Teams from the Cambridge Public Library, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge Savings Bank, Hotel Veritas, The Charles Hotel, Passim Cultural Center, Harvard on the Move, and several local colleges and high schools will be vying for the team title alongside multiple entries from the Cambridge Running Club and Somerville Road Runners. Many local businesses are using the race as a way to promote wellness initiatives among employees.
This year’s major nonprofit beneficiary is Title IX Girls, a Cambridge-based program that encourages young girls to find emotional and physical balance through running. The race will also welcome coaches and residents from Back on My Feet, a local nonprofit that fosters self-sufficiency and confidence in homeless men and women through a daily running routine.
The race will also showcase the talents and wares of local businesses. Handmade laurel wreaths crafted by Petali Florist of Harvard Square will be presented to the male and female winners. Refreshments include breads and cookies from Nashoba Brook Bakery of Concord, MA, Spindrift Soda from Charlestown, MA, beverages from Harpoon Brewery (Boston, MA), Cape Ann Brewery (Gloucester, MA), and Bantam Cider (Cambridge, MA), all natural snack bars from That’s It Fruit Bars, and bananas and watermelon from A. Russo’s and Sons of
Watertown, MA. The race name pays homage to the course’s historic grounding (Brattle Street was referred to as Tory Row in the 1770s) as well as the local restaurant that sponsors and manages the event. The runners will loop around Longfellow Park, pass a “cheer zone” at the Hooper Lee Nichols House (the second-oldest house in Cambridge and home to the Cambridge Historical Society), be greeted by the firefighters of Engine 9 at the water stop on Lexington Avenue, and return to a post-race party under a tent in Harvard Square.