It’s -21 degrees, let’s go on a run

It was -21 degrees outside when I arose from this morning’s slumber; weather fitting only for polar bears and other arctic creatures.

When the temperature dips this low my old nostalgia machine kicks in and I think back to my years as race director for Clinton Community College’s B-rrry Scurry run. The race is held the first Saturday in February each year (Feb. 7 this year) and not surprisingly its mascot is a polar bear named B-rrry Bear (more about him later.)

I served as race director for seven years, by the end of which time we regularly had more than 1,000 registrants for the race. This despite the fact that you never knew what weather conditions or temperatures would be like on race day.

The average Iowa temperature for that time of year is roughly 25 degrees. The race has seen temperatures all the way from the mid-60’s to a time in 1996 when it was -18 below at noon when the race horn went off.

Truth be told, it was so cold the air horn froze at the start and I resorted to hollering, “GO!”

Prior to that, the committee had often discussed what we would do if we experienced a snowstorm and weren’t able to hold the race, but we never anticipated the record colds that hit us that year. We reverted into what can only be referred to as crisis mode.

We released stories to the media almost encouraging participants not to participate. We set up a variety of times that they could pick up their shirts ahead of time and urged them to go directly to the post-race party. We even agreed to mail shirts out which we never do, due to the cost and logistics involved.

We cut the number of volunteer positions outside to the absolute minimum we felt was necessary to conduct the race. In addition, we doubled up on the volunteers at each location so that they could trade off, one warming up in the building or a vehicle, while the other was outside.

Even so, we still had more than 300 people actually participate that day. Almost to a person, when asked why they were doing it, every one of them said they were doing it for the “experience” and to be able to say they ran the race on that record cold day.

As for B-rrry Bear, I was the original B-rrry Bear. When we first bought that B-rrry Bear outfit I was the one who went to the parades and other events, dressed as our loveable friend. I even made one appearance for my daughter’s kindergarten class, teaching them all about polar bears; not an entirely easy task considering B-rrry Bear can’t talk.

The most memorable B-rrry Bear appearance for me was the one pictured here, the 1991 Bix 7. That’s me crossing the finish line. For those of you unfamiliar with the Bix, it’s held on the last day of July in Davenport. And just as the B-rrry Scurry is known for its cold temperatures, the Bix is known for heat and humidity.

It’s not a particularly good climate for furry creatures like B-rrry Bear. Adding to the challenge is the fact that it’s almost impossible to drink fluids inside that bear head.

I was fortunate in that two people agreed to “escort” me along the way, one in front and one behind. It’s very difficult to see inside that head, so the person in front was essentially my guide for the race.

We alternated running and walking, probably running just over half of the race. Dehydration definitely kicked in during the last two miles. In the end though, as with those brave souls who competed in the coldest-ever B-rrry Scurry, I was glad I did it for “the experience.”

If you’d like to join the B-rrry Scurry experience this year, there’s still time to register on their website. See you there!