KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa. (Feb. 26, 2009) ─ The participants at this year’s Valley Forge Revolutionary 5-mile Run in Valley Forge National Historical Park can keep running even after they cross the finish line.
The Sunday, April 19, event, produced and sponsored by Valley Forge Convention and Visitors Bureau, is the area kick-off to National Park Week. It’s also one of many running events that happen in, near and through national parks.
The race’s scenic, five-mile Valley Forge course is sanctioned by Mid-Atlantic USA Track and Field and guides runners past replica soldiers’ huts and the National Memorial Arch. During the event, which includes a three-mile walk and a one-mile youth fun run, park rangers will provide lists of runs in and near national parks across the country. They’ll also offer help to those who might like to combine running with visits to Valley Forge and other national parks.
“We’ve compiled this information as a way for people to experience Valley Forge and our other national treasures, while doing something they love,” said Barbara Pollarine, Assistant Superintendent at Valley Forge National Historical Park.
In June, Rocky Mountain National Park hosts the highest paved marathon in the world, beginning and ending at 7,550 feet above sea level. Marathons and half marathons are also scheduled for Cuyahoga Valley National Park, along the scenic Ohio & Erie Canal near Cleveland, Ohio. In the fall, the Suntrust Richmond Marathon winds through that Civil War capitol. Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Site is part of the Under Armour Baltimore Marathon’s route in October, and the world-famous New York City marathon begins at Fort Wadsworth, in Gateway National Recreation Area, in November.
A complete listing of national park events will be available at the Revolutionary Run and online. And, for more area information, to register for the Valley Forge Revolutionary 5-mile Run or to learn about “Rest and Run” accommodations packages, visit www.revolutionaryrun.org.
