Runners ran from Hamburg Park to the top of the Rock posing for a celebratory picture, some being silly while others raised their arms in victory.
About 85 runners participated in the last of the Blue Mountain Wildlife Inc. Trail Race Series races, the Run To The Rock, on June 25. The following day, the non-profit that preserves wildlife habitat in northern Berks and southern Schuylkill counties celebrated its 15th anniversary with cake at the Monument Parking lot.
“I think the races went very well. Very good attendance. Great weather. The volunteers did a magnificent job,” said Gregg Adams, Director and Secretary, Blue Mountain Wildlife Inc. “DJ Brett played some great tunes and Cracker Barrel put on a great spread for the runners. The runners were enthusiastic and supportive and everyone had a great time. It’s a really great community we’ve created here and I’m proud to be part of it.”
Gregg thanked the other members of the Race Committee, Amy Browder and Elaine Cook, “for going above and beyond in the preparations for this race. And I’d also like to thank the many great local businesses for sponsoring our races and supporting us.”
Troy Seitzinger, 53, placed first overall with a time of 47 minutes and 3 seconds. Gina Manbeck, 28, came in second overall and first in the female category with a time of 47 minutes and 11 seconds.
Out of the 85 registered racers, 79 finished.
“That puts the 2016 Run To The Rock races into the top five best attended races for Blue Mountain Wildlife over the last 10 years. Combine that with our second-best attended set of races ever in April (The Bartram Breeze) and this was a great year for Blue Mountain Wildlife fundraising,” said Gregg. “I hope this trend continues and the Trail Race Series continues to grow.”
Run to the Rock raised more than $1,400 on Saturday, and he estimated probably at least as much in pre-registration leading up to the races.
“We still have to pay some costs out of that, but it was a good day for Blue Mountain Wildlife and the Kerny,” he said.
Board member Pat Adams, Tilden Township, agreed.
“We’ve had a particularly good year this year,” she said.
Adams said there have been about 90 people participating in the races. The other two races were the April 30 Bartram Breeze Trail Races and the May 21 Mad Dash Trail Races. The Trail Race Series is the main fundraiser for BMW.
“Funds go toward maintenance of the Kernsville Dam area,” said Pat. “We do regular trail maintenance. We do building of new trails.”
BMW is in the process of creating a new observation trail that starts at the Kernsville Dam Monument Parking Lot and goes along the top of the berm and comes back around, said Pat. There will be three benches.
“We have trails. So when we have the runs we are basically introducing people to our trails and also to the Hamburg area,” she said. “We have a lot of people using our trails.”
Pat talked about the recent vandalism that occurred in fall 2015 and once again in May 2016. Kernsville Dam area trail signs were pulled and broken and the kiosk and porta potty were pulled over.
“It’s very frustrating,” she said.
She said proceeds from the races will not fund new signs; the BMW will replace them. A board member does the signage for BMW.
According to their website, www.bluemountainwildlife.com, the Run To The Rock 10K, 5K and 2.5K Trail Races start at the Hamburg Community Park. The 10K Race uses all of the trails at the Kernsville Dam Recreation Area, from the Etchberger Trail to the Therman Madiera Switchback to the Cabela’s Wetlands Trail to the Lowlands Trail to the Pulpit Rock Trail and back. The trails are on or near the scenic Schuylkill River. The 5K Race uses the Etchberger Trail, the Therman Madiera Switchback and the Cabela’s Wetlands Trail before returning to the Hamburg Park. The trails are along the Schuylkill River and the Kernsville Desilting Basin. The 2.5K Race uses the Etchberger Trail and the Therman Madiera Trail.
According to their website, “the three trail races in the northern Berks County area (are) designed to promote physical fitness as part of a healthy lifestyle and to highlight the outdoor recreational opportunities in the northern Berks County area. Each event includes an “extreme” course for the avid fitness enthusiast, a 5K course for the middle-of-the-road athlete and a shorter “family” course for kids or beginning athletes.”
According to the website, each race features online registration, a DJ providing post-race entertainment, a hot brunch after the race, and activities for the kids.
Blue Mountain Wildlife also holds the Dine and Dash during the Taste of Hamburg-er Festival which will be held on Sept. 3. Runners eat a hamburger, run one mile, eat a hamburger and run back one mile.
Blue Mountain Wildlife Inc. regular meetings are held at the Hamburg Community Library on the second Thursday of each month at 6 p.m. View race results and more photos of the Run To The Rock on the BMW Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/BlueMountainWildlifeInc/. For more information about BMW, visit www.bluemountainwildlife.com.
