By Chelsea Graham, River Run Race Coordinator and Mariah Singer-Brown, Jensen Center Associate Director
It was a chilly morning at this year’s annual River Run, held October 8 at Central Waters Brewing Company. From the moment the sun rose on race day, over 100 amazing volunteers were at their stations, ready to make this another successful event. Registration volunteers began checking in the more than 750 participants at 7:45 a.m., making sure they received their bibs and timing chips, t-shirts, River Run beer, and the chance to purchase a coveted bottle of Black Gold. Parking volunteers directed traffic to the parking areas, keeping Allen Street safe for foot traffic along the road. Runners and walkers began lining up at about 9:45 a.m. near the starting gate set up by Ben Schultz and his awesome team of race course volunteers.
After pre-race stretching by The Garden Wellness of Plover, the national anthem was performed by the barbershop quartet Regal Blend, and the runners set off on their five-mile tour of our community at 10 a.m. Following shortly behind, the two-mile walkers took a shorter tour of our village. Out on the course, runners breezed by Portage County Sheriff’s Deputies and members of the Amherst Fire District helping to ensure safety and saw students from the Amherst Cross Country Team directing them on the course. Once the runners and walkers got back to the brewery, they were greeted at a recovery table by a group of teenage volunteers with water and bananas provided by Amherst Family Foods. While waiting for race results, participants also had the chance to purchase treats supporting the Jensen Center from Holly Hurda and Fleming’s Cafe, the Iola Winter Sports Club ski team, and the Amherst High School Spanish Club. This year, the race prizes were one-of-a-kind beautiful mugs individually made by potter Kris Crubaugh.
The fundraiser serves as a primary source of funding for the Jensen Community Center, and we would like to once again thank Emerson Automation Solutions-American Governor Hydropower Solutions for allowing us to use their parking lot for emergency vehicles and for providing electricity for announcements as well as letting us use their grounds for additional parking. A special thank you to Amherst Bible Church, Sharpe Engineering, Blenker Construction, and the Village of Amherst and Travis Stuczynski for providing parking areas for volunteers and attendees. Another extra thank you to Central Waters Brewing Company for covering added costs this year. And, finally, thank you to this year’s River Run sponsors: North Wind Renewable Energy, Amherst Family Foods, Central Waters Brewing Company, Farmers State Bank, Fleming’s Cafe, and Stuczynski Soils and Design.
We would be remiss if we didn’t offer an extra-special thank you to Amherst residents and business owners who may have seen more traffic and people for a few hours that day. This event is definitely a chance for us to show off all that Amherst has to offer!
Each year, this event just keeps getting better. A town like ours relies on the Jensen Center for so many programs, entertainment, and strength-building community events. So from all of us who worked on the Run, thank you for the support of this important event for our area. See you next year!
5-mile winners
Thanks to John Burke and Performance Timing
Overall Male
Benny Frericks 29:14.0
Males 19 and under
Fisher Carroll 31:08.7
Marcus Barz 36:54.2
Oliver Hylla 37:15.2
Males 20-29
Chase Przybylski 39:40.6
Ryan Przybylski 42:19.1
Ryan Preston 43:22.8
Males 30-39
Brandon Feinen 29:58.9
Jordan Selbo 30:32.4
Jordan Truttschel 31:57.3
Males 40-49
Joseph Kotlowski 29:29.5
Ben Van Male 31:11.5
Jesse Rintala 32:19.8
Males 50-59
Thomas Wetter 34:19.2
Wayne Grabko 34:57.6
Todd Hagens 35:19.6
Males 60-69
Vic Akemann 39:46.3
Charles Longley 41:41.4
Males 70+
Carl G. Neumann 59:06.9
Overall Female
Becky Fellman 35:30.1
Females 19 and under
Evelyn Fleming 46:24.4
Presley Firkus 1:02:57.1
Females 20-29
Taylor Christiansen 41:32.5
Kathryn Flees 43:19.2
Megan Tutton 48:14.7
Females 30-39
Katelyn Hoffman 35:38.3
Emily Fosler 36:30.1
Hilary Mislan 36:50.4
Females 40-49
Rachel Martinez 40:27.0
Julie Rehfeldt 43:02.9
Melissa Liesch 43:26.7
Females 50-59
Vicky Calawerts 37:53.2
Shelly Gruszynski 39:41.7
Linda Kuhaupt 40:17.3
Females 60-69
Dorothea Ho 41:50.0
Patricia Benedict 46:02.6
Jill Trochlell Ziehr 50:37.9
The Falcon Fun Run, for runners ages 5-10, returned this year with several dozen participants.