Time to reroute the Stockade-athon

PHOTOGRAPHER: Marc Schultz

The Stockade-athon this month in Schenectady.

The Stockade-athon should be re-routed to avoid the disruption of church traffic on Sunday mornings. A new route might also reduce the need for so many police cars and blockades, which must be expensive, especially the overtime. The race could start at the parking lot between SCCC and the bike path, and proceed up the ramp to State Street and turn left on Washington Avenue, go one block in Riverside Park, then turn right on Governor’s Lane, right on Front Street, left on Washington Avenue and then back on the bike path all the way to Lock 9 in Rotterdam, then loop back on Rice Road and back on the bike path near the I-890 Campbell Road exit. If this doesn’t equal 15 kilometers, it can be tweaked, perhaps extending as far as the next lock. The small loop through the Stockade would justify continuing with the name of the race, and would not require much in the way of a police presence. The present race configuration is like a noose around the city of Schenectady, as delightful as it may seem to the runners. Sure, it’s only once a year and only for a few hours, but it’s a nightmare for people trying to get to church inside that noose.

Roger Sheffer

Schenectady