Athletes from the Massapequas are cordially invited to sign up for the 29th annual Runner’s Edge Town of Oyster Bay Triathlon, Long Island’s premiere multisport event. The date of the run is Sunday, Aug. 28.
This is a sprint triathlon, which consists of a half mile swim in calm Oyster Bay harbor, a one loop 15-kilometer bike ride over hill and dale through beautiful Oyster Bay, Oyster Bay Cove and Laurel Hollow and a 5-kilometer run through Mill Neck and Brookville, up to the Planting Fields Arboretum and back down to the finish at Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park in Oyster Bay. It is a perfect first timers event, but at the same time, presents a significant enough challenge to be enjoyed by veteran triathletes.
For those who aren’t ready to do an individual triathlon, teams of two or three are most welcome.
The triathlon will be followed by a post-race barbecue courtesy of Western Beef, with plenty of hot dogs, hamburgers and all the trimmings, plus the chance to enjoy Blue Point Brewing Company’s finest potables.
Athletes from the Massapequas have always played an important role in the Runner’s Edge-Town of Oyster Bay Triathlon. Award winners in the 2015 edition of the event included Michelle Walker of Massapequa, who was the second woman overall to cross the finish line; Stephanie Palmeri of Massapequa, who earned the third place award among the women in the 25-29 age group; Kerri Walcott of Massapequa Park, who scored second in the women’s 30-34 age group; Heather Riddiough of Massapequa Park, who took home the second place award among the women in the 35-39 age group; Karen Conkling of Massapequa, who won three, fifth place award in the women’s 50-54 age group and Lorraine Huether of Massapequa, who scored first in the women’s 55-59 age group.
The race is being conducted by the Town of Oyster Bay, with the enthusiastic support of town Supervisor John Venditto, the Oyster Bay town board and the Oyster Bay town parks department. Race management will be handled by the Greater Long Island Running Club (GLIRC), with Jose Lopez and Ray Farrell as co-directors and Mindy Davidson and Linda Ottaviano as event coordinators.
The title sponsor of the event is the Farmingdale-based running and multisport retailer The Runner’s Edge. The primary charitable beneficiary of the event is The Life Enrichment Center at Oyster Bay, with additional funding going to the Long Island Chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
Acceptance of entries will be cut off once the limit of 1,200 athletes is reached, so get your application in as soon as possible. Register online at www.glirc.org and/or download the hard copy application booklet on that site. Volunteers are most welcome. Contact Mindy Davidson at mindyruns@aol.com.
The Sunday “main event” will be preceded by the Runner’s Edge-Town of Oyster Bay JUNIOR Triathlon on Saturday, Aug. 27, and youngsters ages 8-13 are encouraged to get their feet wet with a 200-yard swim, 2.5 mile bike and 1-mile run, all within the friendly confines of Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park.
“The Town of Oyster Bay has the well deserved reputation of being the recreational sports capitol of the Northeast, and this event plays a leading role in maintaining that reputation,” said Ottaviano, executive director of the Greater Long Island Running Club. “President Roosevelt would have reveled in the fact that the Town Park named after him is the site for such an important sports and fitness event as this, and we are thrilled to have been staging it for 29 years.”
You can register online at www.glirc.org. Hard copy entry booklets (which include training named after him would be the site for a fitness event tips and a recommended training schedule) are available by call the GLIRC office at 516-349-7646.
—Submitted by Mike Polansky
