What are you doing interval training for? The race season is pretty much over. And if you're concerned about going fast, just do intervals up the hills in prospect or central park. Unless you're doing harlem hill in 45 seconds you're not going too fast.

I'm not doing Interval Training. I never really have. I do some wind sprints here and there, but more for fat loss and fun than anything else, and not nearly as structured as what people are talking about in this thread. I am not a racer or pro cyclist, not even close. To me, a good ride is between 50 and 100 miles and I could honestly care less if my average speed is 13 MPH once I get over 30 miles.

Looks like this thread took on its own life Anyways, today I went for a ride on my normal route only to see a marathon about to start. Figured I don't want to be stuck in foot traffic, so I decided to go back to Floyd Bennett field. Plum beach sand sucks, plain and simple. Floyd Bennett road to Aviator is in great shape. Adjusting runways are worse then I thought though - I've hit a big pothole that seemed to run pretty much across the whole runway and had to replace the back tire tube, not much fun... One of these days I'll go to Prospect Park; Central Park is just too far out for a training ride...

For those who train in Central Park - how early can you do laps there? Are you allowed on the East and West Drives before 6 a.m.?

The park opens at 6am.

Right. What I'm not clear on is whether the Drives would be considered part of the "Park" and so "closed" during times that the park is closed (i.e., 1 a.m.-6 a.m.). Should I understand, from your response, that they close and open at the same times the rest of the Park does?

This might seem like an obvious question, but where I'm currently located (Chicago, planning a move to NYC), there are paths you can bike on 24 hours a day despite the fact that they go through parks that "close" at 11. Just looking at a map, it looks like there might be some roadways through Central Park that might operate similarly.

This is a good question. Unfortunately, the Central Park paths are closed when the park is closed.

But this is not true of the bike routes on Randall's Island. (Since you are not yet living here, I should mention that, in order to take the Triborough Bridge, you have to land first on Randall's Island from the borough from which you started, and then find the bridge over to your target borough. This leaves aside the technicality that we're officially supposed to walk our bikes over the bridge; though that rule is mercifully not enforced.) You can ride through Randall's Island between the sections of the Triborough Bridge at any time; but, if you stopped to run around on the fields during the overnight hours when parks are closed, then you could get in trouble.

"Bicycle Riding Hours:
The Park is closed to traffic during the following hours:
-Weekdays: 10:00am to 3:00pm and 7:00pm to 7:00am
-Weekends: 7:00pm Friday to 7:00am Monday
The Park is officially closed from 1:00am to 6:00am."

Iow... The park opens at 6am.

I got to CP at 540 this morning... and there were a large number of joggers and cyclists.

I've also heard a story of a jogger getting a ticket for running in the park at 5am.

Take that for what you will.

Good Thread, had a lot of fun reading the post...Here's my take on a couple things written about here. I think that MPH as a reliable training barometer is relatively meaningless, interesting to see but, useless overall. Wattage is the real metric and no i don't own a power meter. Maybe one day but not now. Secondly, riding fast in CP, PP, Hudson Greenway, etc. is relatively safe for most people's fitness level. However, since the recent death of a CBS executive's wife, the NYPD is cracking down on cyclist which can make any kind of riding a drag. I ride everywhere I can in the city and it's a fact! Cycling in NYC is dangerous for so many reasons. But, road cycling is a brutal sport anyway you cut it. I don't care where you live but, yes NYC has it own unique dangers and obstacles. Personally, I love cycling, training in the city. I love seeing people, passing them, some passing me even the crazy cabbies on 1st.ave. Yes, I ride in the street at over 20MPH sometimes to get to where i need to go. If you go slower, it can be more dangerous. For me it's not a problem. The city pushes you on a bike and I like that. It's my therapy. Could the paths be better hell yeah! but, join the club motorist say same thing. The winters in the NE on the pavement are harsh. I like 9w but, it's a bit boring by yourself. The same with South/North county trail nice scenery but, gets lonely after awhile. JMO!

I recently rode from VCP in the Bronx around Shore Rd. path in Brooklyn to Far Rockaway Beach and the JB loop.
It was a killer but Hella fun! The cool thing about cycling in the city for a guy like me who's not "Macgyver" with a bike is that, there's always a train station within reasonable distance if you have a breakdown. I'm no Tony Martin or in "training" for a pro tour etc. just a regular guy who loves riding a bike. But, if I were, living in the NE let alone the city would put me at a disadvantage. IMO training to finish 300 out 400 is a waste of energy. I just have fun and know my limitations on a bike wherever i ride and the fitness comes naturally.

This is why I talk to myself...