Organizers Announce 1st Annual Cherry Tree Running Festival
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Rhode Island will host a new, greatly expanded running festival this spring, along the byways of the Blackstone Valley.
The Rhode Island Cherry Tree Running Festival will host the Blackstone Valley Half Marathon, the Cherry Tree 5K and the Cherry Blossom Youth 1K, organizers announced yesterday.
At the center of the Cherry Tree Running Festival will be the Blackstone Valley Half Marathon which will showcase the Blackstone Valley. The course will start and finish at City Hall in Pawtucket. The course will head west close to the Blackstone River through Pawtucket, Central Falls, Cumberland and Lincoln to the George Washington Highway over the Blackstone River. The course will then enter the beautiful Blackstone Valley Bike Path and return to Pawtucket along the river banks of the Blackstone River.
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Runners will be able to see many of the historic sites of the Blackstone Valley as they run the half marathon course. The Cherry Tree 5K will pass many of Pawtucket’s beautiful architectural buildings and will also pass through Cherry Lane where the regions spectacular cherry trees are located. And the Cherry Blossom Youth 1K will be on Cherry Lane.
According to Robert Billington, president of the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council and the Rhode Island Cherry Blossom Festival, "this race series could not have come at a better time. We held a small race last year and are trying to grow the Cherry Blossom Festival but now with the help of the Anthony Gemma and all of his team, we are heading into the big leagues and draw thousands."
"We could not be more pleased," Billington said.
Cultural tie-ins
Teams can participate in the festival, including corporate, health clubs and family & friends teams. “This event brings with it a great opportunity to stimulate the economy here in Rhode Island,” said Anthony Gemma, president of Mediapeel, a sponsor of the event. “We strategically orchestrated this event in conjunction with the Rhode Island Cherry Blossom Festival in an effort to help bring much needed revenue into our local communities,” Gemma added.
“We are excited to announce this event,” said race coordinator Charlie Breagy. “Everyone involved, including Anthony Gemma, Mediapeel, Mayor Don Grebian, Bob Billington, Shape Up Rhode Island and the Gloria Gemma Breast Cancer Foundation have worked diligently to help bring this event to Rhode Island," he said.
For more information on the Festival, go to www.cherrytreerun.com.
