Event Description

Run for fun. Run for health. Run for the record. Run to show your community spirit. Run to support survivors of domestic abuse. 

The Downtown Yakima Mile is back in 2021, and registration is now open at www.yakimamile.com!

The Downtown Yakima Mile is much more than a race. It’s about bringing our community together in a fun, fitness, and in support of important causes that serve our friends and neighbors right here in the Yakima Valley. 

Everyone has their own reason to run, particularly this year as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. Yakima’s only downtown community fitness event challenges both individuals and our community to come together on a day where everybody wins and records may fall. This year the Downtown Yakima Mile supports Yakima’s YWCA, whose motto is “eliminating racism; empowering women.”

The first Downtown Yakima Mile in 2019 drew runners of all ages and abilities from across the valley as they raced against the clock in hopes of setting a new personal best. In the final two races of the day, elite runners from around the world competed for more than $25,000 in prize money. That day, Amos Bartelsmeyer, running for Germany, set a new Washington state record for the mile at 3 minutes, 51.79 seconds! Therese Haiss of San Diego, who had just run the fastest mile for the state of California, won the elite women’s race in 4:29. She missed the state women’s record by a mere 2 seconds. 

This year, the Downtown Yakima Mile Committee is ready and set for the second annual event, to be held on August 28. Our goal remains the same — to provide a healthy community event open to everyone, highlighting and celebrating the Yakima Valley on a local, regional, and national scale. We hope that the Downtown Yakima Mile inspires families who live here to become and stay active.

We’ve got big plans in 2021 as we work to make Yakima a premier competitive running destination. And we’re asking for your support. We’re currently securing partnerships with local businesses, with proceeds benefitting the YWCA and its mission. Like most non-profit organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for services from the YWCA greatly increased (by more than 30% last year!) but financial support has not. In 2020 alone, the YWCA touched 13,000 people here in the valley. The 24-hour domestic violence emergency shelter provided 8,000+ bed nights, and the crisis hotline averaged 25 phone calls a day.

Through the generosity of our presenting sponsor Home2 Suites By Hilton- Yakima Airport, all youth 18 and under are able to race free and receive a free commemorative bandana. 

Downtown Yakima Mile has commissioned a local artist to create the design for this year's apparel. Design coming soon!