This is not your ordinary torch run!
BOOTHBAY HARBOR, Maine—“Jammers and Joggers,” a land-and-sea race event, will kick off the 50th annual Windjammer Days Festival in Boothbay Harbor on June 25, and, in addition to being the first-of-its-kind torch run in the area, it will, indeed, be a family affair for both participants and eager spectators.
Aquilino Alamo, an affable and popular Boothbay Harbor physician for the past decade, or as he puts it, “a regular country doctor,” is a veteran marathoner with the dream of running a marathon in each state before he’s 50. (He’s 45 and up to 11 marathons, but says, good-naturedly, that he’s more than willing to extend his timeframe if pressed for time.). Alamo will start running from Rockport early on the morning of the 25th bearing the Windjammer Days signature torch. Simultaneously, experienced schooner captains Joe Tassi and Bob Tassi, identical twins and both schooner owners and charter operators who live and work in Camden, will set sail from Rockport’s harbor aboard Capt. Bob’s historic top-sail schooner Timberwind. Capt. Joe’s schooner, the Lazy Jack, with its lines taken from the Fredonia fishing schooners of the 1800s, will be waiting for him in Boothbay Harbor.
Alamo and the Tassi’s will both start their journeys from Rockport Marine Park, on Pascal Avenue, Rockport, ME at 7a.m. on June 25th. Alamo will start his run south down U.S. Route 1 and the Tassi brothers will travel down the rocky coast, planning to arrive in Boothbay Harbor at the same time as Alamo. By land, it’s slightly more than 41 miles—a daylong run; by sea, it’s about it’s about 45.5 nautical miles, depending on weather conditions and the route taken, Joe Tassi says. Dr. Alamo will be joined along his relay-race route by his three sons, Jude, 16, and Kyle and Karl, 15, all renowned schoolboy runners in the area. His wife, Charito, and daughter, Ariel, 6, plan to join him for the last half-mile to the finish line, along with the Alamo family’s pet, a 2-year-old Husky. They’ll meet up with the Tassi brothers to pass the torch at the Whale Park in Boothbay Harbor, and thus the celebration of windjammers coming into Boothbay Harbor begins.
“It’s for the community,” Alamo says of his motivation for participating in this special inaugural event. “I just want to get people to be active. If I can make an impact and get people to think about staying healthy and active, and combat in some way childhood obesity, that’s what I’m doing it for.” He also noted that he would like to promote Boothbay Harbor as a great place to stay, play and work.
Bob Tassi added, "We are thrilled to take part in this exciting event and appreciate the opportunity to help commemorate an important time in our history."
Jammers and Joggers will kick off Monday morning at 7:00 a.m. on June 25th at Marine Park, on Pascal Avenue in Rockport, when passengers will board the Schooner Timberwind and depart at 7:30, and with your help they will race Dr. Alamo, and his family from Rockport Harbor to Boothbay Harbor. Dr. Alamo and family (the joggers) by land, and the Schooner Timberwind, passengers, and the crew (the jammers) by sea. A home cooked hearty schooner breakfast and lunch will be served fresh and hot from the galley while racing, with a reception planned after anchoring in Boothbay Harbor once the winner is determined.
Come cheer on a veteran marathoner and the Schooner Timberwind http://schoonertimberwind.com/schooner-timberwind-special-events.html as they race down the coast of Maine by land and sea for nearly 50 miles to kick off the gorgeous ships making their way to Boothbay Harbor in the 94.9 WHOM sponsored Jammers vs. Joggers event. You can enter to win http://www.949whom.com/Article.asp?id=2454329&spid=21699 tickets courtesy of 94.9 WHOM or you can make a reservation http://schoonertimberwind.com/schooner-timberwind-reservations.html for $125.00 per person ... bring your own "personal beverages" everything else is provided and the chamber has arranged return transportation with Country Coach Charters http://www.countrycoachcharters.com/ back to Rockport Harbor for guests who may require the return transfer at $20 per person.
Windjammer Days is June 24- 27 with the schooners in Linekin Bay on the 26th and in the harbor on 27th. To learn more about Windjammer Days and to track updates, visit the Chamber's website at http://www.boothbayharbor.com or find us on Facebook.
Windjammer Days 2012 sponsors include “Pinnacle Vodka” White Rock Distilleries, Inc., WHOM 94.9, WMTW Channel 8, Rideout Marine, Downeast Energy, Pepsi Bottling Company, The First Federal Savings Bank, KeyBank, N.A., Spruce Point Inn, O'Donnell, Lee, McCowan & Phillips, LLC, Bath Savings Institution, Federal Distributors, Shipyard Brewing Company, The First, N.A, Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club, Fisherman’s Wharf Inn, Marshall Tent & Event Rental, Boothbay Region Land Trust, Flagship Motor Inn, Cabbage Island Clambakes, McSeagulls Restaurant, The World is Mine Oyster, Lafayette Hotels, J. Edward Knight Insurance, Hannaford, Carousel Marina, Brown’s Wharf Inn & Restaurant, Lincoln Arts Festival Chorus, Harbor Children’s Center, Edgecomb Boat Works, Inc., Southport Island Marine, LLC, Maine State Aquarium, Blake Builders, Pottle Realty Group, Experience Maritime Maine, Steve & Ann Demeranville, Margaret Jones Perritt, Lyn & George Doran, Dale & Richard McCoy, George McAvoy, Brooke Hubner, Boothbay Region Y-Arts Chorus, Boothbay Playhouse, Boothbay Country Club, Hodgdon Island Inn, Boothbay Harbor Embroidery, Boothbay Fire Department, U.S Coast Guard, Boothbay Region Historical Society, and the Boothbay Register.
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