POTS Walk and 5k Race takes place along the scenic Mystic River in
Medford, MA. The race will start and end at the Mystic River Bend
Reservation located next to Hormel Stadium. The race is accessible by T
using the Wellington station or by car with plenty of free parking
available. This race is sanctioned by USATF. Participants are welcome to
join us after the race for entertainment and refreshments. Proceeds
from this event will benefit Dysautonomia International in the support
of POTS research.
What is POTS?
(Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome)
POTS
is a disorder of the autonomic nervous system. It is characterized by
an increase in heart rate of more than 30 beats per minute upon
standing. Symptoms are widely varied, but can include
palpitations, dizziness, nausea, fatigue, difficulty concentrating,
fainting, sweating, etc. An estimated 500,000 Americans
suffer from POTS, primarily young women. The cause of POTS is still not
understood and there is no known cure.
Learn more at http://www.potswalk.com/
Event details and schedule
Cost:
The registration fee is $25 per person. Day of race registration will cost $30. Please register early.
Prizes:
All participants that register by April 30th are guaranteed a free t-shirt, box of NormaLyte, and goody bag. T-shirts will be available as supplies last for participants that register after April 30th.
Prizes
will be presented to the top man and woman runner in the following age
groups: 20 and under, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, and over 50. The prize pool
will include cases of Samuel Adams beer, gift certificates to RoadID, and bags of ground coffee courtesy of Keurig.
Raffle
tickets are available for purchase during registration and day of the
race for $1 a ticket. The raffle prize pool will consist of a free one
night stay at the Hyatt in Medford Square, cases of Samuel Adams beer, and two free tickets to ComedySportz Boston.
The top 5 fundraising teams will also receive their choice of Samuel Adams beer or ground coffee courtesy of Keurig.
*Only participants over the age of 21 are eligible to win prizes containing alcohol, please bring ID.
Event Schedule:
The
race will start promptly at 10am. Registration and bib pick-up will
open at 8am and close at 9:30am. Please plan to arrive early to pick up
your bib.
Spectators and race participants are encouraged to bring a POT from home and make some noise in support of POTS.
A
post race celebration including refreshments and entertainment will be
provided until noon. Live entertainment will include perfomances by Sam
Cook-Stuntz at 10:30 and the MIT Chorallaries at 11. The awards
ceremony will begin at 11:30.
A special thank you to NormaLyte for graciously donating their hydration product to quench your thirst at the finish line.
Transportation and Parking:
The
race course is accessible by T using the Wellington station. A number
of buses also service the area. Plenty of free parking will be
available at Hormel Stadium.
Course Details and Safety
This
race is sanctioned by USATF. Runners are not permitted to have
strollers, roller skates, skateboards, or bicycles on the race course.
Walkers may have strollers but will be asked to line up at the back of
the field.
To make the course more accessible to
POTS patients, we will be marking off a number of shorter distances
along the race course. Those that are unable to walk the entire course
are encouraged to set their own goal and walk as much as they are
physically able.
Fundraising:
This
race will benefit Dysautonomia International an organization devoted to
funding POTS research. Please consider helping us fundraise by making a
personal or team fundraising page. The top 5 fundraising teams will
receive either a case of Samuel Adams beer or ground coffee courtesy of Keurig. Thank you!
