Another race turns 37

Two of my favorite races turned 37 this year—the Bolder Boulder 10k in Colorado and Freihofer’s 5k for Women in Albany, New York.  Both are community festivals in the very best sense of that concept. I think that’s why they’ve endured and prospered over so many years. It’s also because of a core of dedicated race organizers and volunteers who work all year long attending to the thousands of preparatory details required to make these events successful. And where would these races be without the commitment of loyal sponsors who return year after year to provide funding?

These races draw elite runners from all over the world. Both races make significant commitments to charities. And these days, because they’ve been around for so long, both races have become “must do” events for many. John Tope of Denver, elite runner recruiter for Freihofer’s, is an example. Before he left for Albany, he HAD to run the Bolder Boulder because he’s done every single one of them. Despite the fact that he injured an Achilles tendon at the 1k mark, he HAD to hobble through the entire race or face ending an era. As a result, he gimped around at Freihofer’s protecting his sore foot with a borrowed boot about five sizes too small for him.

This year it was a bit of a squeeze for me to fit both races in immediately following a trip to Maine for a college graduation, but thanks to the friendly skies, it worked. Following the Bolder Boulder on May 25, I hopped a red-eye ride to Albany in time for a visit to Southgate Elementary School on Friday morning, the day before the New York race. One-hundred-plus highly energetic 4^th 5^th and 6^th graders awaited.

“How many races have you run in your life?” one kid asked.

“I have no idea,” was my reply. “But I’ve been racing for 39 years, probably about 15 to 18 races a year. You do the math.”

A few minutes later a boy in the middle of the room piped up: “I did the math,” he said proudly.

Some questions were tougher. ‘If you had to choose between running and writing, which would you choose?” Given the circumstance of the moment, I had to say running.

Freihofer’s draws 4,000 women. More than 50,000 take off in 50-some staggered waves over a two-and-a half-hour period to tour the city of Boulder on their feet. The women’s race runs past the stately New York State Capitol building and swings through a shady Washington Park before returning to the capitol area. There are all sorts of teams: mother-daughter, grandmother-mother-daughter, sister-sister and family and friends. There are corporate teams and club teams and a big contingent of women who’d been training for 10 weeks to run their first 5k.

Nancy Gerstenberger, 85, running in her hometown, completed the course in 1:05:24 to become the oldest finisher. Winner Emily Chebet of Kenya took 15:38 minutes to cover the same ground.  Both winners. I’ve crossed the country fours years in a row to run a very special 3.1 miles. It’s hard to resist returning every year.