Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
LAYTON – Kael Jenkins talked about why he enjoys running while his brother Seth celebrated finding a bit of treasure at the St. Patty’s March Run/Walk 10K, 5K and kid’s one-mile event in Layton’s Ellison Park on Saturday.
“I like the wind,” said the 8-year-old Kael, who finished second in the children’s one-mile race. “It feels good. So when you run, there is a lot of wind.”
Seth, 5, jumped up and down behind Kael, shouting and pointing at the gold coin offered to him at the end of an obstacle course.
“I got a coin!” yelled Seth. Upon hearing his brother describe the wind in his face, he added, “The wind makes you go fast.”
Their mom, Amber Jenkins, didn’t run Saturday morning, but she’s training for a marathon so the boys are familiar with the sport that drew several hundred people the day before St. Patrick’s Day.
“We just try and find races for them wherever we can,” Jenkins said.
Most people may not think of running a race as a way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, but race organizers offered families the opportunity to combine holiday fun with fitness and family bonding time.
“This is the first we’d heard of it, and we just decided to get out and celebrate fitness as a family,” said Brenda Smith, from Roy, who ran the 10K while her husband Michael Smith ate green pancakes with their three children. “I’ve got to find some way to keep these kids active and involved, and this is so fun.”
Smith usually gets up at 5 or 6 a.m. so she can run before her duties as a mother make it difficult to sneak away by herself for an hour or two. Saturday’s event allowed her girls to enjoy the satisfaction their mom feels when she logs miles.
May friends stand by our side.
May history remind us all
Of Ireland's faith and pride.
May God bless us with happiness.
May love and faith abide.
“I like running,” said Kazia Smith, 7. “I like it because it’s exercising like my mom.”
Kazia and her five-year-old sister Jade (wearing matching green stretch pants) ran the one-mile race together. Kazia said she could have run faster on her own, but she held her sister’s hand instead.
“I wanted to stay with her,” she said. “I’m supposed to take care of her.”
That was sort of the point of the morning.
Normally after a race, the finish area is roped off so runners can recover separate from the stress of a crowd, amongst their fellow athletes. Saturday, the only rope in sight helped runners of all ages through a finisher’s chute that opened into a St. Patrick’s festival – face painting, pictures with a leprechaun (co-race director Andrew Sturgell), breakfast, healthy treats and the fan favorite – an obstacle course on the park’s playground.
I began running when my children were small. Over the years I have struggled with the guilt that accompanies leaving my children at home on a Saturday morning while I run. I never felt good asking my husband to drag them out of bed to watch me cross a finish line and then wait for me to have a post-race snack. My training, like most mothers, occurred before my children woke or after they went to school. If they needed me, I sacrificed my run. I would never have been able to enjoy the life-changing moments running has offered me were it not for the support of my husband and daughters.
Most of those were experiences I didn’t share with my children until they began running with me, which is why I appreciate events like the St. Patty’s March Run/Walk. They offer children a chance to feel a bit of the magic that makes participating worth the sacrifice.
I like running. I like it because it's exercising like my mom.
–Kazia Smith, 7
The importance of providing them their own moments isn’t just to alleviate my working-mom’s guilt but also to show why choosing an active lifestyle will make them feel better about a lot of things, including themselves.
Smith said her children are her greatest support, even though caring for them can make training difficult. She said they ask if she ran and when she’s going to the gym. When she slacks, they ask why.
“They keep me accountable,” Smith said. Seeing families – siblings, grandparents, parents, friends – enjoy the post-race party as much as the runners reiterated how important it is to lead by example.
Kazia Smith loves to run because her mom does.
Kael Jenkins knows the joy of the wind in his face because his parents showed him.
If the health benefits weren't motivation enough, the chance to eat green pancakes and find gold coins is an opportunity all of us should relish. St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, wherever they are and whatever they entail, can be about gratitude for family, friends and the good fortune of having both.
Twitter: adonsports Email: adonaldson@desnews.com
