Downtown Westfield Corporation held the 10^th Annual Downtown Westfield 5K & Pizza Extravaganza on July 20, 2011. Despite the heat, almost 2,500 runners participated as thousands of spectators cheered them on. The event was a great success. It drew people to Westfield from over 240 towns in the state of New Jersey and as far away as New Mexico, Colorado and California. 35% of all runners were from Westfield, and 34% came from the same household, indicating that families participated in the event. This year's t-shirts touted 'tenacity, 10 years and still running strong', to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the race. Special thanks to the many runners, personnel, sponsors, volunteers and residents who helped to support this popular event. Awards were given out to the top male and female finishers in each five-year age group (10 & under to 80 & over) and to the overall top finishers. First place this year went to DJ Thornton, 19 of Rahway New Jersey and sales associate of The Running Co. of Westfield, with a finish time of 15:51. Read More. 

 

For scores, visit www.compuscore.com

For photos, visit http://downtownwestfield5k.shutterfly.com  
For photos from the official race photographer, visit

images by Joe Church

Downtown Westfield Corporation held the 10^th Annual Downtown Westfield 5K & Pizza Extravaganza on July 20, 2011. Despite the heat, almost 2,500 runners participated as thousands of spectators cheered them on. The event was a great success.  It drew people to Westfield from over 240 towns in the state of New Jersey and as far away as New Mexico, Colorado and California. Many runners, personnel, sponsors, volunteers and residents helped to support the popular event.  Awards were given out to the top male and female finishers in each five-year age group (10 & under to 80 & over) and to the overall top finishers. First place this year went to DJ Thornton, 19 of Rahway New Jersey and sales associate of The Running Co. of Westfield, with a finish time of 15:51.

The Downtown Westfield Corporation (DWC) would like to thank the following businesses and organizations for sponsoring this year’s race. Trinitas Regional Medical Center was the 2011 Platinum Sponsor of the event for the second year. Stop & Shop and Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey and Overlook Medical Center were silver sponsors.  Wells Fargo Advisors, Shop-Rite of Garwood, The Alternative Press.com, Drew & Rogers, Castle Bootery/Saucony, Westfield Pediatric Dental Group, UBS Financial Services, Jag Physical Therapy, and Elegant Homes by Ralph Rapuano were bronze sponsors.  PSE&G, State Farm Insurance Christine Consenza Agency, Capital One, and Thomas Burns, DMD, PA were contributing sponsors.  Creative Dental Care, P.A. was a supporting sponsor.  Many sponsors attending the event provided giveaways to the runners and spectators.

 

Mark Zenobia and staff of On Your Mark Productions did a great job in directing the race, organizing the event, and running the awards ceremony.  Approximately 100 volunteers, organized by Meg Mehorter, contributed their time and talent to Downtown Westfield Corporation on race day.  Special mention goes to Sherry Cronin, DWC Executive Director, Beth Brenner, DWC Asst. Executive Director, Jamie Lemberg, DWC On-Line Marketing Manager, Courtney Nemec, former Executive Assistant of the DWC, and Sarah Hoffman, DWC Summer Intern for the tremendous effort in executing all of the details for the event.  Thanks goes to the Westfield Area Y, the Westfield Girl Scout Council, the Westfield Jaycees, the Town of Westfield, the Westfield Fire Department, the Westfield Department of Public Works, the Westfield Police Department, and the Westfield Rescue Squad for their assistance.  Michael Craig Band entertained everyone at the post-race gathering on Quimby Street, D.J. Night Moves provided the music and sound system at the finish line, and Ferraro’s, Cosimo’s and Casa di Pizza made a collective 650 pizzas at a discounted rate. 

 

In addition, the following businesses and organizations provided random prizes during the award ceremony:  Aerosoles, Alan’s Orchard, Ana Beall’s Tea Room, Bovella’s Pastry Shoppe, Casa di Pizza, Cosimo’s Restaurant & Pizzeria, Digiplex Destinations/Rialto, The Farmhouse Store, HomeMade Pizza Co., Learning Express Toys of Westfield, Limani Seafood Grill, Rita’s of Westfield, Rockn’ Joe Coffeehouse + Bistro, Sole Fine Italian Shoes, Staples, Tamar Jewelry, The Running Company, The Town Book Store, Trader Joe’s, Westfield Fitness Studio, and Xocolatz.   

The Downtown Westfield Corporation (DWC), formed in 1996, is the management entity of the Special Improvement District. It is governed by a seven member Board of Directors, has two full-time and one part-time staff members, and numerous volunteers serving on Design, Promotion, Economic Development and Organization committees. The vision of the DWC is for Westfield, NJ to be a preferred destination where people want to live, work, and visit.  Westfield is also honored to be one of 26 designated Main Street Communities in New Jersey, a program of the National Trust’s National Main Street Center.  The DWC was honored to be one of only 14 New Jersey Main Street towns which received the national accreditation by the National Trust in 2011. For the latest happenings, event information, and promotional offers from Westfield businesses, check out www.WestfieldToday.com

Enjoy these photos from the 10th Annual Downtown Westfield 5K & Pizza Extravaganza! 

 

http://downtownwestfield5k.shutterfly.com/

The 10th annual Downtown Westfield 5K & Pizza Extravaganza will be held on July 20, 2011 at 7pm. Please note that registration is now closed.

 

2,600 runners and over 6,000 spectators came last year for an evening of running, pizza, prizes, DJ, and live music. T-shirts will be distributed to the first 2,000 entrants, caps to the first 600. For additional information, visit www.practicehard.com

Westfield resident Mary Rivett will run the 10^th Annual Downtown Westfield 5k on July 20^th with the goal of winning her age group.  Rivett, 83 years old, took up running 1 year ago to “keep herself young”.  With help from her coach Michael Czech, she will tackle the 3.1 mile course with the hope of finishing in under 50 minutes in the heat and humidity of the July evening.  She has been training for several months to prepare and looks forward to a hot slice of pizza after her run.

 

“I’m not going to be the fastest one there, and I’ll probably be the oldest,” said Rivett.  “I only know that I won’t finish last because Mike (Czech) will let me go in front of him!”

 

Rivett also exercises each day at the Westfield YMCA at 220 Clark Street with her husband Ken, who has been recovering from a double knee replacement and exercises with the training staff there to improve his balance and strength. 

 

“The Rivetts are an amazing couple,” said Mike Czech, Mary’s running and strength coach.  “Both of them smile constantly, which is an uplifting experience.  Mary works so hard at improving and it’s a pleasure to help her achieve her goal to run a 5k.  She’s constantly asking me about running faster, so she keeps me working!”

 

Rivett’s future plans include training for longer races.

 

About TriState Multisport:

Tristate Multisport, a professional fitness and coaching company is based in Springfield, NJ and is owned by Michael Czech.  He is a Certified Running Coach and Personal Trainer as well as a road race, triathlon and marathon age group winner and trains hundreds of people each year to run stronger and safely, including youth athletes.  For more information, contact Michael via his website, www.tristatemultisport.com