Runners, walkers on the move in annual Aslinger competition

The ninth annual Howard Aslinger Endurance run held this weekend at Arena Park in Cape Girardeau was a rain or shine chance for people from all walks of life to get outside and support the Howard L. Aslinger Memorial Scholarship Foundation.

Kim Kelpe, daughter of Howard Aslinger and co-organizer of the yearly event, said the turnout for the 12- and 24-hour competitions were similar to last year�s.

Kelpe said the competition comprises a 24-hour race that starts at 7 p.m. Friday; a 12-hour race that starts at 7 p.m. Friday; a 12-hour day that starts at 7 a.m. Saturday; a midnight 5K Friday; and a one-hour noncompetitive race Saturday.

�My family hosts this every year, so this is kind of �our baby� and what we do in memory of my father,� Kelpe said. �He wanted to be able to provide scholarships to people with disabilities, because he had polio and was in a wheelchair his whole life.�

Kelpe said the annual event was actually her husband, Bryan�s, idea.

A group of runners participate in the ninth annual Howard Aslinger Endurance Run on Friday at Arena Park in Cape Girardeau.KASSI JACKSON

�He came to us several years and said, �We should do a 24-hour,� and we�re like, �You�re crazy. Why would anyone come and run for 24 hours?�� Kelpe said.

The first year had 30 people, according to Kelpe, and now the turnout is around 125 people for the 12- and 24-hour races, not including the other races.

This year, there were more than 200 participants.

�Usually, the 12-hour is pretty split, so at 7 p.m. we have a lot of people, and then at 7 a.m. a lot of people are leaving and coming,� Kelpe said.

Susan Schenberg of St. Louis participated in the event Friday night and has been part of the event for five years, each year competing in the 24-hour race.

�The Kelpes are just great people, and it�s a wonderful cause,� Schenberg said. �I love seeing all of my friends. We meet here every year and we do this together. The camaraderie is fantastic and it�s just a great event.�

Patty King and Katie Lombardo, also of St. Louis, have collectively been part of the annual competition for about eight years. They�ve known each other for quite some time; King was Lombardo�s dance teacher when she was in school and this year was Lombardo�s first, in the rain Friday night.

�This was a doozer of a storm, I will say that. We have not had one like this since I�ve been doing it,� King said. �This was crazy for her first year.�

But both King and Lombardo agreed it�s a wonderful cause, no matter the weather.

�How can we not inconvenience ourselves for one day when people have to be inconvenienced every day of their life?� King said. �When I first did this race, I was just getting into ultra marathons, very new into it, and somebody told me about it. The first time I broke my foot training ... I couldn�t do it, and it was weeks before [the race]. So I came back another time, and I did the 12-hour and I knew no one. I was exhausted.

�The last hour or so of the race, Bryan who runs it, out of nowhere was like, �There�s still some time on the clock, come on, you can do another lap,�� she said. �He went and ran the whole time with me, pushed me over 50 miles in the 12 hours. I was like, �I don�t even know you,� and he was so nice and ran with me to make sure I really finished at the end.�

According to King, �you never know you can do it unless you try.�

Newcomer Lombardo said she�s heard only amazing things about the race and was excited to finally head out of town for the weekend and compete with King.

�Everyone�s been super nice. ... We�ve already met some incredible people,� Lombardo said.

John Legens of St. Louis has been part of the competition for two years and said he likes that the event is just down the road from his home.

�It�s not a huge event, so when it�s close by it�s easier to attend. It�s kind of an addictive thing. It�s very unique. You can really pace yourself and you can put all your stuff right by your vehicle,� Legens said. �You can literally stop every lap if you wanted to, where with some of the other ultra [marathons] you�re running 30 or 40 miles out, and you have to have stuff stationed exactly. This is a little bit easier, especially for a beginner.�

Dana Osborne, originally from Southeast Missouri, said this was her second year in firefighter gear, but her fifth year competing. Last year she volunteered her time as a firefighter in Fruitland, but as of August accepted a full-time firefighter position for Nixa, Missouri, just outside of Springfield.

�My first year was a runner, my second year was a volunteer, my third year was the midnight 5K and my fourth year was last year,� Osborne said. �This event, first and foremast, is one of the best organized events that I�ve ever been to. Kim and Bryan [Kelpe] do an excellent job of taking care of their runners, keeping things organized and the spirit of the event is to inconvenience yourself, which I think is fantastic.�

Osborne said she participates in order to motivate her �brothers and sisters� in firefighting to take care of themselves, to be healthy and to get fit.

�Sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths for firefighters and it�s been consistent over the years,� Osborne said. �Last year, we lost 37 firefighters in the line of duty. It was over 40 percent that were due to sudden cardiac arrest.�

Osborne said she�s �no one special� and �clearly the smallest guy� on the firefighting department. But she hopes to motivate and inspire fellow firefighters to �get out there and take the time to take care of themselves.�

�So that�s my reason: my crew and my boys,� Osborne said.

Cape Girardeau native Shannon Aldridge participated Saturday morning and has been part of the event for eight years.

�The first year I did the 5K; the second year I did the 5K and the 12-hour; I did the 12-hour again, then went to 24-hour and just stuck with that,� Aldridge said. �First of all, this was my first ultra. That means the first time I went over 31.6 (miles) was here.�

Aldridge also said his first 50-mile, first 100K and first 80-mile took place in Cape Girardeau.

�It�s like having a party in my backyard, because I live, like, six minutes from here. ... I love this race,� Aldridge said. �The way it�s set up, it has a way of pulling out of you what maybe you didn�t know was there. This is just one of those things that, as soon as it opens up, I sign up every year.�

Javier Cendejas, a concert pianist originally from Mexico who lives in Louisville, Kentucky, has been running in the Cape Girardeau event for four years and said he likes the event because �the cause is very important.�

Eugene Defronzo, who made his way from Connecticut, said to date he has competed in 718 full and ultra marathons.

�This will be 719, if I finish good,� Defronzo said. �I�m doing the 12-hour. It�s an obsession. ... I just have to do it.�

jhartwig@semissourian.coom

(573) 388-3632

Pertinent address:

410 Kiwanis Drive, Cape Girardeau, Mo.