What! You’re not participating in a road race for Thanksgiving? Weren’t you aware Thanksgiving is THE busiest day for road racing during the fall in the state?
Well, lucky for you, SMILE Mass is here to more than meet your needs. Smile Mass is a 501(c)3 nonprofit raising money to supply 100 Mobi-Chair beach wheelchairs to communities on Cape Cod (20 already donated this summer) so disabled children and adults can fully enjoy in a day at the beach. Now you can participate along with the rest of the road racing world in a race in November so others can have fun at the beach in the summer. Go to smilemass.org for more information about all our activities.
On Saturday, November 17th the first “Gobble Wobble for SMILE Mass” races (a 5K walk/run and a kids fun run) will be held at Curtis Middle School. Registration will begin at 9:00 AM for all racers and the 5K will start at 10:00 AM followed by the fun run at 10:45 AM. The registration
fees are $25 for the 5K and $10 for the kids fun run (up to age 13). You may register through FastTrackTiming.com.
The suggestion for the race (and its timing) came from two Sudbury mothers, Stephanie Carlin and Stephanie Wood LaFond, who became friends after the birth of their second children. Stephanie Carlin had been a member of her high school track team but had gotten away from running in the
intervening years. When she took it up again she found running made space in her day for herself and helped relieve stress. As the parent of a son with a disability, she felt combining running and raising funds for an organization with the goals of SMILE Mass was a perfect match.
“Fall, and specifically Thanksgiving, is such a wonderful time for a race that on Thanksgiving Day itself the companies needed to organize and time runners were completely booked so we needed to schedule the race for the prior Saturday. I run five days a week and I wish I could distribute Gobble Wobble for SMILE Mass Race flyers
to all the others runners I come in contact with each day. I want to let them know this race is the perfect distance for runners of all abilities, has a component so children in the family can compete in their own fun run, and then they can join with non-runners in the family to enjoy the family fun day festivities in the school cafeteria - There will be activities for the kids, snacks, drinks and a vendor fair where everyone can get a head start on their holiday shopping. SMILE Mass is such a worthy cause I hope everyone will come out and discover the enjoyment of participating in this easy to accomplish distance while enjoying the invigorating fall weather.”
For further information about the race, you may go to smilemass.org/5k-race or e-mail either race organizer directly: Stephanie Carlin at stephaniec@smilemass.org
and Stephanie Wood LaFond at stephaniel@smilemass.org.
So relax, Smile Mass has ensured you won’t miss out on the opportunity to participate in the tradition of road racing during Thanksgiving. All we ask in return is you register today and to those non-runners, you can either come to the Gobble Wobble Family Fun Day festivities or get your checkbook out and make a contribution to SMILE Mass - Smile Mass, 66 Dudley Road, Sudbury, MA 01776.
In the spirit of the season, Thanks!
