A road race has many moving parts. Will Matthew Norton be one of them at the Celebrate Morris Township 5K on Saturday, May 2, 2015?
“If I can run it fast enough, I will do it!” said the Morristown High School junior.
Norton will have to run very fast indeed, because he is sure to be plenty busy on race day. He has organized the entire event, as his Eagle Scout project for Troop 333.
“Although building benches and creating paths are amazing projects, I felt that it would be nice to do something different for a change. Being a runner myself I thought, ‘How great would it be to organize a 5K?'” said Norton, 17.
The idea took shape last fall during brainstorming sessions with Township Administrator Tim Quinn, who was planning activities to celebrate the municipality’s 275th anniversary this year.
“He’s a young man who has a lot to offer the community,” Quinn said of Norton. “He has a very solid family background, strong religious beliefs, and he’s community-oriented.”
Norton has received additional assistance from Heather McDermott of the Morristown Running Company and Superhero Racing.
More than 200 people have signed up for the 9 am race, according to McDermott. The fee is $25 and any profits will benefit the Leukemia Lymphoma Society. She is impressed with Norton’s efforts.
“He’s doing very well,” said McDermott, co-organizer of numerous races in Greater Morristown. “He’s very mature for his age and seems to have a good understanding of what needs to be done.”
While most runners can knock off a 5K in well under an hour, much more work is required behind the scenes than Norton ever imagined.
“It’s hard,” he acknowledged. Arrangements must be made with police and hosts (Atlantic Health, 475 South St., across from Loantaka Brook Reservation), and with a race timing company. Prizes must be solicited. Tee shirts must be procured (the first 300 runners will get one). And on and on.
“I have learned that time management and communication skills play a crucial part in making events like this come together, and that it is not easy at times. Although it may be difficult, I have learned so much about the Township and I have had the opportunity to create some great friendships and the whole process of this project has been a lot of fun,” said Norton.
His Boy Scout Troop is chartered by the Morristown Ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints. He hopes to attend Brigham Young University.
When Norton is not immersed in race planning, he plays lacrosse for the MHS varsity and trains for triathlons.
Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable by a Boy Scout. Famous Eagle Scouts include President Gerald Ford; Neil Armstrong, the first astronaut to walk on the moon; filmmaker Steven Spielberg; Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, and Pulitzer Prize-winning scientists and Nobel laureates.
“It’s fun and teaches a lot of life lessons,” Norton said of Scouting. “It gives me something to do.”
His advice to others contemplating an Eagle project:
“Do not wait. The earlier you start your project the earlier you will finish. It is a great opportunity to become an Eagle Scout and I would encourage all Scouts to work hard and achieve the rank of Eagle Scout.”
And don’t be too surprised if he laces up his running shoes on race day.
Norton runs a brisk 5:40 mile.
