PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — With the Philadelphia Marathon coming up next weekend, hundreds of participants, representing more than 50 run clubs, gathered Sunday morning in Rittenhouse for a special 5K to help get primed and ready for the big race.
The Philly United Run is the unofficial kickoff to Philadelphia Marathon Weekend, says Lionel Brodie, one of the organizers. “With the weekend being so busy, with three races and multiple challenges, we thought it would be great to kick the week off with a shake-out run.”
Brodie says Philly United is meant to be fun. It’s a 3.1-mile run or a 1.5-mile walk down Walnut Street, from Center City to University City and back again, that participants can use to tune up at their own pace.
“People can add on more if they like, or they can cut it short if they like — sort of the reason for the out and back. So, if you’re tired or if you want to save your legs or you need to go further, there’s not a lot of turns.”
Before taking off, participants gathered at Philadelphia Runner, a shoe store in Center City.
“Just having a fun, kind of shake-out, kind of loosen-up — because people running next week can get kind of stressed with the marathon. So it’s a little fun get-together and hang-out of the running community,” said Ross Martin, the owner — and a Philly United Run organizer.
“It feels great, and people are so excited, so it’s awesome to see and just awesome to be a part of.”
The Philadelphia Half Marathon is on Saturday, Nov. 23, and the full marathon is Sunday, Nov. 24. Marathon weekend also includes a children’s run and an 8K.