25th Annual Hemingway 5K Sunset Run/Walk and Paddleboard Race Set for July 22

KEY WEST, Florida Keys — Runners, fitness walkers and paddleboard enthusiasts can test their skills and celebrate Ernest Hemingway’s sporting lifestyle Saturday, July 22. The longest on-going race in Key West, this year’s silver anniversary Hemingway 5K Sunset Run/Walk and Paddleboard Race is rated #3 on Active.com’s list of top ten international destination races to turn into a vacation.

The athletic challenges are part of Hemingway Days, a six-day commemoration of the life and work of the author who lived and wrote in Key West for most of the 1930s.

The Lazy Dog Paddleboard Race will kick off at 6 p.m. at the island city’s Southernmost Beach, 1405 Duval St. on the Atlantic Ocean. Competitors are tasked with paddling a 3-mile ocean course before finishing back at the beach.

The popular 5K run/walk will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the Southernmost Point in the continental United States, oceanfront at Whitehead and South streets. Participants race through picturesque Old Town Key West, past landmarks including the Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum, Green Parrot Bar, the Key West Lighthouse, and Custom House as they complete the fast, flat 3.1-mile course.

A registration booth will be open from 3:00-7:00 p.m. on race day on the beach outside of the Southernmost Beach Café. Afterwards, a great post-race awards party is scheduled outside in the same area and includes free food, libations, and raffles.

Paddleboard awards will be presented to the first- through 10th-place male and female finishers, plus to the top first- through third place male and female race boards. In the 5K, awards await the top three male and female overall finishers, top three male and female masters, and top three male and female finishers in five-year age categories ranging from 9 and under to 75 and over. Great prizes will go to the overall winners.

In addition, finisher medals will be awarded to those competing in both challenges. Race packets, bibs and shirts can be picked up there.

Interested participants can register online at active.com or download registration forms by visiting www.keywestspecialevents.com.

The entry fee includes a collectible race tech shirt, chip timing, custom bibs, food, finisher medals, libations and lots of great giveaways including Caribbean Resort Trips for up to four!

Proceeds benefit Key West Sunrise Rotary Scholarship Fund and the FKCC Youth Swim Program. Sponsored in part by Monroe County Tourist Development Council, Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum, Islamorada Beer Company, Southernmost Beach Resort, Southernmost Beach Café, Margaritaville Key West Resort and Marina, Elite Caribbean Resorts, and prizes from many great Key West establishments including Kermit’s Key Lime Pie Shoppe and Sunshine Scooters.

More information: Barb Wright (305) 240-0727 or visit keywestspecialevents.com.

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