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    Guardians of the Gait: Washington Air National Guard Bloomsday Team

    Guardians of the Gait

    Photo By Master Sgt. Eugene Lewan | Members of the Washington Air National Guard Bloomsday Corporate Cup Team: Lt. Charles...... read more read more

    SPOKANE, WA, UNITED STATES

    05.06.2012

    Story by Master Sgt. Eugene Lewan 

    242 Combat Communications Squadron

    SPOKANE, Wash. - Site of one of the largest running events in the world, the 12 kilometer Bloomsday Road Race!

    This year marked the 36th running of this fantastic event, and community gathering. Over 50,000 runners participated. The Bloomsday run was the idea of local runner and 1976 Olympic Marathon runner, Don Kardong. The first race was held on May 1, 1977 with over 1,000 participants and included the Olympic Gold and Silver Medalist, Frank Shorter.

    Over the years the race has built a loyal following and has seen a few changes in the course layout. There have also been additions to the race. In 1982 the Corporate Cup Competition was incorporated. This is a competition within the Bloomsday race in which organizations enter five member teams to compete amongst other organizations of similar size. The Washington Air National Guard took the challenge this year and entered with its volunteer team consisting of members from three squadrons. The 141st Air Refueling Wing was represented by Lt. Chuck Parsons and Tech. Sgt. Mikaela Soulier. The 256th Intel Squadron was represented by Senior Master Sgt. Steve Kautzman. The 242nd Combat Communications Squadron was represented by Senior Master Sgt. Mike Lyon and Master Sgt. Gene Lewan.

    Preparations began back in February with team members preparing at the new Fairchild Air Force Base Fitness Center. They utilized the indoor track during inclement weather and fitness training rooms for specialized exercise programs. Their team was named the “Guardians of the Gait.”

    The Corporate Cup competition is scored by dividing each Corporate cup runner’s time into the winning time for his or her age bracket. For example, if the age bracket winner had a time of 50 minutes and your runner has a time of 60 minutes, your runner’s score would be 833 points (50/60 = .8333, or 833 points. The three highest scores on each team are added together to determine the team score. The highest team score wins.
    The “Guardians of the Gait” finished fifth in their division with 2,320 points. The team plans to increase training next year and are looking to challenge for first place. The object of this team was to promote fitness and camaraderie. Everyone enjoyed the run, even our “mister with the blisters” and look forward to the run next year.

    Go Guard!

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 05.06.2012
    Date Posted: 06.18.2012 14:14
    Story ID: 90192
    Location: SPOKANE, WA, US

    Web Views: 168
    Downloads: 0

    PUBLIC DOMAIN