Poetry

Last year (2022) I posted a series of poems about running and about the NYC Marathon. Some come to me while on a run and some are triggered by a post or comment on the many running groups I belong to on Facebook. I’ve received many nice comments, and some have enlarged and printed them and hung them on their wall. Here are some of the poems from 2023 and from prior years.


This one came to me while running one morning. It’s for each of us who hope to cross that finish line and become a winner. The NYC Marathon was established by Fred Lebow (Fishel Lebowitz) in 1970. I read somewhere that he instituted the practice of giving every finisher a medal because we are all winners. Prior to that only the top finishers received medals. See you at the finish line!



This one is for the thousands of individuals who make the marathon happen. The volunteers. Without them there would be no marathon. They are as much a part of the race as the runners. Maybe they should also get medals. From the start village all the way to the Finish Line they are there for us all day and into the night. So, when you see them at a water station or anywhere else along the course make sure to thank them. 



Let’s talk about power of the crowd. We’ve all experienced the incredible energy that the spectators give us as we run the streets of NY. Who can forget the wall of people in Williamsburg North where we can high five on both sides at the same time. And the sound as we come to the end of the Queensboro. This one is for each and every spectator who stands there for hours cheering us on. One of my most memorable experiences was in Central Park with an injured ankle, no gas, and no fumes I was prepared to crawl to the finish line. When I exited the park on 59’th and heard the crowd I somehow managed to sprint past them. To this day I don’t know how I did that. 



Time for some inspiration. One runner comes to my mind. Shalane. I’ve watched her 2017 finish countless times. I get goose bumps each time. Especially when the announcer says, “Shalane Flanagan will be the NYC Marathon champion for this year, for next year, forever”. She’s our champion and we all hope to have our Shalane moment. Live the dream!


And here is another one about inspiration. 





It’s September, the days are getting shorter, and the adrenaline starts to flow. I feel it, you feel it, and we see it in all the posts. This one is about the anticipation we are starting to feel knowing that there are less than two months away from the big day. New York is calling us home.




Here is something that came to me after reading about the elite runners who start in the early waves. What about us in the last wave, the back of the packers. Who are we? This one is for us. This is who we are.



This one is about that very special place called the finish line.  Crossing it is an experience like no other and very hard to describe. 



I wrote this one in the summer when the lure of the marathon starts to make itself apparent.



Why do we run marathons? Everyone has their reason and this one articulates mine. 



I wrote these two after the NYC Marathon in November 2022





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