I’ve been trying since March to create a Paine to Pain race plan. But three problems keep slamming me upside the head:
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- Hundreds of runners (if they show up) running single track in each other’s slipstreams, not for a few seconds but for minutes at a time. And I can’t stretch the start out over a couple of hours because I need to deal with road closures.
- The #PortaPottyProblem — hundreds of runners dashing into those stifling little boxes in the 20 minutes before gunshot. Do you want to breathe that air?
- And no matter what I plan, the whole thing could go kablooie the week before the race due to a rising infection rate, leaving us stuck with a lot of your money already spent.
So I’m finally throwing in the towel.
For the 380 people who registered at the stupid-cheap $35 price right after last year’s race we offer three options since we haven’t spent any money yet:
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- Refund
- Deferral until 2021 (likely date, October 10)
- Donate the $35
I’ll try not to guilt you into the donation, but will mention that NewRo Runners is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, and this past few months we donated $10,000 to help feed front line workers (and raised an additional $25,000) and spent thousands more creating 3,000 masks for free distribution to the community.
I’m just sayin’.
Choose one of the three options by going to your profile on RunSignUp and selecting Paine to Pain from your list of upcoming events, then clicking on manage registration.
A couple folks asked about a virtual Paine to Pain, but I confess that such spirit doesn’t move me. Half the fun is the camaraderie of the shared experience before, during and after the race. As to the other half of the experience, the actual race, well the course is entirely open (with the potential exception of the finish line on the track) so you really don’t need me to run it. Try not to get lost. Fife and drum music optional on your e-device.
If we get really lucky and the virus magically vanishes — which I do not expect since I’m not a magical-thinking kinda guy — I might try to organize some kind of event on the trails. If I do, it will (necessarily) be a last minute decision, and one I would make only in conformity with the CDC and within Westchester County health guidelines.
In the meantime, please stay safe. And don’t be one of those chuckleheads who think you can wear a mask below the nose. It’s like wearing a condom on your balls.
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Eric Turkewitz, Race Director
Paine to Pain Trail 1/2 Marathon
Twitter: @PaineToPain
Instagram: @PaineToPain
Facebook: Paine To Pain
(Notice a social media pattern?)
Real job:
The Turkewitz Law Firm
228 East 45th Street – 17th Floor
New York, NY 10017
212-983-5900
www.TurkewitzLaw.com