Local church holds third annual Arm of Hope 5K to support mission

Hope Community Church on Harrisburg Pike in Rheems will hold its third annual Arm of Hope 5K at 9 a.m. Saturday, May 28. The race supports a week at summer camp for children for more than 300 children from the slums of Accra, Ghana.

Summertime racing along the Susquehanna

Photo courtesy of Lancaster County Solid Waste Authority

This summer, you'll have a chance to test your 5K and 10K fitness in the inaugural Run with the Donegal Indians. The race will held July 18 and start at Riverfront Park in Marietta.

Both distances will run out and back on the Northwest Lancaster River Trail. If you haven't spent any time on the trail, it's one of the gems of this region. While I haven't run on it, my family and I spent part of Christmas Day in December walking a portion of it.

If that was any indication, the course for the races will be flat and fast. And of course, you'll have some nice views of the Susquehanna River.

The race benefits the Donegal Boys Soccer Booster Club. More information is here.

Lace up your running shoes and test your endurance!

Runners in greater Elizabethtown area and beyond have several chances to test their distance skills in the coming month.

• 10th annual Run for Childen, 8 a.m., May 9 -- This event features a 10K, a 5K and a 1-mile fun run that starts and finishes at the Paramount Sports Complex in Annville. PennLive reports that "the race benefits the Maggie Leach Scholarship Fund, which provides financial grounds for economically disadvantaged children to attend summer camp. Last year's race provided enough funding for each of the 16 children who requested to attend the ability to go." You can register for the race here.
  
• Second annual ROTARY Mother's Day 5K, 3 p.m., May 10 -- Held at Masonic Village in Elizabethtown, the event benefits the Elizabethtown Rotary Club and its local community projects. Registration is available here.

• Second annual Arm of Hope 5K, 9 a.m., May 23 -- This event is held at Hope Community Church, in Rheems. I can attest that it is a great race, having run the inaugual event last year. The course has some flat sections and some small hills to make it interesting, and the race organizers do a good job making it a fun event. This was the first race that my son, who was then 13, beat me, and there's been no catching him since. I have come to terms with that! Register here.
  
• Third annual Rock-N-Glow 5K, 9 p.m., May 30 -- Supporting the downtown in Manheim, this race attracted more than 2,000 runners last year. While I didn't run it, I've heard good things about it from those who did. Festivities get started at 6 p.m., and there's an after party with live music, food and dancing. It sounds like a good time! Registration is here.  

The new Elizabethtown Running Club at GEARS

I've made no secret over the last three years about my hobby of running. It has been a great way for me to stay fit and keep off 35 pounds that I lost about four years ago. And it has felt good to find the motivation that I lost at the end of the 1988 high school track season. Without a coach requiring me to be at a practice for track or cross country, I simply fell into the lethargic lifestyle that many of us Americans do.

After losing weight, I started running again to add some variety to my fitness routine. Now, four half marathons and a bunch of other races later, I love to share my love of running with others. Inevitably, when the topic of running comes up with some people, they often say, "Oh, I wish I could run" or "I've thought about running, but I can't run more than a mile."

What happens when you pit a middle-aged man against his teenage son in a 5K

My 13-year-old son, right, finished the Arm of Hope 5K in 20:15.
It was a personal record for him.
(Photo courtesey of Hope Community Church)

This is a story that starts a couple of years back, when my son expressed interest in running one of the Frozen Foot 5K races here in Elizabethtown.

Nat and I lined up together that March afternoon, and I coached him through the 3.1 miles. At times, he complained that "it hurts," but he kept running. And as much as I had wanted to run my own race (Nat had even said I didn't have to run with him), it was one of the most rewarding experiences to run with him.

Two upcoming 5K races: Running for more than fitness

In the running community, you can find people who are running just to stay fit, and they enter races to challenge themselves. Others enter because they can raise funds for worthy organizations. Next month, you have the chance to combine fitness and benevolence and help the Elizabethtown Rotary Club and Hope Community Church's Arm of Hope that helps youths living in the slums in Ghana.

E-town Rotary Club's Mother's Day Run

Course for Mother's Day Run

The Rotary Club is holding its Mother's Day Run at 3 p.m. on Sunday, May 11 (Mother's Day, if you hadn't figured that out!). The race will be held on the roads of Masonic Village, where I personally enjoy running because of the limited traffic and the great scenery. By the way, some races market themselves as "fast and flat." Having run many miles at Masonic Village, I can assure you it's not flat, but that should not deter you from running. Take on the hills for the challenge. Use them as a metaphor -- by contributing to the Rotary and running the race, you are helping to others in the community up and over their own hills.

Information is available at the link above, or you can register (online or by downloading a paper application) through Applied Race Management's race page.


Arm of Hope 5K

Hope Community Church in Rheems is holding its inaugural Arm of Hope 5K run at 9 a.m. on Saturday, May 24. The proceeds of this race benefit the Arm of Hope Ministry. According to race information, "this ministry provides education to the children of the slums of Ghana West Africa and introduces them to the love of Jesus."

I haven't found a map for this race, but organizers say it's run on a flat course. If you're not up for the hills at Masonic Village, or if you're looking to clock a fast time in a 5K, this might be your race.

You can register for this race online through Applied Race Management's race page.

***

As I've mentioned before, I've used Elizabethtown's streets and sidewalks to run for the past two years. It seems that the training has caught up with me recently -- I have a pinched sciatic nerve, so as much as I want to run in both of these races I'm not sure I'll be able to. We'll have to see what another visit or two to the chirpractor does.

Six reasons why runners need to come to Elizabethtown

In the past two years, I have used the streets, sidewalks, paths and roads in and around Elizabethtown as my training grounds for three half marathons. I have run often enough to establish short routes of 4 miles that get me home in about 30 minutes and long runs of 12 miles that take me from one end of Elizabethtown to another (literally from Darrenkamps to the Masonic Village Farmers Market).

When 500 people show up for a race in the dead of winter, you know there's a community of runners. With that in mind, here are six reasons why you should run in Elizabethtown:

• Elizabethtown's walking and biking paths -- The borough has been working on walking and biking paths in town for a number of years. This winter, construction started on connecting a path from the community center on Poplar Street with a new path that will end at the Elizabethtown Train Station. The borough has also received grants to build a path on the other side of Market Street that will use existing alleys and go through Community Park and connect to the Elizabethtown Area School District property. Soon, you'll be able to run all the way through town on a dedicated pedestrian path and encounter little to no traffic.
• Masonic Villages -- I have run countless miles at Masonic Villages and am grateful for it. From my house, it's about a mile to the apartment buildings on Sycamore Drive. Once I get there, I can head in a number of directions on walking paths or on roads that don't have that much traffic. As any runner will tell you, that is a blessing.
• Hills -- As a cross country runner in high school, my coach told us to "attack the hills." Ever since then, I've never shied away from the challenge of a steep incline. Here in Elizabethtown, there are many, many challenges: Campus Road from College Avenue to Groff Avenue, Buckingham Boulevard, my own 5 Miles of Hills route and more. If you train in Elizabethtown, you will fear no hills in a race.
• Great local races -- I've been running in the Frozen Foot Race Series, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. Here's a list of other races in no particular order (these are the ones I know about in the Elizabethtown area; I did not include any that are outside of the school district):
• Run for Peace, held every September and sponsored by the Elizabethtown Brethren Church.
• Elizabethtown Color Classic -- will be held Sunday, April 6, on and around the campus of Elizabethtown College. This is a first-time color run the college's Class of 2016 is sponsoring to support the Arc of Lancaster County. As a side note, the borough's staff held up this student-run event as an example of planning and organization for submitting a special events application with all requirements months ahead of the event.
• Cornerstone Ministries held an inaugural 5K last fall at Masonic Villages.
• Twilight Trot, a 10K in August on the Masonic Villages grounds sponsored by the Greater Elizabethtown Recreation and Community Services.
• An inaugural Mother's Day Run 5K this year, sponsored by the Elizabethtown Rotary Club.
• Conewago Rail Trail -- Technically, this isn't in the borough, but it's part of the community. I had ridden my bike on it, but until last fall had never run there. It's nice to have a flat, straight path with no vehicle traffic, except for crossing Route 743 and some other roads. And that's not to mention the beautiful south central Pennsylvania farmland and scenery.
• Elizabethtown College -- Like Masonic Village, the college provides a great space for running without traffic. I realized last fall that I could run across campus two or three times and get a 5-mile run in without ever being more than 1 mile away from home. And if I want to do speedwork on the track, it's a perfect warm up distance of six-tenths of a mile from home.

What did I miss? What reasons do you have for running in Elizabethtown?

E-town's walking and bike pathway

Rose Alley at night.

Walkers, cyclists and runners soon will be able to traverse Elizabethtown, from the east side to the west, on a pathway that the borough is constructing.

A pedestrian and bike path that has been part of the borough's downtown master plan approved in 2005. The plan, a map of which you can see here, is to have a path that stretches from the train station all the way to the Elizabethtown Area School District property.

We have been working on the west section from Market Street to the Train Station for a couple of years. And then last year, the borough received a federal Smart Growth Transportation (SGT) grant of $329,743 through the Lancaster County Transportation Coordinating Committee to extend the pathway network east from Market Street downtown through Community Park to the Elizabethtown Area School District.

Matching funds for that grant came from a $630,872 state grant for the section from Conoy Creek at the Community Center to the train station. Total costs for both segments of the pathway network amount to $960,615. Construction on the eastern section is expected to begin this year.

Path as constructed looking west
 from the Community Center.

Why are we doing this project? Because it will have a long-term positive effect and impact on the borough, on the downtown, on the quality of life for residents -- the list goes on and on. Take a look at the 10 reasons why the National Trails Training Partnership says municipalities ought to consider walking and bike paths.

Have you spent any time on the Conewago Rail Trail, whose trailhead you can catch on Route 230 just outside Elizabethtown? I've ridden my bike as far as Mount Gretna, and even in the middle of the week I've encountered people walking, running, cycling and riding horses. On a sunny weekend, the parking lot on Route 230 is jammed, and vehicles line (unsafely, in my opinion) the area near where the path crosses Route 743.

Concept of the path at Cherry and Vine alleys.
Note: The path might not end up looking like this.

I remember one of our borough staff saying a couple of years ago that so many people use the rail trail, "and there's nothing out there." Think about it: For almost 10 miles, until you get to Mount Gretna, there's beautiful scenery, but you can't stop for lunch anywhere. Imagine with our own trail that will intersect in the downtown, where people can detour to Rita's or Lucky Ducks.

And what about the health benefits? We are creating opportunities for people to exercise on a nicely designed designated path. In this country, we are having a national conversation about obesity and what we can do about it. Here in Elizabethtown, we've decided to do what we can.

I, for one, know I'll be using the path. I am a runner, and I see a great route that will take me from Bear Creek School, through the Elizabethtown Fairgrounds to East High Elementary, behind the football stadium and catch the new path. That will take me all the way through town, to the train station. I could loop home from there, or I could run through the tunnel at the train station and get a couple of more miles on the paths and roads at Masonic Village.

Will you use the path, too? For walking, running, bicycling?