Paige's Butterfly Run

Indeed, the move downtown last year
attracted 484 runners, a 21 percent increase from 2007; overall
participation numbered 826. Hoping to add to that this year, Arnold is
introducing a Centipede Division to the 5K race. “That will comprise
five linked-together runners, and the way you link is up to you,” he
says. “Whichever member crosses the finish line first, that’s the
finishing time. The winning team will take home a trophy with their
names on it that they can keep until next year. We’ll add to it every
year; kind of like the Stanley Cup.”

The Butterfly Run also takes athletes
through parts of the city that they likely have never traversed. After
proceeding west on Erie Boulevard from Clinton Square, the course veers
into the Park Avenue neighborhood, alongside Leavenworth Park, before
heading north on Van Rensselaer Street and spending a little time on
the Onondaga Creek Walk. Runners and walkers return to Clinton Square
via the southern side of Leavenworth Park. Three-kilometer participants
don’t head toward the Creek Walk, instead spending most of their time
out and back alongside Leavenworth Park, which many confuse for a
traffic median.

Participants can expect a well-organized race. Since the
race is family-oriented, the 40-foot Caterpillar Crawl welcomes the
youngest pedestrians to “race” and there are plenty of kid-friendly
activities—an inflatable playhouse, face-painting and crafts—while mom
or dad hit the course. 

While Arnold wants folks to have fun,
he wants them also to be mindful of the reason for Paige’s Butterfly
Run. Last year, he was able to donate $140,000 to benefit the Center
for Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders at the Golisano Children’s
Hospital and a scholarship at Palmer Elementary School where Paige had
been a student. Participants are encouraged to raise funds for those
entities. 

“I try not to set the goals for each
race from a dollar standpoint,” Arnold notes. “I have incredibly strong
sponsors who underwrite the cost of the event so we can put on the best
race that we can. With their support I can concentrate on making the
experience as good as we can for the participants. The more we raise,
the more we can give back to the community.”