MCW Lenape Runventure

You are fully supported from the moment you register to when you finish. This includes:

🚐 Shuttling: transportation to Newark, so you can focus on the run.
🏥 Portable Aid Stations: A regular supply of water, electrolytes, food, and requests. 
🏃‍♂️ Pacing: Pacing support that will stick with the middle pack and last runner to make sure no one gets left behind.
🩹 First Aid: We will have a fully stocked first aid kit just in case which will include extra supplies for gastrointestinal and blister issues.
🚗 Pace Cars: 2 cars will be zig-zagging throughout the course to meet each runner at every checkpoint to resupply.
🤝 Check Points: Crewing cars will be meeting you every 3-8 miles.
🏞️ All Levels Welcome: With our crewing team, we will ensure we can resupply everyone and will wait for everyone.
⛰️ Choose Your Challenge: Set your own pace, set a record, challenge your limits, or savor the scenic beauty at your leisure.
🚻 No Male-Supported FKT: There is no male supported FKT. It's for anyone that wants it.
🌐 Virtual Prep Sessions: biweekly, optional, virtual sessions to learn strategies, best practices, and hear from the best.
🏃‍♂️ Personalized Training Plans: Tailored plans to prep each runner and the ability to chat with our team for advice.

At MissionCleanWater, we're not just a nonprofit organization; we're a movement dedicated to transforming lives through clean water and sanitation. Imagine a world where every sip is pure, where communities flourish with newfound health and hope.

🌟 Our Mission: Empowering underserved communities with access to clean drinking water and sanitation, we strive to break the chains of waterborne diseases and create a ripple effect of positive change. Since 2018, we have provided clean water to 30,000 community members in Uganda and supply 2,000 gallons of clean water weekly to USA communities affected by lead contamination.

💧 Why We Race for Clean Water: The 1-Mile Muffin Race is more than a fun run; it's a stride towards a brighter, healthier future. By lacing up your sneakers, you're not just running a mile; you're running towards a world where water is a source of life, not a source of struggle.

Think of a Runventure as an incredible journey with new friends across ultra marathon-length trails in a fully supported way. Everything from pacing, supplying, and aid is fully provided to make your Runventure as smooth as possible. It's not just about covering miles; it's about the joy of adventure, camaraderie with fellow runners, and the fulfillment of pushing your limits. A Runventure is a unique way of experiencing a community environment with an adventure mentality that wants to experience new challenges. Join us for the Lenape Trail.

On Adventure Day, here's what to expect. Once registered, our team will guide you on what to expect and help you plan for the big day. On Adventure Day, we will gather at the South Mountain Reservation parking area in Milburn at 7 am. We'll load up our two support vans and carpool to the trailhead in Newark, NJ, starting the adventure promptly at 8 am.

In your adventure packets and during virtual meetings, you'll find valuable tips on navigation and using mobile GPS devices. The trail will feature 5 checkpoints spaced 3-8 miles apart, offering resupplies for food, hydration, and the option to drop off or grab extra layers. We'll ensure every adventurer is supported, and at the finish line – back where we started – you'll be all set! We'll wait for each participant, celebrating the completion of an incredible journey.

We've Got Your Back

Fundraising can be an adventure of its own, and we're here to make it a rewarding one. Our dedicated team is ready to provide you with resources, tips, and personalized assistance to help you reach and exceed your fundraising goal. Your fundraising journey towards $1,000 might seem daunting but we are here to help you.

🤝 Support Along the Fundraising Trail:

📧 Personalized Guidance: Receive tailored advice on effective fundraising strategies.
🎨 Customizable Fundraising Pages: Make your fundraising journey uniquely yours with personalized pages.
📣 Social Media Toolkit: Amplify your impact with our toolkit designed for online outreach and engagement.
🎉 Celebrate Your Success: Reaching your $1,000 goal isn't just a milestone; it's a celebration of the difference you're making in the world. Join a community of like-minded individuals, and let's celebrate together as we work towards a future with clean water for all.

Ready to turn your miles into meaningful impact?

Where Do I Direct People to Donate?

The best place to direct people to donate is through your personalized RunSignUp Fundraising page. Copy and Past the url into any social media post or profile description and people will be able to visit to donate. 
You can use other platforms to raise donations like an Instagram campaign, you just need to share it with us so we can help you track your donations.

The Lenape Trail is a 35-mile trail that connects 18 parks and 11 municipalities throughout Essex County. Throughout all of these miles, you will experience a mix of trail running and road running with 2,256ft of elevation gain and 2,060ft of elevation loss. A training breakdown for 16 weeks would include:

We can tailor any training plan to anyone's schedule or if you have less then 16 weeks to train. Just email us at James@missioncleanwater.org and we can create something a bit more specialized for you.

Mondays (Rest): These are rest days where you are not going out for a specific training run. Your focus should more be on completing a low-intensity workout or walk and focusing on recovery. Go for a nice walk, complete an easy strength training workout (low weights, high reps or resistance training),  and complete a nice recovery routine. Get a foam roller.

Tuesdays (Easy Run): Tuesdays are meant to begin getting some miles in and getting your body prepped for a fun week of training. The pacing strategy should be to go slower then you anticipate during the Lenape trail or a day to practice different pacing strategies. This can include a running/walking pace, seeing at what different paces you feel very comfortable running or using this easy run to bring intention back into your workouts. After your run, it is recommended to complete a strength-focused workout whether it's using weights or body weight training.

Wednesdays (Speed): Time to go faster. This day should focus on intervals, breath work, and pushing the threshold a bit. Today is the one main day to go faster then your intended pace but to also be smart about it. We want to use this run to break the anaerobic threshold. This is where when running, your body switches from burning fats to burning calories. You know you are in this zone when it becomes difficult to say a sentence while running without taking a breath. Focus on your speed and complete interval workouts. Some examples include: 
          -Easy 1-2 miles, next 2 miles do 1.5 minutes at threshold, 30 second recovery for 10 times. Easy miles to finish.
          -Easy miles to warm up, start at race pact, every 30 seconds go slowly but gradually faster, stop and recover once holding threshold. repeat 10 times. Easy miles to finish.

Thursday (Incline): You like climbing some hills? Your goal with your runs on Thursday is to try and find a way to incorporate elevation into each mile. While some of us might not live in hilly areas, as long as there is some form of elevation gain, you will be all set. It's important to practice your pacing on different gradients and learn how it affects your breathing. Once the elevation is completed, focus on intentional recovery while trying to stick to your usual mile pacing. Focus your pacing at either race pace or a little bit slower. Your goal with each workout should be to try and get 250 - 1,000ft of elevation gain. Seek out some road hills, hop on the trails, or increase the gradient of your treadmill. While the Lenape trail does not have a lot of elevation gain throughout the entire 35 miles, there are going to be some challenging climbs. It is completely okay to hike up hills if your heart rate is getting too high.

Friday (Cross Train):  Have your cross-training days focused around activities that get your heart rate up but do not have any high impact on your feet like running. This is an excellent day to incorporate some HIT (High-Intensity Interval) workouts, strength training, or core power. The big focus of this day is to make sure our body is nice and strong so we can maintain good running form for each mile. Our legs might be super strong, but we need to make sure our core is too so we are not putting to much weight into our backs. You will also likely be carrying a hydration pack during the Lenape Trail so having prepared shoulder muscles will be good to incorporate.

Saturday (Long Run): Time to wake up early and get a nice long run in. These long runs might seem daunting but use them as an excellent way to explore a new trail system or run through a new park/town. Your pacing strategy should be 15-30 seconds slower than your anticipated race pace with one hour of each run at race pace. Focus on trying out new foods and forms of hydration so you see what works best for you. Pay attention to how your body is reacting to this run. Notice what different types of mental barriers you are experiencing and develop little strategies to pick yourself up from them. See what different types of soreness you have and learn how to identify why and how we can address it.

Sunday (Long Run Trails): A good portion of the Lenape Trail is going to be on actual trails. Some sections will have rolling hills, tons of roots, and some small rock scrambles. Use this run to become comfortable in those environments and see how you can tackle this changing terrain while still trying to keep an intended pace. This is also the last run of the week, so your mind and legs might feel sore or tired. This is a good way of simulating the last few miles of the Lenape Trail. Dig deep, and find that extra push to get your miles in. For your Sunday runs, don't worry about pacing, just worry about having fun. If you feel like going fast, go fast. If you want to slow down, then slow down. Just have fun and enjoy the day.

If you have any questions about this Adventure, please contact the Adventure director at