About Our Club
Founded over 30 years ago, the Prospect Park Track Club (PPTC) is Brooklyn's largest and most active running club, with a membership that extends well beyond the neighborhoods surrounding Prospect Park.
Benefits for Members
We have a lot to offer runners of every age and ability, including monthly meetings
with guest speakers, a subscription to our club newsletter, Around the Park,
swim clinics, group runs, speed workouts , a great club picnic and relay in the summer,
and an awards party in the winter.
PPTC's Races
The Cherry Tree 10M and the 5M Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day are our two premier
races for local runners. In the summer, we also host our classic six-race speed series
on Wednesday nights. And rain or shine, on New Year's Day you'll see us in the park
for "Harry's Handicap," our famous 3.35-mile race with a staggered start - so anybody
can win. Many of the recurring Brooklyn races owe their start to the mentoring and
assistance they received from PPTC.
Marathon Support
If you're a marathoner, PPTC provides great support before and after your race,
including group training runs through the summer and fall as you build your mileage,
an organized running tour of the "last 10 miles" of the NYC Marathon course, a bus
to the NYC Marathon start from Brooklyn and, after your triumphant race, an indoor
meeting area and party near the finish line at Central Park.
Volunteer Opportunities
Although running is our main endeavor, PPTC also contributes to many organizations
throughout the course of the year, including
The Prospect Park Alliance,
Bishop Ford High School track teams, the
Red Cross and the Prospect Park YMCA
.
And for the Hooligans...
Runners are generally a wacky group and our other organized social events also live
up to this billing, park runs followed by brunch to celebrate St. Patrick's Day and
Chinese New Year/Martin Luther King Day. We also organize some non-running social activities
and are open to all suggestions. In the past we've gone bowling, taken fall foliage tours up
the Hudson, ice skating and outings to see the Brooklyn Cyclones play ball.
Join Us
Most of all, PPTC offers the support and camaraderie of some of the greatest people
you'll ever want to spend a few sweaty miles with. No matter what your age or ability,
whether you are a beginner, a triathlete, a veteran marathoner, or even ultra-marathoner,
there's a place for you in the Prospect Park Track Club!