American Martyrs 5K celebrates 40 years

A father and son run in the 1985 American Martyrs 5K. Photo courtesy American Martyrs School

 

In February 1980, a leap year, Ronald Reagan won his first presidential primary, the USA hockey team beat the Russians in the Olympics and a few hundred American Martyrs parishioners in Manhattan Beach ran down the nearby streets in the church community’s very first 5K race. 

Reagan is long gone and the USA never got the gold in hockey again. But the folks at American Martyrs are still running five kilometers every February and will do so for the 40th time, this being another leap year, on the 29th day of this month. 

“It happens roughly for the same reasons today as it did in 1980 — that is for the building of community and a fundraiser for the school,” said Brian Tinker, the 5k event chair. “It’s another way to bring in some much-needed revenue for education and make sure people are connected to one another.” 

The event has grown over the years. Between 600 and 1,000 runners now participate each year in the event, which organizers simply call “the 5K.” Tinker said that’s because the “race” or “run” aspect of the 5K is only part of what it’s about. 

“We call it the 5K, because people who want to run it competitively can and do. But it’s equally important that there’s a number of people who have no intention of running it,” Tinker said. “They walk because that is exactly the exercise they need, especially these days, when they have a FitBit.” 

This year, the 5K will expand both in the race it offers for elite runners and the gathering it brings to the entire community. A $200 cash prize will be awarded to runners in male and female elite divisions as well as two family divisions, Tinker said, while a slightly altered racecourse and a tiered start will allow elite competitors to run more unfettered than in years’ past. Meanwhile, the event won’t end shortly after the last person has crossed the finish line; instead, the 40th Annual AMS 5K will launch its 1st Annual Health Expo, featuring several wellness exhibits and health professionals to connect the community to resources for more healthful living. 

The event, Tinker said, is all about connection. 

“For a lot of people who come, running or walking is one segment of a routine, because really wellness translates into a routine of healthy habits,” Tinker said. “It’s a start; it does represent part of what you need in order to head in that direction. And so we want to offer more connections — to your own family, to the Manhattan Beach community, to the American Martyrs community, and to whatever spiritual universe, whether you call it God or mother nature or karma. It’s all this spirit of connectedness that allows us, mortal humans, to do impossible things.” 

And of course, there’ll also be bounce rooms and ninja opportunities: a new kids area will include a “Ninja Nation Mobile Obstacle Course.” 

“It’s very similar to the American Ninja Warrior [television show],” Tinker said. “I think everyone out there wants to know if they can run the warped wall. Now they have that opportunity.” 

Paul Dorr, a parishioner who has run the 5K more than 30 times, said he’s pleased to see the event thriving. But Tinker, who tries to run in a race at least once a month and thus knows the lay of the land, says one thing still separates the AMS 5K from others. 

“One of the defining features that I don’t see at any other runs — and I’ve been running for 40 years — is that the T-shirt every year is designed by one of the students,” Dorr said. “I’m looking right now as we speak at a T-shirt from 1983, signed by some kid. They’ve had some great T-shirts over the years.” 

Dorr recalled that the 5K was launched when a running craze, popularized by runner Jim Fixx, was spreading around the country. Within a few years in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, Redondo Beach launched a Fourth of July 5K and Super Bowl 10K, Venice a Christmas run, and Manhattan Beach the Hometown Fair 10K. But this race, Dorr said, often scared away the so-called elite runners. 

“The problem for those guys is it’s a tough course,” Dorr said. “A lot of them are not into running up and down hills like we do, as opposed to Redondo, which only has one decent hill. They pass me — before I’ve done the first mile and a half, they are finishing.”

But for Dorr, like so many people who’ll be chugging up the hills near American Martyrs on the 29th, it’s more about the journey than the finish line. 

“It’s a family gig,” he said. “But we are at it again. I’ll be out there plugging away. It keeps me motivated, and I’m old. I’m 82. I’ve got to keep cracking.” 

The 40th Annual AMS 5K Run/Walk and 1st Annual Wellness Expo takes place at 8 a.m. Feb. 29 at American Martyrs School, 1701 Laurel Avenue, with registration beginning all day Feb. 28 and at 6 a.m. the day of the event. See Ams5K.org for more information.

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