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Upper East Siders Hit Wall When it Comes to Two-Day Marathon Idea

By Amy Zimmer | November 3, 2011 5:20pm

UPPER EAST SIDE — Many residents in this neighborhood embrace the marathon runners who race up First Avenue and down Fifth Avenue before their dramatic finishes in Central Park.

But they wouldn't necessarily look forward to having the crowds descend onto their streets for two days of the mega event, an idea organizers are apparently mulling to accommodate the swelling number of interested runners.

"We could run on Saturday and Sunday,” race director Mary Wittenberg told the Daily News. "The demand is there. When I started, there was a feeling that the marathon absolutely can’t grow anymore. But I don’t think growth is capped. People desperately want to run this race."

Many Upper East Siders described the jolt of joy and inspiration they feel while watching marathon runners flash through their neighborhood. But those feelings might get diluted if they saw runners for two days straight, they said Thursday.

"I'd probably hate it, honestly," said Katie Fuchs, 27, as she strolled her 16-month baby daughter while walking her papillon dog in Central Park.

"I love it for a day," said Fuchs, whose sister is a marathoner, "but two days, I think, would be more than enough running." Not to mention the noise, traffic and parking problems it brings, she said.

"I live on First Avenue where there are bands blasting music," Fuchs said. "It's a whole parade on First Avenue. After the first hour it's annoying."

Longtime Upper East Sider Dianne Kaminsky, 74, said, "I don't mind the city being intruded on for one day, but two days sounds like too much."

Though Kaminsky also likes to watch the runners, she said she's concerned for the area's shops, some of which close for the marathon. The event also cuts into her bike riding in Central Park, she said. 

A two-day event could accept as many as 100,000 people, Wittenberg told the News, noting that elite runners would have to run on the same day to prevent different weather conditions from affecting results.

An estimated 47,000 runners are set to take to the streets for this Sunday's marathon, with more than 130 bands and entertainment acts cheering them on along the route lined with 368 portable toilets and 38 medical stations.

"I think it would be a little more of an inconvenience, but at the same time I think most people in the neighborhood enjoy watching it," Bob, a 30-year resident of the area, who declined to give his name, said while walking his Scottish Terrier in Central Park near East 89th Street.

Ultimately, he didn't it would ruffle too many residents on Fifth Avenue either way.

"Most people who live on Fifth Avenue go out of town on the weekend," he said.