Once again,
the WSU Women Palouse Running Chicks team won first place in the Spokane Bloomsday road run Corporate Cup/Women’s Division.
the WSU Women Palouse Running Chicks team won first place in the Spokane Bloomsday road run Corporate Cup/Women’s Division.
Since 2002 — with the exception of 2004 with a female-male WSU team — the Chicks have won the division. In addition, the team has placed between third and fifth, as it did this year, in the overall Corporate Cup standings, which include all-female, all-male and mixed-gender teams.
The 12 kilometer (7.46 miles) Bloomsday run starts and ends in downtown Spokane, with hilly terrain, including “Doomsday Hill,” on the course. The 32nd annual run was held Sunday, May 4, with sunny skies and warm temperatures.
Team members are Jean Grammer, project associate, molecular biosciences; Vicki McCracken, professor, economic sciences; Katrina Mealey, associate professor, veterinary clinical sciences; Sharon White, senior art director, marketing communications; and Norah McCabe, clinical assistant professor, molecular biosciences.
Close friendships have developed with team members because “some of us have run with each other for over 20 years,” said White.
In preparation each year for Bloomsday, team members train four to six days a week, typically running by themselves or with partners starting about 5:30 a.m.
“Several of us were out there running in the snow that caused the university to shut down,” said Grammer, the team’s leader. “Both Katrina and Vicki are training for marathons, so they are putting in a lot of miles.”
