Running In The Blood Blackfeet Indian Youths Get A Running Start At Bloomsday

They’re descendants of an ancient people - skilled runners who roamed the Great Plains.

Today, the Blackfeet Indians no longer chase buffalo down cliffs. Nor do they wander far from their reservation - their traditional homeland, although greatly reduced in size.

But running is still in their blood. And a group of Blackfeet youths welcomes the opportunity to travel to Spokane once a year to carry on that heritage.

The Bloomsday trip is one of the highlights of the year, said 16-year-old Autumn No Runner, who ran the race despite her name.

For the past nine years, from 12 to 20 Blackfeet youths from Browning, Mont., have run in Bloomsday.

It’s usually the only chance they get to leave Browning - a small town suffering from high unemployment and poverty.

“This gives them an opportunity to see a little more of the world,” said Steve Linder, a teacher who started the program in 1989.

Known as Running Start for Blackfeet Youth, the program enables students to learn about fitness and training. Linder, who also coaches the Browning High School cross country team, receives a $3,000 grant every year from the Washington, D.C.-based program, Running Strong for American Indian Youth.

The participants - 12 years old and up - usually are faster than most other kids their age. Many run Bloomsday in less than an hour.

Two months before the race, Linder sends letters home with the youths, asking them if they would be willing to train for Bloomsday. To be part of the team, candidates have to run in a qualifying race in Browning.

When the students come to Spokane, their eyes grow big and their mouths gape in awe.

“This is the biggest city I’ve ever been in,” said 16-year-old Roy McNabb. “Browning’s boring. We don’t have malls there.”

They’re even more surprised to learn that Bloomsday runners this year totaled nearly as many people as the entire population of Great Falls, Mont.

“Spokane’s so big,” said Jessica Sure Chief, 16. “I … I want to live here.”

This year’s 12-member group left Browning on Saturday morning. After arriving in Spokane after a seven-hour van ride, they wandered around the Bloomsday trade show before going to NorthTown Mall. Just hours after the race, they headed home.

“Browning is just one step above a Third World country,” said George Calftail, one of the chaperons. “This is a rare opportunity for them. It gives them confidence.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo