New Yorkers were besotted by splendid, flesh-caressing weather this weekend. They surged into the city’s biggest backyard in swarms, relieved to be free of frigid winter.
“This the best time in New York — right now — not too cold, not too hot, not at all humid!” enthused property manager Karen Hinds, 29, of Harlem.
Hinds had traveled to Central Park with her friend, Luisaura Valdez, 23, of the South Bronx, Sundayto gawk at sights as balmy as the weather: kids twirling about in tutus, drummers, sunbathers, dogs wearing sunglasses.
It was as if the city suddenly switched from black and white to Technicolor and everyone had suddenly swallowed “yea, Spring!” pills.
Chris Wright, 55, a lawyer, trekked from Brooklyn Heights with his son, Drake, 13, to play softball. “No coats!” Wright exclaimed. “No hats or mittens or gloves: None of that stuff!” Wright had forgotten his sunscreen because it’s been such a long time since he needed it.
That it has. Whereas Sunday hovered in the 60s, Saturday hit 80 degrees. The last time the city saw similar temps was on Sept. 28, 2014 when the mercury surged to 84 degrees, noted Jack Boston, Accuweather.com senior meteorologist.
“We’ve had two winters in a row when we’ve had two times as much snow” as normal, Boston noted — 50.3 inches this winter and 57.4 inches for 2013-2014, compared to a 30-year average of 25.1 inches. Temps have been frosty, too, about three degrees below the norm of 35.1 and even our March was unusually cool, he added. The relief in saying “goodbye to all that” was in the air, with April being slighly warmer than normal so far.
“We have been outside every single minute,” laughed Kimberly Cantor, 45, an Upper West Side mother of three who was in Central Park with her five-year-old daughter. “Little kids need to be outside” and winter’s endless series of indoor play dates are thin gruel for energetic youngsters, she explained.
Andrea Da Cunha, 33, a lawyer, and Tiago Severo, 34, a finance professional wearing shorts, were kissing lovingly at a nearby intersection, en route to a friend’s impromptu barbecue to take advantage of the welcomed warmth. “Our mood is so much better! We’re much more energized!” said Da Cunha.
Kristi Tursi, 30, a photographer from Forest Hills, had run the 12th Annual MORE/Fitness/Shape “Women Run the World” half-marathon in Central Park Sunday morning. The weather helped her run her best. “It’s not muggy: That’s the thing,” she said.
New Yorkers, ever the opportunists, are advised to grab it while they can.
While today should start off mild with a chance of rain, “it is going to get cooler the rest of this week,” said Boston. Summer, however, will be warmer and drier than normal.
