Didn’t 13.1 miles of Brooklyn streets just shut down for a half marathon last month?
Well, yes. That was the Brooklyn Half organized by NYCRUNS, which has boasted of plans to develop its “flagship Brooklyn Half Marathon into one of the most iconic running events in the world.”
This Saturday’s half is organized by a different group, New York Road Runners, which claims to have used the trademarks “Brooklyn Half” and “Brooklyn Half Marathon” for more than 40 years.
The distinction seems to matter enough that the groups are embroiled in a federal lawsuit for trademark infringement, brought by NYRR against NYCRUNS.
Confusion about which Brooklyn half marathon is the Brooklyn half marathon led to people registering for one event when they thought they were registering for another, said Ted Metellus, NYRR’s race director and senior vice president of events.
NYCRUNS did not respond to a request for comment. Nomenclature notwithstanding, here’s what you need to know about Saturday’s run.
Where does the race take place?
The route starts by the Brooklyn Museum and ends on the Coney Island Boardwalk. Racers will hug the edge of Prospect Park at the beginning of the race, then enter the park and continue down Ocean Parkway all the way to the beach.
More than a dozen streets along the route will be closed. A full list of closures is available here, near the bottom of the page under “Street Closures / No Parking.”
The D and F trains will not run to or from Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue all weekend, and the 2, 3 and 4 trains will bypass Eastern Parkway-Brooklyn Museum in both directions from 4 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Saturday.
A detailed map of the route is available here.
You can check subway and bus route changes on the MTA’s website.
When does it start?
Two waves depart at 7 a.m. and 8 a.m., respectively.
How does the weather look?
The forecast calls for a light drizzle in the morning that will steadily increase throughout the day.
Who runs in this Brooklyn Half?
Organizers expect more than 26,000 participants on Saturday and say the makeup is unusually local for a half marathon.
“Twenty percent of our participant field actually live in Brooklyn,” Metellus said. “And 2,000 of them are affiliated with run clubs that are new to the space within the last five years.”
