Saturday, November 5th, 2011

If you missed the Weekend Planner post on Friday, here are some details regarding tomorrow’s New York City Marathon.

If you’re looking for a course map, click here for a PDF. The finish line is on the Upper West Side, at 67th & West Drive in Central Park.

Central Park is going to be a mob scene with limited access. If you’re looking for some optimal viewing sites near the Upper West Side, your best bet is probably to head north on the 2/3 train and get off somewhere between 110th & 135th streets — the crowds are thinner up there. 5th Avenue (i.e. the course) is only one block east of the 2/3 stations.

Here’s a PDF that gives rough time estimates for when the lead male and female runners will reach specific mile markers. The women should start making their way down 5th Avenue just after 11:00 am. The men start slightly later and should be about 20 minutes behind the women.

Runners will keep streaming down 5th Avenue for most of the afternoon. The rear of the pack should pass through around 4:00 pm.

The Central Park Conservancy is holding a marathon concert at the NE corner of the park in Duke Ellington Circle (110th & 5th Avenue) from 11:00 am – 2:00 pm. There will be additional live music on 5th Avenue at the following locations (click here for detailed map):

• Gospel/Spiritul Stage @ 5th & 135th
• R&B & HipHop Stage @ 5th & 125th
• Sounds Of Harlem Main Stage (Jazz) @ Marcus Garvey Park (Mt. Morris Ave, just west of 5th, btw. 121/122)
• Latin & Caribbean Sounds Stage @ 5th @ 117th

Central Park South and Columbus Circle will be teeming with activity and entertainment options as well, but it will be much more crowded down there. Runners exit the park at the SE corner and run along CPS before re-entering the park near the SW corner for the final stretch. Lots of drama here, so if you don’t mind fighting the crowds it can be a good spot (but plan on getting there pretty early).

A full list of musical entertainment options along the 26.2 mile route can be found here — more than 130 bands will be playing.

Finally, you can view the official “Spectator Guide” here (a word of warning: it’s surprisingly useless).

Even though the finish line is right here on the UWS, you probably won’t get to see it. About.com has a pretty good overview of the race for spectators and has this to say about finish line:

If you’re expecting to watch your runner cross that beautiful finish line at Tavern on the Green, don’t get your hopes up. Unless you’re a race participant, finish line volunteer, race official, or have reserved seats in the bleachers, you won’t be able to see much.

If you’re a history buff, you may be interested in this post from the NYC Parks Department: The History Of The New York City Marathon (h/t to my mom for the link)

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Tags: 5th Avenue, Concert, Entertainment, Fifth Avenue, ING New York City Marathong, ING NYC Marathon, Marathon, Music, New York City, New York Marathon, NYC, NYC Marathon, Upper West Side, UWS, where to watch the marathon on the UWS