The Friends of Potawatomi State Park Present
Help us celebrate the 20th anniversary of a "Door County Original" on Saturday, October 4th at Potawatomi State Park. In 1988, the late Dave Pflug and Bruce Urban (DNR) and Arnie Lindauer (Park Manager) founded Run Wild to raise money for endangered species. The DNR event was discontinued in 1995, but resurrected and held every year since 1996 by the newly organized Friends of the Park Group. With the support of many volunteers and loyal sponsors, the runners, walkers and kids have enjoyed fun days in Door County.
This year's event will have some improvements with finish line electronic timing, improved size selection of long-sleeved t-shirts and the usual trophies, refreshments of fruit, bagels and assorted drinks, child care, medallions and short-sleeved t-shirts for the kids run and door prizes galore. So come on out and enjoy your friends, many have been here for all 20 years, like Dennis, Nic and Gene. Don't forget running greats Roy Pirrung and Rita Clark will be here too! See you on the 4th!
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Date: Saturday, October 4, 2008
Events:
10K Run
3 mile Run/Walk
1/3 mile Smokey Bear Fun Run (ages 4-10)
Times:
8:00-9:30am - Registration 10:00am - 10K run and 3 mile run/walk 11:00am - Kids Clinic hosted by USA Ultra-Runner Roy Pirrung. Rita Clark, a 7-continent marathoner from Green Bay, will share her stories. See below for more information about Roy Pirrung and Rita Clark. 11:15am - Smokey Bear Fun Run
Location: Scenic Potawatomi State Park in Door County, WI
Fees:
$15.00 for the 10K run or 3 mile run/walk if entry form is signed and postmarked prior to 9/25/08 and $18.00 thereafter $7.00 for the Smokey Bear Fun Run FREE entrance to the state park (the regular fee will be waived for the day of the race)
Awards:
Trophies for the top three male and top three female finishers in each age group of the 10K and 3 mile run, medallions for all kids
Age Groups: 14 & under, 15-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70 & over
Long sleeve, adult-sized T-shirt for those participating in the 10K or 3 mile run Short sleeve T-shirt (child's size large) for those in the Smokey Bear Fun Run Great door prizes
Conveniences:
Water stations, refreshments, restroom facilities/showers and FREE child care with ADVANCE NOTIFICATION You can view all the pictures from Run Wild 2006. Due to inclement weather, very few pictures were taken at the 2007 event. The few we have are blurry so none are posted!
Meet our two celebrity runners. Both Rita Clark and Roy Pirrung are very active, have interesting backgrounds and are inspirational role models.
Rita Clark states that, “Running is as much a part of my life as breathing.” She began running in 1983 after the tragic death of her husband. Rita bought a Doberman so that she and her three daughters would feel safe at home. Realizing that the big dog needed exercise, Rita decided to take the dog out for small runs. It was then that she noticed how much better she was feeling mentally and physically. She began running more (with and without the dog) and eventually tried ultra-distance running. Although she enjoyed it, the long distance took up too much time for the single parent raising three girls and working at a local hospital. Over the years, Rita continued to run and she also took up other sporting activities like biking, swimming, kayaking, snowshoeing (racing), cross-country skiing and luge in Michigan. This fall, she will compete in her first cyclocross race and has already started training for it.
Focusing back on running, Rita was the 20th woman in the world to finish a marathon on each of the seven continents. Now she is trying to accomplish that feat in each of the fifty states. Rita said that, “Just running to check off a state or country isn't good enough--I do run for place.” In 2005, Running Times magazine listed Rita Clark as one of the top female runners in the nation in the 50-59 age bracket. Her Masters record still stands in Antarctica and she set the age group record in Adelaide, Australia; Santiago, Chile and Reykjavik, Iceland.
Rita Clark is known for her running as well as for her volunteer efforts as exemplified by the following press release dated 12/6/04:
Rita Clark, a mentor to children in the Brown County Human Services Department - Pals Program, today received the 2004 Green Bay Packers Community Quarterback Award. The Pals Program was presented a $10,000 grant on behalf of Clark.
The Pals Program matches children from low-income, troubled and special-needs families with an adult mentor to be a positive role model through weekly recreational or learning activities.
A volunteer to the program since 1987, Clark has worked with six different girls over the past 17 years, donating thousands of hours with her 'Pals.' She has provided a positive role model for girls without an adult female role model in their lives. Clark has assisted her 'Pals' in the areas of developing a healthy life style, including diet, exercise, grooming and hygiene, as well as helping the girls through awkward adolescent times through teaching sports, the arts and numerous other recreational and learning activities.
A licensed practical nurse and massage therapist and an accomplished marathon runner, Clark also has given time to Unity Hospice, Our Savior Lutheran Church, Habitat for Humanity, the American Red Cross, the Bellin Run and the Cellcom Marathon.
Please look for her at the park on October 4th!
All he wanted to do was to lose a little weight and quit smoking. As a former two-pack-a-day smoker, Roy was concerned about the effects of over a decade of smoking. He struggled for breath when he climbed a flight of stairs. On his 32nd birthday in 1980, Roy Pirrung started running. Ten months later he ran his first race. He hasn't stopped running since.
In 1989, Roy competed in his first of many international ultramarathon events. In his first attempt at the 155-mile route from Athens to Sparta, Roy placed fourth and was the first American to finish in the top ten with an exceptional time of 27 hours and 8 minutes.
An ultramarathon is any organized footrace extending beyond the standard marathon running distance of 42 kilometers (about 26 miles). Ultra races typically begin at 50 kilometers and can extend to enormous distances. There is no limit. Rules allow runners to "go as they please." This means they may take walking breaks, pause to drink or eat and even sleep if the events are especially long, such as multi-day races.
The annual Trans America Footrace is run in 64 consecutive daily stages from Los Angeles to New York. Runners cover almost 3,000 miles (more than 4800 kilometers) at a rate of about 45 miles (72 kilometers) a day.
How does all this pertain to Roy? Here is what Running USA wrote about Roy in an article dated April 4, 2007:
Roy Pirrung, 58, Sheboygan is a world masters champion and U.S. Open and masters champion. He has broken over 50 national records and won 50 national titles. Since 1981, Pirrung has run 80 marathons and 122 ultramarathons, along with over 500 other events. Perhaps most remarkable of all is that Pirrung has completed every race he has started.
For a complete biography and a list of Roy’s achievements, please visit his Web site at www.roypirrung.com.
Roy Pirrung has been instrumental in helping to make Run Wild such a fun, exciting and successful event year and after. We are proud to welcome him back for the 2008 event. Please say hello to him and take advantage of the opportunity to obtain a useful running tip or two!
Click on the following e-mail address to contact us: potparkrun@yahoo.com
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