Five Boroughs.
Five Bridges.
Four Traps.

Course

• The cannon, Sinatra blaring through the crowd, and the biggest climb of the day immediately: 150 ft to the apex at mile 0.93 brings you to your highest elevation of the race. Mile 2 gives you every foot back and then some.
• The upper deck (blue and orange corrals) gives you beautiful Brooklyn and Manhattan skyline views at the price of wind. The lower deck (pink corral) sacrifices the view with the benefit of no wind. I've done both — neither decides the race.
• It doesn't matter how much you spent on your watch — on the Verrazzano, your GPS will be inaccurate. Run the first two miles on effort with manual splits, not off the field of runners around you.

Pace

• Mile 1 will read 30–45 seconds slow. That's correct — don't chase that figure on the descent. You've still got 25.2 miles ahead of you.
• Mile 2 will feel like a natural place to regain lost time from the ascent. Don't fall into that trap. The reason this is statistically the fastest bridge on the course is that everyone blows it here.
• You can't win the race on the Verrazzano, but you can certainly lose it.

Technique

• Uphill: shorten your stride, drive your elbows back, and relax your shoulders. Keep a steady gaze 30 meters ahead, not up at the towers.
• Downhill: fast cadence, feet landing under your hips and hitting the ground quietly. No need to be rough on your knees and hips here.
• If you're on the upper level, dodge the selfie-takers by staying away from the median dividing the two corrals. Keep a straight line and a steady effort — the climb will be over before you know it.

Fuel & more

• Nothing on the course yet — you'll find the first fluid station at mile 3.
• Your wave started between 9:10 and 11:30, hours after breakfast. I'd highly recommend getting a bagel and a Dunkin' coffee at the start village. If you're carrying a bottle, take a sip on the descent.
• Don't forget to shed your start-village layers before the start — there are no donation bins on the course.

Course

• Down through Bay Ridge and onto Fourth Avenue: six lanes wide, perfectly straight. The three corrals run in parallel here, split by the median, until they come together just after the 5K mark.
• Fluid stations at miles 3, 4, 6, and 8 (none at 5 or 7). Water plus Gatorade Endurance Formula, Lemon-Lime. That's the flavor throughout the whole course — train with it if you can.
• The crowds build from Sunset Park onward and barely stop until the Queensboro.

Pace

• Goal pace, and only goal pace. The field runs Brooklyn at an average of 8:14 and the Bronx at 9:32. That gap is created here, in these easy miles.
• Check the watch once per mile marker. The noise will pull you 20 sec/mi hot without you feeling a thing.
• Find a pack running your pace and settle in. Draft the vibe, not the pace of the person passing you.

Technique

• Run the tangents — Fourth Ave is where you learn the course is measured on the shortest legal path, not the blue line.
• Check your breathing — you should be able to speak a full sentence. If not, you're surging. In for three steps, out for three steps. Exhaling is more important than inhaling.
• Drop your shoulders — they'll still be feeling the bridge.

Fuel & more

• First gel 30–45 minutes in (every 20–30 minutes if you've trained for it), even feeling great. The on-course depots sit at 12 and 18, too far apart to start fueling late.
• Half cup of Gatorade with a water chaser at alternating stations is the cadence I go for. Drink before you're thirsty, as thirst is a lagging indicator.
• Tables run down both sides of the course — drift to the rail early instead of cutting across the river of runners. If you're planning on walking through the station, raise your left hand over your head so runners behind you know you're slowing down.

Course

• At mile 8 the course turns onto Lafayette Avenue and the road narrows hard. Brownstones on both sides, stoops packed, a wall of people screaming your name if it's on your shirt. My favorite stretch of the entire race.
• It's also a ~60-foot climb over half a mile, the first real hill since the Verrazzano.
• Fluid station at mile 8, right before the turn (it gets crowded). Take water here, as there's no station at 9.

Pace

• Trap #3 is the sneakiest because it's disguised as pure joy. The crowd's energy will cancel out the hill for you, so stay conscious of it.
• Let the pace drift +10–15 seconds up the rise if you need to. You'll get every second back on Bedford, and patience here is what keeps your legs alive on Fifth Avenue later.

Technique

• Shorten stride up the hill; if you're going for time, hold the middle. If you're going for vibes, ride the sides.
• Give high-fives, fist bumps, and tap the Mario “power-up” posters. This is where you really feel the energy of New York City.
• Smile, genuinely. This mile is why you're running this race.

Fuel & more

• Take the mile-8 tables on the early side or wait for 10 — just don't fight the crowd where the road pinches.
• If you're carrying gels, crowd energy is a great time to get one down. They'll go down easier when you're happy.

Course

• Bedford Avenue runs the whole spectrum of Brooklyn: block-party loud through Bed-Stuy, then the famous hush of South Williamsburg, where the sidewalks watch in near-silence, then Williamsburg roaring back, then Greenpoint's Polish flags on Manhattan Ave.
• Flat to gently downhill. The calmest running of the day.
• Stations at 10, 11, and 12; the first Maurten depot is at mile 12 — Gel 100 and Caf 100. I encourage you to restock only if you've been training with them — nothing new on race day.

Pace

• Goal pace on rails. Bank calm, not time — the halfway audit is three miles away and you want real data going into it.
• Use the quiet blocks for a full check each mile: breathing, shoulders, jaw, hands. Fix whatever's creeping up.

Technique

• Form can drift when the crowds vanish. Run the posture check at every mile marker.
• Pick your line early through the Williamsburg crowds; the road will pinch again around N 7th.

Fuel & more

• Remember to take your gels, and to restock when the station comes up. Even if you have enough, it could be worth grabbing an extra in case you drop one later on.
• Warm day? Start pouring water on your neck now, not at 18. Cooling is cumulative.

Course

• Greenpoint tips you onto the Pulaski Bridge with a 3.6% ramp that nobody warns you about. The halfway mat is at the top of the bridge.
• From the crest you'll get your first proper look at the Manhattan skyline — and dead ahead, the Queensboro waiting for you three miles away.

Pace

• The honest audit. Cross 13.1 and compare your elapsed time against your plan. Are you within a minute either way? Is your breathing conversational? If you answer yes, then you're running a smart race. Gasping for breath and two minutes off plan in either direction? Start adjusting now — don't wait for the Queensboro.
• Give the ramp 5–10 seconds of pace — it'll be worth it.

Technique

• Short stride up; the down-ramp into LIC is steeper than the climb. Keep your feet quick, no braking.

Fuel & more

• Don't chug at halfway — sip. The last thing you want is water sloshing around. The next tables come right after the bridge, and there's a full station at 14 before the Queensboro.

Course

• A dogleg through Long Island City, with more turns in one stretch than the previous 10 miles. Crowds are present but thin, buildings rise, and the Queensboro starts looming over Crescent Street.
• This is the staging area for the rest of the day. Everything so far was the deposit; the withdrawal starts now.

Pace

• Hold your goal pace, but manage your expectations. The only job between here and the crest is arriving at First Avenue with your legs intact.
• No need for heroics out of the corners. Slow in, roll out.

Technique

• Corners: wide entry, tight exit, no surging on the way out. You're not an F1 car.
• Sixty seconds of deliberate calm as you prep yourself for the bridge. Shoulders down, slow exhale. A pre-bridge reset is worth more than any pep talk.

Fuel & more

• Take water at mile 14 even if you don't really want it. There are no breaks on the bridge.
• If you respond well to caffeine and carry your own, mile 14.5 would be the smart spot to take it. It'll hit right as you crest into First Avenue.

Course

• The lower deck: no spectators allowed, no aid, stretches of half-dark. Just the sound of carbon-plated shoes slapping against pavement and echoing through the 117-year-old bridge.
• ~105 feet of climb to the crest at 15.4, then a swooping descent and a hard hairpin off the ramp onto First Avenue.
• The field's slowest mile of the race: 10:08 average. Everyone slows here, but since you planned for it, it's a non-event.

Pace

• Effort, not pace. Give the climb 20–30 seconds without a fight. Your watch is half-blind under the upper deck anyway. Run by breath.
• If you have to walk, this is socially the easiest place to do it — and 30 seconds of walking beats bonking at mile 22.
• The descent is a controlled build, not a launch. The hairpin at the bottom is sharper than your legs will expect.

Technique

• Shortest stride of the day going up. Eyes 30 meters ahead on the roadway, never at the crest.
• The silence splits people: some recenter in it, some spiral. Decide which runner you are before race day and script your inner monologue beforehand.
• Every runner knows this is the hardest part of the race. In lieu of a crowd, runners will be cheering each other on through the climb. Embrace that energy — that is New York.
• Listen near the top — that low roar rolling under the deck is First Avenue. Let it pull you in.

Fuel & more

• Nothing available bridge-wide — you already handled this at mile 14. If you didn't, there's a station at 16 the moment you land on First Avenue.

Course

• Off the hairpin into the loudest left turn in running: First Avenue at 59th Street, a canyon of noise ten blocks deep. Television makes it look flat, but it's not. It's a long false-flat grind up through the 60s–90s, then it gently rolls downhill toward the Willis.
• Wall-to-wall crowds through the Upper East Side, thinning noticeably past 96th as you climb into East Harlem. The energy cliff is real; plan for the quiet.
• Stations at every mile (16–19). The second Maurten depot is at mile 18.

Pace

• Trap #4 is the famous one. The data is brutal: miles 17–18 are the last “fast” miles of the average runner's race, and the adrenaline bill arrives at 19. I've paid it numerous times. Cap yourself at goal pace even though your legs feel anew.
• I run First Avenue by breath, not pace. The false flat makes goal pace feel 10 seconds harder.

Technique

• Run tall through the noise. Embrace it, and let it power you through.
• Hold the center of the avenue, unless you have loved ones in the crowd. Communicate with them beforehand to know where they'll be, and try to find them. It'll make your day and theirs.

Fuel & more

• Mile 18 depot: take a gel no matter what. Even if you don't eat it, carry it. The wall at 20 is a battle won at mile 18. Caf 100 if it works for you.
• Usually the warmest stretch of the race. Buildings block the wind, and the sun is overhead. Double up at one station: one cup to drink, one over your head.

Course

• The Willis Avenue Bridge is the sneaky climb into the Bronx that I never hear anyone talk about. It's a short 6.4% kick, the steepest ramp on the entire course, arriving at mile 19.5. This is the point where even flat marathons start to break runners.
• The deck is a metal grate (carpeted, but watch it if it's wet).
• Then Mott Haven: one mile, seven turns. People will tell you that the Bronx is “lonely.” Every year I run it, the run clubs, DJs, marching bands, and cheer zones get louder.

Pace

• The field runs the Bronx at 9:32 against Brooklyn's 8:14. That's not the borough's fault — that's the wall. You decided how it would treat you back on Fourth and First Avenue.
• Attack nothing — rest in the turns.
• The mile-20 marker sits just over the bridge. Whatever you feel when you get there, tell yourself it's a 10K to go. You've done dozens of 10Ks to get here — what's one more?

Technique

• Short steps up the Willis ramp — it's 35 feet, and it'll be over soon.
• Count the turns down: seven, six, five… to keep your mind off how your legs are starting to feel.

Fuel & more

• Station at 20, right off the bridge. Take carbs in whatever form your stomach will take.
• Last easy chance to fix hydration before the Fifth Avenue grind. The next 5K is where skipped water and carbs become cramps.

Course

• The Madison Avenue Bridge is the Last Damn Bridge — the spectators will tell you that; make sure you tell yourself, too.
• Then Harlem: 138th Street, the 125th Street party (choirs, drum lines, and DJs), around Marcus Garvey Park, and the left turn onto Fifth Avenue at Duke Ellington Circle.

Pace

• Even effort through the turns. If a pace crisis hits here, downgrade your goal one notch and recommit. Don't renegotiate every block for the next four miles — it's not fun.
• Fifth Avenue tilts up from 22.9, not the mile-23 marker. It's better to know this before the race than to find out on the course.

Technique

• Posture rebuild before the grind: head tall, elbows back, cadence up 2–3 steps a minute. Cadence is cheaper than stride length from here to the finish.

Fuel & more

• Bananas appear around mile 21. This could be a solution for you if your gut has decided to quit on gels.
• Stations at 21 and 22. Walk the table if that's what it takes to actually swallow.

Course

• A hundred feet of climb spread over the mile from Duke Ellington Circle to Engineers' Gate, past the Harlem Meer and down Museum Mile. Your eyes will gaslight you the entire way; your legs will know the truth.
• This is where course strategy becomes the most important. Each time you relaxed up a bridge and didn't bomb a descent is time you're making back here. Central Park is right over the wall to your right, which somehow makes it worse.

Pace

• Everyone slows here. Plan for +10–15 seconds and you'll spend the mile passing a hundred people who didn't.
• Don't look at the street signs. Every time you think you've covered five blocks, you'll only have covered two. It's not worth torturing yourself.
• Keep an eye out for Engineers' Gate. That's the target.

Technique

• The mile-23 form collapse is a choice. Run the 30-second reset on loop: shoulders, hands, jaw, elbows — all relaxed.
• Lean from the ankles, increase your cadence. Stride length will be gone — don't chase it.

Fuel & more

• Station at 23: water at a minimum, carbs if you can still stomach them. The last depot was at 18 — take the extra gel you grabbed now.

Course

• Through Engineers' Gate at East 90th onto East Drive: rollers the whole way, and a welcome downhill at Cat Hill past Edward Kemeys' Still Hunt. One more big climb after Cat Hill, until you're out at Grand Army Plaza around 25.5.
• The eternal flat of Central Park South brings you to Columbus Circle four-tenths of a mile down the road, where you need to hop a curb to get back into the park — people miss it and trip — for a finish climb in the last 400 meters to Tavern on the Green.
• The crowds are deep from here to the line, and they know exactly how you feel. Soak it all in.

Pace

• The rollers hurt more downhill than up now. Mile 25 holds the biggest descent since the Verrazzano and your quads will be complaining. Quick feet — don't brake.
• Central Park South is the longest “almost there” in running. You leave the park with almost a mile still to go. Remember that you're merely minutes from the finish line.
• After Columbus Circle, it's time to empty the tank. Leave nothing on the course. The finish is a climb, and your goal is to attack. An uphill finish is a gift — you'll look good in every photo.

Technique

• Now it's time to race people, not the clock. Pick a runner ahead of you and reel them in, one by one.
• Head up through the finish. The finish photo lasts forever.
• Remember how lucky you are to be able to run this race. Smile — you earned it.

Fuel & more

• Stations at 24 and 25 — water only if the stomach is done. You can't fuel your way out of the last two miles.
• After: the recovery bag has a Gatorade, an apple, pretzels, a bottle of water, and a Maurten Solid. Poncho-only exits are north; bag pickup is south.
• Get your medal, get your photo, and prepare for a long walk to the exit.