The Justice Run Is a Family Run
The Justice Run looked a little different for me this year. This
being year 5 of my consecutive participation, I decided to run the 5K (3 miles) with
my nieces and nephews. I’d like to pretend I did it as a kind of sacrificial
thing. You know, run with the kids and help them out. Really though, 3 miles is
about perfect for now. My knees can’t handle a faster pace at this point. I didn’t
want to force a longer run while I’m still recovering anyway. A total of 5 of us
did the run: Bella, Christian, Cooper, Emily and me. I ran with Emily the
entire way, while Christian and Cooper stayed together. Bella ran with one of
her friends.
Not that anyone has to stay together, but it’s more fun when
you have a partner. Emily is very quick for her age. She’s 9 and keeps a steady
11:00 minute pace. That’s easy for a short distance, but young kids don’t run
long distances unless someone shows them how. You might not think 3 miles is a
long distance, but for kids it’s certainly long. Most of them have only done, at
most, a mile for their gym class. The three miles forces them to slow down and
jog. It’s a tough ask with such young and competitive kids who want to sprint
everywhere. Christian and Cooper took off too quickly but seemed to correct about
halfway. They walked a little and ran a little. Bella and her friend stayed
less than a minute behind Emily and me. We walked a little but quickly got back
to pace in less than 30 seconds.
The races all started after 4:00 in the afternoon. I’m not
sure why the organizers went back to the late start. My first marathon was in 2022 here
at the Justice Run. We started at 4:00 back then as well, but since then all
the races have been at 7:00 am. That’s a more traditional time for races. Since
we’re on a public path though, they might need approvals for early times. Running
on the path in the mid-morning is a difficult feat with all the pedestrians
biking and pushing strollers by you. It’s not ideal for those watching their
time closely. For people just hoping to finish (yes, me) it’s less of a
problem. By early afternoon the path has cleared considerable.
Also it’s seriously muggy in Fort Worth in October. This
doesn’t seem to matter whether the start time is early or late. I can only
remember one year with cool weather. That was in 2023 when it rained. Since
then, it’s been humid and hot.
The 5K didn’t get going until 6:30 pm. At this point the sun
is starting to set. The last people across the line finish in the dark. Not to
mention, the rest of the runners doing the marathon still need to finish. The largest
number of runners do the 5K though, and we all use the same path. The longer
races obviously go further down the path before a turnaround.
The Justice Run adds participants every year, which means
they raise more money. I’m hoping one day they can do a run through the city. It’s
expensive when you need to shut down roads and enlist the police to manage the
traffic. JR is a fundraiser for women and children who’ve been victims of sex trafficking
after all. The organizer (Mercy Culture Church) isn't eager to give away
profits that would otherwise go to provide housing. But a run through the city
is superior in every way. I can see them getting big enough to make that
happen. For now, they’re happy with the public park.
Maybe next year I’ll get back to competing in a half
marathon. But if not, at least we’ve turned the JR into a family affair. I can’t
think of anything better.
