News - July 2020
July 26
Emma Maria Mazzenga broke the Masters W85 World Indoor 400m record at the World Masters Athletics Indoor Championships in Torun, Poland, March 26, 2019. Thanks to Fritz Menninger for finding this video clip.
July 25
Canceled Races Aren’t Stopping Endurance Athletes From Setting Wild New Records
Just before 6:30 a.m. on June 15, sleep-deprived and feet afire with blisters, Joe “Stringbean” McConaughy crossed over Vermont’s border with Massachusetts. After subsisting mostly on watery mashed Oreos and Fritos for the final miles, McConaughy finished a grueling trek along Vermont’s Long Trail in 4 days, 23 hours and 54 minutes — the fastest an athlete has been known to traverse the entire trail without a prearranged support crew. The 273-mile trail through the Green Mountains takes an average hiker between 20 and 30 days to complete and is known for relentless black flies, knee-deep muddy stretches and varying terrain from thick forest to alpine tundra. It is the oldest long-distance trail in the United States and one of the classics for attempting a fastest known time. more
(by Anna Widerkehr, FiveThirtyEight, July 20, 2020)
July 23
Billy Mills: Reflecting on his epic victory at the 1964 Olympic Games, racism in America and a return to Tokyo
When Billy Mills arrived in Tokyo for the 1964 Olympic Games, few people knew much about the lanky US athlete. By the time he left two weeks later, he was a global star.
The Olympics are full of inspirational stories but few are as compelling as that of Mills, the Native American distance runner who pulled off one of the greatest upsets in Games history and went on to become a prominent advocate of humanitarian causes and racial and social justice. more
(Stephen Wilson for World Athletics, Jule 23, 2020)
July 20
Complying with state and county health guidelines, Red Dog's Dog Days Summer Workouts are officially cancelled. Look to the fall for this popular community workout program.
July 18
Congrats to runLawrence officer Matt O'Reilly on his first place finish at the Amelia Earhart 8K. Douglas County was well represented at the run. Results
July 15
INDIANAPOLIS - USA Track & Field (USATF), in conjunction with AthleticNET, is excited to announce the first ever USATF Masters Summer Virtual Challenge presented by Toyota, August 3-17. The goal is to provide Masters athletes ages 25+ the opportunity to experience competition in spite of the global pandemic altering the originally-scheduled summer season.
Registration opens July 13 and athletes may sign up for an unlimited number of events in their five-year age group. Registration costs $10 for USATF members and $20 for non-members. All registrants will receive a virtual competition bib to wear while competing and a finishers certificate upon completion of the challenge. more
July 13 - One Way to Put On a Race During the Pandemic
Today I PR’ed at a race—a real race, not a virtual one!
Having had a season of races cancelled due to the coronavirus, I have new appreciation for the act of pinning on a bib, counting down a start with others and crossing a real finish line. Since race directors everywhere are grappling with how to host races in a way that reduces the risk of virus spread as much as possible, I thought I’d share how this race felt safe and well organized, and different but satisfying from a competitive standpoint. more
(by Sarah Lavender Smith, July 4, 2020, Training & Racing)
July 10
runLawrence's 2020 Thanksgiving Day 5K and Kids' Fun Run Cancelled due to COVID-19
After a series of conversations involving many of our members over the last couple of months, the runLawrence's Board of Directors has made a unanimous decision to cancel the 2020 Thanksgiving Day 5K and the accompanying Kids' Fun Run due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
runLawrence's Thanksgiving Day 5K and the Kid's Fun Run are well known events in Lawrence, KS as well as Douglas County. Both races have been a community tradition since 2004. People from all over the country come back to Lawrence every year to be with their families during the Thanksgiving holiday. As a result, we typically have had many family groups running together Thanksgiving morning.
We are sad about the cancelation, but feel that it is necessary for us to pause the tradition. We look forward to returning in 2021, but for now, we will patiently wait for all of us to join together again in a safe and responsible way.
Thank you so much for your continued support over the years! Please stay safe and healthy!
Sincerely,
Brenda Groskinsky
President, runLawrence
July 8
Ryun’s mile record earns him USATF Throwback Athlete of the Week honors -
Jim Ryun (Wichita, Kansas) set a world record in the men’s mile on June 23, 1967 and was voted by fans as landslide winner of the 14th USATF Throwback Athlete of the Week award. In the absence of competition during the Covid-19 pandemic, we are taking a weekly look back at some of the great efforts by American track and field athletes through the years. more
July 5
Another update on the Sunflower State Games. Several sports have been canceled, but some with lower risks to health because of social distancing and lower attendance are still scheduled.
Canceled: Track & Field (July 10-11), 5K and 10K Road Races (July 11), Cross Country (July 18),
Still Happening: Orienteering (July 12), Adventure Race (July 18).
More details on all the SSG sports.
July 2
On my way home from downtown about 1 pm today, I noticed a runner running west on 5th St. The flag caught my attention and when we nearly collided as we both turned north onto Wisconsin, I asked how far he was running. He said he was running across the U.S.! This aroused my curiosity so I decided to ride beside him for a little while and learned that he is running to raise awareness and funds for military veterans who are suffering from PTSD with a goal of reducing or eliminating suicides. He has a large dog that often runs with him and he is also raising awareness and support for dogs trained to help veterans with PTSD. He was staying at the DoubleTree Hotel so I rode with him to the hotel and then gave him a small donation and wished him the best of luck. So nice to see someone doing something very positive to help his cause. See more about his journey at Run Russell Run - Dee Boeck