Down and dirty at the YMCA fall festival
Siblings Peyton and Hunter Amaral–nine and six respectively–emerged from the dust and slop-filled fields caked in mud. After climbing the last hill of the .5-mile Mud Run at the Dartmouth YMCA, District No. 1 firefighters hosed them off, leaving them wet, but mostly clean.
The run — set up on the Sharing the Harvest Community Farm — is now the most popular event at the Y’s annual Fall Family Festival on September 17, said Dartmouth YMCA Director Mike Mahoney. The Spartan-style race contains more than 20 obstacles, including a water slide, wall climbing, balancing boards, and, of course, mud.
"I have to say the mud was my favorite part,” Peyton said. “I was rubbing it all over me!”
The festival — doubling as a fundraiser and community event — featured a number of other attractions, including hay rides, archery, carnival games, a rock climbing wall, and a 5K road race.
Mahoney said that the oldest part of the tradition is the road races, which are usually held in the early morning before the festival kicks off. They date back to at least 2001 when the YMCA property on Gulf Road used to be a children’s museum, he said. The YMCA continued the tradition, and gradually added onto it. The festival component was added seven years ago, and the mud run was added three years ago.
“The mud run has eclipsed every other event at the festival,” Mahoney said. “Kids and adults really like it. It’s also a great use of our field space.”
Mahoney estimated that by the end of the day, over 1,000 people would have visited the festival. He added that all of the proceeds from the fundraiser go to supporting the YMCA’s Annual Campaign, which funds hunger relief programs including the YMCA’s community farm, the Livestrong Foundation to support cancer survivors, and a scholarship program that helps needy families afford YMCA programming.
The annual 5K road race began at 9 a.m., with Sal Corrao narrowly finishing in first place.
“Jen was my biggest challenge,” Corrao said after crossing the finish line, noting that he and Jennifer Almeida were neck-and-neck as they approached the finish line.
The annual 10K road race was cancelled this year due to the closure of the Padanaram Causeway.
