NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — The New York City Marathon, which marks its 50th running this Sunday, has come a long way from its humble beginnings.
While the marathon attracts tens of thousands of runners from across the globe on a 26.2 mile course that stretches through the five boroughs, the first race was held on Sept. 13, 1970 in Central Park and featured just dozens of runners.
Gary Muhrcke, the winner of that very first race, remembers he and his wife, Jane, were just looking for something to do on that warm September day five decades ago when he got home late after finishing a night shift as a New York City firefighter.
"Who the heck would really want to run a marathon on a hot summer day? You know what I mean? And it was only that we had three children, they were pretty small, and I think my wife just wanted to get out of the house," Muhrcke said.
He paid the $1 entrance fee and joined 127 others for four laps of Central Park in the inaugural New York City Marathon.
Muhrcke recalls there was a water stop every six miles and soda to drink at the finish line.
"It was in the days that the soda cans didn't have flip tops," Muhrcke said, and no one thought to bring a can opener.
Asked to talk about his feat 51 years later, Muhrcke is humble.
"I'm very, very lucky," Muhrcke said. "Thinking about the race and how lucky I was, it was just sheer luck that I even showed up."
Muhrcke won with a time of 2 hours, 31 minutes and 39 seconds. Of the 127 runners, just 55 finished.
At 81 years old, Muhrcke is still running and has no plans to quit.
"Running has been a part of my life and I hope it's going to be that way until I die I guess," Muhrcke said.
He hopes to inspire others to get out and move.
Muhrcke and several other 1970 finishers will help kickoff marathon weekend at an opening ceremony at the finish line on Friday afternoon.
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