Photo: Racing with dogs.
Soon it will be the humans doing the chasing.
The general manager of Crate Escape came before the Belmont Board of Selectmen Monday, July 25, to seek a tentative OK for a proposed 5K road race in October that will be for the dogs.
General Manager Nikki Condon said the idea of the doggie daycare business at 30 Brighton St. sponsoring a fundraiser to assist in financing cures for canine cancers came to the facility’s owner, Bradley Hastings after he lost his dog to the disease two years ago.
Working with RaceWire, a Braintree-based consulting firm, the business is looking at the weekend of Oct. 22 with a hope of having 250 people and for many, their dogs, attend and donate. Condon said Belmont Police had given a tentative OK so she could show her plans to the Selectmen.
While the board was favorable deposed to the race, the members were concerned the proposed route layout – which would start at the facility and travel north of the commuter rail tracks – included some heavy residential streets such as Broad and Chilton streets in Precinct 8.
“These are busy, populous roads” that would be impacted on a Sunday run, noted Mark Paolillo, the board’s chair.
Condon, who has been the manager for eight years, said she would return to the police for further consultation and work with Town Hall to develop a 3.1-mile course that would not severely impact the surrounding neighborhoods.
Established in 2004, Crate Escape provides daycare, overnight boarding, van service, grooming, and training in Belmont as well as Cambridge and Charlestown.
I think it’s a great idea! Why not have it around the perimeter of Clay Pit Pond, continuing down and around the high school playing fields though? Lots of open space for pre- and post-race, softer surfaces (easy on both puppy paws and owners knees), no traffic, fairly enclosed, easy cleanup of the inevitable accidents – and just three laps or so would cover the 5K. It’s even near to Crate Escape – lots,of off-street parking for a weekend, morning event.