It’s Freezing, But Fun Runners And Softball Players Enjoy Medical Lake’s Seventh Annual Snowfest

Sun., Jan. 26, 1997

Virginia De Leon Staff writer

Call it craziness or cabin fever.

One of the two - or both - possessed more than 300 people Saturday to either run around Medical Lake or play softball in the snow.

“Why are we here?” asked Kathy Gronlund of Spokane. “Are we insane?” As the wind chill dipped below zero, she and fellow softball players jumped in place to keep warm between innings. The game at Medical Lake’s Waterfront Park was part of Snowfest, the city’s seventh annual winter festival.

With more than 5 inches of snow on the ground Saturday, it was hard for players to stay graceful on the field.

Some fell as they hobbled in their knee-high Sorrels from base to base. Others tripped and landed face down. A daring few ended up eating snow as they dove for the bases.

“This is a slip-and-slide kind of game,” said Joe Perez, who skipped work to play center field for the Maxwell House team. “You have to fumble around a lot. The hardest thing to do is stay warm.”

Wrapped in a bright orange blanket, Perez and other teammates huddled together on the bench - shivering despite the long johns and three additional layers of clothing, standing every now and then to cheer their team on.

Like the 14 other Spokane-area teams that competed at this year’s Snowfest, Maxwell House plays all year long, but rarely on snow.

“It’s cold but fun,” said Ken Franks of Spokane. “It’s better than sitting around the house and being a couch potato.”

Some just enjoy the game, he said, no matter what the turf looks like. Last year, even blizzardlike conditions didn’t stop them.

When Snowfest started in 1990, Medical Lake Parks and Recreation officials envisioned an event with ice sculpting, cross country skiing, and ice hockey for the kids.

But it didn’t snow much that year. Or the next.

In 1992, the city ditched the traditional snow festival events and opted for a three-mile fun run around the lake and a softball tournament.

As teams competed against each other Saturday at the park’s two baseball diamonds, more than 100 runners and walkers made their way to the finish line nearby.

For the participants, it was either move or freeze to death - unless you came prepared like Alex and Amelia Gilmore of Nine Mile Falls. The 9-year-old twins, who came to watch their mother play softball, sat in the bleachers with their red-nosed faces peeping out of thick, worn sleeping bags.

“It’s freezing but it’s fun,” Alex said.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 Color Photos

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