mary Wittenberg heard about his extraordinary efforts to stay fit and sane while trapped with 32 other men in a gold and copper mine near Copiapo, Chile. Read the rest of this entry →