Run for education this weekend in Arlington Heights
The fourth "Got2Run For Education" run/walk, which funds school wellness activities, will take place on Saturday, May 16, in Arlington Heights.
This popular community event, which has raised more than $50,000 in its first three years, lets participants select which schools receive their proceeds. Last year, 143 schools in 98 towns benefited.
There will be a 2.62-mile "micro-marathon" run/walk and an 8K (4.97-mile) run, both of which will begin and end at the southeast corner of Sigwalt Street and Arlington Heights Road (in the municipal parking lot across from the Arlington Heights Village Hall). The races start at 8 a.m. and will be run through the Scarsdale and Scarsdale Estates neighborhoods.
New this year is an Assisted Wheelchair division for the 2.62-mile race. A student can be pushed in a wheelchair while wearing a timed bib, while the pusher wears an untimed bib. There will continue to be an Unassisted Wheelchair division.
This year's event will be promoted by 101.9 FM The Mix, with Whip from the "Eric and Kathy Morning Show" acting as race-day emcee and The Mix Road Crew showing up with its van to hand out goodies and prizes.
Details can be found at www.got2run.org. Online registration is available at https://www.signmeup.com/105122 until Friday, May 15, with a $1.50 online transaction fee. Participants also can register on race day. (Print the form from the website and bring it to the race; cash or check only on race day.)
Got2Run is organized by Northwest Road Runners, Inc., a local running club that was established in 2011 for the purpose of holding a yearly kids' running race.
"Our goal is to encourage kids and their parents, teachers and school staff to become interested in running as a healthy lifestyle choice, not just for this year, but for the rest of their lives," says founding planning committee member and race director Jeff Chamberlin.
The registration fee is $20 for students under age 19 and $30 for adults. Participants receive a technical T-shirt, a backpack tag/zipper pull, a bumper sticker, healthy refreshments at the finish line.
The website includes course maps, age groupings, packet pickup information, a training page to help runners prepare, information about being a sponsor or volunteer, and more.