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In honor of National Chicken Wing Day, National Buffalo Wing Festival announces inaugural Chicken Wing 5K Run

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Fri, Jul 29th 2016 02:10 pm

Treadmills, stair climbers and elliptical be gone! If you want to get a good sweat on, there's one quick fix that'll heat things up in a snap: Buffalo wings. 

In honor of National Chicken Wing Day, the National Buffalo Wing Festival is proud to announce the first-ever Chicken Wing 5K Run in downtown Buffalo on Sept. 4 (11 a.m.). The event is sponsored by BlueCross Blue Shield of Western New York.

Participants can work off the extra calories from all the chicken wings they noshed during the day prior (or will that day) at the National Buffalo Wing Festival, which happens at Coca-Cola Stadium in Buffalo Sept. 3-4. 

Runners can huff, puff, jog and jiggle through the scenic, 3.1-mile circular route that winds through the historic and revived downtown Buffalo and beyond (view race map HERE).

"Our race route takes participants through the Inner Harbor - an area that perfectly blends the beauty of old Buffalo with the promise of the city's future," said Drew Cerza, founder of the National Buffalo Wing Festival. "The course takes runners by the HARBORCENTER, the 'Home of Cheerios,' River Works, Buffalo River Fest Park, the legendary Swannie House, two historic drawbridges and many new condos/townhouses either built or under construction. The finish line is at the National Buffalo Wing Festival."

Race participants receive free admission to the festival, one free beverage (beer for those 21 and over), $5 in food tickets redeemable at the festival, a Nike Dri-FIT race T-shirt and a one-of-a-kind race bib.

"The Mayo Clinic says to spend a good deal of your 5K training walking long distances. Runners World recommends aerobic intervals," Cerza said. "But here at the National Buffalo Wing Festival, we recommend satiating with plenty of chicken wings prior to race day."

Along the way, the Chicken Wing 5K Run will feature water stations for participants to stop, recover and hydrate. 

But seeing as this is no ordinary 5K, event organizers didn't stop there. 

Water stations will come complete with a wide selection of Buffalo wing samples - direct from the festival grounds. 

"Whether your version of exercise is running ultra marathons or simply taking a stroll to the fridge for another beer or the kitchen for a helping of wings, the Chicken Wing 5K Run is the answer to your fitness prayers," Cerza joked. 

So, National Chicken Wing Day is not only a celebration of one of America's favorite foods, it also marks the countdown of 36 days of training left until the big race!

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