WEEKEND EVENTS FOR AUGUST 9 - 10

Last year, the second weekend in August gave us a break from extreme heat and humidity, much like what we enjoyed last weekend.  That won't be the case this weekend, as the heat and humidity will return.

Billings (southwest of Springfield):

Butterflies & Blueberries 5K, Saturday

Willard:

Freedom Tri, Sunday

Kansas City and vicinity:

Kansas City Backyard Ultra and 12/9/6/3 hour races, backyard ultra starts Friday evening; timed races start Saturday morning
Depot Dash 5K, Saturday
Kill Creek Park Triathlon, Saturday
Lunar-tic 5K, Smithville Lake, Saturday evening

St. Louis and vicinity:

Swlfty Fun Run (5K/10K/half marathon), Creve Coeur Lake Park, Saturday (Warning: This is a Taylor Swift-themed event.)
Drink MO Beer 5K/10K/1-Mile, Creve Coeur Lake Park, Saturday evening
Indian Camp Creek Challenge (mountain bike race), Floristell, Sunday
Market Mile, one-mile run/walk on Market Street in downtown St. Louis, Sunday

Edwardsville, Illinois:

Watershed Endurance Runs (6 hours/3 hours), Saturday

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TRIZOU FOR MS TRIATHLON (posted August 5th)

Jim McDermott went undefeated in his age group in all three triathlons he's done so far this summer--ConcreteMan, Republic Tiger, and last Saturday's TriZou for MS Triathlon in Columbia.  

Jim did the sprint distance race, completing the 500-meter pool swim, 14-mile bike and 5K run in 1:18:12.  Here are his splits:

Swim:        12:44 
T-1:             2:44
Bike:          29:30  (18.3 miles per hour)
T-2:             2:37
Run:          33:15  
Finish:    1:18:12

Full results can be found here.

TriZou was once one of the largest triathlons in the state, with about 750 participants at its peak around 2013-2014.  Unfortunately, it faced the same attendance problems as running races. The race was cancelled by its then-owner, Ultramax Sports, in 2020 due to COVID, and didn't return until it was resurrected in 2024 by Heartland Racing. This year's participation fell to a record low.

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ROCK ISLAND TRAIL HALF MARATHON & 5K (posted July 29th)

The only completed section of the long-planned Rock Island Trail played host to the fifth annual Rock Island Trail Half Marathon & 5K on Saturday. The race started and ended in Pleasant Hill, located about 10 miles southeast of Kansas City. 

Five runners from the Lake area made the long drive to compete in the race.  Here are their results:

Complete race results can be found here.

There were 194 and 173 finishers of the half marathon and 5K, respectively.  That compares to 224 and 146 finishers, respectively, last year.

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REPUBLIC TIGER TRIATHLON (posted July 29th)

The Lake area had two podium finishers at last Saturday's Republic Tiger Triathlon in Republic.

In his seventh appearance at the triathlon since 2012, Jim McDermott once again won the men's 70-74 age group, this time over three other competitors. He finished the 300-yard swim, 12.2-mile bike and 5K run in 1:20:15, about five minutes slower than last year, most of that being attributable to a slower 5K split (on a very warm, humid morning).   Here are his splits:

Swim:          7:42 
T-1:             1:36
Bike:         39:11  (18.7 miles per hour)
T-2:             2:24
Run:          29:25  (9:29 per mile) 
Finish:    1:20:15

Heather Miller took third (of four) in the women's 40-44 age group, with a 1:53:06 finish.  Here are Heather's splits:

Swim:          8:22 
T-1:             2:25
Bike:      1:03:01  (11.6 miles per hour)
T-2:             1:29
Run:          37:51  (12:13 per mile) 
Finish:    1:53:06

Complete race results can be found here.

There were 131 and 67 finishers of the sprint and super sprint distances, respectively.  By comparison, there were 106 and 56 finishers of those races in 2024.

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CHRISTMAS IN JULY 5K RUN/WALK (posted  July 26th)

Here are links to the results for Saturday's Christmas in July 5K:

By finish order

Division winners

The race photos can be viewed here.

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FREEDOM RUN (posted July 16th)

A new Lake-area race will debut on the evening of Saturday, September 13th at the Osage National Golf Resort in Lake Ozark.

The Freedom Run is sponsored by Budweiser and Jim Beam, and benefits Folds of Honor, a nonprofit organization providing scholarships to the spouses and dependents of fallen or disabled service members and first responders.

Three race options are being offered: 4.44-mile and 44-mile races for solo runners, and a 44-mile race for relay teams of four or more.  The 44-mile races start at 9:00 p.m. Saturday and end at 7:00 a.m. Sunday.  The 4.44-mile solo race can be started at the runner's choosing, at any time between 9:00 p.m. Saturday and 6:00 a.m. Sunday.

Entry fees can be found at the registration page.  Fees will rise on August 1st, and again on race day.

Visit the race's RunSignup.com webpages for all the details.

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