Hospital Hill Run returns in-person as Kansas City running scene gets closer to normal

For what’s believed to be the biggest in-person running event in Kansas City since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Andrew Burden knew he had to kick his efforts up a notch Saturday.

It wasn’t just in regards to his running.

Burden, the self-proclaimed “KC Cosplay Runner” on Instagram and TikTok, has run in a different costume for 65 weeks in a row, with outfits ranging from Charlie Brown to Cupid to a Thanksgiving turkey. For Saturday, he was Ignacio, a bare-chested lucha libre wrestler played by Jack Black in the 2006 comedy film Nacho Libre.

As he ran his 10-kilometer race that started and ended at Crown Center, he was part of a running community that hasn’t had many large events the past year. Burden was easy to spot with the sweat from his chest gleaming against the sun, his bright blue pants and red cape that was nearly dragging across the ground.

Humored entrants asked him to repeat lines from the movie, and he kindly obliged. But for a hobby he’s kept up since at least March 2020, there haven’t been sizable races for those interactions to happen.

Simply put, Burden was glad to be back.

“It was refreshingly normal,” Burden said. “I’ve been fully vaccinated for a few months now. It’s good to see the running community able to come together and feel that sense of camaraderie that we’ve been missing. I knew for a bigger race like this, I had to step it up.”

He was one of many Saturday to praise the Hospital Hill Run, which was held for the 48th time, and its organization after a year where it was done virtually because of the pandemic. Runners, who began at 7 a.m., had the option of running a 10K like Burden or opt for shorter (5K) or longer (half-marathon) distances.

For the most part, the event looked like a harkening to pre-COVID times. Masks and social distancing were rare, even among vendors, with the event’s protocols listing that masks were “recommended, but not required” in the staging area and at the finish line.

Some entrants still aimed to minimize risk, even when competing. Runner Kevin Greer of Lee’s Summit ran the 10K and maintained a habit of keeping distance from entrants around him throughout the race.

“Avoiding kind of being right next to somebody running is kind of all I did,” Greer said. “As long as I was away for two or three feet, I felt kind of OK with everything. If I’m butting up into somebody and they’re breathing heavy and I’m breathing heavy, I’m a little bit more reserved. But if I’m a couple feet away, I’m not as reserved.”

It was a stark difference to last summer, when the virus went through a summer wave and mass gatherings were largely discouraged across the country. At that point, those who ran in their free time often did it alone or in small groups, rather than the energetic scene at Crown Center this weekend.

Entrant Matt McLaughlin from Leawood, who ran in the 5K on Saturday, remarked that running on his own time through the pandemic enabled him to get through it a little more easily. He was able to catch up with Greer, an old high school friend, as well.

“One of the good things about Kansas City is that we never got to the point that some other cities did during this time period that they weren’t allowed to even really go outside,” McLaughlin said. “And so we were still able to exercise and still able to run, which was a lot for my mental sanity.”

But perhaps more important to McLaughlin, an employee of Children’s Mercy Hospital, was that he was able to run for fundraising. Per the Hospital Hill Run website, $18,000 has been raised by 604 donors, with a portion of race entries also going to the “I Love Children’s Mercy Fund” that “provides advanced medical treatments, compassionate care, and fuels world-class research,” per the website.

People coming together has been a sorely missed part of life for the past year. Through good people and good causes, it’s a welcome return.

“I’ve done (the race) the last six years,” McLaughlin said. “And I appreciate now that Children’s Mercy is a benefactor of the race. So it’s a big important thing for me to support Children’s Mercy, as well.”

MEN’S HALF MARATHON

Top individuals: 1. AJ Haney, 23 years old, 1 hour, 17 minutes, 9 seconds; 2. Jack Fisher, 19, 1:17:15; 3. Rick Stahl, 1:17:59; 4. Carson Hill, 15, 1:18:18; 5. Joshua Nunn, 18, 1:18:28; 6. Jack Getman, 17, 1:20:17; 7. Luke Bailey, 27, 1:21:58; 8. Gabriel Pingleton, 17, 1:22.28; 9. Collin Clemens, 18, 1:22:55; 10. Andrew Belardo, 17, 1:23:02.

Age group winners

Ages 19-under: Jack Fisher, 19, 1:17:15. 20-24: AJ Haney, 23, 1:17:09. 25-29: Luke Bailey, 27, 1:21:58. 30-34: Rick Stahl, 1:17:59. 35-39: Mike Thomson, 39, 1:25:33. 40-44: Justin Lyons, 41, 1:24:28. 45-49: Stephen Grimmett, 45, 1:25:17. 50-54: Rob Hays, 54, 1:23:20. 55-59: Jerry Hill, 56, 1:39:16. 60-64: Ronald Simon, 60, 1:34:36. 65-69: Henri Coeme, 68, 1:38:38. 70-74: Larry Smith, 74, 2:07:50. 75-79: Garth Smith, 79, 2:32:54.

WOMEN’S HALF MARATHON

Top individuals: 1. Sara Ibbetson, 40, 1:25:27; 2. Laura Eakin, 39, 1:26:34; 3. Claire Elson, 33, 1:27:55; 4. Laura Buckholz-Cockrell, 37, 1:33:42; 5. Rachel White, 24, 1:34:07; 6. Britton Nelson, 21, 1:34:24; 7. Elizabeth Lewis, 32, 1:34:24; 8. Ali Mohsen, 35, 1:34:39; 9. Merrill Thomas, 29, 1:36.12; 10. Liz Nowak, 31, 1:36.40.

Age group winners

Ages 19-under: Elly Bertholf, 18, 2:00:24. 20-24: Rachel White, 24, 1:34:07. 25-29: Merrill Thomas, 29, 1:36:12. 30-34: Claire Elson, 33, 1:27:55. 35-39: Laura Eakin, 39, 1:26:34. 40-44: Sara Ibbetson, 40, 1:25:27. 45-49: Andrea Wiltfang, 48, 1:46:04. 50-54: Molly Roudebush, 51, 1:41:11. 55-59: Kathryn Kersting, 56, 1:58:02. 60-64: Amy O’Connor, 60, 1:56:26. 65-69: Pam Perica, 67, 1:57:35. 70-74: Holly Smith, 73, 3:26:57. 75-79: Carol Goslin, 76, 3:00:33. 80-over: Ann Nelson, 85, 3:25:12.

MEN’S 10K

Top individuals: 1. Brooks Ballou, 29, 34:26; 2. Kevin Gideon, 23, 34:59; 3. Clay Martin, 32, 35:55; 4. Brent Henderson, 26, 38:19; 5. Joel Leake, 21, 39:38; 6. Aaron Barnhart, 56, 39:39; 7. Scott Lillis, 47, 40:14; 8. Grant Miller, 22, 40:30; 9. Dan Tesfay, 34, 41:24; 10. Alexander Wood, 28, 41:35.

Age group winners

Ages 10-14: Caden Scalfaro, 13, 54:18. 15-19: Ian Roudebush, 18, 46:32. 20-24: Kevin Gideon, 23, 34:59. 25-29: Brooks Ballou, 29, 34:26. 30-34: Clay Martin, 32, 35:55. 35-39: Austin Entress, 38, 45:15. 40-44: James Lawson, 40, 44:40. 45-49: Scott Lillis, 47, 40:14. 50-54: Mike Gray, 52, 50:40. 55-59: Aaron Barnhart, 56, 39:39. 60-64: Paul Salavitch, 60, 49:57. 65-69: David Whipple, 66, 50:41. 70-74: Larry Rink, 72, 50:21. 75-79: David Tripp, 75, 1:07:21. 80-over: Carl Vansant, 83, 1:16.49.

WOMEN’S 10K

Top individuals: 1. Abbey Breshears, 35, 42:10; 2. Julee Danner, 44, 42:12; 3. Brianna Westervelt, 28, 43:03; 4. Amanda Ehrhard, 32, 45:58; 5. Amy Guthrey, 36, 46:18; 6. Katelyn Singh, 21, 46:50; 7. Loretta Achoki, 25, 47:11; 8. Micah Leake, 34, 48:06; 9. Sydney Henderson, 26, 48:26; 10. Juliane Smoker, 35, 49:45.

Age group winners

Ages 10-14: Quinn Hays, 14, 1:17:29. 15-19: Kat Hudson, 16, 54:05. 20-24: Katelyn Singh, 21, 46:50. 25-29: Brianna Westervelt, 28, 43:03. 30-34: Amanda Ehrhard, 32, 45:58. 35-39: Abbey Breshears, 35, 42:10. 40-44: Julee Danner, 44, 42:12. 45-49: Michelle Vircks, 47, 52:37. 50-54: Susan Doerr, 54, 53:14. 55-59: Chablis Sanchez-Martin, 55, 54:36. 60-64: Cindy Longest, 61, 52:16. 65-69: Gretchen Crossett, 65, 1:01.57. 70-74: Bettie Hupman, 70, 1:48.25. 75-79: Sylvia Taylor, 77, 1:42.04. 80-over: Judy Moore, 80, 1:51.01.

MEN’S 5K

Top individuals: 1. Quinlan Moll, 25, 15:46; 2. Colin Cernik, 27, 16:39; 3. Shem Haas, 23, 16:54; 4. Zach Legenzoff, 29, 17:08; 5. Joe Linder, 26, 17:38; 6. Dennis Wachira, 28, 18:11; 7. Landon Allen, 25, 18:11; 8. Ethan Keuhn, 17, 18:37; 9. Andrew Dare, 26, 19:01; 10. Jordan Vonderbrink, 22, 19:17.

Age group winners

Ages 9-under: Bradley Ballenger, 9, 24:07. 10-14: Justin Waldron, 14, 19:58. 15-19: Ethan Keuhn, 17, 18:37. 20-24: Shem Haas, 23, 16:54. 25-29: Quinlan Moll, 25, 15:46. 30-34: Seam Mathews, 31, 21:53. 35-39: Tim Banks, 37, 19:27. 40-44: Ryan Yamnitz, 43, 19:34. 45-49: Johnny Blomquist, 46, 19:20. 50-54: Matt Dunlap, 50, 22:31. 55-59: Michael Rodriguez, 58, 24:29. 60-64: Dan Webster, 63, 25:58. 65-69: Steve Terry, 66, 23:34. 70-74: Russ Ritchhart, 71, 24:38. 75-79: Joe Griggs, 78, 44:48. 80-over: Wendell Koerner, 82, 37:35.

WOMEN’S 5K

Top individuals: 1. Paige Allen, 27, 22:20; 2. Katie Siegrist, 41, 23:09; 3. Hannah Termorshuizen, 22, 23:31; 4. Malena Bloomquist, 15, 23:43; 5. Mayla Meppelink, 29, 24:25; 6. Melanie Termorshuizen, 49, 24:38; 7. Kathy Ritchhart, 61, 25:15; 8. Stephanie Williams, 41, 25:22; 9. Maya Roudebush, 16, 25:23; 10. Nicole Cale, 24, 25:25.

Age group winners

Ages 9-under: Sydney Johnson, 8, 30:30. 10-14: Ellie French, 12, 25:59. 15-19: Malena Bloomquist, 15, 23:43. 20-24: Hannah Termorshuizen, 22, 23:31. 25-29: Paige Allen, 27, 22:20. 30-34: Zenah Chepkwony, 30, 25:43. 35-39: Allison French, 36, 26:02. 40-44: Katie Siegrist, 41, 23:09. 45-49: Melanie Termorshuizen, 49, 24:38. 50-54: Tracy Lewandowski, 52, 29:06. 55-59: Stacey Eggers, 55, 29:46. 60-64: Kathy Ritchhart, 61, 25:15. 65-69: Pam Rockey, 68, 43:42. 70-74: Jane Daniel, 73, 33:00. 75-79: Sugar Lewis, 76, 47:28.