St Catherine High 5K moved to November 26

To serve the high school track and field community better, the St Catherine High School PTA 5K Run/Walk has been moved to November 26. According to race director Paul Brown, the event now fits high school training programmes far better.

“The initial instalments were done in February actually. We made an effort to put it here - in November - because the February date did not sit very well with where most school programmes would be in terms of taking part in a road race,” Brown said on Wednesday.

Race time is 7:30 a.m. with a warm-up session to be led by one of the St Catherine team coaches set for 6:30.

Once competitors begin the race at the school’s St John’s Road, Spanish Town campus, they will have a fast, flat route ahead of them.

“It starts inside the school. We leave the school. We turn right go up to the bypass, make a right to the bypass, go up to the roundabout, go to Old Harbour Road, make a U-turn at the agricultural store on the left-hand side of Old Harbour Road, come back down Old Harbour Road, turn on Valdez Road, go to the end of Valdez and make the right turn back to St Catherine High,” Brown outlined.

He said that members of the community line the streets to watch the race, but it is hoped this year that many of them will join in.

“We’re pushing for more of the small businesses on Old Harbour Road and St John’s Road to come out just for fun, come out and run, walk, participate,” he said.

In past stagings of the race, the final stretch, from Valdez Road to the school, has provided a great atmosphere for the runners.

“In the mornings,” Brown recalled, “there are always people on the road, out cheering on, especially St John’s Road coming down.”

The PTA stages the event to raise funds for the school’s track and field and chess teams, but Brown sees the event as a means of community outreach. “We never normally have this kind of race for some reason. I don’t know why it has never happened before. We started it. We think it’s a void and with the school doing, as well as it has been in track and field, we thought it was a good venture to get out there, outside of the fundraising aspect of it, good community venture,” Brown said.

Registration forms can be obtained online at https://form.jotform.com.

Brown himself takes great pride in the event. “Apart from being a parent, I’m an alumnus as well. So it’s a special feeling. It’s something I’m committed to,” he said.