New run gets a big Hi!5 from participants

Published 7:54 am Friday, February 29, 2008

LYNNWOOD — Jimmie Alford didn’t cross the finish line ahead of the crowd, but he was a winner.

Alford, 60, came all the way to Lynnwood from Chicago, Ill. for a wedding and decided to test himself and go back to his past by running in Lynnwood Rotary’s first annual La-Z-Boy Hi!5 10K Run Aug. 22.

Alford, a 30-year runner who has ran in seven marathons, suffered a spinal infarction, respectively a stroke in his spine, six years ago.

“I was paralyzed from the waist down. I had to learn to walk again,” Alford said. “I was wishing I could walk much less run.”

The Hi5! Run was his first race since the stroke.

Alford’s goal was to just finish the 10K, he said, and to finish under 70 minutes. He finished in 68 minutes.

“I was last — but I’m first,” Alford smiled. “I feel absolutely triumphant, you don’t have to be first to have it be an accomplishment. It was like the first race all over again.”

Throughout the race and at the end of the line, Alford said he heard the low roar of the motors from the Lynnwood motorcycle police officers behind him, as if they were escorting him through the race.

Lynnwood Police Officer Stephen Showalter was one of the eight motorcycle cops guiding the 5K and 10K runners through the streets of Lynnwood.

Showalter said that he rode behind Alford the whole race and that he was an inspiration.

Not knowing Alford’s success story, Showalter said, “he had the spirit of an elephant, he refused to stop.”

Showalter added, “this was great fun to see all the community spirit out there over this event, people on every corner rooting the runners on.”

The first annual Hi!5 Run wasn’t just a success for this Illinoisan but also for the Lynnwood Rotary Club who organized the event.

There were about 175 participants in the 10K and 5K runs along with the walk and Kid’s Dash and included almost as many volunteers, according to Lynnwood Rotarian Jean Hales, who was coordinator for the event.

According to the participant lists provided by ProMotion, the company who certified the race and provided the race results, in the two runs the ages of the participants ranged from 8-years of age to 68 and the person who came the furthest for the run was from New Jersey. A majority of the participants came from South Snohomish and North King Counties.

Hales said it was too soon to tell how much total money was raised for the Lynnwood Rotary charities but the club received $45,000 in cash and in-kind sponsorships.

“As chair of the inaugural Hi! 5 Community Event, I am very pleased with the results. Considered alone as a one time event, Hi! 5 2004 met our goals and we consider it a success. As the foundation for an ongoing and growing community event, we are absolutely delighted with the outcome. The Rotary Club of Lynnwood appreciates the display of community support through sponsorships, the partnership with Alderwood for the fabulous location, and the cooperation of the City of Lynnwood,” said Hales, who is also the president of the South County Chamber of Commerce.

“And, I can’t say enough about the pleasure of working with a truly dedicated group of volunteers. It took us nearly two years to pull this together and every time I turned around, there was another Rotarian offering to help. We had 150 volunteers show up very early on a rainy Sunday morning. What a terrific experience!”

Runners of all calibers repeated how they thought the inaugural run was as organized and well done as some veteran runs in the Seattle area.

“There were a lot of volunteers and it was very well organized,” Edmonds resident and 10K runner Selena Bolotin said about Hi!5. “It was every bit as organized as races that have been going on for years.”

Runners for the 5K and 10K stated different reasons why they participated in this first annual event.

Out to have some fun, longtime friends Troy Burke from Mountlake Terrace and Cedar Valley Community School teacher Luke Marvel from Kenmore ran cross country together in high school, they said, and decided to start running some races to get back into shape.

“So instead of running for nothing, we decided to run for a T-shirt,” Burke said laughing.

They run together, they joked, so one can pick up the other if/when they fall.

They added, they like the organized runs because “there are so many volunteers to help them get through the run.”

Cherie Evans from Mill Creek was training for her first half marathon as were several other folks interviewed.

Many runners said they would be back for next years Hi!5 Run because the event was well organized but even more importantly, the venue was centrally located in Lynnwood and was convenient to get to and park at. According to veteran runners, this isn’t the case at most rooted Seattle area races.

South District Court Judge and Lynnwood Rotarian Tim Ryan said the fun run is a great addition to the other big fundraisers Lynnwood Rotary has done or is still doing such as the past air show, its many auctions and golf tournaments.

“I think this area is ripe for a fun run,” said Ryan, who is an avid runner himself. “I would be running myself except I’m volunteering. Most of the runs are in the Seattle area and a lot of people want and would participate in a run right here in Lynnwood.”

Officials from ProMotion said it takes a couple years for a race to really get started and bring in the masses.

The light mist in the air and cooler weather was a perfect day for the run, many participants said.

Also, while it could have been risky because of the weather, most of the runners spoke out about how they appreciated having a downhill finish.

“You earn that downhill finish, because there are a lot of hills in this race,” said LaShawn Scherting who was running along side of her husband Dennis Scherting. The couple lives in Edmonds.

Barry Beeninga from Brier was a little more unsure of the hill finish.

“The hills were challenging and I had to really slow down at the end, I hope nobody slips,” he said. “At the end you really want to pour it on but you can’t here because you might lose your footing.”

Beeninga, who has ran in many runs before, added “this run was wonderful. It was easy to participate, everyone’s warm and inviting and it was all very well organized.”

“It’s a challenging 10K,” LaShawn Scherting added, “and that’s good because it will get more people to come back next year because of it.”

They, along with other runners, added the runs were well marked and they also appreciated the hustle of the awards ceremony and were happy to see there were so many prizes given to all the runners, not just the winners.