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August 2019 Recap

Ahhh the heat and humidity this past August was intense. Yet, there we go training and racing in this heat because it’ll bring gains for our fall goal races, many of which are marathons.

This month we hosted two races and destination runs, along with weekly group runs and track sessions. Co-founders Kevin and Edwin participated in Take The Bridge: Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridge hosted by Distance Project NYC and we’re excited to be able to host the last TTB event on the Triboro Bridge!

So much went on this past month. Make sure to check out the list of events QDR participated in this past month at the end of this post!

Note: this is coming out a few days late into September but we had a long Labor Day Weekend!

Corona Mile & Rockaway Beach 5K & 10K

We held another amazing Corona Mile this year including a very competitive heat which was jaw-dropping; seeing such fast times can really motivate someone to improve their own mile time. This year’s Corona Mile champions and belt winners go to Birhanu Kemaal winning the Elite Male heat in 4:34 and Nuhamin Bogale winning the Elite Female hear in 5:03!

A clear day meant no rain for the multiple heats on race morning, August 3rd. If you were there last year, it was pouring all morning. This year, everyone from toddlers to NY State Senator Jessica Ramos had fun running around the Unisphere, past the Queens Zoo on the semi-circle path, and finishing past the Queens Theater.

Then, on August 17th, we went to the beautiful boardwalk at Rockaway Beach. This out-and-back looped course allowed runners to get the best out of volunteers and spectators along the course. This was also another competitive race with first place in the 10K going to Jack Mulvaney in 34:06 and Alanna Hollborn in 44:16, and first place in the 5K going to Luke McCambrey in 17:22 and Leigh Gerson in 19:12 (also second overall for the 5k!).

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Have a sense of humor through the process. 😅 • Biggest lesson a runner can learn: run within yourself that day. This means assessing how you feel, assessing the mileage and terrain in front of you, assessing the weather, and making smart choices. This skill takes practice – especially if we underestimate things like the weather or our fitness that day. For endurance athletes, especially marathoners and half marathoners, this skill can make (or break) that goal race day. Practice sometimes means hard lessons. If you learn from them, they are ALWAYS worth having. 🏃‍♀️ • • #sundayrunday #marathon #marathontraining #halfmarathon #athlete #runningcoach #runningtips #thesweatlife #igrunners #runstagram #runningmotivation #fitness #runforlife #girlswholift #beachplease #itsnotfitnessitslife #itsinqueens #queensdistance #qdr #runforlife #runhappy 📸 credit: @christopherkeelty

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Destination Runs

There was only one Destination Run in August but it’s a spectacular one that goes to a different state! The Connecticut Odyssey on US Route 1 is an 18 miler, but there were Metro-North stations along the route for those who did not want to run the full distance. With bike volunteers on this course, it was one of the longer runs with great views and a “Welcome to Connecticut” sign near the end!

Interclub Run

We had a unique group run co-organized by Prospect Park Track Club and Queens Distance Runners: the Brooklyn-Queens Long Run! Starting at 6AM from Grand Army Plaza, both teams met to either run a 12- or 15-mile route that went north through Brooklyn, over the Pulaski Bridge, through different neighborhoods in Queens, and then finishing at the Unisphere at Flushing Meadow Park.

We’ll have more of these club and borough group runs because it’s all about growing the running community in NYC!

Group Runs

As always, we host weekly group runs. Make sure to follow QDR on Strava and RSVP to events, as well as our calendar on qdrunners.org. This past month we had a new group run in Flushing on Thursday evenings led by Jenna Marotta and Linda Brennan.

On Monday, August 26th, Caroline Nester led her last Monday evening group run in Central Park from the NYRR Run Center. She will be teaching but will be back later on!

Here’s what a typical week looks like:
Monday – 1 – Morning Miles in FMP
Wednesday – 2 – Speed Session at QCC, Tempo run in Forest Park
Thursday – 2 – Morning group run in LIC, Evening group run in Flushing
Friday – 3 – Morning Miles in FMP, FunFridayRun in Astoria, Kessel Run in Forest Hills
Saturday/Sunday – Long group run or races!

Blog Anniversary

On August 21st we celebrated one year of the QDR Blog. We’ve had so many stories from different QDR athletes that have inspired us. The first blog post was from Marie-Ange Brumelot on her Olympic Trials qualifier marathon race and the latest is from co-founder Maria Wong on her Tokyo Marathon this past year. We encourage you to also read the other posts from others who aren’t just running; there are posts on first triathlon races, coming back from injury, and race recaps.

Races

From the humid Manhattan 7 Miler to the hilly Percy Sutton 5K, there were many NYRR races that QDR members participated in. There was also the TCS NYRR 12 Mile training race which is a great tune-up for anyone who is running a fall marathon. In mid-September, there is the NYRR 18 Miler and then we’ll go in the next points race!
The last big race in September was run by Vikram Singh in Europ at the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB)! This 106-mile race is a spectacular ultra but a very tough one. Read about Vikram’s journey to UTMB!

  • Percy Sutton 5K
  • QDR members at the Manhattan 7 Miler

Keep an eye out on our site’s calendar as well as on Strava for more group runs and training sessions. Make sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram for updates and news!

Queens Distance

1 – QDR Thursday AM Long Island City Group Run
2 – QDR Friday Morning Miles: Flushing Meadow Park
    QDR Friday Morning Group Run: FunFridayRun Astoria
    QDR Friday Evening Forest Hills: The Kessel Run
3 – Summer Streets
QDR Corona Mile
4 – NYRR Manhattan 7 Mile with

Photo courtesy of NYRR

QDR Wednesday Evening Tempo and Track Session: Forest Park
8 – QDR Thursday AM Long Island City Group Run

On the 8th it was announced that volunteers at QDR races get 9+1 volunteer credit from NYRR! Send us a message for more details.
9 – QDR Friday Morning Miles: Flushing Meadow Park
    QDR Friday Morning Group Run: FunFridayRun Astoria
    QDR Friday Evening Forest Hills: The Kessel Run

QDR abroad in Colombia!

12 – QDR Monday Morning Miles: Flushing Meadow Park

QDR Monday Evening Group Run: Central Park
14 – QDR Queensborough Community College Wednesday PM Track Session
QDR Wednesday Evening Tempo and Track Session: Forest Park
15 – QDR Thursday AM Long Island City Group Run

FIRST QDR Thursday PM Flushing Group Run
16 – QDR Friday Morning Miles: Flushing Meadow Park
QDR Friday Morning Group Run: FunFridayRun Astoria

    QDR Friday Evening Forest Hills: The Kessel Run
Take The Bridge: Brooklyn and Manhattan

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Two weeks ago QDR had a team of three participate in @takethebridge ’s second event of the summer, Take The Bridge Brooklyn and Manhattan bridge, hosted by @distanceprojectnyc. For the two co-founders, it was a new experience, but for Vicky, she was defending her title from the first TTB event and came in a very close second this time around! The pre-race nerves were high and the excitement much higher. Once the gun went off, they all strategically swerved traffic and tourists and took either or both the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges. Join us next week on Friday, September 6, at Astoria Park at 8:30PM as we host the third TTB event on the Triboro Bridge. And remember, if you aren’t running or volunteering, you are cheering! 📷: 1) @dianashoots 2) @edbrookline 3) @grahammacindoe #queensdistance #takethebridge #triboro #nightracing #astoriapark #tbt

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17 –  Summer Streets
QDR Rockaway Beach 5K & 10K

18 – QDR Destination Run #6- Connecticut Odyssey
NYRR 5M
19 –  QDR Monday Morning Miles: Flushing Meadow Park
QDR Monday Evening Group Run: Central Park
21 – QDR Queensborough Community College Wednesday PM Track Session
QDR Wednesday Evening Tempo and Track Session: Forest Park
22 – QDR Thursday AM Long Island City Group Run

QDR Thursday PM Flushing Group Run
23 – QDR Friday Morning Miles: Flushing Meadow Park
    QDR Friday Morning Group Run: FunFridayRun Astoria

    QDR Friday Evening Forest Hills: The Kessel Run

Sri Chimnoy Marathon
24 – Reykjavík Marathon

Percy Sutton Harlem 5K Run, Walk

End of Summer Half Marathon (Rockaway Beach)
NYCRuns Brookyln Ice Cream Social 5k & 10K
25 – Brooklyn Queens Long Run- Ft. Prospect Park Track Club!
Tobay Sprint Triathlon
NYRR Henry Isola Cross Country (4M)
26 – QDR Monday Morning Miles: Flushing Meadow Park
QDR Monday Evening Group Run: Central Park – Last one with Caroline before she goes to teach.
28 – QDR Queensborough Community College Wednesday PM Track Session

QDR Wednesday Evening Tempo and Track Session: Forest Park
Kosciuszko Bridge pedestrian path opened and Brian was the first QDR athlete to run across it!

29 – QDR Thursday AM Long Island City Group Run
QDR Thursday PM Flushing Group Run

30 – Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc
QDR Friday Morning Miles: Flushing Meadow Park
QDR Friday Morning Group Run: FunFridayRun Astoria
QDR Friday Evening Forest Hills: The Kessel Run

31 – East River Long Run- Start and Finish at the Triboro Bridge