DETROIT – Hundreds took advantage of the break from the rain and intense heat just to get a good workout at a local cemetery.
But it is not the race that’s getting attention. It’s the location. The event took place at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Detroit.
“I mean, it is a little different than the usual course,” William Brinker said.
There were three different courses: the 1.5K walk, the 5K and 10K. Brinker ran and won, the 10K (6.2 mile) race.
“I tried to do negative split, which is like your first mile is slower and then each mile is progressively faster,” Brinker said.
Obviously, time is a factor, but the reason and purpose of the race is by far the biggest motivator. They’re running for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Also among the crowd was Army vet Aaron Bartal. He’s running for another reason.
“I decided to get this flag made and put their names on the streamers, and run this race, to let people know that freedom is not free. There are 35 on there, their names and the dates that they passed. It keeps me where I need to be, knowing that I’m doing something for those who are no longer here,” Aaron Bartal said.
Bartal said the 10-pound flag can get heavy at times, but when it starts to weigh him down in the race, “I don’t even think about it because any time it gets tough. I think about our fallen soldiers and what they have been through during their dying moments,” Bartal said.