Prospect Park distance

Rose wrote:
So does anyone know anything about the track in Red Hook? Like, where in Red Hook is it?

The track is at Bay St near Clinton. It's a good 2 miles from the center slope. I usually go down 9th St to Smith or Court, turn left to Bay St and right on Bay to the track. The track is 400 meters, in decent condition, and rarely crowded. I train and coach there and aside from some folks who don't know basic track etiquette or an occasional kid riding a bike, it's a pretty nice place. There are often other groups and individuals training, but everyone's pretty good about sharing. Plus next month the pool opens across the street.

Rose wrote: Thank you so much! Are there times when it's reserved for schools or is it always open to the public? And, um, what is basic track etiquette? (I haven't run on a track since high school and don't want to commit some hideous faux pas.)

To the best of my knowledge, it is never reserved. It's a public park, so i can't see how they could do that.

The basic rules just help everyone peacefully coexist out there. To that end, always run counterclockwise. (If you really want to run clockwise for warm ups and cooldowns, do so all the way to the outside or on the infield.) Generally, faster distance stuff takes place in lanes 1 and 2, so never walk or jog slowly there. Run your intervals in lane 1, and then move to the outside or infield for recovery jogs. When the sprinters are out practicing, they're usually in an outside lane, or will coordinate to avoid the others. If you hear someone coming up behind you in lane 1, move toward lan 2 in order to let them pass. Make sure to look first before walking on to the track, otherwise you could get run over, and if you hear someone say "track" it means that you're in the way.

Hope that helps.