A good day for a run
Photos by JASON ELLIOTT/Press Ed Irvine, 73, rounds the final corner to the finish line of the 35th annual Spring Dash on Sunday morning at McEuen Park in Coeur d’Alene. Also pictured is Lori Flood of Post Falls.
JASON ELLIOTT/Press Gerry Riffel, left, and Cathy Sparks of Post Falls come across the finish line of the 35th annual Spring Dash on Sunday at McEuen Park in Coeur d'Alene.
Post Falls native Daniel Kuplack, front, Terrance Edwards, middle, and Keith Combs race toward the finish line of the Spring Dash.
JASON ELLIOTT/File From left: Andrew Kimpel, Drew Jordan, Toddy Wakefield and Coeur d'Alene resident David Krak lead the pack of 763 competitors in 2017 in the 35th annual Spring Dash race in downtown Coeur d'Alene.
JASON ELLIOTT/Press Greta Baumgadon crosses the finish line with her daughters during Sunday's Spring Dash race at McEuen Park in Coeur d'Alene. A total of 736 competitors competed in the race, a fundraiser for the United Way of North Idaho.
By JASON ELLIOTT
Staff Writer
COEUR d’ALENE — Some participants used Sunday’s 35th annual Spring Dash in downtown Coeur d’Alene as an opportunity to see what kind of shape they were in following a long, dreadful winter.
Others used it as a tune-up for the annual Lilac Bloomsday race across the border on May 7.
But most of the 736 participants had one simple goal in mind once they crossed the finish line.
Have fun.
In the case of Andrew Kimpel, a distance runner who competed in both cross country and track and field at Washington State, it was seeing where he was at health wise.
“It was my first time running this course,” Kimpel said. “It was really a Bloomsday tune-up for me. I just wanted to see where my fitness was at.”
If Sunday’s finish was any indication, his fitness is really good, finishing in 24 minutes, 56 seconds as the top overall finisher.
“I’m feeling a lot more confident about where I’m at, given the winter we had,” Kimpel said. “It was a rough winter for training, so I really wasn’t sure where I’d be at since I hadn’t raced in about a year.”
His splits averaged a mile every 4 minutes, 56 seconds.
“I was just going into today telling myself I was going to get after it,” Kimpel said. “I was trying to see if I could hold myself a 5-minute-a-mile pace.”
And it nearly didn’t happen for Kimpel, who was unaware of the race until a friend told him about it.
“He told me I should sign up for it and we’d see where our fitness was at after that,” Kimpel said. “I’m feeling good. I’m glad I did it. It’s a tough course.”
For 60-year-old Bill Stanke, he was also looking to get into running shape for Bloomsday.
“It’s a great race, and I’m glad I did this,” said Stanke, who finished in 46:53. “I’m feeling really good about Bloomsday now. I switched my age group this year, so I’m feeling a little better about it.”
For Danielle Lampi, who ran the race a few years ago, it was a triumphant return, finishing in 30:01 as the first female finisher.
“The wind was a little hard along the shorelines,” said Lampi, who ran cross country and track and field at Western Washington and Eastern Washington. “But once we tucked back into the neighborhoods, it wasn’t too bad. It was a really nice course.”
Lampi, who did not compete at Bloomsday last year, said she’s confident she can continue her success in a few weeks.
“I’m feeling good right now,” Lampi said. “I’ve been able to get some workouts in and this race went really good. I’m getting excited for it.”
Things didn’t go all that smoothly for Ed Irvine, who slipped and fell along the course. He still bounced back to finish in 47:52.
“It’s the third or fourth time I’ve ran in this event,” said Irvine, 73. “I just do it to keep in shape and exercise.”
Now, about that fall.
“I cut my head open and busted up my elbow,” Irvine said. “Other than that, it’s all good. I did five half-marathons last year. My daughter and son run also, so I do it to keep up with them. It’s a lot of fun.”
The event is a major fundraiser for the United Way of North Idaho.
And despite the threat of rain, United Way Executive Director Mark Tucker said it was fine for racing.
“We’ve been really fortunate the last couple of years,” Tucker said. “It’s just overcast today, so we don’t have to worry about any runners with heat exhaustion or getting overheated. People are staying more hydrated and it’s really nice. More people seem to be enjoying it. It’d be better if there wasn’t any wind, but the runners are loving it.”
It also marked the second year the event had started and finished in McEuen Park.
“It’s a nice atmosphere in the park and hopefully the other nonprofit organizations are having some success with other people looking around,” Tucker said. “It’s more friendly for the Tot Trot (kids race) and they can use the same start/finish line as the adult race as well. It makes for a more fun, family-friendly event.”