eInside Events

Crooked River Adventure Race Series

Crooked River Adventure Race Series kicks off July 9.

Once again this year, Portage Park District, Kent Parks and Recreation and Kent State University are collaborating on the Crooked River Adventure Race Series, which consists of three adventure races taking place throughout Portage County this summer and fall.

The series includes the Headwaters Adventure Race, Black Squirrel Adventure Triathlon and Brady’s Leap Adventure Race. This is the third year the races have been packaged together, promoting health and unity within the community.

All races give participants a chance to connect with the area’s natural and cultural resources, highlighting the Cuyahoga River, along with historic sites, parks, trails, hike and bike trails, nature preserves and scenic landscapes. Dave Herpy, Kent State’s outdoor adventure coordinator and race series committee chair, says the races help promote our area’s greatest local natural resource, the Cuyahoga River, as well as our local parks and recreational opportunities.

Two of the races, the Black Squirrel Adventure Triathlon and the Brady’s Leap Adventure Race, specifically highlight the city of Kent and the university. Kent State students, faculty and staff, as well as Portage County community members, are encouraged to participate in the races.

"These events are perfect for anyone with a sense of adventure, from the first time adventure racer to the seasoned competitor," Herpy says. "Everyone who participates in all three races will receive series mementos. Prizes will be awarded to the solo racers (male and female) and each person of 2-person all-phase teams finishing with the top 3 overall series times."

Herpy also encourages local businesses to register and participate as teams. Last year, more than 400 people between the ages of eight and 68 participated in at least one of the races, and organizers hope to increase overall registration by 25 percent this year.

The three races are:

Headwaters Adventure Race – July 9
Starts at 8 a.m. at Buchert Park, Mantua Village.
$40 registration; $15 canoe rental; $10 kayak rental

Go solo or grab a friend to make a relay or all-phase team and have a great time for a good cause! Presented by the Portage Park District Foundation, this event starts and ends at Buchert Park, Mantua Village and features a 2-mile run on the Headwaters Trail past state nature preserves, a 10-mile cycle on rural roads past preserved farms and historic sites to Camp Hi Canoe Livery, then a 5-mile paddle back to Mantua on the Upper Cuyahoga Scenic River. And a few other adventures along the way! Stay after the race for Mantua’s Art on the Hill event. For more information and online registration, visit www.portageparkdistrict.org or call 330-297-7728.

Black Squirrel Adventure Triathlon – Aug. 6
Starts at 9 a.m. at Heritage Park, Kent.
$35 individual; $70 team; $80 relay

Go solo or as part of a 2-person all-phase team, or as part of a 2-4-person relay team. Presented by Kent Parks and Recreation Dept., this event features a 2-mile canoe/kayak leg down the Cuyahoga River beginning at Tannery Park, a 5-mile bike ride on the Portage Hike and Bike trail out and back, then along Middlebury Rd. to Fred Fuller Park, and a 2-mile run that travels along Riveredge Trail to Fred Fuller Park to finish on the Main St. Bridge. Day of race registration. Enjoy an after-race concert in downtown Kent at the Home Savings Plaza. For more information, visit www.kentparksandrec.com or call 330-673-8897.

Brady’s Leap Adventure Race – Oct. 22
Starts at 10 a.m. at Kent State’s Student Recreation and Wellness Center, Kent.
$30 for Kent State students and Student Recreation and Wellness Center members; $40 for nonmembers.

Go solo or as part of a team. Presented by Kent State Adventure Center, this out-and-back traditional adventure race includes biking, paddling, trail running and rock climbing. The course features many of the historic areas that Captain Brady raced through to escape the Native Americans, including the Portage Hike and Bike Trail, Brady Lake, Towner's Woods and the Cuyahoga River. Racers are provided with a satellite image and topographic map of the area with a list of checkpoints and then they’re on their own to navigate the route. For more information, visit www.kent.edu/recservices or call 330-672-2803.

Kent/Blossom Music Festival Presents The Cleveland Orchestra’s Kosower and Lee on July 6

Kent/Blossom Music Festival presents its second concert
in the 2011 Faculty Series on Wednesday, July 6.

The Kent/Blossom Music Festival is a unique program that pairs advanced young musicians with a stellar faculty drawn primarily from members of The Cleveland Orchestra. The relationship between Kent/Blossom Music and The Cleveland Orchestra members represents a high level of artistic collaboration, without any direct financial linkage.

The Kent/Blossom Music Festival presents its second concert in the 2011 Faculty Series at Kent State University on Wednesday, July 6, at 7:30 p.m. in the Hugh A. Glauser School of Music’s Ludwig Recital Hall in the Music and Speech Center.

The concert, titled The Intimate Beethoven, will feature Mark Kosower, principal cello, The Cleveland Orchestra; Jee-Won Oh, Piano; and Jung-Min Amy Lee, Associate Concertmaster, The Cleveland Orchestra. The program will include Beethoven Twelve Variations on “See the Conqu’ring Hero Comes” (from Handel’s Judas Maccabaeus), WoO 45; Strauss Romanze in F Major (1883); Chopin Introduction and Polonaise Brilliante, Opus 3; and Beethoven Trio in B-Flat Major, Opus 97.

Tickets are $15 for adults and seniors and $5 for students under 18 or with a valid college ID. For further details call 330-672-3609 or visit http://dept.kent.edu/blossom/html_concert/faculty.htm.

Kosower began his tenure as principal cello of The Cleveland Orchestra with the 2010 Kent/Blossom Festival. A native of Wisconsin, Kosower came to Cleveland from the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra in Germany, where he served in the same capacity leading the cello section. He currently holds the Louis D. Beaumont Endowed Chair of The Cleveland Orchestra. Kosower is on the music faculty at the Cleveland Institute of Music and a faculty member for Kent/Blossom Music Festival.

Since the inception of the Blossom Music Center in 1968, the Musical Arts Association has partnered with Kent State and its College of the Arts to develop Kent /Blossom Music as a complete environment for the arts. Each summer, Kent/Blossom Music combines performance with education and joins working professionals with talented students to teach, explore and produce great music. This important relationship between a premier performing ensemble and a public university has also served as a model for other collaborations.

Founded in 1968 by George Szell and Louis Lane, Kent/Blossom Music has welcomed more than 2,200 young artists. The program has propelled hundreds of remarkable young musicians into the ranks of major orchestras, opera companies and conservatory facilities throughout the United States and around the globe.

Kent Community Dinners Resume in July

The Kent Community Dinners will resume this month following a June break. The next dinner on July 16 will provide the community the chance to get to know each other better through contra dance, a tradition from colonial times. Carol Copp, a local caller known throughout the Northeast United States, will call three dances designed especially for beginners. Tina Bergman, who plays with Apollo's Fire, and members of Hu$h Money will accompany the dance on the hammered dulcimer.

Interested parties should meet at the University Parish Newman Center, Horning Road at Loop Road, on Saturday, July 16, at 5:30 p.m. Please bring some food to share to this traditional American potluck.

For more information, call 330-678-8760.

Got News? Submit it to e-Inside

The e-Inside newsletter is an excellent way to share news about faculty and staff accomplishments, regional campus news and information about upcoming events.

If you have a news item or event that you would like to share with the Kent State community, consider submitting it to e-Inside. Send your news and announcements for consideration to einside@kent.edu.

Please make sure you send all relevant information, including who, what, when and where – and if you have a photo or artwork to go with your announcement, make sure to send that as well.

Plenty of advance notice is appreciated. The deadline for copy is Tuesday at 5 p.m. for the issue of the following week.