RunVermont - The RunVermont Pulse -- November 2023 Edition

In this edition of the RunVermont Pulse:

1. Some words from our Director, Connelly's Corner

2. Halloween Hustle recap

3. M&T Bank VCM registration has opened!

4. Thank you VTIFF

5. Sponsor Shoutout

6. A piece by a RunVermont runner, Danielle Brizzolara

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Connelly's Corner

Halloween and snow in the same week last week. Burlington. Treats and tricks.

Ask me in 6 months and I’ll say something different, but today I’m sure that Fall is my favorite time of year for running. College XC is what really got me into this sport. I ran for ski training in high school, then started running our local Turkey Trot 5k in college. Junior year I joined the XC team and by the end of that season I was hooked. How can you not be - great teammates, lots of trail running, the vibrant fall leaves, hot days, cold days, muddy days. I got a chance to see a few XC races this fall, and even volunteered at one college race, and I had a smile on my face the whole time. I hope you have gotten in some good races and a whole bunch of fun training this fall!

As I’m writing this it’s November 1. This morning we opened registration for next May’s M&T Bank Vermont City Marathon, and for the first time ever we opened registration for April’s Half Marathon Unplugged at the same time. Unplugged is 6 weeks before the VCM, a perfect time in any training plan to get a good tester long race in. We’re offering a discount for runners who sign up for both races, and I am super psyched to see that out of our first 64 marathon entrants 40% are signing up for both races.

I did an interview last week with WPTZ, our local NBC station. Next May will be the 35th running of the VCM, and the reporter asked me what all those years meant to RunVermont. That got me thinking about our early days when we just produced the marathon. Then we added a Kids program. Then we assumed production duties for FirstRun Burlington (and we heard your feedback from the last newsletter, we’re working on how to get that race back!). Then we started our Marathon 101 class which morphed into our Rdy2Run coaching service. Then around 2005 we started adding more races, kids programs, and other services. We now produce about 15 races a year. We hope we’ll see you this winter for our Freezy Cheeks 5k series. We hope we’ll see you in April at Unplugged. We hope your kids will be engaged with our programming through next spring’s Mini Milers program or as part of a Junior Milers team at the VCM or by running in the Mini Marathon next May. We hope to see you next summer at the next edition of the Summer 6 Pack 5k series. And we hope to see you at next September’s Island Vines 10k/5k. And if we miss you at all of those we hope to see you at one of our pop up fun runs that we’re hosting every couple weeks.

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Halloween Hustle Recap

On Saturday, October 28th, we held our very first Halloween Hustle. This youth run took place at Sam Mazza's farm and the course went along the corn maze and apple orchard, beside the flower garden and around the goat pen! The runners had the option to do one lap, 1/4 mile, or two laps, 1/2 mile. The course had our orange cones with pumpkin faces at the turns and candy at the finish line. The children showed up in awesome costumes with their bibs proudly displayed on their chest. Although the morning started off with rain, it cleared just in time for the run. After the run, Sam Mazza's hosted their Dance Party. There was a bouncy house, a crafts area, a bowling lane, face painting, dancing, and so many other fun activities going on. Sam Mazza's did an incredible job hosting such an awesome party and we are very grateful that they hosted us.

Lauren Miller, our Youth Director, put on an impressive event. She looks forward to expanding the youth programs at RunVermont and planning more youth fun runs to happen throughout the year.

If you have any photos from the Halloween Hustle that you are willing to share, please send them to Lauren@runvermont.org

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M&T Bank Vermont City Marathon & Relay Registration is Live!

Registration opened on November 1st and we could not be more excited! We are 200 days away from marathon weekend! To celebrate, we are offering 2 out of our first 250 registrants free Hokas so get registered now!

We are offering a multi-race bundle that includes a full marathon registration and a half marathon registration. If you are planning on participating in our marathon, unplugged is a perfect checkpoint on your training journey, with 6 weeks between both races.

The current price will increase on January 1.

For more information about the multi-race bundle, click here.

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Thank You VTIFF

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Vermont International Film Festival featured the film, 26.2 to Life and we are glad that they did. It was a wonderful film and so special to see so many members of our running community attend the screening. We are always impressed to see the coming together of our community to support local events. The film is a moving documentary that tells the story of incarcerated men at the San Quentin Prison who are members of the 1000 Mile Club, the prison’s long distance running club that train all year for their on-site marathon. Click here to watch the trailer.

We are excited to share that two of the members from the 1000 mile club that were released from the prison completed the NYC Marathon over the weekend, Markelle Taylor and Rahsaan Thomas. Markelle finished in 4:01 and Rahsaan finished in 6:26. It was also Rahsaan's first marathon outside of prison.

Check out the film's website to learn more about the film and other screening opportunities.

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Sponsor Shoutout

Our sponsor shout-out this month highlights 3 businesses who provide essential support and funding to RunVermont and in turn we’re able to make it easy for their employees to run in the marathon. The University of Vermont Medical Center has been a supporting sponsor for many many years. Dozens of their health care professionals volunteer race weekend and some join us at our other events too. The leadership and energy they bring to the table is amazing and we would not be able to provide this essential service to keep our runners safe without the UVM-MC on board.

Global Foundries, as a plant, has gone through a few different owners during our 35 years of RunVermont. We were so pleased when they got in touch with us last winter and said they were looking to provide financial support. As a benefit they asked us to make it easy for their staff to run in the race. Those kinds of wellness partnerships are HUGE with us, and we’d invite any businesses looking to bump up their wellness game to be in touch with us.

And finally, Dealer.com by Cox Automotive. Dealer’s main campus is on Pine St, right on the VCM course. In what way has Dealer not been involved with RunVermont and the VCM throughout the years?!? Every year we have Dealer employees running in the race. We see them volunteering, and in leadership roles on our Race Committee. We even have one of their employees on our Board of Directors.

As we move into the 2024 race cycle, if you are part of a business that would like to put increased emphasis on employee wellness, we can provide solutions and we’d love to talk with you!

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Danielle Keeps Coming Back and We Love It!

Usually our runner/volunteer spotlights are short pieces, but we love Danielle’s story so much that we thought you would want to be inspired by the full version! Read her personal piece below.

I am not a runner and have never enjoyed running. I would do random 5ks just to prove that I could do it. When my friend asked me to fill a spot on her VCM relay team in 2019, I was hesitant, but was honest about my pace and how much I didn't really want to do it, but would if she couldn't find someone else (this was back when the first leg was a 5k). I surprised myself with how much I enjoyed the energy at the event. Then, I signed up again to be on her relay team for 2020, but the pandemic happened and the entry was deferred for a few years. When it finally came up again, I was still interested in participating, even though the course had changed to 2 laps. The leg I was going to do was a 10k and that was going to be the farthest I had ever run. It was very intimidating but, knowing the energy throughout VCM, I knew that I could get it done even if I wasn't running the entire time.

In 2022, when I signed up for a leg in the marathon, I was determined to be as happy as I could while running. Even though it was extremely hard, I kept a smile on my face the entire leg of the race. I surprised myself at my 10k pace and vowed that I would continue to always sign up for some part of VCM.

That summer, I had my eyes on the Summer Six Pack, but I was so scared to commit. I would ALWAYS get butterflies, even though there were literally never any stakes. I never really run for time, I just do it to prove that I CAN. Then I saw the Island Vines, and the same thought passed.

At the end of 2022, I registered for the Freezy Cheeks 5k series. The moment I got there, the RunVermont crew was so pleasant and down to earth! After the first Freezy Cheeks, we were determined to do a race every single month of the year. My husband, my friend and I signed up for the Half Unplugged. My friend and I split the half and my husband ran the whole thing (without training!). It was such a thrill! I never thought I could run over 7 miles and I ended up running most of my leg. We already had plans to run in the VCM and were finishing putting our team together.

I ran VCM on a relay team and it was such a great bonding experience. The energy at the marathon never fails to surprise me.

After VCM, we signed up for the Summer Six Pack. It was there that I learned that RunVermont is a nonprofit and supports the youth running community. To say that the summer six pack was amazing (turned into a seven pack for us due to a very rainy first race) is a complete understatement. We constantly showed up to every race, rain, heat, snow, humid... and we completed it. I never went into the race hoping to win it. I just wanted to prove that I could run a 5k, regardless of the weather conditions. Throughout all of the races, it was so nice to have the RunVermont team recognize us by name when we checked in. We became unofficial RunVermont ambassadors, talking up all of the races.

I ended up signing up for the Island Vines 10k at the last minute because I had not been feeling well. I had never run that race but I love the islands. It is such a nice area with a beautiful view. I knew going into it that it wasn't going to be a great time, but I was determined to enjoy it anyways. I never thought I would enjoy running. I always hated it while doing it, but loved the endorphins from being done. Now I look forward to signing up for races! I was bummed that RunVermont does not have any races October through December, but I have found other races to participate in.

As I move forward in my running journey, I am hoping to improve my time, but also my distance. I am so excited that Freezy Cheeks will be happening again, and this year I plan on signing up for Unplugged to run all on my own, which is a personal goal of mine. I also plan on running in the marathon next year but have yet to decide the distance. I love supporting the running community and will continue to sign up for RunVermont races. It has been so great to see familiar faces at the start and end of each race and feel so welcomed by so many different people.

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RunVermont is a not-for-profit organization that supports running as a lifelong activity by producing exceptional events and programs that engage our community and celebrate the athletic spirit for adults and children.

Click here to donate to RunVermont's Youth Programs