5K Roadie Run races in an exhilarating start to Festival of the Lakes events

The sound of hundreds of sneakers hitting the pavement echoed around Hammond’s Wolf Lake Pavilion (PAV) during the annual Kathleen Pucalik Memorial 5K Roadie Run on July 12. Hosted by Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. and The City of Hammond Department of Parks and Recreation, the run was a fun way to engage and hype up the community leading into next week’s highly anticipated Festival of the Lakes- even if the Mayor himself was feeling the pressure of the race.

“I’m the mark, so everybody wants to beat me out here,” McDermott said with a laugh. “It’s not a pleasant feeling to be the mayor at the roadie run, because it’s very competitive. Everybody wants to beat me… I think everybody else enjoys it, but the mayor doesn’t get to enjoy this one. That’s just how it is.”

Runners got to their marks first thing on Saturday, arriving at the PAV as early as 6:30 a.m. In between checking in and waiting for the action to start at 8 a.m., attendees had the chance to mingle with one another and visit many of the vendor’s pop-up booths, including the Calumet Striders Run Club and other event sponsors. Once the clock struck the top of the hour, McDermott led the charge of the race at takeoff.

As the runners began the race, the younger athletes shortly followed behind, with the one mile kid’s race beginning at 8:05 a.m. A 5K walk also happened at that time.

McDermott enjoys just how much this race unites athletes of all ages, creating a strong sense of community for all Northwest Indiana runners alike, inspired by an old friend and prominent member of the community.

“It’s a race that we’ve been doing for over 20 years in the City of Hammond. It was named in honor of Kathy Bucha, a former Councilwoman in Hammond, who we lost too early. She and I used to race each other every year at this race, and I would lose to her every year. So I’ve extended that tradition to losing against everybody that runs in this race. But we do it in memory of Cathy. We miss her very much.” McDermott said.

Following the race, awards were presented in various categories and age groups. This included the overall top two male and female finishers, overall top two male and female master finishers, top three awards in Athena (170 lbs.+) and Clydesdale (210 lbs.+) and top three male and female finishers in each age division.

Hammond Chief of Staff Scott Miller, who was also in attendance, was additionally pleased to see all the runners gather for the Roadie Run. It was a great way to start the Festival of the Lakes excitement, and with such high energy surrounding the race, he can’t wait to see what the atmosphere is like in the days to follow.

“It’s great to see all these people coming out and seeing a beautiful part of Hammond right along Wolf Lake. At forty-nine years old, I’m just trying to have a competitive race,”  said Miller. “I think what’s unique about this race is the scenery right here off the lake, and it coincides with one of our kickoff events for the Festival of the Lakes. We’ll have 100,000 people out here for the festival.“

Festival of the Lakes kicks off on Wednesday, July 16, with John Fogerty taking the stage on opening night. To learn more about what’s in store for this year’s festival, visit festivalofthelakes.com.

For more information about other exciting events happening in the City of Hammond, visit gohammond.com.