Crabtree race organizers run with 'Ugly Christmas Sweater' theme

Things are expected to get ugly Dec. 12 in the village of Crabtree.

But that’s just fine with Julie Watkins and Kathy Kuhns. They’re organizing the second annual St. Bartholomew Church Ugly Christmas Sweater 5K and 2-Mile Walk for 11 a.m. that day.

About 150 participants came from as far away as West Virginia for last year’s inaugural run on a section of Cemetery Road in Unity . According to Watkins, this year’s event is on track to attract even more people, with social distancing expected for those who show up in person and a new virtual option for those who would rather run or walk on their own during the covid-19 pandemic.

“If we get a lot more people (in person), we’ll have to do scattered start times,” said Watkins, who lives in Crabtree. She said participants will be asked to wear face masks until the run starts and immediately after they finish the course.

Though it’s not required of participants, Watkins said, “We encourage any kind of ugly sweater attire. Last year, some people came in full outfits.

“We had it all last year,” including a runner in a tutu and another whose well-worn sweater depicted llamas and was judged the ugliest among the entrants.

“It was a lot of fun to judge that,” said Kuhns, who grew up in Crabtree and now lives in Hempfield. One of her family members is expected to complete this year’s event in a Santa outfit, she said.

Social distancing will be practiced during an awards ceremony at the end of the run. Gift cards and an ornament will be the prize for outfits deemed ugliest, funniest, most festive and most creative.

Medals will be presented to top finishers in five age groups. The fastest runners overall and those in a new team category will earn trophies.

A luncheon followed last year’s race. This time, as a pandemic precaution, participants will receive grab-and-go snacks. Participants also will get a long-sleeve event shirt with an ugly sweater design.

Proceeds from the event benefit the Crabtree church’s annual Our Lady of Mount Carmel Festival and associated fireworks display.

A 5K race that had been part of that summer festival was shifted to December and evolved into the ugly sweater run.

“It was a logistical issue,” said Kuhns. “With such a big event and an aging population in our church, it was becoming increasingly difficult to have numerous events on that weekend.”

“We decided to put a different spin on it,” she said of the rescheduled race. “It is definitely more than a run. We wanted it to be more of a community event.”

Participants can register by visiting runsignup.com and searching for the race by name. The $30 fee will increase to $35 after 11:59 p.m. Saturday.

Registration forms also will be available at the church.

To accommodate the event, the township supervisors agreed to close the portion of Cemetery Road between Route 119 and Luxor Road, from 10:50 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Dec. 12.