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Walkers join runners in Connellsville competition

By Michelle Thompson For The 7 min read

On paper, it might look like a re-enactment of the tortoise and the hare. After all, runners are supposed to move more quickly than walkers. But although the runners in Wednesday’s 23rd annual John Woodruff 5K Run & Walk in Connellsville will have a head start before the walkers’ race begins, many top walkers will pass runners throughout the course.

Neighbors will offer their garden hoses and Dixie cups filled with water along the road to help recharge the racers. Theme music from “Rocky” will grow louder as participants crest the final hill at the race’s halfway point.

“I like the atmosphere,” said Jamie Brooks, a 35-year-old racewalker from Connellsville who has repeatedly crossed the line as the first female walker. “It is one of the biggest races around. I think all the history around it brings in people.”

The race is named after Olympic great and Connellsville native John Woodruff, most known for his maneuver in the 800-meter run at the 1936 Olympic games in Berlin, Germany. The more experienced racers saw him as a threat and moved in front and beside Woodruff in order to contain him.

Woodruff came to a dead stop, a tactic unorthodox to racing on the track. He allowed the other runners to pass him and moved into the third lane. Opening his stride, he surpassed his competitors and won the Gold Medal.

The German government gave the Olympians an oak tree, and Woodruff presented it to the city of Connellsville, where it still stands at the south end of the Connellsville Area School District’s football stadium.

While he used to make the journey each year to start the run and walk and present awards, Woodruff’s declining health has kept him away over the past few years.

“[I thought it was such a] big deal for me to get his autograph on my plaque,” said Brooks. “I thought it was such a big deal for Mr. Woodruff to make the trip to Connellsville as many times as he has.”

Jennifer Blout of Uniontown received more than an award for being the second woman racewalker to finish in 1989. Her husband had requested that Woodruff present her with an engagement ring instead.

“I have a soft spot for that race,” she said. “I always have because it’s a local race. I haven’t missed any since I started.”

Blout entered the race in 1987 simply for a long-sleeve T-shirt; however, she found that racewalking seemed to come naturally to her. “Of course, any time you meet success, you want to do more of it,” said Blout. “You want to get better at it.”

Two basic rules apply to racewalking. One foot must touch the ground at all times, and the knee must remain straight as it passes under the body.

Blout realized that her fast turnover from one foot to the next allowed her to quicken her steps. She worked to get the proper swing-like form in her hips, which would help propel her forward.

Blout started training with her neighbor and traveled with other local runners and walkers who called themselves The Hot Wing Racers for a while.

Six days a week, she used to train in any type of weather, except thunder and lightning. Three days she would walk her 4.2-mile route and a 3-mile route the other days.

“You compete against yourself,” she said. “The only way to get better is for you to do it yourself. You have to be very disciplined, and you have to want to do it.”

Although Blout no longer considers herself a competitive racewalker or trains as seriously as she used to, she will still walk in Wednesday’s race with the same gold earrings she wears year after year. She looks forward to the encouraging atmosphere among competitors who help to push each other along, as well as the support from the community.

The race draws in many participants new to the idea of running or walking 3.1 miles. Often, they continue to return year after year. Some come because the race raises money for a scholarship. Others hope to see old friends, but many simply enjoy the atmosphere the race generates.

Brooks and her father-in-law, Ron Brooks, started racewalking at the Connellsville race.

“I entered just to be part of the festivities,” said Ron Brooks. “I realized I was competitive. The competitive spirit just took over.”

The 64-year-old man works out regularly, alternating between 5-mile runs and 15-mile bike rides. While racewalking appeals to him the most, he practices his technique only a week before the race.

“I’m accustomed to running 6 miles,” said Ron Brooks. “Really, in comparison to the run, my race is easy.”

The heat that July poses to him will become his biggest threat on the racecourse. Typically, he tries to pace himself on the first part of the race because many participants start out too fast and quickly burn out. He starts looking to pass competitors a third of the way through the uphill portion of the race.

While Ron Brooks hopes to compete in this year’s event, he still has some cold feet when it comes to the amount of training he has performed over the last few months. “I haven’t been able to be as dedicated as I’d like to be and need to be,” he said.

He remains 80 percent sure he will walk in the race. Regardless of whether he decides to walk or not, he maintains that he will participate in the event one way or another.

Conversely, Jamie Brooks looks forward to the Wednesday evening race. “I don’t get nervous,” she said. “I get excited. It’s fun; I look forward to it.”

Jamie Brooks continues to get back in shape after giving birth to her son, Dylan, on March 3. Her husband, Rick Brooks, will push Dylan along in this year’s race.

Last year, she could not walk the race because of her pregnancy. Instead, she jogged because it was easier on her body, and her heart rate wouldn’t rise as high.

Jamie Brooks mixes up her 6-day exercise routine by riding her bike, running and walking. To gain more flexibility, she does yoga.

“I don’t train every single day,” she said. “I take at least one day off to let the body recover.”

On occasion, she and Ron Brooks train together to help push each other.

“It’s good to have someone to train with,” she said. “They might feel a little better than you do and want to go a little harder or faster. That pushes you. Some days, it’s the other way around.”

Brooks said the downhill portion of the race, after the halfway point, will present her greatest obstacle. “That’s hard for racewalkers,” she said. “You kind of have to think of your legs falling beneath you. It’s easier to run down the hill.”

After the race, Blout and Jamie Brooks intend to head over to Bud Murphy’s sports bar and restaurant for the post-race party. Athletes can check the race results posted on the wall and renew old friendships with people they see year after year.

“Going to Bud Murphy’s is just as important as going to the race,” said Blout. “That’s as big a part of the race [as the race itself].”

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