By GLENNA MILESON
For The Beachcomber
The Bill Burby Inspirational 10K Run and 5K Run/Walk will celebrate 35 years this year on Saturday, July 18, when Russ Brazill fires off the starting gun promptly at 9 a.m.
While there have been some disputes about the actual first year of the event, Bob McCormick, Vashon High School Class of 1983, has a copy of the registration from the first Fun Run, confirming that it was July 11, 1981.
At that time, McCormick was the sophomore class president and part of a leadership team looking for a way to raise money. Their class advisor, Henry Beal, suggested a fun run.
“We were pretty astounded to learn that people would pay as much as $8 to run a race,” recalled McCormick.
McCormick and his classmate Neal Allen approached the K2 Corporation, which agreed to be the event sponsor by buying shirts and printing forms.
With a sponsor in place, the boys suddenly realized, “Oh, this might actually happen.” So they started asking around to see who might have some experience to help them put on a fun run. They learned that teacher-coaches Russ Brazill and Bill Burby had been organizing an informal run during Strawberry Festival weekend for several years and already had a course laid out.
They joined forces, and the K2 Fun Run was born. When Burby unexpectedly died in 1989, the event was renamed The Bill Burby Inspirational Fun Run.
Over the years, the course location has changed and the organization of the event has been passed on to to different groups at the high school. A 5K run and a 5K walk have been added to the traditional 10K run. Registration fees have increased to $25 for an adult and $15 for 18 and under, but still include a T-shirt. New sponsors have stepped up to help organizers offset the cost of putting on the event each year.
The 10K and 5K runs are now officially timed by BuDu Racing, and the event is sanctioned by USA Track & Field. The first-place prize is a $100 gift certificate from Northwest Sports, and second place is a $75 gift certificate from CoreCentric for both male and female winners in the 10K and 5K runs. First-, second- and third-place medals are awarded to the top finishers in each age bracket. The 5K walk is not officially timed, and prizes are not awarded, but participants are assigned a chipped bib and number to allow them to track their personal time.
Funds raised from that first run went to benefit the Vashon Athletic Booster Club. Today the funds raised through this event continue to support high school athletic teams and the Bill Burby Wellness Scholarship. Participants can also choose to Run for Ryan and donate to the Ryan Krug Scholarship Fund.
Organizers would like to encourage anyone who has been involved in the run to visit the event’s Facebook page and share their stories.
The run and walk will begin at 9 a.m. at the VYFS Playspace. Register online at billburbyrace.org no later than noon Thursday, July 16. Paper registrations are available at Northwest Sports and the Vashon Chamber of Commerce office and should be dropped off at Northwest Sports by Saturday, July 11.
— Glenna Mileson is a race volunteer.
