YMCA's Marathon Team Hits the Pavement This Weekend

The YMCA Boston Marathon team’s runners will hit the roads for the first time since our stream of blizzards hit the region to prepare for the big race on April 20.

The team runs 19 miles starting at the Greater Boston Charles River Y in Needham and then winding through Needham, Dover, Newton and Westwood on Saturday, March 14, with a 9 a.m. start time and a projected finish time of 12:45 p.m.

YMCA of Greater Boston teammates Joanna Murphy, who is 30, and Mohaan Raaj, 43, lace up alongside several staff members who join them on the road for training support. Cheerleaders will also dot the route, handing out water.

“The runners have had to change their outdoor routines after facing numerous falls on the ice and experiencing shin splits due to the amount of long distance running endured on the treadmill (or ‘dreadmill’ as many of them call it),” said the release.

Funds raised by the team support the Y’s programs. This past year, the YMCA of Greater Boston handed out more than 11,000 free three-month memberships to teens at the YMCA of Greater Boston’s 13 branches with unlimited access. Most (almost all) teen programs that the YMCA offers are free and open to the community. Programs like Safe Dating and Cyber Bulling have also become staples at the Y, giving more than 1,000 teens the skills they need to make proper decisions. To learn more about Y marathon runners and how to support their fundraising efforts for the Y, go here.