Marathon Training

General Tips - The route along Central Park Drive runs on the inside of the biking lane, so it is very important to make sure you stay inside the lane while running. Complete information about when vehicular traffic is allowed to use the Park Drive can found here. Don't forget that during the hours that cars are allowed to use the Drive you are basically running along a city street, pastoral and lovely as it may be. It is encouraged that runners jog in a counterclockwise direction around the Drive. Water fountains and rest stops can be found around the park and are indicated on the downloadable map.

Route One - Two Mile Lower Loop of Central Park.
This run is exactly two miles and begins and ends at the Columbus Circle entrance to the Park. It follows the Park Drive up to 72nd St. where it turns left and heads across the park at Bethesda Terrace. Turning left again at the statue of Daniel Webster, it then continuing south past the Sheep Meadow and Tavern on the Green. There are several smaller hills, but nothing too challenging.

Route Two - Six Mile Loop of Central Park.
This run makes a complete circuit of the park and is much more demanding, especially at the northern end of the park where the run up and around the Great Hill. Proceeding northward from 72nd St. you pass the Boathouse on the left and if you look carefully along the boulders to your left as you run up the gentle slope that leads towards the Metropolitan Museum of Art you will see "Still Hunt", a statue of a crouching mountain lion waiting to spring upon its prey. The east side of the park also features the longest straight away in the park, along the Reservoir just west of Fifth Ave., and then heads up past the East Meadow. Running around Lasker Rink you get a great view of Harlem Meer and then up the long incline to the West Side. Then it's back downtown passing the Reservoir once again, the Ramble and a beautiful view of the Lake. At 72nd St. you rejoin the two mile route and continue past Tavern on the Green and the New York Marathon finish line.

No matter which course you decide to run you will be enjoying one of the greatest shows in the Northeast - autumn in New York and the amazing display of colors throughout the park as the foliage changes from deep hues of green to everything from bright yellow to a blazing crimson.