Kopac's Corner
100% Absolutely Guaranteed, Certain Entry to the NYC Marathon
by Bob Kopac
"The only certainty is that nothing is certain." Pliny the Elder
Well, that shows you how much Pliny the Elder did not know. He apparently did not know the foolproof ways to obtain a NYC Marathon entry slot. Many runners are like Pliny the Elder. That is why they desperately hope their marathon lottery entry is chosen. However, the odds of that happening are the same as Martha Burk succeeding Hootie Johnson as president of the Augusta Country Club. Ain't gonna happen.
Another desperate ploy is the Waking-Ned-Devine Strategy. A runner knows someone entered in the NYC Marathon who cannot participate due to injury or other factors. The runner then uses that person's race bib. This can lead to complications, especially if the acquaintance is of the opposite sex. Imagine running 26.2 miles as a cross-dresser!
Forgeddaboudit! So step right up and listen closely. Let me introduce you to the surefire, absolutely guaranteed, no-fail ways to enter the NYC Marathon. You can thank me later by running a great time and having a great time. Or, if you don't want to thank me, you can obtain the following information yourself by going to the NYRRC web site http://www.nyrrc.org/nyrrc/marathon/entrantinfo and click "Application and Instructions."
- If you live in a country outside of the United States and Puerto Rico, and an authorized tour company in that country sets NYC Marathon tours, then purchasing such a tour guarantees you an entry into the race. True, you have to move to another country for this method to work. However, that is a small price to pay to run the NYC Marathon.
- If you previously have run 15 or more NYC Marathons, you are automatically eligible for a marathon slot. "Big deal," you say, when you are having trouble getting into your first NYC Marathon. Besides, this method takes an incredibly long time and takes an incredibly large amount of training.
- If you had an entry in the previous year's marathon and canceled prior to the race, you can get a guaranteed entry for this year's race. Yes, I know, "Big deal," when you cannot get an entry in the first place.
- Meet or beat the qualifying times. Yes, that's right. The Boston Marathon is not the only race where you can qualify by running fast times. You have to have had run a marathon qualifying time since September 1, 2001, or a half-marathon qualifying time since July 1, 2002. The times are:
| |
Age 18-39 | Age 40-49 | Age 50-59 | Age 60+ | Push-rim wheelchairs |
|---|
| Men marathon |
2:45:00 | 3:00:00 | 3:15:00 | 3:30:00 | 2:40:00 |
|---|
| Women marathon |
3:15:00 | 3:30:00 | 3:45:00 | 4:00:00 | 3:40:00 |
|---|
| Men half marathon |
1:16:00 | 1:24:00 | 1:32:00 | 1:40:00 | N/A |
|---|
| Women half marathon |
1:31:00 | 1:39:00 | 1:47:00 | 1:55:00 | N/A |
|---|
- Euripides once said, "Time will reveal everything." Perchance he was talking about the NYC Marathon, for you can use a 4-year plan to enter the marathon. First you have to enter 3 consecutive NYC Marathon lotteries but never get picked. After all that rejection, you are guaranteed to get a slot the 4th time. However, it is your responsibility to let them know by sending in the 4th application and then sending them a note to the marathonmailer@nyrrc.org e-mail address. True, this is a 4-year plan and may seem like a long time to get results, but as Shakespeare said, "Come what come may, time and the hour runs through the roughest day." Yeah, I don't think that quote is relevant either, but I wanted to use a quote where Willie mentions running.
- Join the New York Road Runners Club by January 31. Then, run 9 NYRRC qualifying races that year. You will be eligible to run in the following year's NYC Marathon when you mail in the application and send a note to the marathonmailer@nyrrc.org e-mail address. You do not have to run marathons or half marathons or even 10K races to qualify. You can enter 5K, 4-mile or 5-mile races and still meet the standards for the NYC Marathon. You don't even have to run the qualifying races; you can walk the races and still get accepted! So, if you are injured, you still have a way to automatically qualify.
So, take your pick. Use one of these methods to get an absolutely guaranteed, certain entry to the NYC Marathon. See the NYRRC web site for other restrictions and time limitations. However, you may say you still would rather trust your chances on the lottery. Well, this year's NYC Marathon will consist of a maximum of 20,000 U.S. runners and 10,000 international runners. As of April 2003, there already were over 48,000 eligible entrants. You do the math.
