Run, Karla, Run!

Kim Smith passes the Cyclone roller coaster on her way to victory at the Brooklyn Half. She ran the race as a half marathon training run. (Photo: NYRR)

Sometimes races aren’t about racing. Toeing the line in competition is exhilarating, but sometimes it’s good to use the occasional race as a training run or fun run, especially during half marathon training.

Kim Smith won the 2013 Brooklyn Half on May 18 in a new course record of 1:11:24. But the three-time Olympian from New Zealand who lives and trains in Providence, RI wasn’t even racing. She ran the half-marathon as a tempo-pace training run, as she told me in pre- and post-race interviews for “NYRR On The Run at the Brooklyn Half.”

“I’m going to treat it as a workout,” Smith told me at the race pre-party the day before.

Indeed, Smith’s half-marathon personal best is 1:07:11, a full four-minutes faster than her finish time in Brooklyn.

“It was a pretty relaxed effort,” Smith said after the race. “I didn’t go all out.”

She said she’s training for the track season and will be back in New York City on Saturday, June 8 to race the Oakley New York Mini 10K, a New York Road Runners event that usually attracts a stellar competitive field. The women-only race boasts a $10,000 prize for first place, and past champions include the legendary Grete Waitz, Olympic-medalist Deena Kastor and World Champions Lornah Kiplagat, Edna Kiplagat and Linet Masai.

Kim Smith breaks the tape at the 2013 Brooklyn Half in course record time, though 4 minutes slower than her personal best. (Photo: NYRR)

I found Smith’s decision to run, but not race, really encouraging. Never mind the fact that not racing for her still might mean winning and scoring a course record. What’s important is that she set-out to do the race as a half marathon training run and did just that.

In my mind, there are three types of races for mid-packers like me: personal record attempts, training runs, and fun runs. Pros and elite runners have a fourth type that will likely elude me my entire running career: running for the win or the podium. Though I did once place in the top 10 women at a small local race, out of 65 ladies. While that will likely be my claim to fame for a long time, the other three types of runs will always have a place in my racing repertoire, especially during half marathon training. Read the rest of this entry →

Running toward New Year’s resoultions (Photo: Phil Hospod)

2012 was a notable year in running. The pros dazzled at the London Olympics, the New York City Marathon was canceled for the first time in its history, and a vice-presidential candidate’s not-quite-true claims of marathon glory brought running into the national conversation.

On a personal level, it was a meaningful year for me too. I married my Prince Charming, who proposed after a half-marathon; I ran for my cousin Laura, who died from cancer in June; and I started hosting a web series about running. I also knocked out four personal records in the marathon, half-marathon and triathlon, and ran 10 races total to reach a personal milestone of over 50 “career” races.

Running Goals for 2012

Every year, I like to look back at the goals I made the year before and see how I did. Read the rest of this entry →

Want to train with Meb Keflezighi? Rock the Race with Meb, sponsored by the Meb Edition Sony W Series Walkman, can make it happen.

The 2GB Meb Edition Sony W Series MP3 player comes pre-loaded with audio tips from the marathon man himself along with a booklet on nutrition, stretching, strategy, and more — including a list of Meb’s favorite running songs. A portion of the sales go to the MEB FOUNDATION that aims to help kids lead healthy, balanced lives. Sony has pledged a minimum of $10,000 and a maximum of $20,000 based on unit sales.

Best of all, they’re giving away three amazing trips to three lucky winners, one that literally includes training with Meb. Read the rest of this entry →

Visiting the Philly Finish the day before the race.

The Philadelphia Marathon is a big city race with a small town feel. Unlike more crowded marathons like New York and Chicago, runners wander into corrals just 15 minutes or so before the race’s 7 a.m. start. The vibe is relaxed and unhurried. There’s no closing time given for the baggage trucks or corrals, for that matter. It feels like the city simply wants you to relax and have a good time. Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter is at the start and the finish passing out high-fives to runners, setting the tone for a friendly, flat and fast course. With 11,617 finishers, the 2012 race on November 18 was the largest in the city’s history. Another 10,921 runners finished the half-marathon.

The Philadelphia Marathon was my fifth marathon. I set out to nab a big personal best time after a rocky training season. The race’s motto is “Best Time of Your Life.” Turns out, it’s true. Read the rest of this entry →

Photo: Philadelphia Marathon

It’s been an eventful training season for the Philadelphia Marathon on November 18. As always with marathon training, I’ve enjoyed plenty of highs and lows over the course of the last few months. But marathon training comes down to this–how ready you are on race day. I’m ready to tackle Philly with a vengeance and leave all my cares out on the course in an attempt at my marathon personal record. Read the rest of this entry →

Heading to the ferry terminal.

The Staten Island Half Marathon is part of New York Road Runner’s 5 Borough Series, a collection of half-marathons in each of New York City’s five boroughs.

The Staten Island course is an out-and-back jaunt along the waterfront that tours runners through the eastern side of the island, with lovely views of Manhattan to the north and past the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge—famous as the start of the ING New York City Marathon. We ran through busy neighborhood centers, industrial back roads and residential streets, past shops, jovial construction workers who cheered us on and locals watching from their porches. Read the rest of this entry →

Screenshots from the McRun iPhone app.

Just about every runner who has ever used a pace calculator has obsessed over the McMillan Running Calculator on McMillanRunning.com. They’ve plugged in actual finish times, they’ve plugged in planned finish times, they’ve plugged in dream finish times to help them predict how fast they can run their next race and plan their pacing.

Now, iPhone users can harness the power of the McMillan Running Calculator with a simple tap of the finger. Brought to you by running coach Greg McMillan, “McRun” is now available as an iOS app in the Apple iTunes Store. Read the rest of this entry →

Enjoying the Yonkers waterfront.

Yonkers Marathon & Half Marathon History

Located directly north of New York City on the Hudson River, Yonkers is one of those not-so-small “small towns” with nearly 200,000 residents. It’s not exactly Mayberry, but compared to the monster that is NYC, it’s a hamlet. Much the same thing can be said about the Yonkers Marathon & Half-Marathon. With just 1,000 registrants for both races combined, it truly has the feel of a hometown race, unlike the behemoth that is the ING New York City Marathon.

The Yonkers Marathon has a storied history as the second-oldest marathon in the country behind Boston. Read the rest of this entry →

The Philadelphia Marathon is on Nov. 18, 2012 (Photo: Philadelphia Marathon)

It’s that time of year again…dun dun dun! Marathon training starts! This year, I’m running the 2012 Philadelphia Marathon on Nov. 18. In just under 18 weeks, I’ll be at the starting line in the City of Brotherly Love, hopefully prepared to tackle my fifth tango with 26.2. Read the rest of this entry →

Runners charge past Cinderella Castle at the Walt Disney World Marathon. (Photo: runDisney)

It’s a marathon match made in running heaven. Runner’s World magazine and runDisney announced Monday that the 20th Anniversary Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend will become part of the Runner’s World Challenge series.

The event will run from Jan. 12-13, 2013 and includes the Walt Disney World Marathon, Walt Disney World Half Marathon and Goofy’s Race and a Half Challenge, where participants run both the half marathon on Saturday and the full marathon on Sunday. 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 →

Melanie Jones in 'Endure.' Photo courtesy of 'Endure.'

Since the massive success of British theater troupe PunchDrunk’s “Sleep No More”—a meandering mash-up of “Macbeth” and ‘30s film-noir—immersive theater has taken New York City by storm. With audience members set loose in a space, free to roam and interact with the actors at will, it makes sense that someone would think to adapt this theater form to a show about running.

Melanie Jones, a Canadian playwright, actress and dancer, has done just that. Freed from the confines of a traditional theater, “Endure: A Run Woman Show” poses the question, “What if the race of your life is your life?” Well then, you better wear your running shoes. Read the rest of this entry →

I’m not usually one to plug products or programs unless I’ve tried them myself, but my good friend and coach, Kevin Horty, is running a spring marathon and half-marathon training program with Terrier Tri in New York City. And while I can’t endorse Terrier Tri, I heartily endorse Coach Kevin. He’s the man with the plan who has seen me through over two dozen PR’s, including three consecutive marathon PR’s. As coach of the New York Harriers, he’s helped hundreds of other runners get faster too. And his marathon best of 2:41 ain’t too shabby.

The 14-week program begins on January 10, and includes three weekly group coached sessions in Central Park on Tuesday/Friday at 6 a.m. and Sunday at 8:30 a.m. Sessions include speed work, fartlek runs, hill workouts, tempo runs and fast finish long runs. The program also includes a weekly training schedule with five days per week of running and strength and core workouts, as well as online email support from Coach Horty and Coach Spencer Casey, head coach of the New York Athletic Club elite running team. Between them, these guys have 45 years of competitive running and coaching experience. The cost is $350 for Terrier Tri members and $395 for non-members. Check out the website for more information on the Bostonplus program.

And to everyone training for a spring marathon or half-marathon, start your engines!

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 →