Quick Guide to Trials Traveling

If you are reading this now then you are one of three types of people:

1. You are related to me. (Hi Nana! Thanks for the support)

2. You are in NY or about to leave for NY to watch the trials. (See you there)

3. You don't have an old friend from high school that you rarely speak to anymore that lives in NY that will let you sleep on his floor. (Tough luck. Better clean off that computer screen. You want to see each of those 15 pixels as well as possible.)

For all the #2's, here are a few things to keep in mind when visiting the city that never sleeps (except on Saturday mornings unfortunately):

The City and New Yorkers in General

*New Yorkers are not as cool as they think they are. They may live in a cool city that is full of cool stuff to do, but don't be fooled, they are the same insecure posers that exist in every corner of the country.

*Just walking around the streets is fun mainly because at any given moment you might see both the hottest woman you've ever seen and the craziest person you've ever seen in the same line of vision.

The Subway

*If travelling by Subway to the Park Saturday morning, leave 45 minutes before you think you have to. Trains will not show up on Saturday morning until the last minute and you will have to sprint four blocks and hop a wall to get into Central Park to see the first loop. Somehow those trains know. Very Creepy.

*People in the subway are the most idle, apathetic set of people you will ever encounter. You could walk in wearing bun huggers and shouting "I love terrorism" and 99% of them will continue reading, sleeping, listening to their headphones, or all three at once somehow.

Money
*Everything is going to cost about 20% more, from your McDonald's cheesburger to your pint of lager to your late night back alley yank, you're going to pay more than you would back home. The best thing is to just accept it, and forget about it until your overcome with regret the next morning (especially about the money, but especially about the yank).

*Something you must say to the rest of your group when you are looking around for a place to eat: "let's stop wandering around and just pick a damn restaurant." There are so many restaurants, they are all about the same (I'm no food buff of course), and as long as you stay away from the Broadway/Times Square area, you can get a good meal, a drink, and decent atmosphere for about 20-25 bucks, no less though.

Running

*You might as well just run in Central Park. It's cliche'd and crowded and not at all magical, but you will get a look at the trials course. If you close your eyes, you might even be able to imagine yourself in the race, passing mile 23 with Abdi on your right and Hall on your left and you guys smile and wink at each other because you know you'll be travelling together to Beijing and you'll be the best ofYOU JUST HIT A BABY STROLLER! I wasn't lying about how crowded it is. Watch where you're going for chrissake!

*Running through the streets early in the morning is really cool actually, kind of an 'eye of the storm' peacefulness.

Safety

*Don't be a pansy, Manhatten is full of rich businessmen and silver spoon fed hipsters. They are not going to rob you. Their jeans are too tight to fit anything in the pockets.