紐約來信
紐約國際馬拉松賽取消之後
夏航為紐約時報中文網撰稿 2012年12月08日
秋季是一些國際城市慣常舉行馬拉松賽的季節。今年卻有不同城市的國際馬拉松賽因為不同的
“意外”而被取消。紐約國際馬拉松賽自創立以來的42年，從未被中斷過，即使是“9.11”恐怖襲擊事件，但今年的桑迪颶風讓紐約市長在最後的時刻作出取
消的決定。這個決定引起了很多合乎情理的社會爭議。但爭論過後的一個月里，人們如何面對因取消而帶來的爭議和情感糾結，卻是值得我們思考的一個問題。
說馬拉松賽是紐約的一大盛事毫不為過，每年來自世界和美國各地的參賽者就有45000之多，而前往助戰的參賽者親友及本地和世界的遊客也超過兩百 萬，這還不要提全球3億多觀看電視轉播的觀眾。今年被認定的參賽者達到了比賽組織者所能承納的上限47000人，其中國際參賽者就有兩萬多。在最後時刻取 消賽事，那些從各國和美國各州飛來的參賽者及其親人該怎麼辦，有多少人能馬上打道回府？這個一向好客的城市該如何安置他們？延長的酒店費用如何承擔？
如果從紐約國際馬拉松賽風光幻象的參賽路線看，形容這個賽事極為誘人也不為過。它途徑紐約市多種族社區融合的史坦頓島，布魯克林，皇后，布朗和曼哈
頓五個市區；穿越橫跨海灣和內河的五座大橋，沿途的海天景色和自由之神就近在眼前；終點則是充滿無限秋色的中央公園。對很多紐約馬拉松參賽者而言，參加這
個賽事更多的不僅是比賽，而且是體驗。是在奔跑中感受同行和觀者的熱情氣氛，是置身風景人文各異的環境中的體驗。就像有媒體形容來參加這個比賽一些人的心
態，就如同參與位於風光迤邐夏威夷的著名鐵人三項。因此，選擇報名哪裡的賽事也是不少馬拉松人蔘賽的動因之一。
而另一方面，對很多世界各地的成年人來說，一生中能挑戰一次馬拉松是一個很大的夢想。而參加馬拉松賽，從報名到準備，每個人都要投入半年左右的時 間，參與認真的訓練和經歷長途飛行。其中投入的時間和費用並不是一個輕易的決定。我有多個朋友參加過各種馬拉松賽事。Caroline便是其中的一位。她 是紐約長跑俱樂部(NYRRC)的兼職教練，這個組織也是紐約國際馬拉松賽事最大的民間組織者。今年是她連續第十二年的紐約馬拉松賽。像其他4萬多參賽者 一樣，過往半年多的集中訓練，讓她毫無疑問地期待這場熱鬧非凡的賽事。
因為紐約馬拉松賽事的報名人數巨大，2011年全球有14萬多人遞交了申請。如何篩選和組織這個龐大的賽事，程序分類清晰和規章合理公平是重要的一 環。參賽者中有相當一部分則是為慈善捐款而跑。據參賽組織規章，賽者既可以為大賽組織者名下的慈善組織奔跑，也可以申請為其他類慈善捐款參賽。此類報名 者，要承諾一個額度的捐款項目；而相應的慈善組織者又會提供半年左右的訓練項目和場地作為回報。如果比賽取消，那些已經為本年度慈善組織籌夠款項的參賽者 們，該如何實現他們半年專業訓練後參賽的熱望？並且由於入選紐約國際馬拉松賽非常之難，那些已捐夠額度的善款是否可以視為下一年報名達標的條件？
綜上的種種境況都在取消這個牽扯幾十萬人的體育賽事後浮上了水面。那些馬拉松人的心情更是極為複雜，特別是看到紐約很多街區早已準備就緒的比賽標幅和路障，無不時時提醒着你，訓練了半年的體力和心理的衝動更讓很多人難以陡然放下。
然而，一想到連日的受災報道，夜晚漆黑的大片曼哈頓下城街區，他們又為要繼續比賽的心態而抱有很大的負疚感。試想，如果不取消賽事，一百多萬在斷電 缺水和寒冷氣溫下生活的人們，該以如何的勇氣和心情，去熱情觀看活力四射的奔跑者？颶風是自然災害，不像“9.11”事件是人為的災難，災後要團結一心地 向恐怖分子顯示人們的勇敢和堅強，而且當時也是恐怖襲擊一個多月後的事情，而這次的天災才發生不過兩三天。特別是賽事的起點史坦頓島為重災區，為了保障賽 事的順利進行，需要動用大量的警力和社會資源，這對重創之下的紐約顯然是一個額外的負擔。
最終，很多參賽者在11月4日自發地環繞中央公園跑四圈，等同26.2英里的馬拉松距離，同時為受災者捐款。更有一群馬拉松人在情感的糾結之後，決定直面受災社區，參與救助。
Jordan Metzl是紐約著名的運動創傷醫學醫生, 也是一個馬拉松賽事的老兵。今年該是他第30個紐約馬拉松比賽。Jordan在市長決定取消的新聞公布後，馬上與幾個長跑愛好者在當晚建立一個 Facebook主頁，號召馬拉松參賽者加盟他們組織的支援史坦頓島的救援行動。很快有3千多人回復了Jordan的倡議。
11月4日早晨，上千的馬拉松人，分批聚集到曼哈頓島南端的渡船碼頭，並乘船前往史坦頓島救助。作為志願者，他們穿着本年馬拉松賽的橘黃色T恤衫， 背着裝滿救援用具和食品的雙肩背包。Caroline也積極響應Jordan醫生的號召，和丈夫一起與上東區住所附近的一個酒吧Saloon合作，當天早 晨8點鐘就把酒吧收集的捐獻物資運到了碼頭。
史坦頓島是紐約市南端一個非常大的行政區。颶風過後的天氣異常寒冷，而橫亘街區的倒塌樹木和電纜線也使救援行動無比艱難。因為沒有電力，所有的電子 辨識方向設備都毫無用處。即使在如此匆忙下，志願救援的馬拉松人們也沒有混亂。Jordan醫生打印了所需的所有地圖，一個救援小組應提供給受災人最需清 理用具和食品的清單，如何指引受災人們找到最近的救援中心，以及如何指導受災人註冊聯邦應急管理局(Federal Emergency Management Agency)救援申請的注意事項。
馬拉松志願救援的隊伍最終在各分隊的領頭人帶領下，每人背着近一二十磅的救援品，以地圖辨認街區方向，向受災嚴重區域出發。救援小組為了從渡船碼頭多輸送物資，多是跑步前行，每趟行程都有7到10英里。這對即使是受過馬拉松訓練的人來說，也是一個從未經歷過的考驗。
除了救災，來自各地的馬拉松人也未輕易地放棄奔跑的夢想。從十一月初到十二月初的一個月左右，紐約馬拉松的參賽者們陸續參加了跨越美國東西南北諸多 城市和州舉辦的各種形式的十幾個馬拉松賽事。很多區域性的馬拉松賽，都特別給紐約馬拉松參賽者預留幾十到幾百個註冊位置。一些馬拉松賽組織者，還把部分報 名費的收入捐助給紅十字會專設的颶風救助基金。聖誕將至，Jordan醫生的團隊們，又在Facebook上召集人馬，計劃就在這個周末，為還在受災復原 的區域送上他們微薄的溫暖。
很多人說，紐約國際馬拉松賽的一個核心理念就是有共同熱望的人們，團結一心熱情地做一件喜歡的事情。取消比賽，反而讓很多馬拉松人靜下心來思考和回 歸到賽事背後的核心理念。其實，面對一個難以準確預料的巨大災害，一個牽動龐大的社會活動，不管組織者最終作出怎樣的決定，都會引發各種社會爭議。這從來 就是一個公眾社會面對挑戰時的正常反應。然而重要的是，各持己見的社會個體，能否在表達各自觀點和情緒之後，面對現實困難和心靈糾結儘快地冷靜下來，轉而 積極且迅速地尋找各自的解決方案。這也許是每一個獨立的社會個體值得考量的話題。
說馬拉松賽是紐約的一大盛事毫不為過，每年來自世界和美國各地的參賽者就有45000之多，而前往助戰的參賽者親友及本地和世界的遊客也超過兩百 萬，這還不要提全球3億多觀看電視轉播的觀眾。今年被認定的參賽者達到了比賽組織者所能承納的上限47000人，其中國際參賽者就有兩萬多。在最後時刻取 消賽事，那些從各國和美國各州飛來的參賽者及其親人該怎麼辦，有多少人能馬上打道回府？這個一向好客的城市該如何安置他們？延長的酒店費用如何承擔？
而另一方面，對很多世界各地的成年人來說，一生中能挑戰一次馬拉松是一個很大的夢想。而參加馬拉松賽，從報名到準備，每個人都要投入半年左右的時 間，參與認真的訓練和經歷長途飛行。其中投入的時間和費用並不是一個輕易的決定。我有多個朋友參加過各種馬拉松賽事。Caroline便是其中的一位。她 是紐約長跑俱樂部(NYRRC)的兼職教練，這個組織也是紐約國際馬拉松賽事最大的民間組織者。今年是她連續第十二年的紐約馬拉松賽。像其他4萬多參賽者 一樣，過往半年多的集中訓練，讓她毫無疑問地期待這場熱鬧非凡的賽事。
因為紐約馬拉松賽事的報名人數巨大，2011年全球有14萬多人遞交了申請。如何篩選和組織這個龐大的賽事，程序分類清晰和規章合理公平是重要的一 環。參賽者中有相當一部分則是為慈善捐款而跑。據參賽組織規章，賽者既可以為大賽組織者名下的慈善組織奔跑，也可以申請為其他類慈善捐款參賽。此類報名 者，要承諾一個額度的捐款項目；而相應的慈善組織者又會提供半年左右的訓練項目和場地作為回報。如果比賽取消，那些已經為本年度慈善組織籌夠款項的參賽者 們，該如何實現他們半年專業訓練後參賽的熱望？並且由於入選紐約國際馬拉松賽非常之難，那些已捐夠額度的善款是否可以視為下一年報名達標的條件？
綜上的種種境況都在取消這個牽扯幾十萬人的體育賽事後浮上了水面。那些馬拉松人的心情更是極為複雜，特別是看到紐約很多街區早已準備就緒的比賽標幅和路障，無不時時提醒着你，訓練了半年的體力和心理的衝動更讓很多人難以陡然放下。
然而，一想到連日的受災報道，夜晚漆黑的大片曼哈頓下城街區，他們又為要繼續比賽的心態而抱有很大的負疚感。試想，如果不取消賽事，一百多萬在斷電 缺水和寒冷氣溫下生活的人們，該以如何的勇氣和心情，去熱情觀看活力四射的奔跑者？颶風是自然災害，不像“9.11”事件是人為的災難，災後要團結一心地 向恐怖分子顯示人們的勇敢和堅強，而且當時也是恐怖襲擊一個多月後的事情，而這次的天災才發生不過兩三天。特別是賽事的起點史坦頓島為重災區，為了保障賽 事的順利進行，需要動用大量的警力和社會資源，這對重創之下的紐約顯然是一個額外的負擔。
最終，很多參賽者在11月4日自發地環繞中央公園跑四圈，等同26.2英里的馬拉松距離，同時為受災者捐款。更有一群馬拉松人在情感的糾結之後，決定直面受災社區，參與救助。
Jordan Metzl是紐約著名的運動創傷醫學醫生, 也是一個馬拉松賽事的老兵。今年該是他第30個紐約馬拉松比賽。Jordan在市長決定取消的新聞公布後，馬上與幾個長跑愛好者在當晚建立一個 Facebook主頁，號召馬拉松參賽者加盟他們組織的支援史坦頓島的救援行動。很快有3千多人回復了Jordan的倡議。
11月4日早晨，上千的馬拉松人，分批聚集到曼哈頓島南端的渡船碼頭，並乘船前往史坦頓島救助。作為志願者，他們穿着本年馬拉松賽的橘黃色T恤衫， 背着裝滿救援用具和食品的雙肩背包。Caroline也積極響應Jordan醫生的號召，和丈夫一起與上東區住所附近的一個酒吧Saloon合作，當天早 晨8點鐘就把酒吧收集的捐獻物資運到了碼頭。
史坦頓島是紐約市南端一個非常大的行政區。颶風過後的天氣異常寒冷，而橫亘街區的倒塌樹木和電纜線也使救援行動無比艱難。因為沒有電力，所有的電子 辨識方向設備都毫無用處。即使在如此匆忙下，志願救援的馬拉松人們也沒有混亂。Jordan醫生打印了所需的所有地圖，一個救援小組應提供給受災人最需清 理用具和食品的清單，如何指引受災人們找到最近的救援中心，以及如何指導受災人註冊聯邦應急管理局(Federal Emergency Management Agency)救援申請的注意事項。
馬拉松志願救援的隊伍最終在各分隊的領頭人帶領下，每人背着近一二十磅的救援品，以地圖辨認街區方向，向受災嚴重區域出發。救援小組為了從渡船碼頭多輸送物資，多是跑步前行，每趟行程都有7到10英里。這對即使是受過馬拉松訓練的人來說，也是一個從未經歷過的考驗。
除了救災，來自各地的馬拉松人也未輕易地放棄奔跑的夢想。從十一月初到十二月初的一個月左右，紐約馬拉松的參賽者們陸續參加了跨越美國東西南北諸多 城市和州舉辦的各種形式的十幾個馬拉松賽事。很多區域性的馬拉松賽，都特別給紐約馬拉松參賽者預留幾十到幾百個註冊位置。一些馬拉松賽組織者，還把部分報 名費的收入捐助給紅十字會專設的颶風救助基金。聖誕將至，Jordan醫生的團隊們，又在Facebook上召集人馬，計劃就在這個周末，為還在受災復原 的區域送上他們微薄的溫暖。
很多人說，紐約國際馬拉松賽的一個核心理念就是有共同熱望的人們，團結一心熱情地做一件喜歡的事情。取消比賽，反而讓很多馬拉松人靜下心來思考和回 歸到賽事背後的核心理念。其實，面對一個難以準確預料的巨大災害，一個牽動龐大的社會活動，不管組織者最終作出怎樣的決定，都會引發各種社會爭議。這從來 就是一個公眾社會面對挑戰時的正常反應。然而重要的是，各持己見的社會個體，能否在表達各自觀點和情緒之後，面對現實困難和心靈糾結儘快地冷靜下來，轉而 積極且迅速地尋找各自的解決方案。這也許是每一個獨立的社會個體值得考量的話題。
夏航是資深美國媒體產業投資諮詢顧問，紐約州立大學客座教授。
2011
I’m a slow runner. A really slow runner. In that field of 625, I finished in 619th place.
There was a time when I was embarrassed by my painfully slow pace, but not anymore. Since I began training for a marathon this spring, I’ve discovered that the view is a lot more interesting in the back of the pack.
During a five-mile run in Central Park last spring, I paced alongside a double amputee who was using crutches and a single metal leg to propel himself along the course.
At the 13.1-mile Philadelphia Distance Run this fall, I spent a good part of the race alongside an athlete who jumped rope the entire way. Later, I trotted with two women wearing pink feather boas. There was also a “joggler,” someone who juggles and runs at the same time. Nearby was 81-year-old Robert Welsh of Wallingford, Pa. (He won his age group.)
My shirt that day read, “Slow Is the New Fast.”
This weekend, I was again at the back of the pack of the estimated 43,000 who participated in the New York City Marathon, and I was thrilled to be there. About five months ago, I declared that I was going to transform myself from couch potato to runner and complete a fall marathon. I trained using a combination of running and walking, a method espoused by the Olympian distance runner Jeff Galloway and now used by hundreds of thousands of runners around the country.
During my marathon, I ran next to a man wearing an Eiffel Tower costume. Several women raising money for breast cancer drew cheers from the crowds for running in their decorated bras. I also spent time alongside several members of the Achilles Track Club, for athletes with disabilities.
My marathon included four stops to hug my daughter along the route, a quick jaunt into a deli in Queens to buy a banana, and countless high fives with kids along the course. I also spent about three miles talking and walking with Maureen Donohue, 68, of Long Island, who began running at age 56 and was taking part in her 10th marathon. To train, she run-walks a five mile course near her home, takes a coffee break and heads back out again for five more miles. I found her inspiring, and so did the crowd. As we passed by, onlookers shouted, “Go, Mo, go!”
Despite their pace, back-of-the-packers still struggle with leg cramps, blisters and back spasms, and so did I. I finished my first marathon in 6 hours 58 minutes 19 seconds. I know faster marathoners are bothered by so-called plodders. A recent front-page article in my own newspaper quoted a number of marathoners to that effect, saying we had ruined the race’s mystique.
It’s true that marathons around the country are getting slower, as more charity runners and run-walkers take part. In 1980 the average marathon time was about three and a half hours for men and about four hours for women, according to Running USA. Today, the averages are 4:16 for men and 4:43 for women. About 20 percent of the participants in the New York City Marathon take longer than five hours to finish.
But the legendary gold medalist Frank Shorter says the criticisms of slow runners are “snobbery.” “You never hear that from elite runners,” he told me. “Elite runners admire other people’s performance. I find it much better to welcome slow runners to the club than to vote them out.”
Greg Meyer, who in 1983 was the last American man to win the Boston Marathon, says that when he hears such complaints from average marathoners, he replies, “If it wasn’t for the run-walkers, you wouldn’t be finishing in front of anybody.”
The main benefit of the run-walk method is that it eases your body into exercise, makes marathon training less grueling and gives muscles time to recover, reducing the risk of injury. Walk breaks are an ideal way for new runners and older, less fit and overweight people to take part in a sport that would otherwise be off limits.
The downside is that just as you are out on the marathon course about 50 percent longer than the average runner, your training time is much longer, too — four and five hours a weekend for long runs.
About 10 days before the marathon, I began to doubt my ability to finish the race. A flulike illness had sidelined me for a few weeks, and I’d missed some important training runs. I questioned whether it would be worth the effort to straggle over the finish line long after most of the runners had left.
But then, during an easy run on a trail near my house, I spotted another slow runner ahead of me. It took a moment before I realized his off-kilter gait was due to the fact that he was running on a Cheetah foot, an artificial limb that uses a flexible blade for the foot. He was young and fit, and I wanted to know his story, but didn’t stop him to ask. Instead I just watched his rhythmic run, and felt my own worries about race day fade away. It didn’t matter how fast I finished, just that I was out there, enjoying the view from the back of the pack.
2011
Well
A Marathon Run in the Slow Lane
Suzy Allman for The New York Times
THIRSTY Runners hit a water station on Sunday during the New York City Marathon.
Published: November 2, 2009
After a 10-kilometer road race this summer, a
friend apologized for missing me at the finish line. The truth was, she
hadn’t lost me in the crowd. She just didn’t wait long enough.
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Related
Times Topics: New York City Marathon
Avi Gerver for The New York Times
MILES FROM HOME Michel Bach of Pomponne, France, guess who, in New York's marathon.
There was a time when I was embarrassed by my painfully slow pace, but not anymore. Since I began training for a marathon this spring, I’ve discovered that the view is a lot more interesting in the back of the pack.
During a five-mile run in Central Park last spring, I paced alongside a double amputee who was using crutches and a single metal leg to propel himself along the course.
At the 13.1-mile Philadelphia Distance Run this fall, I spent a good part of the race alongside an athlete who jumped rope the entire way. Later, I trotted with two women wearing pink feather boas. There was also a “joggler,” someone who juggles and runs at the same time. Nearby was 81-year-old Robert Welsh of Wallingford, Pa. (He won his age group.)
My shirt that day read, “Slow Is the New Fast.”
This weekend, I was again at the back of the pack of the estimated 43,000 who participated in the New York City Marathon, and I was thrilled to be there. About five months ago, I declared that I was going to transform myself from couch potato to runner and complete a fall marathon. I trained using a combination of running and walking, a method espoused by the Olympian distance runner Jeff Galloway and now used by hundreds of thousands of runners around the country.
During my marathon, I ran next to a man wearing an Eiffel Tower costume. Several women raising money for breast cancer drew cheers from the crowds for running in their decorated bras. I also spent time alongside several members of the Achilles Track Club, for athletes with disabilities.
My marathon included four stops to hug my daughter along the route, a quick jaunt into a deli in Queens to buy a banana, and countless high fives with kids along the course. I also spent about three miles talking and walking with Maureen Donohue, 68, of Long Island, who began running at age 56 and was taking part in her 10th marathon. To train, she run-walks a five mile course near her home, takes a coffee break and heads back out again for five more miles. I found her inspiring, and so did the crowd. As we passed by, onlookers shouted, “Go, Mo, go!”
Despite their pace, back-of-the-packers still struggle with leg cramps, blisters and back spasms, and so did I. I finished my first marathon in 6 hours 58 minutes 19 seconds. I know faster marathoners are bothered by so-called plodders. A recent front-page article in my own newspaper quoted a number of marathoners to that effect, saying we had ruined the race’s mystique.
It’s true that marathons around the country are getting slower, as more charity runners and run-walkers take part. In 1980 the average marathon time was about three and a half hours for men and about four hours for women, according to Running USA. Today, the averages are 4:16 for men and 4:43 for women. About 20 percent of the participants in the New York City Marathon take longer than five hours to finish.
But the legendary gold medalist Frank Shorter says the criticisms of slow runners are “snobbery.” “You never hear that from elite runners,” he told me. “Elite runners admire other people’s performance. I find it much better to welcome slow runners to the club than to vote them out.”
Greg Meyer, who in 1983 was the last American man to win the Boston Marathon, says that when he hears such complaints from average marathoners, he replies, “If it wasn’t for the run-walkers, you wouldn’t be finishing in front of anybody.”
The main benefit of the run-walk method is that it eases your body into exercise, makes marathon training less grueling and gives muscles time to recover, reducing the risk of injury. Walk breaks are an ideal way for new runners and older, less fit and overweight people to take part in a sport that would otherwise be off limits.
The downside is that just as you are out on the marathon course about 50 percent longer than the average runner, your training time is much longer, too — four and five hours a weekend for long runs.
About 10 days before the marathon, I began to doubt my ability to finish the race. A flulike illness had sidelined me for a few weeks, and I’d missed some important training runs. I questioned whether it would be worth the effort to straggle over the finish line long after most of the runners had left.
But then, during an easy run on a trail near my house, I spotted another slow runner ahead of me. It took a moment before I realized his off-kilter gait was due to the fact that he was running on a Cheetah foot, an artificial limb that uses a flexible blade for the foot. He was young and fit, and I wanted to know his story, but didn’t stop him to ask. Instead I just watched his rhythmic run, and felt my own worries about race day fade away. It didn’t matter how fast I finished, just that I was out there, enjoying the view from the back of the pack.
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