Gabe Zimmerman Triple Crown
Friday, August 30, 2013 /
Description
Thank you to all who are participating in the 2013 Gabe Zimmerman Triple Crown! If you ran the TMC Meet Me Downtown Night Run but did NOT pick up your shirt and Ben’s Bells Kindness Coin, you can pick up your shirts and coins at The Running Shop, 3055 North Campbell during regular business hours. Our friends at The Running Shop have a list of everyone who has signed up, so they’ll check you off and give you your awards.
If you want to register for the 2013 Gabe Zimmerman Triple Crown, you still can. Follow the link to the active.com online registration, or fill in the hard-copy form. Please note: if you ran the TMC Meet Me Downtown, you will be eligible for the full set of Ben’s Bells commemorative awards.
Registration for the 2013 Triple Crown is now on hold until after the TMC Meet Me Downtown Night Run. We will open the summer registration period shortly. Thanks!
—-
We at the Southern Arizona Roadrunners are honored to once again host the Gabe Zimmerman Triple Crown.
Gabe lost his life in the January 2011 shooting here in Tucson, but his legacy lives on. From the Gabe Zimmerman Davison Canyon Trailhead to the Gabe Zimmerman Meeting Room at the U.S. Capital, Gabe’s presence will forever be a part of our community. We are grateful to Ross Zimmerman and Julia Strange at Tucson Medical Center for developing the concept of the Gabe Zimmerman Triple Crown – and we’re thankful to the Arizona Daily Star and Caliente for helping implement it. Gabe’s whole family has been devoted to fitness, running, and the Arizona outdoors – we are honored to be able to celebrate the spirit of Gabe and highlight the possibilities for Tucson through the Gabe Zimmerman Triple Crown.
Each year, $10 from each Triple Crown entry will be donated to Gabe’s favorite non-profit, Child and Family Resources. Additional Tucson-based organizations will receive a portion of the proceeds from the individual events.
The three races of the Triple Crown include:
June 1, 2013 TMC Meet Me Downtown 5k Night Run/Walk—see here for updates on the Night Run!
September 2, 2013 TMC Saguaro National Park Labor Day 8-Miler & 5k
October 20, 2013 TMC Get Moving Tucson Half-Marathon Event featuring TMC A-Mountain Half-Marathon, Tucson Lifestyle 5k, and Cox Charities 1-mile
To donate directly to Child and Family Resources, click here. To donate directly to the Gabe Zimmerman Memorial Fund established by Child and Family Resources, click here to go to their PayPal site.
A Word From Ross Zimmerman on the 2011 Triple Crown: I hope everyone enjoyed the GMT Half Marathon and 5K on Sunday Oct. 9th. Kelly O’Brien, Gabe Zimmerman’s fiancee, and I ran the half marathon together. We liked the course a lot and decided Gabe would have liked it, too. The course passed several places that held memories of Gabe for both of us. That added to the day. Our family and friends had very good experiences as well. The run and the day were a fitting celebration of the life of Gabe Zimmerman and the others dear to us we’ve lost this year. This was a proactive, positive way to promote personal and societal physical and mental health. Gabe the social worker would have enthusiastically approved. Randy Accetta, Julia Strange, and the myriad of folks who helped make this event and the previous two events in the Gabe Z Triple Crown successes have my appreciation and thanks. We hope this series will continue.
One of the things I’ve learned since Gabe’s passing is how many other people I know and have met who have been touched by the loss of loved ones before their times. Unfortunately, far too many suffer or perish due to the diseases of overweight, inactivity, and substance abuse, not violence or accident. There are some things we can do to reduce the risks of violence or accident. Much more can be accomplished, by taking care of your loved ones and yourself with a positive, active, healthy life. That gives you and them better lives and better relationships. On our way home, Kelly reminded me of a bike ride she, Gabe, and I did together. Up a steep hill, he raced me to the point of stomach upset (and beyond…), all in good fun. Gabe and I had many, many active adventures together. I will treasure those until the end of my life, and that’s a comfort. Go have adventures with your loved ones as well.
As we all know, running shows us the power within ourselves. If we can get around the Saguaro loop, the ups and downs of daily life are certainly manageable. If we can climb A-Mountain, we can rise to our other challenges. Our goal is to motivate the community to aspire to individual and collective greatness – to work alone and work with others towards those goals we find valuable. To celebrate living, community, and good will. To live with love, to live with passion to chase dreams.
If you have any questions about the Triple Crown, please contact event organizer Randy Accetta at 991-0733 or at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Date and Time
* June 1, 2013 TMC Meet Me Downtown 5k Night Run/Walk
* September 2, 2013 TMC Saguaro National Park Labor Day 8-Miler & 5k
* October 20, 2013, TMC Get Moving Tucson Half-Marathon Event featuring A-Mountain Half-Marathon, Tucson Lifestyle 5k, and Cox Charities 1-mile
Race Distances and Courses
There are three different events. Each event has a 3.1 mile option—you can run or walk. Strollers and children are welcome in all the 5k’s.
You can also enjoy the challenge of the Saguaro East 8-mile loop amongst the beautiful hills of the Rincon Mountains, then test yourself and do the 13.1 mile Get Moving Tucson Half-Marathon featuring A-Mountain.
Run the city and run the desert – or walk and have a great time!
Don’t want to run or walk? You can still complete the award by volunteering at the races.
Location
TMC Meet Me Downtown is staged in the heart of Downtown Tucson, beginning and ending at La Placita Village at Church and Broadway.
TMC Saguaro National Park Labor Day 8-miler and 5k is held in the beautiful Saguaro National Park East, in the base of the Rincon Mountains.
TMC Get Moving Tucson Half-Marathon, 5k and 1-miler is held in Downtown Tucson, too—with routes that include A-Mountain, the Santa Cruz Riverpath, and the UA-area.
Race Fees
2013 Pricing
$66 through January 15, 2013, $75 through April 1, 2013 and $99 until May 20, 2013.
Everyone who registers for the Triple Crown receives a new Run Tucson technical shirt; everyone who completes the Triple Crown will receive a special award.
No refunds: Please note that following industry standard there are no race refunds. Of course, participants may still receive their t-shirt at packet pick-up and medals at race site. The Gabe Zimmerman Triple Crown completion prize can also be obtained by volunteering.
Registration
- Print Registration Form and mail it in. Registration by mail must be postmarked by Friday, May 24, 2013.
- Register online with a credit card at active.com.
- Your triple crown entry registers you for each race. Please see the SAR website for packet pick-up information on each of the three races.
A Word from Ross on the 2012 Gabe Zimmerman Triple Crown
By Ross Zimmerman
Gabriel Zimmerman was the Outreach Director for Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Gabe lost his life rushing to help during the horrible shooting of January 8th. Both Gabe and Gabrielle have been strong supporters of health and physical fitness in our great state. We invite you to celebrate Gabe’s love of running and fitness. This is the Gabe Z Triple Crown’s second year. It was a great success in 2011, and we want to continue that.
Running was in Gabe’s blood. His mother, Emily Nottingham, was a founding member of the Tucson Sun Chaser’s women’s running club and is currently President of the Arizona Trail Association.
Gabe’s stepmother, Pam Golden, has held the Master’s women’s course record for the Saguaro National Park 8-mile loop, one of the runs in the Triple Crown. And I am a passionate trail runner and ultramarathoner who has co-administered the Tucson Trail Run Series for 17 years.
But Gabe’s love of running didn’t stop with us: his fiancée, Kelly O’Brien, is a marathon runner who paced Gabe in his first marathon, the 2010 San Diego Rock and Roll. Gabe was also devoted to overall health and fitness: Gabe’s UHS/Rincon High School soccer teams won two state titles, Gabe twice ran the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim, he completed the El Tour de Tucson, and has ridden with me and his brother, Ben, the famous Slick Rock Bike Trail and many other routes in Moab and Tucson.
Gabe lived for several years in downtown Tucson. He ran the streets. He ran A-Mountain and Tumamoc Hill. The downtown 5K and Half Marathon will retrace his steps. His mother, stepmother, and I have all competed in Saguaro Loop. Our family and Kelly will be running or walking in his honor in this year’s Triple Crown.
Involved in many social service organizations, Gabriel was on the board of Child and Family Resources, a Tucson-based non-profit that provides strategic help to parents, children, and families all across Arizona. A portion of your entry fee goes to support CFR.
We invite you to donate in his memory as well.
Race Hotels
We have a few host hotels, perfect for any budget and any vacation goal!
1) Convenient to I-10: The Hotel Tucson City Center is offering the rate of $59. Just mention that you’re with the Southern Arizona Roadrunners
Hotel Tucson City Center , an InnSuites Boutique Collection Hotel
475 N. Granada Ave. Call 520-622-3000 ext. 808
2) Want an upscale resort? Check out our friends at the JW Marriott Starr Pass for the special resort rate of $129 a night; the Marriott Starr Pass is a few miles from Downtown in the midst of the Tucson Mountains. Click here.
3) Want a romantic bed and breakfast steps from the starting line? Check out the Royal Elizabeth and tell ‘em you’re with the race. Click here.
Awards
All registrants for the Triple Crown will receive a 2013 RUN TUCSON technical t-shirt, designed by Leslie Jordan Designs. Everyone who finishes all three events will receive a special award. Thank you to everyone who completed the 2012 Gabe Zimmerman Triple Crown! If you have not picked up your finisher’s medal for completing all three events, you can pick it up at The Running Shop, 3055 North Campbell Avenue.
Beneficiaries
Child and Family Resources is the primary beneficiary of the Triple Crown, while each race has a number of local beneficiaries as well, including the following:
Children’s Museum of Tucson
Tucson Museum of Art
Cox Charities
Greater Tucson Leadership
Cinema La Placita
Educational Enrichment Foundation
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tucson
Friends of Saguaro National Park
Local high school track and cross country programs: Sahuaro High School, St. Augustine, City High School, and more
Southern Arizona Roadrunners and the Children’s Fitness Fund
Community Partners
Thanks to the Arizona Daily Star and Caliente for coming up with the idea of the Triple Crown. Thanks to Tucson Medical Center for bringing the idea of the Gabe Zimmerman Triple Crown.
Race Weather
Results
Contact
- Contact the Southern Arizona Roadrunners Hotline at (520) 326-9383 for more information.
- Race Director Randy Accetta: Call 520-991-0733 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).