BakBlog

Bakline's Official 2022 NYC Half Marathon course strategy post. NYRR has changed the course several times over the years. Fortunately, the 2022 course is the same as the last time we wrote this review for...2020. The race has been cancelled since then. This year, we return to the streets. This article is to help you prepare for the big day.

The recap of our evening, photographing NY Custom PT's NYC Marathon event with Des Linden. Des skipped the stats and dropped truth bombs for over an hour and provided a perspective not always heard of the woman who won Boston in perhaps the most torrential weather that race has ever seen.

Anyone that's a part of the NYC running scene will know that this past month saw a flurry of unsanctioned races, through the streets and without official barriers. Though I've never heard an official definition, there seems to be a universal understanding of the difference between a street race and a road race. 

Over the last several months, I've heard a recurring theme from friends in the running community that they've lost their love of running and are trying to reclaim it. It seems that the pressures of continuous training cycles, Strava statistics, and injury (or threats thereof!) have taken a toll on many of us. And often, efforts to combat these pressures, including adjustments to training plans and race schedules, tend to only reduce our sense of control. Here's how Take the Bridge can help regain that sense of control.

"Something valuable to learn from Jenn is that having a big personality with a dream doesn’t translate into immediate success—we have to train daily for the things we want."

By now, you probably know that New York Road Runners changed the course of its premiere United Airlines NYC Half. (If you didn't, surprise!) The old course was a favorite for many, and for a half marathon in NYC, it had an elevation profile that only the Brooklyn Half could beat. Now, just about the only thing in common between this year's course and last year's is the name of the race. You may be running on some of the same terrain, but you're in for an altogether different experience. Hang on to your energy gels, ladies and gents. Click "Read More" to see the full post.

After my first day of medical school in the fall of 2015, I made my way to what would soon become my second home for the next couple of years—a study space we called the Blue Room. It was ratty and rundown, with a row of desks and cubicles under dim lighting and in near-constant dead silence. At the end of my usual row of cubicles, the wall featured a poster of Steve Prefontaine racing at Hayward Field, emblazoned with one of his famous quotes: "I'm going to work so that it's a pure guts race at the end, and if it is, I am the only one who can win it." 

My college coach still holds a grudge against one of my teammates for asking, "Do you like... make up these workouts on the spot?" My teammate thought she was complimenting our coach in good fun, but the idea that he was just throwing workouts out there with no deeper thought was disconcerting, to say the least. It's a lesson that I took to heart, and still hold to this day: just because you "know your stuff" doesn't mean that you want to prescribe workouts on the fly.Writing marathon training plans is just about second nature to me at this point. But that doesn't mean that a lot of time, effort, and love will go into each and every plan. So how does a coach know what will work for you? Click "Read More" to see the full post.

New York City was back at it again with the famed 5th Avenue Mile race this weekend, attracting the best of the best to compete on a beautiful, tree lined stretch of 5th Ave along Central Park. It's quite the event, with 22 heats of runners zooming through from about 8AM to 2PM . This race, more than other NYRR ones, truly shows the amazing spectrum of speed and ability out there, and should serve as evidence to any new runner that all you need to do is lace up--there's definitely a place for you! Click "Read More" to see the full post and photo gallery.

The Run for Texas Virtual 5k/10k was an idea that started on somewhat of a whim. Kelly and I are just two of your basic recreational running moms who saw the devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey and wanted to do something about it. We chose what many do--donating funds. We had seen that disaster relief agencies were unable to provide some basic supplies--even as crucial as diapers to families with small children, or to the elderly. We couldn't imagine living without the bare essentials in a dire time, and so chose to donate not only to the American Red Cross, but also to the Texas Diaper Bank. Click "Read More" to see the full post, official race tee and "Race Photos"

Cover photo is of Jenny Donnelly (@jenny_donn), rocking her Winged Foot Bakline Tank. Last night, right after the sun set over the Williamsburg Bridge, dozens of runners had the final hurrah of the Take the Bridge Summer Series, hosted by November Project Brooklyn. As spectators, what we have loved most about these races have been the unifying characteristics emanating from the runners each and every time. Chief among these? The lack of fear—of the bridge, of running, and of coming together with strangers to take over our city and run what is perhaps one of its coolest races. And above that, the lack of fear about having pure, unadulterated fun with every step. Click "Read More" to see the full post and photo gallery.

Cover photo is of Brooklyn's own Carly Gill (@carlysheree), accepting her award for being the first female finisher. Congratulations to everyone who ran the Superfund Super Run last night! What's the Superfund Super Run, you ask? A race organized by the South Brooklyn Running Club (SBRC) to benefit the Gowanus Park Conservancy, a grassroots nonprofit group devoted to cleaning up and developing the Gowanus Canal, Brooklyn's own Superfund monster. Runners enjoyed the epitome of a chill race--there was a start line, a checkpoint, and a finish line (literally inside the Pig Beach Bar), but the route you took from Greenpoint to Gowanus was entirely up to you. All you had to do was let the smells of ribs and burgers emanating from Pig Beach carry you down to the canal at Union Street. Props to SBRC, and congrats again for everyone who participated! Click "Read More" to see the full post and photo gallery.