Running News Daily

Hartford Marathon Foundation Encourages Community To Lace Up for Social Justice

To celebrate the diverse backgrounds and unique experiences of those that participate in its race events, the Hartford Marathon Foundation today launched the Lace Up for Social Justice initiative.  Proceeds from the sale of $10 commemorative shoelaces will directly benefit the Boys & Girls Clubs of Hartford Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs. 

Adorned in a rainbow of colors reading "I RUN FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE", the shoelaces are on sale now through the HMF Shop, at upcoming HMF and Boys and Girls Clubs events and through registration for HMF's signature race, the Eversource Hartford Marathon and Half Marathon.  Participants are encouraged to wear their laces proudly on race day, Saturday, October 9.

The Lace Up campaign runs in conjunction with the marathon's "Run United" theme for 2021, which is being celebrated through a special HMF FitKids running event on Saturday, October 2. Local youth will have the memorable experience of finishing a race under the iconic Soldiers Sailors Memorial Arch and crossing the grand finish line of the Eversource Hartford Marathon.   A replica of the Black Lives Matter mural that is painted on Trinity Street in Hartford will also be unveiled along the sideboards of the finish line.

"We are proud that the events we produce welcome people from all walks of life to achieve goals and we celebrate each and every one of their accomplishments equally - that's no more evident than at the Eversource Hartford Marathon," said Beth Shluger, President and CEO of the Hartford Marathon Foundation. "We want to honor that social responsibility and raise funds for the incredible resources available through the Boys & Girls Clubs of Hartford to foster a more caring, accepting and equitable future for our youth."

"The Boys & Girls Clubs of Hartford are proud to be a part of the Eversource Hartford Marathon Lace Up for Social Justice Campaign. Now more than ever, our Boys & Girls Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs are so important. We believe all young people should be afforded the guarantee of fair treatment, access and opportunity," said Samuel S. Gray, Jr., President and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Hartford.

In addition to the Lace Up campaign to raise funds for the benefit of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Hartford, the Eversource Hartford Marathon, Half Marathon, Team 13.1 Relay and Charity 5K will continue to benefit additional worthy causes in the community.  The Official Charity program for the October 9 race features 19 organizations committed to rallying participants, supporters and volunteers to raise funds and awareness. More than $8.2 million has been raised for charity through the Eversource Hartford Marathon and Half Marathon since its inception in 1994.

Purchase laces, learn more about Official Charities or register for the Eversource Hartford Marathon events at www.hartfordmarathon.com.  

(08/28/2021) Views: 1,376 ⚡AMP

Eversource Hartford Marathon Official Charities Pledge to Raise Funds for Community in October

The much anticipated return of the premier Hartford Marathon Foundation annual fall event - the Eversource Hartford Marathon, Half Marathon, Team 13.1 Relay and Charity 5K - will continue to benefit worthy causes in the community.  The Official Charity program for the October 9 race features 19 organizations committed to rallying participants, supporters and volunteers to raise funds and awareness.

Official Charities support community and philanthropic initiatives across the region, offering an opportunity for individuals as well as companies to make their event participation have deeper meaning and greater positive impact. The unique new HMF Community Partner Program provides companies with event visibility and employee engagement benefits while also directing a donation to an Official Charity of their choice.

2021 Eversource Hartford Marathon and Half Marathon Official Charities:

Achilles International-Connecticut ChapterAmerican Red CrossChrysalis CenterCircle of CareCrohn’s & Colitis FoundationConnecticut Children’s Medical CenterDonate Life ConnecticutFor All AgesGifts of LoveGirl Scouts of ConnecticutGirls on the Run Greater HartfordHealing Meals Community ProjectHospital for Special CareJordan Porco FoundationOperation Paws on the GroundRon Foley FoundationSusan G. Komen New EnglandThe Denise D’Ascenzo FoundationUnited Way of Central and Northeastern Connecticut

More than $8.2 million has been raised for charity through the Eversource Hartford Marathon and Half Marathon since its inception in 1994. Forced to be produced as a virtual race due to the pandemic, the 2020 event generated approximately $517,000 for charity as a "Movement With Purpose" supported by sponsor partners led by Eversource.

“We are so excited to get back together again this October and provide an opportunity for our local charity partners to engage with the community directly while crucial funds are raised to support their missions," said Beth Shluger, President and CEO of the Hartford Marathon Foundation.  "Safety remains our top priority and meticulous planning has been underway for months to accommodate thousands of participants to reach personal goals and cross the grand finish line under the Arch again this October.  We encourage participants to make their race even more meaningful by supporting one of these great charity partners."

 The 2021 race calendar is available and registration is open at www.hartfordmarathon.com.  For more details on the HMF Community Partner Program, contact beth@hartfordmarathon.com.

(06/29/2021) Views: 1,261 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

200 Eversource Hartford Marathon raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity at their virtual event

The Eversource Hartford Marathon & Half Marathon typically attracts tens of thousands of runners from around the world.

This year, it was held virtually because of the pandemic, but the event still raised $420,000.

On Wednesday, organizers presented a check to local charities, who need that money now more than ever.

About 5,000 runners took part in the virtual marathon this year.

The top fundraising organization was the Healing Meals Community Project, which raised nearly $170,000.

(10/29/2020) Views: 1,385 ⚡AMP
by Kaitlyn Naples

The 2020 Hartford Marathon will Go Virtually

This year's Hartford Marathon and Half Marathon is going to be a virtual event amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Race officials said the marathon and half marathon will take place from October 8 through October 11 as a virtual event.

"We are taking the lemons we've been given due to the pandemic, and we're making great lemonade for the community," said President and CEO of the Hartford Marathon Foundation Beth Shluger.

For a reduced entry fee of $25, runners and walkers can participate in all the races which include the 5K, 10K, half marathon, and marathon. They'll get a long-sleeve t-shirt and a finisher medal. For an additional $10, participants can partake in a challenge which includes another medal. Those who take part will need to upload their times online.

"They will still reach that finish line. It might not be as socially fun as marathons and half marathons in the past, but it will still be just as sweet and rewarding," said Fleet Feet Hartford owner Stephanie Blozy.

Fleet Feet Hartford is a Hartford Marathon sponsor.

"The virtuality of the Hartford Marathon weekend is definitely a heartbreaking decision. I know it wasn't an easy one, but I think it was the right one," said Blozy.

She says they're looking forward to supporting runners as they train and that she loves that every penny of the entry fee will go to local charities.

Participants will receive training support materials, enhanced event experiences that are digital, which include race bibs, finisher certificates and a custom race day playlist, race officials said. Participants can also submit verified results after their race that can appear online.

The Hartford Marathon Foundation is also hoping runners will consider taking the rest of the money they would have spent on a much higher entry fee and spend it at local restaurants, local businesses, or donate it to charity.

"We think this year's race is going to offer a very special experience, that you're really feeling you're part of something that's much more important than just a typical road race," said Shluger.

While it's not the racing experience runners may have hoped for this year, organizers say they'll be back in 2021, and until then, this is a way to come together to do a lot of good.

"We can't get through this time alone. We have to do it together, and this is one way that we can do it," said Blozy.

(07/08/2020) Views: 1,494 ⚡AMP

Hartford Marathon´s 2019 Delivered $14.1 Million to the Regional Economic Value

The Hartford Marathon Foundation’s 2019 Eversource Hartford Marathon, Half Marathon, Team 26.2 Relay and Charity 5K brought an estimated $14.1 million of economic value to the area in October.  In addition, the Hartford Marathon Foundation (HMF) spent approximately $2 million in the local community for operations, supplies, safety and security, professional staff and other resources necessary to stage the event. 

72,000 spectators, participants and volunteers came to the area to enjoy race festivities, Hartford lodging and local shopping and dining through the weekend.

The 26th running of the race in 2019 also generated at least $250,000 for charity (awaiting additional charities to report totals).  Since its inception in 1994, approximately $7.8 million has been raised for charity through the annual flagship event alone.

The 2020 Eversource Hartford Marathon and Half Marathon will be run on October 10.  Registration opens on January 9 at special pricing through January 15 for all race distances: 26.2 mile marathon, 13.1 mile half marathon, 2-5 person marathon relay and 3.1 mile Charity 5K.

“We are proud to host tens of thousands of runners, walkers, volunteers and spectators each October to enjoy the best of what the capitol region has to offer,” said Beth Shluger, CEO of the Hartford Marathon Foundation and Race Director of the Eversource Hartford Marathon and Half Marathon. “The marathon is a special event for our state, truly unique in its ability to inspire people with countless stories of accomplishment and positive examples of determination.”

In addition to the widely known celebration in Hartford, HMF produces 30+ race events annually, from running festivals with multiple distance races, to triathlons, 5Ks for charity and a 3-state endurance relay race. 

To encourage the community to reach further with their running goals, the HMF Samuel Adams Challenge series offers multiple race packages with extra swag and perks.

(01/13/2020) Views: 1,797 ⚡AMP

Amanda Evans is ready for Hartford half marathon after using running as therapy

he is back in the house where she grew up. Her 4-year-old daughter Nell sleeps in her old bedroom.

This wasn’t how it was supposed to turn out, Amanda Evans said last week, sighing.

Her grandmother was a single mom and so was her mother. Now Evans is one as well. She left her now-ex-husband on a cold January night at midnight almost five years ago. Nell was 11 days old.

The past four years haven’t been easy for Evans, 35, of East Haven. But Nell is thriving, curious and outgoing, Evans started running more seriously, has lost 85 pounds and is competing in her first race, the half marathon of the Eversource Hartford Marathon Oct. 12 in Hartford. She is part of the marathon’s Aiello Inspiration team.

“For a long time, I didn’t have health insurance so [running] was free therapy in a way,” Evans said. “It gets me outside. It gave me the chance to do something that was really only for me at a time when it seems like everything else I do is for other people — other peoples’ kids, my kid, my family.”

Evans works part-time at the Branford Family Resource Center, organizing playgroups and pre-school activities. She and Nell live with her grandmother, who also works part-time. She watches Nell when Evans goes out to run.

Evans had been running on and off since college. She tried a Couch to 5K program but couldn’t quite get past a certain level and would stop.

“I had this book called ‘Run Your Butt Off,’” she said. “I had tried the Couch to 5K over and over but there was one particular week, it was like run eight minutes, walk for five then it went to something like run for 12 minutes and for some reason, I couldn’t do it. This program was quite a bit slower. I managed to kind of successfully get through it and I ended up running a half hour straight.”

“I just kept increasing the distances I was doing,” she said. “I run outside. I don’t have access to a treadmill. I just kept bumping up the mileage. I lost a lot of weight. I didn’t start trying to lose weight until Nell was almost a year. I think if I had braved getting on the scale earlier my total would probably be closer to 100. I had to work up the courage to: This is where I’m going to start.

(10/10/2019) Views: 1,909 ⚡AMP
by Lori Riley

David Sinclair and Rachel Schilkowsky were the winners at the 25th annual Hartford Marathon

David Sinclair and Rachel Schilkowsky were the men's and women's winners of the 25th running of the Hartford Marathon. Sinclair, of Peru, Vermont, clocked 2:18:20 Saturday, about 3 minutes longer than the course record. Schilkowsky, of Providence, Rhode Island, finished 9th overall clocking 2:41:03, about 8 minutes longer than the women's record. More than 10,000 runners took to Hartford-area streets on a cool and rainy morning. There was also a half marathon, a team 26.2-mile relay and a 5K. Three racers continued their streak of completing every Hartford Marathon: Peter Hawley, Andrew Bartlett and Robert Kopac. (10/13/2018) Views: 1,754 ⚡AMP

71-year-old Kiran Majmudar will be running his seventh Hartford Marathon

The hardest part of doing a marathon, Kiran Majmudar said, was joining his first training group. He was 65 years old, training to run his first marathon at what is now the Eversource Hartford Marathon. “I thought I’d be an embarrassment to the group,” he remembers. “I didn’t know. I thought they were all younger. Come to find out, they are young, old, everything in between. Some are stronger, some not so strong. Mothers and daughters, husband and wives.” Majmudar, of Enfield, fit right in. He finished his first marathon in Hartford in 2012 in 5:35:03.  It was a bucket list item for Majmudar, now 71. But he liked it so much, he decided to do it again. And again. “I just wanted to cross the finish line [at the first one],” he said. “After that, I did better. Because somehow you get addicted to it.” He’ll be back for Saturday’s 26.2-mile race starting at 8 a.m. in front of the State Capitol. It will be his seventh straight year at Hartford. (10/11/2018) Views: 2,113 ⚡AMP

Bryce Matteson, goal is to run 50 marathons in 50 weeks in all 50 states for clear water projects

Bryce Matteson, 30 from Denver, Colorado, has been a runner his whole life and ran in college. In 2016, his brother convinced him to run a marathon. “Running has always been a major part of my life,” Matteson said. “So I did some research to see if (running one marathon a week) was possible to do.” Matteson is running for Run5050. He is running one marathon a week, covering every state, to fund 50 clean water projects. Run5050 was founded by Matteson in partnership with Healing Waters, which implements water filtration systems into areas that do not have access to safe and clean water, according to Healing Waters International. Matteson and his wife Jessie had gone on trips in the past as photographers with Healing Waters, and were familiar with the operations side of the organization. Matteson wanted to merge his ability to run and Healing Waters’ cause together, he said.Matteson’s goal in partnership with Healing Waters is to be able to fund 50 clean water projects, amounting to a $750,000 goal. He has currently raised about $60,000 and hopes to have raised $100,000 by the time he runs in Connecticut on Oct. 13 in the Hartford Marathon, Matteson said. “The technology and implementation process is there, you just need finances to make that happen,” Matteson said. “Awareness is only as good as taking action.” (09/22/2018) Views: 1,852 ⚡AMP