Registration is now open for the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon Half-Marathon. The 3rd annual running of the PA Grand Canyon will be on Saturday July 25, 2015 and Sunday, July 26, 2015 in the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon, just outside Wellsboro, PA. There will be two half-marathons run on back-to-back days so please consider signing up for both!

The course takes you along the west rim of the canyon and features some of the most breathtaking views you can imagine.  Half Marathon course has been wheel measured for accuracy and every mile will be marked.  See Course Info page for details on both courses.

Enjoy the hospitality of the beautiful town of Wellsboro, with gas lights lining the streets, historic buildings, and a warm nostalgic atmosphere.  But make no mistake, the races feature all the amenities of a big city event – chip timing, tech shirts, custom finisher’s medal, expo, pasta dinner, goodie bag, on-course support, photographers, music, food, and so much more.  Proceeds are going to the Greenway Project, funding the completion of the rail trail system in Wellsboro.

To register for this race, please click here. Be sure to also check out the race on Facebook by clicking here.

(Special thanks to the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon race directors who donated to the Ace Bailey Children’s Foundation in exchange for this race posting. If you are a race director, please email therunninggriffin@gmail.com for details on how you can have your race listed.)

Registration is now open for the Marathon Park Prep Half-Marathon. Marathon Park Prep, former Half of Quincy, is 13.1-mile half-marathon in Ashland, MA and will be held on Saturday, March 21, 2015 and is a tough test for runners training for the Boston Marathon.

The location for this race couldn’t be better. Nestled between New England’s two largest cities (25 miles from Boston and 17 miles from Worcester), Ashland and Marathon Park are both easily accessible by auto or public transportation.

Funds from this race go to support the Ashland Sports Authority which continues to rehabilitate Marathon Park, the cradle of worldwide running and the central focus commemorating the historic Boston Marathon.

You can register for the Marathon Park Prep Half-Marathon by clicking here. Please also be sure to “Like” the race on Facebook by clicking here.

Please join The Running Griffin at the Dreamfar 10k which is being held on Sunday, January 25th in Sharon, Massachusetts. Registration is now available online by clicking here and I look forward to seeing you at the race!

What better race can there be for runners to head out and support? Dreamfar is a non-profit established to challenge high school students to reach their full potential- physically, socially, emotionaly and academically- through a mentor-supported marathon training program. As a runner, I applaud students looking to get into the running world and looking to succeed not just as they hit the pavement but in all aspects of their life, as well.

DHSM was founded in 2008 by Jamie Chaloff, a special education teacher in Newton, Massachusetts. Jamie herself a rebel in high school, was drawn to the students who fell through the cracks; she knew there had to be a way to motivate them to be the best they could be. In 2004 Jamie completed her first marathon.  Reaching the finish line was one of the most empowering moments of her life. It was that moment that everything “clicked,” and the dream of starting a high school marathon program began.

Please be sure to register today for the Dreamfar 10K and help support this important cause. Please also be sure to “Like” this organization on Facebook by clicking here.

An annual pilgrimage to Bourne, Massachusetts for the Weary Traveler Road Race was in store for this morning and the race always lived up to the expectations. In past years there have been race days that have been frigid and other years that the race featured icy turns and a slippery finish line. Last night some light snow and sleet hit the region which then led to warmer race time temperatures in the high 40’s and a heavy rain hitting the course just before the race was set to kick off. Needless to say, the course was rather wet but shorts and a jacket were plenty of running layers to head out onto the course with today.

The race is put on by the Cape Cod Road Runners and benefits the Bourne Conservation Trust.  The race is a great bargain race costing $12 per person and comes complete with running gloves and a hearty chowder and claim fritters meal after the race. This year there was a nice crowd of runners who enjoyed the race and post-race merriment together inside the Weary Traveler Club tucked away at the end of a residential street. The race course is patrolled by volunteers and members of the Bourne Police Department and a water stop half-way through the race certainly comes in handy.

I finished today’s Weary Traveler Road Race with a time of 36:29 which for the 4.9 mile course equates to 7:26/miles.

Happy New Year to everyone! What better way to start off the New Year than heading to a five mile road race bright and early on New Year’s Day. The MA FOP Lodge #28 Frozen Five Miler kicked off at 9AM in Norton, Massachusetts on New Year’s Day and the race conditions were much more favorable than the last time I completed this run with the sun peeking through the clouds and a crisp chill to the air being the only sign of it being winter with no snow or ice on the ground.

It is always nice to be joined by friends at a race and along with Mrs. Running Griffin some of our Thirsty Irish Runners buddies Bob, Fitzy and Anne also hit the pavement bright and early on New Year’s Day. Cousin-in-law (or something like that) Nick also kicked off the New Year in high gear and completed his first race in some time. Good work!

A nice sized group of runners made our way to the starting line and headed off onto the course for our five mile run. The first mile of the run takes runners down rather motorist friendly road though given the holiday date and time of the race the amount of cars that passed us for the mile stretch could probably be counted on one hand. After making your way off that stretch at about 1.25 miles, the race then makes its way into residential neighborhoods of Norton and keeps runners quite honest given the amount of rolling hills that are mixed into the course. The course is a good challenge and allows your legs to adjust throughout the race. A water stop was present at the midway point and one of the best sights on the course was an older style, neighborhood fire station that is now home to the Norton Fire Department Alarm Division.

I finished this year’s race with a time of 39:47, good for 7:57/miles.

Special thanks to Race Director Rich Allain and the FOP Lodge #28 for allowing me to partner with them as an advertiser and for listing The Running Griffin’s website on the back of the race shirts! With a good course, nice shirts, a full breakfast and with proceeds supporting a great cause, be sure to sign up for next year’s MA FOP Lodge #28 Frozen Five Miler when registration opens up!