A Few Of My Favorite Local Races

My last post, The Affect of a Fun Run, was an attempt at making a point on the importance of local fun runs.  As a follow up, I thought I’d list a few I like that are coming up soon.  Starting with the one nearest and dearest to my running heart.

SAILING THRU THE SHORES 5K RUN/WALK (MAY 27)
As I mentioned in my last post this race was the first formal race I ran, since my illustriousness high school track career that is.  It’s a really fun race that takes place prior to the city Memorial Day Parade.  It’s a fast flat out and back.  But, there is a challenging twist.  The race is at noon at the end of May.  This makes for an unusually hot 5k making a personal best unlikely and adding a little challenge to this fun run.  Additionally, the parade goers add a captive audience and an unusually large crowd to cheer the runners on.  The race director, who started the race as part of her reign as Miss St. Clair Shores, has done an excellent job growing the race by adding chip timers and USATF certification in recent years.  Another unique aspect to this race is the cause it supports.  The proceeds are used to provide scholarships for student athelets.

Save The Manatee 5K (May 19)
That’s right, this race has a unique cause,  at least for Michigan.  The race director is a local teacher who organizes this race with her students to raise money for the Save the Manatee Club.  I’ve run this one the last couple years and really like it.  It’s a lot of fun and a great to bring the kids.   It offers several distances so the whole family can get involved and is run inside Metro Beach.  Additionally, it’s really cool to see all the kids out running and volunteering, it’s a real community event.

DODGE PARK 5K RUN (June 2)
It’s been a couple years since I’ve run this one.  But I really liked it the last time I did.  This race is run on the trails inside the park which are a mixture of concrete, dirt, grass, and gravel.  It also has a few small hills.  It’s a nice change of pace from the typical road race.

Run Like a Mother (May 12)
I ran this for first time last year.  This was a fun race which also runs through Metro Beach for part of it.  The event offers shorter distances for the kids, another great family and community event.  The race starts and ends at an apartment building.  Last year they had a great after party.  Complete with almost every option you can think of for post race recovery, live music, hot dogs, free zumba  (no I didn’t).