NE Runner Pub Series/USATF-NE Grand Prix

  The two serious annual New England road race series, after our Winter Grand Prix of course, get under way in a few short weeks. First to hit the roads is the USATF New England Road Grand Prix so we’ll start with their schedule first:

28 February	Jones Realty Group 10 Mile, Amherst, MA
21 March	New Bedford Half Marathon, New Bedford, MA
22 May	Bedford Rotary 12K, Bedford, NH
6 June	Rhody 5K, Lincoln, RI [Men Only]
18 July	Stowe 8 Miler, Stowe, VT
14 August	Bridge of Flowers 10K, Shelburne Falls, MA
3 October	PVD McDonald House Women’s 5K, Providence, RI
17 October	BayState Marathon, Lowell, MA

  Every one of these races is challenging, scenic and will pit you against the best in New England. We’re particularly fond of Shelburne and Stowe while Bedford is one of those rare opportunities to score an asterisk next to your name and set your 12K PR.

  That other race series is brought to us by New England Runner and features a tour of some of the best pubs in New England, albeit at much shorter distances than those of the USATF series. While Cape Cod Irish Village drops off the calendar this year, Mighty Meehan returns as the Cape Cod representative of this perennial circuit. You can follow all of the action as it unfolds on the NER Pub Series blog … and catch up on the past few years of series history while you’re there. Here’s the schedule for 2010:

11 April	Doyles 5 Mile, Jamaica Plain, MA
23 May	Evans Run 5K, Norwell, MA
6 June	Corrib Pub 5K, West Roxbury, MA
12 September	Mighty Meehan 5K, West Dennis, MA
19 September	Portland Trail to Ale 10K, Portland, ME
17 October	Paddy’s Shillelagh Shuffle 3M, W. Newton, MA

  While we certainly have plenty of racing available on-Cape, club members do occasionally make it over the bridge … so if you’re headed off-Cape, be sure to take your CCAC singlet along (remember that the club will reimburse a portion of race entry fees for races with a team-scoring component like the USATF-NE races – see the Team Expense Reimbursement Policy) and subscribe to the CCAC e-mail list to coordinate rides. See you on the roads!