C. Billy Essick, 71, had triple bypass surgery last year, but that’s not going to stop him from walking and running 8,000 meters on Saturday at the Pride of Kinston’s Run for the River.
He and his wife Sally, 72, of Manteo, did the 1 Mile Fun Run last year and are now preparing for the big race.
“We’re walking as the weather permits,” Sally Essick said.
The couple goes to the gym and walks three to four times a week. On one day, they walked 8 miles.
Sally cracked her sternum, so they stopped going for awhile, but they’ve registered for the 8K race and plan to be there.
“I am (ready), yes,” she said. “I think he is.”
Billy Essick said they found out about the race one year ago when they were camping at Neuseway Nature Center, where Billy occasionally volunteers with building exhibits.
Participants of the eighth annual Run for the River are about 50 percent out-of-towners, Adrian King, the Pride’s executive director, said.
“It’s twice the size it used to be when it started in 2006,” he said.
Pre-registration for the event, sponsored by Pride, the city of Kinston’s Parks and Recreation Department and the Kinston-Lenoir County Tourism Development Authority, is ongoing through Friday’s Welcome to the Race party and dinner, which begins at 6 p.m. at the Hampton Inn.
The party is open to volunteers, runners and sponsors. Wells Gulledge, a former Kinston High School boy’s basketball coach, will be the featured guest speaker. The two new state champion teams from KHS have also been invited.
Kinston Mayor B.J. Murphy and Miss Kinston-Lenoir County 2013 Maggie Nelms will help distribute medals after the race concludes.
Awards will be given to all the 1-mile participants. Cash awards will be given to the top three male and female winners and male and female winners from Lenoir County. Medals will be given to the top three male and female winners in each age category.
Pride is providing T-shirts for the first 250 registrants. An anonymous donor is supplying 150 bright yellow T-shirts for the volunteers.
William Wilder Jr. of Kinston will be watching his 5-year-old son William III run the 1-mile race, and then he will take part in the 8K race.
“I’ve actually run every year but a couple of years,” the father said. “I try to do it every year. It’s a really good event.”
Wilder said he started out running in college and has run a couple of marathons, so he isn’t doing anything more to prepare than what he normally does. He usually runs at least 20 miles in four or five days each week.
He said he encourages his son to race with him by making little contests of running short distances with him in his neighborhood. Last year, William III cheered his father on with his mother and wanted to race. This year, he will get his chance.
Ty, 7, and Levi, 12, Wentz of Kinston will also be running the 1-mile race. This will be Ty’s second race and Levi’s third time.
“They get very excited about it every year,” their mother, Heather Wentz, said. The family prints off their time each year and the next year they try to beat their own time.
The boys don’t need any additional preparations as they are both involved in sports, Wentz said. When they get to the event, they are raring to go and ready to encourage the 8K runners.
“We always cheer on the long-distance runners,” Wentz said. “… They get all into that, too.”
Stuart Lindley, 45, a member of Pride’s Board of Directors, said he’s ran most of Pride’s races.
“I do it to support the community and the Pride of Kinston,” he said.
He usually starts running about a month before the race with friends. But this year, he has been swimming at the Woodmen Community Center.
His daughter, Anne Grayson, 12, will be racing for her third year. It’s usually a family event, but her mother has another commitment this year, Lindley said.
“My goal is to beat my age every year,” he said, “starting when I was 35.”
For information about Run for the River, call Tim Knobeloch, Kinston Parks and Recreation, 252-939-3336 or visit downtownkinston.com.
Margaret Fisher can be reached at 252-559-1082 or Margaret.Fisher@Kinston.com. Follow her on Twitter @MargaretFishr.
Breakout box:
What: Run for the River
When: 1 Mile Fun Run — 8:30 a.m., 8K race – 9 a.m., Saturday
Where: 1 Mile Fun Run — Neuseway Nature Center, 8K – Kinston Dog Park
Registration: Saturday beginning 7 a.m. at Neuseway (or pick up registration packets), or pre-register at the Pride of Kinston, 327 N. Queen St. or downtownkinston.com
Cost: 1 Mile Fun Run, $15; 8K race, $25 through Friday or $30 at the event
Welcome to the race party: 6 p.m., Friday, Hampton Inn
For information: Call Tim Knobeloch, Kinston Parks and Recreation, 252-939-3336.