Young people prepare to participate in last year’s Tiny Tot Trot at the Ogden Newsletters Wellness Weekend hosted by WVU Medicine. This year’s Tot Trot and Ogden Fun Run are sponsored by WVU Medicine Children’s. (file photo)
WHEELING — There’s no point in waiting when it comes to building a healthy lifestyle. The younger you are when you start exercising and taking care of your health, the better.
The Ogden Newsletter Wellness Weekend, hosted by WVU Medicine, offers that opportunity to the area’s youngest runners, hosting two events where kids get a chance to stretch their legs and get moving. The weekend will include the Ogden Fun Run, hosted by WVU Medicine Children’s, and the Tiny Tot Trot, also hosted by WVU Medicine Children’s. Both races will be held on Saturday, May 25th, with the Fun Run starting at 8:30am and the Tot Trot starting at 10:30am.
Although neither is a competition, children can enjoy exercising.
“We are thrilled to have such a fun, family-friendly activity at the beautiful Heritage Port in downtown Wheeling,” said Jennifer Compston-Struff, Times Leader Editor-in-Chief and Children’s Races Coordinator. “We’re thrilled to be able to welcome back children from near and far to help them.” .
“The Ogden Fun Run and Tiny Tot Trot are both sponsored by WVU Medicine Children’s and are elements of the Ogden Newsletter Wellness Weekend, sponsored by WVU Medicine, and are truly for all ages. It has become an event.”
The Ogden Fun Run, sponsored by WVU Medicine Children’s, is open to children 12 and under. The $20 entry fee includes a race T-shirt, and participants who pre-register are guaranteed a T-shirt. Parents are encouraged to run with their children for free. She can also pay $15 if she wants a T-shirt. T-shirt sizes and quantities are limited at the event.
According to the race website, the one-mile run begins at the 14th Street start/finish line and heads up 14th Avenue to Eoff Street. The course will take you up 14th Street to Eoff Street, where you will turn left and continue north on Eoff Street and west on 11th Street.
Runners then descend the hill next to the Wheeling YWCA, cross Chaplin Street to Market Street, turn right and head north to 10th Street, then left at 10th to Main Street, then left Go south on Main Street. The course then takes him to 11th Street, Elephant Bobo, a right turn at Heritage Port Gateway Park, and a left onto Water Street. The course follows Water Street for 300 yards.
Sponsored by WVU Medicine, the Tiny Tot Trot is a short 100-yard excursion along Water Street near Heritage Port and is the smallest leg of the weekend. First his 4-year-old and her 5-year-old kids will be in the race, then he’ll have kids under 3 in the race. $15 admission includes a T-shirt.
“In my opinion, the Tiny Tot Trot is the cutest breed in America,” Compston-Struff said. “We encourage all families and spectators to come out and support the children.”
Registration and packet pick-up is from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. Saturday, May 25th. All participants will receive a finisher’s ribbon.
New to this year’s race will be Jill Spangler, director of clinical nutrition at WVU Medicine Wheeling Hospital and WVU Reynolds Memorial Hospital, who will lead the toddlers through stretching and warm-up exercises before each heat of the Tiny Tot Trot. Instruct. This will help make sure your kids are ready to run and start teaching them the basics of a healthy lifestyle, including proper preparation for intense exercise.
Other highlights this year include a Pittsburgh Pirates Fan Zone, balloon artist Jennifer Mulstaley, supervised games on the lawn, and healthy drinks and snacks provided by Sam’s Club of St. Clairsville.
Other local businesses offering assistance include Unified Bank, McDonald’s, and the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium.
“Ogden Wellness Weekend presented by WVU Medicine is a fun event for the whole family, and these two races prove that,” said Perry Nardo, general manager of the Intelligencer and Wheeling News Register. said. “The Ogden Fun Run sponsored by WVU Medicine Children and the Tiny Tot Trot sponsored by WVU Medicine Children allow our youngest to step up from being a spectator to an active participant. They learn the importance of physical fitness. We will learn and have fun in the process.”
To register, visit ogdenwellnessweekend.com.
