Boston vs New York: Better Running?

NY and Boston are rivals in what sports?

Yankees-Red Sox is a rivalry like hammer-nail is a rivalry. So is Celtics-Knicks, in the other direction. Bruins and Rangers both suck. NY doesn't have a pro football team.

Harvard football is better than Columbia, and B.C. is lightyears better than Fordham.

And in answer to your question, NY has a lot more people, and therefore a lot more runners and clubs and races, than Boston. Because Boston is smaller, it's a little easier to get out into the boonies, and good running spots are less crowded.

They're both OK for running, but if you're living in either place, it's for something else.

Boston is a good town, I have no idea why anyone would ever want to move to NYC.

What a hell hole.

Even I have to give this one to Beantown.

To be honest, we should count the Pats and the Jets and Giants as New York and Boston teams because that's where the highest concetration of the team's fans come from. Adding that to the sporting picture that pre-2000 Pats were as Bill Simmons put it the "Fredo Corleone" of Boston teams. Since then, the Pats have dominated the Jets starting with the Bill Belichick saga(Parcells names him Jets coach-he bails)highlighting it. More bad blood after they took Mangini away from the Pats. As for the Giants, recently they've been overhyped in the regular season only to do very little in the playoffs. Historically, though, New York would have the edge in the pro football department.

Running-wise I think this is no contest. Boston in a landslide.

I travel to Boston a lot for work, stay in Beacon Hill, and run the Charles. Where are the Urban Parks? I'd love to change it up.

The only city that is worse for running than New York is Baghdad.

if you search Boston on

www.usatf.org/routes

, you'll find some terrific places to run in Boston. Besides the Charles River that you already referenced, there's the Chestnut Hill Reservoir and the adjacent Newton hills (with an access road with little traffic) the Muddy River paths behind Fenway Park that reach towards Jamaica Pond, the gorgeous Arnold Arborenum, and even Franklin Park. All of these locales have good running paths and are largely void of vehicular traffic.

... an' I mean that!

Fam runs like hell in NYC.

Nobody asked about baseball. Or basketball. Or anything else. He only asked about running and how it was.

Running in Boston is many times better than running in New York simply because there are more "green" places ro run, and a much higer concentration of runners and running clubs per square mile.

dean moriarty wrote: The only city that is worse for running than New York is Baghdad.

False. St. Petersburg (Leningrad), Russia is also worse than NYC for running.

Most anyone who's been to the big cities in India and China reports they're also worse.

Ha! We're not DFL!

please dont squeeze the garmin wrote:

dean moriarty wrote: The only city that is worse for running than New York is Baghdad.

False. St. Petersburg (Leningrad), Russia is also worse than NYC for running.

I disagree

boston = super racist, poorly planned, terrible drivers, worst sports fans, too many college kids

new york = pretty dirty, pricier, running in CP is good

Boston wins by a mile. There's so many more parks and nearby suburbs with trails, green spaces, etc. to run in. Whereas in NYC you have Central Park, and that's about it.

boston = super racist, poorly planned, terrible drivers, worst sports fans, too many college kids"

racist? you idiot.

please dont squeeze the garmin wrote: St. Petersburg (Leningrad), Russia is also worse than NYC for running.

sleeper wrote: I disagree

OK then, since I'll probably return some day (it's a kick-ass city), if you want to share good places you found to run there I'm all ears. Thanks.

I do know about the islands. Yelagin is broadly comparable to Central or Prospect Park so that's a wash in my book.

New York is a great place to run. I've been running in Central Park for the last 5 years and have yet to get bored. Van Cortland is a 20-minute ride away. Prospect Park is 30 minutes away. Inwood Park is 15 minutes away. Then you can run along the water on the west or east side.

I've run in Boston as well. There are two options: run to the Charles and turn left; run to the Charles and turn right. I got bored after 2 days.

When it comes down to it, NYC is not for everyone. People who think running in NYC sucks are not wired for NYC in general, and we're glad you're not here, you'd just be in the way.

NYC wrote:

New York is a great place to run. I've been running in Central Park for the last 5 years and have yet to get bored. Van Cortland is a 20-minute ride away. Prospect Park is 30 minutes away. Inwood Park is 15 minutes away. Then you can run along the water on the west or east side.

I've run in Boston as well. There are two options: run to the Charles and turn left; run to the Charles and turn right. I got bored after 2 days.

I've lived in both places, and Boston is hands-down better. Sure, NYC has Central Park, and VCP, but that's about it (unless you want to count the East River walk). On the other hand, Boston has:

Within 20-30 min:

Middlesex Fells

Lynn Woods

Blue Hills

Lincoln Conservation

In the city:

Jamaica Way

Arboretum

Franklin Park

Castle Island

Charles River

Most of those places trump anything NYC has to offer. Not Boston also has a vibrant competitive scene with lots of open cross, indoor and outdoor meets. When it comes to running, NYC's not even close to Boston.

-KK

So it sounds like NYC has some good places, but Boston is winning pretty convincingly. I forgot to even mention the club scene in Boston, which is probably the most competitive amateur circuit on the east coast. Also, as several respondents have mentioned, Boston has much easier access to running-friendly suburbs than NYC does. More opinions are welcomed, though.

beantown fan wrote: My girlfriend just graduated college, though, and is hot to move to NYC.

You've got plenty of evidence that Boston has the better running. Stay put.

In the meantime I can accommodate your just out of college girlfriend for at least a few months while she gets her fill of the city. Send her on over.