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May 26, 2008
Hamptons Marathon will return with greater numbers,
new features
By Cailin Brophy
After the runaway success of the inaugural event last year, the Hamptons Marathon and Half-Marathon will
return to East Hampton this fall.
The event will take place on Saturday, September 27, at 8 a.m. Although the run is still more than four months
away, organizers Amanda Moszkowski and Diane Weinberger said that registration is almost full.
Moskowski and Weinberger, who are avid distance runners, both live in New York City but are part-time East
End residents. They created the Hamptons Marathon and Half-Marathon because of their desire to see longer
distance events in the area, but even they were surprised at the level of response to the inaugural event. Last
year, 700 people registered for the event with a waiting list of more than 150 people. On race day, 230 people
were at the starting line for the marathon while 446 runners took part in the half-marathon.
Due to the overwhelming popularity, Moszkowski and Weinberger asked for a permit from East Hampton Town
that would allow a much larger number of runners to participate. This year, registration will close at 1,500
runners, but anyone wishing to participate in the event should heed Moszkowski’s advice to register as soon
as possible—during a telephone interview last week, she said that the 1,300th runner had just signed up for
the race.
“The field is going to be a lot bigger,” Moszkowski said. “Last year, we didn’t expect more than 250 people, and
we had to close registration in July after doubling what we thought we’d be able to handle.”
A positive review of the race in Runner’s World Magazine has only increased the popularity of the event.
Runner’s World named the Hamptons Marathon one of the Top 10 Races to Run in 2008. The magazine
praised the event for “its small-town vibe, shoreline views, and congestion-free course.”
The course, which is set up entirely north of Montauk Highway, takes runners through Springs, Amagansett
and East Hampton, with scenic views of the beach, farmland and fields.
“It’s peaceful—that’s the best way to describe it,” Moskowski said. “It’s a nice snapshot of the bucolic
Hamptons. There’s a little bit of beach, a little bit of farm. You’ll see some horses in the fields.”
Moskowski said that for the most part, runners last year praised the course, which she said isn’t an easy one,
presenting plenty of challenges with some hilly stretches.
“The only complaints were people saying that it can get a little lonely out there,” Moskowski said. “So we’re
encouraging people from the community to come out and cheer runners on. It’s long and lonely over 26 miles,
especially out in the Promised Land.”
Before this year’s race, people who are planning on providing that moral boost on the sidelines can pick up
cowbells with the Hamptons Marathon logo at the Gubbins Running Ahead stores in both East Hampton and
Southampton. Anyone who wants a cowbell is being asked to make a donation, large or small, to Project Most
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and Southampton Hospital, the primary charity beneficiaries of the event. Donations gathered at the East
Hampton Gubbins store will go toward Project Most, a charitable organization in East Hampton that provides
after-school services for children in elementary and middle schools. Donations made at the Southampton store
will benefit the hospital.
Any loneliness runners felt during the race last year should be significantly decreased this time around with a
field that will be three times larger and will also include elite runners from around the globe. According to
Moskowski, runners from as far away as Germany, Austria, Bolivia, Peru and Canada have already registered
for the marathon. While there will certainly be elite runners in the pack, Moskowski and Weinberger decided
that they wouldn’t pay appearance fees to attract world-class marathoners, choosing instead to save as much
money as possible for the event’s main beneficiaries.
“We do donate our proceeds to charity, so we want to keep costs as low as possible,” Moskowski said.
The larger field won’t be the only change to this year’s Hamptons Marathon. One new feature is the “race
within the race” which will showcase teams from local gyms that will compete against each other for a trophy
and, more importantly, local bragging rights. The five-person team with the lowest total time will be the winner,
with times in the marathon given heavier weight than times in the half-marathon. Thus far, Body Tech in
Amagansett, Core Dynamics in Water Mill, the East Hampton Gym, the Sag Harbor Gym, the East Hampton
YMCA and the Omni in Southampton have entered teams, although Moskowski said that teams can still sign
up even after registration officially closes.
Weinberger said that the race within the race should be a nice addition to the event.
“The idea for it evolved last year because we were trying to figure out a way to get the local gyms involved,”
she said. “I think it adds some local excitement. People are very competitive and they like to do the weekend
warrior thing when they come out east, so we thought it would be a great idea to have some additional
competition.”
Weinberger and Moszkowski say that maintaining a strong local flavor within what has become a very big
event is a priority for them.
“The local community should know a lot of people running in this race,” Moszkowski said. “As much as we
have people coming from all over the country, it’s still a very Long Island-based marathon. Almost half of the
runners were from the New York City and Long Island area. We want to have as many locals back as possible.”
Last year’s first- and second-place marathon finishers, Michael Arnstein and Blake Benke—both of New York—
will be back this year. Arnstein won the marathon in 2:44:51, just two seconds ahead of Benke, making for an
exciting finish. Jimmy Lynch, who won the half-marathon in 1:12:58 with a 5:34 pace, will be competing again
this year as well.
Project Most was the primary beneficiary of the Hamptons Marathon last year and will return to that role this
year as well, but there are also several new charity partners, including Southampton Hospital. Team in
Training will also be a charity partner for the first time. Team in Training is the largest endurance sports training
program in the world and raises money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The American Cancer
Society and Friends of Karen have joined as charity partners as well, along with East Hampton Day Care.
Friends of Karen, which has offices in Port Jefferson, provides emotional, financial and advocacy support to
children and their families with life-threatening illnesses. Any runners or walkers who would like to compete on
behalf of any of these charities may do so by raising funds to make a donation to that charity. With Team in
Training, runners will raise funds in honor of a local blood cancer patient. In return, Team in Training will cover
all entry fees and transportation costs on race day.
Participants will also be able to purchase photos from Bright Room Photography, which will have
photographers posted throughout the course on the day of the event. Moszkowski and Weinberger also said
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that they’d like to have a band perform at the finish line and are currently looking for the right group. Anyone
seeking more information on the Hamptons Marathon and Half-Marathon can visit hamptonsmarathon.com.
The site features maps and a video of both courses as well.
Training Runs
For runners seeking a group atmosphere to get in shape for the marathon or half-marathon, Moszkowski and
Weinberger have organized training runs, which will take place on Sunday mornings starting on June 29.
Anyone who wants to take place in the runs should meet at Gubbins in East Hampton at 8:30 a.m., although
Weinberger said that the runs could start earlier when the weather gets hotter. Nike trainers will be on hand to
help runners train and there will be a variety of distances and paces offered. Bagels and Gatorade will be
provided as well.
Last Updated May 26, 08 4:49 PM
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