By Chris Barge
Camera Staff Writer

At 7:10 a.m. Monday, Gov. Bill Owens will set down his coffee, fire the starting gun and unleash about 42,000 runners, strollers, wheelchair jockeys and stilt walkers onto the streets of downtown Boulder.

If you live downtown, don't worry about setting a wake-up alarm.

The cheering roar of participants and their 100,000 fans gathered for the Bolder Boulder 24th Memorial Day 10K run will spare only the deepest sleepers. Almost all agree it's worth the early hour just to take in the belly dancers, high-stepping cowgirl seniors and rock and blues bands that line the race course.

Among the participants in America's fifth-largest road race will be Evelyn Lawson, who, on her 78th birthday, will walk her 13th Bolder Boulder.

"I'm going to wear a sign on my back that says, 'Today is my birthday, May 27,'" she said in a phone interview from her new home in Apache Junction, Ariz. Her son, Dwight Lawson, is driving his mother to Boulder for the race.

"It's a must," she said. "I just moved here from Boulder in September, and I said then I'm coming back for the Bolder Boulder — I don't care what."

Lawson has won eight medals for placing third through seventh in her age group over the years in the Citizens' Race. She has had each of them engraved with her finish time and the date.

The race that Running Magazine now calls "one of the planet's premier road races" began in 1979, when Bank of Boulder president Steve Bosley organized it at the suggestion of gold medalist Frank Shorter. There were 2,700 participants.

Since then, it has gained prominence among national and international runners as a fun, off-tempo race. In 1998, race organizers instituted the International Team Challenge, a five-lap team criterium course that starts and ends at Folsom Field.

The Team Challenge is the largest road-racing event outside of an Olympic competition. The prize purse totals $82,500.

But the heart of the Bolder Boulder lies in the chests of the masses who run, walk and cheer on the Citizens' Race. Starting at the north end of 30th Street, the race winds through neighborhoods with live music and entertainment at every corner.

Anyone with two feet or a wheelchair can follow the crowd to the University of Colorado's Folsom Field, where as many as 40,000 spectators cheer participants through the finish.

Allan Staker, 57, of Littleton has only won one medal — and that one was a mistake. A couple of years ago, he said he received a ninth-place medal in the mail.

"At first I got really tickled to have placed that high," he said.

Then, upon closer inspection, he noticed it was an award for the women's division in his age group.

"Then I got really mad because I realized there were eight women out there my age who beat me," he said.

In February, Staker had knee surgery. His doctor cleared him to run in his 20th Bolder Boulder tomorrow. In honor of that good news, all five of his children are traveling from as far as California to join him in the race.

"It's just such a great honor to be with my dad as he does this," said his daughter, Lisa Staker of Los Angeles.

Last year, 41,117 participants crossed the finish line at Folsom Field. Of those, 90 percent were from Colorado and 40 percent were from Boulder County. The average runner was in her early 30s, and 53 percent were female.

The average Citizens' finishing time was about 1 hour. Martin Weiss, the winner of the Citizens' Race, traversed the course in 31 minutes, 10 seconds.

Bud Cox, 90, of Kansas City, Mo., was the oldest participant. Dozens of new mothers and fathers carried their infants the distance.

A Memorial Day Tribute begins as the Citizens' Race ends at 11 a.m. at Folsom Field. As runners stretch and congregate, a color guard will give a 21-gun salute recognizing the men and women who have served the United States. A skydiver will sail into the stadium with an enormous American flag as the crowd sings the national anthem.

Four U.S. Navy jets will polish off the tribute with a screaming flyover.

"I think this year is going to be special because of the events of 9/11," said Jay Ruggeri, captain of the Boulder firefighters union, which won the Bolder Boulder Public Service Team Challenge last year. "This year I can imagine there won't be a dry eye in the house."

At 11:16 a.m., the International Team Challenges and the professional men's and women's races begin.

Bolder Boulder spokeswoman Nancy Kauffold said the best place to watch the race is either inside the stadium or on Folsom Street between Arapahoe Avenue and Stadium Road.

Last-minute participants can register today at Crossroads Mall at the old J.C. Penney store from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The entry cost today is $27, or $35 with a T-shirt.

Registration Monday begins at 6 a.m. behind First National Bank near the start line. The cost of entering on race day goes up to $32, or $40 with a T-shirt.

Contact Staff Writer Chris Barge at (303) 473-1389 or bargec@thedailycamera.com.

May 26, 2002

E-mail this story to a friend | Printer-friendly version