In it's 44th year, nearly ten thousand runners should have been lined up outside the Bellin Health campus in Green Bay to start the annual Bellin Run, a 10K race open to walkers and elite athletes. Like many other mass gatherings, the race was moved to a virtual event this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Many runners and event staff expressed disappointed in the decision to cancel a beloved community event.
"I was really bummed," runner Stephanie Youngs said. "Quite a few races of mine had been cancelled by then, so I kind of knew it was inevitable with Bellin first and foremost being healthcare, and how big of an event it is."
"It's very emotional and sad," assistant race director Linda Maxwell said. "At the same time, I'm very happy with the way the community has responded. We're coming back from this thing, and we're fighting it together. So yeah, I'm a little emotional this morning here."
Without the ability to congregate safely and adhere to social distancing guidelines, Bellin Health's race staff tried to digitally continue as many fan-favorite elements as possible, including a unique race day tradition.
"That saxophone national anthem that is a standard for us was played in [online]," Randy Van Straten, VP of Business and Community Health at Bellin Health said. "I have to tell you, when I listened to it last week ... I teared up."
Some runners opted to run their official race solo, but found encouragement online through a local running group.
"I'm part of the local Moms Run This Town and I think that our online community really helps boost each other," Youngs said. "So I knew that even though I was running alone, we would be together and talk about it online and support each other."
Others used the virtual event as an opportunity to exercise together in person once again. Rachel Hernandez found a pacing partner in the same Facebook group.
"We saw a post on the Moms' group saying that she was going to be running, and I'm like, 'oh, I'll just see if I can run with her,'" local cross country and track athlete Aubree Kubicki said.
Kubicki said that she loves to act as a motivational support runner, and enjoys giving tips along the way.
"It means that I'm not doing this alone," Rachel Hernandez said ahead of her sixth Bellin Run. "This race may be virtual, I may not be in the presence of fifteen thousand other runners, but I'm not alone out on this course."
Since the Bellin Run went virtual, Van Straten said they've reached a new global audience, with participants in Singapore, Germany and even Hawaii sharing their experiences this year.
As of Saturday morning, race staff said that 600 race entries had been submitted. Participants were given a two-week period to complete their 10K.
