Sunday's Road Race Postponed

This from Mayor Dan Drew on his Facebook site:

Joint statement from the City of Middletown and the Hartford Marathon Foundation:

We have been closely monitoring the weather forecast which calls for several inches of snow tomorrow but, more importantly, sustained winds of close to 60 mph at exactly the time the Harvard Pilgrim Half Marathon would be underway.

This morning the city called together its public safety team including the Health Department, Emergency Management, the Middletown Fire Department, the Middletown Police Department and the Public Works Department. Each of those departments has a hand in the management of the public's safety during the race. We also consulted with Middlesex Hospital which provides medical services during the race.

The departments and hospital unanimously recommended that we postpone tomorrow's race due to safety concerns. Included in their considerations were the potential tomorrow morning of downed wires, downed trees, roads slick with snow and ice, difficult wind chill conditions, our inability to keep road barriers safely in place in high wind conditions, and an inability to provide shelter due to tents being blown around in the wind.

The City of Middletown and the Hartford Marathon Foundation therefore have jointly decided to postpone tomorrow's race. After a careful evaluation and consultation with the appropriate authorities we believe it is in the public's and runners' interest to do so.

We will work closely together to select another date as soon as possible.