SacTown 10

March 30, 2012
For immediate release

This toddler looks ready to run.

The Credit Union SACTOWN Ten-Mile Run turns 2 on Sunday. And while success takes time to build, the race is already moving quickly toward its goal.

Race officials want to emulate the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run, a major rite of spring in Washington, D.C. which is scheduled to celebrate its 40th anniversary on April 1 with a field of 15,000 runners and a purse of $46,000.

After attracting 528 runners for its inaugural run, the SACTOWN race is expected to draw more than 1,300 runners on April 1 for an event that carries a purse of $15,000 and serves as USA Track and Field’s Pacific Association Championship.

The race, put on by the Sacramento Running Association, received a big boost last August when the Credit Union Association signed on as the title sponsor. The Credit Union Association also sponsors the Cherry Blossom race and is a big supporter of the Children’s Miracle Network.

The Credit Union SACTOWN Ten-Mile Run has raised close to $140,000 for the Children’s Miracle Network through donations from credit unions in the western U.S. and through a runner’s pledge program.

Since 2002, the Cherry Blossom race has raised more than $5 million for the Children’s Miracle Network.

SACTOWN race director Michelle La Sala, who has run in the Cherry Blossom race, sees the Sacramento event looking more like the Washington, D.C. race with each passing year.

“The race is in a really good place for our second year,” she said. “I’m very excited about people experiencing this race and where we go in the future.

“I know we can grow quickly and become more like the Cherry Blossom race. This year we wanted it (the field) to double and it’s going to do that and more.

“We’re very happy.”
  
The SACTOWN field includes more than a dozen entrants from the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials held in January in Houston, including Elk Grove’s Mary Coordt, Sacramento’s Megan Daly, Roseville’s Lindsay Nelson and Tim Tollefson and Gold River’s Midori Sperandeo.

On the men’s side, five of the top 35 finishers from the Trials are entered, including Stephan Shay, who placed 34th. Shay’s brother Ryan Shay died of a heart attack during the 2008 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials.
 
The course starts and finishes at the state Capitol, with a scenic tour of midtown and east Sacramento included.

“I think a lot of people are going to be surprised with the quality of this race,” La Sala said. “The course is very fast. The weather for Sunday is looking excellent.”

Late registration is scheduled for Friday (10 a.m.-7 p.m.) and Saturday (10 a.m.-6 p.m.) at Fleet Feet Sports 2311 J Street, Sacramento.

The race, which includes a three-person relay, begins at 8 a.m. Cara Cooper, a St. Francis High School student who credits treatment she received at UC Davis with helping her recover from the H1N1 virus (swine flu), is scheduled to sing the national anthem.

Other Sacramento Running Association events include the Lake Natoma Four Bridges Half Marathon on Oct. 28, the California International Marathon on Dec. 2 and the recently concluded Super Bowl Sunday 10K Run.

The Sacramento Running Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to finding ways to encourage people of all ages and abilities to run. The SRA is committed to developing new, quality running events that appeal to a broad variety of runners.

SRA beneficiaries include the American River Parkway, youth fitness programs, local running venues and aspiring young runners.