Contact:
Dan Weckerly
Communications Manager
Valley Forge Tourism & Convention Board
610. 834.7990 (office); 610.574.1605 (cell)
KING OF PRUSSIA, PA – The twelfth edition of the Valley Forge Revolutionary 5-Mile Run® had 1,500 participants who assembled at Valley Forge National Historical Park in the early morning hours of April 23.
It was the biggest turnout for the fundraising event – organized by the Valley Forge Tourism & Convention Board (VFTCB) – in the history of the race.
All proceeds are donated to enhance the overall park experience for the 2.2 million tourists worldwide who visit annually. The VFTCB expects this year’s record participation to translate into yet another record donation, topping 2016’s $50,000. Over the 12 years of the race, the VFTCB’s Rev Run has sent over a quarter million dollars to Valley Forge.
Runners, walkers and kids were drawn to the 2017 race by the spirit of competition, the desire to support one of the most iconic landscapes in the state and to enjoy the unexpectedly beautiful weather.
Even runner Adam Joseph, 6ABC meteorologist, called the day “perfect.” He commented that the event benefitted from a break in dreary showers the day prior and forecast for the day following.
Trevor van Ackeren of Bethlehem crossed the finish line first with a winning time of 25:28. The top female was Margaret Vido of Philadelphia; her time for the five-mile trek was 29:18. Among the 20 teams that competed, the runners from Janssen Pharmaceuticals (King of Prussia) earned the top spot with its 31.17 finish.
The race course winds through the 1777-1778 winter encampment of the Continental Army. Of particular note this year is the site of General Washington’s headquarters tent, which sheltered him during the initial days at Valley Forge. It is now the centerpiece of the newly opened Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia. The museum is included in the VFTCB’s marketing of Revolutionary War destinations in the county, collected online as Patriot Trails.
The 2017 Rev Run featured an essay contest for area students in grades four, five and six. Three winners were cited for their responses to the challenge to put themselves in the Valley Forge winter encampment of 1777-1778 and write about the experience firsthand.
Winners were Adalyn Becker, fourth grader from Candlebrook Elementary (King of Prussia); Kenzie Padilla, fifth grade student at Schuylkill Elementary School (Phoenixville); and Olivia Mulligan, currently in sixth grade at the Academy of Notre Dame (Villanova). These scholarly authors each received a Rev Run medal and a $100 from the Freedom Foundation at Valley Forge for continuing their educations.
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The Valley Forge Tourism & Convention Board (VFTCB) is a nonprofit, membership-based sales and marketing organization that actively promotes Valley Forge and Montgomery County, Pa., as a convention site and leisure visitor destination by encouraging patronage of its 400-plus member hotels, restaurants, attractions and services. The Board’s award-winning website, valleyforge.org, serves visitors, meeting planners, tour operators and residents, as well as hosts The Pursuit, a nationally recognized blog. The VFTCB oversees a portfolio of brands that include Valley Forge Sports, Montco 360, Destination Montco Weddings, Patriot Trails and Destination Montco Golf. It is also the publisher of the new dining magazine Crave, issued twice yearly.
