New York City Serving Up Near Ideal Forecast for Sunday’s Marathon

Posted: November 4, 2023 9:52 am

After months of weekend rain events in the Big Apple this fall, the weather is setting up nicely for the New York City marathon. Runners will welcome the anticipation of pleasant temperatures and dry conditions that is in the forecast for Sunday’s big race.

Roller Coaster of Weather Conditions Continues for New York City

It has been a few months of wacky weather for much of the Northeast, including New York City. Last week brought temperatures in the 80s, coming close to bringing down all-time records. That quickly changed this week with readings that topped out in the 30s and 40s just in time for the Halloween festivities. Fortunately for the marathon runners, Sunday’s forecast is looking to be nearly ideal for taking to the streets to pound out those 26.2 miles.

The race will kick off at 8 am in Staten Island. Runners will head over the bridge and into Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, and the Bronx throughout the course of the race. The professional wheelchair division kicks off first, followed by the professional runners. The last wave is scheduled to begin at 11:30 am.

The current forecast is calling for temperatures to hover in the low 50s when the race gets started. The afternoon high will top out in the low 60s. In addition to the comfortable temperatures, runners will also appreciate the forecast of little rain and low humidity levels. All of these elements will contribute to real feel readings landing near the actual temperature as indicated on the thermometer.

When compared to historical average, the average temperature on November 5 in New York City is 58 degrees. This means that this Sunday’s forecast is projected to be just slightly above average.

While this forecast may seem chilly to spectators of the race, runners typically prefer the temperatures to be even cooler. Marathon times for professional runners are the best when the temperatures are in the 40-degree range.

No Rain and Little Wind a Benefit to Runners

What is most important to those lining up at the starting line on Sunday is that the forecast is calling for dry conditions. Rain can slow down runners and make for slippery roads. The city and its surrounding suburbs have recorded eighth straight weekends of some degree of rain, dating back to Labor Day weekend.

The prediction of little to no wind will also be welcomed by runners. The forecast models are predicting that winds will be out of the west-southwest at 4 to 8 mph. This breeze will be enough to cool runners during the peak afternoon heating hours but not enough to cause issues. The only time that runners may encounter disruptive winds will be when crossing the bridges. Even then it should be fairly light in nature.

Although this weekend’s forecast is calling for temperatures a bit above average, it will be nothing like the 2022 running of the event. On this date, Central Park saw a high temperature of 75 degrees, good enough to set a new record.

The warmest race in New York City marathon history happened in 1979 when runners had to deal with temperatures that hit the 80-degree mark. Conversely, the coldest race occurred in 1995 with temperatures that plateaued at 40 degrees when the gun went off. The wind chill on this day brought the real feel readings down into the 20s.

The New York City marathon is widely considered to be one of the best road races in the world. Runners of every ability come from all over the world to compete in this famous race. Recreational runners typically need to sign up for a lottery in order to secure their spot in the field. The annual marathon is always scheduled for the first Sunday of November.

Did you find this content useful? Feel free to bookmark or to post to your timeline for reference later.

Recent Posts