Sports

Race Aims to Raise Money for Turf Field in Pelham

The inaugural Symmetry Sprints race is set for June 15 at the Glover Field Track.

Tie those sneaker laces and get ready to run on Friday, June 15, when host its first annual Sunset Sprints at the Glover Field Track.

Proceeds from the event will be used to benefit Friends of Pelham Sports, a non-profit community group dedicated to improving sports and recreational facilities in the town. The group’s immediate goal is to  build a turf sports field, a project that expected to cost about $1 million.

“My wife is a and we’ve always talked about adding another race in town to complement the town 's and, now, the runs,” said Chris Lauretani, the president of Symmetry and board member of Friends of Pelham Sports. “But we wanted to add something a little different  that will get more people involved, but not take away from the other races.”

The event will kick off at 3:30 p.m. with kid’s fun race, followed by different heats of 1 mile runs for children 10 and older that will be broken down by age and gender. Following the 1 mile race series, there will be a police versus fire department  relay at 8 p.m. The event will conclude with a corporate sponsor relay.

There will also be a raffle for several items, including tickets to New York Jets football game this upcoming season.

Following the race, will be hosting an after party and will be offering drink and food specials for all Symmetry Sprints participants and spectators.

“The races will go on rain or shine, so we’re hoping to get good weather that day,” Lauretani said.

Friends of Pelham Sports has raise a little more than $900,000 for the turf field project, with additional monies pledged if the group meets additional fundraising  goals, Lauretani said.

Because this is the event’s first year, Lauretani doesn’t expect to raise a substantial amount of money this year.

“It’s been fairly expensive,” he said. “I’ve spent a lot on marketing out of my own pocket. I’d be happy if it raised an addition $500 to $2,000. I’d like to get this off the ground and see if we can support another charity next year. I’d like to build on it each year.”

The event is still seeking corporate sponsors. Anyone who is interested in sponsoring or registering for the event can do so by going here.

Registration and sponsorship forms can also be found in the PDF to the right of this story.


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