2017 Van Cortlandt Track Club Run for Puerto Rico

This morning I drove down to Van Cortlandt Park for the VCTC Run for Puerto Rico - a fund raiser for hurricane victims.  Most of the runners were VCTC members, but there where a good number of friends participating as well.  The highlight, pre-run, was the singing of the Puerto Rican national anthem ("La Borinquena") before we set off across the flats to the start line!

The run itself was 2.5 loops of the parade grounds.  It worked out (according to my GPS) to slightly less than 3.7 miles.  But the more interesting aspect was the widely disparate running conditions on either side of the flats - wind tunnel like on the east side, calm with breaks of sun on the west side! 

Thanks to Hiroshi, I wound up running a much faster pace (couple of second over an 8 minute pace) than the easy run I had planned (e.g. 9+ minute miles).  All in all it was a great morning, and it was great that VCTC organized it.  I think Bobby said it raised over $1600 for the relief effort - which is outstanding!

I only took a handful of photos - but the event was covered by local cable news (channel 12, I believe) and a clip was posted on FB.

packet pick-up for the run for haiti at nyrr club

for a race that has over 8000 registered runners, packet pick-up was fast and easy at the nyrr club this afternoon! but i went at lunch, so it may be more crowded after work. the large field should make for a very interesting run on saturday. i'm not sure how (or if) the corrals were seeded by time, but my bib is 4,1xx (and emmy's is 7,7xx)!

we had planned a world lung foundation group training run in the park that morning, but rescheduled it in light of the race. incorporating the run into training plans would be an even better option. the post-race "festival to support haiti" - with live music and performances - should be fun!

if you're running it, be sure to say hi!

"run for haiti" fundraiser

this morning katie and her fellow winter track team members held a fundraiser for haitan earthquake relief efforts. from 10 until noon they ran laps around the outdoor track, and also held a bake sale.

here, in her words, is a brief recap:
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Today my track team had a fundraiser called “Run For Haiti.” All of the members of the track team had gotten sponsors for it during the past week. It was suggested the sponsors donate $1.00 for every lap ran by his or her runner. Most of the runners were expected to run between 10-30 laps (each lap is 400m).

It was a lot of fun because everyone ran with friends and went at his or her own pace. My friends and I ran the majority of laps, but also walked a little too. By the end I had done a total of 21 laps (a little over 5 miles). It felt really good knowing that I had done something for a good cause.

After the run we all got some bagels and snacks from the bake sale. When it was over everyone was so proud of what we had accomplished as a team. Overall, we were able to raise more than $5,000 to send to the Red Cross to aid in Haitian Relief.