**FIRST
ANNUAL**
MEN'S HEALTH URBANATHLON™ & FESTIVAL
SETS RACE COURSE IN NYC
7
WORLD TRADE CENTER; INTREPID
SEA, AIR & SPACE MUSEUM;
CENTRAL
PARK; WEST SIDE BIKE PATH
AMONG URBAN “PLAYING FIELD”
--Online
Registration Begins at www.menshealthurbanathlon.com,
Sports
Center at Chelsea Piers Launches
Official Training Program--
*Event
to Benefit Challenged Athletes
Foundation & Shape
Up New York*
--NYC
Sports Commission, NYC Parks & Recreation,
Hudson
River Park Trust, Signed
on as Event Partners
New Balance
Signs on as Official Footwear
Sponsor
POWERade OPTION,
Official Beverage Sponsor--
(New York, NY – August
10, 2006) – A
52-flight stair climb to
the top (and back) of 7 World
Trade Center; marine hurdles
aboard the flight deck of
the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space
Museum; and a race through
Central Park are among the
elements that will comprise
the three legs of the Men's
Health Urbanathlon™ & Festival,
Sunday, October 1, in New
York City. Online registration
begins at www.menshealthurbanathlon.com.
Supported by the New York
City Sports Commission, New
York City Parks & Recreation
and the Hudson River Park
Trust, the first-of-its-kind
race is presented by the
all-new 2007 Dodge Nitro.
Official race “start” time
is 7:00 a.m. at Central Park.
The all-day festival at Hudson
River Park's Pier 54 (9:00 - 4:00
p.m.) is the “finish” for
the race. The official race
course is detailed below.
“We're expecting a capacity turnout,” said Jack Essig, VP/Publisher of Men's Health. “Thousands of people have already signed on for more information, and we're getting inquiries from all over the country and around the world, including the U.K., Japan, and Australia.”
A portion of the proceeds of the Men's Health Urbanathlon™ & Festival will be donated to the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF) and to Shape Up New York. CAF is a national charity that empowers physically challenged athletes worldwide by showing them what is possible and providing the funding needed to get them into the game. Shape Up New York is a New York City Parks & Recreation program dedicated to providing New Yorkers with accessible fitness-related activities.
“As a part of NYC's continued effort to encourage New Yorkers to lead healthy, active lifestyles, we are thrilled to partner with Men's Health to offer New York City residents and visitors an opportunity to utilize our parks and waterfronts for fitness activities,” said NYC Sports Commissioner Ken Podziba. “Exercise is a vital component of healthy living, and the Men's Health Urbanathlon™ will help highlight the many ways New Yorkers can take advantage of the city's resources for fitness and fun. Participants will have an opportunity to experience the high-paced atmosphere and energy that make the Big Apple one of the greatest cities in the world.”
“The Men's Health Urbanathlon™ is unlike any other race this City has seen," said Parks & Recreation Commissioner Adrian Benepe. "With a run through the park and along the riverfront, a rope wall on the pier, and a stair climb at a landmark building, the Urbanathlon not only gives participants the ultimate athletic challenge but also a true New York experience.”
Boston-based athletic footwear and apparel manufacturer, New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc., has signed on as the official footwear sponsor of the event. As a sponsor, New Balance will host an interactive booth at the race-day festival, featuring a full line of their premium cushioning, Abzorb® EX running and training shoes. New Balance will also outfit Men's Health UrbanathlonT & Festival event staff, offer merchandise giveaways, and select race “wave” winners will receive New Balance products as prizes.
“We are honored to be a part of this one-of-a-kind athletic event, which not only reflects our commitment to grassroots athletics, but also celebrates the spirit of competition and personal achievement,” says Kevin Milhomme, Senior Integrated Marketing Associate at New Balance. “Being an official sponsor of this great event is an exciting way for us to reach out to the fitness enthusiast consumer with our performance and fit messages and introduce our innovative footwear to more athletes.”
The Sports Center at Chelsea Piers, a Men's Health Urbanathlon™ partner, is offering the program's official training program, “Play.” Incorporating old-school training techniques with cutting-edge insights into the body, the program will feature games and outdoor activities, group and one-on-one competitions, obstacle courses, and full-body exercise routines. Go to www.chelseapiers.com/sc/mhu for full details.
Sponsor POWERade OPTION, the low-caloric sports drink, will host “Urban Fusion” hydration stations at race course transition areas as well as at the all-day festival at Hudson River Park's Pier 54. The festival will provide live music, health and wellness expos, interactive sports, New York City restaurant food tastings, and demonstrations by a range of vendors.
Men's Health Urbanathlon™ Race Course (Start Time: 7:00 a.m.)
Estimated Distance: The entire course will be approximately 9-10 miles.
Each relay leg approximately 3-4 miles each. Below is a brief description of the Men's Health UrbanathlonT race course, divided into three legs. Transition areas are noted for those participating in relays. Water stations and full medical support will be available throughout the course. Go to www.menshealthurbanathlon.com for more detailed information (course is subject to change):
- Race Start at Historic Central Park
- Run Along the Hudson River
- The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum Challenge
- Relay Transition Area 1: Along the Hudson River.
- POWERade OPTIONT Obstacle Course at Chelsea Piers
- Relay Transition Area 2: Located just before 7 World Trade Center.
- Stair Climb at 7 World Trade Center
- Rope Wall at Pier 54
ABOUT:
Aura360, a full-service
experiential marketing firm specializing in the
creation, management and production of emerging event
and media properties, will be executing the Men's Health Urbanathlontm & Festival.
Current properties include the Jeep World of Adventure
Sports on NBC, the Raid World Championships, Teton
Gravity Research, and SCORE Baja1000.
Dodge
With 1.4
million vehicles sold globally in 2005, Dodge is
the No. 5 nameplate in the U.S. automotive market.
Overall, Dodge has a 7 percent market share in the
United States. In the minivan market, Dodge has a
19 percent market share; in the truck market, 16 percent;
and 4 percent of the car market. This year, Dodge
Caliber paved the way for international expansion
of the brand. Hot on the heels of Caliber are the
all-new 2007 Dodge Nitro, Caliber SRT4 and a D-segment
vehicle.
New York City Department
of Parks & Recreation is the steward of
28,855 acres of land, which make up 14 percent of New
York City. We are New York City's principal provider
of athletic facilities; we operate more than 800 athletic
fields and nearly 1,000 playgrounds; we manage four
major stadiums, 550 tennis courts, 51 public pools,
34 recreation centers, 12 nature centers, 13 golf courses,
and 14 miles of beaches.
The New York City Sports
Commission ensures the continuation and growth of a healthy
environment for professional, amateur and scholastic
sports activities in New York City. In recent years,
the Sports Commission has played a role in attracting
or creating many new sporting events, including the
NFL Kickoff Live from Times Square, NASCAR NEXTEL
Cup SeriesT Champions Week,
the BMC Software NYC Cycling Championship, the NYC
Fiesta Cup, the NAUTICA NYC Triathlon Presented by
Toyota, Senior Men's Tennis Championship, Let Freedom
Run and The Wild Onion Urban
Adventure Race.
New Balance,
headquartered in Boston, MA, is a leading manufacturer
of technologically innovative width-sized performance
footwear and athletic apparel for women, men, and
children. The range of product categories includes
running, walking, training, basketball, tennis, cleated
and kids. New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc., employs
more than 2,800 people around the globe and in 2005
reported worldwide sales of $1.54 billion. For more
information, please visit www.newbalance.com.
POWERade
OPTION is a brand of Coca-Cola North America, a
unit of The Coca-Cola Company -- the world's largest
beverage company. Along with Coca-Cola, recognized
as the world's most valuable brand, the Company markets
four of the world's top five soft drink brands, including
Diet Coke, Fanta and Sprite, and a wide range of other
beverages, including diet and light soft drinks,
waters, juices and juice drinks, teas, coffees and
sports drinks. Through the world's largest beverage
distribution system, consumers in more than 200 countries
enjoy the Company's beverages at a rate exceeding
1 billion servings each day. For more information
about The Coca-Cola Company, please visit our website
at www.coca-colacompany.com
Men's
Health is the largest men's lifestyle magazine brand
in the world with 36 editions and a worldwide readership
of 18.5 million. Published 10 times a year in the U.S.
by Rodale, Men's Health speaks to every aspect of a
man's life, providing its readers with the latest information
on health, fitness, fashion, nutrition, relationships,
travel, gear and money. Men's Health was named to Adweek's "Hot
List" of top-ten magazines ('04, '05); Advertising
Age's "A-List" for general excellence ('03, '04); a
Capell's Circulation Report "Best Newsstand Performer
of the Decade" ('04) and top-ten "Best Performer in
Circulation" for the past three consecutive years;
as well as one of MIN magazine's "Most Notable Launches" of
the past 20 years. The magazine also won a National
Magazine Award in the personal service category ('04).
In addition, Rodale publishes Prevention, Women's
Health,
Runner's World, Best
Life, Bicycling, Backpacker, Mountain
Bike, and Organic Gardening, as well as nearly 100
new books a year. Recent New
York Times Bestsellers
include Al Gore's An Inconvenient
Truth; Martha Stewart's
The Martha Rules; Bill Maher's New
Rules: Polite Musings of a Timid Observer; The
Abs Diet; The South Beach
Diet; The South Beach Diet
Cookbook; Pete Rose: My
Prison Without Bars; and Dr. Shapiro's Picture
Perfect Weight Loss.
CONTACT:
Karen Mazzotta
631-549-1580
karen@mazzotta.com
Jon Hammond
212-573-0555
jon.hammond@rodale.com
Joanna Shapiro
Phone: 212.336.6879
joanna@chelseapiers.com
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