Located in the picturesque Strathmore neighborhood, the Parks Run is part of Syracuse’s Syrathon series and run by the Greater Strathmore Neighborhood Association. As with most local races, portions of the race proceeds go to local charities.
Hiawatha Lake, a gem of the park, afforded us a scenic backdrop as we warmed up, with a fair number of us venturing into the gazebo to take in the view and cool off before the race began in earnest.
The race began on Roberts Avenue before quickly turning into the park, where we scaled a small hill, passed the Mountain Goat statue—portions of that race’s course overlap the Parks Run, before descending back to Roberts Avenue.
The first of the main claims, a moderately steep quarter-miler, awaited us on South Geddes street. This brought us to a gravel path along the Woodland Reservoir and past the prominent water tower on the hill to the left.
The next climb involved that same hill; it was mercifully short, but with grades approaching 12%, quite steep. A water station awaited runners at the base of the climb, music played in the background, and a local with a loudspeaker shouted much needed encouragement as we labored up the hill in the heat.
One more climb awaited us on Robineau Road before we filtered back to the finish line in the park and a good assortment of post-race food.
I finished with a time of 37:54, which put me a little shy of the top third of the finishers. Given the heat and the difficulty of the course, I was pleased with the finish; the sharp kick up to the water tower was a nasty surprise, but the rolling course made me appreciate the diversity of venues we’re blessed with in the area.
Location: Onondaga Park
Cost: $30
Swag: shirt, post race food
Events: 4 Mile Race, Kid’s run
Field: 216
Result: 78/216@37:54; 9:29; 9/21
