5th Annual Bernie’s Run in Dedham

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ImageThe skies had opened up this morning with some rather strong downpours drenching the South Shore. Fortunately though, just before the 11:30 start of the 5th Annual Bernie’s Run the rain let up and a light mist actually made for some pretty nice racing conditions. The race started in front of Terri’s Market and ended in front of neighborhood pub The Village Manor.

Bernie’s Run is a 3 mile race that takes runners first into an industrial park parking lot but then has runners run through some residential neighborhoods surrounding The Village Manor. For the most part the race was pretty flat with a good hill mixed in around the 1.5 mile mark. There was a water station around mile 2 which was good placement for a quick, short run.

Post-run iconic New England legend Rene Rancourt, known for his fist pumping Star Spangled Banner renditions at Boston Bruins games, revved up the crowd with a post-race singing of the national anthem. Steve Kerrigan, a candidate for Lt. Governor, was also at the race greeting runners after the race.

Proceeds from Bernie’s Run benefit the Dedham Education Foundation. For more information about the Foundation, please click here.

Overall, a really good race for me today. I came in third amongst the Thirsty Irish Runners contingent and finished with a time of 21:38 or 7:13/miles. A great back-to-back racing weekend!

Pam’s Run 5 Miler

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ImageThis morning it was off to Wayland, Massachusetts for Pam’s Run, a 5 mile race to support Neighbor Brigade. Pam’s Run is dedicated to the memory and legacy of Pam Manikas Washek, founder of Neighbor Brigade and tireless champion for families in crisis.

Neighbor Brigade establishes and mobilizes networks of community-based volunteers to provide immediate services for individuals and families experiencing sudden crisis such as devastating illness, surgery, or accident. All services are delivered with care, quickly, and are free of charge. Please visit our website at www.neighborbrigade.org to learn more!

Prior to the start of the race a few speakers talked about the amazing work that Neighbor Brigade provides and Pam’s children gave a touching speech about their mom and the work that she sought to do before she passed. With the singing of the National Anthem, runners were off onto the course.

The race organizers noted that the race was rather hilly and it indeed lived up to that reputation. The 5 mile course took runners through mostly residential roads of Wayland, a quaint New England town with some rather large homes you ran past and admired. With the leaves starting to change over and race temperatures hovering around 65 degrees, it was a perfect day for a fall run. I skipped the first water stop just past Mile 1 but looking back in hindsight probably should have taken a water since by the time mile 3.5 came up where the next water stop was I certainly needed it. After hitting the water stop it was back up a couple of good hills. The last mile of the course was thankfully rather flat which allowed me to pick up some time heading into the finish line. As I made the last turn, a sea of supporters cheered myself and other runners in.

This was the first ever Pam’s Run and for a first time race it was remarkably well organized. There was close to 500 runners and walkers at the race and race atmosphere was top notch with a local radio station, a band, plenty of food and water and a lot of really happy people remembering the memory of Pam and supporting Neighbor Brigade.

I finished Pam’s Run with a time of 39:09 good for 7:50/miles. Given the success of this race, I am pretty confident there will be a 2nd Annual Pam’s Run next year!

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Registration is Open for the Food Pantry 5k

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Registration is now open for the Food Pantry 5K to be held in Middleboro, Massachusetts on September 29th. This 5k race is a chip-timed USTAF certified course that benefits the Sacred Heart Food Pantry in Middleboro.

This race has a reasonably priced registration and nice offerings such as race tee-shirts, trophies for the top finishers and food and beverages post-race. To register for the race, please click here.

The Food Pantry 5K Run/Walk is an important fundraising effort organized by the Society of St. Vincent de Paul to support the Sacred Heart Food Pantry. It provides an opportunity for walkers and runners to participate in the mission of feeding the hungry in the communities we serve, while raising awareness of the challenges faced by the nation’s needy. Donations of canned food will be accepted at the race so please fill up the car before you head over to the race with cans of soups, vegetables and more!

You can also visit the race’s Facebook event page by clicking here.

Cosmic Run Boston

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Cosmic Run is a nocturnal, 5 Kilometer journey through the world’s most extravagant expressions of light, sound, and color. Run, walk, jog, or dance as you witness an electrifying world filled with towering LED and 3D-animated lighting elements, fluorescent-glowing color transformations, and heart-pounding dance music. Talented EDM DJ’s headline the cosmic finale, creating an after-party of epic proportions!

Cosmic Run is coming to the Boston area on October 19th to Raynham Park located at 1958 Broadway in Raynham.

You will become like the brilliant elements around you when you transform into cosmic colors that become luminescent under the night sky. Vivid lasers will set the path toward your exquisite fluorescent-color transformations.

With a race time start of 8PM, Raynham Park will be the place where you can push the limits of your imagination with the most electrifying experience on mother earth.

To register for Cosmic Run Boston, please click here. If you are interested in checking out other cities where Cosmic Run will be visiting, please click here. Lastly, you can “Like” Cosmic Run on Facebook by clicking here and you can follow Cosmic Run on Twitter @CosmicRun5k.

Lone Gull 10K in Gloucester, MA

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This morning it was about an hour and a half up to the North Shore of Massachusetts for the Lone Gull 10k. Held in Gloucester, Massachusetts this race was part of the USTAF Grand Prix as well as part of the Thirsty Irish Runners Grand Prix. Pulling into the parking lot, a sea of cars led us quickly to the realization that this was going to be a pretty big race.

Two early flaws with the race important to note. First is that even though my race envelope noted a large tee-shirt should have been given to me, inside was a medium. I asked to exchange given the error but they declined. Looks like this race shirt will either be a dust rag or used if I ever decide to go clubbing. Second, several runners went to the city of Beverly, Massachusetts as the race website had the wrong address listed. This was a pretty widespread issue that fortunately we did not have to deal with but was a bummer for several racers, nonetheless.

The race course for this 10k was absolutely beautiful. Last time I did a race in Gloucester I ended up having an arthroscope on my left knee so I sort of have some bad memories of Gloucester that quickly faded along the race course. The first mile and a half or so hugged the Atlantic Ocean and made for some amazing scenery to run past. The sun was glistening off the water and the homes along the water gave you something to look at and dream you owned.

After turning away from the water for a bit it was into a residential neighborhood for a little ways and the neighborhood residents cheered us along the way. As we exited that neighborhood it was down a little hill toward a different section of water where people were rowing and sailing and the Boston skyline could be seen just over the ocean’s horizon.

It was then into a gated sort of community which featured homes whose front door likely cost more than my house. Some really nice running terrain with some rolling hills carried runners up to the five mile marker as we made our way back along the Atlantic Ocean. There was a rather decent uphill at the 6 mile mark and the final .2 miles were a fast downhill into the finish line.

I finished the Lone Gull 10k with a time of 49:06 which was good for 7:55/miles. After a nice race pace yesterday, it was an awesome weekend of running!