Registration is now open for the Franconia Notch Half-Marathon which is being held on October 20th in Lincoln, New Hampshire. For runners looking to complete a fall half-marathon, this course looks absolutely perfect and should prove to be a nice run.

The race is a first annual run and features an out-and-back half marathon course on the beautiful Franconia Notch recreational bike path starting at Cannon Mountain. The half-marathon route is a USATF certified 13.1 mile race.

This beautiful run takes place in one of the most scenic locations in New England, passing by numerous iconic landmarks in the Franconia Notch State Park. Along the way, runners pass by Echo Lake, Cannon Mountain, The Old Man viewing site, Profile Lake, Boise Rock, The Basin and The Flume all the while winding along the Pemigewasset River. This run not only provides runners with one of the most beautiful routes around but also the protection from cars and traffic.

Prizes will be awarded to the top 3 overall finishers and in each age category. All runners will receive a finisher medal and a t-shirt.

To register for the race, please click here. You’ll also want to be sure to check out the official Facebook event page by clicking here.

 

 

Imagine. It’s a beautiful summer night and you find yourself right by the ocean running a 5K road race through closed grounds of an oceanfront farm. As you cross the finish line, there is live music and cold beer to greet you. No need to imagine it, you could have lived it at last night’s Summer Nights 5K.

Sponsored by Narragansett Beer, the Summer Nights 5K took place in Bristol, Rhode Island on the gorgeous grounds of Mt. Hope Farm. Mt. Hope Farm is on the National Register of historic places and has amazing grounds overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and Newport sound.

The race started at 7:30 PM and kicked off right on time. Immediately following the playing of the national anthem, runners made their ways down an incline and toward a pond before making a right hand turn onto a paved path through the woods. Runners stayed on this path before making a turn onto a very smooth trail section of the race before returning back to paved roads the rest of the way.

Just past the first mile marker there was the first of two water stops and because the summer air had a touch of humidity and heat to it, the water was certainly needed for the run. The course had some nice rolling hills mixed into the route and the race was an out and back course aside from the first loop into the trail section of the race. The final quarter mile of the run was the real challenge of the race with a nice, gradual uphill finish to the race. Runners could hear the band playing as we made our way up the hill which was a great motivation to keep the legs kicking.

After finishing the race, runners were treated to two cans from Narragansett Beer. I opted for the Fresh Catch which was a nice, refreshing blonde ale dry hopped with citra hops. A nice way to end a race while listening to the live music outside of an old barn on such historic grounds. Not a bad way to spend a Thursday night!

I ran 3.1 miles earlier in the day as I had the day off from work and was able to finish the Summer Nights 5K with a time of exactly 24:00, good for 7:43/miles. A stellar run on an even better course and a race you certainly will want to check out in the second annual race next year!

Registration is now open for the 6th Annual Pam’s Run which will be held in Wayland, Massachusetts on Sunday, October 14th. Be sure to register for this race today as this is one race you will certainly want to have on your fall racing schedule! Pam’s Run features a 5K run/walk and a 10K run and I highly recommend you push yourself and tackle the 10K route!

Pam’s Run is dedicated to the memory and legacy of Pam Manikas Washek, founder of Neighbor Brigade and a tireless champion for families facing sudden crisis. She founded Neighbor Brigade to help those in crisis with free and immediate services provided by fellow community members. It is a simple idea with tremendous impact in providing relief while strengthening the fabric of a community. Last year, Neighbor Brigade volunteers delivered services to families in 30 communities. Pam’s Run will raise funds critical to Neighbor Brigade’s continuing operations and ability to reach more individuals and families in need of support and assistance.

Having run Pam’s Run twice in the past, I can attest that this race is one of the best 10K courses you will find in eastern Massachusetts. The 10K course is a great run through tree-lined residential roads and then down a dirt road past an area known as Duck Pond Farm. This part of the course was amazingly idyllic and reminded me of stretches of the Covered Bridges Half-Marathon course in Vermont. There’s a nice incline at the fourth mile marker which challenges the legs quite a bit and then another quick uphill sprint was in the final mile. If you are looking for the perfect fall 10K, Pam’s Run is the one for you!

To register for Pam’s Run, please click here. Please be sure to also “Like” the race on Facebook here.

Posting is a bit delayed due to a whirlwind week of business travel last week but on Sunday, June 10th a perfect summer morning made for absolutely ideal running conditions. It’s always nice when there is a race close by, but when there is a race less than 2 miles from your house then it is a real win! The 1st Annual The Bridge Center 5K took place in Bridgewater, Massachusetts just around the corner from my house so it was simply too good to pass up.

The TBC 5K and Fun Run is a community event to benefit The Bridge Center, a 501 (C) 3 organization that provides year-round therapeutic recreation and equine therapy programs for individuals with disabilities. The Bridge Center offers specialized year-round and summer camp opportunities and experiences for all abilities and all ages to work towards independence and improve overall quality of life, in the South Shore of Massachusetts and beyond. The TBC 5k and Fun Run raised funds to support programs, the over 1,700 participants we service annually, and the thousands of others The Bridge Center has yet to serve.

The race had a great group of runners and walkers and for a first annual race was well handled. Runners started with a quick lap through The Bridge Center grounds before making their way onto Pine Street. The Bridgewater Police Department manned the roads and runners had a stretch on Pine Street free of cars prior to making a left hand turn into Olde Scotland Links Golf Course. For about a mile runners ran along the cart paths of the course which made for some great views, quick uphill sprints and even a stretch over a footbridge in the woods between two holes. Wardens were throughout the course and most of the golfers took a few minutes off and cheered along the runners. It was a really unique and interesting road race course and something quite different. After running through the course, runners made their way back onto Pine Street and tackled a nice uphill before turning back into The Bridge Center grounds for a final loop around the grounds and into the finish line.

The course was a bit shy of a true 5K route and next year I’m sure there are some ways to make the course an actual 3.1 mile route. The golf course path running was quite awesome so with just a little bit of mapping, no doubt they’ll get it right next year. A water stop along the course also would be nice, particularly given the June temperatures were in effect on race morning.

Officially, I finished the TBC 5K with a time of 20:27, good for 6:34/miles if the course had been a true 5K. I felt pretty strong running and probably ran closer to a 7:10/mile 5K pace but admittedly did not time myself on the run.

This is a great race and raises money for a really amazing cause and I look forward to next year’s run!

Great early summer conditions for this morning’s Pack the Pantry 5K in Dedham, Massachusetts. Hosted and sponsored by St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in Dedham, the Pack the Pantry 5K  raised money for the Dedham Food Pantry and runners had the option to bring canned goods to donate to the Food Pantry, as well.

The race was a nice run through residential roads of Dedham and when the race organizer quipped before the race that, “You can’t run in Dedham and not have some hills,” he wasn’t kidding.

The race started off with some really nice uphills in the first mile followed by a significant downhill right around the one mile marker. The course was open to traffic but coned off on main roads and while running through the neighborhoods there wasn’t much traffic to contend with. A water stop was present at the half-way mark which proved to be important as runners made their way up another really good uphill stretch around the two mile mark. After tackling the hill it was then into another looped neighborhood stretch before runners made a right turn back onto the road the church was on for a good downhill and flat stretch heading into the finish line.

Race organizers welcomed runners back into the church grounds and encouraged runners to head inside for a pancake breakfast. I opted for a water and some watermelon but those pancakes smelled amazing!

My calves felt a little tight on the hills this morning so when I noticed Westwood-based Accelerated Performance Rehabilitation (APR) at the finish line providing stretches and massage, I had to take advantage. It actually wasn’t my calves that needed the most work but was more my thighs and IT-band and the five minutes on the table along with education on home stretching was exactly what was needed.

I finished the Pack the Pantry 5K with a time of 24:39, good for 7:56/miles. With a good amount of hills, not a bad overall result! Back at it again tomorrow morning at The Bridge Center 5K in Bridgewater, Massachusetts!