Race has new course Brass Band 5K moves to park

By JILL ERWIN

Staff Writer

The Brass Band 5K Run/Walk through downtown Danville has been a staple of the Great American Brass Band Festival for several years.

This year, it has become easier to organize with the move to the new Millennium Park for Saturday's 5K run.

"It's hard to have a race downtown because you have to close so many streets," race coordinator Sarah Hempel said. "It takes so much effort, not only from the volunteers here, but the police as well, especially on a busy weekend like this.

"This is going to be a lot less hassle on the community in general."

The race enthusiasts will gather at Millennium Park next to Boyle County High School to face the 5K run at 8 a.m. Saturday. The course will cover a mixture of the trails within the park and Gateway Drive, the main entrance road to the park.

"The runners will not be on the highway at all," Hempel said. "It will all be enclosed within the park. It's essentially a huge loop around the park."

The trails have not yet been paved and Hempel doubts they will be by Saturday morning. But runners will be able to see the baseball area -- still under construction -- as well as where the amphitheater will be, the softball and soccer fields' places and the 'natural area' in the back corner of the park.

"We're real excited," Hempel said. "They've had some events there, like the Easter egg hunt, but this is the first race there and it's a good way to show off the park.

"We'll stay away from the construction at the baseball site, but in the future we'll route around that a little more. Runners will be able to see the whole park."

Hempel said last year's race drew 180 participants. She expects up to 200 for this year.

She has worked hard to make this an inclusive, family-based event, with family discounts and age groups for younger children. The fee is $10 a person, but if a family has more than three members, the flat rate for the whole group is $30.

"Most races feature more for people ages 15 or 16 and up," Hempel said. "We have groups for 8 and under, 9-11, 12-14 and so on. So a 9-year-old is not racing against a 14-year-old. It gives an incentive for the younger children to try to win their group."

Immediately following the race will be a light brunch and prize ceremony.

Each participant will receive a T-shirt, and the first three men and women will each receive a prize. There is also a prize for the first master (over 40) and grandmaster (over 50) as well as the top three in each age group.

In addition to the 5K run, there is the inaugural 5K walk beginning at 7:15 a.m. Participants can either follow the 5K route, or walk the trails. Then at 8 a.m. there is a "mad dash" of about .1 mile for the younger kids and all participants will get something.