LANSING PIE K (Lansing - 2020 - 5K)
74 Mile Drive
The 2020 Lansing Pie Run was a change to my March race itinerary. I had five runs cancel due to the coronavirus. Three rescheduled and one is attempting to reschedule. I got so many emails with cancellations. I saw a Pi Run email and thought it was another cancellation. To my surprise the Pi Run was writing to say they were still on! I was very excited. Soon after I got another email stating Potterville’s Blarney Stone Marathon was also still on. Potterville was offering heavy discounts for registrants that had events cancelled. I had to make a choice and it came down to the history. The Pi Run’s first year was last year in 2019. They should have cancelled their run with severe weather imminent that day. I had emailed knowing the system was coming in, but they thought Lansing was safe from the threat. The worst part was we were bused to a starting point three miles from the finish. That is something unique I had never done before. When the thunderstorm hit it was nasty! It dropped small hail and pushed us with its 55 mph winds. I got a handful of runners to take safety under an overpass along the Grand River while the worst passed. Once we left the shelter we got drenched by pouring rain. I am so glad I brought a change of clothes. I had to ring out and hang everything I had worn on the back of our van’s seats. With that said, the Pi Run deciding to hold their run during the coronavirus was pretty amazing and ironic. They have now officially made it past two intense threats of cancellation. I joked with the staff before I left asking what it will be next year. My guess is six inches of snow in the middle of March.
The 2020 Lansing Pie K Run was very different with the coronavirus lingering in Michigan. Besides the lack of runners (maybe 30 total) the city of Lansing on a Saturday was a ghost town. The overall mood in the air was unsure. We stood greater distances from each other in the start corral. The race director gave a great speech about the changes and thanked us for coming out. After finishing I stretched near an older couple that I overheard talking about exercising as a means to stay healthy. I agreed and added that fresh air helps lungs. We both agreed and had a moment of relief. They were really nice. The race staff handed us our medals. This year’s medal was the same acrylic design with the awesome running Pie Man mascot. They still had ribbon as the lanyard. The medals were different colors from last year. I love when medals are the same design every year. The Belle Isle New Year’s Eve Family Fun Run and The Labor Day Bridge Run do same medal designs in new colors each year.
The race staff and finished runners cheered for us with loud voices that could be heard hundreds of feet from the finish. It was awesome. The course was totally different this year. There was no bus to a starting point across town. We ran past last year’s finish line on the course. I saw the parking lot Corky had to sit in last year while bracing the storm in our van. I think Corky has dog PTSD from that day. I feel so bad for him but I was so thankfully I had him with me. Race staff said there was a big hill near the turn-around point in the course. I was surprised when the end of the hill was literally the turn around and immediately back up we went. I have never had to conquer a hill quite like that at a turn-around, it was a fun challenge. I enjoyed running along the Grand River for the entire length of the course. It was beautiful. We ran over a cool artistic bridge near the end of the course. I remembered the bridge from 2019. I thanked each volunteer like I always do, but it meant something deeper this time around. At the finish line they had amazing pie slices all wrapped up individually for us that were delicious. They had enough for family members. We all ate and relaxed outside and then went home. I bought a $5 Friends of Lansing Regional Trails purple shirt. We got amazing baseball style Pie Day shirts with their super cute running Pie Man this year. After thanking the race director for keeping this race on, because it gave my family a sense of “normal,” we left to take pictures around the city.
Things I take from this run are:
1. The great Pie Guy mascot! I hope they never change his design. He’s on the medals and shirts now.
2. The awesome baseball stadium apartments looking over the Lugnut’s field across from the start of the race.
3. I LOVE LAMP. See my picture. ^_^
4. Brent’s pizza in Williamston!! It is incredibly small, but absolutely one of the best. Brent’s had the best cheese bread and reheated pizza a day later. They partnered with Capital Area Humane Society to make awesome adoption coupon flyers.
5. The awesome indoors warming area near the start with nice bathrooms. This run meant a lot to me. I cannot thank all the people that were involved enough for keeping it going. We had fun, we got outside and got exercise while exercising (pun intended) extra caution. I have two medals from extraordinary Pi Run circumstances that will go down in the running memory hall of fame. These are crazy and epic times. Do what keeps you happy. Mental strength is more important than ever. My lungs and overall well-being felt amazing after running. It was a major immune boost.
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