No running required

| August 30, 2019 1:00 AM

By DEVIN WEEKS

Staff Writer

COEUR d’ALENE — Ironman, Coeur d’Alene Marathon, Coeur d’Alene Triathlon, Spring Dash.

So much exercise.

What about those who just aren’t into all that hard work, sweat and Spandex?

Never fear, couch potatoes and non-runners — the Coeur d’Alene Sunrise Rotary Club has you covered with the 0.5K Race for the Rest of Us.

Yes, you read that right. Half a kilometer.

That’s 546.8 yards, 0.31 miles, 1,640 feet, and if you want to get technical, precisely 19,685 inches.

“There’s little or no distance involved,” said recent past club president, present board member and race coordinator Brian Goetz. “Anyone and everybody can do it. It’s designed for people to come out and have fun.”

The race is at 10 a.m. Saturday at McEuen Park. It’s expected to last an entire 15 minutes, so be sure to stretch.

Just in case, Goetz and crew have something special planned halfway through the race.

“Because we don’t want anyone to bonk” — that is, to hit the wall — “we’re going to have a water and doughnut station at the halfway point,” Goetz said with a chuckle. “You can grab a cup of water and a Krispy Kreme doughnut and keep going and fuel up for the distance to the finish.”

This inaugural event was inspired by the Sunrise Rotary Club in Walla Walla.

“It’s just a fun event,” Goetz said.

Money raised at the race will go toward the club’s general fund that supports local and international causes at the discretion of the board. The Race for the Rest of Us is for all ages.

Participants will receive a “University of Lake Coeur d’Alene” T-shirt and a window sticker so they can feel proud any time they wind up in traffic next to some buffed-out Ironman finishers.

“This is just designed to be a lighthearted community event that everybody can enjoy,” Goetz said. “When you train for an Ironman, you have to have the distance. A 5K you have to run. What we loved about this is if you live in an average residential neighborhood and you walk down eight houses and you walk back home, you’ve got the distance in you.”

Registration for the first Race for the Rest of Us is $25.