YMCA Wants to Race on Beach

Imagine a 5K road race at low tide on Barrington Beach.

It could happen. The Bayside YMCA got the approval it needed for the race from the Parks & Recreation Commission on Monday night, July 2.

Now the race organizers will go before the Town Council to plead its case.

Two representatives from the YMCA said the race will be run early in the morning on Sunday, Aug. 26. The race is expected to be history by the time most beach-goers drop down their towels or blankets. The beach will not be closed.

The race will start west of the entrance to the beach at Bay Road. It will go west for about 1.5 miles and swing around orange plastic cones to return to the finish line at the starting point.

Vans will shuttle runners to the beach from the YMCA to avoid any parking problems.  There will be police officers and EMTs on hand to handle any unforeseen emergencies.

The race will be sanctioned by the U.S. Track and Field Federation, although the runners’ times will not count because of running on sand.

Runners will wear footwear. They will not run bare-footed. Approximately 100 to 150 runners are expected to race.

The race is a fundraiser for the Bayside YMCA’s capital campaign. All proceeds will go to the Y.

The Town Council meets next on July 30.