Manchester Road Race Again Honoring Vets And Armed Forces Members
MANCHESTER, CT — The Manchester Road Race Committee will again pay homage to "the men and women who defend America" when the annual Thanksgiving Day run takes place on Thanksgiving morning.
The committee announced Monday that it is collaborating with local veterans organizations to stage its seventh "Veterans Row tribute on the morning of the race. The event is open to all veterans and active duty, National Guard and Reserve military personnel who have registered to run in this year's road race.
The veterans and service members will be honored at a pre-race reception scheduled for 8:15 to 9:30 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day at the Vietnam War Memorial, which is located near the race course at the corner of Main and East Center streets in Manchester. They will receive camo hats with the MRR logo and commemorative pins.
Light refreshments will be served.
During the race, veterans and members of the Armed Forces will also be saluted and cheered as they pass by a "Path of Honor" on Main Street that will be lined with the flags of all six military branches.
"The Manchester Road Race has a long and proud connection to the local veterans' community, and we are very pleased to co-sponsor Veterans Row again this Thanksgiving," said Dr. Tris Carta, President of the Manchester Road Race Committee.
Carta said that that three local World War II veterans Earl Yost, Charlie Robbins and Fran Leary-helped revive the road race in 1945, following a 10-year hiatus. The trio also convinced the Manchester Army & Navy Club to co-sponsor the event with the town recreation department.
Additionally, seventeen MRR champions, who won the road race a combined 26 times, were veterans, Carta said. Among them were Olympians Johnny Kelley and Joe McCluskey, who both won the race multiple times.
The Manchester Veterans Advisory Committee, American Legion Post 113 of South Windsor, American Legion Post 102 of Manchester, Veterans of Foreign Wars Anderson-Shea Post 2046 of Manchester, Charles Varca Chapter 17 Disabled American Veterans, the Army & Navy Club and the Manchester Elks Lodge 1893 are co-hosting the event with the road race committee.
The presenting sponsor of the MRR Veterans' Row is Pratt & Whitney. Additional financial support is provided by Pursuit Aerospace, Horst Engineering, Manchester Elks Lodge 1893, V.F.W Anderson-Shea Post 2046, Disabled American Veterans Department of Connecticut, Goodwin University, Charles Varca Chapter 17 Disabled American Veterans, GJ Agency (GEICO) and the Manchester Army & Navy Club.
The 88th Manchester Road Race, one of the nation's largest and most popular Turkey Day races, will be held at 10 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day (November 28, 2024). The race is run on a loop course through Manchester's central streets that starts and finishes on Main Street, in front of St. James Church.
Online registration, and more details about the road race and its Veterans Row tribute, are available at www.manchesterroadrace.com .
