One Hour Run

What's a One Hour Run:

• Track event competed on a 400 meter track.

• Competitors run as many laps (full and partial) as they can in one hour.

• Event recognized by the IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federation).

• Event recognized by USATF (United States of America Track and Field).

• Both organizations maintain records for the event.

• Unfortunately it's seldom run in the US.

Details:

• Held on a 400m track.

• Each contestant is assigned a lap counter/timer.

• The official records the cumulative time at the end of each runner's completed lap to ensure that the laps were counted propely.

• Each athlete is handed a “bean bag” two to three minutes prior to the end of the hour. The competitors number is written on the “bean bag”.

• The gun is fired at the 59th minute letting all know that the event will soon be over.

• At the 60th minute the gun will be fired to indicate the end of the event.

• At that point each runner drops the “bean bag”.

• Additional distance beyond the last completed lap is measured and the total distance in meters is then determined.

Records:

• The USATF maintains open and age group records.

• Many of the women’s age records were set in the 1980’s prior to the records set in Lynn, Massachusetts beginning in 2014.

Why Lynn:

• In 2014 the One Hour Run was revived at Lynn's Manning Field track with the support of Lisa Nerich (now associate commissioner of the Lynn DPW).

• Steve Vaitones the managing director of USATF New England informed us that there were a good number of women in the New England area that were capable of breaking the American age group records. We reached out to the USATF New England club members and several records were set that year.

• The Lynn Parks & Recreation and USATF New England have tremendous satisfaction in providing master runners with the opportunity of earning American record holder status.