The 14th annual Steeplechase Distance Run will be held Sunday, Sept. 25 at Amsterdam School in Hillsborough and as a virtual event to raise funds for the Steeplechase Cancer Center at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) Somerset, an RWJBarnabas Health facility.
Coordinated by Somerset Health Care Foundation, the event offers three ways to participate. Runners and walkers can join in-person on September 25 for 10K and 5K runs on a USA Track & Field certified course as well as a 2-mile walk and kids’ sprints. New for 2022, the 10K course has been named the 2022 10K USATF NJ Master Men and Women's Championship Race (700 points). Cash prizes will be awarded for the top three Men’s and Women’s masters finishers who are USATF members.
Participants can also support the event virtually by running, walking, swimming or biking on their own. And back by popular demand is the Steeplechase Distance Run 100-Mile Challenge where participants can run, walk or bike 100 miles through race day to receive a special commemorative medal. No matter the event chosen, each participant will receive a t-shirt and goodie bag.
Proceeds from the event will benefit educational and support programs and a patient assistance fund at the Steeplechase Cancer Center. The patient assistance fund is used for cancer patients’ supportive needs, including financial assistance for wigs and prostheses offered at the cancer center’s Sanofi US Wellness Boutique; groceries; medications; house cleaning services and other living expenses.
“We are so proud and appreciative of the Somerset County community for their continued support and joining together either in-person or virtually to help provide critical resources to our patients,” said Tony Cava, president and chief executive officer, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset. “Through their support and participation, we are able to use the funds raised to help lessen the financial burden of cancer patients and their families when they are most in need.”
Together with Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, the state’s only NCI-Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, the Steeplechase Cancer Center provides the latest cancer treatment options close to home. The three-story, 63,000-square-foot facility, which opened in 2007, houses radiation therapy services, a PET/CT, infusion therapy, breast imaging services, the hospital’s research team, oncologists’ and surgeons’ offices, nutritional counseling, a smoking cessation program, genetic testing services, patient navigator services, a patient resource library, the Sanofi US Wellness Boutique and complementary medicine services, such as yoga, meditation and wellness classes.
On race day, registration begins at 7:30 a.m. The 10K run starts at 8:45 a.m. followed by the 5K run and 2-Mile Walk at 9:30 a.m. Kids’ sprints are scheduled for 10:45 a.m. The event will be held rain or shine.
Registration for the Steeplechase Distance Run is $30 for adults before Sept. 20. After Sept. 20, registration is $33. Children age 15 and under may register for $15. Entry fee for the kids’ sprints is $10.
The 100 Mile Challenge entry fee is $45 and includes complimentary registration for the 10K or 5K runs or the 2-mile walk. Children age 15 and under participate in the 100 Mile Challenge for $30.
To register for the in-person or virtual event, go to www.SteeplechaseDistanceRun.com.