Mrs. Running Griffin checking in from the running trails here. As Kevin was previously booked to go and run a race in Fall River on Sunday, I was off to Stonehill College in Easton, MA for the James Wright Memorial 5k.

Held on the campus of Stonehill College, the James Wright Memorial 5k was a remarkably well organized inaugural race with over 250 runners and walkers taking part in the event. The course was a really fair running route with a hill mixed in around mile 1 and another near mile 2 and the racing took place for the most part on paved roads throughout the college campus. Perfect racing weather for a 5k with the crisp autumn air matching the aesthetic charm of a New England road race complete with trees changing leaves and the fall really setting in.

Post-race refreshments included oranges and water and the Yasso frozen yogurt truck provided a nice post-race treat!

The race was held in memory of James Wright and the proceeds from the race went to The James Wright Memorial Fund. James died of a heart attack at home on February 12, 2011 at the age of 25. James grew up in nearby Stoughton, MA and was involved in athletics including football and baseball. About a year before James passed away, he became involved in saving pit bulls from being euthanized. The James Wright Memorial Fund will provide financial assistance to a college bound student athlete from Stoughton and will continue to save defenseless dogs from being euthanized. In 2011, Sean O’Malley was presented the scholarship and is currently attending the University of Maine and seven pit bulls were placed in a permanent home this year.

I finished the 5k race with a time of 34:12 or 11:01/miles. I hope this race takes place again next year as I certainly would love to run it again!

Headed south down Route 24 to Fall River for today’s race, the FLY Foundation 5k. The race started in front of the Bank Five on North Main Street and finished in front of the Tap House Grille on South Main Street. The race took runners through an urban course that had a good mix of hills and flats and ran along the harbor and by Battleship Cove, which is the world’s largest naval ship exhibit located right here in Massachusetts.

There were two water stops along the course and for the most part the support of volunteers was spot on. At one point in the race, though, the front of the pack, which I was part of, was not told to turn and loop back at a certain section. Fortunately I was stopped just a few paces past where we were supposed to turn but some of the other runners ran a good .25 miles in the wrong direction before doubling back.

The finish of the race was quite a challenge as there was a humdinger of a hill that took runners past the Fall River Herald News office before turning back onto South Main Street for the finishing stretch.

A good post-race party took place at the Tap House Grille which boasted about 25 beers on draft and served up some delicious post-race pasta which really hit the spot.

I finished up the 5k with a time of 24:02 or 7:45/miles.

About The FLY Foundation

The FLY Foundation is a registered non-profit organization in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, providing support to young adults in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, aged 19-39, who have been diagnosed with cancer. The organization was founded by Bristol, RI residents Julia & Peter Saulino, following Julia’s lymphoma diagnosis at age twenty-nine. To date, The FLY Foundation has provided financial support to five local young adults undergoing cancer treatment.

Last Sunday morning it was off to the Dorchester section of Boston for the Firefighters 10k. The race started and finished at the Florian Hall and took runners along a 10k course out toward the campus of UMass-Boston along the scenic Boston Harbor. As with any good firefighter race, the race was paced by an antique fire truck and a Boston Fire Department boat sprayed water from the water cannons out in the harbor.

The course was relatively flat particularly while running along the UMass-Boston campus and past the John Fitzgerald Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum. A couple of quick inclines were on the draw bridge section of Morrissey Boulevard. The race was well supported in terms of ample water stops and details provided along the course.

After the race, a pretty nice party took place in the parking lot of the Florian Hall with water, oranges and bananas being provided along with both Coors Light and Sam Adams.

Finished the Boston Firefighters 10k in 52:54 or 8:32/miles.

If you are looking for a 5k Run & Walk on the South Shore of Massachusetts on October 23rd then please consider the James Wright Memorial 5k Run & Walk.

This is the first annual walk/run event at the beautiful campus of Stonehill College. The proceeds of this event will go to The James Wright Memorial Scholarship Fund which provides financial assistance to college bound Stoughton student athletes through need and merit-based scholarships.

Date: October 23, 2011

Time: 10AM

Location: Stonehill College (320 Washington Street, Easton)

To register for the race, you can click here to register on Active.com. The Facebook page for the race can be found by clicking here.

Headed over to Lakeville, MA this morning for Greg’s Run 5k that started and finished at Apponequet Regional High School. The race was the inaugural running of Greg’s Run and over 300 runners and walkers took part in the event. The race took you through a rather nice residential neighborhood of Lakeville and for the most part the course was pretty flat with a slight uphill finish. The race was remarkably well orchestrated and given the success of the first ever Greg’s Run 5k, I can’t wait to head back for next years event.

Today, I intentionally ran off-pace. Some might question who would admit to such a thing but I did it for the very best reason.

Greg’s Run 5k was Mrs. Running Griffin’s first race back since giving birth to our beautiful daughter Cailin. Mrs. RG, better known as Beth Ann, had quite the complicated pregnancy and was hospitalized with preeclampsia at Tufts Medical Center for about 8 weeks prior to giving birth to our daughter. Needless to say, for a runner the thought of being confined to a bed for two months is about the worst thing possible. But the unknown about both her health and the health of Cailin was far more of a mental weight that Beth Ann was able to carry better than anyone else I could imagine. When Beth Ann gave birth to Cailin (weighing in at 2 lbs, 13 oz) and we learned that Cailin was a healthy, little baby and then finally when Cailin was able to come home after spending about 6 weeks in the NICU at Tufts Medical Center and Brockton Hospital, Beth Ann decided that it was time for her to get her running legs back.

When Beth Ann asked if I would run with her this morning, how could I say no? Since we were apart for 2 months and weren’t able to get our runs in like we normally do throughout the summer, running with Beth Ann for her first 5k back was awesome. Yes I pushed her and told her at one point, “You beat preeclampsia, you can make it up this little hill” but seeing her cross the finish line in front of me was an amazing feeling!

So kudos to Beth Ann for beating me today, it will never happen again! My time for the day was 36:22 for a pace of 11:42/mile and Mrs. Running Griffin finished just ahead of me.

Greg’s Run Scholarship

The Gregory G. Misodoulakis Memorial Scholarship Fund has been established to help perpetuate Greg’s memory for future generations. Multiple scholarships will be awarded each year to a qualified Senior at Apponequet Regional High School who most embodies the fund’s established criteria:

• Volunteer work
  
• Contributes to the Apponequet community
  (Student government, Athletics, DECA, etc.)
• Interest in the Liberal Arts and/or History/Education
• Commitment to academic achievement
  
• Based on financial need