2008 Woodie Awards
Campus prepares for Saturday's Earth Day festivities
Alex Voigt
Issue date: 4/19/07 Section: Sports
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With the weather beginning to resemble spring, more than 3,000 participants will break out their running shoes for the Earth Day Half-Marathon Festival this Saturday and Sunday.
Featuring a half-marathon, a 5K and a 1K children's run, the Earth Day Festival offers runners of different ages and ability levels to participate in a festival that has grown into a major event in St. Cloud over the years.
Since 2001, the number of participants has grown from 800 to nearly 3,300 this year.
Senior Jessica Ringwelski, who will be running in the 5K race for the second time Saturday, notes that the development of the festival is what makes it so appealing.
"My favorite thing is how the program seems to grow every year," Ringwelski said. with a smile. "It's also fun to watch the younger children run the 1K race."
Brad Pickle, executive director of the festival, has been involved with the event since 2000 and said he believes the event has grown as a result of organizers providing good, clean fun for families.
"People have been coming out more and more every year because they're guaranteed a safe and healthy event for all ages that's a lot of fun at the same time," Pickle said.
Pickle is quick to attribute that growth to the active participation of groups such as the Boy Scouts of America and Campus Recreation.
"We have a lot of volunteers from those organizations dedicating their time to help us make the event as successful as possible," Pickle said.
The festivities are not limited to the races either, as the weekend will feature a Community Health and Fitness Expo Friday at the Halenbeck Fieldhouse from 3 to 9 p.m. Pickle said he is particularly excited about the Expo because of the opportunities it provides for different organizations to get their name out to the community.
"We're supposed to have almost 4,000 people go through there, so clubs and organizations in the area will have a chance to tell everyone a little bit about themselves," Pickle said.
Featuring a half-marathon, a 5K and a 1K children's run, the Earth Day Festival offers runners of different ages and ability levels to participate in a festival that has grown into a major event in St. Cloud over the years.
Since 2001, the number of participants has grown from 800 to nearly 3,300 this year.
Senior Jessica Ringwelski, who will be running in the 5K race for the second time Saturday, notes that the development of the festival is what makes it so appealing.
"My favorite thing is how the program seems to grow every year," Ringwelski said. with a smile. "It's also fun to watch the younger children run the 1K race."
Brad Pickle, executive director of the festival, has been involved with the event since 2000 and said he believes the event has grown as a result of organizers providing good, clean fun for families.
"People have been coming out more and more every year because they're guaranteed a safe and healthy event for all ages that's a lot of fun at the same time," Pickle said.
Pickle is quick to attribute that growth to the active participation of groups such as the Boy Scouts of America and Campus Recreation.
"We have a lot of volunteers from those organizations dedicating their time to help us make the event as successful as possible," Pickle said.
The festivities are not limited to the races either, as the weekend will feature a Community Health and Fitness Expo Friday at the Halenbeck Fieldhouse from 3 to 9 p.m. Pickle said he is particularly excited about the Expo because of the opportunities it provides for different organizations to get their name out to the community.
"We're supposed to have almost 4,000 people go through there, so clubs and organizations in the area will have a chance to tell everyone a little bit about themselves," Pickle said.