A trio of true ringers visited Monroe Elementary Monday morning to give the school’s chapter of Kidstriders a real run for some real money.
Tuesday will mark the 10th anniversary of the Grand Blue Mile, a downtown road race that kicks off Drake Relays week in Des Moines. The event always features a contingent from the Iowa Kidstrong/KidStriders program, students who run and/or walk a cumulative marathon distance of 26 miles during the school year and celebrate with a “victory run” during the Grand Blue Mile.
DMPS School Board Chair Cindy Elsbernd established Kidstrong/KidStriders in 2005, and she was on hand at Monroe to accept a check for $70,000 from Chris Verlengia, the race director and Senior Brand Marketing Manager at Wellmark Blue Cross & Blue Shield, the title sponsor of the GBM event, which routes right past Wellmark’s headquarters on Grand Avenue.
Kidstrong/KidStriders is an official beneficiary of the Grand Blue Mile and the check represented its share of event proceeds from the past decade.
Standing by during the check presentation were Heather Kampf, Hannah Fields and Savannah Camacho-Colon, like idling racecars. Between them, they brought plenty of laurels to rest on before they led everyone outside to take a lap around the playground.
Kampf, aka “Queen of the Road Race,” is a 3-time GBM champion and the course record-holder.
“I wanted to be a gymnast when I was your age,” she told the Monroe kids. “But when I outran my coach during training he suggested maybe I should try running track for a sport.”
Hannah Fields wanted to be a soccer player. But she discovered a hidden talent running laps with her teammates at practice.
“That’s where I really stood out,” said the 13-time NAIA champion from Oklahoma Baptist.
Savannah Camacho-Colon liked to ride horses when she was younger. She only ran to keep in shape for other sports like softball. Eventually, she ran to the head of the pack and became a 4-time Big XII track champ at Oklahoma State.
In just the one lap at Monroe on Monday morning, it was hard to tell who might have the stuff of racers like Kampf, Fields and Camacho-Colon. But thanks to Elsbernd, KidStriders, and Wellmark, schools districtwide are going to find out.
See Photos of KidStriders running with Heather Kampf, Hannah Fields and Savannah Camacho-Colon.
