First-Ever PenAir 5k on the Runway Set for Take Flight Event
Aroostook County - A run/walk event unlike any other is coming to the Northern Maine Regional Airport as part of the second annual Take Flight event on Saturday, October 4. The PenAir 5k on the Runway will provide participants of all ages the opportunity to run, walk, stroll or otherwise make their way down the second longest commercial runway in Maine, all the while supporting a great cause.
“PenAir is proud to be presenting the inaugural PenAir 5k on the Runway and supporting Crown Critical Care Transport. PenAir and our employees are committed to supporting the communities we serve through involvement and service in healthy events,” said Missy Roberts, PenAir vice president of sales and marketing. “We are delighted to expand our partnership with the 2014 Take Flight event by adding the Run on the Runway; this provides another great opportunity for the community to come out and experience their local airport in a new fun way, while also supporting a great cause. This is going to be a ‘can’t miss’ event for runners and non-runners alike and we are looking forward to a great event next month.”
Proceeds from the PenAir 5k on the Runway will benefit Crown Critical Care Transport, the only northern Maine-based Critical Care Transport team to staff all patient transits with nationally Certified EMTs and registered nurses. Crown Critical Care Transport serves all four County hospitals and annually provides nearly 200 patient flights.
Adult and older youth participants in the 5k will depart from the general aviation terminal, the site of the Take Flight event, at 10:30 a.m. Check-in for those pre-registered and on-site registration will begin at 9:00 a.m. and run through 10:15 a.m. Registration is currently open on-line at www.tamc.org/takeflight. Cost for those signing up on-line in advance of the PenAir 5k on the Runway is $25. Those registering on-site the day of the event will pay $30. The first 200 to register will be given a commemorative tech t-shirt featuring the event logo.
The run/walk will take participants south nearly the full length of the taxiway that runs parallel to the main north-south runway, past the airport passenger terminal, and just beyond the intersection of the taxiway and the secondary east-west runway. The 5k will continue eastward down the secondary runway toward Peace Park and back where participants will be sent north on the taxiway to the finish line at the Northern Maine Regional Airport passenger terminal.
Greeting finishers at the end will be PenAir staff members and race volunteers. At an awards ceremony to follow back at the Take Flight event, PenAir will present awards to top finishers in each race category, as well as a round-trip ticket from Presque Isle to Boston to the overall top male and female finishers. A random winner from all those who register will also be drawn for a round-trip flight on Pen-Air.
“Most of us have run to catch a departing flight or run from terminal to terminal to catch a connecting flight, but I don’t know of anyone that can say they have actually raced down a runway. That is something you only see in movies,” said Sarah Caron, race director and a member of TAMC’s physical therapy team. “This unique event will allow runners and walkers and even those with wheelchairs to take to the tarmac and experience one of the flattest and best maintained courses in northern Maine. The course will offer beautiful scenery, planes landing and taking off on the opposite runway, an excellent chance to get physically active and a fun and unique opportunity to run on a runway. We are very excited to be able to offer those with disabilities the joy and excitement of participating in a 5k because our course is so flat and well maintained.”
Younger children will also have an opportunity to run or walk on the runway as part of the day’s festivities. The REDY, Set, Go Get Active kids fun run of the PenAir 5k on the Runway will take-off from the Northern Maine Regional Airport Passenger terminal for ages four through eight (participant siblings outside this age range are also welcome). The kids will run south on the taxiway to the intersection with the east-west runway and back to the airport where they will each receive a finisher metal.
The children’s event is the second in a series of Discovery Days Saturday sessions designed to help County kids make better and healthier choices that will serve them through their lifetime. All offerings under the collaborative program of ACAP (the Aroostook County Action Program), Healthy Aroostook, the Presque Isle Historical Society, and TAMC are free to participants, including entry into the October 4th fun run.
Kids participating in REDY, Set, Go Get Active will arrive at the airport at 10:00 a.m. where they will begin with a fun lesson about the importance of physical activity and ways to be Coach Potato and not a Couch Potato, using the passenger terminal area around the PenAir ticket counter as their classroom. After some fun games to help stretch and warm up, children will take part in their run on the runway, led by Jamie Chandler, Community Transformation Grant coordinator for ACAP.
To register children for the REDY, Set, Go Get Active lesson and runway fun run parents should go on-line to www.tamc.org/discoverydays.
The run/walk activities for all ages on the runway and the second annual Take Flight event are happening in partnership with the Northern Maine Regional Airport, which has opened its facilities to the community for the day. Scott Wardwell, airport director, welcomes the opportunity to showcase the only such facility north of Bangor with commercial air service, and one that is a vital link for the economy of the region, as well as key to accessing advanced medical care for critically ill County residents.
“We are very pleased to have this opportunity to not only promote healthy living through physical activity but to give the participants an opportunity to see the airport up close. It is a great opportunity to showcase the great work our team does in maintaining the airfield,” said Wardwell.
For more information on the PenAir 5k on the Runway and REDY, Set, Go Get Active kids fun run of the PenAir 5k on the Runway go to www.tamc.org and click on the Take Flight icon for the adult event and Discovery Days Icon for the kids event. Community members may also call the TAMC communication and development office at 207-768-4044 with any questions.
The event schedule for the PenAir 5k on the Runway on Saturday, October 4, 2014 is as follows:
9:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m. Registered participant check-in and on-site registration
Take Flight event site (General Aviation Terminal)
10:00 a.m. REDY, Set, Go Get Active Discovery Days children’s lesson and fun run begins
Northern Maine Regional Airport (Passenger Terminal by the PenAir Ticket Counter)
10:30 a.m. PenAir 5k on the Runway begins
Take Flight event site (General Aviation Terminal)
10:45 a.m. REDY, Set, Go Get Active Run/Walk (Children’s PenAir 5K on the Runway departs
Northern Maine Regional Airport (Passenger Terminal)
11:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. PenAir 5k on the Runway and REDY, Set, Go Get Active Run/Walk finishers arrive*
Northern Maine Regional Airport (Passenger Terminal)
11:45 a.m. PenAir 5k on the Runway Awards Presentation*
Take Flight event site (General Aviation Terminal)
*The Presque Isle Historical Society’s Molly the Trolley will be available to transport finishers from the Northern Maine Regional Airport Passenger Terminal to the General Aviation Terminal (site of the Take Flight event) for the awards presentation.
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