Last night was our third year participating in the J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge. I have only raced in it once, but Mike has "raced" all three years (last year he walked because it was two days after the Cleveland Marathon).
This year was the 24th annual Corporate Challenge here in Rochester. The race takes place on Rochester Institute of Technology's (RIT) campus. Over 10,900 people participated representing 460 different companies from around the Rochester area.
Every year the J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge picks a beneficiary. This year, the beneficiary was the Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection, which helps students who are at risk of dropping out of school by providing academic resources, life skill development and job training so struggling students can stay in school and achieve academic success.
When we arrived right before 6pm, there were already a ton of people getting their finisher t-shirts, warming up, stretching or just hanging out with their companies. One fun aspect of the Corporate Challenge is that most companies get a tent and grill food for after the race. Between that, company t-shirts and the fact that everyone is laughing and having a good time, camaraderie runs high at this event.
Prior to the start
The race is broken up into three different waves, first the red wave for racers and fast runners, the yellow wave for runners and the white waves for non-competitive runners/walkers. This allows for a smoother start and race for everyone because of the high number of participants.
The first participant is off!
Right before the red wave's start
And they're off!
After the National Anthem, a wheelchair participant started the race and then it was time for the red wave to start. Mike was in the red wave this year, and he was aiming for a PR.
Luckily, I got Mike in the background!
The 3.5 mile race course is run entirely on RIT's campus, around the "loop" and it is 99% flat. There is only one small hill on the campus, but you get that over with before the first half mile and you get to reap the benefits of the downhill immediately after.
Mike Heymann, first place male
Morgan Burrows, first place female
After watching the start, I walked over to an area right before the finish. I didn't have to wait very long before the first runner, Mike Heymann from Fleet Feet Sports, ran by. After that there were a few more runners, including first place female Morgan Burrows from Corning, and then the masses started to come through.
I had no idea what he was doing
This entire progression made me laugh
Mike ran a great race and finished in 24:07, which was a little less than a two minute PR! We cheered on a few more friends of ours before heading back to Mike's company's tent for post-race festivities.
Lots of runners
If you live in the Rochester area (or work for a company there), you should consider participating in the J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge. If you don't think your company participates, all you need to do is form a team (one complete team consists of either four men, four women or two men and two women for a mixed team) and then you are able to participate in this fun, annual event!