Event raises money for school
DIXON - Starting promptly at 10:00am, Saturday, students from the Dixon Elementary School, along with Dixon residents of all ages, ran in 2 mile and 5 kilometer (K) runs to help raise money for the school’s new playground. There was a total of 62 participants in the 5K race. The event was called the, “Bison Stampede.
Principal Kelly Moore said, “It is about $40,000. We’ve got about 35 (thousand) right about now,” describing how in under a year the school has raised or been granted almost all they need for the school’s playground. He went on to say, “For us to be this close already, it is awesome.” He then said he could not remember every sponsor, but he was very grateful for all of the support the school has received for the project.
With an inflatable archway at the start and finish line, the participants ran around the town of Dixon. The young and old ran both courses. All came prepared in some way or other. Some people ran with their dogs, while others ran as a family or with friends. Teachers from the school also participated. Principal Moore even ran in the 5K run.
Prior to the run, over the course of the months of March and April, students of the school could participate in a program called the “Get Fit Club.” Henry Ranney, a third grader, described what the club did: “Run every Monday and Thursday for 19 days around the bench road.” Once the students completed the 19 days of running, they were given a new pair of running shoes.
Some of the runners finished the run quickly and with ease, while others took their time. As each runner crossed the finish line, they had their running tag taken from them and an official sticker with their time was stuck to it. School faculty volunteers organized the contestants by age and times.
The overall times for the 5K were: 1. Eric Midtlyng 20.59, 2. Colin Elverud 22.31, 3. Richard Everett 22.35. Male 14 and under: 1. Colin Elverud 22.31, 2. Jose O’Brien 23.24, 3. Henry Ranney 29.37. Female 14 and under: 1. Karolyna Buck 24.46, 2. Dylann Elverud 31.57, 3. Alliana O’Brien 33.25.
Once the runners crossed the finish line, they headed to the school’s gymnasium, which had been transformed into a pancake house. For five dollars a plate or $20 for a family, anyone could get a plate of pancakes, eggs and sausage. Students and teachers were the servers, dishing out the pancakes and sausage. The gymnasium filled up quickly with the hungry runners.
Inside the gymnasium, voices could be heard describing the details of the route of the runs. Some people commented on the hill they had to climb, while others talked about running methods or their knees.
As Heath Michael Richard sat and ate pancakes after he ran in the 5K, he described his love of running. “I do... Sometimes I get stomach cramps, but it doesn’t stop me,” he said, as he described how he muscles through anything to run. He was also part of the Get Fit Club. Second grader Jose O’Brien said he runs to stay “active and healthy.”