- The 2024 MARTINSVILLE MILE
- July 20 – 7 PM
- Dick & Willie Trail
The Martinsville Mile will return to the Dick & Willie Trail on July 20 at 7 p.m. The presenting sponsor is Lester Building Supply, and 2024 will mark the seventh consecutive year that Miles in Martinsville has conducted a one-mile race at various venues around the community.
The series began in 2018 as the Martinsville Speedway Mile when competitors raced on the track at Martinsville Speedway. Following two years at the speedway, the race moved to the Smith River Sports Complex as the Smith River Mile. The race was moved to uptown Martinsville in 2021 and 2022. The uptown competitions were presented as the consecutive UpTown Martinsville Mile and the Bee City UpTown Mile. Then, in 2023 the race was moved to a slightly downhill course on the Dick & Willie Trail, where fast finish times were enjoyed by runners of all levels.
This event is a salute to the historical allure of the one-mile run. Distance runners, young and old, are likely familiar with the endeavor to run a fast mile as they perhaps experienced their first race in the one mile run as part of a school track meet. And, of course, a majority of sports fans are aware of the early efforts of athletes to run a mile in less than four minutes. In fact, May 5 marked the 70th anniversary of Sir Roger Bannister achieving that goal in a time of 3 minutes and 59.4 seconds.
This Martinsville Mile will not be run on a standard 400-meter track but rather at a unique venue, a one-mile downhill section of the area’s iconic Dick & Willie Passage Trail. The race will start near the intersection of the Uptown Connection Trail and the Dick & Willie Trail and finish near the Liberty Street Trailhead.
All ages, speeds and experience are welcome. Two heats are planned. One for faster runners expecting to finish in seven minutes or faster. A second heat will include those expecting to run the course in over seven minutes plus walkers. The results from both heats will be combined to determine overall and age group winners.
An awards presentation and post-race gathering will take place at the Liberty Street Trailhead parking lot. Runners will enjoy snacks, beverages and awards ceremony following the race.
For more details and online registration, interested runners should visit the race website at: http://www.milesinmartinsville.com/races.cfm. Online registration deadline is midnight July 17. Online registration is strongly encouraged.
Paper registration forms are available at the above website link and at the front desk of the Martinsville-Henry County YMCA. Completed forms may be submitted at the YMCA. Late paper registration forms may be submitted at the YMCA on Friday July 19, noon – 6 p.m.; and on race day at the YMCA, 3– 5 p.m. There will be no registration or packet pick-up at race start or finish sites.
Miles in Martinsville is the running arm of the Martinsville-Henry County YMCA. The group conducts running events throughout the year. More information is available on the website at http://www.milesinmartinsville.com. Questions can be directed to race officials by email at braverunner67@gmail.com.
