Mohawk Hudson River Marathon & Half-Marathon

This race follows the Erie Canalway Trail, and has been running since at least sometime in the 1980’s. I have fond memories from my childhood of watching the race from my backyard, which is within view of the bikepath along Rosendale Road in Niskayuna. All of those fond memories, unfortunately, were overshadowed by shock and outrage at how the crowd parking for this event treated my parents, who still live in that house, this year.
Though it is illegal to park along Rosendale Road, which is winding, busy, and has next to no shoulder, when the parking lot at the Lyon’s Park in Niskayuna filled up, people connected to the race started to park in the yards of local residents. My father was on the receiving end of all kinds of verbal abuse, mocking his age and sanity just because he asked people not to park illegally on their recently seeded lawn.
My parents are retired public servants, both waging expensive and exhausting battles with cancer, and can’t afford to repair the damage these people did. My father’s the sort of person who, when out on that bikepath every day, often makes friends of complete strangers while walking my family’s dog; he’s a gentleman, a kind person, and a gentle man, and was not being abusive to these people as they were to him.
The organization behind this race needs to ensure that wherever it holds this event has adequate parking available, that local law enforcement (and if necessary, private security) are protecting people who live nearby, and that you create an atmosphere of the respect this year’s event was so clearly lacking among those involved.
Shame on them for allowing what has historically been an event that fostered a sense of community to turn into a rude, destructive free-​for-​all.