Checkers A.C. Christmas Race

Checkers A.C. Christmas Race is put on by the Checkers Athletic Club in Buffalo, New York, on December 6, 2026. The single event is a 3K road race (1.9 miles) at 9:00 a.m., run on the Ring Road in Delaware Park, with the start at the Indian Hunter statue at the south end of the loop. Trophies go to the men's and women's winners and to the Masters winners, and medals to the leading runners in age groups that run from 14 and under all the way to 80 and over.

Three kilometers is an unusual distance and a demanding one: too short to settle into, long enough to hurt. Treat it like a hard track effort, with a full warm-up and a few strides before the gun. The deep age-group awards mean there is something to race for at every stage of a running life. Afterward, everyone gathers at the Checkers Athletic Club on Hertel.