Running with Ed is on track for May 20.
Park City Education Foundation‘s biggest fundraiser of the year that will start and end at Snyderville Basin Special Recreation Fieldhouse at the Newpark Town Center will cover a total of 25.6 miles over eight courses, said Jennifer Billow, Park City Education Foundation vice president of advancement.
“The mileage might change, because of all the snow, we may have to make some adjustments,” she said. “We’re working closely with Basin Recreation and Park City to make sure all of the legs are safe and dry.”
The Education Foundation has already made adjustments to three legs — one, three and four, according to Billow.
“On leg one, we changed which tunnel we will run under the freeway, and for leg three Basin Rec has asked runners not to use the trails that go up and down to and from Utah Olympic Park,” she said. “Even if the snow is all melted, the trails will be slick and muddy. So we’re going to use the entry road for the most part. In fact, people who have participated in Running with Ed from the beginning, 14 years ago, will find this route familiar, because the trails didn’t exist back then.”
The changes on leg 4 include the infamous UOP staircase, Billow said.
“An avalanche last week took out some of the stairs, so we are most likely not going to be using the UOP steps,” she said. “We will reroute via the road up from the parking lot to the back gate and then down Bear Hollow.”
Another leg organizers are closely watching is leg seven, which goes through Round Valley, Billow said.
“Although Round Valley is lower and dryer than the rest of the course, we may have to go around it or move the course onto pavement,” she said. “So that will make the leg a bit longer.”
For these and other course adjustments, Billow encourages registrants to keep an eye on the Running With Ed website (runningwithed.com) and any emails sent by the Park CIty Education Foundation.
Regardless of these changes, the shortest leg will be 1.3 miles and longest is 4.5 miles, Billow said.
“We want this event to be open to everyone, including people who don’t run to those who run marathons,” she said. “You can literally build a Running with Ed team with couch potatoes and marathoners if you want.”
Every year there are participants and teams who run the full 25-plus miles, Billow said.
“We always have a couple of people or a team of four who do this,” she said.
Prepandemic, Running with Ed was a 10-leg event, but that changed in 2021, after organizers put the fundraiser on hold in 2020, according to Billow.
“When we started it up again, we didn’t do a big start or finish, because we were concerned about gathering in big crowds,” she said. “So we staggered the starts and did only six legs.”
The feedback from the community was encouraging.
“Everyone liked the shorter mileage, but thought six legs wasn’t enough,” she said with a laugh. “So we decided to make it eight legs in 2022, and that seemed to be perfect.”
Other than the change of distance, Running with Ed has maintained its original appeal throughout the years. One of those charming aspects is encouraging participants to run in costume, Billow said.
“It’s fun to see what the runners come up with,” she said.
Sometimes groups will come up with themes, Billow said.
“Last year, teachers and administration from McPolin Elementary School chose zombies as their theme, because by the end of the school years, that’s what they felt like.”
Another theme for the winning group last year was hockey, Billow said.
“They were all on a hockey team and ran in their uniforms with helmets and hockey sticks,” she said.
Another nice aspect of the event is that it’s not timed, Billow said.
“People can run a leg early and go to their kiddo’s soccer game and then come back in the afternoon,” she said. “We have people who juggle their schedules around Running with Ed, and it becomes just a great day to be out together.”
Of course, one of the main purposes of Running with Ed is to fundraise for the Park City Education Foundation’s classroom grants and classroom-grant programs, Billow said.
The foundation infuses about $2 million into the schools every year through eight signature initiatives:
- Preschool programming
- Elementary Visual Arts (EVA)
- Afterschool programs for grades K-9th
- Educator and Student Wellness
- Real World Learning that utilizes the STEAM framework
- Bright Futures, a college degree for first-generation students.
- Classroom and Express Grants that empowers teachers and students
- Innovation Lab that produces education ideas that gives educators a voice in education.
“Running with Ed raises particular funds for classroom grants that teachers, administration and the school district asks for the following year,” Billow said.
Programs funded by the classroom grants include Latinos in Action, robotics and math cards in the elementary schools. Requests are due by April 1.
“Right now our classroom grant committee is looking at the requests to decide what to fund for next year,” she said.
Classroom grants typically run between $350,000 and $400,000, Billow said.
“So Running with Ed is a great way for the community to help and empower our creative teachers to have an engaging classroom.”
The goal for this year’s fundraiser is $350,000, according to Billow.
“It’s a big goal, but last year our goal was $320,000 and we raised $341,000,” she said.
Fundraising for Running with Ed is easy, Billow said.
“When you register, a fundraising page is automatically created for you,” she said. “So you can start right away.”
The event’s sponsors have also donated some prizes as fundraising incentives, Billow said.
“If you raise $500, you will get free entry into next year’s event, and if you’re in the Top 20, you get mentioned in our Park Record ad and on social media,” she said. “We also have prizes including Cotopaxi gear, summer stay-and-play and winter stay-and-play packages from Park City Mountain/Vail, and gift baskets. We are so grateful so many sponsors have stepped up to sponsor Running with Ed.”
This year, there are special fundraising prizes for students, Billow said.
“If they raise $25, they will get a pair of Skullcandy or Jaybird earbuds,” she said. “If they raise $100 they will get a pair of Pit Viper sunglasses.”
If students want to fundraise but aren’t interested in running they can set up a fundraising page through the website and still be eligible for the prizes, Billow said.
“We want to get students excited to support their schools,” she said.
Adding to the excitement is the Running with Ed finish party that will be held from noon to 3 p.m. at the Basin Recreation Fieldhouse, Billow said.
“There will be food, drinks, Park City Brewing beer, and a ton of stuff for kids, including a climbing wall, face painting and bounce houses,” she said. “Westgate Resort is providing food and Miller Orthodontics hired Yoli’s Taco food truck. And we’ll have a big screen TV and live music.”
The finish party is free for Running for Ed participants and volunteers, Billow said.
For volunteer information, see information box.
“If you can’t volunteer or run, you can still come by for $10 a person or $25 per family,” she said. “We hope a lot of people will come and join us.”