Men’s Health Magazine Urbanathlon 2008
June 7, 2008 by Scott Wharton
Filed under Men's Health
The Men’s Health Urbanathlon is coming in September for NYC and October for Chicago. If you haven’t been training by now then perhaps you should start training now for next years.
MEN’S HEALTH URBANATHLON & FESTIVAL RETURNS TO NEW YORK AND CHICAGO THIS FALL
- Dodge Returns as Presenting Sponsor for Third Year -
- Crunch Creates Urbanathlon Training Class Nationwide -
- Online Registration Opens June 1 at www.MensHealthUrbanathlon.com
New York, NY , June 1 – Men’s Health will host its annual signature event, the Men’s Health Urbanathlon and Festival, on Saturday, Sept. 27 in New York , and Saturday, Oct. 18 in Chicago . The event, now in its third year, will open online registration on June 1 at www.MensHealthUrbanathlon.com. Both races are expected to sell out.
The Urbanathlon event combines traditional road race elements with obstacle course components against the backdrop of iconic city landmarks, taking on the local flavor of each host city. The event includes a day-long festival that features live entertainment, health and wellness expos, interactive sports and concessions, as well as samplings and demonstrations by a range of vendors.
Race highlights in New York City include a 52-story stair climb at 7 World Trade and a taxi cab hurdle at Battery Park. In Chicago , racers will weave up and down the bleachers at Soldier Field and crawl through culverts at Navy Pier.
The Dodge brand, featuring the all-new 2009 Dodge Ram 1500, will serve as the presenting sponsor for the 2008 event.
“The Urbanathlon series has grown exponentially in the past three years since its debut in New York ,” said Jack Essig, VP/Publisher of Men’s Health. “In addition to Chicago , the brand has now expanded into an international presence with race events in the UK and Mexico . We’re pleased that the popularity of this event with both consumers and advertisers has allowed us to grow the multiplatform franchise into a global integrated marketing event.”
“The Urbanathlon is the ultimate endurance challenge that truly showcases the skills of each competitor, a perfect alignment with the improved capability and performance of the all-new 2009 Dodge Ram,” said Mark Spencer, Senior Manager – Dodge Communications. “This year’s Urbanathlon coincides with the launch of the new Ram, allowing us to connect with our target consumers and engage them at the grass-roots level participating in activities that they are passionate about.”
Crunch, the Official Gym Partner for the Urbanathlon series, has also extended its partnership with the event and has created the Official Urbanathlon Training Program Powered by Crunch, to be offered in Crunch fitness facilities nationwide. The custom-branded “Urbanathlete” class will be offered to registered racers in the weeks prior to race days. The collaboration with Men’s Health also includes a free month-membership and three complimentary personal training sessions.
Again this year, the Challenged Athletes Foundation will be a beneficiary of the race. Participants can sign up for the Men’s Health Mission to raise funds for CAF at menshealthurbanathlon.com.
Aura360 will again provide professional event execution for the Urbanathlon events in both New York and Chicago .
About Men’s Health (www.menshealth.com)
