The Midnight Run Is Back for Runners and Volunteers
Mary Haskins has a long history with the NYRR Midnight Run. She’s worked at the event every year since she joined NYRR’s volunteer operations team in 2015, but years before that the Midnight Run made an indelible impression.
“In 1996 I ran the New York City Marathon in memory of my mom, who'd passed away recently,” recalled Mary, pictured above. “It was an amazing experience and I wanted to start the new year at the Midnight Run. It was so special and magical.”
The Midnight Run is returning to Central Park on December 31 after being canceled last year. “Not to have it happen in 2020 was hard, though of course it was the right decision,” said Mary, who is now NYRR’s director of volunteer operations. “Like so many things, New Year’s Eve just wasn’t the same.”
She recalled the 2019 Midnight Run, which ushered in 2020 just weeks before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. “It was such a fun, exciting, hopeful event,” she said. “Little did we know.”
This year’s Midnight Run will bring together thousands of runners for a four-mile run starting at the stroke of midnight, with NYRR staff and volunteers keep everyone safe, healthy, and having fun.
“It’s such a wonderful way to celebrate the start of a new year—you’re outdoors, doing something you love, starting the year on the right foot,” Mary said. “If it’s cold, running will warm you up and make you happy and energized.”
Along with the runners, volunteers will be out in force at the Midnight Run. Volunteering returned to NYRR races in June after pausing for more than a year. “Since we started to engage the volunteers again they’ve been excited to get back,” said Mary. “We’re seeing more and more sign up.”