Organizers Overhaul Security Plan for Marathon Keith Srakocic/Associated Press Security personnel stood behind spectators at the Pittsburgh Marathon in May. New York City Marathon organizers will search all bags brought anywhere near the race. Family members heading to the finish line will go through a special screening. People marching in the kickoff parade will not be allowed to carry bags of any kind. These are just some of the security restrictions New York's marathon organizers are taking in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings as they work to ensure the safety of next month's race, the biggest in the country. "Safety is always the first priority with the marathon," said Mary Wittenberg, the chief executive of New York Road Runners. I think we've found a new normal coming after Boston. Much as the airline industry revamped its procedures after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, race organizers are overhauling their approach to road racing security. Almost immediately after the Boston bombings in April, Wittenberg consulted with Raymond W. Kelly, the commissioner of the New York City Police Department. Her organization hired an international private security firm, MSA Security, to conduct "a top to bottom analysis" of the organization's existing security plan, she said. The security firm gave marathon organizers "a pretty good report card," said Peter Ciaccia, an executive vice president of Road Runners. But as a result of the analysis, marathon organizers are trying to seal off more areas, perhaps most notably at the family reunion area, where new bag checks will be installed along Central Park West, Ciaccia said. "We're not trying to create a police state," he said. It's going to be a great day, a celebration. Other security elements will include clear plastic bags used to store goods; an expansion of baggage inspection areas at the race's start in Staten Island; special screenings for visitors to the family reunion area; and an increase of assigned police officers, uniformed and undercover. A police spokeswoman declined to comment on the department's security plans for the race, but said, "We review our security measures on a day-to-day basis." Anthony C. Roman, a fraud and security expert with Roman & Associates, said he expected the police department to use some combination of its extensive counterterrorism tools: scuba divers, helicopters, video surveillance programs, intelligence relationships with federal agencies and bomb-sniffing dogs to name a few. "The resources being brought to bear on this are remarkable," Roman said. Marathons have long posed security challenges. While the National Football League can seal off stadiums, the parade-like, sprawling layout of a marathon that winds through the city's five boroughs creates a security headache. Last year's race was canceled because of Hurricane Sandy. "I think the overwhelming thing we've heard from runners is that they want this event to go on," Wittenberg said. Runners at the starting line at Fort Wadsworth in Staten Island will be prescreened in the organization's database, as will any volunteers or contractors involved with the operation of the marathon. The security situation will be on the minds of many runners. Ibra Morales, a runner who lives on the Upper West Side, ran in the Boston Marathon this year, only to be stopped at Mile 26 when the bombs went off. This fall, he will attempt to run the New York City Marathon, a race he has completed more than 30 times. But with the Boston blasts taken into consideration, he plans to run in the middle of the road this year. "I don't think anything will happen," Morales said. But you have to be alert. I will not run with fear.