St. Jude Marathon Runners shake off delay
Rain can’t damage the spirit of thousands of participants in Downtown Memphis
Rain delays didn’t dampen the spirit of motivated runners and colorful characters taking part in the St. Jude Memphis Marathon on the morning of Dec. 1.
In fact, a later start time meant the record 26,000 participants could get more rest, ALSAC CEO Richard Shadyac Jr. quipped to the crowd before the start of the 5K and 10K races. ALSAC is St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital’s fundraising and awareness organization.
“Did you appreciate that extra little time to sleep? Come on, that’s what it was all about, right?” Shadyac said.
St. Jude decided Dec. 1 that it would push back the race start times by 30 minutes, adding on to another 30-minute rain delay announced on Nov. 30. Those two delays meant the 5K and 10K races started at 8 a.m., while the half and full marathons started at 9 a.m.
Around 6:30 a.m., a light rain coated Downtown Memphis, where the starting lines along B.B. King Boulevard were. The rain gradually weakened into a sprinkle until the skies fully cleared around 9 a.m.
The delay was made “out of an abundance for safety and to make sure that our participants have a great race experience,” said Emily Callahan, chief marketing and experience officer for ALSAC.
Shadyac also said marathon safety is key for St. Jude and added that the delays didn’t appear cause any issue among participants.
“Everybody’s just excited,” he said. “I think it’s a great testament to everything that makes Memphis great and all of these people that want to give back to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.”
Marathon giving numbers — the event is St. Jude’s largest single-day fundraising event — surpassed 2017’s $10.3 million mark early on, reaching $11.2 million by the morning of Dec. 1.
More than 70,000 people total were expected to be at the event, which St. Jude took over in 2002, participating, volunteering or watching. St. Jude tweaked marathon routes this year with the aim of both reducing traffic conges-
tion and increasing the amount of Memphis scenery runners would encounter.
St. Jude’s mission of fighting lifethreatening diseases like cancer in children gave participants plenty of reason to run and donate.
“We’ve done this for the last seven or eight years, we do it for the kids,” said Rick Ingerson, who dressed as Elvis Presley alongside his running partner Richard Wendt.
The two Floridians said they were gearing up to run the half marathon for this race due to knee issues. The St. Jude Memphis Marathon is one of their favorites, as Memphis is perhaps the most obvious city to run a race in an Elvis costume.
“We run a lot of races around the country,” Ingerson said. “[Wendt] usually dresses as Elvis. I sometimes do.”
Wendt said he started running regularly as Elvis around 2010. The rain forced Wendt to leave the speaker he plays Elvis music on during races behind. He wasn’t concerned about any rainfall outside of that, even with a glamorous costume to take care of.
“I think the secret is that it’s a parade, and you’re in it,” Wendt said regarding best practices in running as Elvis. “Just go at your own pace, and if someone wants to sing or take pictures, great.”
Julian Williams and Velda Gates, two Memphians, took a festive approach to their costumes by dressing up like Santa Claus. They have done St. Jude races before, but in terms of scale, the Memphis Marathon stands out, Williams said.
“We’ve always been out of town for this one, so we always miss it,” he said. “We decided to add it to our [running] regimen, and I didn’t know how big it was. I was like, ‘OK, I’ve been missing something.’ ”
A group of six Guardian Pharmacy employees said they were running for the daughter of a coworker: Alana, a St. Jude patient who was diagnosed in July with Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. They all wore matching purple “Alana’s heart” shirts, which featured a smiling, colorful heart with wings.
“Alana drew the design,” said Luke Ledford, one of the runners in the group.
Runners heard from a St. Jude patient directly before the start of their races. Singing the national anthem for the marathon was Addie, who spent six months at St. Jude in 2016 being treated for acute myeloid leukemia and has been in remission for more than two years.
Singing is a passion for Addie, and she said she always wanted to perform the National Anthem at the marathon.
“It’s incredible to not only see people raising money, but raising awareness and being gathered to make a difference,” she said.