Bellin 10K Run
The Bellin Run, a 10K held annually in Green Bay, Wisconsin on the second Saturday in June, is a fantastic sporting event. It is one of the largest 10K races in the nation, regularly boasting crowds of 12.000-15,000 walkers, runners, and wheelchair participants.
Our friends Eric and Natalie Vandeveld live near the start/finish line of the Bellin. Each year they host a party in their driveway and welcome friends who participate in the run to stop by. They have invited us up to the Bellin for years, but we were never able to take them up on the offer because that mid-June weekend had always coincided with the beginning of summer camp staff training.
When June 2016 rolled around and neither of us were working in camping anymore, we looked into the Bellin again. Mike learned that they had a wheelchair division, which was very exciting because Mike had gained experience with a hand cycle the summer previous and was itching to take it out on the road. Bellin or Bust!
On a previous sojourn, we had worked out the logistics of transporting Mike's hand cycle at the same time as our family of four. We drive two vehicles: our mobility van for when Mike needs his motorized chair, and our Hyundai Tuscon pulling a trailer with the hand cycle tied to it. Mike drives the mobility van, which is fully equipped with hand controls, and I drive the car and trailer.
Here's what the finished product looks like (photo from a different trip - but you get the idea):
We drive up Friday night, stay over at a hotel, then get up very early and drive down to Eric and Natalie's house - parking conveniently in a neighbor's driveway.
In many ways the story of the Rules and the Bellin Run is the story of the Rules dealing with the progression of Mike's disease. We've participated for three years now - 2016, 2017, and 2018 - and the form of our sojourn is always shifting. But the "bones" are good - see friends, enjoy a great 10K, be together as a family. From there good things have grown!
2016
Mike is the athlete - and we are the support team. No one else is running the race - we're just along to support dad. Can we pull this off? Can mom remember not to pull into driveways and parking spots with the trailer attached, or back it up successfully if she forgets? Will Mike be able to get up the hills in the course? Will the bike have any mechanical failures? The first time doing any new sojourn is scary for me. What didn't we plan for?
We got to the hotel Friday night just before a major thunderstorm, but had just enough time to get there, untie the hand cycle and bring it indoors before the storm let loose. We ate Chinese food straight from cartons and watched a movie and hit the sack. The next morning we got up, packed up, and headed over to the Vandeveld's.
I had no concept of the traffic and congestion caused by bringing over 10,000 people to this small neighborhood. Though Eric had warned us, we did not allow enough time for traffic. We had to talk our way through barricades and barely got there in time to get Mike out, on his bike, helmet and gloves and race bib on - ready to go. Before I knew it Eric was whisking him away to the wheelchair division starting corral.
The boys and I talked with Natalie a bit to get oriented, and she showed us where to go to watch the start of the race as spectators. Our next view of Mike was this:
And he was off!
In the spirit of keeping it real - while this was an amazing time for Mike, the boys and I were having a learning moment. In other words, we were fighting...a lot. At the time I didn't understand it at all. Both boys were cranky, uncooperative and argumentative. They had to be dragged to the starting area to go watch Mike, and they acted like they didn't understand why supporting their dad was important. Here's the photo I snapped of them at the time.
When you spend your life as a parent going to their sporting events, cheering enthusiastically and supporting them wholeheartedly, you expect a little more enthusiasm in return. But it was like pulling teeth. Ooh did that rub me the wrong way! But in retrospect I understand two things: 1) they were tired and tweens/teens need sleep to function, and 2) the practice of empathy is a learned skill. No, this event is not about you. Yes, you MUST show caring and enthusiasm and support even though you are tired. Let me be specific about exactly how to show support for your dad in this moment: standing, smiling, cheering, clapping, shouting....that's how it's done here.
We learned our lessons and did better at cheering on dad at our next location. Mike did GREAT and biked so fast in his hand cycle that he finished ahead of the world-class runners. He even gave us a big smile on the last straightaway:
2016 was a bit of a challenge and a learning year for the pit crew - but it went really well for Mike. He finished with a great time and the party afterwards at Eric's was joyous!
2017
For our second time going to the Bellin, we ALL decided to run! Why should dad have all the fun? Luke and Josh and I trained in the spring and by June we were ready to join Mike.
Logistically, we had learned a ton from the first year. I was faster with tying and untying the hand cycle, we got there earlier, and everything was just easier the second time around. I'll let the photos tell the story. (The only thing I would do differently is NOT let cell phones come along.)
2018
Mike has lost some strength in his arms recently, and leading up to the Bellin this year he was unsure about his ability to compete. However, he did take the step of signing up Luke and Josh and I to run. It's been a very busy spring for all of us, so there wasn’t much training done in preparation. But this has become a family tradition, so the boys and I got on board and prepared as best we could.
In the months leading up to the run, Mike and I discussed finding a way that he could participate, including me pushing him or somehow rigging up a motorized assist (like an e-bike). But he declined. It wasn't until the day we were leaving that he changed his mind and decided to try it. With no time to spare, he went to Walmart and found a telescoping squeegee that would allow me to push him a bit in the tough spots, and we decided to give it a go. Luke also invited his friend Jakob to come along, so our sojourn was growing by the minute!
It's fun to really know our way around this event now. I left work early Friday so we could make it to the spaghetti dinner offered by the Bellin crew Friday night. The boys and I picked up our race packets and registered Mike and Jakob while Mike rested in the van from the drive. We got to the hotel with plenty of time to rest and turn in early.
We've learned all the little tricks of this sojourn. Tying down the hand cycle is a breeze - I just have to allow enough time for it. The most important thing about the car ride to Green Bay is not to forget the snacks for the teenagers. We restrict cell phone usage, so we can all be more present in the moment. I've learned to get up earlier than everyone else (5am) and deliver the hand cycle to the Vandeveld's house Saturday morning so we can all just take one vehicle to get through traffic when we go later.
Once we arrived and parked and greeted the Vandevelds, the three boys went off to start in Corral 3 and Mike and I found our starting place in Corral 5 with the walkers and the strollers. I was super happy Mike had changed his mind and decided to compete. The energy of 12,000 competitors was infectious, too!
And it turned out that Mike was stronger than he thought! We took it slow at first - a walking pace - as we went with the flow of the crowd for a couple of miles. Cheering crowds lined the course, including players from the Green Bay Packers. In the downhills Mike was a bit frustrated because he could have cruised at high speeds and then used that momentum for the uphills. Later when the crowds thinned he definitely used this strategy. When his arms got tired I would use the squeegee against the back of the hand cycle and push a bit, but it wasn't needed often. For most of the race I found myself just walking or jogging with a squeegee in my hand, which earned me some quizzical looks from other racers - especially after Mike left me in the dust around Mile 4. It was sort of fun to have a prop and an instant conversation starter with other racers, one of whom inquired "I just gotta ask - what's with the squeegie?" Ha!
The boys finished ahead of us and made their way back to the driveway party at the Vandevelds. I finally caught up with Mike in the last half mile and we finished together. I haven't seen the official race photographs yet, but I hope they captured a shot of Mike and I and the squeegee at the finish, because I know I was grinning ear to ear.
Back at the ranch, we took some group photos, swapped race stories and rested together - a weary troop of brave racers who conquered the course yet again. We headed home, tired and sore but happy, having learned one more thing this year: No matter what comes in the future we should always be doing this event ... together.
