Running Like a Mother on Mother's Day

Keeping with the underlying empowerment message of the annual Run Like a Mother 5K run, the 38 degree temperature and 25 mile-per-hour winds did not stop 865 women and 167 kids from crossing the finish line on Sunday morning.

In its third year, RLAM attracts women of all ages and fitness levels from across the area and invites women to jumpstart their Mother's Day with the high of a healthful lifestyle.

The new course finish through the iron gates of Ballard Park added a new dimension to the already popular race, allowing spectators to line the sidewalks and cheer for the swarms of women who pounded the bumpy Main Street pavement that had just been ripped up for repaving earlier in the week.

Meanwhile, race participants, hearing the blaring music and festivities in the park signaling they were near the end, made their way up the Market Street hill and then down toward the crowds.

Eight of the top 10 finishers, including the top three, were from Ridgefield, with Morgan Cotter way ahead of the pack with a time of 18:59. Allison DeMartino placed second with a time of 20:33 and Leslie Krichko-Townsend third with a time of 21:02.

"The sad thing about the race for me is I don't get to see the finish line," organizer Megan Searfoss said.

Despite the biting cold and wind, Ballard Park was full of "heat and warmth," according to Searfoss, who had to pull several of the amenities at the last minute due to the weather, including having Ridgefield's Youth Chamber Orchestra play along the course, as well as setting up festive tents.

But one activity that did not get pulled was the post-race Zumba party, in which about 75 adults and children participated, dancing away the cold while getting some extra exercise.

East Ridge Middle School eighth grader Tara Mazur kicked off both the kids' race and the 5K with "The Star-Spangled Banner" and Mariah Carey's inspirational "When You Believe," with her father, Rick, accompanying her on acoustic guitar. First Selectman Rudy Marconi spoke and then used his own air horn to signal the start of the 5K.

Searfoss said she was extremely grateful to all the people who made the event come to life.

"This event is about women being able to say, 'I did something for myself and my kids got to see it,'" Searfoss said.

First-time racer Margaret Salmore of Ridgefield agreed.

"I was always so intimidated," she said of racing, but thought, "I need this for myself."

She happened to be out for a run in town with a friend the day of the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving, and they got caught up in the excitement and decided that day to sign up for RLAM.

Though beating her anticipated time by over a minute was a highlight, Salmore said that the best part was teaching her five-year-old son, Jake, that winning isn't everything.

"He kept asking me, 'Are you going to win? What about second?' I had to explain to him that I was not going to win—I was just going to have fun and finish with a smile on my face. And I think he understood when he saw my face when I finished."

Though the race attracts many of Ridgefield's talented female runners—29 of the top 50 runners were from Ridgefield—the real story is in the women who get out there and do their best with the support of their families and friends.

"What happened [on Sunday] and the last three years is really remarkable," Searfoss said.

(Editor's Note: The author came in 82nd in RLAM according to preliminary race results. Go Sarah!)