Run, Karla, Run!

Runners wait for the start of the Never Land Family Fun Run 5K. Photo by Karla Bruning.

The inaugural Tinker Bell Half Marathon Weekend kicked off on Friday with the Never Land Family Fun Run 5K. An estimated 4,000 runners lined up for the 10:30 p.m. start of the very first nighttime race ever held at Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif. I was on hand to take in all the action and run the debut event.

The atmosphere was more like a party than a race. A DJ dressed as a fairy helped runners warm-up with Top 40 hits under the lights of Main Street USA and Sleeping Beauty Castle in the Disneyland Park.

Who better to kick off the evening than Tinker Bell herself? The famous fairy swooped down from the sky and flew over Sleeping Beauty Castle, sprinkling pixie dust just before the start of the race. The spectacle drew audible gasps and applause from the runners in the corrals. Read the rest of this entry →

Making goals for the year can help keep you motivated. Photo by Charles Thompson.

Runners tend to be goal-oriented people. Sure, there are exceptions to the rule, but so many of us have a few dreams hitched to our running shoes. It’s the nature of the sport; when there are hundreds to thousands of us in any given race, the vast majority of us aren’t in it to win it.

We call them races, but we’re really racing against ourselves more than any of the people around us. Unless, that is, you are national class runner who is fast enough to actually win, like some of my friends and teammates who’ve nabbed victories at races all over the globe like the Red Rock Canyon Marathon in Nevada, the Brooklyn Marathon in New York, and the Antarctica Marathon.

But if you’re a mid-packer like me, you’ve probably never won a road race, unless it was in high school. I know the sweet taste of victory as a swimmer and a rower, but it has eluded me as an adult runner. My best finish was 10th in a local race in Rhode Island. I felt like I’d won the Olympics. Which is why making and then chasing down goals is so important to me as a runner. If I can’t win the race, I can still win the goal. Read the rest of this entry →

Racers run through Cinderella's Castle during the Walt Disney World Half Marathon. Photo courtesy of runDisney/Todd Anderson.

I like a good challenge. The Runner’s World Holiday Running Streak? Check. Four hours on an elliptical machine? Dunzo. My first triathlon? In the bag.

So I’m making my first goal of 2012 another challenge—runDisney’s Coast to Coast Race Challenge. Runners who finish a half marathon or marathon at both Walt Disney World in Florida and Disneyland in California in the same calendar year receive a third medal to mark the occasion. I do like a nice medal. Read the rest of this entry →

The Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon

What does it take to put on a race in the happiest place on earth? A little bit of magic and a whole lot of teamwork. More than 50,000 runners planned to participate in the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend from Jan. 6 to Jan. 8, culminating in the Walt Disney World Marathon today. But shuttling 50,000 runners, plus their families who have come to watch them, through six race events over the course of three days is no simple task. Working year-round, runDisney aims to make these racing events fun for the whole family, while maintaining the regular Disney magic for the thousands of other park and resort guests enjoying a dream vacation.

“The biggest challenge is trying to put a half-marathon or marathon in Walt Disney World when you have on any given day 50,000 to 100,000 day guests,” says John Phelan, entertainment show director for Disney Sports.  “The logistics are one of the key challenges of doing all of this.”

Jon Hughes, race director for the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend and other runDisney events couldn’t agree more. Read the rest of this entry →

Photo by Karla Bruning

Now that 2012 is here, it’s time to think about what marathon you might want to run this year. Registration for the 2012 ING New York City Marathon lottery opened this week. Runners have until April 23 to sign-up for a chance to run the world’s biggest marathon. Looking to run another big-city marathon in the U.S. or Canada this year? Here are the registration dates for a few metropolitan races. Read the rest of this entry →

Photo courtesy of runDisney

Yesterday runDisney unveiled a new race weekend for 2012. The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 10-Miler Weekend will debut in September 2012 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World in Florida. The race is a re-imagination of The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 13K last run in 2009.

The main event of the weekend is a nighttime 10-mile race, scheduled for Sept. 29. The course will run through the set of Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show, past Mickey’s Sorcerer’s Hat and finish near The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror ride at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. In true Disney fashion, the race will culminate in a villain-themed post-race party with live music, characters—including your favorite Disney villains, of course—and exclusive access to attractions like The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith, Star Tours and Toy Story Mania. Read the rest of this entry →

Runners in Brooklyn's Prospoect Park. Photo by Karla Bruning.

Brooklyn is toeing the line. The inaugural Brooklyn Marathon kicks off on Sunday, Nov. 20 at 8 a.m. in Prospect Park. In the tradition of New York City marathons, this one has humble roots. The race is capped at 350 runners and the course is contained entirely in Prospect Park, the crown jewel of the borough’s park system. But founder Steve Lastoe hopes it’s just the beginning for this fledgling race.

“I want a race that’s organically part of Brooklyn,” Lastoe said on The New York Running Show, a podcast where I’m, at times, a panelist. “I want this race to be loved by Brooklyn.”

New York City could certainly use another marathon. The ING New York City marathon, the largest in the world, had more than 148,000 applicants for its 45,000 spots in the 2011 race. The demand amongst runners is plentiful, but the supply isn’t. Read the rest of this entry →

Photo courtesy of New York Road Runners.

The ING New York City Marathon on Sunday, Nov. 6 gave us two truly exciting races in both the men’s and women’s competitions. Three runners shattered—and I mean shattered—the course record in the men’s competition. And one runner gave a guts-on-the-floor performance that likely cost her the race in the women’s competition. Scroll down for athlete interviews, stats and more as I was ringside in the Timex Media Center at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Columbus Circle, giving a behind the scenes play-by-play of what it’s like in the press room as a New York Road Runners Social Media Reporter. Here’s how it went:

8:30 am: Good morning! I’m here in the Timex Media Center at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in New York City. We are one minute away from the wheelchair start of the 2011 ING New York City Marathon! Read the rest of this entry →

The start of the ING New York City Marathon. Photo by Fergal Carr.

For the first time since 2007, I’m not running a marathon. It feels a little odd, especially as the ING New York City Marathon approaches on Sunday, Nov. 6. I’ve run the race three times—each to a personal best. When I ran Chicago instead in 2009, I was out on the course cheering for my friends who were running the Big Apple.

Not one to idly let the marathon pass me by, I’ll still be participating in another way this year. New York Road Runners recruited me to be one of their Social Media Reporters. I’m teaming up with NYRR TV’s The Daily Cool Down hosted by Olympian Carrie Tollefson—a daily recap show of all the hustle and bustle surrounding marathon week—on Friday night and Saturday, tweeting as they run around the city capturing the excitement of marathon weekend. Then on race day, I’ll be blogging live from the marathon media center, sharing what’s really going on behind the scenes of the world’s biggest marathon. Read the rest of this entry →

Photo courtesy of runDisney.

8,268 finishers. 13.1 miles. Three theme parks. And one magical race. This self-proclaimed Disney girl—my dog’s name is Cinderella after all—finally did it. I ran my first runDisney race. Disney’s Wine & Dine Half Marathon on Oct. 1 did not disappoint. It was everything the little girl in me hoped it would be.

Leading up to the race, I’d taken my training rather seriously; running a personal best was definitely on my mind. But other runners who had done Disney races warned me otherwise. Disney races are too much fun, they said. You’ll want to stop and have your photo taken with characters, they said. You’ll be too taken-in by the music and spirit on the course, they said.

Well, they were right. Read the rest of this entry →

Every athlete has probably dreamed of saying those five little words we’ve seen in Super Bowl and other sports commercials since 1987. My turn has finally come.

I’m going to Disney World!

Come 10 p.m. on Saturday night, I’ll be at the start of the Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon with 12,000 other runners. As I work my way from the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex through Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Disney’s Yacht and Beach Club Resorts and finally to Epcot, I’ll be wearing a new pair of shoes. Naturally, a certain Disney character comes to mind.

Like Cinderella, runners are all about the shoes—running shoes, gym shoes, racing flats, sneakers, kicks, trainers, five-fingers, um, glass slippers. It doesn’t matter what you call them. A runner’s shoe (or lack thereof) is their calling card, their single most important piece of equipment. Like Cinderella, we’re often identified by what type of shoe we wear—Nike vs. Adidas, stability vs. neutral, minimalist vs. barefoot. Read the rest of this entry →

Fifth Avenue Mile Start

Down Fifth Avenue

Men 40-49

Professional Women

Sally Kipyego of Kenya

Jenny Simpson and Morgan Uceny chase Kipyego

Jenny Simpson makes a move

The 1500-Meter Mark

Jenny Simpson Wins

Hannah England and Sally Kipyego finish third and second after a photo finish

Simpson's Victory Lap

Simpson Dressed in Star and Stripes

Here come the pro men

The Lead Pack

Lagat kicks, chasing down Laalou and Torrence

David Torrence Finishes Third

Amine Laalou Finishes Second

Bernard Lagat Wins

Lagat's Victory Lap

Call Me Kip, Lagat's Nickname

The Fifth Ave Mile Finish

Photos by Phil Hospod

Olympians, World Champions and thousands of regular runners alike barreled down New York City’s Fifth Avenue in the Fifth Avenue Mile on Saturday, Sept. 24. The professional field this year was a doozy, with eight Olympians and four 2011 World Championship medalists among them. But what is it about running a mile that keeps runners, including professionals like Bernard Lagat, so entranced? Read the rest of this entry →

Growing up in the Chicago suburbs, I was a YMCA kid. I spent countless afternoons as a child going to Mommy and Me swim classes, Swim and Gym, and then swim team when I was a bit older. I’d run on the Y’s indoor track, play Horse on the basketball court, and hang out with friends in the rec room.

Here in New York City, the YMCA wants all of our city’s kids to lead active, healthy lives. The West Side Y is sponsoring the Fit For All 5K to fund free programs for kids.

My mom was a single parent with a limited budget who couldn’t necessarily afford the swim team fees in addition to a family Y membership. But she knew the importance of getting your kids into activities, and specifically physical activities. So she took a part-time job at our local YMCA as a lifeguard in order to get free Y membership for our family. She did that on top of other jobs she held, like working as a secretary, waitress, and much else.

I have her to thank for being a fit adult now. Read the rest of this entry →

Emmanuel Mutai won the 2011 London Marathon with a new course record. Photo by EStepnist/FLickr.

The ING New York City Marathon is the world’s biggest marathon. It’s no wonder the race attracts some of the world’s biggest names in running. Emmanuel Mutai, Martin Lel, and Jaouad Gharib will join defending champion Gebre Gebremariam and 2009 champion Meb Keflezighi in the race on November 6.

Kenya’s Lel, 33, won the ING New York City Marathon in 2003 and 2007, and will be returning to the race for the first time since that 2007 victory. He also won the Virgin London Marathon in 2003, 2007 and 2008, and placed fifth at the 2008 Olympics. After battling two years of injuries he came back with a second place finish in the 2011 Virgin London Marathon in April, losing to none other than Emmanuel Mutai. Read the rest of this entry →