Mercury Masters
New York City

We know that the New York City Marathon brings together more than 40,000 very disciplined athletes from around the globe. We have seen the headlines, runners from Kenya, Brazil, the UK all dediated runners with their stories. Right in the heart of New York City is a very special group of charming ladies who are not out to set world records. Rather they come together as a group as they have for the past 18 years as the "Mercury Masters" to simply finsih the world’s most famous marathon.

The name “Mercury Masters” comes from the Roman God Mercury who was known for being very fast on his feet. The term “Masters” is from the sports world meaning the senior athletes.

Christa Hartmann has been running since she quit smoking at the age of 50 to change her life and now she is motivated each day to get out and run in the city that she loves, New York. A few years ago she had surgery to place 4 screws into her spine because 2 vertebrae were degenerating away and she still goes out there and runs averaging 12-minute miles.

We joined a partial group of the “Mercury Masters,” about 20 or so, as they ran the last 10 miles of the NYC Marathon. There were many runners out there in the early morning preparing for the Marathon the following weekend. They may not be the fastest runners, but that doesn’t matter to them. It’s all about being with a group of women and having a good time together while maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

At the conclusion of the run we stopped to talk with the women in the picturesque Central Park about life, why the run and what it means to them to be a “Mercury Master.” In the context of the spirited discussion of almost everything from menopause, sex later in life, to the fear of aging there was not a topic that these women shied away from. We discovered during our conversation that the majority of their resting heart rates were below 60, which would place them in the same category of a well-trained athlete.

These women are sure to inspire everyone who watches. You cannot help but feel their enthusiasm and joy for running. We want thank Elyse Burden, the President of the group, and Christa Hartmann for arranging this day for us. A very special thank you to the oldest member, 87 year-old Joan Rowland for joining in Central Park. Though she does not run with the ladies anymore, she continues to support them. Joan made it very clear that running has saved her life since her family is plagued with heart disease. Her habit of running has helped her navigate through many heart related issues over the years.

To learn more about this inspiration group of women, visit