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Fun Run to kick off Fourth of July events

5K returns to Park City for the 35th year

Coale Stangeland, decked out in an American flag covering, leads 1,058 runners from the starting line of last years July 4 5K Fun Run. The event will return for the 35th consecutive year on Tuesday morning.
Park Record File Photo

Before Main Street is flooded with decorated cars and floats for the annual Fourth of July parade, another group of roughly 1,000 Parkites will occupy Park City’s roads.

The Fourth of July 5K Fun Run, hosted by the newly formed Park City Ski & Snowboard Club, will make its return on Tuesday morning for the 35th consecutive year.

“The really cool thing about our run is it’s multigenerational,” said Jesse Hunt, executive director of the club. “It’s really a family event. When you get the families participating, it really makes for a great, fun event on the Fourth of July.”

Registration for the event will take place at Cole Sport, with the start of the race happening up the street at Park City Resort. Race time is scheduled for 8 a.m., and with a slew of activities planned in Park City for the holiday, Hunt said the timing is ideal.

“It’s a great way to kick off the morning,” Hunt said. “You get your run in in the morning and then everybody heads up to the parade, just hangs out and has fun the rest of the day.”

Cole Sport, along with Industrial Supply, has been a big supporter of the Fun Run since its creation. The family owned business doesn’t have any plans to leave the event, either.

Before the Park City Ski & Snowboard Club came to fruition last month, the Fun Run, with the help of Cole Sport, was a major fundraiser for the Park City Ski Team. The event in the past has attracted more than 1,000 participants. Now that the team has combined forces with the community’s other youth winter sport programs, the hope is the race’s number of participants will grow.

“I was on the Park City Ski Team myself, so it was near and dear to my parents to try and help out at the time,” Adam Cole, son of Cole Sport owners Gary and Jana Cole, said. “Now, the ski team is combining to be the Park City Ski & Snowboard Club. I’m just hoping this partnership continues and grows in the future so that we can reach the whole community and not just the ski racing community.”

In addition to Cole Sport, another major sponsor for the event is Industrial Supply, which will again support the event’s raffle on Tuesday morning. Other sponsors include Jim Clifford Builders, Chase Bank, Vinto Pizzeria and Silver King Coffee.

Hunt is grateful for the continued encouragement the event and his program receive from the community.

“The partnership with them for three decades has been fantastic,” Hunt said. “It’s really allowed us to get support for our operating budget and allows us to provide good programs for the team.”

With temperatures peaking in the 90s and sunshine gracing Park City in recent weeks, it’s easy for locals to potentially forget winter programs such as the Park City Ski & Snowboard Club exist, Hunt said.

But Hunt and company offer a variety of programs in the summer, such as dryland training and ski camps, so the Fun Run is a welcome fundraiser this time of year.

“We’re basically operating year round,” Hunt said. “This event comes at a good time for us, because it’s in the offseason and we’re still trying to support our staff and support our programming this time of year.”

Pre-registration costs $20 for runners 11 and younger and $30 for runners 12 and older and can be done online at http://www.parkcityskiteam.org , http://www.runnercard.com or at Cole Sport. Race day registration costs $25 and $35, respectively, and will take place from 6:30-7:30 a.m. on Tuesday.

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