Runners from as far away as Puerto Rico and as near as downtown Flossmoor gathered early Saturday for the town’s fourth Hidden Gem Half-Marathon, an event fresh off winning the coveted 2022 Runners’ Choice Circuit “Race of the Year,” by the Chicago-Area Runner’s Association.
Flossmoor vied with 14 other races for this year’s award, with contenders ranging from recent winners Evanston, Oak Park, and the Lakefront 10 to the Chicago Marathon itself.
More Top Picks Best Portable Cd Players
“It’s like the Grammys of race awards,” said Tim Bradley, CARA executive director. “For how young this race is, they’ve grown really quickly in awareness.
Bradley explained the award is akin to an MVP, so rarely goes to the same town two years in a row.
“You really have to outdo yourself, so it will be interesting,” he said. “People have been really impressed by the friendliness of the community and their level of involvement.”
One of those involved from the very beginning, Brent Bacchus, a Hidden Gem race director, said it’s been impressive to watch volunteers grow the Gem from an idea floated in a area running group to the first race five years ago to this year’s competition, which included more than 1,000 runners from 25 states. He said it’s gratifying to watch awareness spread coast-to-coast, with runners hailing anywhere from California, Texas, Washington and Idaho to Massachusetts and Maryland.
“Just as important as the runners is the incredible outpouring of engagement from our community,” Bacchus said, adding this year more than 500 people volunteered in an official capacity, alongside the countless community members out cheering and celebrating the race, and each other.
“In year four now, we’ve gotten so much better at figuring out how to pull off an event like this; we’re like a well-oiled machine,” he said. “But the reason runners rate this race so high is 100% due to the outpouring of energy, enthusiasm and encouragement our community shows them.”
Among those community members were Flossmoor resident Karen Ford, who strolled the street to cheer the runners on with sons Malachi, 2, and on his own bicycle this year, Roman, 5. Ford said she’s enjoyed watching the Gem tradition grow.
“We love this,” she said, adding next year they might venture to a different vantage point. Roman was content with this year’s placement.
“My favorite thing is giving them the water,” he said, adding he likes watching the runners, too. “My mommy can run a mile.”
First-time Hidden Gem participant, Maureen Miller, of Chicago, joined other seasoned runners who, after finishing their own races, jogged the sidewalk along the final stretch cheering on others. She said while she was delighted with the day and plans to come back, the participation from Homewood-Flossmoor High School students really stood out.
“I am so grateful to the students for getting up early on a Saturday,” she enthused. “The drum line was so great. Oh, and the cheerleaders! I just loved it.”
Kyle Ashe, who ran his third Gem Saturday, shares that love so much he named his nascent, high-end guitar shop after the race.
“The highlight for me is all of the community support along the race route,” he said. “So many folks are out front cheering, playing music, offering water, kids dancing in costumes; it truly makes running 13 miles as fun as possible.”
Asche said he’d kicked ideas for a handful of names around, but none stuck. Until, like Bike the Gem, an annual community bike tour of the race course, and Plant the Gem, a tree-planting initiative that yielded more than 300 new trees planted along Flossmoor parkways by roughly 250 volunteers, the race organizers’ message took root.
“As I was running the race last year, I was just thinking about how lovely our community is, and how the moniker Hidden Gem really rings true,” he said. “My next thought was Hidden Gem Guitars sounds nice!”
Asche said, “to make sure I wasn’t stepping on any toes,” he cleared the name with Flossmoor Mayor Michelle Nelson, herself an avid runner spotted waving at constituents along the route. Nelson, who didn’t run the inaugural year (she was helping organize entertainment) has been a fixture at every Gem since.
“She loved the name, and has provided lots of support,” Asche said.
That community spirit was echoed by volunteer Phillippa Leon-Thompson, out just after dawn Saturday spray painting cheerful purple gem stencils along the route to prevent errant groups from running astray.
“I love it. What girl doesn’t love gems?” she queried while moving briskly down the street. “Do you know any?”
Laura Bruni is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.