Author: pagodapacers

Race Results (August ’24)

by pagodapacers

Want to see your race results in the next newsletter?

Email your race results to Amy Bird at ruseenamy@gmail.com.

Crappy Year 5k

29:29Blair Hogg
31:04Joanne Patti2nd F 60-69
37:06Tracy Barlet2nd F 50-59
45:28Bruce Cronrath2nd M 80+
47:09Helene Horn

Slopeside Slumber Party ’24

10 laps @ 3:09:29, 7th OverallAndy Styer
10 laps @ 3:14:16, 8th OverallLou Donofrio
10 laps @ 3:15:26, 2nd FemaleKelly Ammon
9 laps @ 3:12:55Brandon Beane
8 laps @ 2:55:23Michael Whalen
6 laps @ 3:19:41Melissa Lin
6 laps @ 3:19:42Jenn Guigley
3 laps @ 1:13:35Katie Beane

Chobot Challenge 13.25k Trail Race

1:14:11Mihai Sanchez3rd M 20-29
1:14:44Brandon Beane
1:40:12Amy Bird
1:41:57Tom Chobot
2:06:15Gwen Chobot

August Third Thirsty Thursday 5k

25:16Laura Werner1st F 50-59
27:39Peter Schlegel Jr
28:21Blair Hogg3rd M 60-69
29:46Steven Holgate
31:10Joanne Patti2nd F 60-69
32:48Julia Hager4th F 50-59
34:21Larry Drogo2nd M 70-77
43:10Rick Showers
43:55Bruce Cronrath2nd M 78+
50:35Charlie Crowell
51:02Evette Vega
53:42Helene Horn4th F 60-69

Grings Mill 5k

19:45Mihai Sanchez2nd Overall
22:23Brandon Beane1st M 40-49
24:37Katie Beane1st F 40-49
27:57Jonathan Foley
28:09Peter Schlegel Jr
33:22Dianne Showers2nd F 60-69
33:33Larry Drogo3rd M 70-79
35:15Andrea Thrush
40:56Scott Scheidt
41:15Rick Showers

Cook Forest 25k

3:41:20Elaine Cook3rd F 50-59

Coming 11/3/24—the 30th running of the Oley Valley Country Classic 10 Mile and 5k event…and…new this year: the Croc O Mile—a one-mile run in Crocs!!

by pagodapacers

This year the OVCC will begin and end at the Oley Valley High School!  There are indoor facilities for pre- and post-run gathering.

We are going with a long sleeve shirt this year, with a unique race logo—the design options are looking awesome! See one you really like? Email leonardeburton@gmail.com with your preferences!

Follow the race on Facebook and/or Instagram for updates!

Sign up today!

click here to register

This event is also an RRCA Eastern Regional Championship, and a great course to run a PR, with the smooth, rolling hills of the Oley Valley.

Munchiez Food Truck will be on site offering post-run eats, and the Pagoda Pacers will also have lite post-race fare available.

We are actively looking for volunteers to help us make this race go smoothly. Please reach out to a race director to let them know of your availability.  leonardeburton@gmail.com or barrygoodhart@gmail.com

 See you in Oley on November 3rd!

Registration Now Open for 35th Annual Winter Race Series: Shiver by the River!

by pagodapacers

Dates: 2nd Sunday, December-March (Dec 8th , Jan 12th , Feb 9th , March 9th)

Time: 10 a.m. start (Registration opens at 8:30 a.m.)

Location: Jim Dietrich Park, Muhlenberg Twp.

Come out and join us for the best winter race series in the area!!

If you have never run a Shiver race, or if it’s been a few years, let us remind you of what makes this series great: it keeps you motivated to run through the winter, and it helps you reconnect with local runners you haven’t seen for years!

If you are one of the many runners we see year after year, we look forward to seeing you again!

Online registration for the series is open and can be found at Pretzel City Sports.

Once again, we are not mailing apps! However, we will accept mail-in registrations. Apps can be printed from the Pagoda Pacers website, or you can pick one up at any of the many races timed by Pretzel City Sports. We plan to also have copies at our monthly meetings (if we remember to bring them).

Pre-registration is only available for the series; however, we will have race-day registration for both the series and individual races.

This year’s swag is a tank top in both women’s and men’s sizes. Great colors!!!!

Each race includes a post-race buffet of soup, pretzels, and snacks. Our end-of-series party includes a hot and cold buffet plus lots and lots of door prizes, overall awards, and 5-year age group awards. As always, this buffet is free to any runner who
registers for the series or runs at least 3 races. There is a nominal charge for all others.

Come out and join us for our 35th season!!!!!!

Race Directors,
Sue Jackson, Georgine McCool, Tiffany Pantoja

Away Game: Group Run at Jim Thorpe Planned for 9/28/24

by pagodapacers

We originally planned to do this run at the end of August, but due to a number of conflicting running events on Labor Day weekend, we decided to reschedule this group run for Saturday, September 28.

We will meet at 9:30 a.m. the parking lot near Mauch Chunk Boat Launch A. The route will be approximately 10 miles, with options to cut it short. You can view the tentative route for this run by clicking HERE.

This location is also great for gravel and mountain biking, so if you’d rather ride than run, feel free to plan an adjacent event and join us for lunch afterwards.

After the run, we will gather at one of the many quality eateries in Jim Thorpe for refueling (precise location TBD)!

Minutes from the Monthly Membership Meeting (August ’24)

by pagodapacers

Pagoda Pacer A.C. Monthly Membership Meeting

Thursday, August 8, 2024

Mohnton Fire Company

Steve Vida presided

Susan Jindra recorded minutes

23 members in attendance

CALL TO ORDER at 7 pm

Minutes from July meeting were accepted as posted

REPORTS

Treasurer Report (Shaun Luther) – Balance $87,277 (136% of Target). The charitable donations to Special Olympics and Friends of Nolde Forest were made this month. The CD’s are renewing for 12 month terms.

Future Berks Nature Presentation (Steve Vida) – the presentation is scheduled for the first 30 minutes of the September Pacer’s Monthly Membership Meeting.

Pagoda Pathfinder Program (Steve Vida)

MOTION:  Authorize Andrea Thrush to conduction additional sessions of the Pagoda Pathfinders program for beginning runners.

The motion was adopted without debate.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

None

NEW BUSINESS

None

MEETING ADJOURNED at 7:30 pm

Special Guest at September Membership Meeting

by pagodapacers

I don’t know about you, but I’m really looking forward to the September General Membership Meeting, which is coming up on Thursday, September 12th. Why? Two reasons:

Vice President Lisa Domeshek will be conducting the meeting! (Don’t worry–Steve is fine; he’ll just be vacationing in Scotland.)

And…we’ll be welcoming representatives from Berks Nature for a special, interactive presentation.

Berks Nature is a non-profit land conservation organization that is involved in land preservation, water protection, and trail maintenance. They are celebrating their 50th anniversary during 2024, and throughout the year they are hosting a series of public input forums to collect feedback on priorities of the Berks County community.

The Pagoda Pacers invited Berks Nature to our next meeting on Thursday, September 12. The opening 30 minutes of the meeting will be a forum for us to discuss the outdoor resources and natural spaces in Berks that are important to us. Consider attending to share your input.

As usual, please rsvp if you plan on attending the meeting. You can respond through the Facebook event or send an email to president@pagodapacers.com. It helps us plan for enough food.

That’s Thursday, September 12th at the Mohnton Fire Company Social Quarters. Food will be served at 6:30 p.m. — meeting starts at 7 p.m. All members are welcomed to attend.

Final Blues Cruise Training Run Set for 9/7/24

by pagodapacers

We will meet at the Old Church Road parking area  at 7:45 a.m. on Saturday, September 7th, and carpool to the lower Stilling Basin lot, to run point-to-point on the Blues Cruise course, starting about 8 a.m.

The run is almost 16 miles. Runners can easily shorten it to just under 14 miles by skipping the Skinner’s Loop portion, and of course adding miles is easy too.

(For those looking for a shorter option, an out-and-back of your desired distance is also an easy option. Just meet us at the Stilling Basin so we can run the first few miles together!)

Please comment on the Facebook Event Page if you have questions or need suggestions. Bring water and nutrition! The route features about 1600 feet of climbing.

This will be a great day to dial in your race-day gear! This includes some of our favorite parts of the Blues Cruise course!

For those who have the time, several of us usually grab lunch together after. Hope to see you there!

Sometimes It Feels GOOD to Have the Blues

by pagodapacers

Blues Cruise needs you! 

The Pacers’ most challenging event is the Blues Cruise 50K, which requires about 100 volunteers and lasts 12 hours from set up to clean up.  This year’s race is on Sunday, October 6, with set up starting at 6am, and clean up finishing at 6pm. 

While a number of folks are there for the long haul, most of our volunteers work a shift of a few hours.  As we did last year, we’re asking volunteers to go to the Blues Cruise page on UltraSignUp  and click the green volunteer button next to the registration button in the banner. There you will agree to the waiver which allows you to be covered by our insurance. Then you can select one (or more!) volunteer duties. 

We’d love to get some of our newer members out to volunteer!  I think all the veteran volunteers will agree that this is a truly rewarding day and a great way to meet more of the club. Many of the BC runners are new to ultra running and our volunteers make all the difference–as the runner surveys indicate. 

If you are an experienced ultra runner, your expertise is invaluable; and if you’ve never run an ultra, beware!  Spending a day at this event is likely to get you signing up as a runner next year! 

If you’d like to volunteer, but can’t participate on the 6th, check out the list.  We need course maintenance throughout September, and we need course markers on Saturday October 5th, as well as gear cleanup on Monday October 7th. 

Finally, our final Blues Cruise training run is Saturday September 7 for a 14 mile course preview–check out the Facebook event page for details!  Thanks everyone, you are the ones who make this race great.  Looking forward to seeing you there!

click here to register as a volunteer!

Elaine and Michael

Registration is OPEN for the 38th Annual Kris Kringle 5-Miler!

by pagodapacers

The Pagoda Pacers Athletic Club is happy to invite you to the 38th annual Kris Kringle 5-Mile Run on Sunday, December 29th!

Looking to squeeze one last fun event in over the Christmas break? This race is always a family favorite, with proceeds benefiting the Berks County Cross Country Coaches Association. So grab your friends & family and close out 2024 with us!

Course: The course features a mix of road and easy trail sections through Blue Marsh and the Union Canal Trail.We’ll be running counter-clockwise this year. Strollers and walkers are welcome. Dogs are not permitted at this event. 

Registration Fees: ALL registration fees are RACE ONLY 

  • $25 per runner through December 3, 2024
  • $30 per runner from December 4 to December 15, 2024 at midnight
  • Day-of registration: $30 (hoodies will not be available for purchase)
  • ONLINE REGISTRATION WILL CLOSE ON DECEMBER 15th at 11:59PM EST

Option to add a hoodie for an additional cost during checkout.

Hoodies: 

  • This year’s hoodie will be Dark Heathered Green, as voted on by you! You can get a sneak peek when you go through the registration process. 
  • Hoodies are not included with the race registration cost but can be added to your order during the checkout process for $18 until December 3, 2024
  • Deadline to order: December 3, 2024
  • Must be picked up at the race; no holds. No additional hoodies will be sold at the event.

Race Day Info:

  • Registration: 8:30 AM  |  Race Start: 10:00 AM
  • Same-day registration will be available at $30 per runner (no hoodie option)
  • Leave your doggy pals at home, please. No dogs permitted at this event. 

Awards:

  • Overall: Top 2 male and female (not eligible for age group awards)
  • Age Groups: Top 3 male and female in 5-year brackets from U14 to 69, plus a 70+ category
  • Top High School Teams: Teams in Open (all male or mixed) or Female (girls only) divisions. XC scoring used (lowest point total wins).This will be the last year for the team competition due to low participation. 
  • **NEW THIS YEAR!**: Awards for the oldest male and female finisher

Weather: In case of inclement weather on race day, updates will be sent to the email address used for registration. 

Keep up with the latest updates and race fun by joining our Facebook Group: Kris Kringle 5 Mile Run

click here to register!

Wednesday Night Runs (September ’24 locations)

by pagodapacers

Our mid-week group runs have at least two different distance options (3-4 miles and 5-6 miles) with an appointed leader for each route. Each run will have its own Facebook “event,” and the routes will be posted a couple days before the run. After each run, those who can will stick around for food, drink, and good conversation, either at a nearby restaurant or a club member’s residence. Come for the run; stay (if you can) for the fellowship. (If you don’t have time to stick around, no worries–just come run with us!)

September 4: Blue Marsh Ski Loop (Old Church Rd trailhead) — Post-run to follow at Blue Marsh Italian Restaurant

September 11 — Angora Fruit Farm (502 Angora Rd, Reading) — Post-run to follow at Knight’s Pub (Stokesay)

September 18: Blair Hogg’s residence (13 Kenny Dr, Mohnton) — Post-run to follow at same location

September 25: Berks County Heritage Center — Post-run to follow at Klinger’s-at-the-Airport

All runs start at 6:15 p.m

This is the end of the September ’24 Newsletter.