Preparing Grizzlies for a Love of Running
by Claire Gearhart, Batavia High School junior/BPS101 Communications Dept. intern
During the month of October, fourth- and fifth-graders at Grace McWayne Elementary school had the opportunity to join a running club in preparation for the Marklund 5K on Sun., Oct. 21.
GMS PE Teacher Rhonda Gamlin helped start a running club when she was teaching at J.B. Nelson School. After she moved to GMS, she found out there was already a group of students running in the fall, which was initiated by Chad Clarey and former GMS PE teacher, Phil Albrecht. The “Grizzly Running Club” was born from meshing philosophies and practices at both schools, to make the program even better.
The original thought behind the Grizzly Running Club was to prepare fifth-graders for cross country in middle school, but was later extended to fourth graders so they could get a taste of running.
“On Mondays, when we teach the fifth-graders about cross country, we try to give them tips for how to race a cross country course,” said Mr. Clarey. “When we meet with the whole group on Fridays, we work on pacing ourselves as we extend the time that we run.”
Since the beginning of this school year, however, the focus of the club has grown to be more than just preparing kids for future competitions.
“In this particular club, we emphasize the fact that it doesn’t matter how good any of the runners are, it is simply about improving ourselves, working hard to reach a goal, enjoying the process, and finding out that running is both a healthy and rewarding alternative to staying fit,” said Mr. Clarey.
There are many benefits that the Grizzly Running Club offers to GMS students.
“My hope is that it provides students with an opportunity to try something challenging and then the reward of being able to say they finished something that was difficult. I don’t stress the importance of winning and placing in any race, but rather just being able to say, ‘I did it and I did my best,’ “ said Mrs. Gamlin.
The students’ hard work was well worth it as they successfully finished the Marklund 5K with flying colors.
The Grizzly Running Club will pick back up in this spring to prepare for the Batavia Mothers’ Club Foundation’s 5K Fox Trot on April 27, 2019. Join in this race and watch GMS students show off all the hard work they’ve put in this school year!
