Hundreds take part in 18th annual Canton Road Race
By Mike Berger
Runners take off at the start of the Canton Road Race. (Mike Tureski photo)
It was a return to normalcy for this year’s Canton Road Race as the field of runners as well as the crowds came back to pre-pandemic levels for Sunday’s 18th annual installment held at its new home on the grounds of Trillium Brewing Co. on Royall Street.
Hosted by the Canton Association of Business and Industry, the event once again featured a 5K, 10K, wheelchair race and kids’ fun run and conditions were ideal with 60-degree temperatures and partly cloudy skies.
Steve Cesso of Computershare, CABI member and co-chair of the road race, said this year he had more corporate sponsors, including some new ones, and more companies sent teams of runners for the corporate challenge.
Since 2005, the Canton Road Race has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for local nonprofit groups and student scholarships. One hundred percent of proceeds are used to support these causes, which include the Pappas Rehabilitation Hospital for Children, Canton Police and Fire departments, the Canton Food Pantry, and scholarships for students at Canton High School and Blue Hills Regional Technical School.
Cesso anticipates this year’s event will raise about $40,000 for the beneficiaries, adding it would not be possible without the support of its sponsors.
In addition to presenting sponsor City of Boston Credit Union, this year’s race sponsors included Boston Mutual Life Insurance, Point 32 Health, FIS, Trillium, Computershare, Humboldt Storage and Moving, Bank of Canton, Emergent BioSolutions, Cornerstone at Canton, Gray, Gray and Gray, Highpoint Engineering, Red Ball Promotions, Judge Rotenberg Center, Wegmans Supermarkets, Eversource, Draper Knitting, and Fagron Sterile Services.
Originally held at the Village Shoppes, the race was relocated to the former headquarters of Reebok and in recent years it was moved again to the Pappas Rehab campus on Randolph Street. Last year, however, due to COVID concerns, the state determined that it could not be held at Pappas and it was moved to Massasoit Community College, who Cesso said “stepped up to the plate and really helped us out.”
Cesso said from what he could see, Trillium was an excellent host this year and provided the perfect venue for runners and spectators, who came from all over greater Boston. The location offered an abundance of picnic tables, a pavilion for vendor exhibits, and provided Trillium with an opportunity to showcase its products.
Canton police motorcycle officers escorted the runners, and entertainment was provided by Maverik, the official DJ of the Boston Red Sox.
Katie Stoddard of Trillium said the company was happy to sponsor the race. “It was a big success for Trillium and the community,” she said.
The races were run in the Royall Street area with both the 5k and 10k ending around 11:30 a.m. Police and fire officials were on hand and reported no problems.
“It went great,” said Deputy Police Chief Patty Sherrill. “It was a safe route for the runners, spectators and motorists.”
Johnny Ealy, 8, of Canton, a third grader at the JFK School, repeated as the winner of the Fun Run, and his father, John Ealy, won the 10K in 35:10. Andrew Breck of Melrose finished second and Kasey Charron of Brighton was the first female finisher. Other Canton residents in the top 20 included Colin Meehan and Caleb Morrison.
The highest Canton finisher in the 5K race was Mike Zani, who placed third in 19:46, followed by John Cavanagh (5th), Andrew Kafka (11th), Michael Devlin (12th), and Jared Mann (20th). The overall winner was Brian Schneider, who finished the course with a very fast time of 17:18. Juliana Watson of Brookline paced all female runners in the 5k and finished ninth overall.
The Emergent BioSolutions team of runners was this year’s corporate challenge winner.
For a full list of race results, go to my.racewire.com/results/37157.
See this week’s Citizen for more road race photos by Mike Tureski. Special fall promo for new subscribers: Click here to order your subscription today (also available in digital form).
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Posted by Mike Berger
on Sep 30 2022. Filed under Beyond CHS, Sports.
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