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As one of its premier events draws near, Kansas City’s long-distance running community deserves a little attention. And, yes, a few comments on possible improvements to make.
I’ll be on the course Sunday when close to 9,000 people take part in the Sabates Eye Centers Trolley Run that stretches from Waldo to the Country Club Plaza.
The race benefits the Children’s Center for the Visually Impaired in Kansas City. It’s the largest four-mile timed event in the country.
I joined the running community 22 months ago, after encouraging my son to take part in cross country his freshman year at Raytown High School. Fortunately, he likes the sport and now runs year-round.
It had been more than 30 years since my long-distance running days had ended at Shawnee Mission West.
So my first day of training in 2006 wasn’t a big surprise: twice around Raytown’s 400-meter track, then total exhaustion.
Now, a few thousand miles later, I’m one of those nerds cognizant of all my 5K (5,000 meters) times, of who’s doing well in my age division, and of how far I go in every practice.
I appreciate the strengths and foibles of the area’s running society. A cheat sheet:
Strengths
Above all, registration fees for races such as the Trolley Run go for plenty of good causes.
Volunteers. Nothing would happen without those who monitor the courses, hand out water and keep things going smoothly at dozens of events.
The Mid-America Running Association Web site (mararunning.org). It offers a lengthy list of races, contact information and results.
Age-group categories. Even a person my age, 52, has a chance to win a medal or two against competitors born around the same time.
Participating in favorite events. For me, they include the 5K race under the lights at the KU Relays and the Groundhog Run in the caves of the Hunt Midwest Subtropolis.
Coaches who care. I first met Blue Springs boys cross country coach Frank Gallick while he served as a volunteer helping put on a race to benefit the Raytown program, years after he had left it. And Raytown South cross country coach Sean Nunn reaches out to help area youth keep up their off-season workouts. There are many other standout coaches in this area.
Tracy Rollins, who maintains a site (milesplit.us) that connects coaches and runners around the state of Missouri.
BJ the DJ, whose enthusiasm as pre-race entertainer gets participants raring to go.
Dick Ross the photographer (seekcrun.com). His online pictures from many events chronicle much of the competition as well as the family fun that are important parts of road racing.
Foibles
Courses that aren’t measured accurately. I’ve run across a couple in Kansas City and in Lee’s Summit that were far past the advertised 5K length. Sorry, that’s exasperating to participants who carefully chart the finish times (I’m guilty as charged) for all their races.
T-shirt sizes that aren’t available. Picky, picky, but as a person who always requests a “small” T-shirt when registering, I have noticed that’s the size event organizers seem to run out of first. Order more smalls, please.
Runners who listen to headphones. That’s simply unsafe when you’re racing, and motorists may or may not be paying attention to you.
GPS watches that don’t work. It’s infuriating when you look down at your usually trusty timepiece only to see it’s gone blank and can’t tell you how far or how long you have run.
Overall, most of the Kansas City area runners I’ve met the past two years are friendly, care about the sport and want it to keep growing.
Here’s a salute to them. Good luck to all (even those in the 50-54 men’s age bracket) on Sunday and in the races ahead.
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