The casual race passes the Unisphere and the New York State Pavilion before an all-day post-race show, with organisers saying nearly 70 percent of tickets sold out months in advance
Run Now, Dance Later
QUEENS. Diplo’s Run Club is returning to Queens on October 24 with a 5K through Flushing Meadows Corona Park, starting and ending inside the park and passing landmarks including the Unisphere and the New York State Pavilion, according to amNY’s report on Diplo’s Run Club returning to Queens. The event, billed as a casual, high-energy run open to all levels rather than a traditional competitive race, is followed by a post-race concert featuring Diplo and special guests. Nearly 70 percent of Queens tickets had sold out months before race day.
Fitness experts have described the format as a breakthrough in motivational science: the first race in history where most participants are running toward the finish line primarily because it is where the concert is.
The New Fitness Economy
Run clubs have exploded in popularity in New York in recent years, becoming social scenes as much as fitness groups. Many New Yorkers now join running groups to meet friends, find dates and network, with exercise as a pleasant side effect. Combining a 5K with a concert by a globally famous DJ takes the trend to its logical conclusion. Cardio becomes the opening act.
A 29-year-old marketing manager from Astoria who has registered said she was honest about her motivations. I am running for the music, she said. And for the photos. And for the outfit. Mostly the outfit. I bought new running shoes, new leggings and a jacket that matches the event colours. The actual running is about forty percent of the experience. The other sixty percent is posting about it.
The Course
The route through Flushing Meadows Corona Park offers some of the most distinctive scenery in New York. The Unisphere, the giant steel globe built for the 1964 World’s Fair, and the New York State Pavilion, with its towering observation structures, have featured in films, music videos and countless tourist photographs. For runners, passing them will provide a spectacular backdrop. For runners who have not trained, it will provide something to look at while walking.
A Queens resident who has lived near the park for forty years said he was pleased to see it getting attention. People from Manhattan come to Queens and discover we have a park bigger than Central Park, he said, which is true if you count the parts with lakes and the parts with highways. Then they run in circles around a globe and go home. It is nice. I hope they also eat. Queens has the best food in the city. Diplo should play in a dumpling restaurant.
The Ticket Rush
With most tickets gone, the remaining ones carry the kind of scarcity familiar to anyone who has tried to buy concert tickets in recent years. The idea that people now face dynamic pricing to run five kilometres represents a milestone in New York economics. Previous generations of New Yorkers ran for free, usually to catch a subway train, and considered it a daily hazard rather than a lifestyle event.
A retired schoolteacher from Flushing, told about the event, laughed for a long time. In my day, he said, we paid to see music, and we ran for free, mostly away from things. Now people pay to run, and the music is the reward. I do not understand it. But I am happy the young people are exercising. Also, I would like a ticket. For the concert part.
The Science Of Motivation
Exercise researchers have long known that music can make physical activity feel easier and more enjoyable, and that social settings can boost motivation. Events that combine running with music, community and celebration may encourage people who would never sign up for a traditional race to try one. From a public health perspective, that is a good thing. If the promise of a concert gets thousands of people moving, the motivation hardly matters.
Training Plans, New York Style
With a week to go, participants are preparing in their own ways. Some are following structured training plans, running several times a week along the East River or in Prospect Park. Others are relying on what one Brooklyn participant described as the New York method: walking very fast between subway stations, climbing station stairs two at a time and running for the train at least once a day. I have trained my whole life for this, he said. I have run for the L train for ten years. A 5K is nothing. The L train is a marathon of disappointment.
The Concert
For many participants, the real event begins after the finish line, when the run gives way to music. The all-day format transforms a morning race into a festival, complete with dancing, socialising and the kind of energy usually reserved for summer weekends. Organisers have kept details about special guests under wraps, adding a layer of mystery that participants have described as more motivating than any personal best.
The Last Word
Asked whether she planned to run the entire 5K, the marketing manager from Astoria thought carefully. I plan to run the first kilometre for the photos, she said. Then I plan to walk while drinking water and chatting. Then I plan to run the last hundred metres, because there will be cameras at the finish. Then I plan to dance for six hours. Technically, she added, that is more exercise than the race. So I am basically an athlete.