The Course

The Course is what The Classic 10K is all about. The route encompasses Frank Shorter's boyhood training loops, including Francher Davidge Park, and is literally a "Tour of Middletown" and its historic neighborhoods.

New for 2009, the start and the finish are centrally located at Middletown High School's brand new stadium and athletic fields.

Starting on Gardner Avenue, set your pace for a great race running flat followed by a slight uphill - downhill for 0.5 mile. The next 0.4 mile is slightly uphill followed by a 0.6 mile tour rolling through downtown Middletown. There is a steep 50 meter climb at 1.8 miles. The next mile goes down steadily, then up steadily.

The mile 3 and 5K marks are on a flat, which continues for 0.6 mile into the park and around Davidge Lake. The next half mile puts the "height" in Randall Heights from 3.2 to 3.7 miles, but the neighborhood spectators will cheer you on. What goes up, must come down; crest the hill, go 0.2 mile downhill, turn right onto Roosevelt Avenue and enter "The Slingshot" an abrupt 50 meter downhill.

From this point to the finish the pace picks up and the race really takes off, with a left-right-left around the ball fields onto Watkins Ave. Bang a hairpin right onto North, which brings you back to Wisner at mile 5. In familiar territory, now, crank it up along Wisner, then left onto Cherry, which feeds you onto the newly paved path into the new stadium and onto the track for your kick to the finish!